Quick trip to Kansas

[mporter012]

Ended up with a couple extra days this week, so going to run the GSP in Kansas on my way back to colorado. I'll be coming up through Wichita and across i-70, any advice on some public we can hit? Just looking for contacts with the dog, quail or pheasant, would be cool to run into quail! Let me know if you have any input

 

[huntineveryday]

I live in South Central Nebraska, from Southwest Nebraska and hunt both areas throughout the season. We are in a pretty bad drought here, less cover around and bird numbers are down. I have friends that jump the border and hunt North Central Kansas, they are seeing the same thing down into that area as well. This would be south of Harlan Reservoir-ish for reference. They thought things looked better the closer to I-70 they got. Southwest Nebraska is awful. Cover and birds are in considerably worse shape than they were with the drought of 2012. I have a friend that is from Atwood, they said it extends south at least that far. I'd guess that Oberlin to Bird City is probably going to be hard hunting, but I'm not sure how far south that extends.

 

[mporter012]

I live in South Central Nebraska, from Southwest Nebraska and hunt both areas throughout the season. We are in a pretty bad drought here, less cover around and bird numbers are down. I have friends that jump the border and hunt North Central Kansas, they are seeing the same thing down into that area as well. This would be south of Harlan Reservoir-ish for reference. They thought things looked better the closer to I-70 they got. Southwest Nebraska is awful. Cover and birds are in considerably worse shape than they were with the drought of 2012. I have a friend that is from Atwood, they said it extends south at least that far. I'd guess that Oberlin to Bird City is probably going to be hard hunting, but I'm not sure how far south that extends.

I've heard to drought is bad your way, as well. We were in N. Dakota early season and it was actually good, lots of cover. In CO, it's bad, as usual, but it's esp. tough with no cover. I'll check out some public off i-70 on the way back and see what I find

 

[AKG]

Spent a few days looking for pheasant last week. I've hunted SE Kansas quail for quite a few years but decided to head west. Lacrosse to Ellis the first afternoon, very little cover on most wihas we checked ran dogs through a handful and found a few hens on one with some crp that was thigh high in a few spots. Decided to move north and east hoping to find better conditions and stayed in Russell that night found a couple hens on a wiha with some milo stubble that was just over knee high. Kept heading NE and hunted around belleview the next morning, struck out and headed home. Roads that last day were beginning to thaw and were very slick mud so I didn't cover as much ground as I hoped to. Good luck

 

[Dos Perros]

I would let this guide you: https://droughtmonitor.unl.edu/CurrentMap/StateDroughtMonitor.aspx?KS

I deer hunt the western third of the state and can confirm the bird numbers are abysmal due to drought. Cover looks awful. Lots of it not even worth slowing down to look at. My friends have had good hunts in the yellow region, but I don't think it's a gimmie.

 

[wabash503]

Stay easy of 35 for quail. NW of Hays is the best pheasant density.