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How long do you hunt?

Posted: Fri Feb 08, 2013 10:19 pm
by Stoneface
How many hours do you stay out when you're hunting? If you hunt, then break and pick up in the afternoon, what is your typical itinerary?

I can honestly say I've never been knee-deep in birds, never been hunting any place you'd consider bird country. Always wound up hitting the sticks in places where a dog making a find is the exception rather than the rule, so for me a hunt usually consists of two hours, three at most. I'll usually either make up my mind beforehand whether I'm going after a covey I have pinged or trying a new spot and looking for coveys to add to the repertoire, but sometimes will head out with one objective for an hour or so then hit another spot with another objective an hour or so later. After five or six outtings without any birds to speak of whatsoever, it begins to feel like you're fishing in the bath tub. Thanks heaven I discovered the massive droves of Woodcock we get in Missouri! That's going to be a life saver.

Re: How long do you hunt?

Posted: Fri Feb 08, 2013 11:39 pm
by slistoe
A typical day for us will be dusk till dawn. We walk in 2 hour circles taking a bit of a break between for a total of 8 or 10 hours of boots to dirt in a day. With a limit of 10 Huns, 5 Sharptail and 2 Pheasant daily I have never had the occasion to have to quit early.

Re: How long do you hunt?

Posted: Sat Feb 09, 2013 8:51 am
by Doc E
Depends on the time of year and what we're hunting.
Anywhere from 5 hours to 10 hours.


.

Re: How long do you hunt?

Posted: Sat Feb 09, 2013 9:49 am
by Winchey
30 minutes to 7 hours. Sometimes longer if you count duck hunting.

Re: How long do you hunt?

Posted: Sat Feb 09, 2013 11:38 am
by JKP
6-8 hours/day when we are out in ND....4-6 hours when grouse hunting her in the east. Most of the day in ND is spent getting young dogs time on the ground. We will also spend mornings for an hour or two over decoys.

Re: How long do you hunt?

Posted: Sat Feb 09, 2013 11:47 am
by deseeker
Around home just in the mornings(4-5 hours). Out of state = all day hunts unless it is ND, then we have our limit by noon (lota birds up there :!: ) :D :D

Re: How long do you hunt?

Posted: Sat Feb 09, 2013 12:22 pm
by Aslowhiteguy
Anywhere from a couple of hours to walking back with a flashlight.

Re: How long do you hunt?

Posted: Sat Feb 09, 2013 1:20 pm
by Hattrick
Dawn till dusk

Re: How long do you hunt?

Posted: Sat Feb 09, 2013 6:50 pm
by birddogger
Back when the Bobs were plentiful around my area and I had access to plenty of private property, we would be on the ground by 8:00 A.M., break for lunch and head back out, never quitting before dusk. I would do this on every day off during the season, which was only a couple of months or less long. Used the same dog/dogs all day, every day too. Now days, it is usually 2 to 4 hrs at most unless we are out of state. :(

Charlie

Re: How long do you hunt?

Posted: Sat Feb 09, 2013 6:59 pm
by Mountaineer
Depends upon the weather, the dogs, the birds, the critter, the need, the ol' rickety self.....why on earth is such an indefinable number of interest.
One may as well ask what is one's favorite scattergun gauge or load or barrel length.

Re: How long do you hunt?

Posted: Sat Feb 09, 2013 8:12 pm
by mask
For you boys that hunt all day or dawn till dusk. How many birds are you killing from dawn till dusk. I don't know why anyone would want to hunt all day. First of all I would miss cocktail hour and secondly the limit here is 8, while we usually only kill 6 to 8 birds a day, if I had to hunt all day for a limit I would be looking for new dogs and partners. :lol:

Re: How long do you hunt?

Posted: Sat Feb 09, 2013 8:31 pm
by UpNorthHuntin
mask wrote: if I had to hunt all day for a limit I would be looking for new dogs and partners. :lol:
In Michigan anymore you are lucky if you see eight birds in a day. It sure isn't what it used to be. I remember when I was younger and could walk the creek accross the street and have a ouple Grouse and a couple woodcock in 30 minutes and be home in an hour. Not so anymore. Pheasants as well. There was a cornfield across the street and when you walked through it slowly you could see Pheasants in nearly every corn row. Now they are non-existent. I wish Michigan would invest in upland birds like many of the states out west do.

Re: How long do you hunt?

Posted: Sat Feb 09, 2013 8:51 pm
by SetterNut
Around home I hunt 4-6 hours. On and travel hunt, its pretty much all day.

Re: How long do you hunt?

Posted: Sun Feb 10, 2013 6:10 pm
by Trekmoor
Sorry to insert this red herring but what is the likely cause of the dearth of game birds in places where there used to be plenty ?

I usually hunt anything from about 2 hours to 6 hours per day.

Bill T.

Re: How long do you hunt?

Posted: Sun Feb 10, 2013 6:17 pm
by UpNorthHuntin
Trekmoor wrote:Sorry to insert this red herring but what is the likely cause of the dearth of game birds in places where there used to be plenty ?

I usually hunt anything from about 2 hours to 6 hours per day.

Bill T.
Normally I would say hunters, but not the case in my old stomping grounds. There are no bird hunters. Predetaors are the problem. Coyotes are out of controll, and the State does very little IMHO to support the habitat. Much of that is due to the amount of hunters I'm sure. The state of Michigan makes alot more on Deer Hunters and Steelhead Fisherman, so the birds take a back seat when it comes to management.

Re: How long do you hunt?

Posted: Sun Feb 10, 2013 6:29 pm
by Mountaineer
Trekmoor wrote:Sorry to insert this red herring but what is the likely cause of the dearth of game birds in places where there used to be plenty ?
Loss of or change in habitat...two different conditions
Spring weather conditions, hatch and post-hatch
Nest predators
Avain predators
DNR focus based often upon what is presently popular or what is easy to manage and elicits no obstructionist lawsuits, ie from the SELC.
Then there follows another couple dozens reasons that may or may not increase in importance past the traditional, dependent upon where any particular gamebird is on it's population curve....trending up or in decline.

Re: How long do you hunt?

Posted: Sun Feb 10, 2013 6:34 pm
by bonasa
I agree with winchey on the 30 min to 7 hours. Woodcock on the early ends and grouse on the long days. On average 2-4 hours on the ground not counting covert travel.

Re: How long do you hunt?

Posted: Sun Feb 10, 2013 7:19 pm
by Stoneface
I've never been a whiz when it comes to conservation or bird husbandry or anything, but just a little common sense tells me it's almost entirely (1) loss of food and (2) cover. About twenty years ago the reports are that people could walk up covey after covey on their way to school, even without a dog. Back in the day people weren't as "efficient" in their farming and, for that matter, there were a lot more folks actually farming crops that the birds could eat off of. Just sitting here thinking of it, I can't think of anything besides my landlord's garden that raises crops. I mean, there are plenty of cow pastures, hay fields, etc, but the farmer's daughter of yesteryear inherited the family farm, decided it was easier to get a 9-5er in the city and commute, so her production dried up and along with it dried up the bird population.

Re: How long do you hunt?

Posted: Mon Feb 11, 2013 8:18 am
by UpNorthHuntin
Stoneface wrote:I've never been a whiz when it comes to conservation or bird husbandry or anything, but just a little common sense tells me it's almost entirely (1) loss of food and (2) cover. About twenty years ago the reports are that people could walk up covey after covey on their way to school, even without a dog. Back in the day people weren't as "efficient" in their farming and, for that matter, there were a lot more folks actually farming crops that the birds could eat off of. Just sitting here thinking of it, I can't think of anything besides my landlord's garden that raises crops. I mean, there are plenty of cow pastures, hay fields, etc, but the farmer's daughter of yesteryear inherited the family farm, decided it was easier to get a 9-5er in the city and commute, so her production dried up and along with it dried up the bird population.
In Michigan anymore you are not even aloud to hunt Quail in two of the three zones anymore. I used to walk home from our bus stop after school about 1/4 mile to the house. I would see thousands of Quail in all the fields. Now, they are just gone. Michigan is doing a little now for conservation and creation of new habitat, but they haven't gotten it right yet. Grouse numbers are bouncing back, and I know they go in 10 year cycles much like the bunnies, but they have been steadily declining for over 10 years. Not a lot of bird hunters in most parts where I hunt, so the numbers are looking fairly good. Just need a little more selective cutting and poplar/aspen planting to bring them to where they used to be.

Re: How long do you hunt?

Posted: Mon Feb 11, 2013 8:45 am
by tfbirddog2
When guiding at preserve we hunt for 3 to 3 1/2 haurs in the morning and around 4 hours in the afternoon. I dont hunt much different when of the preserve either, dogs get a good luch break bout 2 hours or so.

Re: How long do you hunt?

Posted: Mon Feb 11, 2013 12:38 pm
by duckn66
Actual boots on the ground maybe 4 hrs within a couple hours of the house. I don't get up at the break of day anymore (except to duck hunt).

Re: How long do you hunt?

Posted: Wed Feb 13, 2013 7:11 pm
by joshlaugh
Usually 1-4 hrs. Hard to limit in Ohio, but does depend on what I am hunting. Not many upland birds left around me, except for dove.

Re: How long do you hunt?

Posted: Wed Feb 13, 2013 7:41 pm
by Grange
During the week I go out after work and can only get around 2 hours earlier in the season and then down to an hour before daylight savings ends. From Friday through Sunday I try to get out by 10 am and may hunt until close with a break for a bite to eat.

Re: How long do you hunt?

Posted: Fri Feb 15, 2013 8:18 pm
by buckeyebowman
UpNorthHuntin wrote:
Trekmoor wrote:Sorry to insert this red herring but what is the likely cause of the dearth of game birds in places where there used to be plenty ?

I usually hunt anything from about 2 hours to 6 hours per day.

Bill T.
Normally I would say hunters, but not the case in my old stomping grounds. There are no bird hunters. Predetaors are the problem. Coyotes are out of controll, and the State does very little IMHO to support the habitat. Much of that is due to the amount of hunters I'm sure. The state of Michigan makes alot more on Deer Hunters and Steelhead Fisherman, so the birds take a back seat when it comes to management.
You got that right, there are hardly any upland bird hunters left around here any more! We belong to a hunting club that stocks pheasant during the season. If it wasn't for that we wouldn't see a pheasant at all! My first bird season in the club, i was like a little kid at Christmas! I almost forgot about deer hunting because it had been so long since I was able to bird hunt! The grouse have gone away too, and I think it's because of predators. And the fact that Ohio now values turkeys above all other wild birds! You can sell tags for turkeys but not for other birds. Back when I was a kid folk would shoot owls and hawks because they knew what they would do the game bird population. I know some of you are gasping in astonishment now, but it really did happen. Plus, nowadays we have an overabundance of raccoon which are nest raiders and coyotes on top of that! How does an upland game bird have a chance here?

Anyway, we'll hunt any where from 1/2 a day to a full day with a break in the middle. Thank God the dogs wear out a lot later than we do! :D

Re: How long do you hunt?

Posted: Sat Feb 16, 2013 10:48 am
by UpNorthHuntin
buckeyebowman wrote:
You got that right, there are hardly any upland bird hunters left around here any more! We belong to a hunting club that stocks pheasant during the season. If it wasn't for that we wouldn't see a pheasant at all! My first bird season in the club, i was like a little kid at Christmas! I almost forgot about deer hunting because it had been so long since I was able to bird hunt! The grouse have gone away too, and I think it's because of predators. And the fact that Ohio now values turkeys above all other wild birds! You can sell tags for turkeys but not for other birds. Back when I was a kid folk would shoot owls and hawks because they knew what they would do the game bird population. I know some of you are gasping in astonishment now, but it really did happen. Plus, nowadays we have an overabundance of raccoon which are nest raiders and coyotes on top of that! How does an upland game bird have a chance here?

Anyway, we'll hunt any where from 1/2 a day to a full day with a break in the middle. Thank God the dogs wear out a lot later than we do! :D
I think one of the biggest problems is in the promotion of the sport. Look at the Magazine Subscriptions, Television Shows, etc.. Two shows on that are dedicated to upland game hunting, and I have Direct TV with like 300 channels. There are only a few magazines out there dedicated to upland bird hunting. Then look at the Deer Hunting Craze. I love to deer hunt as well, but really. Coverage of Monster Bucks is 24/7. I see more shows for bear hunting than bird hunting and I would argue that there are many more bird hunters than bear hunters. In order to get the conservation effort in the Great Lakes region that is needed to restore the bird habitat, a lot needs to be done in the area of promoting the sport and making it a concern of all.

Re: How long do you hunt?

Posted: Tue Feb 19, 2013 10:02 pm
by isonychia
I just read an interesting article about cyotes and wild bird populations. Coyotes, while they put birds down, apparently put more feral and "outdoor" cats out of the picture, which kill birds like babies drink milk. This hints at the fact that coyote actually help. If you want to do birds a favor, don't have cats, and don't worry about hunting coyote, it does very little to decrease population size. On another note, my personal vote goes towards this list of factors contributing to bird decline, from most significant to least;

Re: How long do you hunt?

Posted: Wed Feb 20, 2013 8:44 am
by QuillGordon
I like to go as long as the ole legs will carry me. Just like being out there watchin the hound work & enjoy seeing the country. I'm usually the last one back to the truck due to this reason

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