Dear MAHA, The end of the upland season is here again . . . way too soon I would like to add. I was blessed this year to make 4 trips from Arizona to hunt multiple counties in [location deleted]. This season was different because I spent many more days hunting with a friend/friends in the association and one trip with a guest (neighbor from Arizona), instead of typically hunting alone. The total number of days spent upland hunting in [location deleted] was 20+ and I will always be in debt to my wife, Karen, for running the home while I was gone on each adventure. Karen did make one trip out but only one.
This was the first year I had the enjoyment of hunting with my own GSP, Jayzie, that started the season off at a mere 6 1/2 months old in the November hunts. I did all of the training the months prior and the large expense on well over 200 pigeons, quail, and chukar paid off immensely. I worked my 11 year old lab, Westie (with 3 leg operations), that finished off the season with absolutely beautiful tracks to flushes. If Westie smells it . . . she will find it! I also worked my 4 year old lab, Triton, and he was the my "workhorse" dog. With these 2 dogs, I felt I would be happy if my new pointer would just have fun and find and point "some" birds, BUT from the first trip to the last trip, each time I pulled Jayzie out of the suburban, she would amaze me how quickly she learned to handle those pheasants!
I usually mention how many birds I shot and the dogs retrieved, but since I hunted many days with someone else it would be better to just total up the number of birds the dogs retrieved . . . 80+ pheasants and 50+ quail. Of the 50+ quail, 30+ where on the last trip the last week of January. I don't specifically hunt for quail but if the dogs find them I shoot and then pursue one or two singles, rarely taking more than 2 from a covey. I get my quail hunting here in Arizona chasing Gambels and Blues around (they act just like pheasants because they would rather run than fly).
The habitat we have in the Association is outstanding and I feel improving each year. I do like the ability to hunt CRP, wheat, corn, and milo stubble, and weed fields. I really like the weed fields, and we should thank the farmers that are "no till." My goal this year was to not hunt land I had hunted last year until I had walked all of the new leases. I didn't quite make that goal because on those few days in which I hadn't seen or bagged some pheasant, I broke down and went to a "honey hole." At the end of the season I think I had walked all of the land in the counties I hunt. I always enjoy getting the new maps and the anticipation of the new leases. I learned a long time ago to not spend time thinking about the "honey hole" lease that was lost in the new year, but spend time anticipating the new lease and the new "honey hole."
Every trip this year was in mud and/or snow, as I would drive into [location deleted] it would start to rain, snow or ice. Hunting in the ice storm was absolutely beautiful. The dogs had a real hard time but the birds held, at least some of them. The carry over to this spring looks encouraging. The final 3 days of hunting in January was in snow and that revealed an unbelievable number of pheasant tracks and if I was a rabbit hunter, Wow, lots of them also! There were two fields specifically I have hunted the past 3 years I want to mention. Part of these fields are pasture that have not been grazed in 3 years and each have 3 coveys of quail instead of 1 covey in the grazed years.
I have recently talked to a friend in Texas who leased 700 acres for $2500 (5 members), quail only. My friend shot 2 quail off of it ($250 per quail). He is not a bad hunter, he just had bad luck on a lease that is surrounded by habitat with loads of quail but not on his lease this year. I am originally from Texas and know that the price for MAHA is a bargain. I am hopeful my 8 year old twin boys will be able to enjoy the [location deleted] adventure soon!
Again, thanks for all of the hard work year-round that the staff at MAHA does for the member. Good huntin' Kenneth, Karen, Jacob, Zachary plus Westie, Triton, Jayzie and Socks (the cat) |
