East Side Quail / Chuckar

Trout Tako · 01-07-2004, 12:18 PM

My Lab needs to stretch her legs.

I'm thinking of heading out east for an upland bird trip on sunday (Chuckar & Quail). Any suggestions as to where I can get into some good shooting with out driving over to the edge of the earth? & suggestions on how to find the chuckar? (quail I (my dog) can usually find if they are around.) I know the hunt up hill, in canyons part. I just need the right hills in the right canyons!

Tako

SLEDDER · 01-07-2004, 01:13 PM

Hay creek canyon east of Wasco. Using a BLM map, allows you to stay on public land. Birds will hang around the edge of the wheat fields.

Trout Tako · 01-09-2004, 10:40 AM

Sledder,

Thanks for the tip, Ill check it out. Which is the best route to get to the Hay Creek Canyon? I'll be getting a map today.

ajfishfinder · 01-09-2004, 11:39 PM

As long as your going to be in the area, hit the Deschutes. I have done pretty decent just driving down the access road to Macks canyon. If your lucky you might have fresh snow and be able to just hunt from spotting tracks from the road. Have fun and let us know how you do.

Trout Tako · 01-12-2004, 12:55 PM

Well, I headed out there on Sunday but the snow was 2' deep & had a 1/2" crust of Ice on it. My dog would fall through about every other step & I had to fight for every inch. I went home & watched football. Nothing like 5 hrs of driving for a 15min walk in the snow! I did see about 12 pheasants running around the highway, which was interesting.

Had better luck on Saturday, hunting the sandy river delta. Geese & ducks all over. We took home 7 but were hitting about 15% to 20% of our shots. Should have limited out on ducks. I think I got one of those defective boxes of shells that Remington sent out. The ones they forgot to put the BB's in. By the end of the day I was reduced to firing my gun three times to get their attention, running to the edge of the bank, and trying to hit them with verbal insults to knock them into the water. All the while my lab sat in the blind & shook her head.

All I could do to make my self feel better was point out the fact (to my dog), that had she been as far up the evolutionary chain as me, & had the sense to develop opposable thumbs, she could shoot her own darn ducks & not have to rely on me to do it for her. To which she replied by snorting, walking to the corner of the blind, and taking a snooze.

Tako