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A couple late December PA grouse

PAFishrun

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Joined
Nov 25, 2018
Messages
10
Location
York County, PA
A couple 2nd to last day PA birds. Hate to see the season come to an end so soon. It'll just be squirrels and maybe some leftover stocked phez from Dec 26th to the end of February. I miss having a late grouse season that ends in late January.


IMG_6906.jpg
 
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Very nice. I thought about getting out today, but the wind was just brutal in my area. You're very lucky to have found grouse, let alone a limit.
 
Nice birds and artillery. Could use that pic for a Beretta ad. It is a shame the later season is no more. Not to start another debate but I would have thought the deer herd reduction would have helped the grouse come back a little more. I see less hunters in the woods all the time , I doubt the late season has much of an affect on overall grouse numbers. Heck, they're in no danger from my shooting!
 
Just curious, with or without a dog? Did you have a good number of flushes before getting these?

Thanks for the comments on the photo. I was hunting with dogs. The first spot I ran my older setter and he pointed two in the first thirty minutes. I only heard the first bird flush, but got a good look at the next and was able to get him with the second shot. I ran my younger setter in the next two spots and only had one wild flush, which I shot. So, only three birds moved in about three and a half hours of hunting. Two of the three spots usually hold more birds, so I expected to move more, but I certainly won't complain when I'm able to bring birds home. I don't record flush rates, but I'd say if you can average 1 to 1.5 flushes an hour, you're doing ok here in PA currently.

I rarely see other grouse hunters. I think Saturday was the first time I saw another grouse hunter that I wasn't hunting with. I also have doubts that the closure of the late season will have any effects. There aren't that many bird hunters. Although, there are also fewer places where there's decent hunting. I have to drive two hours to get to places where I can consistently find birds and have decisions on which spots I want to hunt. So, I don't know what the correct answer is other than cut more trees.
 
I would have to imagine with all the rain that we've had in PA this year that the west nile virus was really bad. I only got out a few times, but I didn't flush a single bird. In fact I haven't flushed any birds while deer hunting, hiking, or otherwise since spring.
 
Cool. Have a setter also but he's retired as of last year. My experience in the NE mirrors yours, if you get a flush or 2 every hour you're doing good. Most times lucky to get a couple flushes per day. Last few years the early season was too warm and too many leaves on the trees to hope for a decent shot. Very few small game and bird hunters except for the pheasant stockings.
 
Awesome picture! Nice birds and shotgun. Its much the same down here in the south west corner. I can hunt a whole afternoon and flush maybe one or two birds on a really good day. Often its none at all. Back when i was in high school (35 years ago) I could walk the same patch of woods and flush two dozen. Times change.
 
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