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near a wooded area he also looks for heavy shrub cover nearby to provide concealment and areas for feeding on woodcock s preferred fare the earthworm for an hour or so at dawn and dusk he will put on a show that is part opera part airshow in hopes of attracting amorous females he is so in character that admiring fans can get a front row seat on the edge of the stage without alarming the performer for the best chance of viewing the show sneak in before dusk take a seat near the edge of the clearing and wait if you are in the right place at the right time just as your eyes start to work a little harder to make out the shapes of the vegetation against the sky you will hear the characteristic nasal peent that begins the show the sound gives the impression that a frog cicada and duck have merged into one creature after a few erratic peents to warm up the male settles into a steady rhythm volume can seem to rise and fall as the singer marches in a circle projecting his voice in all directions without warning save perhaps a slightly longer hesitation between calls the performer suddenly takes flight with the characteristic twitter the sound of air between the slender primary feathers of his wings he rises from the thicket making a pass just above the vegetation or overhead if you re lucky as he begins to spiral higher into the sky the twitter is audible even as you likely lose sight of the flier when he has reached the apex of his flight the sound changes as he adds in warbling vocals on his erratic narrower descent as he closes in on the area from which he rose the sounds suddenly cease as he glides silently to a touch down very near his launch point a brief pause peent and the show starts again lang elliott a gifted nature photographer recorder of nature sounds and author expertly captured the early part of the woodcocks s show below particularly lucky viewers may hear the soft almost hiccuping tuco call that can precede the peent or the cak cak cak sound of neighboring males settling territorial disputes with aerial dogfights if you find yourself in close proximity to a calling male i have found that a spotlight on the performer does not inhibit his calling if you have a chance this spring get out and enjoy this bit of nature s magic and remember what it s like to be a kid again posted by scott in pa at 10 06 am no comments email this blogthis share to x share to facebook share to pinterest monday march 23 2015 a new adventure truth be told my fishing suffered severely in 2014 that s the bad news the good news is that my upland hunting increased exponentially due to my new hunting companion toby the field bred english springer spaniel in the fall of 2013 he was but a wee lad but toby has grown to be a 43 lb ball of energy and instinct people love him birds fear him although i ve had dogs all my life toby is my first springer and this has been my first crack at training a bird dog knowledgeable friends good books the internet a heavy dose of persistence consistence and patience can give even a dog training novice a crack at satisfactory results these days with all bird dogs but particularly with the flushing breeds like springers obedience is the real key the instincts are in there at least you hope they are once you ve convinced your wife that a well bred dog and all the associated equipment and veterinary costs are well worth the investment the real trick is to develop an obedient dog that will willingly work with and for you if he ll work close resisting the urge to work too far out in front of the hunters and come when called his nose a natural drive to hunt and his natural desire to retrieve can be directed toward the fun and enjoyment of you and your hunting companions we first hit the bird fields when toby was 7 months old a knowledgeable friend with a well mannered springer helped us navigate the maiden voyage toby did an admirable job of finding and retrieving planted chukars it was clear he had the right stuff and the self applied pressure increased as the little voice inside my head said you re clearly the weak link in this relationship try not to screw it up successful first hunt a long summer of field work obedience training and fun followed working to train a pup to voice and whistle commands is highly rewarding a good bird dog pup s desire to please is remarkable and fun to harness watching your pup paddle eagerly to a dummy you just launched to the middle of the farm pond and return to your side with equal enthusiasm before dropping the dummy in your hand is a fantastic feeling that swells your chest with pride with toby s affinity for the work and desire to please i knew that when training sessions didn t go well it was likely my fault as summer wound down dove season was the first opportunity to put toby on birds and several trips afield produced a handful of opportunities it was obvious that toby s retrieving skills were better than my wing shooting skills as the pup found each bird that was knocked down and brought it to hand occasionally he would look up at me as if to say how come you re shooting but no birds are falling fortunately bird dogs have short memories in regard to these matters and have no desire to tease you about your misses this is not true for all hunting buddies october brought a wonderful opportunity for toby and me as we headed north to maine with four other dogs and 10 good friends for more than a week we chased grouse and woodcock from millinocket through the north maine woods the outpost camp we rented through libby camps was a fantastic home base for some self guided bird hunting fun we stopped at the main lodge on our way to camp to share lunch gas up and pick up some navigational and hunting tips the libby s are raising the sixth generation of capable hosts and guides and their love and knowledge of the north main woods is second to none toby grew a great deal as a hunter that week overcoming a nasty cut on one of his pads to work with other dogs and for other hunters daily construction of a booty made of duct tape made it possible for toby to hunt each night protective gear removed he went back to using three legs each morning after being taped up he hit the woods in four wheel drive by the end of the trip toby had added grouse woodcock and a nice water retrieve on a duck to his resume five dog mobile home mooseleuk lake north maine woods scouting the lake wood fired cookstove grouse hunting palace endless logging roads through prime habitat gettin the job done back home in pennsylvania with shorter cooler days came the opening of pheasant grouse and woodcock season in pennsylvania and we had great fun canvasing local pa state game lands for stocked pheasants pennsylvania has ramped up its pheasant stocking program in the last number of years and while i find a greater satisfaction in hunting wild birds it is hard to argue with the opportunity to chase some surprisingly wary birds so close to home after school adventures i also came to more fully appreciate what a wonderful family sport upland hunting can be my seven year old son and ten year old daughter love to follow toby in the field and watch the birds rise with the springer nipping at their heels the young apprentices were also eager to carry the birds when we were lucky enough to bring them down this is always a welcome trait in a hunting partner with a small area of stocked game lands five minutes from home we can head out right after school hunt for an hour and a half and still be home for supper bringing home happy tired kids and a happy tired pup wins me brownie points with my wife brownie points for hunting what a concept snowy thanksgiving day hunt all in all it was a great hunting season we hunted from september through january and toby logged flushes and or retrieves on grouse woodcock chukar pheasant doves and ducks there is still work to do but toby is just getting up to speed he will turn two as hunting season approaches late in 2015 he ll need more practice afield and more training to resist the urge to punch out too far when birds are running or hard to come by and to resist the urge to give chase when his master blows the shot just because your dog heeds the whistle in the back yard is no guarantee he ll obey when the birds are flying and the guns are sounding repetition and consistency are key i ll also look for more opportunities to put toby on waterfowl where he can exercise his strong drive for water retrieves i m determined to make the time to help him realize more of his potential knowing that he will repay me with years of good hunting and companionship toby doesn t let high water slow down a good pheasant retrieve i ve come to see quite a bit of similarity between fishing and hunting upland birds with a dog when fishing i carry the rod and cast a lure or fly toward promising targets while hunting i carry my shotgun and cast my dog toward promising cover in both cases it is necessary to read the water terrain find the likely spots and be ready for the action when it comes in fishing the take is the ultimate moment similarly the flush of upland birds is the moment you anticipate most bringing a fish or bird to hand is the end goal of the adventure but in both cases that s not what keeps you coming back it s the planning the preparation the anticipation the friendships you develop and the outing itself getting there is more than half of the fun if only catch and release were an option while bird hunting fortunately game birds are delicious posted by scott in pa at 1 31 pm no comments email this blogthis share to x share to facebook share to pinterest wednesday september 18 2013 the more things change i m not a total dinosaur but i do consider myself a traditionalist as the gray in my beard overtakes the darker shades i prefer to catch fish on a fly rod hunt deer with a longbow and wear wool as often as possible i wear practical wide brimmed hats when afield to keep the sun off my face in summer and snow outside my collared shirt in winter i m not a total throwback mind you contrary to those traditional leanings i do find the internet a wonderful tool for the sportsman i keep tabs on a couple good fishing blogs and e magazines and i find the internet a wonderful tool for planning trips investigating aerial images and researching guides and outfitters in areas new to me in this perusing i am now frequently noticing that sportsmen don t look much like they used to it strikes me that many outdoor films are starting to look like boy band videos carefully planned shaggy hair flat brimmed ball caps set slightly askew and synthetic wicking fabrics emblazoned with energy drink logos are the order of the day combined with the fact that one can now obtain professional quality video equipment small enough to strap to a fishing rod surfboard ski pole straight brimmed ball cap or anything else that remains rigid long enough to capture the fight wave run kill or crash edit the experience together with appropriately raucous soundtrack and post online for the whole world to absorb your attention worthy aura now you re really somebody i realize that fred bear marlin perkins and curt gowdy haven t been around for a while and truth be told my wanderlust as a tenderfoot was fueled by babe winkleman and bill dance as much as it was fueled by those old masters while not exactly mountain men babe and bill at least knew that a flannel shirt and cup of coffee were camp essentials as opposed to a hoodie and a shot of 5 hour energy i had been bemoaning this state of affairs for some time smugly acknowledging that my traditional sensibilities were mildly superior to those extreme athletes turned outdoorsmen then one day at the family hunting cabin sorting some gear for the approaching archery season my father began to comment on how many new fangled do dads are now required to pursue game afield here we go i thought it was true that my father did not have the benefit of portable tree stands scent eliminating boot spray or scent producing doe in estrus scent drags but surely he would have utilized these tools had they been available wicking base layers join wool outwear like apple pie joins ice cream and so what if i had three pairs of hunting boots designed for various seasons and terrain dammit i was one of them 20 years ago i thought to myself i didn t want to give my father the satisfaction of knowing he had a point but it dawned on me that things are no different today than they have ever been some smokepolers probably cast a critical eye on brass cartridges and lever actions split cane casters likely bemoaned fiberglass and then graphite as i begin to share a love of the outdoors with my young children i think more about the really important things the love of natural systems all the parts not just the target species or the charismatic ones an appreciation for humility knowing that we don t know it all and knowing that quiet observation is often the best instruction an appreciation for enough enough for today enough for the season enough for the next generation an appreciation for conserving the resources and preserving the landscape that produces the resources an appreciation for the benefits of preserving truly wild places where people are rarely if ever seen perhaps the hipsters and the x gamers are getting those things i just wish we could discuss it without a soundtrack off camera with a cup of coffee posted by scott in pa at 5 16 am no comments email this blogthis share to x share to facebook share to pinterest tuesday may 7 2013 big fish spring has sprung and so has the carp fishing in central pa with spring as busy as usual there has been precious little time to hit the streams rivers and lakes here in my rural part of the ridge and valley region the itch to fish was beginning to get the better of me when about 10 days ago i was passing by a farm that is home to one of my favorite carp honey holes i only had a 5 wt fly outfit in the truck but i did have some carp flies and there was storm front moving in so i thought perhaps the carp would be feeding they were feeding alright in fact one carp was so eager to eat that i watched him move more than 18 inches to devour my crayfish fly 30 minutes later i had enjoyed two great tussles with healthy carp and the rain was bearing down there were a couple larger specimens but i couldn t get the fly in front of them that may have been for the best as i suspect they might have converted my 4 piece 5wt to a 6 piece paper weight these two will put a bend in the 5 wt that brief outing satisfied the fishing itch for a week or so but soon enough i felt the need to break out the canoe and look for some bigger fish in bigger water with my capable first mate in tow the canoe was loaded in the truck and we headed for a nearby lake where carp were known to be numerous and of good size first mate unfortunately the shallow flats were discolored due to wind feeding fish or both carp c...