Firsts

[AverageGuy]

My Brother, Spud, Tess and I spent a week in the Sandhills of Nebraska. Tess's First Hunts, First Big Roadtrip, First Doves, First Sharptails and First Teal. Did not get into as many birds as I had hoped but it is always great to be hunting, especially with a puppy.

It was an expedition of gear and packing.



Has some wonderful big cottonwoods for shade, a marsh and view in the front yard.


Unpacked and headed out for a short evening Dove hunt. There are no grain fields in the area and water everywhere so we found no concentrations of doves, but were able to shoot a few each evening. Those sandy two tracks are infested with sandburs which made for tough conditions for the dogs and the guy who had to dig them out of their feet and beards. Tess took to marking, hunting dead and retrieving doves immediately.



Went looking for Sharptails the first morning. Temps got into the 90s and 100 one day so half a day of hunting was all we could do. It is the perfect pursuit for a puppy. Just turn em loose and let em go.

Spud doing his thing. Took us awhile to chug our way up and over a big hill to this point, it was his 4th and last drop that morning, pushing into the 80s and he was hot.






Tess had no idea what she was looking for but she was game to look.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1VEfvCZxsAI

Tess's First Sharptail



Hot Dogs


Teal were next. Opening Morning Sunrise on the Marsh we scouted and setup on


Tess's First Wild Duck Retrieve was a BWT


Tess heading out for her second a GWT



More BWT followed



Another Dawn hunting Teal




Some Local Residents





Sunrise the Morning we headed for home

[orhunter]

Thanks Kent. Looks like a great time. Appreciate the photos.

Like the photo of Tess and her wild yellow eyes.

[carramrod]

Tis the season. Everyone's photos on the prairie has me anxious and ready to go. Great place to get lost.

That front pushing it's way through this week should make for an interesting teal opener in KS and MO.

[AverageGuy]

Tis the season. Everyone's photos on the prairie has me anxious and ready to go. Great place to get lost.

That front pushing it's way through this week should make for an interesting teal opener in KS and MO.

Good to hear from you. Yea you would think it will move some birds in. I am headed to NM on a archery elk hunt but will have a few days of Teal season left when I get home.

[RowdyGSP]

Wow! What an awesome trip, great photos and most of all great memories. I love "Tess had no idea what she was looking for but she was game to look." Sums it up perfectly. That is some pristine country as well. I'm willing to bet you didn't see many other people out there.

[AverageGuy]

That is some pristine country as well. I'm willing to bet you didn't see many other people out there.

None. No Internet, News or Cell Service for a Week. It was WONDERFUL!

[RowdyGSP]

Sounds perfect! Can't get any better than that!

[J D Patrick]

good stuff AG,,,and good luck in NM

[Willie T]

Great pics as usual AG. Thanks for taking us along on the road trip. I enjoyed it. I still like the wild child. Following along with several of the pups this year is really making me want one.... I have my eye on a tentative pudelpointer breeding and hope to be in the mix if everything works out....

[ckirsch]

Great photos AG! Sounds like your pup is off to a fine start.

Our South Dakota grouse season hasn't opened yet, but I've had my dogs out several times over the past month, and while we've moved decent numbers of birds, I'm amazed at how skittish they've been. Typically they'll hold well early in the season, but this year we have birds flushing wild hundreds of yards ahead of us, and most of those the dogs have been able to point flushed almost as soon as I start walking in, even when I was a couple of hundred yards out. There are no trialers running summer camps out here, so these sharpies haven't been pressured. We had a pretty dry summer here on the west end of the state, and the cover is down, so I suppose the birds can see us from much farther distances than in previous years. Might be tough to get much shooting in this year. I have a young dog that I would like to get a lot of contacts with. He'll have to learn to be very cautious and stick his birds from quite a ways back.

Keep the pictures coming...

[RowdyGSP]

ckirsch, not to digress from Kent's post but I noticed the MT sharptails were unusually skittish for this time of year as well, when I was there last week. Strange.

[jlw034]

Super jealous AG.

Was all prepped and ready. Was going to take advantage of the cold front.

Lido got sick, currently being treated for giardia...so no trip.

Living vicariously through you.

The pup looks good! Spud never gets old.

[Drahthaar1108]

AG, great pictures, good mixed bag of birds, keep feathers in Tess mouth and she will make a dog. Forrest

[MadMax]

Great pics, keep them coming, all I have now is pics, broke my leg 2 weeks ago, out for the season.

I hope everyone has a great season,

MadMax

[orhunter]

Max.... Did the leg thing last year. Severed quadriceps. Still mending..... but can hunt. Good luck.