This afternoon I chose the Hickory Leaf covert as Emma's running grounds. We got off to a fast start with her bumping a pair of woodcock in the first 15 minutes of the run. We were soon through the first part of the covert and crossing the hayfield to the larger part. Although we hunted it hard the woodcock were not to be found today. A few spots with splash and lots of good looking cover but we were all too soon recrossing the hayfield to hunt the remaining small front part of this covert. As on several other days Emma saved her point for the last few minutes of the hunt and locked up within 300 yards of the truck. I took a quick picture and moved to the side to get a better shot but the sight of me moving closer was too much for her and she rushed in and bumped the bird. That's how birddog training goes, one step at a time.
Some of the good looking cover in the Hickory Leaf covert.
Another brush-filled picture of Emma on point.
After Emma's run I still had a couple of hours of daylight left so I thought I'd run Copper through my Warriors Ridge covert and get a picture or two of her pointing woodcock. She has pointed woodcock fairly well since she was 7 months old but for whatever reasons she just couldn't scent them this evening. I watched her almost step on two woodcock and saw the bewildered look on her face as she stood there and watched them rocketed away.
1 comment:
That looks like real good woodcock cover, Rick.
Tucker and I were in a similar place the other day and he nearly ran over a woodcock also. I was thinking it might have something to do with the newly mudded mud after winter.
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