The Last Couple of Hunts

On Monday Emma and I hunted the Harrier Hawk Covert again and wasn't disappointed. The wind was blowing pretty good across the reclaimed strip mine but Emma really put on a performance. She relocated on the 1st bird of the day 3 times before she pinned it, but it used the cover to it's advantage and I didn't manage to get off a shot.  On her next point 2 'cock flushed, surprising me and I didn't get a shot off at these either. That turned out to be the way my day went, with Emma finding and pointing birds expertly and me either having no chance for a shot or missing when I did. So we ended the hunt with no birds in the bag but with memories of some wonderful dog work.

 

Emma on point.

 

Back at the truck after a wonderful day.

 

 

 

Tuesday found Thicket and I hunting the big Shawnee Creek Covert.

 

I've never been able to find a large flight of birds in all this wonderful cover. Thicket had 2 points that I wasn't able to get to quickly enough and she left them. I managed to flush one bird for the day.

Thicket cooling off in Shawnee Creek.

 

Wednesday turned out to be a day of frustrations.  I forgot my camera which wasn't too bad as Thicket and I headed for the Bennett Run covert for an afternoon hunt. Bennett Run is located at the bottom of a steep hollow. We flushed a group of 3 woodcock as Thicket and I worked the cover. I took a shot at one and thought it went down and although Thicket and I searched we never found the bird which is frustrating.  Still trying to "save the day" I struggled up the steep ridge to the truck and headed for Piney Creek for a quick hunt as the temperature climbed into the 60's.  We were into birds quickly but Thicket showed no signs of wanting to point them as birds flushed in front of her as she hunted the cover. After seeing her pass by several  birds that I walked by and flushed I called her in and headed for the truck frustrated with her lack of desire to point woodcock.  To end the day I developed pain in my lower back perhaps aggravated by a near fall in some rocks in Bennett Run.  So now I'm sitting a home feeling frustrated at not being able to hunt and hoping that resting for the remainder of the week will ease the pain so that I can hunt next week.