TR-Soft Hackles anyone?

[Wayne Knight]

Glorious two days in the north. Weather couldn't be beat, some trees
still with color, and willing brookies and brownies just availing
themselves of a small roberts drake or parachute adams. Nothing big,
nothing furious in terms of action, just consistent takes along the cut
banks and the edges of sweepers.

Ah but I broke my upland cycle. Last season I picked up a used Merkel
20G side by side and had yet to fire it, either at clays, much less at
anything flying. My attempts in '04 led me to believe that the
grouse/woodcock population had nothing to worry about but I only took
this gun along.

When my friend's dog went on point and flushed the first few birds, I
was performing an instant replay of 04, the bird would start left, I'd
aim left and fire just as the bird went right or up, and to think
people pay other folks to trim trees. After a water break for the dog
my luck started to change, my friend pointed out that I was not holding
the gun the way our mutual instructor had taught me. After that I made
a point to get the stock square on shoulder, put the feet in the right
position and slow it down. The results were five more flushes and this
time I was square on my first successful hits on woodcocks (2) and
grouse (1) and my friend got two grouse that flushed his way.

Sat night after a fresh bird dinner, we turned some breast feathers
into soft hackles using fur from our dogs for dubbing material. (my
golden doesn't hunt very well but he's a great companion) We decided to
forgo the hunting on Sunday for a quick float before we headed back to
our homes. I've never been very good at fishing soft hackles, usually
when i try them, I either have to visibly see the strike or have one of
those violent hits before I know to set the hook. Sunday I tried to
concentrate more on the leader and line looking for changes in the
drift. It worked better this time or the brookies were just plain ole
suicidal. The golden dubbed flies worked better than the chocolate
dubbed flies. Best fishing day for me all season.

I was still smiling when the officer started to give me a speeding
ticket north of Coldwater, he asked why I seemed so happy to be getting
a ticket, I told him I wasn't but the previous two days had relaxed
more than I had been in months, we talked about it some then he tore up
the ticket and asked me to keep under 80 until I got back into Indiana
(20 miles).

[Tim J.]

Wayne Knight typed:
<snip>
> I was still smiling when the officer started to give me a speeding
> ticket north of Coldwater, he asked why I seemed so happy to be
> getting a ticket, I told him I wasn't but the previous two days had
> relaxed more than I had been in months, we talked about it some then
> he tore up the ticket and asked me to keep under 80 until I got back
> into Indiana (20 miles).

It's all about attitude. :)

Nice report, Wayne. I'm glad you had a good day out.
--
TL,
Tim
------------------------
http://css.sbcma.com/timj/

[William Claspy]

On 10/31/05 10:37 AM, in article
. com, "Wayne Knight"
> wrote:

> Glorious two days in the north.

<snip>

Sounds like you got a good dose of "up north" to keep you smiling right on
through 'til spring, Wayne.

Weather was equally gorgeous here on the south shore of Erie. Friday's
drive home from a meeting took me past one of Ohio's few trout streams,
where the browns were eager as well, soft hackles and EHCs doing the trick.

Thanks for the report!
Bill

[Wolfgang]

"Wayne Knight" > wrote in message
oups.com...

> ...this time I was square on my first successful hits on woodcocks (2) and
> grouse (1)....

Tsk, tsk......biggest mistake of your life. Hitting a grouse invariably
leads to the fatuous belief that one can do it again, thus leading to a life
of bitter disappointment.

Nevertheless, congratulations! :)

Wolfgang
whose shotgun barrels have curves that, oddly (and perversely), change shape
and direction without notice. :(

[Scott Seidman]

"Wayne Knight" > wrote in
oups.com:

>
> I was still smiling when the officer started to give me a speeding
> ticket north of Coldwater, he asked why I seemed so happy to be getting
> a ticket, I told him I wasn't but the previous two days had relaxed
> more than I had been in months, we talked about it some then he tore up
> the ticket and asked me to keep under 80 until I got back into Indiana
> (20 miles).
>
>

That sounds like my last experience when I got pulled over for doing 65
in a 35!

One thing growing up in a fairly violent area with an omnipresent police
presence taught me is that it always pays to be courteous when dealing
with the police. If you treat them like it's their personal mission to
make your life miserable, that's likely just what will happen. In many
cases, these guys are just doing their job.

I rolled down my window as the deputy was walking to the car, and put
both my hands on the wheel. When he asked for my license, I told him it
was in my wallet, which was in my left rear pocket, and asked if it were
OK if I reached for it. These guys deal with so many kooks, and they
never know what they're going to run into, so I always respect their
justified concern for their personal safety. Maybe these rural cops
outside of Brooklyn don't care as much about this stuff, but it doesn't
really hurt to err on the side of safety.

He asked if there were anything wrong with my license, and I told him
there wasn't. He asked what I was doing in his neck of the woods, and I
told him I was enjoying the neighborhoods streams (which probably
explained my laid back attitude). He went to his car, ran my license,
came back, handed me my stuff, said "the town fathers would appreciate it
if you slowed down", and drove away.

--
Scott
Reverse name to reply

[Larry L]

"Wayne Knight" > wrote

....
> Glorious two days in the north.


Lovely, lovely.

Back when I shot every day of my life, I was rather skilled with a shotgun.
I even imposed many rules on my own hunting to keep challenge in the game.
For instance, I'd take two shells and a 28ga Honker hunting when there was a
two bird limit and 'expect' to limit out.

BUT, I chased grouse through the upstate New York woods a few times and
can't understand how anyone actually bags anything but tree limbs and holes
in the air .... congratulations.

[Dave Mohnsen]

"Larry L" > wrote in message
...
>
> "Wayne Knight" > wrote
>> Glorious two days in the north.

Larry L wrote:
> Lovely, lovely.
(some snipped)
> BUT, I chased grouse through the upstate New York woods a few times and
> can't understand how anyone actually bags anything but tree limbs and
> holes in the air .... congratulations.

That's for the story Wayne.
Heh . . .heh . . .Larry . . . I still have trees upset at me in New York
State from when I was hunting grouse there. . I think occasionally one
grouse or so might have just had a heart attack. (liked the feathers though
and not bad eatin')
The holes in the air you describe might just be some I placed there . . .and
you were just shooting through the same holes :)
DaveMohnsen
Denver

[Wayne Knight]

William Claspy wrote:
>
> Weather was equally gorgeous here on the south shore of Erie. Friday's
> drive home from a meeting took me past one of Ohio's few trout streams,
> where the browns were eager as well, soft hackles and EHCs doing the trick.

Cool, i keep thinking one indian summer type day I might head back to
the Mad.

If I can get a certain work project done by the 10th, I'll heading to
SW MO for quail and spring creeks, dropping accross the Kansas border
for the pheasant season opener.

I should be feathered out by then.

[Wayne Knight]

Wolfgang wrote:
>
> Tsk, tsk......biggest mistake of your life. Hitting a grouse invariably
> leads to the fatuous belief that one can do it again, thus leading to a life
> of bitter disappointment.
>
> Nevertheless, congratulations! :)

Thanks, it was only one. I have a new appreciation for woodcock and I
read where they like the appalachian hillsides, more roadtrips might be
in order.

> whose shotgun barrels have curves that, oddly (and perversely), change shape
> and direction without notice. :(

We have the same gunsmith.

[Wayne Knight]

Tim J. wrote:
>
> It's all about attitude. :)
>

Yes it is my friend

[Wayne Knight]

Larry L wrote:

> BUT, I chased grouse through the upstate New York woods a few times and
> can't understand how anyone actually bags anything but tree limbs and holes
> in the air .... congratulations.

Thanks Larry, coming from you and your shooting background I will take
that as a compliment, tho I know I only *got lucky*.

[rw]

Wayne Knight wrote:
> Larry L wrote:
>
>
>>BUT, I chased grouse through the upstate New York woods a few times and
>>can't understand how anyone actually bags anything but tree limbs and holes
>>in the air .... congratulations.
>
>
> Thanks Larry, coming from you and your shooting background I will take
> that as a compliment, tho I know I only *got lucky*.
>

Here in central Idaho we have Franklin or Spruce grouse, which are
unbelievably stupid and trusting. You could kill one with a stick.

"Franklin (spruce) grouse have to be the all-time holder of the generic
title "fool’s hen". Blues and ruffs seem to wise up a bit after modest
hunting pressure, but Franklins are just innately stupid. They’re
evidently killed off so easily by humans that their range is mostly
restricted nowadays to remote wilderness areas.

"On outback elk hunts I’ve had Franklins walking within kicking distance
of my boots, strutting down logs on which I was sitting, and perching on
limbs so low I could poke them off with my rifle barrel. Twice I’ve
grabbed their tailfeathers in amusement, only to have them squawk and
flutter a few feet away like a barnyard chicken."

from: http://www.idfishnhunt.com/forestgr.htm

--
Cut "to the chase" for my email address.