# Chicken Hunt 2021



## taxidermist (Sep 11, 2007)

I'm curious to see how many are heading out for the opener this weekend, and chasing the planted birds. I gave up on the hunt in the 90's and haven't chased "wild roosters" since. I've been told of horror stories hunting the release locations. 

I talked to a gentleman yesterday that hunted a release area last year, and said he saw over a dozen pheasants laying dead in the short grass. He said the hawks in the area had taken out the birds before the shotgun wielding troops had a chance. 

Best of luck to all heading out, be safe! A Rooster isn't worth peppering each other.


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## Airborne (May 29, 2009)

taxidermist said:


> A Rooster isn't worth peppering each other.


It was worth it back in 1987 and it's still worth it today! 🤪 

Hell, I remember our family group getting peppered on several occasions and then my dad and uncle would retaliate and we would have a big pepper war with the Murphy clan on the next farm over. Ya always wore your thick coat on the ditch chicken hunt so the bb's didn't hurt as much. If folks think that the good ole days of pheasant hunting in Utah weren't without conflict and crowds ya'll are dreamin! Of course there were a lot more birds back then


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## Slap That Quack (Mar 2, 2017)

I am. It is busy but most people our fairly respectful of others.


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## colorcountrygunner (Oct 6, 2009)

A couple years ago I woke up and drove past the Benjamin Slough area just out of curiosity (shotgun at home in my closet). I started counting cars parked along the roadside and got to upwards of 70 by the time I drove from one end of the state land to the other. I don't feel a burning desire to go out and chase planted birds anyway, but you couldn't pay me to deal with that kind of nonsense. Good luck to those of you headed out. May the odds be ever in your favor.


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## colorcountrygunner (Oct 6, 2009)

I'm trying to think of the past wild pheasant I saw down by Cedar City. Seems it was around 2010ish or so. Pretty sure they a footnote in the history books by now. Wonder if Richard Rouleau still finds any down in Washington County. It's hard to imagine wild birds of any number down there with the brutal raping the developers put on all the open space down there over the past couple decades.


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## CPAjeff (Dec 20, 2014)

I'll pass on the Utah cluster and will be headed to South Dakota next week!


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## Airborne (May 29, 2009)

CPAjeff said:


> I'll pass on the Utah cluster and will be headed to South Dakota next week!


Ya just gotta rub it in don't ya!


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## CPAjeff (Dec 20, 2014)

Airborne said:


> Ya just gotta rub it in don't ya!


LOL, just a little bit! I heard the sharptails are doing VERY VERY well up there this year. 

With a limit of three pheasants and three sharptails a day, and five hunting days planned, it's hard to get excited about applying for those Utah sharptail tags or heading out to chase some pen raised birds. 30 birds in five days is a lot of fun, and I'm beyond grateful for the opportunity I have to go to SD!!

T minus six days, and I'll be headed north!!!


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## johnnycake (Jul 19, 2011)

CPAjeff said:


> LOL, just a little bit! I heard the sharptails are doing VERY VERY well up there this year.
> 
> With a limit of three pheasants and three sharptails a day, and five hunting days planned, it's hard to get excited about applying for those Utah sharptail tags or heading out to chase some pen raised birds. 30 birds in five days is a lot of fun, and I'm beyond grateful for the opportunity I have to go to SD!!
> 
> T minus six days, and I'll be headed north!!!


The folks I know that have hit the Dakotas or Eastern Montana have all done very well on sharpies this year. Most have crushed the huns too


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## colorcountrygunner (Oct 6, 2009)

Airborne said:


> Ya just gotta rub it in don't ya!


He's kinda starting to sound like this one dick I know.....


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## CPAjeff (Dec 20, 2014)

colorcountrygunner said:


> He's kinda starting to sound like this one dick I know.....


Did I mention I have two whitetail tags (one buck and one doe) for SD, as well?!?!


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## Airborne (May 29, 2009)

CPAjeff said:


> Did I mention I have two whitetail tags (one buck and one doe) for SD, as well?!?!


Good grief! ya better send some pics!


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## johnnycake (Jul 19, 2011)

CPAjeff said:


> Did I mention I have two whitetail tags (one buck and one doe) for SD, as well?!?!


This is the way


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## AF CYN (Mar 19, 2009)

I'm gonna' try the opener for the first time in probably 20 years. I think I know a spot that nobody will be at. If someone beats me there or shows up and starts hunting with me, I'll just pack up and chase chukars. There's never a crowd after a 2,000 foot climb.


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## Airborne (May 29, 2009)

AF CYN said:


> I'm gonna' try the opener for the first time in probably 20 years. I think I know a spot that nobody will be at. If someone beats me there or shows up and starts hunting with me, I'll just pack up and chase chukars. There's never a crowd after a 2,000 foot climb.


That's true but it's gonna be hot and running dogs in 70 degree sun on a desert mountain is recipe for disaster. Snow and cold can't come fast enough!


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## AF CYN (Mar 19, 2009)

Airborne said:


> That's true but it's gonna be hot and running dogs in 70 degree sun on a desert mountain is recipe for disaster. Snow and cold can't come fast enough!


Yeah, you're probably right. I'd have to make it a short hunt. I'm hopeful the pheasants and quail will work out, though.


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## taxidermist (Sep 11, 2007)

I gave up on the hunt after the wild birds began to disappear and farms became populated with homes instead of corn rows and alfalfa fields. I had a fantastic dog that was seasoned and we became a "team" and went together like Peas-N-Carrots. 

The question I have.... What do you guys do to keep a dog interested in hunting when there isn't many birds? I've ran 20 acre fields with great habitat and picked up one bird out of it. I'm talking about a dog that could find a needle in a haystack here.


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## johnnycake (Jul 19, 2011)

taxidermist said:


> The question I have.... What do you guys do to keep a dog interested in hunting when there isn't many birds? I've ran 20 acre fields with great habitat and picked up one bird out of it. I'm talking about a dog that could find a needle in a haystack here.


As long as there is cover to work, out even rework on command if need be, I don't have any trouble keeping my dog interested in hunting.


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## AF CYN (Mar 19, 2009)

Finding 1 pheasant in a 20 acre field sounds pretty good to me! That said, I get what you mean. Sometimes my dog just seems happy to be running around outside until we find some birds, then it's all business. Finding that first bird to flip the switch can take a long time when the birds are few and far between.


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## Critter (Mar 20, 2010)

I like watching the folks that follow the DWR trucks around waiting for them to dump the pheasants. 

While a lot of the areas are done just before dark to give the birds at least a few hours of freedom there are other that are planted during the daylight hours and usually don't make it until sunset.


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## taxidermist (Sep 11, 2007)

I know a spot that has loads of wild birds. They are super smart and either run like all get out, or hold and then fly when there's thick brush 15' tall between you and them. I've tried hunting them without a dog, but it was futile.


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## Papa Moses (Sep 27, 2018)

I’m heading out. I’ve got 2 brittany’s that I love hunting with. I usually go to the release and be respectful there and enjoy the dog work. But after the first blood is dropped I go to some secret honey holes later in the month for the elusive wild Utah bird. I usually snag 2 wild roosters a year with about 20 miles walked.


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## taxidermist (Sep 11, 2007)

I think the greatest part of bird hunting, is watching the dogs work.


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## Slap That Quack (Mar 2, 2017)

Had a great opener. Went to a release site and since I know where almost all the other hunters end up going, I was almost by my self with loads of birds on the southern portion of this property. 26 minutes later I was done and then helped out some others so my dogs could play longer.


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## colorcountrygunner (Oct 6, 2009)

Slap That Quack said:


> Had a great opener. Went to a release site and since I know where almost all the other hunters end up going, I was almost by my self with loads of birds on the southern portion of this property. 26 minutes later I was done and then helped out some others so my dogs could play longer.


Nice! Looks like it was a fun day for the puppers!


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## Ray (May 10, 2018)

first time going out on the opener, saw one, got one


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## tigerpincer (Dec 5, 2009)

We sure had a good time. Took my step son and father in law who hasn't hunted pheasants in decades but grew up in Utah county hunting roosters with his Dad. He couldn't stop talking about how much fun he had. We saw way more birds than we could shoot.


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## Papa Moses (Sep 27, 2018)

Had a great morning! 2 man limit at the release WMA Not the greatest birds but man the dog work was so fun! Love being with my pups!


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## wyogoob (Sep 7, 2007)

Airborne said:


> It was worth it back in 1987 and it's still worth it today! 🤪
> 
> Hell, I remember our family group getting peppered on several occasions and then my dad and uncle would retaliate and we would have a big pepper war with the Murphy clan on the next farm over. Ya always wore your thick coat on the ditch chicken hunt so the bb's didn't hurt as much. If folks think that the good ole days of pheasant hunting in Utah weren't without conflict and crowds ya'll are dreamin! Of course there were a lot more birds back then


I peppered my best buddy in the back of the neck pheasant hunting....Illinois 1968, the good ole days.


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## TheOtherJeff (Oct 7, 2021)

I went down to the DWR beginner/youth hunt in Cedar City yesterday. The SFW guy who provided the birds said they released 88 birds in the morning. Most of them promptly vanished like a fart in the wind. I don't think the 40(!) hunters out there got 10 birds all morning. 

<rant>Might have had something to do with the definitely-not-beginner flat-bill types who didn't understand moving slow enough to actually look for birds, keeping in line with the other hunters, or keeping to your zone of fire rather than emptying your magazine while you swing through 270 degrees on one bird.</rant>

Still beat a day at the office, by a longshot.


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## Finnegan (Sep 7, 2007)

I can't get excited over planted birds but when I saw there was a release in upper Weber Canyon just a mile from home, I thought it might be nice to have a pheasant dinner. But the release site is private. There's stream access, but wading down the Weber River doesn't seem like a good pheasant hunting strategy to me. Few places on the river where you are far enough from buildings and the highway to be able to shoot, anyway. Wonder how many other bogus release sites there are.


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## Irish Lad (Jun 3, 2008)

taxidermist said:


> I think the greatest part of bird hunting, is watching the dogs work.



Yes it is!! Fudge had a good time this weekend on the planted birds.


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## hondodawg (Mar 13, 2013)

Well I’d never pheasant hunted in my life. Just never was a thing growing up in St. George unlike dove and quail which I never missed. Fast forward about 25 years and a bunch of family planned a trip to Hatt’s Ranch. One of the best times I’ve ever had. Loved watching the dogs, the birds, and the fun conversations with family. 








Picture came out pretty fuzzy


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## MWScott72 (May 23, 2011)

Do those folks charge by the bird or is it a daily rate? What were the costs? I'd like to get my wife out and don't think she'd enjoy walking all over creation trying to find A bird. Her attention span is 2-3 hours tops and then it's no longer fun.


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## hondodawg (Mar 13, 2013)

MWScott72 said:


> Do those folks charge by the bird or is it a daily rate? What were the costs? I'd like to get my wife out and don't think she'd enjoy walking all over creation trying to find A bird. Her attention span is 2-3 hours tops and then it's no longer fun.


We did the 4 bird package. We used the dogs and handler. Which was worth it since we don’t have bird dogs. And some paid for the field dressing of the birds. With everything settled up and tip it was $175-200. 
Here is the website of the preserve 



http://hattranch.com/



This was the most convenient spot for all of us to meet in the state. I’m not sure if there is even a preserve in southern utah or not. I’ll be back again when my son passes hunters Ed. 


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## MWScott72 (May 23, 2011)

Thanks Hondo!


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## hunting777 (May 3, 2009)

We had a great opener! Yes it was crowded as can be. We hit Salt Creek with all the masses of people. Dog got to do some great work. He pointed and flushed perfectly for us. Boy was able to get his first bird. We'll be chasing them again. We hit several other places and not a sign of a bird. It's sad to see the wild bird population drop as bad as it did.


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## MrShane (Jul 21, 2019)

I just got back from the Dakotas yesterday and Sharpie numbers were unreal.
Mule deer numbers way,way up also.


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## CPAjeff (Dec 20, 2014)

MrShane said:


> I just got back from the Dakotas yesterday and Sharpie numbers were unreal.
> Mule deer numbers way,way up also.


I'm up here right now . . . pheasants and sharps are everywhere!! Lots of whitetails, contrary to what I've heard about blue tongue killing all the deer.


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## 7mm Reloaded (Aug 25, 2015)

Some planters are cool to get.


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## BearLakeFishGuy (Apr 15, 2013)

I haven't hunted the pheasant opener in at least 10 years. So I went out to Bud Phelps WMA in Logan. Got there 45 min before shooting hours. The parking lot was totally full, the road leading down to the parking lot was lined with parked trucks on both sides. I tried to turn around to "escape" but there were trucks pulling in like at a Walmart sale the day after Thanksgiving. There was no way out. It took 30 min to get everyone to back up down the road and about 10 of us escaped the madness just prior to shooting hours. There were people walking around and flushing birds in ALL the fields before light, kids running everywhere, dogs getting in dog fights with other hunter's dogs. It was absolute chaos! I left and went home to watch a football game. I would have bet big money on someone getting shot and killed that morning if they tried to hunt. 

I've hunted openers in Michigan when I was in high school and college and it was a zoo, but not even close to what I saw at the Bud Phelps WMA on the Utah opener. No way, no how would I EVER even think about attempting a phesant opener in Utah on public ground ever again! Seriously, I am not exaggerating, there had to be well over 50 vehicles at Bud Phelps WMA on the opener. I'm just thanking my lucky stars I was able to finally get OUT of the parking lot before shooting hours started. I've never seen anything like that or ever want to again.


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## colorcountrygunner (Oct 6, 2009)

BearLakeFishGuy said:


> I haven't hunted the pheasant opener in at least 10 years. So I went out to Bud Phelps WMA in Logan. Got there 45 min before shooting hours. The parking lot was totally full, the road leading down to the parking lot was lined with parked trucks on both sides. I tried to turn around to "escape" but there were trucks pulling in like at a Walmart sale the day after Thanksgiving. There was no way out. It took 30 min to get everyone to back up down the road and about 10 of us escaped the madness just prior to shooting hours. There were people walking around and flushing birds in ALL the fields before light, kids running everywhere, dogs getting in dog fights with other hunter's dogs. It was absolute chaos! I left and went home to watch a football game. I would have bet big money on someone getting shot and killed that morning if they tried to hunt.
> 
> I've hunted openers in Michigan when I was in high school and college and it was a zoo, but not even close to what I saw at the Bud Phelps WMA on the Utah opener. No way, no how would I EVER even think about attempting a phesant opener in Utah on public ground ever again! Seriously, I am not exaggerating, there had to be well over 50 vehicles at Bud Phelps WMA on the opener. I'm just thanking my lucky stars I was able to finally get OUT of the parking lot before shooting hours started. I've never seen anything like that or ever want to again.


Gotta love outdoor rec in Utah in 2021. Oh, you know what's even better? The fact that they expect the population of Utah to nearly double by 2050. In the infamous words of bachman turner overdrive, "you ain't seen nothin' yet. B-b-b-baby you just ain't seen nothin yet."


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## PBH (Nov 7, 2007)

TheOtherJeff said:


> I went down to the DWR beginner/youth hunt in Cedar City yesterday. The SFW guy who provided the birds said they released 88 birds in the morning. Most of them promptly vanished like a fart in the wind. I don't think the 40(!) hunters out there got 10 birds all morning.


Just curious: how far will these birds move from the release locations? We saw two pheasants at our house over the weekend -- I guess at least two of those birds survived.


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## TheOtherJeff (Oct 7, 2021)

PBH said:


> Just curious: how far will these birds move from the release locations? We saw two pheasants at our house over the weekend -- I guess at least two of those birds survived.


It wouldn't have been hard. No dogs and the line of hunters was darn near jogging. They could have walked past a bull moose trying to hide under a bush and not found it. I'm guessing it was a good few nights to be a bobcat, though.


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## Irish Lad (Jun 3, 2008)

TheOtherJeff said:


> I went down to the DWR beginner/youth hunt in Cedar City yesterday. The SFW guy who provided the birds said they released 88 birds in the morning. Most of them promptly vanished like a fart in the wind. I don't think the 40(!) hunters out there got 10 birds all morning.
> 
> <rant>Might have had something to do with the definitely-not-beginner flat-bill types who didn't understand moving slow enough to actually look for birds, keeping in line with the other hunters, or keeping to your zone of fire rather than emptying your magazine while you swing through 270 degrees on one bird.</rant>
> 
> Still beat a day at the office, by a longshot.





TheOtherJeff said:


> It wouldn't have been hard. No dogs and the line of hunters was darn near jogging. They could have walked past a bull moose trying to hide under a bush and not found it. I'm guessing it was a good few nights to be a bobcat, though.


The grandson and his buddies got limits out there Saturday afternoon, Sunday and Monday. They had dogs. I went out Sunday with my Lab and got my limit.


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## TheOtherJeff (Oct 7, 2021)

Irish Lad said:


> The grandson and his buddies got limits out there Saturday afternoon, Sunday and Monday. They had dogs. I went out Sunday with my Lab and got my limit.


Yup. I'm told a good dog makes a world of difference. My dog is a pointer mix, and whatever she's mixed with turned her into the Eddie Bauer of hunting dogs: She looks the part but doesn't really do what you want her to do. She's sweet and cute and I got her as a family pet, so I can't complain a bit. But the next dog will definitely get some bird training.


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