# anyone going ptarmigan hunting?



## setter_slayer (Sep 20, 2011)

Looking to possibly go ptarmigan hunting and I was wondering if anyone is planning a trip and needs some more company? I have no experience with ptarmigan myself but a lot with chukar, grouse, and quail. I am aware of the gruelling nature of this hunt in Utah. Send me a PM if you are interested in planning something.


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## Sprig Kennels (Jan 13, 2009)

i keep telling myself i will do that every year but when i look at the long hikes to get to where they live i talk myself out of it....i need to bite the bullet and do it before i get too old. :mrgreen:


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## wyogoob (Sep 7, 2007)

Welcome to the forum setter_slayer.

Reports are coming in from summer hikers, high country fisherman and daisy-sniffers that ptarmigan are being seen from the top of the Weber all the way over east to the top of Ashley Creek. I'm not doubting that at all. It was a mild winter and we had good weather during the hatch. The Utah DNR claims ptarmigan are at carrying capacity in the High Uintas. (I think that means there are 1.1 birds per 100 square miles.  )

It is extremely dry in the High Uintas this year, driest I've seen since 1988. Look for the birds to be very high, and on the cooler north-facing slopes. Concentrate on seeps with nearby boulders. The birds use the boulders to hide from raptors. If you see a falcon or hawk hanging along a mountainside or boulder field go check it out.

Learn to identify _Geum_ plants, their main source of food this time of year.

If you think you are too high, go higher. If you think you walked far enough, walk further. If you're taking a dog make sure it is in good shape and it's feet are toughened up. Its a tough hunt. Good luck.


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## leviwin (Dec 7, 2011)

I was wondering if this was the plant you were talking about.

Largeleaf avens (Geum
macrophyllum)
ROSE FAMILY (ROSACEAE)
Largeleaf avens grows in wet meadows and on stream
banks, mostly above 7,000 feet elevation. It is an erect, bristlyhairy
plant, much-branched and 3 feet high. The ½ inch yellow
flowers are followed quickly by the fruits. It blooms from May to
August.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/rockgarden ... 054108291/


__
https://flic.kr/p/4002729495


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## wyogoob (Sep 7, 2007)

leviwin said:


> I was wondering if this was the plant you were talking about.
> 
> Largeleaf avens (Geum
> macrophyllum)
> ...


1st picture - yes
2nd picture - no


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## gdog (Sep 13, 2007)

Everyone reading this post needs to send $5 to Goob for the Ptam clinic he just gave......he saved ya more in boot leather then that! 8)


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## wyogoob (Sep 7, 2007)

Look for this geum, Alpine Avens:
viewtopic.php?f=11&t=27842&p=293964#p293964

There's a plant up there that has berries on it that they like too, but I can't remember the name of it.


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## wyogoob (Sep 7, 2007)

gdog said:


> Everyone reading this post needs to send $5 to Goob for the Ptam clinic he just gave......he saved ya more in boot leather then that! 8)


Ah, ha, ha, ha, ho, ho, hee, hee.....here's some _geum_ next to gdog's shotgun:


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## wyogoob (Sep 7, 2007)

Here's some _geum_ next to old goob's shotgun:


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## gpskid (Jul 24, 2012)

Listen to Goob, good advice
My advice is to **** far for a bird that is not a challenge once found, the challenge is finally finding them, not shooting them










This was 11 1/2 miles to this point, and I still had to hike out
Not a very smart bird, maybe because they had never seen a human


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## gdog (Sep 13, 2007)

gpskid said:


> Listen to Goob, good advice
> My advice is to **** far for a bird that is not a challenge once found, the challenge is finally finding them, not shooting


Yeah...sometimes it more about the journey...then the bird in the vest.

11 1/2 miles.....you got lucky for a short hunt


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## wyogoob (Sep 7, 2007)

gpskid said:


> Listen to Goob, good advice
> My advice is to **** far for a bird that is not a challenge once found, the challenge is finally finding them, not shooting them
> 
> 
> ...


Oh, that's a great pic. And I agree, finding them is the greatest challenge.


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## grousehunter (Sep 11, 2007)

gpskid said:


> Listen to Goob, good advice
> My advice is to **** far for a bird that is not a challenge once found, the challenge is finally finding them, not shooting them
> 
> 
> ...


Did you shot them right there? If so I am sad I traded a Wind River trip for the Ptarmigan trip I planned for this weekend!


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## gpskid (Jul 24, 2012)

Unless your really young don't regret that, yes that was the spot 11 1/2 miles in and that much back to the truck.
Opie pointed them standing on that rock, took more effort to make them fly, they would land before I could get a shot off, not a smart bird by any means, after a few jumps I did shoot them on the fly. Fishing would be better. 
If you want a real hunt go for the Snow****, they'll kick ur anrse.

The kid no more


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## grousehunter (Sep 11, 2007)

I believe I have been to that pass once, that is why I asked. Thanks for sharing.


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## wyogoob (Sep 7, 2007)

As the snow piles up in ptarmiganland the birds migrate downhill; off the mountain. They live off willowbuds and willow new growth sticking out of the deep snow, usually along stream banks. Ptarmigan in the Uintas may be doing that already. The drought has rendered much of their favorite foods like, geum, sheepsfoot, stonecrop, and currants useless, and maybe a month earlier than usual.

These ptarmigan were feeding on willow leaves and a few seeds Sunday:


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## wyogoob (Sep 7, 2007)

I'm 61. Seems that ptarmigan country gets steeper every year:


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## wyogoob (Sep 7, 2007)

I thought the picture was hilarious. 

gdog made me do it.


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## gdog (Sep 13, 2007)

Hey....it was steep!!!!


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## 90redryder (Oct 10, 2011)

wyogoob said:


> I'm 61. Seems that ptarmigan country gets steeper every year:


Nice picture.... but if the slope was really that steep and you were trying to stand at that angle you would end up tumbling backwards all the way down. Who else looked at the mountains in the background and tipped their laptop sideways to see how steep it actually is?


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## wyogoob (Sep 7, 2007)

90redryder said:


> wyogoob said:
> 
> 
> > I'm 61. Seems that ptarmigan country gets steeper every year:
> ...


Me, me, I did.

Hey, I'm not the photographer, just an old man trying to scramble up a mountainside.


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## 90redryder (Oct 10, 2011)

Its still a cool picture. Looks like a great place to hunt, im sure you didnt see one other hunter the entire time you were up there.


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