Woodcock Season

[flitecontrol]

For some reason, the photo host isn't keeping the photos below in order. The greenbriar covered vegetation is what we were finding them in yesterday. I didn't bother hunting there today because I was by myself and the flusher is usually wrapped up in vines and can't shoot. Had three unproductive points before finally flushing a bird that got up behind a big tree with no opportunity to shoot. Saw where it went down and the dog pointed it again. Second flush was the same as the first; got behind a tree. It went back to the area we first found it, so we went to try and find it. The bird flushed wild out of range and flew out of sight. A short time later, the dog went on point according to the Astro tracker and I followed the arrow to find him. Once you get in the general area, the keypad indicates "Dog is nearby". I can't see the dog, but the arrow is supposedly pointing to where he is. I follow the arrow, and after going a few yards in the jungle, check the Astro. Now it's indicating the dog is back where I came from! I wander around in circles for several minutes and don't find the dog. Then I hear the bird flush. Frustrated, and with it getting late, I unload the gun, remove my hearing protection, turn off the Astro, heel the dog, and head for the truck. Suddenly, the dog goes on point. No need for the Astro now, he's right there! But I need to get my muffs back on and shells in the gun. Fortunately, the woodcock sits tight until I'm ready. Gives me a decent opportunity (no big trees!) and I fire both barrels. I can't tell if I've connected because of the thick vegetation, but I feel pretty good about the second shot. The dog must have seen the bird go down because he makes a bee line to it and retrieves it to hand. A good ending for the day.

https://www.snapfish.com/library/photos ... 7423579060

[Willie T]

FC, have you considered teaching the dog to flush on "hup"? I prefer to flush the bird myself, and usually do, but that is the best solution I have came up to how best to deal with encounters in extra dense cover when hunting alone. I can find a crease in the cover, then release the dog to flush. It has really cut down on the instances of not getting a good shot opportunity for me when I encounter birds buried up in a tangle and I'm by myself. I tried to post a video of it but I guess I'm technically challenged.

[flitecontrol]

Good tip. I've been encouraging him to flush on command, but he's slow to do it. I think it may be because he was verbally corrected for bumping the first couple of woodcock he encountered. When encouraged to flush, he'll slowly creep in and eventually get the job done. I'd hardly ever get a shot when hunting alone if I couldn't get him to flush the bird. Even then, the little buggers seem to try and put a big tree between them and me, whenever possible.

But the fun is the hunt, not in the number of birds we bring home.

[Drahthaar1108]

FC, that is woodcock hunting for me too, they like to put a tree between me and them. still fun hunting.
How do you cook your woodcock ? Forrest

[flitecontrol]

FC, that is woodcock hunting for me too, they like to put a tree between me and them. still fun hunting.
How do you cook your woodcock ? Forrest

I give them to my son, and he usually grills them. My grandson says they're delicious. Other than smoking a turkey and scrambling eggs, I can't cook, and my wife wont try.

[Drahthaar1108]

FC, Thank you ,sounds like you eat out a lot.
the woodcock haven't showed up in eastern NC yet , Last January it got really cold ,had about 8" of snow, I have never seen so many woodcock, I hope they show up before the season goes out. Forrest

[flitecontrol]

Poor choice of words on my part. My wife is an excellent cook, she just doesn't cook game. Her dad was a hunter and she got tired of the frequent family dinners of squirrel and duck. Apparently her mother wasn't great at making game taste good. I've had duck that was only fit to feed a dog and some that was delicious. It's all in how it was prepared and cooked.

[flitecontrol]

The Astro is a great improvement over guessing where the dog is pointed all the time, but it's not perfect. The arrow is always a few degrees off, and once you supposedly get within 30 feet of the dog, the display goes to "Dog is Near". Trouble is, the dog can still be 45 feet away, and in woodcock cover, the dog can be difficult, if not impossible, to see. Several times I've followed the indicater and either taken several minutes to find him, or didn't find him until the bird had flushed and he left the point. Happened twice today.

Some of the birds hold well, but the majority of the points the last few hunts had no bird by the time I got there. I'm thinking they are flushing wild. Saw at least one bird do that as I was trying to get to the dog.

[Willie T]

If the compass is off, select calibrate compass in the menu. It will take you through 3 steps. It should be spot on after that. At least mine is. You can also change the settings to keep showing distance. It is how I run my Astro. Allows me to go directly to cricket on point in the woods.

[flitecontrol]

If that will help the arrow point directly at the dog, that will certainly help, and I'll try it. Thanks for the tip.

[Willie T]

FC, a couple things to keep in mind. Your unit has a 2 1/2 second update. With you and your dog moving simultaneously, you are not going to get a dead nuts accurate reading. However if he is on point and you remain stationary for 2.5 seconds, it should put you within a meter. I'm a forester by profession and use a variation of the same system for G.I.S. Let you unit settle. Take a bearing on an object beyond the distance to the dog. That should alleviate struggling to find him on point.

[flitecontrol]

I've tried lining up with something past where the dog is supposed to be, but in this cover it's impossible to walk a straight line to the dog. The fact that the arrow point isn't spot on doesn't help. I'll get a bearing, get as close to it as I can, and then have to take a detour and repeat. The problem comes when the unit no longer gives distance to the dog, just tells me when I'm near him, and he can't be seen. The arrow also become useless at those distances, and often points 90 degrees from where I eventually find the dog, if I can find him. I guess there's a sound argument for a white dog without natural camouflage.

My dog must be the fastest canine on earth, because he can be over 100 yards away, and during that 2.5 second reset, he's right beside me.

[flitecontrol]

Calibrating the compass didn't help. I had the dog sitting 15 feet in front of me, and the unit indicated he was 42 feet behind me and to the left on point. I wasn't moving either, and we had been that way for at least 10 seconds. Wondering if this unit is defective.

[mtlhdr]

Make sure the software is up to date. I was occasionally getting a point in the opposite direction of the dog, but I haven't since I updated the software. Give that a try.

[flitecontrol]

I'm technologically challenged so this may sound ignorant, but the unit is less than a month old. Shouldn't the software be up to date, and how do you update it if needed?