Pheasant hunt

I'm heading your way next Wednesday night and will be ready to hunt on Sat, the 17th, for six full days.  Figure out your schedule for that time period and we'll see if we can get together before we head to Wyoming the morning of 10/23.

Mike Stephenson
aka Topgun----30-06

Do we still have a forum hunt going? I think I'm still in for it.

You are more than welcome to camp and hunt with us the week after next.  We will be between Regent and the ND/SD border most of that time unless we go up for a day to hunt with Jamie or the friend I took out to Wyoming that lives in Mandan.

Mike Stephenson
aka Topgun----30-06

Thanx for the invite but I won't be able to make till Dec.. Too much going on here right now.

FIGGER OUT MY SCHEDULE? HAH!!!!

Been gettin' a bit of OT on Fridays lately ... dunno about that week/weekend tho ...

This weekend (17th) we'll be in TRF for that wedding, and likely won't be gettin' home very early on Sunday ... not LATE, but prolly not before darkness settles in ... after that, it'll be werkin' time until Thursday or Friday ...

Only way I can see to have an actual face-to-face would be for you (or me) to drive towards the other guy, after the hunt ... a sit-down cuppa coffee (or whutever) and then hope for another time to actualize the huntin' together experience ...

Top' ... you're leavin' Nodak area on the a.m. of the 23rd, as I recall ... even if I do NOT werk that day, it'd NOT be a simple task to meet up for a quick hunt/walk or two ... but ... if that's not overly disruptive to your travel schedule, that's about the only chance I can see for us to go afield together, this time around ...

Son #1 and prolly one more of the gang will be arriving here on Thursday nite (22nd), if I remember whut he's told me correctly, about his ETA ...

So ... that's about the size of it (16 Gauge, actually) ... lemme know if any of these slim chances appeal to your view of things ...

NOW, AS TO THE OPENER ...

This doesn't really belong on the "Not Disappointed" thread, becuz I wuz a teensy bit frustrated by the lack of success ... first blank opening day I've had in a LONG time ...

But ... it wuz NASTY out there ... temp about 25, wind @ 25+ mph, some snow on the ground and more blowin' around in the air ... UGLY DAY!

Dog werked fairly well, considerin' how little time I had to spend werkin' with her lately ... she found several birds in my first effort, but all hens ... of course my late start may not have helped -- I "slept in" until 0600, so din't get out there @ the first crack of dawn ... but I know I saw more birds than some folks ...

Second try wuz better ... went to a sumwhut "neglected" area of a WMA, and she found me some roosters ... since I'm not (here comes an EXCUSE!) very familiar yet, with the Sweet Sixteen, I wuz a bit slow in gettin' the gun up and on target, and then gettin' the Safety turned off ... only took one shot ... hit the guy, but din't knock him down very hard, and never found him ... had another pass me @ about 15 yards, but also @ about 40 mph, and this wuz in the gap between spoil piles, so he wuz long gone before I had a chance ...

Last walk (COLD out there!) wuz in a "remodeled" WMA area ... kicked up a batch of Huns from the hayed stubble, but she din't seem to know whut they were ... and I wuz too far away and shootin' over her head, so that wuz out ... kicked the same batch up AGAIN later, and the late switch to "fire" mode cost me a shot ...

An OK day ... FUN to watch her enthusiasm, but hadn't werked her with the collar much, and so she had to be reminded about stayin' in close ... it'll get better ...

ALSO ... not the easiest areas to werk by one's ownself ... better with several hunters ...

AND ... got some GOOD insights as to WHERE to look on such crappy days ... our flooding and wet summer and raised level on Lake Sakakawea have changed a lot of the terrain, so now I've got a better handle on where to spend my most serious efforts ...

Sum hunters had decent success, I saw a few birds in pickup boxes, but overall the forecasts were in the correct direction to predict our season ... fewer birds, but still plenty of 'em ... and we'll hafta werk harder for 'em this year ...

Lemme know, Top' ... if there's any possiblity of meetin' up ... otherwise, we'll see how it all werks out for the rest of y'all ... I think we'd sorta loosely discussed a span in early/mid-December as havin' the best potential for fittin' in with most schedules ...

Whutever ... talk amongs yer ownselfs ...

All of life is six-to-five against, just enough to keep you interested. (Damon Runyan)

Gravity makes all the important decisions ... (John R. Powers)

NRA, REMF, PF, NAHC-L, NAFC-L, KC, NPPA

I put our trip from Regent to Rapid City on Mapquest and it shows 240 miles and four hours.  I'm not sure when we have to be to the airport on the 23rd, but I'll check with my buddy tomorrow and find out.  It may be possible that you could come down to us for an hour or two before we head out, but that may be pretty hard for you to do.  I'm really hoping the cougar hunt will take place in the first three weeks of December so that we can get together during that trip out to Montana.  I'll get back on this thread tomorrow to let you know about the 23rd.

Mike Stephenson
aka Topgun----30-06

OK; we have to be to Rapid City by 2PM on the 23rd, so that means we need to leave the Regent area by 10AM.  If you are free and want to come down for a short hunt starting at daylight, we can probably do it.  Otherwise, we will probably just sleep in and take our time packing up for the trip to the airport.  We will be camping on the northwest corner of the Indian Creek WMA, which is about 7 miles SW of Regent.  What town are you close to?  We may be hunting with Bryan Reinhardt, the guy who got the elk with me in Wyoming, one weekday in the Center/Hazen area.  If we do that, we could at least stop by when you get home for a quick meeting/BS session (maybe some moose stew!).   I need some phone numbers for you so I can get/stay in touch once we hit the road on Wednesday.

Mike Stephenson
aka Topgun----30-06

That early a.m. hunt sounds like a great idea ... y'know ... one of them that sound great but somehow simply don't werk out ...

Son #1 will be here, and if we rise early, we'll be tryin' some of our local hot (?) spots around home ... if it wuz for any more than an hour or so, I'd jump on it ...

Besides, y'all will be tired from several days of huntin' and you can sleep in, to be more refreshed for your rush to Rapid and subsequent airline adventure ...

I already sent you my phone # by email, but that "maybe, if we're near Hazen" idea has the best possible chance of werkin' out for me, I think ...

If Son #1 arrives early enuf, he'll be out chasin' birds before I get off werk ... and he might meet me @ the house and we'd go out for the evening run ... But once it's too dark to hunt (about 5:50 p.m. MDT), if you're in the area (Thursday nite would be bad, but you'll be in Regent and gettin' ready to leave on that nite, so it's NBD) and wanna stop by, that'd be the next thing to great planning ...

If y'all decide to chase roosters in this vicinity, lemme know ... I can direct you quite easily to our house by phone call, and we can sit around and tell huntin' stories until we fall asleep or y'all hafta leave ...

Mebbe that the best we can do this round ... let's sorta see if it werks out ... contingent upon your decision to venture up here into Mercer County, of course ... do NOT alter any major itineraries merely to drive over here in the dark to sit around our table and visit, but if it's part of your day's outline, let's try it ...

All of life is six-to-five against, just enough to keep you interested. (Damon Runyan)

Gravity makes all the important decisions ... (John R. Powers)

NRA, REMF, PF, NAHC-L, NAFC-L, KC, NPPA

OK ... so, after we both missed last weekend (wedding we attended, out-of-state), this one comin' up is when the gang mostly all shows up ... we'll likely have six or seven hunters for our two dogs to help ... could be as many as nine or ten, but that's not a problem ... we've got so many PLOTS and public land places to go, we can't walk 'em all in a day ... saw several roosters today while werkin' ...

Rainy forecast for the weekend ... we'll see how tough the kids really are ...

Me?

I'll be sittin' in the pickup, or cappin' the end ... or back home gettin' warm and dry ...

All of life is six-to-five against, just enough to keep you interested. (Damon Runyan)

Gravity makes all the important decisions ... (John R. Powers)

NRA, REMF, PF, NAHC-L, NAFC-L, KC, NPPA

UPDATE on "forum fessunt hunt in Nodak" ...

Perty good deal that none of y'all made major plans to be here about this week ... "only" about 14 below last nite, prolly -20 tonite ... snow and blowing snow today, and it's NASTY out there ... had to run an errand for werk today, and saw several birds, but all on posted stuff ...

It'd be a HARD hunt if y'all were here right now, but it's s'posed to get into the 30s (above) by Wednesday, and "nicer" for a few days ...

Whutever ...

Top' ... I think y'all said you were savin' your last seven days for the end of the season ... it's really difficult to guess what'll happen, but if you watch the Weather Channel for our locale, it should give you info as good as I could guess ... y'all have my phone # if you decide to travel ... we're staying home all thru the holidays, and let the kids come to see us if they want to (and weather permits) ... that'd be a long haul for an iffy situation, but it's your choice ...

Anybuddy else, same deal ... I dunno that I'd recommend it, but I wouldn't shut off the chance, either ... I plan to take the dog out when it warms up a bit (unfortunately, that's ONLY on a Friday, Saturday or Sunday, with my werk sked), so she can at least run around and have fun ... if we find anythin' I'll let y'all know ...

All of life is six-to-five against, just enough to keep you interested. (Damon Runyan)

Gravity makes all the important decisions ... (John R. Powers)

NRA, REMF, PF, NAHC-L, NAFC-L, KC, NPPA

Most all of my plans got put on hold hear. I got put on a special project at work and I'm doing a lot of overtime. I'm on a 6 on 2 off schedule now. Ain't this weather something. Brrrrrrrr. I havn't even been able to get out after yotes yet.

I've been following the Regent weather on the computer closely all month!  I was about ready to tell the wife I was going to throw the dog and gear in the truck and head out your way as  the forecast was looking decent for later this week into next week.  Today the forecast changed for next week and says lows near and below zero and highs in the teens!!!  Unless the forecast does a complete turnaround between now and the end of the season I guess I will just freeze my azz off her in Michigan, rather than make that 2200 mile roundtrip to do it, LOL!!!  I have a preserve I can take the dog to a half dozen times over the winter for what it would cost in gas, etc. to go back to Regent.  The preserve has very good cover and the birds fly just like the wild ones, so it looks like that's the plan for birds for now.  I was really hoping the cougar hunt and bird hunt would all come together this month, but I can't complain because 2009 has been a great year in the outdoors for me, starting with that fantastic trip to Manitoba with Steve.  Thanks again Steve and Monty and Merry Christmas to everyone who frequents this site!!!  

Mike Stephenson
aka Topgun----30-06