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How do you decide where to hunt quail
#8144335
01/26/21 08:28 PM
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Joined: Mar 2017
Posts: 224
TruckMan66
OP
Woodsman
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OP
Woodsman
Joined: Mar 2017
Posts: 224 |
So I was curious how other quail hunters determine where they hunt. When I hunt quail I look for feed (i.e. ragweed and plum thickets and hackberry and other such food sources) and loafing areas and roosting areas. I run 4 pointers at the same time and feel very good that between the dogs and the hunters we scoured the land good. But there are times I can't find birds and yet some hunters say they jumped 3 coveys or they jumped 6 coveys. I know this is a tough year but WOW!! So I thought maybe I'm not doing something exactly right. Not trying to find all the birds but just a few coveys a day would be nice.
Just looking for different opinions.
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Re: How do you decide where to hunt quail
[Re: TruckMan66]
#8144392
01/26/21 09:10 PM
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Joined: Oct 2018
Posts: 275
Kelulu
Bird Dog
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Bird Dog
Joined: Oct 2018
Posts: 275 |
Try running a single dog instead of all four. I think sometimes competitive dogs will be overly concerned about the other dogs and that distraction might lead to missed birds. Many of my best days quail hunting were when I was solo hunting and only had one of my dogs down at a time.
Your list of habitat requirements checks all the boxes. I'd sure hunt there.
And why, today, remember misses?
--Ernest Hemingway--
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Re: How do you decide where to hunt quail
[Re: TruckMan66]
#8144449
01/26/21 09:46 PM
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Joined: Oct 2008
Posts: 16,562
68rustbucket
THF Celebrity
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THF Celebrity
Joined: Oct 2008
Posts: 16,562 |
4 dogs down at once? That sounds too much like work. You must be hunting some big, open country.
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Re: How do you decide where to hunt quail
[Re: TruckMan66]
#8144533
01/26/21 10:33 PM
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Joined: Nov 2013
Posts: 2,231
Hunt Dog
Veteran Tracker
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Veteran Tracker
Joined: Nov 2013
Posts: 2,231 |
For me it's pretty much if/when/where I get invited to hunt.
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Re: How do you decide where to hunt quail
[Re: TruckMan66]
#8144574
01/26/21 11:01 PM
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Joined: Jul 2007
Posts: 8,252
bobcat1
THF Trophy Hunter
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THF Trophy Hunter
Joined: Jul 2007
Posts: 8,252 |
1 or at the most 2 dogs down would seem better to me. Most of mine were rather rangy mutts back in the day.... on the edge of lost and looking like an aspirin on a hillside.
Bobby Barnett
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Re: How do you decide where to hunt quail
[Re: bobcat1]
#8144636
01/27/21 12:01 AM
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Joined: Nov 2009
Posts: 91,416
bill oxner
THF Celebrity
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THF Celebrity
Joined: Nov 2009
Posts: 91,416 |
1 or at the most 2 dogs down would seem better to me. Most of mine were rather rangy mutts back in the day.... on the edge of lost and looking like an aspirin on a hillside. X2
Quail hunting is like walking into, and out of a beautiful painting all day long. Gene Hill
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Re: How do you decide where to hunt quail
[Re: TruckMan66]
#8144827
01/27/21 01:55 AM
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Joined: Aug 2011
Posts: 13,409
jdk1985
THF Celebrity
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THF Celebrity
Joined: Aug 2011
Posts: 13,409 |
How do I decide where to hunt? I just walk a lot.
(just kidding, hope you get better info than that)
Instagram @justinkingwoodworking
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Re: How do you decide where to hunt quail
[Re: TruckMan66]
#8145378
01/27/21 03:31 PM
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Joined: Dec 2020
Posts: 46
RGVshooter
Light Foot
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Light Foot
Joined: Dec 2020
Posts: 46 |
I usually stick close to home which is the RGV, south Texas and hunt the public WMA's. But for quail you have to really know the area that you're hunting and understand the needs and requirements that quail (or any other game) require. Once you understand how they live then you look for an area, in my case a wma that can support quail, then you'll find them. I find it amazing that many hunters say that there's no quail at the public WMA's. They're there if you know how they live, what they need. I have no dog. I walk....and a good pair of upland boots really come in handy!
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Re: How do you decide where to hunt quail
[Re: TruckMan66]
#8145396
01/27/21 03:48 PM
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Joined: Nov 2009
Posts: 91,416
bill oxner
THF Celebrity
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THF Celebrity
Joined: Nov 2009
Posts: 91,416 |
A pair of quail can make a living for their clutch up and down a cow trail., picking off insects and ducking into the brush at the first sight of danger.
Quail hunting is like walking into, and out of a beautiful painting all day long. Gene Hill
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Re: How do you decide where to hunt quail
[Re: TruckMan66]
#8145775
01/27/21 08:06 PM
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Joined: Jul 2014
Posts: 306
rowdydog1
Bird Dog
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Bird Dog
Joined: Jul 2014
Posts: 306 |
I tend to hunt around food and water.
How do you identify loafing areas vs roosting areas? and how do you define each?
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Re: How do you decide where to hunt quail
[Re: 68rustbucket]
#8145922
01/27/21 09:42 PM
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Joined: Feb 2015
Posts: 474
Mundo
Bird Dog
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Bird Dog
Joined: Feb 2015
Posts: 474 |
4 dogs down at once? That sounds too much like work. You must be hunting some big, open country. In the Dakotas and Montana we sometimes run six dogs. Kind of wild but they find birds and honor those birds stay there a LONG time.
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Re: How do you decide where to hunt quail
[Re: TruckMan66]
#8146284
01/28/21 02:24 AM
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Joined: Jul 2006
Posts: 110,788
dogcatcher
THF Celebrity
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THF Celebrity
Joined: Jul 2006
Posts: 110,788 |
Before all of us got to old to walk, a group of guys from my Vietnam Unit would get together at various locations, usually Oklahoma, Kansas or Nebraska once a year for all kinds of bird hunting. But I also had a place in Stonewall county, that was always a gathering for quail hunts.
Combat Infantryman, the ultimate hunter where the prey shoots back. _____________"Illegitimus non carborundum est"_______________
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Re: How do you decide where to hunt quail
[Re: TruckMan66]
#8146715
01/28/21 03:01 PM
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Joined: Oct 2013
Posts: 81
quailg
Outdoorsman
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Outdoorsman
Joined: Oct 2013
Posts: 81 |
I like open bird country where i can watch my dogs work. I will put down 2 at a time if they are seasoned dogs.
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Re: How do you decide where to hunt quail
[Re: TruckMan66]
#8147340
01/28/21 10:55 PM
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Joined: Sep 2004
Posts: 8,414
stinkbelly
THF Trophy Hunter
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THF Trophy Hunter
Joined: Sep 2004
Posts: 8,414 |
I hunt public land, so I hunt where I don't see people for a mile or so.
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Re: How do you decide where to hunt quail
[Re: stinkbelly]
#8147437
01/29/21 12:04 AM
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Joined: Nov 2009
Posts: 91,416
bill oxner
THF Celebrity
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THF Celebrity
Joined: Nov 2009
Posts: 91,416 |
I hunt public land, so I hunt where I don't see people for a mile or so. I also hate crowds.
Quail hunting is like walking into, and out of a beautiful painting all day long. Gene Hill
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Re: How do you decide where to hunt quail
[Re: TruckMan66]
#8147487
01/29/21 01:01 AM
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Joined: Jun 2007
Posts: 1,864
blanked
Pro Tracker
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Pro Tracker
Joined: Jun 2007
Posts: 1,864 |
Get off the beaten path and put in some boot leather. Most hunters dont want to work hard they want to road hunt
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Re: How do you decide where to hunt quail
[Re: TruckMan66]
#8148471
01/29/21 09:44 PM
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Joined: Sep 2012
Posts: 2,217
shooterwalter
Veteran Tracker
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Veteran Tracker
Joined: Sep 2012
Posts: 2,217 |
Come do it the easy way at my place. Close to Dallas, home for dinner, dogs have a blast and you will not shoot all you shoot at on first shot even on pen raised birds. IMOHO Totally private like you own the place.
www.poetryshootingclub.comGun Dog Training, Flighty Quail Guided/Unguided Quail Hunting Group Events/Parties 700 Yard Range CLOSE TO DALLAS Take a youth shooting 214-728-2755 By appointment always and you shoot in private.
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Re: How do you decide where to hunt quail
[Re: TruckMan66]
#8148490
01/29/21 10:05 PM
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Joined: Nov 2010
Posts: 6,284
scalebuster
THF Trophy Hunter
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THF Trophy Hunter
Joined: Nov 2010
Posts: 6,284 |
I like to hunt where I know there are bird or at least where I’ve found them in the past. If it’s new country I just start at the best looking spots. I don’t mind running a lot of dogs as long as I’m only handling two or three of them. Only three if they’re the right threesome. Nothing prettier than a dog on point with three or four more backing.
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