2006 - 2007 2nd year of hunting

Dove Season Begins

September 1st, 2006

    Dove Season opener today in Graham Texas. Blaze made a lot of friends.

September 4, 2006

Jumped rabbits with Blaze this morning. It was just for fun, no gun along. Long nap under a metal roof in the Rain, then this evening a dove hunt also in the Rain. Shot a box of shells in less than an hour. Blaze always on the ready. She usually sees the dove before I do. Disclaimer for unsafe position of gun in picture. Gun had just been used to shoot the two dove immediately before taking the picture. It is an over under and will not hold more than two shells. There was no danger of this gun going off if it where to fall. 

Wet dove made for a mess with the feather situation

Not another hunter out today. It was a wonderful moment of solitude for Blaze and me

Good Picture of the Sunflower field with my Mojo Dove decoys

September 9, 2006

And yet More Graham Texas Dove Hunting

Blaze probably retrieved over 30 birds total for us Wednesday and Thursday. Her "Blaze" did come out for a while Wednesday breaking from a retrieve on a dead bird and chasing a couple fly-by live birds about 500 yards across the field. I will give her credit in that I had sent her on a couple long flying cripples just before and unfortunately those birds made it out of the field into private property, so she may have been getting a little confused with what was expected of her at that point. Thursday I kept her short leashed to my side for the first thirty minutes of our hunt and I stayed close to her on the first retrieves of the day. She is back on track and under control. 

Picture from Thursday. I really like this picture! In a sea of dead sunflowers

Man is she focused on watching for those Dove! Check out the one minute movie.

.wmv movie version
http://www.fototime.com/8FA20B06E695FC3/conv.wmv
.mov movie version
http://www.fototime.com/8FA20B06E695FC3/orig.mov

September 16, 2006

Dove Hunting near Newcastle Texas

Hunted a field at Newcastle this weekend with coworkers Steve Heath and Bill Miller. Did very well on the first day before the big group of hunters that came for the second day. But I did get a few on the second day too. Friday there where not many other hunters, so I placed myself on the edge of the field between the field and a tank I could see on another property. Made for shooting at rocket birds, but I hit 12 of them. And even though I am not smiling in this picture, I had a blast. I think I had just said, "I don't think it took the picture".

There had been a lot of rain and so pretty much ruined my Ray Roberts dove hunting spot. For a while at least. It was solely dependant on dove coming to water and the fact that there was not much if any other water left in the area other than the lake. My 
scouting I only saw one single teal at Lewisville and when I Teal hunted opening weekend I only had one single teal buzz my decoys low and by surprise. I missed it. Not much hunt-able water left within the hunt areas. 

9/22/06

Teal Hunt & Feral Hog Encounter

Originally I had no intentions of hunting on this morning because it was so windy. But at 4:30 am the Blaze kicked me in the face and woke me up. she was wide awake and had sprawled out on the bed between me and Sharon. Blaze was on her back with her feet in the air. I pushed her off and went back to sleep. 5:00 am I wake up with Blaze nose to nose standing over me like a cat stealing my breath. Sharon says I might as well take her somewhere. So what the heck, 5:30 am we are on the road to a creek on Lake Ray Roberts where I saw that small flock of teal three weeks ago. Did not expect much since it was a walk in spot within view of the road, but it was my only idea of where to go. I ended up next to a beaver lodge and the pair was a bit upset with me at first. One spun around and wacked a decoy while I was setting them out. The Beavers eventually settled and one got up on a log next to me in the dark. I set the camera on a log and opened the exposure all the way for this picture.

The teal did not show with the sun as hoped, but this guy came for a visit. Nothing like a real confidence decoy.



The aviation website I look at for my hunts indicated 10 mile winds before sunup picking up fast with the sun. I had set up in a spot out of the wind with the idea the teal would be looking for a break from it when it picked up. I had about given up on them but decided to give it 30 more minutes and it payed off. They did come. Blaze was sure happy for some action after I had made her lay in the mud all morning.



I had three and was going to go home with that, but just as I picked up the decoys, a flock landed on the other side of the Creek.
I figured I had come this far, why not. I made the walk around and about the time I was in position for a stalk, they flew to the other side where I had just come from. On my way back across, they moved again and landed in an oxbow of the dry lake. Perfect. I was easily able to walk within range of that little waterhole and drop number four.

After the hunt Blaze and I were crossing a dry creek bed with chest high weeds. Just as I was thinking that I have no way of knowing if I was about to step on a snake, I kicked up a hog. I mean I really kicked it. I could not see it, but it made a wave through
those weeds like a sandworm in a science fiction movie. Trying to keep up behind  the Hog was a smaller wave in the weeds that was Blaze on the chase. I saw it as it made the tree line. Light colored about 75 pounds at the most. Blaze was trying to track it, but I called her off.

I did not see another hunter and only heard three other shots that came from the main lake area. Yep, a good day for a hunt less 
than 45 minutes from the 9nth largest city in the nation.

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2005 - 2006 Hunting Season

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