The evening before I was torn as to whether or not I should bother. With temperatures predicted in the low 80's, high winds and birds (if any) that were last released on Feb 20th on this private coop area, why bother? My wife convinced me by reminding me it was for the dog, a first-season pup that just reached one year old. Since my decision was late, I did not leave in the morning but rather 11AM and arrived by 1:30PM. My goal was to close out the season with one perfect point, steady to wing and shot, retrieve upon release and bird in the bag. The thermometer said 79 degrees and my wind-gauge said 24 MPH constant with an occasional gust in the low 30MPH range.
Upon arrival the worker told me I was the only one there and that nobody had been there in a couple of days. He said "there ain't many birds out there, but good luck". This place closed down on April 3rd, so this was my last day this season. I loaded the 13-gauge doublegun with a square load of 7/8-ounce using #6 shot. I started the first loads with an over-powder card, a 1/2-in fiber wad that was previously soaked in olive oil, and an over-shot card. The pup was ready to go and we headed towards the wind breaks that divided larger fields of agriculture and/or wild weeds and grasses.
I was starting to get tired of going backwards to pick my hat up when I realized I hadn't seen the dog a while. She was wearing a beeper collar set to "point-only" but I don't know if I could hear it over the wind. The controller has a nifty button that will set the beeper off in a flurry of 5- consecutive beeps for moments like this. I pressed the button but heard nothing. Continuing in the direction the dog was going I hit the button every 50-75 yards. About the 3rd time I pressed the button I thought I heard the "beep-beep-beep-beep-beep". Altogether about 10-minutes had passed since I last saw the dog, but now I could faintly hear the one beep per second that indicated she was on point. Wiggling through a thicket, I tore my left pants leg above the knee and drew blood. "Off to a great start", I silently said to myself. Well, the dog is on point.... When I reached her, she was "high and tight" on point. I brought the shotgun to a ready position and cocked the hammers. I walked past the dog and .... nothing. I continued on for probably 50- feet past the dog. I saw birds begin to rise but I couldn't hear them. I had earplugs that made the wind noise sound like sticking your ear to a sea-shell. Two quail were rising and splitting in a V-pattern. I swung hard on the left bird and saw if fall before the smoke showed itself. The smoke was very brief because the wind sent it away quickly. I looked back and the pup was still tight. On the way back to her a single bird took flight but I didn't raise the gun. I lowered the left hammer, continued to the dog and released her for a retrieve. The bobwhite was brought to hand. "Mission accomplished" I thought.
I turned into the wind to make a circle back to the truck so no other reason than to let the dog have a longer run while passing some ponds for her to cool off. Between the tangle and the wind I ended up a half hour before I could swing back and my circle became a big rectangular route back to the truck. I broke through the tangle and found the pup swimming in the pond and drinking water. I had already reassured myself that the beeper collar is indeed waterproof, but I still had a slight doubt. I stayed in the open when the dog continued on down an edge. We were on the protected side of the edge somewhat out of the wind now. The pup took a game trail made by either deer or hogs and came to a point in a little clearing full of low-growth sticker bushes. I made my way in there and she looked very serious on point, so I stopped to reload my empty right barrel. This time I put two over-powder cards and no fiber wad. I had already thought about this. I decided to use the olive oil soaked fiber wad for my first shots, when and if the barrel(s) became difficult to load, and my last shots. Once loaded I cocked both hammers and carefully picked through the stickers. Well out in front of the dog I had doubts about the authenticity of this point. Two more steps and I was rewarded with a covey flush. I shot a straight-away bird and saw it fall while I moved the gun to a left-right bird. At that shot the smoke did hang and I could not see if I hit or not. I tripped and stumbled back to the dog and released her. She brought one quail back to me and made several casts near the second bird but it was not on the ground. I decide to load both barrels there before moving on, and again just used two over-powder cards with the 7/8-ounce #6 and over-shot card. Not to push my luck, I intended to go the easiest way back to the truck. Two broke finds and retrieves were a good way to end this pups first season.
When we made a hard left turn the dog took advantage of the cross wind and ranged out in the open. I saw her nose go up and her head snap to the left. Her body followed and she began to slow down until she established a point. Passing the dog, a group of 3 or 4 quail ran under some sticker bushes. Not interested in walking in there or making the dog negotiate a retrieve, I took her by the collar, turned her and sent her on. We reached the end of that leg and turned hard left again. I surveyed the landscape and figured roughly where the truck was. As we came through a break and into a field the dog slammed to a stop at a berry bush of some time, about ten-foot round and seven-foot tall. It was pretty open underneath the bush so I did not expect a bird and wondered what it could be. I followed the circumference of the bush and to my surprise a long bobwhite burst out of it. I was able to cock one hammer and get the gun up. At the shot, the bird dropped. I went back around the bush and pet the dog and released her. Another quail was brought to hand and entered the game bag.
Now I was pretty sure where the truck was, and it was a half-mile or so. I reloaded my right barrel but thinking if I did shoot again it would be the last of the day, I used a lubed fiber wad over the over-powder card. With the truck in sight, I was day-dreaming when I realized the beeper was going off. I turned back and went toward the sound where I found my dog on point yet again. When I passed her by, a single quail rose from the grass. It paused for a second, caught in the wind and started actually coming back at my. Not to be dive-bombed by a quail, I thumbed the hammer and dropped him out of the air. At the shot, a second quail rose and began gaining altitude rapidly as the wind lifted him, making it loop as if he was hopping through the air. Somehow, my second shot caught him and he too fell to the ground. I went back to the dog and released her for the retrieve. She brought me one quail and then I cast her out for the second. A few seconds later the second one was brought to me. I pet the dog and told her she's the best. I just wanted one broke find and one bird in bag but we now had 4 finds and 5 birds. I headed back to the truck.
At the truck, I put the 5 quail on ice and drank some water while the dog had a treat and her own water. I put the gun in the case and began to pack up. I was just about ready to go when I heard the dogs beeper. First, I hadn't realized she wandered off so quick and second I was glad I didn't turn off the beeper. After about 30-seconds of constant beeping I realized she was indeed on point. I took the gun back out and loaded both barrels. Straight off the front of the truck about 100-yards out the dog was locked up in a little depression with some standing water, cattails and high grass. When I stepped on some crunchy ground, a rooster pheasant ran out of the grass about three strides and then took to the air, flying straight away. My first shot hit him and I saw him start to tumble down. That is usually the sign of a broken wing, so I let him have it with the second barrel too. The bird was pretty high up and made an audible thud when he hit the ground. He still flopped into some heavier brush in spite of being hit twice. I couldn't get to my dog to physically release her. I got within sight and gave her the verbal release command. At first she didn't budge but I said it again and added the retrieve command. She came up out of the mini-swamp and went towards the rooster. In less than a minute she was on her way back with the bird. I looked up and could see my truck up ahead. This bird was not quite dead. It had two broken wings, a broken leg and blood on its head but was still conscious. I squeezed it for a few seconds until it relaxed its head and succumbed. The truck was a short 100- yards now. We finished about 4:30PM.
At the lodge the worker was really surprised that we had birds. He asked, "where did you find them"? I gave him a quick recount and he helped me clean the birds. I wished him a good summer and said "see you next year". He said "Yes, Sir. I'll remember you because you are always super lucky and your the guy with the old fashioned guns". I replied, "something like that". I was really thinking I'm super blessed that my puppy grew up to be a fantastic bird dog in just one season.
At home I realized my hunch about using the lubed wads paid off. One wet and one dry patch in each barrel resulted in hardly any discoloration on the dry patches. I then used some plain alcohol patches and they were no worse. Followed them with dry patches that came out clean. Lastly, some WD-40 on the patch and those came out clean as well. Easy 5-minute clean up. Gun done, dog bath - done. Baked quail for dinner..... the end of my dogs first season and my first 100% muzzleloader season. The pup pointed over 300 birds between wild birds and "released birds" and I shot just over 1/3 of them.
Upon arrival the worker told me I was the only one there and that nobody had been there in a couple of days. He said "there ain't many birds out there, but good luck". This place closed down on April 3rd, so this was my last day this season. I loaded the 13-gauge doublegun with a square load of 7/8-ounce using #6 shot. I started the first loads with an over-powder card, a 1/2-in fiber wad that was previously soaked in olive oil, and an over-shot card. The pup was ready to go and we headed towards the wind breaks that divided larger fields of agriculture and/or wild weeds and grasses.
I was starting to get tired of going backwards to pick my hat up when I realized I hadn't seen the dog a while. She was wearing a beeper collar set to "point-only" but I don't know if I could hear it over the wind. The controller has a nifty button that will set the beeper off in a flurry of 5- consecutive beeps for moments like this. I pressed the button but heard nothing. Continuing in the direction the dog was going I hit the button every 50-75 yards. About the 3rd time I pressed the button I thought I heard the "beep-beep-beep-beep-beep". Altogether about 10-minutes had passed since I last saw the dog, but now I could faintly hear the one beep per second that indicated she was on point. Wiggling through a thicket, I tore my left pants leg above the knee and drew blood. "Off to a great start", I silently said to myself. Well, the dog is on point.... When I reached her, she was "high and tight" on point. I brought the shotgun to a ready position and cocked the hammers. I walked past the dog and .... nothing. I continued on for probably 50- feet past the dog. I saw birds begin to rise but I couldn't hear them. I had earplugs that made the wind noise sound like sticking your ear to a sea-shell. Two quail were rising and splitting in a V-pattern. I swung hard on the left bird and saw if fall before the smoke showed itself. The smoke was very brief because the wind sent it away quickly. I looked back and the pup was still tight. On the way back to her a single bird took flight but I didn't raise the gun. I lowered the left hammer, continued to the dog and released her for a retrieve. The bobwhite was brought to hand. "Mission accomplished" I thought.
I turned into the wind to make a circle back to the truck so no other reason than to let the dog have a longer run while passing some ponds for her to cool off. Between the tangle and the wind I ended up a half hour before I could swing back and my circle became a big rectangular route back to the truck. I broke through the tangle and found the pup swimming in the pond and drinking water. I had already reassured myself that the beeper collar is indeed waterproof, but I still had a slight doubt. I stayed in the open when the dog continued on down an edge. We were on the protected side of the edge somewhat out of the wind now. The pup took a game trail made by either deer or hogs and came to a point in a little clearing full of low-growth sticker bushes. I made my way in there and she looked very serious on point, so I stopped to reload my empty right barrel. This time I put two over-powder cards and no fiber wad. I had already thought about this. I decided to use the olive oil soaked fiber wad for my first shots, when and if the barrel(s) became difficult to load, and my last shots. Once loaded I cocked both hammers and carefully picked through the stickers. Well out in front of the dog I had doubts about the authenticity of this point. Two more steps and I was rewarded with a covey flush. I shot a straight-away bird and saw it fall while I moved the gun to a left-right bird. At that shot the smoke did hang and I could not see if I hit or not. I tripped and stumbled back to the dog and released her. She brought one quail back to me and made several casts near the second bird but it was not on the ground. I decide to load both barrels there before moving on, and again just used two over-powder cards with the 7/8-ounce #6 and over-shot card. Not to push my luck, I intended to go the easiest way back to the truck. Two broke finds and retrieves were a good way to end this pups first season.
When we made a hard left turn the dog took advantage of the cross wind and ranged out in the open. I saw her nose go up and her head snap to the left. Her body followed and she began to slow down until she established a point. Passing the dog, a group of 3 or 4 quail ran under some sticker bushes. Not interested in walking in there or making the dog negotiate a retrieve, I took her by the collar, turned her and sent her on. We reached the end of that leg and turned hard left again. I surveyed the landscape and figured roughly where the truck was. As we came through a break and into a field the dog slammed to a stop at a berry bush of some time, about ten-foot round and seven-foot tall. It was pretty open underneath the bush so I did not expect a bird and wondered what it could be. I followed the circumference of the bush and to my surprise a long bobwhite burst out of it. I was able to cock one hammer and get the gun up. At the shot, the bird dropped. I went back around the bush and pet the dog and released her. Another quail was brought to hand and entered the game bag.
Now I was pretty sure where the truck was, and it was a half-mile or so. I reloaded my right barrel but thinking if I did shoot again it would be the last of the day, I used a lubed fiber wad over the over-powder card. With the truck in sight, I was day-dreaming when I realized the beeper was going off. I turned back and went toward the sound where I found my dog on point yet again. When I passed her by, a single quail rose from the grass. It paused for a second, caught in the wind and started actually coming back at my. Not to be dive-bombed by a quail, I thumbed the hammer and dropped him out of the air. At the shot, a second quail rose and began gaining altitude rapidly as the wind lifted him, making it loop as if he was hopping through the air. Somehow, my second shot caught him and he too fell to the ground. I went back to the dog and released her for the retrieve. She brought me one quail and then I cast her out for the second. A few seconds later the second one was brought to me. I pet the dog and told her she's the best. I just wanted one broke find and one bird in bag but we now had 4 finds and 5 birds. I headed back to the truck.
At the truck, I put the 5 quail on ice and drank some water while the dog had a treat and her own water. I put the gun in the case and began to pack up. I was just about ready to go when I heard the dogs beeper. First, I hadn't realized she wandered off so quick and second I was glad I didn't turn off the beeper. After about 30-seconds of constant beeping I realized she was indeed on point. I took the gun back out and loaded both barrels. Straight off the front of the truck about 100-yards out the dog was locked up in a little depression with some standing water, cattails and high grass. When I stepped on some crunchy ground, a rooster pheasant ran out of the grass about three strides and then took to the air, flying straight away. My first shot hit him and I saw him start to tumble down. That is usually the sign of a broken wing, so I let him have it with the second barrel too. The bird was pretty high up and made an audible thud when he hit the ground. He still flopped into some heavier brush in spite of being hit twice. I couldn't get to my dog to physically release her. I got within sight and gave her the verbal release command. At first she didn't budge but I said it again and added the retrieve command. She came up out of the mini-swamp and went towards the rooster. In less than a minute she was on her way back with the bird. I looked up and could see my truck up ahead. This bird was not quite dead. It had two broken wings, a broken leg and blood on its head but was still conscious. I squeezed it for a few seconds until it relaxed its head and succumbed. The truck was a short 100- yards now. We finished about 4:30PM.
At the lodge the worker was really surprised that we had birds. He asked, "where did you find them"? I gave him a quick recount and he helped me clean the birds. I wished him a good summer and said "see you next year". He said "Yes, Sir. I'll remember you because you are always super lucky and your the guy with the old fashioned guns". I replied, "something like that". I was really thinking I'm super blessed that my puppy grew up to be a fantastic bird dog in just one season.
At home I realized my hunch about using the lubed wads paid off. One wet and one dry patch in each barrel resulted in hardly any discoloration on the dry patches. I then used some plain alcohol patches and they were no worse. Followed them with dry patches that came out clean. Lastly, some WD-40 on the patch and those came out clean as well. Easy 5-minute clean up. Gun done, dog bath - done. Baked quail for dinner..... the end of my dogs first season and my first 100% muzzleloader season. The pup pointed over 300 birds between wild birds and "released birds" and I shot just over 1/3 of them.
