muzzleloading chukar hunt !!!

[silent sniper]

hello guys, i just got back from a very memorable chukar hunt. i went with two of my good friends. one used a t/c new englander 12 guage and the other (thomp shooter) used his grandpas old double barrel breechloading hammergun,sense he hasnt got a muzzleloading shotgun yet. i used my NWTF navy arms 12 guage double barrel muzzleloader. we had an absoulute blast !!! we got to the hunting place at 8. our guide came with the dog and we left. soon we already had a point. the chukar lifted and i pulled the trigger. it was a great sight seeing the first chukar of the day fall through the cloud of smoke. next was a double where aaron and todd each put down a bird. after that was another double, one bird flew over aaron and he missed and i made a very nice 30+ yard shot. i turned to c the other bird flying straight at me. 2 muzzleloader blasts went off as both todd and I shot at the bird, we both hit it and it dropped like a dead rock lol. a single bird came up that aaron wounded and the dog went and grabbed. another double flew up and i cleanly dropped one and aaron missed the other one. after that was single bird that was bullet proof. aaron shot at it once and i shot twice at the bird at a mer 15 yards and yet the bird flew away. another single was quickly put down by aaron. then we hit another double. aaron and i both shot 1 bird and the other one got away. another double then flew up and i dropped 1 and the other one flew away. we jumped a couple more singles and ended up with 1 more that todd shot and 1 that aaron and i combined on. aaron and todd also dropped 1 more each. in all we ended up with 13 chukars. sense i shot/helped shoot the most birds i got the honors of cleaning all the birds lol. i was going to get pictures of all of us with the birds but i forgot lol. so here is a pic of all the birds and my gun before i got down and dirty cleaning all the birds. they are soaking in italian dressing and will be wrapped in bacon and thrown on the charcoal grill. todds load was 80 grains FF,felt wad,80 grains mix of #4,#5,#6 shot,and a felt wad on top. he was using a modified choke in his new englander. my load was 60 grains FFF,OP wad,lubed cushion wad, 80 grains mix #4,#5,#6 shot,and 2 OS wads on top. cheers SS.

 

[rabjr]

Nice! Thats some good eating there. :thumbsup:

 

[luieb45]

Nice shooting! :thumbsup: I went on a preserve quail/chukar hunt last weekend and it was a blast. I don't own a bp shotgun but the whole time I was hunting I was thinking it would be way more fun with a bp shotgun so now I am looking to get one. The hunt I went on with my cousin was mostly quail but the guide threw in 5 chukars since he was emptying out the cages. Those chukar are hard to hit since they do all that flying up in the air.

 

[GreyWhiskers]

Way to go, SS! Chuckars with a ML had to be challenging. Thanks for sharing your hunt. GW

 

[bigbore442001]

It sounds like everyone had a good time.

 

[Britsmoothy]

Well done SS, you have got the bug bad :hatsoff:

Brits.

 

[Jason Lewis]

great shooting!

 

[paulvallandigham]

Chukar partridge are notorious for flying about 10-15 feet up in the air, and then turning RIGHT. They fly down wind, and will often drop down towards the top of the ground cover.

If you hunt them close before flushing, let them get up and then make their turn before mounting your gun. Just remember that unlike a pheasant, which will continue to climb, these birds will glide down, and you need to be shooting Under them to hit them. I have killed a couple of Chukar with my BP shotgun. I have yet to miss one, but someone told me about how they fly differently than pheasants, and I have used that information to my advantage.

The Guys I have seen miss these birds all shot too close and too soon, when their pattern was non-existent! Let the bird get out to 20 yards before you pop it. The way the bird flushes, you think its a quail, and you DO have to get on THOSE speedsters. But, not the Chukar. He takes off fast, like he is shot out of a trap, but then he flies much more like a pheasant than a quail. Preserve hunts were almost made to order for BP smoothie hunting. I enjoy hunting wild birds, but the variety of shots you get on preserves makes the hunts more interesting.

 

[Roy]

nice! :thumbsup:

 

[KyFlintlock]

A hunt of a lifetime! Way to go!!!

:thumbsup:

 

[Idaho Ron]

Our chukar out west are a bit different. Here is a picture of my spaniel Buzz with a chukar. The canyon behind him is right at 800 feet deep.

The chukar here live most of the time in the bottom of the canyon. In the late winter when the canyon is colder and the top is warmer. The grass starts to sprout and the birds come up out of the canyon.

In this picture the birds are actually just over the rim. There was NO way to get them if I shot so I just took a picture.

When the conditions are right. The wind blowing from the sage to the canyon. The birds will move out to feed. When this happens they are out in the flats. That is when the hunting is the best.

The Brown shorthair passed away this last October. She was the finest chukar dog I have ever seen. The White Shorthair is Hildie. When she puts the "smooth" on wild chukar it is a thing of beauty. Hunting with good dogs is a must. I have trained all of mine and they were all finished dogs under complete control. A wild pup in these canyons end up dead. I know of several dogs that were out of control and ran right over the edge chasing chukar.
Chukar Dogs must also cover ground. It is not uncommon for Hildie to punch out 300 to 600 yards looking for birds. I use a flag and a bell to help keep track of them when they are hunting.
Hunting wild chukar is tough. The roads out to chukar canyons are nasty two tracks that most of the time have mud or snow. These canyons are anywhere from 40 to 80 miles from the closest town or cell service. I love hunting chukar for so many reasons. Ron

 

[hawk]

that's some beautiful country and very nice looking dogs. :thumbsup:

thanks for posting.

there's a pile of good supper too, congratulations.

 

[BillinOregon]

Ron: Great photos. Takes me back to happier times when I did some serious work on chukars in the Malheur River canyons in Eastern Oregon with my Brit Molly and a 20-gauge Citori. I miss that hunting and the canyon lands. And you are right: between the cliffs and the rattlesnakes, a dog can get into serious trouble very easily.

 

[Britsmoothy]

First rate post :thumbsup:
Those pics are great, it's no surprise but your spaniel just looks like mine :thumbsup:

Brits.

 

[Jason Lewis]

i've killed pheasants with a flinter now, looks like chukars are next!

 

[rkmeyer]

We did a Kansas Pheasant/Chukar hunt in October with my Drahthaar (Blaze). What a great time we had. Very difficult hunting in Milo fields, had to follow the combine tracks but still a blast.
Dusty :wink:

 

[chance]

Great hunt SS.

 

[KHickam]

Where the heck can you legally hunt chukar in April? Or was this a poultry hunt at a preserve?

 

[KHickam]

:bull:

 

[paulvallandigham]

What is that about?? I have hunted Chukkar Partridge several times on a Game Preserve here in central Illinois, and I have accurately described their flight characteristics as I saw them. Not having this species native this part of the country, I had NO knowledge of them before my first hunt. The owner of the preserve gave us the tip, because she wanted the birds killed, and not allowed to hang around and possibly breed.

Anytime I get a tip, I take the information to heart, but let my normal skepticism remain on "alert". The only articles I had ever read written about hunting partridge involved western birds, in deep canyons, like along Hell's Canyon on the Snake River in Idaho/WA.-Ore. I even have a cousin, and once, had a brother in law, who had hunted the birds out there. After my first Preserve hunt of the birds, I talked to my cousin about the birds, and my hunt, and the tips, and he confirmed that the birds he had hunted also flew up, then sailed down, making an even harder shot in the canyons, than I had here on the flats. :thumbsup:

If you disagree, say so. But simply sending me that Flag is rude, and uninformative to the rest of the membership. NO? :hmm: :thumbsup: