Quail Lease

Upland bird hunting is our leading hunt quality risk category due to the variables of a hunter's willingness to walk, shooting ability and dog power. When all three are present a good hunt typically results. A contributing set of factors to this hunt quality are weather effects.

These effects are those that enhance or degrade bird reproduction and those that affect dog and hunter during the season. These weather factors of course are difficult to forecast and plan around and can make or break any hunt. How different hunters handle during season adverse or enhancing weather effects has been a good source of observations about bird hunters themselves. Amongst all the bird hunters traveling from multiple states we get to work with the most adaptable at making the most of more difficult conditions are the woods grouse hunters. The least adaptable (now remember folks we are stereotyping at this point) are the southern quail hunters.

The woods grouse hunter by far has the most difficult terrain to hunt. Steep slopes and thick cover will bring on fatigue and difficult shooting making each grouse pointed a welcome sight, any in the bag a bonus and a rare day any season when a limit is bagged. These bird hunters more than any other appreciate the day outdoors behind dogs. Southern quail hunters are at the other extreme on all counts.

Southern quail hunters are in two sub-categories. The first is the southeast plantation quail hunter where well groom woodlots with coveys anchored to feeders and waters score a covey each time stepping on the ground (typically from a mule drawn wagon) and a limit for those than can shoot by lunch. (On that covey anchor bit, John Wenzel does the same on his farm the year he start a new pup. It works great for a single training hunt or two and then the feeders are put away so the dog learns to hunt for coveys rather than run from feeder to feeder.) For these plantation quail hunters a lot of quail in a short time is normal and bird dog work on quail not the real reason for the hunt. This plantation quail hunter description is not an unfair characterization, it may prevent us from wasting our time on the telephone with a plantation hunter that thinks he can come out our way and have a good wild quail hunt on a natural habitat hunting lease.

The next category of southern quail hunter that has poor adaptability to adverse conditions is the Oklahoma and Texas quail hunter. These are the quail hunters that have the money to pay for a large quail lease as any public land has poor hunting due to limited acreage and high hunter pressure. These hunters put multiple dogs on the ground at once and chase behind them on 'gators'. Their idea of a good quail hunt is measured singularly by covey counts. Anything less than 15 coveys is a bad day and 25 covey days the ones sought after. These same hunters never have a good answer of why it takes them 20 coveys to get a 10 bird limit! We call these hunters quail killers and not the type we work with. This brings us back to the woods grouse hunters.

While woods grouse hunters travel from the southwest, all eastern slope Rocky Mountain states and from Minnesota to Maine down to the Virginias and Carolinas they are all the same. They all know hard bird hunting and it is about the enjoyment of the day, their dogs and the hunt, not the kill. These hunters have the willingness to walk our flat land as it would takes days of walking out here to match one day on the slopes where grouse thrive. The woods grouse hunter can shoot fast and accurate as in the thick grouse cover there is not any such thing as blue sky shooting as we have on pheasant and quail. The woods grouse hunter has the dog power as grouse far more than any other upland bird are pressure sensitive requiring more point standoff. Whenever a grouse hunter calls to inquire of membership we are far more accepting and rarely have declined any grouse hunter application. A southern quail hunter must talk real good for our acceptance.

The letter and pictures below are from a father and son grouse hunting team that has had nothing but bad luck when traveling our way for a pheasant and quail hunt. As we talked before and after their trips they have endured adverse weather of hot temperatures, wind, dry, no morning dew, dusty conditions and rain days. They have hunted on MAHA lease land for two seasons and never have experienced what any locals would call a good day. They have done what many non-residents before them have and that is remind us all that even a hunt under adverse conditions is worth the trip. Thank you John and John for sending in your "report card" on our hunting lease quality. All feedback in any form whether for the update page or our own non-published consumption is welcomed and expected from all members. Each is read by the decision makers that have financial responsibility for the Association. Good luck to all.

Hi John,

Here are some pictures from Dec. 06 I found the 10 point in [location deleted], a nice buck not a huge rack but big body it had 3 broken tines only been dead a couple of days, seen a bigger one in [location deleted].

Only could find a few quail there this year, seen a few different coveys there last year. Most of the other pictures are in [location deleted] the picture of the black and white setter on point is my male and my dad's female backing only about 200 yards from the truck a big covey of birds, got the rooster as we headed south.

The sheds I found were across the road in [location deleted] seen a huge buck in the back come out of the cottonwoods, 2 doe tried to run my dad over. As I headed down into the trees I was looking in the leaves and seen the huge shed sticking out, that picture does not do it justice it had 9 points with that star on the end, plus the middle is more webbed than the picture shows, looking for the other one I found that small 4 point about 30 feet away they were perfect because in [location deleted] the sheds I find are usually chewed on by critters.

My dad seen a small buck on the way back on the same piece and a small covey he knocked 1 bird down in that tall Sudan grass that we didn't find, plus got rid of an opossum. The picture of me holding the rooster was in [location deleted] seen a lots of pheasants but they were far away, 1 small covey that spooked up by the road took some feathers but the birds flew across the road.

The picture of my dog swimming was [location deleted] warm afternoon seen 50 or more pheasants in that section but did not fire a shell, watched lots of birds go in from the farm across the road, but we could not get a point on any, soon as 1 would fly they just kept leaving together.

My dad's setter in the milo was [location deleted] a covey that he had 3 birds right under his nose the rest were behind which I ended walking into trying to come up on the point. All in all a fun but frustrating trip as we seen lots of pheasants, but have never seen them so spooky. In the past 2 years we have gotten wet, this year in [location deleted] it was very dry and dusty which I think was a factor of not getting close to the birds.

Sincerely, John [last name and residence deleted]

The hand written note below the typed letter is from the senior member of this team.

P.S. Hi John,

This is John B's Dad, just wanted to say we really have enjoyed the properties you have referred us to. We always have found game, its just tough getting close to the pheasants in [location deleted]. The kid tries to walk the old man to death I need to find anti-aging pills. Thanks for all the help. I have really enjoyed the trips. John