As for chukars, all the reports I am hearing are really good. All the spring and early summer moisture really seems to have boosted production. Folks I have spoken with in several places around Utah and in northern Arizona and Nevada are all reporting the same high numbers of chukar chicks. I am excited about this hunt.

This weekend I was able to take advantage of the extended Utah chukar season.  This year the season started two weeks later and ran two weeks longer. I was very supportive of this regulation change for two reasons: first, it’s cooler for the dogs on the opener, and second, the birds are not as reliant on water sources, so they are not as tied to the guzzlers when people start hunting them.

We had a great hunt this weekend, the weather was overcast and chilly, which made good conditions for the dogs and the hunters. Even better, there was a fresh dusting of snow on the hillsides. I love to hunt chukars after a snow because you can figure out where they are and what they are doing by tracking them.

We knew the general area we wanted to hunt, so we were driving along surveying the area. We stopped at one spot that looked good and right away we heard chukars calling to us. One would think that I’d have learned by now that when I hear chukars calling I should just walk away. Needless to say, I haven’t. We shelled up and took off after them.  About two-thirds of the way to the top they started calling to us from a steep box canyon back below us. After muttering, we made a plan to go back down and come at them from two sides. As we closed in, I called out that we had them surrounded and they should come out single file. Being the ghost sirens they are, they simply vanished.

The snow did help out. While working my way up the mountain, I came across a single fresh, fresh chukar track in the snow headed up and across the slope. Allie (my lab) and I got on the track and determined to follow it out. Sure enough he led us all the way to the top. I figured he would probably run to the top and fly off the other side, but I thought I’d track him down and find out. In this case it paid off, sort of. We tracked this bird all the way to the top and around an edge. Just as we came around the edge two birds flushed, one right at me flushing from the dog, and the other down and away. I was able to down the first bird with the right barrel and hit the second bird, a far shot with the left barrel. The second bird cocked his wings up like a courting pigeon and sailed way, way down the mountain. Allie quickly came back with the first bird, and I sent her after the second. She made a great retrieve on the second working her way down mountain following the scent.  Where the second bird came from is one of those chukar mysteries.

Later Allie and I were able to get a third bird low on the hillside when she picked up scent and worked over a knoll and up a small drainage and flushed a lone bird. She was still in the drainage and didn’t see the chukar fall. Together we went back over the knoll to look for the downed bird. Once over the rise we could see a tiercel kestrel stooping back and forth after something down in the draw. For a three and a half ounce falcon, he was pretty optimistic about catching a 20 ounce chukar. We apologized to the kestrel and gathered up our third bird.

With the kind of chukar year we have had this year, and for so late in the season, I felt really lucky to have bagged three birds. My hunting partner had about the same luck that I did, so we headed back to town having had a great day. What we learned from this trip: late in the season the birds were single males or in pairs and were widely distributed, rather than in flocks. Birds were at all elevations on the mountain, but based on tracks, more of them were on the lower 1/3 of the slope.

I’ve been struggling finding good chukar numbers around home, so I traveled down to Southern Utah to look for Gambel’s quail and chukars. It was a spectacular day with fresh snow on the ground. The quail were a bust, but we did find a fair number of chukars. Problem was, that like Homer’s Sirens, they called us from just a ways up the hill, then a little farther. Before I knew it, I was at the top of the mountain, it was getting dark and they were calling me from just the next mountain over.

 

This year around us chukars have been hard to come by. Numbers seem to be down quite a bit. Saturday I had a great day out with the dogs and a new friend who shares a passion for upland game.  We hunted hard over some rough steep country. Luckily I was able to end up with at least one chukar.

I remember three or four years ago chukar numbers were really up. I could go out and see numerous coveys and consistently shoot a limit. I remember one Saturday I stayed home to get some yard chores done before the snow flew. I worked as long as I could before I had to get out and at least try for some chukars. With just an hour of light left I was lucky enough to pull down a limit of chukars. I am confident that numbers will be back, but until then, I’ll have to keep pounding the hillsides. One hard-earned chukar is real trophy and it tastes that much better.
 

 

We went chukar hunting this weekend. Late season chukar hunting is always tough, but worth getting out. It was a cold, but beautiful sunburn kind of a day. We did find two small coveys of birds high on the mountain, but they were seasoned and got the better of us. We ended up taking only one bird home, but had a great day. Everyone got a great workout and we saw some spectacular scenery. We only have 10 days left in the season!

 

Today was one of those days you’ll remember for seasons to come. We got a skiff of snow overnight, so I had to get out chukar hunting. I took Allie my yellow lab, a client’s one year old German shorthair (Abby) and another client’s 5-month old black lab puppy (Sophie). The weather was sunny, calm and mild; you couldn’t ask for nicer. I have been roading all of these dogs for a month now and it really showed. The older dogs got out and covered ground and found birds. The puppy stayed at my feet all day, but she climbed over and through some of the roughest terrain without complaint. All of their feet held up well.

My hunting partner and I had to work hard and cover miles of nasty, rocky, steep terrain but we each were able to shoot a limit. Abby (GSP) was my star today. She had four beautiful points, one that she held for a long time; my buddy had just shot his fifth bird and we were standing there telling stories and I didn’t realize she had moved off and found birds. When I found her, only 20 yards away she was locked up, standing on a rock looking down into a small sagebrush-grass patch. As I waded in two birds came up. I connected with the first one and saw a double coming together. In my excitement, I snap shot the second and of course, missed.

A funny thing happened when we were crossing a talus boulder slide following a covey. All three dogs got birdy and started digging down a crevice in the rocks. I thought for sure it was a rabbit. Just as I got over the hole, out came a chukar right in all of our faces. Luckily I was able to connect and all of us had a good laugh. Sophie, the pup, really got keyed up. You could see the wheels turning on that one. It was great to see her visibly getting excited at the sound of the shotgun. She is starting to catch on.

The day ended with a beautiful sunset as we were cleaning birds enjoying a great day.

Late season chukars can be difficult. I know, I have had a tough time putting any in the bag the last two weekends. They get really wily later in the season when there’s snow on the ground. A week ago Saturday was fun, because of the snow and bad weather It kept everyone away. The intermittent snow flurries and fog made me feel like I was the only one ever to set foot on the range. The chukars, however, were smarter than I was.

Yesterday, I did hear another couple of shots, but never saw anyone else hunting. The chukars time and time again got the better of me. They love the game of ” you chase me to the top of the mountain and then I fly away” game. The dogs would get birdy and track birds up and up, I would know we were on hot running birds by their tracks in the fresh snow. Three or four times their tracks would run just over the top of the hill and take to the air. The only way I was able to get the jump on some birds was to pull the dogs off some running birds, circle around to the back side of the mountain and come over the top on to them.

I have decided that chukars aren’t gentlemen like bobwhites. They are low down guerrilla fighters and that’s all there is to it. We still have 6 weeks left of chukar season left, and I intend to make the most of it.

We went chukar hunting this weekend; we got a good workout, but didn’t turn up many birds for our efforts. We did flush one covey and pulled a single bird out of it before they vanished. Populations this year are lower, plus I think the lack of rain has been hard on them.

 

As far as birds went, Saturday was tough. Nevertheless, it turned out to be a worthwhile day. I had a long-time friend from Montana down, a good friend from Cedar City, (UT) and a new friend and his 12 year old son, Tristan, from North Salt Lake (UT). Tristan had just passed Hunter’s Safety and gotten his license and this was his first hunt. I was really looking forward to getting him into birds.

We started out chukar hunting and flushed one covey just out of gun range. They flew across the Grand Canyon and sat there taunting at us. Aryia, (Brittany) worked up another small group a little later, but they seemed to understand the range of a shotgun and made their escape. By late morning the wind was kicking up and by lunchtime the winds were howling. We knew there were chukars around because the dogs got birdy several times, but the gale force winds made it too hard to work them up.

We had seven hours of light left and we didn’t want to quit bird hunting. We thought the weather might not be as bad 90 minutes away so we took off for ruffed grouse. We got up there and 30 minutes into the covert the storm caught up with us. Before long it was snowing hard. We pressed on and hunted through the snow until five, when we were all wet and ready for the truck. We ended up flushing three grouse and getting one. 

Despite the difficult weather and the lack of birds in the bag, it was an enjoyable day. I typically do most of my bird hunting along, not necessarily by choice, but necessity “ I hunt a lot. So the companionship was enjoyable. I have to say that I was really impressed with Tristan. This 12 year old kid was very safe with his shotgun, kept up through some really difficult terrain and thick cover and never complained about the weather or lack of birds. The most rewarding thing was when we got back to their car and were transferring gear, Tristan looked at me with a huge smile and said, “Thanks, I had a great day!” That absolutely made the day for me.

The All-You-Can-Eat Crab dinner and chocolate cake at Hoover’s Cafe in Marysvale canyon was the perfect end to the day.