A Change in the Weather

      The weather during October and early November had been particularly warm and windless, possibly a record setting warmth. Warm weather makes for uncomfortably hot hunting and overheated dogs. Gamebirds don’t burn as many calories during warm weather, so they don’t move about feeding. And the windless October, with almost no air movement, created tough scenting conditions that were not ideal for the dogs. A change was finally forecast.
      The abrupt drop in temperature would startle the young-of-the-year grouse. It would be something they had never experienced, which would be to our advantage. And a promised breeze would move bird scent around, helping the dogs find the birds.
       We hunted a cutting that loggers had been picking away at for several years. The land sloped gently to the south with small hills and gullies breaking up the terrain. In some of the hollows the ground was damp and filled with weeds. Unmerchantable slender softwood trees remained in clusters while scattered small hardwoods stood widely spaced everywhere. Skid trails made for fairly easy walking.
      As we started down the slope, the thought was the birds would seek the warmth of sunshine on the south facing slopes. Shortly, Mollie found the first bird on a southwest side of a knoll and locked up on point. Upslope a short ways stood a cluster of softwoods for shelter. A hundred feet downhill a small stream trickled, providing water and a gravel source. What more could a grouse want?
      In an area of not more than four or five acres the two dogs moved eleven ruffed grouse. What a morning.