I can’t get motivated any more either. A lot of it is that the areas I used to hunt are now neighborhoods. I have to drive a long way now, don’t have time to scout, and it’s public land . I’ve lost contact with most of my old friends that hunted also.

I almost went squirrel hunting once over Christmas break but just didn’t have it in me. I was tired from a fishing trip the day before…

My oldest grandson is really getting into it so I may end up going with him at some point, but he’s got his buddies that he likes going with instead of me…

51 minutes ago, N Florida Mike said:

My oldest grandson is really getting into it so I may end up going with him at some point, but he’s got his buddies that he likes going with instead of me…

Gee gramps, just not cool enough huh?

I'd go fishin' with ya, but not blasting poor little critters to kingdom come. 😁

On 9/3/2025 at 7:23 PM, gim said:

Deer hunting is my least favorite.  Mostly because it's god awful boring just sitting there rotting away in a tree for days on end.

 

I'd much rather hunt pheasants with my loyal 4-legged friend.  It has very little to do with harvesting birds or game to east them either.

 

I remember watching "American Sportsmen" as a kid and seeing Bing Crosby on a bird hunt, singing while they walked. It seemed a splendid way to spend a morning.

@Swamp Girl - bird hunting can be a ton of fun, especially if you have dogs. The US style of walked up hunting where you are basically out for a walk with your dog and letting your dog find them is fantastic. Depending on the terrain, you can be out for a nice leisurely walk along the edges while the dog does all the work. Watching a dog bounce through a grass field that’s taller than its head and all you see is the dog porpoising through it is fun. Watching a good dog work a patch, catch a scent and really hone in on the bird is great. For me, the dogs make the bird hunting. I grew up hunting small game every weekend from the start of October until the Saturday after thanksgiving and then for the month and a half after Christmas when late season came in. We’d hunt rabbits, grouse, and the few pheasants that were around, mostly without dogs and if there was a dog it was a beagle. When i graduated college i got a lab (my wife grew up with labs) and I’m on bird dogs 4, 5, and 6 right now (2 each over the years- black lab, wirehaired vizsla, Slovak roughaired pointer). Alas, the only bird hunting around here is either stocked birds on state lands which get hammered with people or clubs/hunting preserves. So these three mongrels in the house now are untrained at this point.

The British style of driven hunting is even more of a social event. You start the morning with coffee/tea and a snack in the hunting hut or lodge (depending on the level of place you’re in). You’re ferried out to the first drive (in a land rover, horse box, horse drawn carriage, or walk) where the shooters (the guns) are placed in their spots (pegs). The beaters then start pushing the birds toward you. On a good shoot, you’ll often have a woodlot of birds up on a hill and the shooters down lower. You only shoot at the sporting birds (none too close or too low). After the beaters have cleared the end of that woods and the birds have stopped flying, the pickers and their dogs go retrieve them. On some shoots they pick birds while you’re still shooting. On some shoots you have your own dog at your peg. After they are all picked, you casually mosey over to the next set of pegs while the beaters get in place and you repeat. After 2-3 drives you have elevensies- coffee/tea/cakes. Do a drive or two and have lunch. On a casual shoot lunch is in the field and you brought it yourself (I was partial to a slab of terrine and some crackers). Usually there was a glass of port involved. A nice big slice of cake. Then go for the afternoon. On the fancy shoots there might be dinner after. On the casual shoots you meet at the pub for a pint after (muddy boots and dogs welcome).

Some pictures of Mara (grey) and Roxy on the shoots down south in the UK.

Thanks for the education, @casts_by_fly. I knew nothing about the British style of bird hunting. I would enjoy both styles, for I'd love walking with my dog and watching him/her work. I'd love that partnership and seeing how happy my dog was. Plus, I love Springers. They're one of my favorite breeds.

1 hour ago, Swamp Girl said:

for I'd love walking with my dog and watching him/her work. I'd love that partnership and seeing how happy my dog was.

I can relate to this for the past 14 seasons. My yellow lab and I made so many memories together as a team. Her hunting days are over now but those memories will never leave me.

@casts_by_fly , my wife does fox hunts and it sounds exactly like your British bird hunts. Except nobody has ever found a fox 😂. They just dress up, drink, eat, and ride horses . The hounds do chase other wild animals occasionally and give the horses something to do