Abert's are supposed to be good to eat, I've heard they were an important food source for settlers. We have those in NM too, have seen them but never taken one.
Hunting Quail - Alone
- Thread starter Johnm1
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Abert's are supposed to be good to eat, I've heard they were an important food source for settlers. We have those in NM too, have seen them but never taken one.
That makes sense to me though they don't taste any different to me. They are quite a bit larger than the normal grey squirrel though so I suppose that would make them more important. Maybe I'm just not that observant though. They are relatively quite and not as easy to hunt as their smaller brethren.
wankerjake
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They taste awesome
PWC
Member
Who says walls don't work
Hunting alone does have a ‘Simplicity’ to it. The goal is to not have to wash anything when your done eating
Can, pot/bowl, spoon all go in the trash. It works well if your camping next to your truck.
And a nightcap
Shaken, not stirred.
Can, pot/bowl, spoon all go in the trash. It works well if your camping next to your truck.
And a nightcap
Shaken, not stirred.
MutinousDoug
Member
Ouch! makes my plantar fasciitis ache looking at it.
gotboostvr
Member
That just looks like a rolled ankle to me.
buck460XVR
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My only experience with quail is Bobwhites. Not only do they sit so tight that without a dog you would never flush them, finding one after dropping it out of the air is almost impossible in decent cover where you would find a quail. Once had a covey of quail flush from a single corn stalk left in the middle of a chopped corn field while pheasant hunting. Walked by it once when my dog went back and took a point. My partner and I laughed about the idea that anything at all could hide in that little spot, and figured the dog was scenting a bird that had an before we got there. We were astonished when half a dozen quail flushed. After the dog retrieved the two birds we downed, he went back to the same corn stalk and pointed again. We knew darn well there couldn't be anything left.......but we were wrong as another half dozen birds flushed from the same tiny spot. In my lifetime of bird hunting or just being in the woods/afield, I could count on one hand the amount of times I have flushed quail without the aid of a dog. In an area where they needed to go to water, maybe one would have a better chance. Maybe some of the western quails are not as elusive as Bobwhites, I dunno. But I would still suggest getting a dog or asking someone with a dog to go with you.
I have no experience with Bobwhites. Heck all of my experience quail hunting is chronicled in this thread. Though AZ G&F does have decent descriptions of the 3 types of quail we have in this state and they all do respond differently.
I found something odd this afternoon while driving to drop off some quail at the local ranchers place. I found a large covey about 7 miles from where I had been hunting. The quail where I had been hunting, likely see light if any hunting pressure, would generally just walk away keeping almost 100 yards between us. When they did flush it was almost always out of range and they would fly what appeared to be a half mile. Far enough that when I got there they were no where to be found. Stragglers were few and far between.
This new covey, in a location more likely to see other hunters, acted differently. Same species, Gambel’s, would walk away about 100-200 yards and then hold. They’d flush as if I had a dog. I actually got some traditional ‘Quail’ shots. When they did flush they would land a couple hundred yards away. Close enough that after a short walk I could hear them trying to re-gather. There were stragglers all over. Next time I go I’ll go back there.
It was an ok day. 6 total. 4 in the original spot and 2 with the new covey. I didn’t get a picture of the last two birds.
I apologize up front for the gratuitous pictures. I have left this place with nothing more than pictures a lot more often than after a successful hunt. That and I just can’t get over how beautiful this place is. I grew up in NY on Long Island in a culture that didn’t include hunting. But my impressions of hunting have always been the traditional alpine or wooded areas. And I can understand the impression that this area isn’t a place I’d like to hunt. Initially that was my thought. But over the last 12 years I have come to absolutely love this place. And here is why:
Believe it or not there is life in that brush. I saw a very nice buck on Saturday. It is not an easy place to hunt. So you have to like/love something.
Believe it or not there is life in that brush. I saw a very nice buck on Saturday. It is not an easy place to hunt. So you have to like/love something.
I did mention that Orange Butte is photogenic didn’t I?
But you have to search for places like this. More importantly you have to be there when it presents itself. This waterhole has been dry for months now. May not see this again for years. Can’t really forecast that.
But you have to search for places like this. More importantly you have to be there when it presents itself. This waterhole has been dry for months now. May not see this again for years. Can’t really forecast that.
I'm with you, there is a lot of plant diversity here, just with much smaller leaves. Many different shades of green too, unlike the monochromatic green back East. I came to NM from IL and have been blown away by how great the hunting is here. I've taken elk (the most recent Tuesday near Chama), barbary sheep, oryx, and pronghorn, all on overnight trips from my home in Albuquerque.
Beautiful. Back East it is brown all winter too, at least here in the SW we have a blue, not gray, sky in the winter.
In Texas the wildflower season is a real contributor to the tourism industry. Not so much here in the southwest. Fact is the wildflowers in Texas are everywhere. Hear in the southwest one has to find them. But there are places that are absolutely stunning after the spring rains.
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