Bye Bye Birdie

I am no great hunter.  That title is held by the resident Mountain Man.  I do, however, enjoy a good grouse hunt.  Campers Companion slung over my shoulder, the smell of fall in the air, Sniper searching for the scent of the prey.  It is exhilarating!  It all culminates in the moment that you spot that little feathered body or hear the beat of wings after the flush.  In that moment, it is you and the bird.  Let the games begin! 

Now, grouse probably need not apply for the bird Mensa Society.  Though highly camouflaged in a tree, this does not apply to the trails/roads that they often hang around.  However, they operate on this idea of invisibility even in plain site.  This allows hunters such as myself to actually have a chance to make a shot.  Now if said hunter misses the first shot, she is saved by the fact that grouse are not known for their long distance flights.  Locate the nearest spruce tree in the direction of the birds flight and begin the game of hide and seek.  This is an added challenge but so much fun.  These birds know how to hide!  Sometimes after climbing through the brush and analyzing every spruce tree in sight, you are left singing "Bye Bye Birdie." Sometimes you get a second chance.  Like most second chances, this is where the rubber meets the road.  (Begin slow motion).  Your heart is racing, you raise the gun to your shoulder, the bead meets the bird, you squeeze the trigger . . . BAM! 

What happens next is usually one of three things.  1) The bird drops and is retrieved by your trusty hunting dog.  Hello Dinner!  2) A second shot sounds from the back-up shooter and then refer back to number 1.  3) Bye Bye Birdie.  On Friday, we did a lot of singing :)  Grouse: 4, Jason and Summer: 3.  However, we missed one of those birds with a sling shot.  Hitting anything with a sling shot is super hard so I consider this a small victory.  Tacha also flushed a bird which is a win for Miniature Schnauzers everywhere! 

Despite Sniper's painful encounter with a very pokey porcupine, it was a great outing with my little family.  We returned home with some tired legs and meat for the freezer.  I can't wait to do it all over again (minus one porcupine!).

Alaska Fun Fact: In late August, spruce grouse begin frequenting stream sides, lakeshores and roads in early morning to secure grit for the coming winter months. The sharp, hard particles of rock are apparently essential for grinding the fibrous spruce needles that are their main source of nourishment in winter.