Deerfly Diaries

Women's Pheasant Hunt at Pine Shadows Daybreak Lodge in South Dakota

I just returned from a week of pheasant hunting with five other women at the Pine Shadows Daybreak Lodge in Frederick, South Dakota. It was a 16 hour drive from my home in Carbondale, Colorado, but worth every minute. Just ask my two German shorthaired pointers, who also got to come along for the week of bird dog bliss in the heart of pheasant hunting country.

Pine Shadows Daybreak Lodge

Daybreak Lodge is owned and operated by the Haglin family. Mark Haglin (below left) got his first springer as a gift from his wife Sophie in 1975. Now the company operates Pine Shadows, the country's largest English springer spaniel kennel, located in Brainerd, MN. Mark's son Morgan (below right) is the head dog trainer and one of several guides at Daybreak.

The Daybreak Lodge is ten square miles of private hunting grounds west of Aberdeen, South Dakota, way up in the northeastern corner of the state. The terrain is unique in that it includes a variety of rolling hills, forested draws and sloughs, as well as the more traditional flat farm country that is generally associated with mid-western pheasant hunting. There are two guest houses on the property, the Hudson House and the Campbell House. At one time, the property marked the southern most outpost for the historic Hudson Bay Trading Company.

Women Hunters Convene for a World-Class Pheasant Hunt

The female hunters on the trip included five other women who are all involved with marketing and communications for the hunting industry: Cristie Gates from Benelli USA, Cathy Williams from Federal Ammunition's Media Agency of Record, Kim Eveland of Eveland&Partners who oversees marketing of the Beretta Trident Program, Anna Stubna, Editor of the The Ruffed Grouse Society magazine and Cheryl Riley V.P. of Education and Outreach from Pheasants Forever.

Also joining us were Scott Cherek and Scott Buchmeyer, who handle advertising sales for PF and RGS and several other hunting and conservation publications. Scott and Scott graciously organized the trip and invited me to come along with my dogs to document the trip for a future Pheasants Forever magazine article.

Daybreak is equipped with several ATV "Mules" and even a 4-WD "short bus" to transport hunters into the field. It didn't take long to realize that the cover in Daybreak was exceptional. My jaw dropped when I first saw my bouquets of hundreds of birds explode from the cover. With the help of our guides and their hardworking dogs, everyone got their fair share of shooting and birds. We even had one female guide named Joan (below right) who was an experienced and successful dog handler.

Joanie's husband, Lynn (above left) was our chef extraordinaire for the week. Breakfast and dinner were served family style in the dining room. Lunch and happy hour were served in the Post, a relaxed meeting building adjacent to the Hudson House where we all stayed. There was no lack of nourishment. Despite all the walking and hunting we did, my scale claims I came back three happy pounds heavier. 

It was a blast to share the week with other women who share my love of the outdoors. The camaraderie was similar to any other hunt, yet this was the first time as a women that I was part of the majority of hunters. There was little pressure to "bag our limit." The agenda was to have fun, enjoy the adrenaline of the hunt and learn everything we could from each other.

Daybreak sent us home with cleaned, packaged and frozen birds, along with a selection of their favorite pheasant recipes. I hated to leave the lodge, but I packed up and headed west with my dogs to some wonderful public walk-in access that topped off my week of hunting. The next day I drove all the way home from Pierre, SD. I had plenty of time to reflect on the successes of the week and to dream about the next time I meet my friends at Daybreak.

A big thank you to Pine Shadows Daybreak Lodge and staff, the Haglin family, Scott and Scott, and of course my new huntress friends.

 

 

Chasing Western Colorado Turkeys

After earning two preference points for the limited turkey license draw, I finally won a local tag for Unit 43, which stretches from Glenwood Springs to Aspen on the southwest side of the Roaring Fork River. Like most areas around the country, turkeys have made a strong recovery in Western Colorado. Unit 43 still only offers tags to 30 lucky hunters. The other side of the river, Unit 444, offers 35 tags and seems to have a slightly stronger populations of birds for one reason or another.

Asking Permission to Hunt Private Land

The tricky part is finding somewhere to hunt in our rural, yet populated valleys. In the fall I see a lot of turkeys on higher elevation public lands, but in the spring the turkeys tend to be in the valley bottoms in the agricultural fields where the snow is melted and food is more plentiful.

Luckily, I have permission from a local farmer friend to hunt his property. I have seen lots of turkeys on three other nearby properties. I asked permission to hunt on those and got two no's and a maybe (if I haven't shot anything by the end of the season). I will have to put my calling skills to the test.

Now it is a matter of just getting out there and putting in my time amid a busy work schedule! 

Still-shot video: German shorthaired pointer rooster pheasant point and retrieve

I just found some pictures from a few seasons back when I used to guide at the Scenic Mesa Ranch in Hotchkiss, Colorado.  I realized that the sequence of pictures, shot by friend Kory Krahl with a small point and shoot Canon camera, told the whole story, from point to retrieve, of a rooster pheasant. I pieced the shots together to make this video.

Scenic Mesa was a great place to hunt, beautiful with excellent cover and terrain. The Orvis endorsed wing shooting lodge has since closed. The North Rim Hunt Club opened up in its place and offers excellent wing shooting opportunities just a few miles further up the road.

Pheasant season opens tomorrow in Colorado. Hopefully, I'll make it out sometime soon to post some new pheasant hunting pics with the dogs.  

German shorthaired pointer rooster pheasant point and retrieve from Sue Melus on Vimeo.

Sue Melus helps small to large businesses with their marketing needs including copy writing, social media, video marketing, websites and blogs. Her business, Melus Outdoors, LLC, specializes in the outdoor industry.

Save your livers: How to make healthy homemade elk or venison liver dog treats

For those of you who don't like elk or venison liver, here's a great way to put it to use. Last night I made homemade venison liver dog treats. They came out really well and the dogs love them!! Don't  overfeed your dogs the treats, be cause too much liver is bad for them and can cause vitamin A toxicity. 

1 lb of elk or venison liver

1 cup whole wheat flour

1 cup corn meal

12-14 cloves of garlic

2 eggs

Puree the liver and garlic. Add eggs, flour and corn meal.  Grease 11x13" cookie sheet.  Spread mixture evenly on the sheet. Bake for 350 degrees for 20 minutes. The recipe said to flip it halfway through, but I forgot that part and it worked fine. Cut into 1/2 to one inch squares depending on the size of your dog. Store the dog treats sealed in the fridge.

 

Sue Melus owns Melus Outdoors, creative communications and freelance writing for the outdoors.

Western Colorado Mule Deer Doe

I'm excited to say that I filled my mule deer tag on Saturday night with a beautiful doe. I have been privileged with permission to hunt this piece of property for four years now. It's close to home and fairly accessible, which makes it a great solo hunt for me. It's a lot easier to be stealthy and quiet when you are only one. 

The last few days there were two herds of at least 50 animals each on two of the neighboring properties, neither of which I had permission to hunt. I was feeling a little dejected and calling it a night as thunder rolled in the distance and lightening lit the early evening sky. On my walk back to my truck, I spotted a small herd of does. The hunt was back on!

Luckily, the wind was in my favor. I was able to stalk closer by staying low and connecting the largest sage brush bushes. I saw the animal I wanted and I closed the distance. I placed my sites squarely on the deer as she turned broadside for what I knew was my last opportunity. I let off my shot and watched as the deer jumped in the air and then ran off with the rest of the herd into the neighboring scrub oaks.

As I searched for the animal I feared the worst, but in short order, and with the help of my headlamp, I located the blood trail and soon found my deer. It was dark and raining, but I couldn't have been happier. I had made a perfect clean shot in the vitals. I had one bar of cell service and was able to text message Glenn, "I got one." By the time Glenn was there to help me, I had her cleaned and we were ready to get her out of the field.  

The cleaning and processing gets easier for Glenn and me every time. Make no mistake, it's still work. But I feel good about filling my freezer with healthy, organic, grass fed venison. We try to cut as many steaks as possible and the rest goes to stew meat or ground meat. I am even going to try making jerky this year. 

I like to trim the steaks well. Then I vacuum seal them, two per pack, into servings that can be taken out of the freezer for nightly meals. It's a great feeling to experience the whole process from shot to grill!

 

Archery elk hunting in Colorado: If only I could fill my freezer with memories.

My first archery elk hunt has come and gone. My husband Glenn and I didn't harvest an elk, but we we sure learned a lot and had fun.

Mind you I am originally an upland hunter. Not exactly a quiet sport. The dogs are running 100 mph, I'm whistling and calling and sprinting to keep up and the blasts of the shotgun certainly liven up the situation. Elk hunting by comparison can be a little slow and monotonous at times.

However, just when I was thinking, "elk hunting is OK, but my feet are getting cold and I'm tired of sitting here so still," my outlook on the sport was forever changed. I cow called for a good thirty minutes when all of a sudden, out of the quiet forest, a herd of elk charged in on us hot.  I'll never forget the look on Glenn's face, which was likely a mirror of the astonishment on my face.

I saw a flash of unmistakeable brown elk fir through the dark timber. I had just enough time to sound off two more cow calls, drop the call, connect my release to my string and draw my bow on a young bull that had run to within 5 yards of me.  After what seemed like an eternity of waiting for a shot through the dark timber, the animals spooked and my chance was over. 

Glenn and I were excited and adrenaline filled the experience. Even though I didn't shoot the bull, I felt like I had finally joined the club of the elk addicted. I had my first dose and now I wanted more.

Our season closed with a couple more close encounters with elk. I now look at those quiet, slow moments as valuable time to reflect on life. I inhaled the smell of decomposing leaves that brought back memories of fall from my childhood. I stole short naps under my tree as the warm sun finally popped its head over the opposing ridge. I sat silently as a striped skunk hunted for grubs under the log across from me.  I conversed with a chipmunk that sat on my boot toe. Like any good hunter, I want to fill my game tag, but if nothing else, I am well fed with valuable memories that I can forever share with my husband and the rest of my family. 

Author's note: I forgot to add that I had fun with a rather vocal blue grouse that called back and forth to my cow call as it was getting ready to roost for the night.

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Sue Melus specializes in public relations and communications for hunting, fishing, shooting sports and resource conservation. Learn more at www.melusoutdoors.com.

5 tips for hunting blue (dusky) grouse in the mountains

We've had a great start to the blue grouse season here in Western Colorado. Lots of rain this past spring made for thick cover and, from my perspective, that has meant a bumper crop of blue grouse this year. Or maybe it's that now I've been doing this for a while and I'm starting to learn the little tricks.

1. I find blue grouse between 7,000 and 10,500 feet where I live, but no matter the elevation, blue grouse love ridge tops. If you can go a little higher to the top of the ridge or hill, do it. You'll likely find grouse there. If there is a rocky ridge or a scree field to hunt near, even better. 
2. Try to find a place that has been recently cut in the last two or three years.  The regeneration of the understory is a great place for the birds to find food and cover.  Grouse love grasshoppers and berries.
3. Remember that the places where the grouse hunting is good likely will not have very much, if any, water for your dogs.  You'll need to either pack in water, teach your dogs to drink from your hydration pack or take frequent trips back to the truck.  You might need to tell your bird dog when to take a break since most bird dogs don't want to ever stop. Don't let Fido suffer heat exhaustion. 
4. Pack a good pair or needle nose pliers or a multi-tool. Cactus, thorns and porcupines are abundant anywhere you might be hunting. If your dog gets a cactus in its foot you will need a way to pull it out.
5. Try the Spred-R load from Polywad, Inc. The Spred-R load works very well in my Fox Sterlingworth 20 ga. and is also available in 12, 16 and 28 gauges.  This shotgun shell produces a quick opening and uniform pattern that is very effective for upland shooting.  It helps when you find yourself in tight cover. They are a little more expensive than standard game loads, so sometimes I put one in my right, or more open barrel, and put a standard shell in the other barrel. 

Sue Melus is owner of Melus Outdoors- public relations and communications for the outdoors.

Archery big game and blue grouse openers make this woman a happy hunter

We kicked off our archery big game season on Saturday morning here in western Colorado. Glenn and I were hunting for elk on Saturday and Sunday and were very aware that it was getting up in the '80s by midday. Not so bad if you stay out of the sun...hmm, dark timber sounds like a good idea. We didn't have any luck yet, but sure had fun.

Tomorrow morning we'll be out in the field hunting Colorado blue grouse, or dusky grouse as the wildlife biologists have renamed it.  I'll confess- there were a few times over the weekend that I wished I was bird hunting.  It had a lot to do with the dogs.  It's just hard for me to leave them behind. They are my best four-legged hunting buddies and there is something missing when I'm hunting without them. But then again, I'd be a hungry hunter if I had to live off of the few blue grouse I shot on the wing last year.  

So I'll thank my blessings that I am able to go hunting every chance I get, any way I can. Whether I am in the thick of the action or quietly waiting under a tree for it to happen, it's never a dull moment hunting. I am blessed to live in a beautiful country filled with God's creatures. They keep me on my toes, keep me honest, and if I'm lucky, keep me fed. 

Sue Melus owns Melus Outdoors, LLC- public relations and new media communications for hunting, fishing, shooting sports and resource conservation.

Colorado Leftover Big Game Licenses on Sale August 11th

Don't despair if you missed the annual big game lottery for Colorado, it's not too late to get a great tag for the big game hunting season in a limited draw unit.On Tuesday August 11th leftover tags will go on sale to the general public.  

Hunters may purchase tags beginning at 9:00 am from a qualified vendor or on the phone by calling the Colorado Division of Wildlife at 1-800-244-5613.  The next day, on the 12th, leftover tags may be purchased online at https://www3.wildlifelicense.com/co/start.php.

Be ready before you go to purchase your Colorado leftover big game license:

The best thing to do is to download the list of leftover licenses ahead of time and be familiar with the coding system.  You'll want to know what unit you want to hunt and what the hunt code is before you go to purchase.  You'll also need your hunter safety card, your driver's license, and a method of payment. 

Colorado Big Game season dates:

Archery: August 29-September 27

Muzzleloader: September 12 - 20

Rifle:

Season #1: Elk only, October 10-14

Season #2: Combined elk & deer, October 17-25

Season #3: Combined elk & deer, October 31- November 6

Season #4: Combined limited: November 11-14

Cost:

Resident elk tag is $46

Resident deer tag is $31

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Sue Melus is owner of Melus Outdoors, LLC which specializes in PR and communications for natural resource conservation, hunting, fishing and shooting.

From turkey hunting in Central NYS to camping in the Utah desert

Just got back from my vacation visiting my family in Central New York State in my hometown just east of Cazenovia, NY.  My week off also meant a much needed week away from the computer: no blog posts, no emails, no Facebook and no Twitter.  Just a week of sitting in the beautiful eastern forests with my Dad every day hunting turkey.  The skies were blue, the forest was popping green, the apple trees were blooming. We had a lot of fun, I learned a ton from my Dad and the turkeys gave us action almost every day. I also got to cook dinner for my Mom and my 99 year old Grandma B and be there to hear the news of my sister having her third baby on Mother's Day.  What could be better? Well, if I hadn't missed my one shot at a gobbler it could have been a little better, but ask me about that when I get back later this week.

I'm now making the mental adjustment to go to the hot and dry desert for work.  Yep, work.  I leave early Monday morning for the San Rafael Swell 30 miles west of Green River, Utah.  Backbone Media is hosting a press trip, so we'll be camping and canyoneering in the slot canyons of this unique geological area in the heart of the desert with a group of writers for various magazines. I just saw they are expecting record high temperatures tomorrow in Green River.  It will be a far cry from the moist and cool forest of NY.

Stay tuned for more on my recent trips when I return on the 22nd.