July’s hot report

That’s about all I got to report, it’s hot out there. First I’ll give you Mark’s report before I tell you my findings today. Mark said he found five different covey’s of chukar with an average of 9 chicks per covey. Great report and he also said there were plenty of springs as well as tall grass. Thanks Mark.

My outing today wasn’t as productive. The good news is that I saw a lot of chukar tracks. The four wheeler trail I took today had been unridden since the last rain back in June and possibly the first time this Spring. Every time there was a dusty spot I stopped and observed chukar tracks. Some tracks were those of recently hatched birds but most were from first hatch birds.

When it is 72 degrees by 7 in the morning it’s hard to get much hiking in with the dogs. We still got a hike in for a little over an hour. With all the sneezing and frequent stops for water I figured that about all the dogs needed. Grady bumped one covey of either chukars or huns but I never saw the adult. I only got a quick glance at the 3 or 4 small game birds before they disappeared into the sage.

I did see one mature blue grouse but neither of the dogs saw or heard it. Scenting conditions are almost non existing.

One other positive note for me. Shortly after we started our hike, Grady started barking. I thought, “not good news” and hurried over to the fence where he was barking. When I first saw the tail of the animal I thought it was a porcupine tail but quickly realized it was a skunk. Grady has had encounters with both. I was tickled when I called him back to me and he didn’t stink. Maybe he has realized to keep his distance.

I’m heading over to a place not to far from where I was today, tomorrow. Hopefully I’ll have some pictures of chukars to show you. As of now, I don’t know what the season has in store for us. I’m seeing lot’s of positive signs, but not actually seeing the birds. Even though conditions are against me and the dogs, I need to see and photograph some birds before I can tell you how great the season is going to be. I hope.