Rooster!

“Rooster!” shouts our guide, as yet another ringneck pheasant blasts out of the grass. Shots ring out and the bird falls. I am in Kansas, hunting the excellent habitat managed by Jason Johnson and his team at Upland Inn Hunts. A non-native species brought here from Asia in 1881, the ringneck is now a part of the American hunting landscape, and the most popular upland game bird in the country.

The legendary “ditch chicken”

Although I had hunted pen-raised preserve pheasants before, this was my first experience chasing the wild birds of the Great Plains, and the experience did not disappoint…although there were some surprises. Located in the small town of Greensburg, Kansas, Upland Inn is a much bigger operation than I had expected. In fact, chatting over the kitchen table in our lodge the night before the first hunt, Jason speculated that he may actually be the biggest employer in town during pheasant season.

While I anticipated arriving to a single lodge with a few hunters, what I found was more of a pheasant lodge campus. Composed of multiple buildings, Upland Inn has a main office, the “Outback” dining hall, and then several houses converted into comfortable accommodations for plenty of hunters. We shared our lodge with two other groups of hunters, totaling about fifteen folks altogether. Still, there is plenty of space and lots of amenities to make for a comfortable stay.

Just as comfy as it looks

But we weren’t here to hang out in the lodge (although there’s nothing wrong with that), we were here to hunt. After a hearty breakfast, we piled into our trucks and followed Bill, our guide, a few miles out to what the old soldier in me might call an “objective rally point.” We then climbed aboard his combination dog/people trailer, and proceeded to the field. Even driving the dirt farm roads to the fields, we were already seeing birds all over the place.

But once we dismounted, the work began. This Monday morning, we were hunting in 40-ish degree weather, in mist and light rain throughout the morning. That wouldn’t have been a big deal, except now we were pushing through chest-high grass, all of it quite wet. This meant we were also quite wet ourselves in fairly short order. From the waist down, I was as wet as if I’d jumped in a swimming pool. Not all the moisture came from the outside, either. For my part, the physical effort required to push through the heavy, wet grass generated a pretty decent sweat as well. At least I wasn’t cold.

Wet in the long grass…

The good news is that the birds were plentiful. Bill’s dogs worked hard, but I think between the heavy cover and the weather, they were having trouble pinning the birds down, and many flushed way ahead of us. But no worries, as there were still plenty of shots for everyone. Within a few hours, we had 30 birds in the bag. We could have gone back out after lunch to try and get the last two birds we needed to round out our limit, but after the four-hour push through the long, wet grass that morning, everybody was happy to pour the water out of their boots and warm up at the lodge.

After a steak dinner and a good night’s sleep, we were all set to head out for our second and final hunt. Fortunately, the weather had taken a turn for the better (in my opinion). Though a bit colder and much windier, we enjoyed clear skies and grass that was not quite as tall and wind-dried. Still, working through the cover was a workout…just not quite as difficult or as wet as yesterday! But the common factor was lots of birds, and lots of opportunities to shoot. In fact we filled our limit of 32 pheasants in about three hours, and headed back to the lodge. We all had “miles to go before I sleep,” so after changing out of hunting gear and a quick lunch, we collected our birds (expertly cleaned and vacuum-sealed) from Bill and said our farewells. Many thanks to Jason Johnson and his excellent team at Upland Inn Hunts for their hospitality and professionalism.

Wind and sun

Despite some challenging conditions (and isn’t that where the best hunting stories come from?) I had a great time hunting with friends old and new, and look forward to the next time I get to hear someone shout, “ROOSTER!”