Anyone else ever do preserve hunting?

sxs · Feb 16, 2014

I went the first couple times to Native Shore perhaps 25 or more years ago. It was reasonably good and I had a great time just watching the dogs work. I didn't go again until 10 or 12 years ago. A friend of mine had a Llewellin Setter, Molly, that he want to work some. Went with him and a few others to Pintail Point a few times over the next few years and hunted over Molly. We had a pretty good time and the birds usually flew well with decent cover. It was about 3 years since my last hunt at Pintail and for various reasons that wasn't going to pan out this year. So we chose Caroline County Shooting Preserve based on some things I had heard from others. The guide, Donnie was fantastic. Friendly, helpful and easy going. The dogs were pretty good and the cover was decent. All the birds flew well, so that wasn't an issue . It was also a way to introduce my son to his first upland type hunt and to get out with my brother and a good friend of mine for some hunting fun. The only other birds my son had hunted until that day were doves.

sxs · Feb 16, 2014

engineerbrian said:
where did you go?

CAroline County Shooting Preserve near Denton, MD.

54rndball · Feb 17, 2014

I have been thinking of doing this because a game farm is about the only place to hunt pheasant unless you get out west. Has anyone gone to Mason Dixon Game Outfitters in Harford County or North River Retreat in WV? This farm in Denton looks interesting.

elind · Feb 17, 2014

Has anyone been to Schrader's out in Henderson, MD?

lx1x · Feb 17, 2014

Its not hunting. Lol

I call it caged. bird shooting.. lol

Great shoot!

54rndball · Feb 17, 2014

Ok! Anyone up for a Cheney bird shoot?

fabsroman · Feb 17, 2014

54rndball said:
Ok! Anyone up for a Cheney bird shoot?

You aren't getting me to go on one of those. I'd be the target.

PJDiesel · Feb 17, 2014

I don't get the hate. If you don't choose to participate in one thing or another, just.....don't? Sounds as if some of the people commenting have never seen dogs work.

fabsroman · Feb 17, 2014

PJDiesel said:
I don't get the hate. If you don't choose to participate in one thing or another, just.....don't? Sounds as if some of the people commenting have never seen dogs work.

Everybody is entitled to their opinion as long as they aren't saying nobody else should do it. Heck, a lot of people wonder what the big deal is of shooting a clay disc flying through the air. Then, I wonder what the big deal is about getting a small white ball into a hole or putting a large orange ball through a hoop. Heck, you have some people wondering how hunting, in any form, can be entertaining. To each their own, as long as nobody is telling anybody not to do what they enjoy.

PJDiesel · Feb 17, 2014

Ugh.... I shoot the orange disks AND cuss at a little white ball all summer and fall....

fabsroman · Feb 17, 2014

PJDiesel said:
Ugh.... I shoot the orange disks AND cuss at a little white ball all summer and fall....

Easier to shoot the little white ball and whack the orange disks with a club. lol For some reason, I just cannot get into gold, but probably because I would rather be out shooting clays. I'm going to have to try and make it up north your way sometime.

sxs · Feb 18, 2014

Trust me...I would prefer to be able to go to South Dakota or someplace where the wild birds are there...especially if they are plentiful. It's just so damned expensive it's difficult to justify. 30 or more years ago, I went a few times with a friend who had 2 Springer Spaniels and we hunted up quail and woodcock. My brother and I used to be able to kick brush in some areas near Taneytown and in western HoCo (I was young, in college, not much money and no dog) and maybe kill a couple Pheasant roosters. One year we gave up on the pheasant because we didn't kick any up after several hours of hunting and started hunting some of the numerous rabbits we had been jumping out. Only time in my life I ever killed my limit of rabbits! Unfortunately, those days when there were a lot of wild upland birds to hunt appear long gone except maybe for some ruffed grouse in W MD. There was a small covey of quail close to my deer stand near Mardela Springs neasr Salisbury...but they were few and I wouldn't think to hunt them as they are so few. Haven't seen them in the last couple years anyway. Yet, I personally would much rather be able to hunt birds like that than sit all day in a deer stand. Don't get me wrong....I hunt deer a few days every year....but there is nothing to me like wing shooting...and ESPECIALLY over a dog!

sxs · Feb 18, 2014

54rndball said:
I have been thinking of doing this because a game farm is about the only place to hunt pheasant unless you get out west. Has anyone gone to Mason Dixon Game Outfitters in Harford County or North River Retreat in WV? This farm in Denton looks interesting.

I enjoyed it and I would recommend Caroline County Preserve. The birds flew pretty well...about like wild birds (and, yes...as posted elsewhere in this thread, I have hunted wild birds). Donnie, our guide was great. They do say a 25 bird minimum, but we were able to hunt just 20 pheasants (a little over $100 / person plus tip for 4 people). Biggest difference from when I hunted wild birds in Maryland years ago is that you get more game birds up in a fairly short amount of time on the preserve. BTW, someone mentioned birds running. I saw that more on previous shoots than at Caroline County SP, but they will usually run at least a little before getting up. FWIW I hunted birds in PA on public land a couple times back in the day and if those birds have any amount of hunting pressure, they will often run if the cover is thick....or alternatively fly like hell when you're still 30+ yds away.

We chose to do the actual flushing rather than having the pointing dogs do it for us (they would have on command). This is for 2 reasons: 1) I had my son who is experienced in deer and dove hunting, but who had never hunted over dogs. To me, this is much safer for the dog than shooting a dog-flushed bird and I prefer it even for myself 2) When you are doing the flushing, the birds generally flush much closer to you so you have a bit more time to get on the bird. With a double barrel (I used my 12 ga Citori O/U and a 20 ga Chas Daly SxS) you can use an Imp Cyl choke (or even better, SK 1 followed by a modified or even Lt Mod) because the birds are flushing close.

midnightSGT · Feb 25, 2014

Preserve/Raised critter/Fenced Farm======Shoot

Wild Critter/No Fences=================Hunt

That being said. I do see the preserves are good for training dogs and mentoring youth
as long as the youth hunters know the difference.

sxs · Feb 26, 2014

One more thing: PA used to have a lot of 'wild' pheasants, but many of those were hatched, then raised and released into the habitat. Only some of the birds are actually born and grow up 'wild'. With the changing of farming practices couple with explosion in Fox and Coyote populations (both predators will decimate populations of ground nesting birds) there aren't many places to hunt birds other than dove or waterfowl at all anymore :sad20:

BigT · Mar 2, 2014

sxs said:
Trust me...I would prefer to be able to go to South Dakota or someplace where the wild birds are there...especially if they are plentiful

sxs said:
One more thing: PA used to have a lot of 'wild' pheasants, but many of those were hatched, then raised and released into the habitat. Only some of the birds are actually born and grow up 'wild'. With the changing of farming practices couple with explosion in Fox and Coyote populations (both predators will decimate populations of ground nesting birds) there aren't many places to hunt birds other than dove or waterfowl at all anymore

I believe South Dakota does the same process as PA- hatch them, pen raise them, and then release them on Friday Afternoons during the fall. The farmer I know had several dates when he was to release the birds he was paid to raise to ensure a steady number of birds... The state has recognized it is a huge tourism business for them...

The explosion of the fox and coyote populations - to me - seemed to coincide with the bottom falling out of the fur business... In the early 80's I was getting between $45 and $60 to as much as $75 for a good fox and $60 for a coyote (Lived in western Iowa then not sure of MD prices..) Not sure what people are getting for them now.. There is also the damage that racoons, skunks, and possums can do to the round nesters, and with fewer trappers going after fox, there are fewer of all of these critters being caught.. This shift in the fur market unfortunately coincided with changes in farming techniques you mentioned and a expanding growth in suburbs.. Bad for the upland game birds...

Hattrick · Mar 4, 2014

For upland hunting its about the only option anymore it is fun once and while. On fur and large game not so much I'm against that 100%. I may actually try to get a guiding gig with my dogs next year. I can only afford 1 trip a year out west for wild birds and the numbers are way down there too.

Anyone else ever do preserve hunting?

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