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Ruffed Grouse Minnesota is an online magazine devoted to upland hunting in the Upper Midwest. Published twice a month by photographer Joel Schnell.
Stocking Stuffers for the Ruffed Grouse Hunter
by Joel Schnell
Released Dec. 4, 2013
As a public service I'm forming Hunters Against Yet Another Pair of Wool Socks for Christmas (HAYAPWSX). Okay so I need to work on the acronym but you get the idea. It's December, so here's a few gift ideas for the Minnesota ruffed grouse hunter you may know.
The Ultimate in Layering
fleece neckie ($13)
The fleece neckie is the best layering garment I own. Wear it over the ears, or around the neck. Put it on when you're cold and stuff it in a pocket when warm. I've got 3 or 4 of them in my various gear bags. Hunting, snowmobiling, fishing, walking the dog, it's useful for all sorts of outdoor activity. Cheap and machine washable, you will never have to replace it.
A Glove Within A Glove
polypro liners ($7) deerskin gloves ($17)
Match up a pair of unlined suede deerskin gloves and polypro glove liners and you have a great shooting combo. The liners keep you warm and wick moisture from your hands. The deerskin stays soft even when wet or cold, and keeps your grip on the gun. If you get warm just stuff the liners in your vest. Find 'em at your local farm supply store.
Ruffed Grouse art on a shot shell box
Les Kouba shell box ($35)
Minnesota's Les Kouba was one of the most popular wildlife artists of the last century. He inspired a generation of Minnesota outdoors painters, perennial winners of duck stamp contests. Heck he even designed the Coca Cola logo in his spare time. And he was prolific, his paintings are reproduced everywhere. I found this old Holiday shot shell box with a ruffed grouse on one side and a rabbit on the other with a bunch of my uncle's old shells. It even bears his famous signature. Les made a whole series of wildlife shell boxes and you can find them on ebay or garage/estate sales. Snap 'em up if you come across them. They make a nice addition to the gun cabinet or man cave.
Bird Knife
Upland pocket knife ($35)
Any old pocket knife in the game vest will do to dress a grouse. But try one made for bird hunters with the gut hook and you'll never want to be without it. When dressing a bird, just slit the belly and hook the gizzard with the gut hook, twist and pull. The whole works comes out quickly and cleanly and you don't even have to wash your hands.
There you have it, the Ruffed Grouse MInnesota gift guide. For a few more suggestions, see my Seven Great Ruffed Grouse Gear Items for Under $20.
Joel Schnell is publisher of www.ruffedgrouseminnesota.com
A Recipe for a Ruffed Grouse Cover
by Joel Schnell
Released Nov. 20, 2013
It didn't look like much from the road.
Just another clear-cut, with a thin line of aspen across the valley on the hill top. I explored it anyway, and found a few key ingredients for a fine ruffed grouse cover.
I'm always looking for new cover, but I don't want to waste my precious weekend time hoofing around empty ground. So I try to spend my time in covers that are likeliest to hold birds- which sometimes means trying to judge them by looking from the road.
What's it take to hold grouse?
The cover was thin aspen about 4 years old. I call it gunbarrel aspen, as the little trees are about as big around as a gun barrel. A rule of thumb as to the age of clearcut aspen is that it grows 3 feet a year, so 12 foot tall trees are 4 years old. I confirmed my guess when I got home by looking up the cover in google earth, which has a time slider to reveal older photos showing what year it was cut.
Thin aspen like that is good woodcock cover for the flight birds, but I don't typically look for grouse there unless it's the peak of the grouse population cycle (you'll find birds everywhere then, even marginal cover). I put Maggie on the ground and we bagged a few timberdoodles, when I heard the familiar thump-thump-thump of a ruffed grouse starting to drum.
A surprise in the mix
I wheeled Mags around toward the drummer, and soon spotted two fallen pine trees, dead branches bristling upwards like porcupine quills. Cover enough for a drumming male grouse it seemed. Maggie ran around the other side of the pines in a pincer movement- deadly to grouse. Mags pointed, and I saw him run out my side of the trees and prepare for flight. It's been tough shooting this year, but this time an escape flight through thin aspen would not prevent a load of 8's catching up to him. I hardly finished putting him in the game bag before I heard it again, another drummer nearby. Turns out this "woodcock cover" had enough fallen pines to harbor a few more birds. The clearcut was pretty picked clean of standing timber, but I think the loggers left a few pines standing that fell to the hilltop wind after the harvest.
We wound our way around the hilltop cover, and it seemed odd to see my Jeep parked a half mile away. Seldom in a grouse cover can you see great distances. Fifty yards can be a stretch in the thick stuff. This cover held a few more surprises, as I circled around to the back of the hilltop I found myself a nice little brook with alders growing along it. Another favorite location of ruffed grouse, and a few more flushes.
Food for crop
I went back to the cover a couple more times, and was surprised by finding the soft red berries of highbush cranberry. I only have one other cover featuring these grouse delights, and every time I hunt it I flush a bird. Favorite berries will hold grouse in unlikely covers. I also look for the white berries of dogwood, as even in mature forest grouse will be nearby.
Thus we have the ingredients for a fine ruffed grouse cover. The fallen pines and alder brook provide the thick hiding places from predators. And the high bush cranberries, aspen buds and leafy ground cover provide the food.
I'll be back over the years, to watch this clear-cut mature, followed by the newer timber harvest around it. I expect to be greeted a few more times with the thump-thump-thump of a drumming grouse.
Joel Schnell is publisher of www.ruffedgrouseminnesota.com
Explore New Hunting in Minnesota Ruffed Grouse Country
by Joel Schnell
(Released Nov. 6, 2013
I'm always looking for new ruffed grouse hunting covers. Minnesota is a big state, with a lot of public hunting areas, and I love seeing new ones. Now, I have enough places to hunt already to last a lifetime. But why not explore somewhere new, you never know what is over the next hill. There's lots to see, from the oak covered hillsides of the bluff country, to the productive central hardwoods, to the grand unbroken Northwoods.
What if you get an invite to stay at a friend's cabin, or join to them on a trip to Minnesota? Where do you start to make a successful hunting trip in unfamiliar ground?
I received an invite to stay with one of our sponsors, Don Beans of Jasper Creek and A Stay Inn Ely. A place I've started many a canoe trip from but never hunted. Ely is a great destination for trips into the forests of majestic pines and sparkling lakes of the voyageurs highway of old.
Doing the research
My first step was a review of my old dog-eared copy of DeLorme's Minnesota Atlas and the Superior National forest map. This handy reference shows all the back country roads and trails off the pavement, and outlines the public forests.
Next step was a few emails to my fellow Ruffed Grouse Society committee members. Volunteering help for a banquet will include you in a great network of ruffed grouse knowledge. Ask them if they've been in the area before, and they may share a few starting points. Many a hunt I've shared with these fellows, and we all learn from one another.
Narrow down your search
Next I called the MN DNR wildlife area manager, and asked for a few tips. He was knowledgeable about the area, and while only speaking in general terms, could direct me towards some birds. Armed with my general area of interest, next I pulled up Google Earth and looked over the cover. Knowing how to read the texture of the vegetation tells me the age of the forest. The time slider tool also reveals earlier photos of the area so you can pinpoint what year it was cut. It reveals trails, clearcuts, and edge cover like swamps.
And of course, our host Don gave us a few more tips from his boots-on-the-ground experience.
Driving to Ely takes you through the Iron Range, where the great mines fed the steel mills of industrial era America. We watched as the forests melted from maple and oak to the birch and white pines of the North. We stopped and hunted the afternoon on the way there. Evening found us relaxing in front of the fireplace after a fine dinner in town. A few tuckered out bird dogs soaked up the heat among the drying hunting boots. In our stocking feet and with a glass in hand, we toasted our day afield and planned our attack for the next day.
Working the covers
With four hunters and three dogs, we tried to split up as best as possible. We looked for parking spots which allowed us to push in each direction with a pair of gunners. After a few hours a lunch spot for camp chairs and coolers was given four stars. We flushed a mixed bag of ruffed grouse and woodcock and everyone got some shooting.
The next day dawned with a fresh coat of October snow, reminding us that winter comes early here. We were not discouraged, and flushed birds snow or no snow.
Old familiar covers are comfortable to hunt, knowing the lay of the land like the back of your hand. But try breaking out to somewhere new, you may be surprised with a rich experience. Our sponsors, Don at Jasper Creek and Jerry at Pineridge Grouse Camp are a good place to start.
Joel Schnell is publisher of www.ruffedgrouseminnesota.com
October in Ruffed Grouse Country
by Joel Schnell
(Released Oct. 22, 2013
It's here. What we've been waiting for. The damp smell of leaves on the ground. A few more logs on the fire each evening. Yellow aspen leaves fluttering like gold coins. A brilliant woodcock moon beckons the flight birds down from Cananda on their way to the Big Easy. And maybe a ruffed grouse falls to a Minnesota hunter, as it did for his father, and his father before that, and as it will for his son.
Playing Catch-up
October weather has been has been taking her darn sweet time arriving this year. Each weekend I expect the leaves to fall, and it took until the third October weekend in my neck of the woods. And rain? How about a gully-washer every weekend, drumming all night off the steel roof of the cabin. But as I stood under that enormous blue full moon, arms crossed in a heavy flannel shirt against the chill, all is forgiven.
Finally we can see the birds that thunder from a birddog's point and swing the barrels with purpose. No more stumbling and tripping over unseen branches holding a grudge against my trespassing.
A Season For Birds
Now it's our time, and there is a rhythm to it. It's wash down a cup of coffee and hit those muddy roads. Slipping and sliding around the corners, always watching for a bird on the side of the road. Pull into our spot, and the whining begins from the kennel. A few quick beeps as the collar is activated, then it's paws on the ground. An impatient doggy dance occurs around the truck as I put on the vest, check the pockets, and load up.
Tap the compass and get the bubble out of the way. It's slippery on the wet leaves, and my collar is buttoned up and the gloves on against the cold- for now. I'll be stripping off layers soon enough.
A Full Day
I hear the bell jingle in the distance as I duck under a fallen tree. After brief pause in silence, I send a single ping to the locator collar. On my left, about 50 yards out. She's on point, and now it's my time to dance in a circle around the dog, getting in place for a shot. A feathered rocket leaps skyward with a startling flush. Loud enough to startle even me, the gun goes off at a trigger tap. Maybe the satisfying extra weight in the game bag will reward my hike, or maybe it's just a noisy salute to an untouched bird winging away. My dog makes a move in the direction of the shot, but soon enough it's back to business. "We're working now", I remind her. And on we go across the forest, sometimes on trail, sometimes not. Maggie checks in once in a while, and I stop her with the water bottle. Too busy for a drink she is, but I make her finish her bowl.
A little sore in the knee, and scratching at the litter of forest in every pocket, I finish the day and head back to the cabin. The gas lights pop and hiss to life, the wood stove clicks and ticks as the cast iron heats up. Another fine day afield at a Minnesota ruffed grouse camp. Tomorrow we do it again.
Joel Schnell is publisher of www.ruffedgrouseminnesota.com
Ruffed Grouse Tech
by Joel Schnell
(Released Oct. 11, 2013
Based on sporting art of ruffed grouse hunting, you would think the sport hasn't evolved since 1920. You know the scene: Old Sport, with a double gun, canvas pants and red hat, walks up to a pointer locked up by an old apple tree with a partridge beneath. But I think ol' Sport would kill for the tools ruffed grouse hunters have now. The future is bright for ruffed grouse tech, and moving faster than you think.
I've been using e-collars on my dogs through several generations of training collar technology. The high price barrier has been smashed, as has reliability and size. Anyone can access the kind of dog training and tracking tools that must make professional trainers fear for their livelihoods.
I don't use the training stimulation much anymore as my older dog is past the puppy training stage. But if she nears a porcupine or traffic on the road, it's a command Maggie can't ignore. The locate beep function- now that's something I use every hunt, something I've waited over a decade for the technology to be reliable. When I hear the her bell stop ringing for a spell, a single ping from the collar tells me where the dog is to move in for the flush. The beeper function is great for big-running breeds on point far afield. I like the sound of the bell better myself, but on windy days you can hear the beeper better than a bell.
GPS
It's not exactly new tech, but keeps getting better and better. Personally, I love compasses and I have all sorts of them. And when the sun is shining, I don't use the compass much at all- just remember over which shoulder it's shining as you walk in. What a Global Positioning System offers is relationship to a fixed point. You to your truck, or trail junction, or the cabin. A compass is great for straight line navigation, but sometimes inconveniently a big swamp is in your way. it's nice to know you can walk around it and the gps will tell you how far to one side of your objective you end up.
I also use the dotted line that draws your path like high-tech bread crumbs. It can be useful to compare your map or aerial photo back at the truck with the path you just walked. It tells you where the trails go and helps plot a loop hunt back to the truck by connecting trail ends.
Smart Phones
While GPS is a mature technology, smart phones are just getting useful in the grouse woods. The apps most useful in Minnesota ruffed grouse hunting require an active cell signal- which I don't have in my coverts at present. That will change. The marriage of computer power, gps, and photo display will make cross country navigation a snap.
I'm not an expert on apps useful to hunting, but I have few tools I have found helpful. The excellent 8 mp camera in my iphone is the source of most of the photos on this ezine. I also carry my library of aerial photos with me on the iphone. During my online scouting of covers from home, I take screen shots of areas I will travel to, mark them up with a few notes, and save as a pdf document. I upload them to the smart phone using dropbox, and open using Adobe Acrobat. Presto! A birds-eye view of wherever you are. And to keep the power on while hunting all day, I use a mophie juice pack, doubling my battery capacity in a durable case.
Online Aerial Maps
Getting a view of what's over the next hill no longer requires sheer boot leather. Using a Google Earth, Bing or other online mapping services you can scout new covers from home. Input your gps coordinates of a waypoint to look over a new hotspot. Look back in time at past aerial photos to tell exactly when a cover was clear cut. Input the MN DNR overlays of hunter walking trails and see which ones are worth hiking. When itching to get back afield during the work week, a pleasant diversion is pouring over aerial photos.
More Tech Coming Your Way
Of course, this is only a small sample of ruffed grouse tech. Advances in clothing, boots, firearms, ATV's, dog training, hydration, and more make the evolution of ruffed grouse hunting fascinating. Take advantage of what you can, and get out there!
Joel Schnell is publisher of www.ruffedgrouseminnesota.com
www.ruffedgrouseminnesota.com
Owner and Editor, Joel Schnell.
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