Rugged Record: How To Go Hunting For Pheasants.
Have you ever seen pictures or videos online of someone limiting out on one of the coolest looking birds in the world (a pheasant) and thought to yourself “Man, I’d love to hunt that but have no idea where to even begin”? I thought that might be the case. Hunting in general is a tough activity to break into if you’ve never done it, and pheasant hunting is no exception to that rule. If you don’t have the right equipment, the right knowledge of where to go, and the right strategies you can easily feel overwhelmed.
But, with the proper starting point and some information, you can be well on your way to getting one of these beautiful birds.
So, let’s get into it:
Where do you go?
Pheasants are found all over the country. They are usually in the prairie in places like North Dakota, South Dakota, Montana, Minnesota, and Nebraska. These states all have flat grasslands and farmland that pheasants love to live in. All these states have different seasons, and different licenses to hunt these birds. For example, I hunt pheasants in North Dakota each year. As a non-resident, I need a Small Game/Upland Game license. North Dakota sells these in 14 day sets (Two 7-Day periods) each year. Check out each individual state’s regulations to make sure you get the correct licenses.
2. How do you get land access?
Once you pick the state you’re going to hunt in, it’s time to find some land. You usually have two options available to hunt, public or private. Public land is the easiest, as long as you are in the correct season to hunt there, you’re allowed to hunt. Private land is a bit more tricky. A great place to start is by doing research on an app like onX Hunt (I used it all last season and it was crazy how helpful it was, I’ll write a future post on it covering all the main features). This will help you see what kind of land is around you, and who owns it. Once you figure out the land owner, you can give them a call or find them in person to ask for permission.
Pro Tip: If you’re planning on asking to hunt private land, bring some sort of gift for the land owner. Something like beer or food is usually a safe bet.
3. What type of land should you hunt on?
There are a couple of good places to look for pheasants:
Wooded areas next to food. When pheasants aren’t out feeding, they’ll be hiding out in places with cover. Anywhere with trees and heavy cover is a great place to look.
Next to water. Just like being next to food, you can find these birds next to water as well. This includes wooded areas, tall grassy areas, and cattail sloughs. When I’m hunting water, cattails have almost always been the best spot to find them. That said, make sure to time your shots well and watch the birds as they fall. It is incredibly easy to lose them in cattails.
4. Dog vs. no dog
Do you need a dog to hunt pheasants? No. Are they extremely helpful at times? Absolutely. Depending on if you have a dog or not, your style of hunting will change. In addition, there are two main styles of dogs to hunt with: flushers and pointers. So here’s how to hunt in each scenario:
Pointing dogs. These dogs are great at finding birds and locking them down in a spot. They work by hunting into the wind, allowing them to pick up on the scent of a bird easily. Once they pick up on the scent of a bird, they stop dead in their tracks and point their body in the direction of the bird. These dogs will usually run all over the place looking for birds, so special collars and apps let you know when the dog stops and is pointing in case you lose visual sight of them. Once they’re pointing, you can walk up to them, and tell them to get the birds up. If there is a bird, they will keep running towards it and going after the spot until the bird gets up for you to get a shot at.
Flushing dogs. These dogs are a bit different than pointing dogs. They work much closer to you and smell for the birds, and are great at getting into the cover that you will struggle to get through yourself. Once they pick up on the scent, they will follow it until they find the bird they’re looking for. Since they stay close to you, you’ll typically have a shot at them when that happens.
No dogs. It’s totally possible to hunt pheasants without a hunting dog. Whether you’re hunting tall grass, wooded areas, or cattails, you’ll want to walk just outside the covered areas. If you have more people, you can spread out throughout the area in a line to help cover more area. Walk slow and stop occasionally, this makes the birds nervous as if they think you know they’re there. If there are some, this will usually make them flush, and since you’re close to them you’ll have a shot. My dad and I were able to limit out in an hour this season walking cattails sloughs without a dog, so it’s definitely a viable strategy.
5. What equipment do you need?
You don’t need a ton of crazy equipment to go pheasant hunting, making this one of the more accessible types of hunting to start with. Here are a few things you’ll need:
A shotgun: There are tons of options out there of type and caliber, but you don’t need anything crazy. My go-to is a semi-auto 12 gauge. It lets you get multiple shots off quickly and the 12-gauge shot has enough stopping power to knock down a bird. You can also try using a 20-gauge if that’s what you have,butr it will be a bit harder to finish off a pheasant.
Ammo: In places where it's allowed, lead shot is the favorite of most upland game hunters. I usually load up my gun with 3 shells, the first two being 2 3/4-inch and the last being a 3-inch shell. This lets you reach out a bit further on your last shot if you need it.
Clothes: The last thing to consider is the type of clothing you’ll want. It’s not always required, but wearing as much orange as you can is a great idea. Getting an orange hat is the first step in this. Next is a vest, they usually have lots of pockets for your ammo, and a pocket in the back to carry your birds as you get them throughout the day. For pants, you’ll want something durable like chaps, this helps keep burs off your clothes and keeps your legs safe. Finally, a good pair of hunting boots are needed. You’ll be doing miles of walking in this sport, so something durable, waterproof, and comfortable is needed.
Well, there you have it. All the above tips and tricks should get you started on hunting one of the coolest birds in the country. If you have any questions always feel free to reach out on social media!
-Calvin
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