Some Gun Club And Pheasant Preserve Stories

[blackbeltbill]

     I have been in 4 Different Gun Clubs in the past. Today it is all MUAs for me as,I got priced out. I have been at countless Gun Club Meetings since age 14.  Here we go.

    Now back in the early 1980s this one Gun Club had a tremendous  opportunity  to lease over 1,000 Acres of prime Black Dirt Farmland in Orange County. All that was needed was a Public Discussion at one meeting followed by a vote by " present" members at the 2nd meeting.

    Well this Gun Club had many Pistol Shooters who never hunted or gave it up with age. That Meeting  was packed! I remember  a bunch of members had to stand up front and behind the table where the President, vp,etc were sitting. There were more non- Hunting pistol shooters then Hunters present and the tension could be cut with a knife!

    VOTED DOWN...

   I knew then that a Tremendous  opportunity  was lost forever.   We would have had our Pheasant  Preserve there as well as great big and small game hunting all in the same area with room to spread out. Such opportunities would never happen today.

At one meeting in the late Summer,I remember  that a Deer Hunter with backing from others next to him tried to get a new rule in place to their benifit to Ban all Pheasant and Turkey Hunters from setting one foot in the Hardwoods.  Fields only. This didn't  fly with the majority  of those present and before the President  said something to the effect- we all pay the same Dues to enjoy the Land- a member during a Lull and,I remember  him to be a Hard core Turkey Hunter said not too loud- but heard be everyone  during that Lull- - No Turkey Hunting In The Hardwoods. And the Lull continued  for a few seconds after his statement.  I remember  it being a Tone that contained Sadness.  Then the President gave his Talk about equal rights and Dues.

    I dropped out of my last Gun Club after the Dues almost Doubled from 80 Bucks a year to 150 Bucks. The Small Pheasant  Preserve was so crowded that it just was not worth it. 

    As far as Turkey Hunting went- without a doubt the Hunting on Gun Club Leased Lands is Tougher  then MUAs.  Many members has their own areas for Deer + Turkey  and were vocal about it. That is the one Negative  when paying Dues. A sense of entitlement  that they bought this area.

  I remember  one Beautiful  Bottom that was perhaps 50 yards wide with 2 gently rising ridges on both sides. A Deer Hunters Heaven. 

   There had to be a good 6 or so Treestands set fairly close to the others in a line a good 200 Feet,I estimate . All these hunters would be able to see eachother. There must have been words with each not far from the others. Reflecting back on that as,I walked that Bottom when Fall Turkey started on October  1st,I remember  Laughing while looking at the line of Treestands. 

   Getting back to the Gun Club Meetings,I remember  one guy who at one time used to be President.  Now this goes back to the mid 1970s and on. This Club had a Kitchen with a great big opening. Probably  twice the size of a Picture window. This Guy would plant himself in the Kitchen and anything  he disagreed  with during the meeting  he would Shout out his Thoughts. Some of the meetings would get heated as this guy sparred with the President!

   I have a bunch more that,I could share- but that is good for now.

 

 

[Dogman]

Hey B~B do you remember Shawangunk  Rod & Gun in Middletown ? I joined for a year or two before relocating in 1997 when I got my first Shorthair. They had lands leased in the Middletown area that they stocked with Pheasant. Had a lot of fun there chasing Pheasant with my first gundog. Everyone  I encountered seemed to get along pretty good.  Membership was quite reasonable for the time frame.

[blackbeltbill]

12 minutes ago, Dogman said:

Hey B~B do you remember Shawangunk  Rod & Gun in Middletown ? I joined for a year or two before relocating in 1997 when I got my first Shorthair. They had lands leased in the Middletown area that they stocked with Pheasant. Had a lot of fun there chasing Pheasant with my first gundog. Everyone  I encountered seemed to get along pretty good.  Membership was quite reasonable for the time frame.

   I was never in that Gun Club . Thanks for Sharing.

[blackbeltbill]

  One more Pheasant  Preserve Story . Now this one Pheasant  Preserve had 2 Parking areas. 99% of members parked at just one of them because the other had a chain Lock that you had to unlock and then lock back up. A long steep Hill kept most away as well. My Brother in law and,I always started to Pheasant  Hunt from here. As well as a marathon runner and a handful of others.

    So one Saturday knowing that the start  would be 8.30am- the marathon  runner,my Brother in law and myself started the 1/4 mile uphill walk to the Pheasant Fields along with 2 Dogs. I had BEN. A Black Lab. His field weight was 95lbs .

    Almost up to the Fields and all 3 of us hear Shots on  the other side of the Pheasant Preserve. BEN flushed up a absolutely huge Rooster Pheasant  as,I turned a curve in the woods road. Just coming around that curve- no shot was possible. 

  This Rooster Pheasant  landed in a Tree- far up and BEN was jumping on that Tree/ going crazy. I made the decision  to shoot him off his perch before BEN had a Heart attack.

    This Rooster Pheasant had to run close to 8lbs. Longest Tail feathers,I have ever seen.  Then all 3 of us see a Truck parked in the cleared cornfield  which is against Preserve rules and just plain stupid with Birdshot flying around.

  It was the truck of the Pheasant Preserve Chairman. And up he walks with 3 close friends.  Meanwhile all 3 of us connected on 6 Good Rooster Pheasants  apiece and limited out quickly.

  In fact nothing but Rooster Pheasants got up. Not 1 Hen. 

 My Brother in law and,I surmised that this whopper of a Rooster Pheasant  was released far away from the crowd- a good 1/4mile away and one of the 4 who released probably  3 crates of Pheasants back here would get him.

  He didn't  think 3 Mountain goats would start up on the other side and start our Pheasant  Hunt here- lol.

 Up Y'ALL enjoyed the story.