
Add below zero temperatures and high winds and you’re facing the toughest upland bird hunting in the country. You never know which field or slough they’ll be hiding in, and sorting it out means hiking miles through tough, thick grasses, rushes and cattails that tangle, grab and slow you down. Ron SpomerĪ wild rooster hunt isn’t for the weak of heart or leg, especially if the wind is blowing and mercury plummeting. A wild rooster hunt isn’t for the weak of heart or leg, especially if the wind is blowing and mercury plummeting. Snow shrinks accessible habitat even farther. Wild pheasants use it all, and after late November they’ll be concentrated in the heavy cover because crop fields are gleaned and frost will have shriveled a lot of vegetation. These are small to large grasslands usually sprinkled with wetlands (glacial potholes) and set amid private farmland, which supplies the grain. The third and fourth wild bird hotspots are state Game Management Areas and Federal Waterfowl Production Areas. No need to ask permission! Check the SD G,F&P website for maps showing these fields.

Tough! The other is on small farms where CRP grass fields have been leased by the State for public hunting. One is on small farms where you get permission to hunt. Elk Wilderness Horseback Hunt | Montana Wilderness Horseback Hunt | Montana Ron Spomer Learn your ballistics or use a ballistic rangefinder with angle compensation. Steep shooting angles, both up and down, put shots high. Standard deer cartridges are fine, but use a stout bullet, either bonded, partition or monolithic. The first half of October is usually a safe bet for thick coats without battling extreme cold and snow. For a real trophy, try a late October or even a November hunt. You can hunt in September, but goats’ coats get thicker and longer later in the year.

Differences between a big billy and a young one are slight.īe prepared for rain and snow. A small binocular will suffice for finding white goats, but back them up with a 20-60X spotting scope for judging horns. Get them with tall, stiff sides for ankle support and stiff, deeply lugged soles for clinging to rock. The less weight you lug, the farther you go and longer you last, but don’t scrimp on boots.

Think ultralight everything-tent, sleeping bag, rifle, scope, underwear. You’ll be in, on or around cliffs, ledges and rocky spires, living out of a backpack. hunters have never seen a mountain goat, but you can-up close and personal.
