Bluestem

Golden eye, definitely. Bluestem

A nice bag of tasty teal. Bluestem

Looks delicious! Congrats. Bluestem

Nicely done sir! The picture formatting says it all. Www.versatilehunter.com

Get yourself a set of hearing protection and use it. As you can tell from the posts, it really happens with folks that shoot a lot. I guide hunts and ear plugs (that let you hear low decibel noise) are part of my kit. Don't take chances. On this one. You only get one set of ears.

Interesting pheasants (from an American perspective). We only have what are refered to as "chinese" pheasant in the states. They have longer tails and gaudier plumage. Very cool to see a different variety. Thanks and well done, especially with no dog! Bluestem

Well done on the shooting. What breed of dog are you using? It looks like a griffon of some sort. Bluestem.

Looks like you had a great morning! Congrats!

Nest raiders = Zero! Well done!

Well done gents! Great write up, great photos. Thanks! Bluestem

Awesome day in the field. You've set things in motion. Bluestem

If you are reloading steel, you will need to get a few replacement parts to make the 600jr work. You will also have to get charge bars that are specific to steel. DO NOT USE THE LEAD CHARGE BARS WHEN RELOADING STEEL. Do your research on the internet regarding the topic. It will save you a lot of time and money. Have fun, Bluestem

Excellent deer, congratulations! What a wonderful time of year.

Good shooting CM. Are you all starting to see the Eurasian Collared Doves in IL? They seem to be moving in all around us in NE. Except they appear to like it near towns....keeping them away from my shotgun.

Nicely done!

Body count 252 is the best. The dog is exhausted, the hunter is spent and the cows are curious. The pic says it all! Bluestem

Here's a Wilson's snipe shot in Nebraska, USA. A fine game bird. Is this the same bird you hunt in the UK? http://bluestemkennels.com/

There is something very satisfying about bagging game with your own loads. Well done!

Nice rifle. Congrats.

I like it....covert camo.

Very little vermin control, if any, out where we hunted. Occasionally a deer hunter nails a coyote, but there are plenty more to fill the void. The ground cover is sparse enough that I think coyotes have a difficult time sneaking up on adult birds and focus more time on rodents and rabbits. That being said, I can only imagine what some aggressive predator control would do for the hunting. Maybe I should get off my duff this winter and put up some pelts? Bluestem

Last weekend kicked off our grouse season in NE. My wife and I drove 6 hours up into the Sandhills of Nebraska to take part in the fun. It was a little warm, but good to get out and start the season nonetheless. We hunted 3 days and were joined by a good friend who has finally returned from Afghanistan. The attached pictures are snapshot of our success. All of this hunting is walk-up and when you are hunting a piece of ground that is more than 120k acres, that means we did a lot of walking. My wife wrote up a better description of the hunt for our blog, but I think by looking at the pictures, you get an idea of the terrain and game. These are pictures of our last day in the field. Cheers, Bluestem

I use a MEC 600JR. 14.3gr of Longshot; 3/4 oz 8.5 shot with Winchester AA hulls, primers and wad. An excellent skeet round.

Blue-winged teal while prairie chicken hunting. Was hunting chickens (a cousin to your grouse) and came upon a wet area that I needed to cross. The Brittany I was hunting behind B-lined it to what looked like a little pool and up jumped three teal. Bang, bang and I had my first duck. It was so much fun I spent the next hour swamping it....bagged a couple more good fun! Bluestem

Sorry BK, I attempted to reply but bouncing avatar at the bottom of you post sapped all my strength.....must focus, must focus...