Trad Gang

Has anyone attempted to grouse hunt late season,  and has anyone connected on a wing shot?  This would have to be incredibly tough as they are so fast to get out of dodge.  Some pics if anyone has gotten lucky....

Hey it's hard enough with a scattergun! They are like doves. They seem to know just when to turn.

QuoteOriginally posted by Tom Leemans:
Hey it's hard enough with a scattergun! They are like doves. They seem to know just when to turn.

Man, isn't that the truth.  Grouse on the wing...might as well just shoot my arrows into the woods...LOL.

I've shot a few in the pre-flight condition with my bow.  Have never been close to getting a shot at a grouse on the wing.  Now with my Brittany and 28-gauge, it's a different story.

I've shot Spruce Grouse in Alaska, and Blue's in Montana, but never on the wing...  They always seem to know when to zig or zag just before the arrow connects.

I may have to give that a try next year.  Snaking an arrow through the brush and timber on a moving bird would be quite tough though.  Hopefully someone here can share a success story.

Never on the wing. They usually scare the crap outta me taking off while I'm strolling through the woods. I did kill a Blue up in the mountains last fall though while it sat on a log...

I've shot a few on the ground, but can't imagine hitting one on the fly.

ive shot  a chukar on the wing,hit it in the neck with a judo an it flipped end over end a couple times i couldn't do it again in a thousand shots..it was a group of us that got togeather in southern mo a fews years back we had a blast.

I used to have a photo of Howard Hill. He had about a dozen Quail on a stringer, and the caption read "a mornings bag". Sheese!

That owuld rank up there with a green winged teal with a bb gun.

I've killed more grouse (blues mainly) than just about anything else but never on a wing with a bow and arrow because 9 times out of 10 I'd be shooting off a cliff. It's bad enough with a 20 ga. But for ruffs, I can see it in the late season when the leaves come off. Flu flus will be my project in the spring.

I also killed a chuckar partridge with a longbow on the wing. I used the old Snaro point.

Yep....the smallest one was running along a log....and I was swing drawing on him and expecting him to stop at the end of the log....he didn't and took flight instead....so I kept swinging....

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I have killed a few on the wing over the years. The forest and ruff grouse will let you get up close most of the time for a good shoot. Last years bad winter crushed thier numbers so I didn't have any shooting this year but did take a nice widgen on the wing last month.

I would love to see it done!  Like everybody has said, I have a hard enough time with a scattergun, let alone a bow.  I'd be thrilled to grab one on the run on the ground.

Killed a few this year, but they are hard enough to get while still on the ground. I don't have the cojones to launch a $10 arrow at one in the air.

I can't imagine doing it here in the eastern woods, hard to get close enough to be in range usually.  They seem to flush at the edge of shotgun range, if you wait too long to pull the trigger they're snaking thru the trees.  The only time I seem to get a really close open shot is when I have a rifle in my hands.

I shot a blue grouse and it flew away with my arrow once. Never did find it.

Cat....look behind me...mine were in the aspens...can't think of a more beautiful wood lot to take grouse in.    :)

Nice job Terry!

Good shooting Terry!

I got one once with a 45/70, never got the chance to try with a bow yet.

Shot a few out of tree stands but never on the wing I guess the oppertunity hasn't presented itself yet.I've got no problem flingin an arrow at a flying bird.

Nice shooting Terry.

Good shot Terry!

Nice Terry! I shot a few on the ground or in trees(some I had to get up in the tree to retrieve them...), but never on the wing...

Beautiful picture Terry,  definitely a trophy to remember there.

Thats some good shooting Terry.  :thumbsup:

Love taking grouse while elk hunting, and I have shot several over the years, but I have always 'Arkansawed' them. Never got one on the wing.
(http://i886.photobucket.com/albums/ac67/peastes/21cf64c9.jpg)

"On the wing"...no! On the ground...yes.

Really cool pic Centaur, love the mixed camo.  Nice looking bow also.

Many years ago a friend and I were hunting in Western Nebraska.  We jumped a flock of grouse that were feeding in an alfalfa field. They landed down in a creek bottom. I borrowed one of my friend's arrows and dropped down into the creek bed as the flock busted before I could get a shot.  I figured there is always a straggler so I pushed on.  Sure enough one got up at 20 ft and flew straight away - the arrow entered the vent and exited the craw.  I walked over and picked up my grouse and his arrow.  Handed him the slime covered arrow - all he could do was look at it and say, "Now I know why you wanted to use my arrow."  One of my most memorable shots . . .

In the early 1960's, Iwas bowhunting in Virginia in the edge of the Blue Ridge Mountains.  I had hunted edvery day, morning and evening for almost 2 weeks, and it had rained almost all the time.  Of course, I never even saw a deer.

Leaving my morning stand and hiking to the trail out to my vehicle, a grouse flushed almost under my feet and spread his wings gliding away from me out in the wide open spaces.  In much the same manner that a baseball player might fling his bat in exasperation, I loosed an arrow in frustration and hit the grouse dead center.  Of course it was an "accident" but it sort of made up for two weeks of cold rain and no deer.

Joe

Some real good stories guys, I like the slimy arrow Craig.  Thanks for sharing all these great memories.  God willing there be many more for all of you.

Have shot over 60 pheas, 2 doz chukar and even a few quail in flite (all preserve birds). Here in NJ, ruffed grouse are native but few and far between these days. We have another native(migratory) upland bird, the woodcock. They are about the size of a quail, hold well for a point, ROCKET off the ground and fly in a crazy zig zag pattern that makes it difficult for shotgun hunters to hit them. I took one one the ground(The Thompson Bros used to shoot them this way) but I hope to take one in flite.

(http://i48.photobucket.com/albums/f218/bowzonly/woodcock012427x640.jpg)

(http://i48.photobucket.com/albums/f218/bowzonly/woodcock0132427x640.jpg)

Good dog!