Grouse Hunting tips and tricks

[Helotech]

Hi everyone, Helotech here! I dont post much on but I regularly monitor the hunting section. Love the atmosphere in these forums!

Anyways, Ive been hunting in the Cold Lake area for years now and generally focus on Deer. WMU 514 has been stripped of the supplemental tags due to declining numbers. No Complaints!!! So Im finding myself with extra time to hunt for other game.

Ive alsways loved hunting for grouse. But its always the same! Spot one on the quad in the ditch, get off, shoot!!! I would like to hear some opinions, tips and tricks on how to properly hunt for these guys.

Ive been for a few long walks down cutlines litered in berries and cover and nothing! I dont feel like walking down these busy dirt roads hoping to catch one feeding on gravel. Id much rather have a better sense of their habitat, movements, etc in the forest.

What do I look for? What to completely avaoid?

I want to hunt for grouse, not just find them by accident.

Cheers everyone

[nsherman72]

See one, shoot one.

[Helotech]

I know right. Well, my Mark1 eyeball isnt calibrated to see em right now. Itll def be easier to spot em in the snow.

[tomecki]

Same problem here. I've been hiking cutlines for the last couple of weekends and haven't even seen one.

I start imagining them all sitting behind a bush and laughing at me.

[Steadyhigh]

I find them in the poplar patches in the bush. Cut lines are hit and miss but I always find them in the poplar trees

[58thecat]

O.k so I am going to share this with you, passed down to all having difficulty shooting grouse. Get a coffee can, add 3-5 small pebbles, place lid on. Now as the sun is either rising or setting this is the best time to get in an area were the popular trees are more spread out say 30-40 yards off a cutline or road, ever so slightly shake the can, Waite and repeat if no birds come in, this is a for sure way to have success.

[Dakota369]

Try and find a recording of them "talking". In the past I have heard them, so knew to start looking for them. Also look for (I think the term is rooks?) fallen trees that are almost horizontal, you will see where the males have been sitting due to the bark being worn and all the bird poop, they will often sun themselves on such perches......

My 2 cents

Good Hunting!!

[Speckle55]

Here are some tips to consider

1..Food
2 ..Gravel
3 .. Roosting
4..Cover
5..Times

http://esrd.alberta.ca/fish-wildlife...ed-grouse.aspx

http://wdfw.wa.gov/hunting/upland_bi...st_grouse.html

When I am hunting grouse I am looking for the cutline and trails that have grouse sign as in dust bowls .. scratch areas with droppings ..open sunny hillsides with cover close ..also feathers .. at this time of year I used too travel really fast to cover as much ground while watching for sign in dirt and poop..if I put one up stop real quick and listen for more or where it lands and close that distance quickly then start to cluck or whistle for ruffs and get a response ..also when in bush listen for bird sounds as when in a flock they will be talking a lot its just up too you to know your sounds and id them.. I have id them in flocks lots of times with each species sounding a little different..

just yesterday I got a couple to answer my call ... ooopppsss they made a vital mistake and became table fair

http://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Ruffed_Grouse/sounds

http://www.larkwire.com/library/bird...ongs-and-calls

David

[lund17]

I hunt grouse every year and find beginning of September to be a bit harder to locate birds. I think food sources are still abundant in the woods and grouse are scattered more. Usually after a couple of really hard frosts the birds move to the cut lines or open areas to feed and sun themselves. Just my thoughts.

[Bushmonkey]

Originally Posted by 58thecat

O.k so I am going to share this with you, passed down to all having difficulty shooting grouse. Get a coffee can, add 3-5 small pebbles, place lid on. Now as the sun is either rising or setting this is the best time to get in an area were the popular trees are more spread out say 30-40 yards off a cutline or road, ever so slightly shake the can, Waite and repeat if no birds come in, this is a for sure way to have success.

really??

[Helotech]

Thanx everyone, Ill def be using your advice. Ill be looking for more signs of them. Logs, scat and feathers. And Ill have to listen for em to. Let you guys know how the weekend goes.

[f_train22]

Originally Posted by 58thecat

O.k so I am going to share this with you, passed down to all having difficulty shooting grouse. Get a coffee can, add 3-5 small pebbles, place lid on. Now as the sun is either rising or setting this is the best time to get in an area were the popular trees are more spread out say 30-40 yards off a cutline or road, ever so slightly shake the can, Waite and repeat if no birds come in, this is a for sure way to have success.

What is the reasoning for this? Are they curious about the sound? Or am I just gullible for believing this?

[Helotech]

Originally Posted by f_train22

What is the reasoning for this? Are they curious about the sound? Or am I just gullible for believing this?

I know, Im still waiting for thecat to chyme in

[f_train22]

@58thecat must be having a cat nap

[Helotech]

went for a walk in 501 this weekend. We flushed 3 and they hit the tree line real quick. Each time, my buddy and I were certain it had landed in 2 or 3 trees adjacent to each other and could never find them. The last guy SPOOKED me!!! Took a close shot at it with my scope cranked to 9. Rookie move I know!! Anyways, she didnt go far and sure enough, couldnt pick her out of the tree. Had fun though, thought I saw a small black bear fall out of a tree but it couldnt of been. Too small. Jet black hair though. You guys think I saw a Martin or a Wolverine maybe? I know it wasnt a cat

[Helotech]

Oh! And I couldnt bring myself to trying the coffee can trick. lol

[Stu2029]

I've had the best luck hiking along sunny south facing slopes with a mix of poplar and spruce cover. Not so much luck in areas with a lot of pine. They really like to sit under the low boughs of the spruce trees, especially when we start to get cold, wet snow.

Also had the best luck in places with a small creek or water source at the base of the slope. It doubles as a source of gravel for them, and those areas seem to hold a higher concentration.

Regardless, ruffies are a crap shoot. Some years you're tripping over them, and others you'll hike all day with no luck. All part of the fun.

[f_train22]

I've already got my coffee can rigged up for this weekend haha. Should make a fun lunch-time experiment.

[58thecat]

Gents, remember to shake the can easy, wait and be patient, I was too patient and had a cat nap After a ten minute or so sit with no action move to another location and repeat.

[Helotech]

I was told never to trust a cat, or a Nucks fan for that matter.

[Alberta Bigbore]

After this past weekend.. i have them figured out. In your favorite grouse areas... when u think there are none??? Oooooh they are there alright. Very different behaivior than last year and skittish!!! None of the little buggers would let me get inside 40 yards with my bow. Might have to bring a shotgun next time or 17hmr