Woodcock

Here's a photo....... Reading about them had me more confused about identifying them and if they can be consumed. I'd appreciate any help and hints about harvesting them. The landowner told me I'm free to take whatever I want. So far I really only collect Shagbark Hickory nuts and Black Walnuts.

This past fall, I came across a property with three American Chestnut (or hybrid) trees. Most of the nuts had fallen and based on the squirrel activity, deer and bear droppings I could see why there was nothing but empty husks left on the ground. I'm curious how to know for certain if these are edible even if they are hybrids. Not being very familiar with them, I had to be careful handling them.... not an easy task.

Stop by the local FD and ask around..... they're usually helpful..... Look for plows at gas stations, the local diner......have cash on hand.....

I'd go to the neighbor and ask him firmly but politely if he left the note on your car. Don't even mention the mud, just confirm the facts. If he is open to a conversation (you'll know immediately) explain that you're the new owner and state that you will be posting it. You really need to determine more facts.....perhaps the current owner can tell you more. Do not ask anyone else in the area about him......for obvious reasons. If you sense that he is crazy then you may want to reconsider the purchase. I've dealt with something similar in the past in helping a new landowner. Signs, fencing, gate and make your presence obvious. Make peace if you can and eventually with the neighbors if/when you can trust them. It's like fighting an insurgency......you can't allow yourself to be intimidated and you must have a continuous presence. Just try talking to him first....... and under no circumstance become angry, aggressive or threatening. You might only get one chance to work this out the easy way.

Lots of places were good, or at least huntable for grouse before 2000. The 80's and 90's were quite good in Putnam. Woodcock hunting is still very good and I see them the entire hunting season. The better habitat areas and migration periods are the most productive but there are pockets all over. When I had my dogs, I was never disappointed woodcock hunting in Putnam. Grouse are still present in pockets but I don't know if they could even be considered huntable populations. If I wanted to give it a try, I'd go to some of the more recently acquired land near Cranberry Mountain or the more "remote" DEP lands. I'd be very curious how you make out. I don't have a bird dog any more, but if I did I would try those places. As I posted recently, I actually feel habitat has improved in the past few years with the ice storms, snowstorms, tornadoes and wind storms. DEC and DEP land management has seen some changes also. DEC does confirm some grouse exist in Putnam still. I do ask landowners and I've had some leads but I'm not always sure they know what grouse are. I've bumped in pheasant in very odd places while exploring. They seem sure but I'm skeptical to a degree. I'd really explore these areas in the late winter where you can see the remaining habitat. One property in Dover Plains that I had sole access to for nearly 40 years had grouse until fairly recently. The grouse population then seemed to become confined to the higher areas, rhododendron thickets that were very difficult to access and hunt. I suspect this would be true in Putnam also.... Fahnstock and Hudson Highlands as examples. I used to hunt around Selkirk on unposted land.....it's not a terrible drive. Perhaps it's still productive.

I never had a problem finding them......all season long in good habitat. Even in marginal cover, though especially during their migration hunting can be good. There is so much land in Putnam where you can find woodcock and absolutely no other hunters. For me anyway, an hour or two in "marginal" habitat with three or four woodcock points/flushes was a great time. It's amazing how you'll even find a pheasant ever so often.......far from release sites. How I miss having my Brittanies.......

There's been lots of storm damage this past winter and spring.....plus other damage over the past few years. I've seen more trees down, openings/sunlight in places I haven't seen it in a decade. These disturbed areas should benefit wildlife.....perhaps we might even some grouse expansion from the few remaining coverts in Putnam and Dutchess Counties. The expanded DEC and DEP lands, Young Forest Initiative program, etc. might make a modest change to our habitat.

I have squirrels on my property dropping acorns the last few days. Normally they're dropping hickory nuts (not Shagbark) by mid-August. I've seen apples dropping also in a couple of places. By August 15, there's the start of a very noticeable change in the outdoors......most of you will know what I mean.

If the opportunities on this property are unique and you really want to hunt there.....I'd pursue it and not be intimidated by the caretaker. New property owners will be less likely to offer permission down the road once they become more established. Your early contact probably helped gain permission. I agree that it might be worth contacting the caretaker again and/or obtaining written permission from the landowner. This doesn't need to be complicated. If you have other places to hunt and would likely not use this property, then I would leave it alone. You want to remain polite and familiar to the landowner yet not overbearing. If the caretaker has more say, then they'll likely tell you that circumstances have changed and they will politely revoke permission.

The dog walkers and mountain bikers will more or less stay away during the hunting season. Regarding Nimham in particular, the property really needs some work. There was a Model Forest project proposed for there 12 or so years ago which a small number of local residents successfully stopped. It would have benefitted the forest. DEC also hasn't mowed some of the fields for years. This particular MUA once had great habitat for grouse, woodcock and rabbits. It's unfortunate that the management has been changed. The dog walkers should be held to the same restrictions as hunting dog training. No dogs off leash during the bird breeding season (April 15 to August 15)....... pets will find bird nests also but this would be unenforceable. Putnam Park Lands are not open to hunting but Conservation Lands are but to Putnam residents only. Do check current rules though as this was my last recollection. I find it odd that some DEC pamphlets leave out hunting as one of the activities that are allowed. This just leads to an excuse for others to question hunters. I used to always inform people who questioned me that these lands were purchased in large part for hunting. Sent from my XT1096 using Tapatalk

Sometimes it's better to keep things vague....... I've seen signs on state land stating "No Target Shooting" and others that state "No Promiscuous Shooting"......... The former seems to imply no shooting, while the later that there should be no casual or on the move shooting. Personally speaking, I wouldn't do either on properties that aren't pretty well isolated. A bit of discretion and common sense goes a long way. In some areas, we are just an accident away from no discharge laws........ we must be mindful.

I feel bad that I was a little too sharp with you...... but my point was/is that you can research many places and learn a lot by doing some scouting........ too many people with good intentions on the Internet have ruined places. Quite honestly, people here have mentioned locations before that just can't sustain too much pressure. Many of these places are small in size and access is from limited access points. It's something to think about...... You just can't expect any discussion about a specific spot that is viewed by hundreds to not be impacted..... I hope this makes some sense......

No.... not at all but it needs to be said......

Ask the several hundred other hunters who viewed your post...... perhaps you'll have company when you go out. Honestly, I don't understand questions like this on a public message board. Even a few additional hunters on any of these properties makes YOUR hunt more difficult. Do your own homework and scouting.........

I don't know....perhaps the 500 other persons who viewed this can help you out....perhaps 15 or 20 of them will go turkey hunting with you this season..... why don't you do some homework and find spots and not post questions like this on a public forum...... sorry if I sound harsh but honestly I don't really care anymore........

There are still grouse in Dutchess .... I know one spot in eastern Dutchess that still has some........ I used to be guaranteed to put up a few up until 2000/2001....... now very much limited to the higher areas, often Rhododendrons and thickets near power lines...... one "abstract" observation I've seen is once dirt roads in grouse areas are paved......grouse are gone within a year or two...... They won't do well in even prime habitat if there isn't other habitat nearby. Putnam was quite good also.......

I lost my last bird dog a few years ago and am not sure I'll do it again...... it just doesn't fit my circumstances right now....very difficult as you can imagine. : ( With that said, you can find many places to have quality hunts that are a reasonable distance. It wasn't "that many" years ago where I did great on wild quail in Suffolk County and grouse in the Hudson Valley. As those opportunities changed, I concentrated more and more on Woodcock. There is great woodcock hunting very close to you and now that the season has been extended back to the six weeks it used to be, you have lots of time to be in the field. There is no better opportunity to train a dog on wild birds!! Grouse hunting can be good up in the Catskills, especially woods hunting where virtually no one goes. It's always a good to plan a trip or two to New Hampshire each year if you can swing it. My own personal feeling is that you consider quality hunting trips over quantity. I started to avoid stocked pheasants and had a preference to travel a little farther for a quality hunt. There are pockets of grouse in Putnam and Dutchess still but very limited as far as a hunting opportunity. The best time for grouse in the Catskills (or anywhere) is right before deer season while it's safe and practical to be afield. You have the best balance of birds and good hunting conditions. As one author commented... deer season kind of kills what would be the best grouse season..... : ) Feel free to send me a message if you'd like any suggestions.......

Your neighbor will either be reasonable or not....I've had this situation myself and several friends have also. When you approach the person, be polite yet firm and be certain that the conversation ends with you asking for a resolution. If the person responds "hey, they're dogs and dogs bark" then you're in for the long haul. Document everything and go immediately to the town authorities. There are some miserable and very selfish dog owners out there. Continuous barking is unacceptable and you have every right to take action. Just remember that you want to have a good relationship so you need to try your best to work this out. Once a relationship with a neighbor goes bad, it's probably done for good.

It's a good article... common sense from our perspective though it will do little to change the minds of those that are anti-gun. Appropriate school security these days should include: 1) Secured, alarmed entrances/exits 2) Reasonably secured main entrance with a "buzz-in" system. 3) Panic button at front desk and on each and every staff member. This silent alarm receiver/transmitter could be set off at the first sign of trouble and cause immediate lock-down in place. Panic alarm should also alert local law enforcement. All doors should have dead-bolts. 4) A police officer should make frequent, random stops at all schools. 5) Competent, armed security officer at each school (retired law enforcement, properly trained private security) It's impractical and would be too expensive to have police at all schools and is probably not necessary. Deterence would prevent most of these kinds of incidents, having an armed person on site would be as a last resort.

I always add some warm water to the ingredients when done, mix again and then form the meatballs...... this makes a big diference in meatballs and I'm sure it would work with venison meatballs as well. You'll never have dry meatballs again.....

The problem with this entire mess is that many, many people are just as angry as we are about what happened. They want something done immediately and many aren't thinking logically. They are going to push for all sorts of changes to gun law and might very well succeed. While I personally don't see a reason to have 20-30 round magazines, I am not willing to throw it out there to the anti-gun forces as a concession. If you give them that, they'll want more.... it's really that simple. I'd go more for the sales/transfer laws and background check changes. I will not go for any restrictions that are meaningless. Remember, the anti-gun groups don't want any guns. I bird hunt with a 20ga over/under; I don't particularly like semi-automatic shotguns with six loaded rounds hunting near me, but I wouldn't want to ban them. That's that person's choice. The truth is that you could saw off a barrel on a pump/semi-automatic shotgun, fabricate a pistol grip, load it with 00 buck with spare rounds in your pockets and be as dangerous as this mad man was. If that was the method used you don't think people would have wanted to ban semi-automatic and pump shotguns?? We need to stick together and be very careful what we agree to. Look at what happened in Australia with their gun laws. Do you really think that couldn't happen here???

A few weeks might equal no pheasant...... there's a fine line between a challenge and no birds...... stocked pheasants get cleaned out fairly quickly or move off the properties. While I was normally pretty successful I didn't wait too long. Stewart is large enough to keep birds on the property...... it's a high quality hunt if you have a well trained dog. It also never really mattered where you park there..... its all good......

I lost my Brittany last year and will be without a bird dog for only the fourth year since 1987........ it's hard.... enjoy them while you have them!! Anyway..... I hunt state and private land for pheasants and woodcock and still know of a few pockets of grouse. What I normally did was hunt for woodcock locally on the many places that receive no pressure. It's great for the dog and so much more fun. In all these years, I have almost always been able to find pheasant when I wanted them. There are many places to hunt and decent grouse coverts are worth the drive. I don't know your preference but its good to try different places. If you like woodcock hunting you now have a longer season again. I always found the woodcock season peaks in Putnam and Dutchess in mid to late October though later in Orange County for some reason. The return to the later woodcock season is nice for us.

>>>interesting because my neighbor just killed 2 bedded fawns in 10 inch high grass on his John Deere riding mower, and that was just a guy mowing his lawn, i can only imagine the amount of fawns that are ground up every summer on big acreage hay lots. we have alot of hay farmers in our area(horse farms are big here) and when they start cutting you will see dozens of grouse squashed on the roads as they evacuate the fields. between that and poaching i really think the numbers the DEC comes up with are only a very rough estimate at best. but with all that being said i have to say im seeing more deer in lower Ulster county this summer than ever, planning on a good season!<<< Dozens of grouse??? Seems unlikely.....or do you mean pheasant perhaps? Still seems a bit odd.....