[drink up, little boy, drink up]
We hunted tonight. Just the two of us. It was exactly how these photo look — relaxed, quiet, faint gold light, bristling douglas fir, grouse lifting off like heavy helicopters, uphill, downhill, crumpled and rumpled landscape, stumbling, sweat, sunset, dusk, platinum grasses, burned out indian paintbrush, a breeze, a meadowlark, the song of my soul worn on the surface of my skin…and more.
I love this dog. He loves me too.
I love Idaho. Idaho loves me too.
Tomorrow night, it’s Farley’s turn. I came home to a torn up house, he was so upset (even at the age of 10) to be left behind…
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I really love to hunt birds. I love the land I get to know by walking while I hunt. I love the sunsets, sunrises and spectacular moments in nature I get to witness while I’m out there. I love to watch my dogs work, to watch them do what they were bred and born and raised to do. I love to encourage them, congratulate them for work well done and when it’s needed, spank them on the buns for a job done poorly. They live for this, I live for partnership with them — we work terribly hard, together. I love to earn my food, to be responsible for the end of its good life — it makes me appreciate every bite and the transfer of energy therein. I’ve always liked bird hunting. But now I know I love it, now that I will go out on my own, even when Robert is away, to hunt alone with my dogs on the land I love…now I know I love it.
I love this! Bird hunting is my favorite too – the best combination of hiking, working with the dogs, and shooting skill.
We just went dove hunting on Monday. It was hot! I am jealous of your terrain and your birds. Thanks for sharing.
It’s a whole lot of action, isn’t it? Shooting takes up less than 1% of the activity, at least that’s what I find. All the rest is blood, sweat, tears, tripping, falling down, out of breath, spectacular views, directing dogs, thirsty for water — I speak for hunting in the rugged lands of Idaho though. It might be a little different where you are.
Robbie tried to go out for dove on opening day but we had wild storms here every single day in August and they all left for calmer air in the Southwest. They’re such delicate birds…
Thanks for being here!
What a gorgeous evening! Jillian – I just love coming by here and seeing new posts. It does wonders for my heart, stuck out here in the middle. But not for long – one more week and I’ll finally be back to hug a mountain – THOSE mountains – and the Tetons. It’s like waiting for Christmas! Thank you so, so much for your beautiful posts and photos.
Atta girl. So glad you are coming home. You know, I think you should come home to stay. 🙂
Thanks for saying thank you.
XX
You should check out “Bobs, Brush, and Brittanies” by Joel Vance. Not your breed or bird, but I think it would still resonate. Happy hunting!
So long as it isn’t blood lusty!
Shall add this title to my reading list!
That shot of the water drinking action! DOG FACE! I love them so these canine beasties.
I KNOW!!! HA HA HA!
He’s such a cutie and so good at drinking from the hose. I had to take a photo of it this time, I was laughing so hard at his little face I could hardly keep the camera still.
Girl, Amaze Balls! I also love love love the picture of your thirsty dog!! hahaha! The best. But what I love and admire most about you/this post…is you honor & respect, your caring for and loving of the land, and it’s abundance. What it gives, what you take, what you give, what it takes. Love! I wanna be more like you…just sayin! P.S. What does Sage grouse taste like?
Oh, Simone. You couldn’t know how much I appreciate what you wrote here. Thank you.
I never know what kind of reaction my hunting posts are going to get. I write posts about hunting because they are true accounts of my life. Thanks for receiving what I have to say.
Well, this is a blue grouse. Though I have eaten sage hen…
You know, grouse is just the wild version of chicken. I think grouse is delicious but I’m so used to eating wild game that I think chicken and beef tastes kind of weird. It’s good! If I cooked it for you, you would like it.
Thanks for stopping by!
X
Hi there! I’m glad you shared your hunting adventure! Being out in nature is so rewarding, if you stay long and still enough, you witness the most amazing things! I love it sooo much! I wish I could just camp out all the time 😉 thanks again for the post, looking forward to the next!
Even if you don’t stay still and just walk with your eyes wide open you will witness amazing things! 🙂 Thanks for being here, hun. X
Oh! One more question,
I’ve always wondered what was that collar you have on tatter tots? Just curious, I am that curious type lol;)
Those are hunting collars. Our dogs are trained to voice, hand and whistle command. When those three types of commands fail and our dogs are running around like crazy trains, we use these collars to get their attention — they emit an electric shock when we press a button on a remote.
These collars also hold beeper devices that sound off a loud whistle any time our dogs are bodily still — like when they are on point — which helps us locate them when they are on birds in thick cover in big country, or hunting levels of rim rock where we just can’t get a visual on them all the time. It can be impossible to locate a dog on point in thick timber if they hunt far enough out and sometimes our dogs get out a half mile on us.
They’re a really great tool in the field, one that can be easily abused — we use these collars with great care…which is probably why when we pull them from the cupboard and prepare to buckle them on the dogs, our pups go totally crazy with joy!
Thanks again, Michele!
Hi!
Thanks so much for the answer 😉 that is so cool how you guys train them for hunting, I think it’s great! I have a Newfoundlander and she gets really excited too when I take out that shock collar, we use it for porcupine, skunk and other unplanned encounters in the woods, came in very handy last year when we came across a porcupine! She’s a listens very well to my commands but sometimes curiosity gets the best of her, we adopted her when she was 2 years old and had to do a lot of work with her but she is so much better now, such a different dog, much calmer and more thrusting 😉 sorry for blabbing along there lol thanks for listening! You are such an inspiration!
You are just the master of self-portraits; I don’t know how you do it. Sounds like a beautiful evening with Tater, claiming your place in the land rather than claiming the land as so many ignorant folks do.
K,
🙂
Thank you!
I don’t know how I do it either, really. I just try to do the things I love outside (I never really stage photos) when I have a moment to take a picture, I try to capture the truth and beauty of the situation. Maybe it’s all dumb luck!
I’m getting a lot of notes lately about teaching a photography course and I’m thinking about it a lot. Stay tuned for the possible development of that!
Amen to all that claiming stuff.
It’s best to be a part of the whole of it all.
X
The first picture looks like painting!
On hunting: I am not crazy about it, never done it and hope never to have to kill bu…. and there is a but I am not a vegetarian but I do not eat meat or fish just very very rarely which means someone has killed the animal I ate (rarely). What I really want to say is that at least the animal you kill have had a life, a real one A TRUE ONE.
Mass farmed animals don’t at all…. which means when people kill to eat I think it is great and the way you do it is what I go in life for: you should always respect what makes you live, in this case: meat.
This website/blog has a huge lot of respect for nature inside of it and it is one of the thing I love the most here, so I may not eat meat and may not kill animals but I do respect the way you do it. And I love this site, but that you know it by now.
Thank you for this post on true life, the way it should be.
You aren’t crazy about the idea of it. I get that.
You know, I didn’t think I would ever be a girl who likes hunting. I started out by simply going with Robert, hiking with him while he hunted, because I liked to watch our dog work, I liked to be with my man and I loved exploring the land. I saw how special the partnership he had with Farley was out in the field and might have even been a bit JEALOUS of it!!! Then I started to choose to carry my shotgun from time to time, then I started shooting that shotgun, then I started shooting and actually shooting well — bringing home some of the birds alongside Robert. I loved it then, but now I love it enough, being out on the land and working hard with my pups, that I will gladly do it on my own.
I began big game hunting the same way. I went with Robert a few times and began to understand it as a spectator and eventually I wanted to get my own tags for antelope and elk.
I do it, more than anything, because it anchors me to beautiful beautiful country. I do it, also, for the clean meat and for owning, fully, the way I choose to eat. I also do it because I am part of a family and I don’t think the blood should always be on Robert’s hands…that I should share in the blessing and burden of taking a life so we can keep on living. It’s a very important part of my life, these days.
I would love to take you out with me, just to walk alongside, watch the dogs work, see the effort that goes into getting something to eat…and the beauty of the surrounds. I actually think you would come away adoring it. Every moment and aspect of it, even the moments that might make you sad. Those moments make me a little sad, too. If they didn’t, I would be worried for my soul.
Love having you here, babe.
XX
Thank you very very much for your reply.
I do not criticize your hunting at all, I understand it, it is a very honest way of living, clean, self sufficient, very close to nature, I just have a hard time killing anything alive (even if I admit I do kill mosquitoes and will keep doing it until they leave me alone), I don’t fish either, it is another world for me. I don’t even like guns.
I like the fact that you write about it, I really like that and again the animals you eat had a real life and that, I really like.
May be it has to do with the fact that I am French and we are not raise with guns in France, not like in the US, or may be it is just good to be different and tolerant, yes… that’s nice….I love your blog, you have no idea.
You live a very beautiful and decent life, be proud of it (I am sure you are).
I didn’t think your first comment was REMOTELY critical! 🙂
I appreciated it very much.
Always glad to have you here, girl.
X
that black-and-white photo. my fave.
and tater, drinking as the water pours in. crazy-sweet.
may i say – i am SO proud of your hunting, all by yourself.
what a special woman you are….a true MOUNTAIN woman….true to herself, her standards, her loves.
He’s just the sweetest boy.
Both those boy dogs are real lovers.
Thank you, M.
XX
I “get” this- the hunting, the work with the dogs you love on the land you love and want to learn how to do it too!! You are very inspiring, lady!!! 🙂
That picture of Tater drinking water made me laugh so much! What a great dog.
And poor Farley. But it sounds like you weren’t too surprised at the house being torn up 🙂
Thinking of you lots!
Beautiful, just beautiful
I just got back from my first trip with my dog. Just the two of us. Camping, not hunting. But still. It was something special. I loved being out with him and spending time in the woods, not talking, but sharing presence. I learn a little bit from watching you here on the blog. Not sure I would have had the idea to take him camping. So..thank you!
I come back to the blog after a multiple year hiatus to find I’ve been one upped by a woman…. Again.
Really… By yourself. Bird Doggn’ it by yourself? I’m impressed.
Sean