Where Angels Fear to Tread

If you look closely you can see that this grouse is looking back into the cover
on the edge of the road where we saw seven chicks flush when we pulled up —
there may have been more.

It finally stopped raining today and we wanted to get out and check one of our regular training covers.  Boy was it thick.  Tough on both dogs and 61 year old handlers.  On the way out we had two separate hens in the road the first one had at least seven chicks the second six.   That gave us 15 grouse before we cut a dog loose.  I was teaching this morning so we didn’t get out until after lunch and it was after two when we broke away Jack and Little Thuddy.  Both ran well despite the afternoon heat and the density of the cover.  Jack had three finds at least one was a single grouse and another was a woodcock.  On his third find we never saw the birds as his bracemate may have helped with the flushing.  Little Thuddy did have a broke find.  When Tony when in to flush there was a snake curled up in the sun in front of the Thudster who still didn’t break when his trainer squealed like a little girl (it’s not the first time Tony has had that reaction).

The second brace was Trash and LJ who also ran well in the thick cover and afternoon heat but neither one could connect on a bird that we saw.

Tony and I are both bachelors this week so he brought over some pork chops that looked more like bone in rib roasts and we did them on the Weber with charcoal and apple wood and a rub that Big Thud had brought up last weekend to go with them.  (Timmy — we cooked yours as well and I’ll have it as left overs tomorrow.)

Tomorrow we’re planning to finish the mowing and cutting in Red Barn (thank God we don’t have to train every day where we were today) and may run some dogs down there in the evening.

I’ll continue the Grouse Trial Primer series as time permits.

Posted in Current News.

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