The Upland Life: Getting Ready

There's a point every fall when hunting season stops feeling far away. It's like being a kid again, cranking the handle on the jack-in-a-box, and knowing it's going to explode in another half turn.

The mornings get a little cooler. The days get a little shorter. And even the dogs seem to know what's coming.

For months, we've been getting the habitat on our farm ready for quail. We've cut cedars, planted plum thickets, native grasses, and forbs, and hopefully given bobwhites everything they need to thrive for another year.

Now, we're getting ourselves ready for them.

For my bird dogs that means maintaining the conditioning we've been doing all summer. A long season asks a lot from a dog, and you can't expect a dog to go from the couch to covering miles on opening day.

So I load the dogs and training gear into the Ranger and head for a small planting of native grass that is perfect for training.

Today, we work on obedience and handling – staying to the front and responding to corrections.

For my young dog especially, these preseason runs are part training session and part education. She's learning how to keep track of me in thick cover, use the wind, and how much pressure she can put on birds before they take flight.

As opening day gets closer, my anticipation builds with every run. This is the time of year I dream about all year long.

In just a few days, these practice runs will become hunts. There will be shotguns in the Ranger and wild birds somewhere ahead.

Until then we will keep working. Because getting ready for quail season is part of quail season.

That's "The Upland Life."

Ryan Sparks is Quail Forever Journal Editor.