29 Aug 09
Summer is about over and fall is right around the corner. That means hunting season, and dove is first. Man, am I looking forward to it. Dove open on 1 September. I hunt in Arizona, so the shooting can be as hot as the weather. If you have never been, it is not what you think it is. Oh sure, it’s about laying them in the aisles, but there is some ritual to it.
As I get closer to the date, anticipation grows. There is much to do. Phone calls to my partners, lining up cheap motel rooms, and buying new crap. Then, when it’s finally time to go, I will fill up the truck with gas, guns, and ammo. Give the wife a kiss goodbye, and hit the road.
Most don’t know that dove shooting is a competitive sport. It is not for the timid or the squeamish. Who is going to limit out first? Who’s got their limit with the least shots? Who’s got the new Hustler in their truck? It’s also a team sport. You don’t go dove shooting by yourself. This is not that “man against nature” crap, you should shoot dove with a group of your friends. It is more fun this way, and as I will explain, very important to a successful trip.
Leave the women at home, but it’s OK to bring your kids. They will have a blast. It is important to understand that hunting is a mentored sport. That’s why it’s good for the kids to go. You can’t learn this stuff by reading a book. It is traditional that the father teaches, and passes these lessons on to his child. Including those that start, or end with with, “Don’t tell your mom”.
The set up to shoot dove is like this. Everyone in your group gets up way too early because you have to be in the field when the sun comes up. Dress in that new camo outfit you bought, eat a handful of aspirin, and cover yourself with sunscreen. Throw your guns and ice chest in the truck, and wait. There is always one guy dragging his ass out of bed late. This is when you go and get some coffee. Then when everyone is finally ready, you race for the dove fields in caravan style.
The fields are usually farms growing feed like alfalfa, and such, or crops like melon. Stay out of the cotton! Park the vehicles so they are kind of hidden from where the birds are flying in from, and walk out to a shooting position. Light up a cigar and shake off the prior evening.
Your group, if possible, has to be large enough to dominate the field. You want to discourage others from trying to crowd in. If you are running late, your large group of vehicles pulling into a field can cause a smaller group of hunters to yield. Park your vehicles where the other hunters will see them. Not too spread out. This is a sign to all that this is your field. If anyone drove his wife’s mini-van, or a hybrid, have it somewhat surrounded by real trucks to help hide it.
You want to send the message to others of your group size. Grouping the vehicles tightly does this and also acts to protect them. Often, some knucklehead, or group, hunting dove for the first time will pepper someone’s truck. It has happened to me. I find that hunting with a large group of loud, cigar smoking, assholes, is a good deterrent to this kind of carelessness.
When everyone in your group is loaded up and ready, move out into the field and take up positions. Usually forming a long static line at the edge of the field. I like to find some shade against a Palo Verde. Stand about 20 yards apart. Ideally, you should try to be where the birds fly into the fields from their roosting spots. If you are in the right spot, the birds will be surprised when they first see you. You can see it on their faces.
When the shooting starts, most hunters will start to bunch up. It is natural to crowd in on the guy getting the most shooting. Hell, why should someone else have all the fun? To do this properly, just walk up to the man casually, and when challenged, make an excuse like you need to borrow a cigar cutter or something. You can also ask how many birds he has. It doesn’t matter just make sure you smile while your lying to him.
When the shooting get hot, wads of birds start flying in. This is the magic time. There is shouting, shooting, and running as the most wonderful kind of chaos takes over. You want to kill your birds cleanly and drop them in the open field where they are easy to find. You don’t want to end up out in the middle of the field walking in circles looking at the ground, or in the brush looking for your goddamn bird. This is very frustrating as you are not only missing out on the hot bite, but your buddies may move in on your spot.
Everyone should try and give warning to one another when birds are approaching. Remember you are a team. Your friends will all call out, alerting you just before a wad of birds appear in front of you. Suicide birds. An easy double, you think to yourself. You pick out your first target and shoot. A swing and a miss! Oh god no. You empty your gun at them as they fly off, but you know you blew it. So does everyone else.
Wing shooting is difficult. Get used to the idea that everyone will see you miss a shot, especially the easy ones. When it does, you must be prepared for the load of shit that will be coming your way. We all like seeing a friend successfully make a difficult shot. We say so when it happens. But we really enjoy teasing him when he fucks one up. The look of disbelief on his face as the bird flies off is funny. The slack truck will not be stopping. Learn to laugh it off.
If you’re the witness to a terrible display of shooting by a friend, remember that your comments can be sharp, but they must be funny. The idea is to encourage him to pay attention and shoot better. If you are too harsh, eventually you will miss one, and everyone will remember what a dick you are. Keep the commentary friendly by making reference to you partner “swinging like a rusty gate” or just yell out “what the fuck was that?” He will get the idea.
When you actually do hit the birds, watching them fall from the sky is something to pay particular attention to. Not only must you “mark” the bird, the various visual displays are something special. Some times they explode in a cloud of feathers that slowly rain down like snow. Hitting one high up and having it fall on a long arch is cool. Occasionally you hit one in such a way that one wing locks extended outward, and it will pinwheel to the ground. This particular display will get you extra style points and the admiration of the group.
A wounded bird is an unfortunate occurrence. You must mark these well as you can easily loose them. Angling into the ground like and old biplane coming in for a controlled crash. The bird leaves a trail of smoke made of feathers, struggling to stay in the air. They can go a long way. Usually passing right in front of your buddies drawing a hail of fire and shouts from every one of them.
As the morning shoot whines down, everyone begins to heads back to the vehicles. Gear is put away, birds are counted, and everyone gathers for a cool drink. At his point a debriefing of sort takes place. Going over the good, bad, and ugly of the morning. This is a good time to remind your best friend of the lousy shot he made. When everyone is ready it is customary to head back to the motel, clean the birds, and head to a dive café for some food.
That’s pretty much it. Oh sure, there is more detail that does go into the preparation. What kind of clothing, decoys, shotguns, and shells. After the shoot, there are the parties. We will have a BBQ and hang out by the motel pool. We cook up the dove from the morning shoot with some steaks. Some guys take their clubs and golf in the afternoon, or just hang out at the local bar.
As you can see, there is more to dove shooting than parking in a field and blasting birds as they fly by. Call your friends and see who’s going, it’s not too late.
CJ Cupp
Texas Rumaki
This is a real easy 4-step recipe to enjoy your dove. You can bake it, or grill it. Just don’t fry it.
1. Fillet the dove breast.
2. Take half a breast, and match it with a piece of jalapeno pepper. You decide how much. My buddy Rob uses a maraschino cherry instead of a pepper. It sounded nasty to me, but after a couple bourbons, I tried one. It was pretty good. Make a few of these for those that won’t eat peppers.
3. Wrap the whole thing with bacon, and shove a toothpick through it to hold it all together.
4. Brush them with your favorite teriyaki glaze and cook’em.
Don’t over cook, or use too much heat. Take your time and do it right and you’ll be a hero.
