Pheasants walking and flying over gravel road.

2011 Pheasant Hunting Report

Greetings! I hope you had a very Merry Christmas and enjoyed celebrating the New Year of 2012!

2011 was a very good year for Ringnecks Hunting & Lodging. Once again, we improved upon the lodge and its surroundings with repairs and paint, including 3 new murals. Also, we acquired more hunting acres. We hunted 752 guns this past year and bagged 2,215 ringnecks. The weather was beautiful all the way through the last day of the season—January 1st. During 2012, we plan to do more remodeling and adding on, which will include more bedrooms.

I’d like to share a few of my favorite memories (although there are too many to list) of the 2011 hunting season:

There was the time John was shooting at a bird passing by and as he followed the bird with his gun barrel, he didn’t turn his feet, so he ended up corkscrewing himself down into the ground.

Also, there was the group that was expecting nasty weather on Saturday (below freezing with snowfall and 30+ mph winds), so we took extra minutes strategizing how we could best surround a honey hole and get our birds early. That Saturday morning, however, was rather pleasant with a fresh couple of inches on the ground and calm before the winds started howling. We loaded into our vehicles, and when we got to the field, the vehicles all flew around to their positions, and then hunters, dogs, and guns began bailing out. After 5 minutes of non-stop blasting, we began picking up the birds, and with the aid of the fresh snow, we found every bird they had shot, and we had our bag full before the wind started howling.

Another hunt I remember well was a hunt that started very slowly. It was the second field of the day, and en route, one of the vehicles had gotten a flat tire, so while we waited not far from a patch of cattails, we ate our lunches and watched a couple of hunters and dogs hunt across the road (didn’t look good). We sat and waited for more than 30 minutes, and while we waited, we didn’t see so much as one, single bird. During the strategy talk that morning, I had told the group that there was probably going to be a lot of birds in this spot, called “the church”, and that it was important that we get into our positions quickly and quietly. So, we had a line of hunters on both sides of the cattails marching towards each other. Not a bird to be seen, even when there were a slew of hunters only feet from the edge of the cover. I think it was Eric (same guy with the flat tire) shaking his head as if saying, “we’re wasting our time; there’s nothing here.) Then a dog hit the brush and the cattails lit up with birds. There must’ve been 300+ birds fly up out of that little patch. It was pheasant mayhem!

Also, I remember young boy’s first hunt, and on day two he bagged his limit, but on his final day, his luck had turned, and he couldn’t bring a bird down. Every bird he missed caused his head and attitude to sink a bit lower. The group shot their last bird, but the young guy had no luck, and as he walked back towards the vehicle with his dad, he cried with disappointment. I didn’t want to see the boy go away like that, so when we all got back to our vehicles, I told them I’d like them to go on one more walk to give the boy another shot. They walked around a small hill, and at the very end, two roosters flew up, but only one got away, as his aim was right on. His smile was back.

Please check out our website at www.ringneckshuntinglodge.com. Through the website, you can join us on Facebook, Twitter, My Blog, YouTube, Flicker, and LinkedIn.

We hope to hear from you soon, and also hope 2012 will be filled with many more good memories for you and yours. I really had a great time hunting with you all this past year, and I hope to see you again in the fall of 2012. If you haven’t already confirmed your reservations for the 2012 hunting season, call me or email me quickly before it’s too late. We’ve been growing considerably every year, and we’re expecting the 2012 season to fill up early.

Sincerely,
Stephan Stanley

Ringnecks, LLC
P.O. Box 268
Presho, SD 57568
(605) ROOSTER
(766-7837)
www.ringneckshuntinglodge.com