Grouse hunters?

[Star1pup]

Remember when Ohio was a good grouse hunting state? Here in Columbiana County we had some really good hunting. Now they are about extinct. Mostly habitat changes and predation is my guess. We tried to start a Ruffed Grouse Society chapter, but it died from lack of interest.

It might be a vicious circle: Lack of a species to hunt= lack of interested hunters = even less of that particular species to hunt.:(

[Lance]

I know what you mean. I used to have a couple spots near Lisbon but they've all grown up way too much. I still see an occasional bird but not many. As for RGS you may want to check into the North East Ohio chapter. We have our banquets here in Akron. This year's is March 6th. Scott Galloway is the chairman and does a really nice job. He's got a nice chunk of land in Carrol county that he actively manages, even does managment seminars for the public on it.

Have you seen many birds at all? I've been focussed on woodcock so far. Hope to chase grouse in a couple weeks.

[Star1pup]

Lance,
I'm concentrating more on deer and turkeys as we have a lot of those around here. I've done better on grouse in PA, but the guy with the camp had a business partner hurt in an accident and that was the end of my usual trip up there.

I have a cottage in Carroll County at Atwood Lake.
Bill a.k.a Star1pup

P.S. Seeing a lot of deer, but none in bow range.

[pdq 5oh]

I remember the "good old days". We averaged 35 or so flushes a day. Some days over 50. We hunted in Columbiana, Jefferson, Harrison, Noble, & Holmes counties. Now the cover is gone, and the turkeys have taken over. I still feel that in some areas the turkeys are responsible for the poor grouse habitat. It looks like a bulldozer went through where they've been. Alot of second growth doesn't get a chance to seed & grow. Maybe this 20 yr cycle will end, some day.

[DigDoug]

I hear you. I just went last Saturday near Portsmouth on the Mead and Shawnee State Forest Properties with my buddy and 2 dogs. Saw some descent cover, but no birds. No clucks either. Beautiful day, Great Exercise, Good company, No Birds...

[bonasachasa]

man here goes,to say the least i am very passionate about grouse hunting.and now am continuely traveling outside this state to do so, but where to start? Ruffed Grouse Society, a money driven group who over promotes grouse hunting while doing habitat projects that amounts to either bringing a thimble full of water to a house fire (as in ohio) or taking a pee in the ocean (as in the u p of michigan).all the while completely ignoring scientific data that has been published for 2 decades now that extended winter hunting seasons ( jan,feb) harm the grouse population.they do fund a large amount of research on the ruffed , but then tend to ignore it if the results will upset thier members or cause them to lose members.turkeys, dont expect anything but protection and promotion for a bird your state can sell a 20$ tag for, yes they do affect grouse but only because of the lack of good cover.:rolleyes: ODNR, another money driven organization .cant sell a 20$ tag for a grouse...... yet , who also is ignoring scientific data that thier winter season on grouse does harm the population so as to not harm revenue sources, it all boils down to 2 things in my eyes when it comes to wildlife, money and mother nature.not the type of money your hunting lisc or RGS membership brings in but big buisness money.go to an area with a need for good jobs and they are still cutting alot of trees down.the most important tree to a ruffed is the one on the lumber truck. was the post ww2 deer population explosion due to the great job of the dnr's across the midwest or was it due to farming becoming big buisness?is the ruffeds 20 year decline in ohio due to bad game management or the fact that coal mining ( as in strip) and clear cutting have all but ceased in ohio? but to end on a positive note w.va. and the u p of michigan are only a 4 to 8 hour drive away!

[mulf]

Hit our 'honey hole' the weekend before deer opener in Gallia Co. About a 8 yr old clearcut. It's usually good for several flushes in about 6-8 hours. We usually take 8-12 birds a year off it (3 or 4 trips through Feb). This year, zilch, nadda, nothing and it's still so thick you have to crawl and fight your way through. Plenty of berries and cover but no birds. I did see a couple dozen turkeys in the area. Hope they come back. I heard the new head DNR guy is supposed to be a grouse specialist, hopefully the birds will get some much needed help.

[Nut]

Well I never claimed to be a grouse hunter but I did see a few this fall. I actually flushed one while fall turkey hunting in Morgan County. It was delicious at Thanksgiving dinner btw.

I plan on doing some grouse hunting during February while I am scouting and shed hunting at the same time.


Where would the grouse likely be then?

[mulf]

You can usually find them in thick cover. The best seems to be grown up clearcuts. If you can walk easily through an area, find a thicker place. You can flush some birds from grown up creek bottoms but we usually find them futher up if the cover is right.

They are some good tastin' chicken aren't they....