Anyone done a Diy hunt for pheasant and duck? (Updated)

[Greenhead329]

I'm thinking hard about driving to South Dakota this fall and trying both; mainly pheasant. I have 10 days off in November I want to capitalize on

[Smoke68]

I'm listening on this thread.....

[dukhntn]

http://www.ducksouth.com/phpbb/viewtopi ... nt&start=0

I went with an outfitter about 30 minutes south of mitchell last year. 4 of us went and the longest we hunted was 1.5-2hrs before we had our limit every day. Several of us going back this year. There was some good info listed in the above link for some freelance info on pheasants.

[Greenhead329]

Dukhntn Thanks for the link!!

[matador1]

Dukhntn, did you go with the outfitter mentioned in that thread? If not, who?

[dukhntn]

Dukhntn Thanks for the link!!

Sure thing. A few weeks before we arrived I asked about duck hunting. I was told you needed to apply early in the year for licenses, so you may want to check in on that. Every little pot hole that I saw between Sioux Falls and Mitchell held ducks though.
We went early to mid November and were told by another party at the lodge after we arrived that he thought that was the best time to hunt (and he has hunted at this lodge 3 times throughout the season for the last 10 years or so). Crops have just been harvested so the roosters wouldn't be hiding in the standing corn and the weather hadn't turned too cold and unpredictable yet. After hunting a couple of days you kind of get a sense for certain areas of the field where the pheasants would be. Any change in density or type of cover (field edges, fence rows, different type of grass, tree line, etc...) seemed to be where they held the best. Although we had a guide each day, there were 2 guys staying at the lodge that had their own dogs and did their own thing (without a guide) as far as hunting goes. I'm not sure what they paid to do that, but from what I saw it didn't seem like pheasant hunting would be too hard. Of course, that's the thing about a good guide too, they make it seem like an easy task.
If you find yourself in the area of Mitchell, it is worth the 30 minute drive south to pick up some cheese from the Dimock Dairy http://dimockdairy.com. The selection there is overwhelming, but the lady at the counter was very accommodating in allowing us to sample whatever we wanted. I think she liked to hear the way we talked...
I also had some vacation days to kill last year and drove out to see Rushmore, Custer State Park, Crazy Horse, and the Badlands after our hunt. Saw lots of Bison, antelope, mule deer, and big horn sheep.

Dukhntn, did you go with the outfitter mentioned in that thread? If not, who?

I tried to book with Horseshoe K mentioned in the link, but they didn't have my dates available. I ended up hunting with Mike Muntefering (http://ringneckcountryhunting.com) on the advice of a friend that had been with him a few times. Mike farms a lot of land in the area and has 3 different places to stay. The lodge pictured in the link is $500/day and was more of a executive type lodge. We stayed at a lodge he had in town (Parkston, a town of 1,500) and it was $400/day. It wasn't as fancy, but it was $100/day cheaper too. Prices include hunting, guide, dogs, 3 meals/day, bird cleaning. We bought shells, and licenses. Mike and those that worked for him are salt of the earth folks and treated us very well.

[GulfCoast]

IIRC, the OOS duck licenses were on a draw basis when I tried, and I applied too late. Horseshoe K Ranch has pheasants out the ying yang. Highly recommended if you can get in. They feed the heck outta you, too.

[cupnglide]

If SD doesn't work out because of draw licenses, consider ND. Glad to share what I know.

[Dux Be Us]

We used ta hook up with these guys for pheasant and canada geese:

http://lowerbrulewildlife.com/?id=86


Tribal hunting is VERY easy on the non resident in SD

Vast acres of public hunting, but, you need an army to cover the huge feilds...if you see other public guys putting a drive togather, ask if you can join...we never said no to anyone that asked

Road hunting is legal

[Greenhead329]

Ive seriously been thinking going with an outfitter first time, learning the ropes and do a Diy next year?...

[medic11]

4 of us drove to North Dakota this year, went mid October right after pheasant opened. Ducks were initially slow due to a warm front but we hunted 7 days and were very successful on pheasants and ducks. It was much different from hunting a South Dakota as all of our pheasants were flushed from heavily wooded strips or small thickets bordering a food source. This was my first year to make the trip, although 2 of the guys have been going up for several years and have built a rapport with the locals, I found the people to be extremely nice there and only one landowner told us we could not hunt.

[Greenhead329]

Thanks for all the info provided. Talked with my dad; we found a reasonable outfitter. We're going to hunt with them in the morning, and use the afternoons to scout for us a place next year.
outfitter is letting me bring my puppy as well..
the deposit is paid and excitement is brewing! !

[dukhntn]

Be sure to keep us updated when you get back.

[mossyisland]

South Dakota is draw. You have to put in Mid summer. If you go with a outfitter, go with Northern Sky outfitters. Those boys can get on some birds.

[Greenhead329]

Counting down the days til we leave!