bird hunting | The Filson Journal

The Rod & Gun Club, Everglades City

The isolated location and the private trappings of the club’s reputation have led the rich and famous to seek it out over the years. Five presidents, from Harry Truman to Richard Nixon, have enjoyed its luxuries and opportunities for both fishing and shooting. Hemingway moored his fishing boat Pilar here, en-route to catch 1,000-pound Blue marlin.

3 Min

black and white portrait of a black lab sitting

Profiles

DOGS WITH JOBS: Labrador Retrievers

Blessed with a perpetual grin and soft floppy ears, Labrador Retrievers have been the most popular breed of dogs in America since 1991. A virtual Swiss Army knife of a dog, this sporting breed can do almost anything.

3 Min

Field Notes

How to Camouflage a Canoe for Duck Hunting

Seasoned outdoorsman T. Edward Nickens gives us his well-proven-play-by-play to camouflage a canoe and get up close with waterfowl before flushing them and taking the shot.

5 Min

Field Notes

Beginner’s Guide to Upland Hunting in Washington

Upland bird hunting is wonderful way to get some great exercise and interact with the outdoors at a high level. A common picture that comes to our minds about bird hunting is sitting in a duck blind with a thermos of coffee and a propane heater while waiting for birds to come to you. While duck hunting from a blind is a popular activity and can be very fun, it is much different than upland bird hunting.

10 Min

Field Notes

One Common Goal:  Farming & Hunting for conservation

Across the Great Plains region stretches a vast network of protected grasslands and wetlands, from the never-ending grain fields of Kansas and Nebraska to the dusty prairie pothole regions of the Dakotas and Montana. These crucial ecosystems teem with wildflowers and tall swaying grasses, while cattails and bulrushes rustle next to quiet ponds, and throughout it all untold numbers of insects and small animals thrive. Overhead, all manner of birds soar, often stopping here during their crucial summer and winter migration periods to rest and raise new families. But here is the really interesting part of this story: Almost all of this land is privately owned, and if it weren’t for hunters, farmers, and ranchers, none of it would probably be here.

5 Min

How-To's

Ruffed Grouse Hunting Basics

The ruffed grouse is affectionately called the king of game birds by those who enjoy hunting them on crisp autumn days. As their nickname hints, the ruffed grouse is challenging prey for new and seasoned hunters alike. They are swift fliers, wary, and learn by experience the fine art of avoiding predators of all kinds. But by using a few basic principles you can start off on good footing, and with any luck, bring home a few ruffs for the table.

5 Min

dish of candied, bacon wrapped jalapeno poppers in circular metal dish

Food & Recipes

Filson Food: Roasted Pheasant Jalapeño Poppers with Bourbon Red Pepper Jelly

A version of this recipe can most likely be found in every single hunter’s recipe rolodex from the Florida Panhandle to the Olympic Peninsula and everywhere in between. It is a go-to no matter where you hunt your fowl, and works equally well with ducks or doves.

3 Min

a close up shot of a plated duck leg with the fixings on a dark brown cutting board next to the blue and white ceramic cooking pan with a metal spoon for ladling

Food & Recipes

Filson Food: Duck Cassoulet

Some of the best things in life require the most time and effort to do them right. This recipe is one of those things.

6 Min

a close up of a US Fish and Wildlife silver duck band

Field Notes

Duck Banding: Hunter-Backed Conservation Work Helps Waterfowl Thrive

Banding has been used for centuries. In 218 B.C., besieged Roman soldiers reportedly used thread to tie a message on a crow’s leg and then released the bird. John James Audubon and Ernest Thompson Seton pioneered early banding methods in the United States. Federal banding programs were established in the 1920s after the Migratory Bird Treaty of 1918.

5 Min

Profiles

Wild Goose Jack

At the turn of the 20th century, sportsman John (Jack) Miner found himself amidst an unregulated commercial market, and local grassroots hunting. In the small town of Kingsville, Ontario, along the northern shore of Lake Erie, young Jack and his brother Ted spent their minimal free time carving and painting decoys in preparation for when the ducks would return.

8 Min

dozens of birds flying overhead on an overcast day

Field Notes

North America’s Flyways and Ducks Unlimited

Twice a year waterfowl and bird species make the long journey from south to north and back again along the Pacific Flyway, stopping at reservoirs, wetlands, and shallow lakes along the way to both rest and feed.

9 Min

double barrel shot gun open with both shells hovering above chamber

Field Notes

History of the Shotgun for Upland Hunting

The earliest shotguns, or “Haile Shotte peics,” as they were called, date back to the 16th century in England, where they were used for hunting by the aristocracy, chief among them Henry VIII. These were multiple shot firearms and were used primarily for hunting birds.

9 Min

black lab jumping to catch pheasant flying away in a hunting field with dead grass and cattails

How-To's

How to Process an Upland Bird

Steven Joyce of Reds Hunting, a renowned hunting and fly-fishing guide outfit in Eastern Washington, joined us at Filson’s annual Sportsman’s Expo to demonstrate how to harvest the meat from an upland bird. Check out Steve’s clean and efficient method for processing any game bird.

4 Min

Profiles

Duck Band: Friendship, Music, and Hunting

Friendships tend to be tribal in their origins – shared interests, hobbies, and lifestyles attract and keep folks together. For this group of friends, their love of music and duck hunting are the ties that bind. “Would you have any interest in going on a duck hunt in Louisiana with us?” That seems like an

5 Min

bird dog pointer on grouse hunt in the olympics

Field Notes

Guinevere’s First Grouse: Learning to Hunt in the Olympic National Forest

Patrick Colleran has spent summers exploring the Wilderness of Oregon, Montana, and Idaho as a Wilderness Ranger and backpacking guide. Alison Riley is a former hiking and rafting guide who had more bird dogs than friends growing up in rural Vermont. It wasn’t until right before Guinevere, the 11-month old Wiredhaired Pointing Griffon was born, that they started bringing shotguns into the mountains to hunt birds

Two dark labradors. One wears a camouflage jacket. near edge of lake

Field Notes

Field Guide: Duck Hunting the Skagit County Coastline

A 3-hour drive from the Filson Headquarters in Seattle will put you knee-deep in slate-gray water throwing dry flies for Steelhead, forging through a marsh with duck decoys in hand, or hiking along a basalt-rimmed plateau behind working dogs with a side-by-side. Cold fall and winter days mean it’s open season for waterfowl in the Northwest. Dropping temperatures lead to duck migration across the country and offer prime conditions for hunting.

autumn forest with yellow and green and red foliage bisected by river

Field Notes

Finding a Reason to Wander: Grouse Hunting with Blaine Peetso

Blaine Peetso is a mill worker in Northern Alberta and a self-described daydreamer. With a penchant for the outdoors and for photography, he created The Borealist blog as an excuse to capture images of his part of the world and to rearrange the alphabet as he sees fit. Follow Blaine as he finds a particular kind of beauty in his own backyard on a late Autumn grouse hunt.

How-To's

Peter Patenaude Partridge Hunting Tips

Peter Patenaude, a registered Maine guide, has been a Filson advocate for over six years. His blog Boot & Canoe, focuses on traditional skills and Maine’s outdoor heritage. Peter shares some more tips for a successful partridge hunt.

How-To's

Guest Blog: Peter Patenaude’s Maine Bird Hunting Tips

Peter Patenaude, a registered Maine guide, has been a Filson advocate for over six years. His blog Boot & Canoe, focuses on traditional skills and Maine’s outdoor heritage. Peter shares six tips to a successful partridge hunt.

4 Min

Field Notes

GUEST BLOG: Ben Smith, The top expert quail hunting tips

Filson guest blogger Ben Smith, of Arizona Wanderings, takes us on one of his Gambel’s quail hunts and leaves behind some of his expert tips. Read this and you will feel like you are right out in the field with him! As I scrambled up the side of the wash, the loose rock gave way

The Rod & Gun Club, Everglades City

DOGS WITH JOBS: Labrador Retrievers

How to Camouflage a Canoe for Duck Hunting

Beginner’s Guide to Upland Hunting in Washington

One Common Goal: Farming & Hunting for conservation

Ruffed Grouse Hunting Basics

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Filson Food: Roasted Pheasant Jalapeño Poppers with Bourbon Red Pepper Jelly

Filson Food: Duck Cassoulet

Duck Banding: Hunter-Backed Conservation Work Helps Waterfowl Thrive

Wild Goose Jack

North America’s Flyways and Ducks Unlimited

History of the Shotgun for Upland Hunting

How to Process an Upland Bird

Duck Band: Friendship, Music, and Hunting

Guinevere’s First Grouse: Learning to Hunt in the Olympic National Forest

Field Guide: Duck Hunting the Skagit County Coastline

Finding a Reason to Wander: Grouse Hunting with Blaine Peetso

Peter Patenaude Partridge Hunting Tips

Guest Blog: Peter Patenaude’s Maine Bird Hunting Tips

GUEST BLOG: Ben Smith, The top expert quail hunting tips

One Common Goal:  Farming & Hunting for conservation