Northwest Sportsman – August 2019

nwsportsmanmag.com | AUGUST 2019 Northwest Sportsman 127

HUNTING

By M.D. Johnson

T

he five big Canadas don’t

hesitate a lick, making me

feel like a combination of Bill

Saunders and the late Tim Grounds.

OK, maybe not that capable, but

pretty damn good. Regardless, the

quintet doesn’t fiddle around, coming

in on the proverbial string. Big

black feet drop as the group begins

backpedaling in unison. As they

break 20 steps, I sit up, shoulder the

Remington, and slap the trigger – and

watch in delight as not one but two

big birds crumple.

Chaos ensues, but I swap targets

and pound the trigger a second time.

Three down. Another swing, and ...

Well, where the final shot went, I

don’t know, but let’s just say for the

record there were two honkers that

made good their getaway.

The scene changes. A quiet water-

barred road above the Elochoman

Valley in Southwest Washington.

I’m not paying attention when the

flush comes; nothing new, I reckon,

but Sadie Mae, the black dog, doesn’t

take too kindly to what I’m sure she

views as nonparticipation. I don’t

so much as get an apology out to

my canine assistant when a second

grouse explodes from a short alder

The Early Birds Of

Late Summer

The opening of grouse,

doves and September

geese give wingshooters

‘a fresh start, new day,

new season’ to pursue

their favorite quarry.

Summer’s final weeks mark the start of bird hunting season in the Northwest, with grouse

among the best opportunities. You’ll find ruffies down low along drainages, and blues – now

known as sooties west of the Cascades and duskies east of the crest – higher up. (JULIA JOHNSON)