Rooster Road Trip Episode 3:

Two Sides to the Story

Low temps, persistent rain, and steady winds greeted the Rooster Road Trip as we crossed into South Dakota. This is great if you’re a duck – not if you’re a pheasant hunter, but we were not to be deterred.

Donning our raingear and the warmest layers we packed, we decided to start off at an Aberdeen Pheasant Coalition walk-in property. Moving a handful of hens there, we pivoted further north to a CREP property (PDF) with cattails, grass, and cut corn surrounding it. The ingredients to produce birds were all present, but no roosters were found as the pelting rain continued to zap our patience and our bird dogs’ core temperatures with every falling drop, so we tucked our tails and decided to call it a day with no birds in the bag.

As if cashing in all the karma we earned the previous day, the next morning saw a break in the weather as we found ourselves hunting through a landscape that appeared to be taken straight out of a Terry Redlin painting. This day would be spent focusing solely on Game Production Areas.

Overall, South Dakota has nearly 5 million acres of public land available to hunters. Of this, the roughly 730 GPAs found throughout the state represent more than 280,000 acres. So, why key in on these? Because they’re managed for healthy wildlife, which means oftentimes you’ll encounter prime habitat and even the occasional food plot mixed in.

Although it took us putting a few miles on our Thorogoods, we eventually bagged our first bird in South Dakota. Not long after that, we added a few more to the fold and before we knew it the sun was setting and freshly prepared birds were hitting the pan on the back of our tailgate. This was the quintessential South Dakota moment we had been dreaming of, and the only thing that made this scene even sweeter was knowing we had one more day to see if we could do it all over again.

The Rooster Road Trip is made possible by: Ruff Land Kennels, Browning firearms and apparel, Garmin training collars and tech, Thorogood boots, SoundGear hearing protection and enhancement, Federal Ammunition, Apple Autos, and South Dakota Tourism.

Aberdeen Pheasant Coalition

Spearheaded by the local Aberdeen Pheasants Forever chapter, this coalition consists of local businesses, the tourist industry, and conservation organizations coming together to provide funding for a signup incentive for farmers and landowners enrolling land into the Conservation Reserve Program, while at the same time, enrolling these same acres into the South Dakota Game, Fish, and Parks Walk-in public access hunting program.

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Good Day to be a Duck

Pounding rain, cold temperatures, and steady wind made the first day in South Dakota tough to handle. Luckily our Browning 3-layer Upland Gore-Tex jackets and pants were up to the task.

Steady

The only thing more steady than the rain was our movement, the second we stopped is when the chills would set in.

Reprieve from Rain

Our second day in South Dakota was the exact opposite of what we experienced the day before. Here Director of Marketing, Andrew Vavra, and his French Brittany, Baxter, get their Garmin Alpha 10 dialed in for a day of chasing roosters through SD Game Production Areas.

Glacial Lakes and Good Views

Chief Marketing & Communications Officer, Bob St. Pierre, surveys the area for another birdie looking chokepoint amongst South Dakota’s Glacial Lakes region.

Dog Power

The Rooster Road Trip doesn’t discriminate, Chief Marketing & Communications Officer, Bob St. Pierre, walks his way through a Terry Redlin painting flanked by Aspen, the Labrador Retriever, and Esky, the German shorthaired pointer.

Success in South Dakota

South Dakota Regional Representative, Jake Hanson, takes in a hard-earned rooster.

Good Girl

Gitchee, Bob St. Pierre’s German shorthaired pointer, pauses for a brief moment before his Garmin Alpha 200 shows her cutting through the fields after more South Dakota roosters.

Steady Strides & Solid Soles

Andrew Vavra high-steps it in his USA made Thorogood 1957 Series Briar Pitstop boots. Comfortable boots and a willingness to put on miles are key in finding public land birds.

Hunter Indeed

The Browning Maxus II Hunter added yet another rooster to our Bird’N Lite 2.0 Strap Vest.

Colors of Fall

You can’t compete with Mother Nature’s color palette during autumn in South Dakota.

Hard-Earned Roosters

(L to R) Chief Marketing & Communications Officer, Bob St. Pierre, South Dakota Regional Representative, Jake Hanson, Graphic Design Manager, Logan Hinners, and Director of Marketing, Andrew Vavra show off their dog’s hard-earned birds amongst a gorgeous backdrop.