At Longmeadow Game Resort, pheasant hunting is in our DNA. We love the feeling of expectation in the crisp morning air, the sharp commands to the dogs and the excitement of a big flush.

Filling out is contingent on many factors.  Here are some of our favorite tips for a successful upland game hunt:

1. Hunt your dog into the wind giving them a better chance to get the scent. Even on calm days the air is moving. The flame of a bic lighter is a quick and easy way to see the air movement.

2. Silence is Golden! Be absolutely quiet when you arrive on site, that goes for slamming truck doors and loud conversation – otherwise those roosters are running for the hills.

3. Play hooky from work and schedule an impromptu hunt the morning after a good snow. If the snow hasn’t crusted over the only place those roosters can go is Up!

4. Understand pheasant movement habits in the area you hunt. Morning feedings, loafing cover, evening feedings and roosting cover are all part of the pheasants daily routine. At Longmeadow Game Resort, we can help guide you to the right location for whatever time of day you want to hunt.

5. When heavy snowfall mats down the vegetation, birds behave differently. Look for them on areas of tall brush that will offer cover.

6. Keep calm and shoot long, take your time with your shot and you won’t blow that rooster into an instant feather pillow.

7. Hunt in the tall grass – at Longmeadow we grow and harvest crops but we also leave ideal pheasant habits throughout our acreage.

8. Don’t ignore the short grass – it’s amazing how little vegetation is needed for cover. Evolution has enabled these birds to camouflage themselves very well in eastern Colorado’s habitat.

9. There are almost as many opinions about the best bird shot as there are bird hunters. We recommend 6 shot low brass.

10. The more you get your dog in the field the faster he is going to catch on. Think about if you were learning something new like skiing or snowboarding for the first time. If you go once; by the end of the day you are catching on, but if you only go that time and take a year off before you do it again you will most likely lose everything you have learned from your previous experience. If you only take your dog out a couple of times and then expect him or her to hunt the following season, they are probably not going to understand what you are wanting them to do.