There is nothing quite like watching dogs work the grassy hills of Southern Arizona in search of Mearns quail. So when my good buddy Pat from Border to Border Outfitters invited me down for opening weekend to watch his team of GSPs work, how could I say no. Alex Landeen grilling venison sausages and pheasant for dinner was an added bonus.

We found birds and did a fair bit of shooting. I’ve had the pleasure to watch Pat’s dogs work Mearns several times and it never gets old. There is nothing prettier than a dog on a rock solid point with a covey of Mearns quail flushing in front of them. More importantly, I got to spend time in the field with old friends and make new ones. With life constantly picking up speed, I relish every step I get to take in chasing quail in this state.

Pat runs Border to Border Outfitters and you can hunt birds with him from Minnesota all the way to Arizona and everywhere in between. Check him out at Border to Border Outfitters.

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Hunting with Pat Flanagan on his guide’s day off is no picnic. After walking through Mearns country all day, I began to imagine that if he took off his boots, you’d see goat hooves instead of feet. I guess that’s what happens when you guide for quail in southern Arizona and chase your pack of shorthairs up and down those hills.

Watching his dogs work out the birds was a thing of beauty. Their dark bodies weaved and crossed in front of us through the yellow grass, occasionally circling back for a gulp of water before plunging back into the golden landscape. Pat’s dogs lived up to the hype and found us multiple coveys. The ice cold Modelas and tailgate full of birds at the end of the day was worth the work.

As quail season winds to a close, I can’t help but ponder over the days in the field spent by myself and with friends. I know that it’ll be a couple long months before I’m watching a covey flush and bringing the shotgun to my shoulder. Until then, I’ll be living off of days like this, replaying the day’s events over and over again in my mind.

Pat runs Border to Border Outfitters and you can hunt birds with him from Minnesota all the way to Arizona and everywhere in between. Check him out at Border to Border Outfitters.

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I made it home late on Friday evening from the latest Pig Farm Ink BarFly, and morning came much earlier than I had anticipated. After hastily gathering gear, DJ and I made it into the field for an early morning of hunting Gambel’s quail. The desert was pretty quiet for the first couple hours and we opted to change up locations and look at a different piece of desert. The change paid off and we ended up flushing a couple large coveys onto a sprawling flat which gave us an hour or two of hunting singles.

I haven’t had this productive of a morning all season, and it was nice to see such a so many birds. The desert in this area was healthy from our frequent summer rains and there was plenty of undergrowth, feed and cover that has obviously helped this particular area. With a solid morning like this one in the books, I’m looking forward to getting out these next few months and putting more miles under my boots, since walking and traveling is actually pretty healthy, and I been looking to lose some weight, even taking a supplement called rapid tone that help with this.

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For the first time since living in Arizona, I skipped the opening weekend of Arizona quail in favor of heading north to some cooler temperatures, grouse hunting and Apache trout. But in the weekends following, I laced up my boots and braved the heat to chase Gambel’s in the Sonoran desert.

The summer reports seem to be accurate as there seems to be a slight uptick in bird numbers. Regardless, it felt good to get out and work the washes and hills. The weight of a shotgun over my shoulder was a little different sometimes I use one of my airsoft rifles for hunting. At the end of the day I had couple of birds in the vest so I had a welcome feeling after a long off season. Here’s hoping for many more quality mornings in the field chasing quail with buddies.

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The last weekend of Arizona quail season has come and gone. I had a few hours to head out to an area that I wanted to hike in to and explore for future deer and javelina hunt. Although I toted the shotgun in, the shells never left my pocket and I spent quite a bit of time behind my binoculars, searching the hills for sign of javelina and mule deer. My nature walk (as my wife calls it) turned into a pretty good trek, and I put 6 or 7 miles on my feet. Although the Winchester never made it to my shoulder, it was a peaceful and fulfilling morning spent in the field, and I was able to see some new country. It’s tough to beat a desert sunrise.

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The dog went on point, and as I eased into position, a Mearns quail flushed in front of me. The bottom barrel barked and the bird folded to the ground as another Mearns quail burst out of the grass to my left. Before I knew it, I was swinging on the flying quail and the top barrel toppled the second bird. The rest of the covey fanned out in the tall grass ahead of us, and as quickly as it started, everything became very still and quiet. I walked over and picked up my first feathered trophy while the pup came trotting up with the other one gently cradled in his mouth.

It was tough to imagine my day starting any better. A double on Mearns quail and there was still plenty of daylight.

We spent the rest of the morning working different canyons and found a couple other coveys. It was a great morning with some excellent dog work and great scenery. At lunch we decided to call it a day on Mearns. Even though the limit is currently 8 birds, it just never seems like a great idea to take that many from such a small and heavily hunted population.

We cleaned our prizes after lunch and put them on ice. After a bit of discussion, we decided to head to a different area and see if we could scare up some Scaled quail. We had walked for a good ways and the sun was sinking lower in the sky. We talked about turning back, but decided to push a bit further. We couldn’t have walked another 40 yards, when a large covey of quail flushed. Shouldering the Winchester, I felt it slam into my shoulder, and one lone bird fell from the group. The waist high grass made finding the bird difficult, and if it hadn’t been for the dog and his nose I could not have recovered it. I couldn’t believe my good fortune as the Brittany pup dropped a beautiful Scaled quail at my feet. It was my first Scaled quail and one that I would not soon forget.

So there I was, with a Mearns quail and a Scaled quail in the cooler for the day. All I needed to complete the Arizona Quail Slam was a Gambel’s quail. I had tried to complete the quail slam before but had fell short by one bird. I knew there were Gambel’s back across the road in a wash, but the sun was almost behind the hills, and I had roughly an hour of shooting light left. My buddies stayed to try and scratch out a Scaled quail, so I started walking towards where I know I had gotten into Gambel’s quail before.

I walked for about 45 minutes and hadn’t moved a bird, let alone heard anything. With about a mile still back to the truck, I turned my steps towards the vehicle and only walked about 20 yards when I heard the haunting call of a Gambels quail.  I moved in quickly and flushed a large covey. I lined out a single bird and dropped it in a large pile of cactus. After a few moments of searching, I was holding my lone Gambel’s male and the final bird for my Arizona Quail Slam taken in a single day.

In closing, Mearns quail receive a ton of pressure in their short season here in Arizona from in-state and out-of-state hunters. If you are heading out after Mearns, consider limiting your harvest to one or two birds per covey. It’s also worth noting that the 8 Mearns limit is pretty generous, and I’ve talked to many hard-core Mearns hunters who think it’s too generous. If you’re going to be bird hunting in Mearns country, consider hunting Mearns in the morning and moving on to Scaled or Gambel’s quail in the afternoon, in order to give those Mearns a break. At the end of the day, we have some great opportunities to quail hunt in Arizona, enjoy it.

A big thanks to my buddy Kyle who writes over at Sleep When You’re Dead and Landon for photos and dogwork. Always great hunting with you guys.

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I don’t know if I’ve ever seen the desert so green and full of growth. Combine the extra cover with the birds being very shy and quiet, my first morning in the field was a slow one.  DJ and I hiked several hills and pushed a few coveys, but when the smoke cleared, there were only a few spent shells and a pair of male Gambels to show for our morning effort.

A light sprinkling of lemon pepper and a slow bake makes for a simple and juicy post hunt celebration.

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This Arizona quail season ended way too fast. Truth be told, with my wife being pregnant for the bulk of the season, I did more quail hunting than fishing this fall because hunting quail keeps me closer to town. I explored a bunch of new area though, hunted with some different buddies, and even though the numbers weren’t spectacular, I had a great season overall.

I hunted the last Saturday of the season in a relatively new area, and after loading up and and cinching the vest buckle tight, the desert erupted with the sounds of three distinct coyote packs. I don’t know if the desert dogs had anything to do with it, but it took me a while to find birds. When the covey scattered, I was able to knock down one male and put him in the bag.

In wanderings around looking for quail, I was able to kick up a half dozen cottontails and connected on two of them. I had stopped shooting rabbits in the past, because I wan’t too fond of the meat. That was the case until this season when I came across an amazing recipe. My friend Rohan writes a blog called Whole Larder Love and has written a book by the same name. Rohan Anderson is an artist when it comes to cooking and lives his dream of gardening, hunting, and living off the land. I tried his “Finger Lickin’ Rabbit” recipe and loved it. My wife, who is not the biggest fan of wild game, especially small furry creatures, loved it too.

At the end of the day, it’s always tough to see the season fade away. You’re left alone with a few pictures and the fleeting memories of wild birds flushing, and the promise of a new season only 8 months away. Until next time.

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The rest of the neighborhood was still asleep when I backed the truck out of the driveway and eased onto the I10. I was headed south with my buddies, Kyle and Landon to see if we could put a few Mearns quail in our game bags. We would be working behind the hard hunting pup, Chase, in some of the prettiest countryside in the state.

As we arrived at our destination, we saw that the harsh Sonoran desert had given way to the oaks and grasses of southern Arizona, and we shrugged into our vests, loaded our guns, and set out.  We made two big pushes in the morning and hunted hard, but came up empty. Tired and a bit wore out, we settled in the shade, made lunch, and talked about a new game plan.

Recharged from lunch, we set out into a new canyon, faithfully following the relentless Chase. As we worked up the canyon, talking about fly fishing and the trips that we had planned in the coming year, we were interrupted by a covey of Mearns quail bursting from the brush next to us. It caught all of us, including Chase, completely off guard, but Landon was able to get his gun up and knock down a bird. Marking where they landed we set out, prepared for the covey rise and were rewarded for our efforts. The canyon proved to be the mother-load when we found 3 distinct coveys, which made for some very fine shooting. Spirits were high as we made our way back to the truck with birds in our game bags, and we couldn’t believe our good fortune.

We decided to check out another spot, but on our way, I pulled truck over abruptly to watch a covey of quail sail off into the tall grass. I got a good look at one of them and knew that they were scaled quail. Ecstatic at the thought, we quickly geared up and followed the birds through the thick brush. Landon, again with some fine shooting, brought down two birds. We moved further into the field and at that moment, a quail flushed in front of me and I knocked it to the ground with a blast from the bottom barrel. As I walked up to pick up the bird, I was surprised to see that it was not a scaled quail but a Gambel’s. My brief disappointment was immediately trumped by a rush of excitement. I yelled to the others about my discovery and instantly our passive “have a good time” mindset rose to high-strung determination to get the Arizona quail slam – Mearns, Scaled, and Gambel’s all in a day.

It didn’t take Landon long, as Chase quickly went on point, and Landon knocked down a Gambel’s. Congratulations were flying all around as we admired his three beautiful birds beside each other. It was a pretty cool experience to see the three unique male birds all in a row.

Back at it, Kyle and I hunted hard right till the end, making pushes through brush and grass trying to find the elusive scaled quail. But when it was all over, we never ended up finding that original covey of scalies. As the light faded from the sky, we cleaned our hard-earned prizes and talked about the great points by Chase and the shots we wish we should have connected on. In the end, as we drove down the headlight lit dirt road, I knew that I would be back. It was a fantastic day in the field, but it made me want the Arizona quail slam even more.

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The sun has a unique way of complimenting the mountains in Arizona. Whether it’s turning them pink in the morning or purple at dusk, I don’t know if I’ve ever seen so many beautiful sunrises and sunsets. As an outdoorsman, I have the privilege of being in the field to see these picturesque sights, and on a certain level, I feel sorry for the poor saps who sleep in and spend their days indoors. They seem to miss out on all the beauty that nature has to offer.

On the same line, there’s nothing quite like the beauty of a male Gambel’s quail. From the creamy white chest to the burnt orange head, this beautiful bird stands out to the stark contrast of it’s rough environment. There is nothing quite like holding one and running your fingers over the small intricate feathers.

Although the pickings have been a bit slim this season for birds in some of my usual Gambel’s quail hunting spots, it makes every bird that much sweeter.

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