Northern Maine Ridge Runners and River Rats: Fall is under way!

Bird season 2013 was three minutes old when I saw the first dark shadow on the edge of the road. "Bird!", the words blurted out of my mouth as I instinctively reached for the shotgun. This one was long gone by the time we came to a screeching halt and although the bird was visible on the road edge, the fir thicket he disappeared into held strongly onto the darkness and cloaked everything in a deep shadow. As we were still 40 miles from our destination we opted to not spend any time pursuing our feathered friend. Thirty miles, three moose and two birds later, we started to slow and actually pay attention for Ruffed Grouse, known locally as partridge. Sure enough as we came around a corner there were two of the thunder chickens on the edge of the logging road. Sliding the Gold Label double from it's case, I had to wipe the drool off before I could load the shells. The gun belonged to my partner for the day and he insisted I try it. What a beautiful firearm! As I snapped the breech closed I heard, "If you give that second one a minute you could probably get two with one shot." Sure enough I put the bead on the head of closest bird and waited as the further bird walked into a line and as his head passed behind the front bird I pulled the trigger on the right barrel. Two birds tumbled and I had my first bird, wait, birds of 2013! As I fired I noticed two other birds flush, and as I walked up to collect my prizes, I slid the barrel selector to the left barrel just in case. I was just about to bend over to pick them up when I saw another one in the bushes making a run for it. I swung the gun and let loose the left barrel and watched bird number 3 tumble down the bank. Number four (the limit on Ruffed Grouse in Maine) made the mistake of poking his head out of the grassy shoulder long enough for us to spot him. I caught him sneaking away under a log and ended his journey right there. Not a bad start to 2013 hunting season. Chunked into nuggets, dipped in egg, then in crushed Ritz crackers and deep fried for a few minutes is a wonderful way to end a bird outing!