B2
SPORTS/OUTDOORS
East Oregonian
Saturday, September 11, 2021
Gary Lewis/Contributed Photo
A September scouting trip for mule deer or elk can turn into a grouse hunt in the Imnaha Unit.
A mixed bag of forest grouse
GARY
LEWIS
ON THE TRAIL
Down into the dry canyon and
past the spring where the little
stream began. Liesl, my pudel-
pointer, quartered back and
forth. She crashed through down
through the alders, through a
patch of brush then burst out into
the open. When her tail began
to flag, I closed the gun. She
was close to a bird and it likely
wouldn’t hold.
Like a rocket, it flushed out of
the tangle of vine maple, straight
down the canyon.
My gun was up, my cheek
on the wood and I saw the bird
crumple as it reached the line of
the pines. I waded into the brush,
calling the dog, feathers floating
down out of the limbs above me.
What had been a September
scouting trip for mule deer high
in the Imnaha Unit had turned
into a grouse hunt. That evening,
back at the cabin, I cooked up
seven grouse over a Camp Chef
backpack stove, the skinless,
boneless meat sautéed with spin-
ach, mushrooms and mozzarella.
In the morning after glassing
for deer, we hunted blue grouse
Flow:
Continued from Page B1
Recruiting during the
pandemic was a challenge for
Larson, and just about every
coach in the nation. Larson
would get emails from poten-
tial players. She had their
names and numbers, then
would watch their matches
online.
on the ridge top. The birds were
beneath tall pine trees where
they were picking for nuts in the
duff.
Grouse hunts are not insig-
nificant in my life. The first time
my dad allowed me to tag along
on a hunt, it was for grouse. The
first game I cooked was grouse.
And if I live my life right, maybe
my last hunt will be for grouse
with an old dog just ahead of
me, holding the birds with a rock
solid point till I can catch up.
We find two types of forest
grouse in Eastern Oregon —
ruffed grouse and blues — and it
is easy to get a mixed bag for the
hunter that knows where to look.
Ruffed grouse are most
often found in canyons with a
lot of cover — aspens, alders,
willows, vine maple, pines and
fir trees. They like a bit of eleva-
tion change. A little bench over
a spring or a swamp can pay off
with looks at a bird or two or
three. They flash through the
timber, offering brief glimpses
and a rush of wings like a heart
attack.
Blue grouse are found closer
to the tops of the ridges. They
seek out patches of berry bushes
and peck out the greenery under
the spruces, the hemlock and the
tall pines.
The season for forest grouse
Depending on the quality
of the video, she got a good
look at prospective play-
ers. Other times, she didn’t
know who she was watching
because she couldn’t read the
numbers, but was occasion-
ally intrigued by a blonde girl
with a ponytail.
“A lot of it was recruit-
ing online and watching live
streams and Zoom, which
is the new norm,” Larson
runs from Sept. 1 through Jan.
31. Hunters should pack No.
7-1/2s for ruffed grouse and No.
6s for blue grouse. The daily bag
limit is three of each species and
nine of each species in posses-
sion. Hunters must leave head or
one wing attached while in the
field and in transit.
Grouse hunting access is
available on some private lands.
See myodfw.com/articles/hunt-
ing-private-lands-access-habi-
tat-program for a list of private
lands. Each listing includes
management unit, location,
huntable species and the access
period. Special regulations are
listed for each property and
can range from walk-in-only to
motorized travel on roads posted
as open; leave the gates like you
found them.
———
Gary Lewis is the author of
“Bob Nosler Born Ballistic,”
“Fishing Central Oregon” and
other titles. Gary’s podcast is
called Ballistic Chronicles.
To contact Gary, visit www.
garylewisoutdoors.com
James Flaherty/Contributed Photo
This ruffed grouse from the Im-
naha Unit flushed from a tangle
of vine maple in a brushy creek
bottom.
said. “These kids were brave.
Usually they get to come to
campus and meet the team.
We are lucky with the group
we got. I think we got a great
group of freshmen.”
Of the new recruits she
was able to bring in, Larson
has been impressed with
5-foot-7 outside hitter Emma
Barclay from American
Falls, Idaho, and 5-11 hitter
Cloe Davis from nearby
Weston-McEwen High
School.
“Emma is just an athletic
kid,” Larson said. “She is
really fast and really smart.
She has a high ceiling. I
really think she is going to
be a force for us. She is doing
great things for us. We have
moved Cloe from the outside
to middle and she is adjusting
well. I’m excited to see where
B
HUNTING PHOTO CONTEST
Show off your
hunting skills
BRAGGIN'
RIGHTS
HUNTING PHOTO CONTEST
ENTER NOW
eastoregonian.com/braggin-rights
she finishes the season.”
The Timberwolves will
open NWAC East play
Wednesday, Sept. 15, when
they host Columbia Basin
College.