OutdoorNebraska

26 Nebraskaland • December 2019 some of our marshes. Nenneman explained that in wet years, when the marshes have deep water and few exposed mudfl ats to produce annuals, pheasants are forced to forage up in the dunes on the seeds and fruits of sunfl owers, prairie rose, western snowberry and other prairie wildfl owers. "It is harder for a hunter to locate the birds when they are spread out foraging on the dunes," Nenneman said. Sandhills Marsh Hunt The 72,000-acre Valentine NWR offers some of the Midwest's most scenic and remote upland game bird hunting. "On opening weekend we get a fair number of hunters, but only light to moderate pressure most of the season," Nenneman said. The refuge has provided some of my most memorable bird hunts, and a 2005 hunt stands out. Referring to my hunting journal, on that warm, sunny November morning, Callie, my Welsh Corgi, and I set out from the parking lot north of West Long Lake. We headed southeast toward our goal, the south side of Dad's Lake where the grassy dune rises high above the four mile-long lake. Arriving at the west end of Dad's, we pushed into the narrow band of marsh that forms its shoreline, the perfect width for a lone hunter and dog. Almost immediately, from the tall rushes we flushed about 15 pheasants that scattered onto the dune and into the marsh ahead. Soon, more birds broke from cover, and I watched one rooster land in a mid-slope plum thicket. We followed, and Callie soon had her nose to the ground, hot on its trail. The chase lasted about 100 yards before the bird took flight and was in the bag. We continued east for a couple miles, staying low on the dunes, hitting plum thickets and pushing a few wild birds. We stopped for lunch, and after my dry bagel was washed down with water, we walked the shoreline back west. Right off the bat, we flushed a group of about 10 pheasants, and I dropped one. After a while, I tired of trudging through the marsh and headed up onto the easier-to-walk dunes. Nearing the lake's west end, still a bird shy of my limit, a rooster burst from a thicket, flew low, and just as it was about to crest a ridge to safety, I dropped it. But my hunt was not yet done. While crossing the dune north of Dad's Lake, I busted a covey of sharp-tailed grouse, and ended up bagging three. The last mile of my hike back to the car was rather draining with six birds in my vest, but I was satisfied. Nebraska marshes furnish pheasants with shelter, warmth and food during the stressful cold of winter. And for hunters, they provide many memorable moments. N The high sand dune south of Dad's Lake, as well as the marshy fringes near the shoreline, hold pheasants.

• Cover