Sharp-tailed Grouse

Pursue Montana’s prized game bird across the vast grassland prairie of Eastern Montana.

A match made in heaven.

Have you dreamed of watching big running dogs working in wide open country that stretches as far as the eye can see? Montana is one of the few places where Sharp-tailed Grouse still thrive in large numbers. We have access to over two hundred thousand acres of prime hunting ground and this gives us the ability to have great hunting while putting very little pressure on the birds.

The hunt.

We are up in time to catch a magical Montana sunrise. Grab a cup of coffee and enjoy a hearty breakfast, you are going to need it! Sharp-tail are a low density bird in a high volume area. We will put 8-12 miles per day on our boots, always looking for that next point. We will have lunch in the field or back at camp it just depends on the day and where we will be hunting.

After a break for lunch we will make a plan for the afternoon and set out again.

We wrap up the hunting around 4pm, this gives the birds time regroup before darkness and predators set in.

Back to camp to freshen up for cocktail hour, followed by hunting stories and another delicious home cooked meal.

When’s the best time to come?

We like to hunt these birds earlier in the season before they gather into large groups and become harder for the dogs to work.

September and early October are the best times to pursue Sharp-tail with pointing dogs. We find that the birds are in smaller family groups and hold well for the dogs. They often popcorn flush in singles and pairs which can make for some very exciting wing shooting!

We still pursue Sharp-tail into Late October and early November. The birds start to move into thicker cover and we will use very close working pointers and flushers to hopefully get close enough for shots at older and wiser birds. We actually see a lot more birds this time of year but the shots are fewer and farther as the birds are quite jumpy. If you can shoot this is still a good time of the year to put some birds in the bag.