West Texas is having good rains this summer; therefore, the food for the doves should be plentiful. I expect decent hunting, but I believe the doves will be spread out due to many winter wheat fields that were harvested into hay leaving the head on the ground, several winter wheat fields that were not harvested, and an abundance of fields full of huge sunflowers (i.e., 5 to 6-foot tall sunflowers before shredding, not the dwarf 18 to 24-inch tall sunflowers).
Based on 8 years of running dove hunts, we have decided to book the following times for dove hunting:
- August 31, September 1 and 2 – solely a few day hunts left (full packages sold out);
- September 5, 6 and 7 – Full packages left and day hunts left;
- September 12, 13 and 14 – Full packages left and day hunts left;
- September 19, 20 and 21 – nothing remaining;
- October weekends, pending birds remaining or arriving from cold fronts:
- October 3, 4 and 5 (everything remaining); and
- October 24, 25, and 26 (everything remaining).
What the pending means for October is that if you book the weekend and we see the doves are not present, I will call you and ask you what you want to do (i.e., come and try to kill some doves or forfeit the trip and receive a refund). I do the same thing (i.e., call and ask you what you want to do) in September, when the unusual event occurs, when the doves disappear too early. There are times when we see thousands of doves one day, and then a front blows through, and we cannot find a dove. That is why they call it hunting, but most people, including me, like to go on a dove kill, not a dove hunt. I enjoy dove “hunting” when I can sit in a chair, shoot my limit in 30 minutes, and then pick up my 15 doves all within 10 feet of me. Normally, we kill the local doves in the first three weeks of September, and then we pray for cold weather to push down the northern doves.
Due to certain GROSS AND DANGEROUS ABUSES in the past, everyone will be signing a rules sheet primarily involving “no uninvited guests” and “no alcohol until after the evening hunt.”
We are receiving 3 or more inquiries a week concerning dove hunting right now, so if you are going, get with me as soon as possible.
Ryan Gardner
