Early Morning Dove Shoot

            I drove out to my parents’ house in New Kent before the sun came up. I said good morning to my dad and threw my guns and my stool in his truck. I hopped in and we headed down to Charles City.

         A friend of my dad has a great farm with a great dove field. We got there and got set up in a strip of cut corn right under the decoys on the wire.

         Early on there wasn’t a lot of action and we had hunted this field pretty heavily two days before. But just like any other type of hunting when your target animal isn’t in view you have to appreciate the other views.

         I took the time to appreciate all the geese flying over. Even threw the gun up and practiced getting the bead on them and following them. And I appreciated the hawks, eagles, and buzzards flying over. And I appreciated and at the same time was a little flustered by all the tweety birds and bugs that trick your eye when you are looking for doves.

         Before long my eyes were not fooled but correctly trained on the first dove that came into the field. Its flight path was straight down the wire in my direction but my dad was up the wire from me and had the first shot at him. My eyes were trained on the bird. I even had the shotgun to my shoulder with the bead on him just in case my dad missed. But then I heard Boom! And saw the bird fold.

         Then I heard my dad say “don’t act like I can’t shoot em”. My dad and I are very competitive with each other in everything and he is one of those people who is kind of good at everything. But it was fine I made the most of the later chances I had.

         The next bird that I finally had a shot at was on me quick. That’s the tough thing in a dove field. Sometimes you have a long time to prepare for a bird coming to you that you see from 200 yards away. And sometimes someone yells and the bird is right over your head.

         That is what happened with this bird. Someone said coming to the wire and I looked up and there was a dove. I threw the gun up and made a quick shot.

         As is often the case in dove hunting I was behind him with the first shot. Doves are always flying faster than you think they are. I kept swinging with the bird and tried to get out in front of it. But the second time I pulled the trigger the gun just went click.

         I was shooting my Grandfather’s Remington 1100 and I had shot almost two boxes of shells out of it two days earlier with no issues. But as is often the case with automatic shotguns if they aren’t perfectly clean or are shooting light loads, they sometimes malfunction. So, the gun was shooting fine but wasn’t ejecting shells so I could only have one shot at a time. Luckily, the next bird that came in, I only needed one shot.

         I saw this dove fly into the field from the edge of the field over the trees. It headed straight for me and came towards the decoys. I had the gun trained on it and took my time. I let him keep coming toward me and when he got close to the wire and slowed down to light next to the decoys, I squeezed the trigger and saw him fold up and fall out of the sky only feet in front of me.

         My easiest retrieve of the day. I stepped to the other side of the row of corn and picked up the bird. Then returned the five feet to my stool. Unfortunately, my gun was still not ejecting shells. But luckily, I had a backup plan.

         I had another shotgun in the truck. My CZ 12 gauge. My grandfather’s shotgun is a little bit shorter and I feel like fits me better than any shotgun I have but I am confident with all of them.

         Not long after returning to my stool, my confidence in my shooting was renewed. Another dove was coming straight down the wire but from behind where I was sitting. Again, coming from the direction my dad was in. But I saw the bird coming and was prepared to shoot early.

         As the bird passed my dad. I was following it and heard Boom! I expected it to fold but it kept flying a little faster. Then Boom! Still flying. It was about 30 yards in front of me and flying from my left to right. After those two shots it was my turn.

         I got the bead on the bird then got out a little in front of it. It was flying a lot faster after being shot at twice. Then I squeezed the trigger and it folded up. I heard “Nice Shot” from my dad. I said “sometimes I have to clean it up for you”.

         It’s a great feeling when you make a good shot and see them fold up. The next shot I had that was unfortunately not the case. Another dove that was on me fast. This bird seemed to simply be flying over. It did not check up at all when it got near the decoys. It seemed to be flying over low but at a very good clip.

         I threw the gun up but had to turn around to shoot as it flew over me. I took two shots but was definitely behind the bird. At least I had confirmed that this gun was ejecting shells and I could shoot more than once with it.

         The last bird of the day came in from behind me. My dad let me know he saw it when it was at the edge of the field. I saw it early and was ready. This bird made a beeline for the decoys I was sitting under. I took my time got the gun on him and let him keep coming until he slowed down to light on the wire. I squeezed the trigger and Boom! The gun went off and the bird folded and fell about ten feet from me. Another easy retrieve.

         At the end of the morning, I had shot 7 shells and bagged 3 birds. 3 for 7 may not be great in a lot of things but for dove hunting good for me. I was pleased with it and happy with the fact that I hadn’t taken any bad shots.

         I also just enjoyed another good hunt. Although the birds weren’t flying a ton. I had a great time. Dove hunting can be almost addicting and even if you only get a few shots at birds, it makes you want to sit there until sunset waiting for another opportunity. I am already excited for the next time I get to see a dove coming to the wire, and have the challenge of making a good shot.