Pheasant Hunt Challenging, But Productive

by Tony Zappia Watertown Daily Times

Three hours of relentless upland hunting in frigid weather produced nothing but four distant flushes from my 1-year old Golden retriever, Elle. It wasn't for her lack of desire or abilities, it was simply the fact that the bone-chilling temperatures compressed bird scent and, once pressured, these cagey birds would take my pup for a jog around the block before taking flight. My hunting companion for the day was my long time friend, Jonathan Shoen, a third-year student at Hartwick College, was home for the holidays. This was his first crack at wing shooting ringed-neck pheasants. The two of us were guests of the Forsythe family, owners and operators of the newest hunting preserve in the north country, Basswood Lodge. Located in Rensselaer Falls, just past the middle access road at Upper and Lower Lakes WMA, Basswood Lodge lies on a truly remarkable property scattered with dense cedar, hardwood ridges, duck- and buck-filled swampland, pastures, and fields planted with corn, grains, and grasses. Basswood Lodge offers, first and foremost, remarkable pheasant hunting. Make no mistake about it, this is not a "canned shoot." It is however, prime upland wing shooting, fashioned like a wild pheasant hunt in Iowa or the Dakotas. Unlike other bird hunting preserves, pheasants are released on the property and not planted prior to the hunt. And, therein lies part of the demanding nature of the hunt. The first few hours provided birdless until we regrouped back at the lodge and picked up Forsythe's 9 month old yellow lab. A hard driving dog sporting a blocky head, Gunner knows exactly what the meaning of life is all about. For him, the passion was deeply ingrained to hunt birds. Driving his big boned golden body into tangled messes of honeysuckle and cedar, Gunner methodically worked each thicket. Working with the maxim: "Two noses are better than one," we weren't 10 minutes from the lodge when both dogs began running a frozen field of thick, snow-ladened grasses. Up sprang a long-tailed rooster flying hard 25 yards from my left. Jonathan had perfect position on the bird. Just as I began to yell "Take 'em!" Jonathan's 870 Remington barked and the bird buckled from the full load of six-shot. Soon after the retrieve, Elle and Gunner once again began to get birdie. As they pounded their way through a small patch of frozen grass, I took two steps and the air exploded into a rainbow of feathers. A second rooster banked hard behind me and grabbed a gust of wind, which quickly propelled him toward protective cover of a standing cornfield. I hurried a shot with my 20-gauge and clipped the rooster, but Jonathan and Dave followed up with a flurry of shots that dropped the bird. An hour later, we were back at basswood Lodge with two tired dogs and our gamebadge plump with pheasants. The Forsythe's hunting preserve offers a number of different pheasant hunting options. Its father/son, father/daughter hunts are discounted to give parents the opportunity to give their child a top notch wing shooting experience. Also offered are half- and full-day hunts and, being a preserve, no hunting license is required and the season closes March 31. Perhaps the most unique aspect of Basswood is its ability to offer small- and big-game hunting in many venues. Outstanding water fowling and deer hunting takes place here. In fact, the property is more suited for ducks and deer. It's this popular combination that has put Basswood on the map. Plans are underway, however, to transform Basswood into prime habitat for pheasants. Combined with its growing pheasant hunting opportunities and clubhouses Basswood should fast become a north country mecca. To contact Basswood Lodge and Hunting Preserve, write" P.O. Box 739, Ogdensburg, N.Y., 13669. Phone: 379-1528 or email: wforsythe@tsf.com.

Basswood Lodge and Hunting Preserve
P.O. Box 739, Ogdensburg, New York 13669
Phone: 315-379-1528 - E-mail: wforsyth@twcny.rr.com

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