# Hunting in U.P.?



## BaddFish

I'm considering a long weekend trip to the UP for grouse/pheasant this fall. I have a 2yr old yellow raring to go.  Anyone have experience with that region or northern Michigan... thanks


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## littleking

Pheasants? where 

grouse, everywhere


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## Java line

I take beagles up and run snowshoe hares around Nawbinway and hour west of the bridge at least one time a year. There is no agriculture in that area to support pheasant but there are plenty of grouse


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## Lewzer

Send a PM to blue pike. He has a cabin in the northern part of the lower peninsula and bird hunts a lot in the area.


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## big red

i'm in the process of buying some land up there.been hunting the area for about 6 years now.seen alot of grouse,woodcocks and waterfowl.there are a few pheasants toward the middle of the u p in the lower section,i think around escanaba.
you just want to be careful going the first part of season due to bear season going on.state land may be you best bet not to run into many bear hunters or bait sites.


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## BaddFish

awesome guys thx for the info... I've done some research this morning and it seems like the national forests/grouse habitat is endless... not sure if majority of the national forests are big woods or saplings or a mix? kinda looking in Alger / Schoolcraft & Luce counties.... simply becouse they have the fewer human populations.
We would be camping in tents.
Even considering bringing a canoe and doing some hunting along the endless rivers... camping as we go? We did this years ago in Wisconsin and we had a great time.

Ya, the pheasants seems to be only present in menominee county- that's ok, had enough ringnecks last year in nd.

hey another question... We were planning on maybe the first week in Oct.... is that generally when the leaves start changing up there? thx

Thx- Lewzer- I'll definately send a note to Blue pike.


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## big red

i do alot of my huning in schoolcraft county.i hunt mostl private land.there is alot of publc land in the area.the leaves will start to fall about that time of year.there should be a good grouse population along with the woodcock this year.i seen alot of young ones this year when up there doing foodplots on my buddies and my property.besure to take a fishing pole with you if you plan a float.some really good trout and if weather permits,the salmon could be running about the same time.the archery deer season starts oct.1.may want to take a bow also.if you don't want to camp and would like to stay in a otel.there is a nice on on rt. close to gulliver with a eally nice resturant next to it.real close to alot of state ad public land.you could make it an all roundtrip.


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## BaddFish

thx alot big red.

I read an article from "Gun Dog" magazine last night that talked about the author having to hunt through the U.P. with too much thick stuff. He complained alot about how thick it was- plenty of flushes but could hardly ever get a shot off. His last comment was that he wished he could come back in two weeks after the leaves have fallen.

What do you think? Would it be wise to wait until most of the leaves have fallen or is there so many pines that...it doesn't matter.


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## Java line

By the end of October the leaves are pretty much gone, most of the grouse we see are in the pine/cedars and are ruff grouse but are nothing like the birds hear in Ohio they flush close and most of the time you see them on the ground before the fly 


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## BaddFish

thx Java....
Which county do you hunt in up there?


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## big red

i find most of the grouse and woodcocks in popular thckets.some of these areas can be thick but,can be hunted with a slow walk and close hunting dog.the wider your dog hunts the more flushes will be out of range before a shot can be taken.this is the same for the woodcocks.the do seem to sit a little tighter.don't shy away from the pines or cedars.you just want to be versitile.enjoy your because i'm sure you will be going making that trip many times over the years.


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## BaddFish

big red said:


> enjoy your because i'm sure you will be going making that trip many times over the years.


I can't agree with you more... love my duck hunting out of state but its getting "gear" cumbersome... throwing on boots and orange and walking off- with dog and gun is very peaceful and relaxing. sometimes you just gotta get back to basics and your roots! some of the best hunting of my life was running beagles after rabbits in high school.


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## Java line

I hunt mostly the western end of Mackinac, the south east Schoolcraft, and have also hunted Drummond island. I have always had beagles and really enjoy them, I tried the duck hunting thing for 10 years or do back in the 80's and 90's and it was a lot of fun but it was also a lot of work getting up in the middle of the night and packing all that stuff into the middle of big island and waiting on daylight to come, I almost miss it


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## Hawg-Eye

Better late response than never...

Like others have already mentioned I wouldn't plan on pheasants in UP. I have hunted the upper part of LP about 4 of last 5 years and we try to time the trip around 3rd wknd of Oct for best leaf cover conditions. Lots of public area up there, the hotspots (for woodcock) can get some pressure but most of the time out of the way grouse areas we have to ourselves.

Welcome to PM me if you need any more info.


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## captainshotgun

You might want to check out the aftermath of the fires before you go. Around 20000 acres burned in the UP this spring, mostly in Schoolcraft & Luce counties.


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## big red

the fires in the u p were in the upper portion of schoolcraft and lower luce known as the duck lake region.the lower 2/3 of schoolcraft is just fine.i know the s,w portion of schoolcraft is okay.i have property there and does a friend of mine.i'll be in the area next week getting ready for bear season and give a better report of the area when i get back.will be looking for birds while setting bait sites.


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## BaddFish

big red- I look forward to your report! Is camping up there with bears around a good idea? Will they shy away from us or come in when we are cooking our grouse over the fire.  Don't want ANY incident with us or my dog. This is new to me so...? Should we instead get a cheap motel or?


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## big red

i wouldn't worry about the bears to much coming in to camp.if you keep it clean and coolers strapped down you'll be okay.usually the bears go deeper in the swamp once the grouse hunters start shooting.this at times makes it harder for us bear hunting.i would worry more about the coyotes and the wolves.they have been known to attack bird dogs while out hunting.there is some really nice dog friendly motels up there and they seem to be resonably priced.there's one just a couple of miles from our camp and a really nice resturant next to it.


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## Weekender#1

We have a family cabin near Glennie in NE Michigan. We go up around the 15th or so of October and after a cold front pushes through. Woodcock like pushing up 30 per day would be a fair statement, Grouse push 4-6 get one if you are good. Spend 1/2 of the day river fishing salmon. It is all public land in the National forest, no one around, in all the years I think I bumped into another bird hunter once. All good stuff, you could stay in Oscoda and venture into the National forest plenty of 2 track trails that you are allowed on really all of them, try off Bissonet Rd between Oscoda and RT 65 about 20 miles of pure Michigan heaven.


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## Bigdaddyz

Dad and I hunt the Hurron National Forest near Mio, about 2 hours south of the bridge. We have our good years and out bad years but last year we had A GREAT YEAR! Had 145 grouse flushes in a week, I had a back to back 5 grouse limit (1 woodcock short of a true mich limit), most dad had ever killed in over 25 years was 3. He wasnt very happy, but yet EXTEREMLY excited! Heading up this year for 2 long weekends in the beginning and middle of October, not sure we can beat last year. I love hunting Michigan, I have a 2 yr old Choc Lab, he did alright last year looking forword to getting him up and see if he can do a bit better!


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## big red

got back sunday late afternoon.had a good weekend in the u p.seen 1 bear and several grouse while setting bear baits.talked to a couple of locals that i know and they told me the have seen more grouse this year over the past 3-4 years.should be a good seaon.they say to stay close to poplar and beech thickets.that's where they should be do to the dry weather and lack of normal feeding areas.also,they say the woodcocks will probably migrate sooner than normal.can't wait till season comes in.


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## big red

leaving sat morning for my bear hunt.will be doing some grouse,woodcock hunting and some salmon fishing if thier in.been seeing alot of grouse while doing the bear baiting and working on my land for deer season.talked to my buddy and he said he has been seeing alot of woodcock this week and there are more than usual for this time of year.should be a good hunt.now if the hunter can shoot stright.


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## T-180

How long of a drive is it to your hunting camp ?? Would like to get some land, but not sure how far away to go ....... love the UP though !!


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## big red

t-180,i live about 18miles north of you.it takes me about 7 1/2-8hrs to get were i hunt at.just try not to travel north aound ann arbor or flint area during rush hour times.can be very hectic.there are alot of 40 acre parcels for sale in the area with alot of differant game on them.price varies according to how much swamp and types of trees.most are without any type of structures on them but,can be built on or park a camper.several areas for fishing like trout,pike,walleyes,smallies and salmon.if you enjoy hunting yotes,bring a gun and caller and knock on doors.several folks there will be willing to let you take all you can handle.alot of good sightseeing around if you would be taking the mrs and a casino about 20mi west.


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## T-180

Thanks, big red. I've spent quite a bit of time fishing / vacationing in the eastern half of the UP, but it's been a few years since I've been up there & I've never hunted it. Helping to pay for college for the 2 boys kind of slows things down. I'd love to own a little piece of paradise up there , just have to talk the boss into it !!
Good luck up there this fall.


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## claytonhaske

BaddFish said:


> I'm considering a long weekend trip to the UP for grouse/pheasant this fall. I have a 2yr old yellow raring to go.  Anyone have experience with that region or northern Michigan... thanks


I too, am looking for some info on a bird hunting/fishing trip to the u.p. i am looking at going towards the later part of October. I will be bringing my dog(gsp) and maybe a canoe. I will be camping out of my truck/tent. Any and all help will be greatly appreciated. Thanks, Clayton.


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## big red

got back sunday afternoon.bear hunt was a bust,couldn't hit a bird to save my life and couldn't catch a legal salmon either.the only good thing about the trip was being off work and enjoying time with some really good friends.seen alot of grouse when hunting for them,usually in the mornings and would see them while sitting on stand for bear hunt.it was so moonlight that you could hear them drumming all night long.the woodcocks haven't move in yet.should be anytime now.

claytonhaske:there are several good campgrounds all over the u p.it all depends on what you may be looking for.the salmon are starting to make a good run up the manistigue river.i just couldn't catch one without snagging it.my buudies caught 2 each legal fish on friday.the closer you get to the lake the less crowded it will be and the fresher the fish.


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## littleking

heading up to the UP on the 13th, back to grayling on the 17th, hunting in grayling through the 21st... gonna be a blast


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## Bassnpro1

littleking said:


> heading up to the UP on the 13th, back to grayling on the 17th, hunting in grayling through the 21st... gonna be a blast


Let me know how grayling is. I'm going up to grayling October 25-29. Can't wait!


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## lakeslouie

Curious, how much is a non resident small game license? Just got a new brittany pup. Won't be ready till maybe next fall. Hope to go then!


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## Bassnpro1

Last year a 3 day was $30


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