Keenesburg – The very essence of outdoor endeavor is deeply rooted in suspense.
Fishing soon would be swallowed up in boredom if a trout rose with each cast. There could be no true hunting with an elk behind every bush. The experience becomes even more meaningful in those rare circumstances where this natural uncertainty is further flavored with a bit of outright intrigue.
But this thing with doves in a northerly clime such as Colorado’s borders on the ridiculous. Suspense is one thing. Nail- gnawing anxiety is quite another. Thus, in wee-hour darkness on the first day of September, we find a steady stream of hunters in SUVs and pickups headed northeast on Interstate 76 sharing a common concern.
In the abiding chill of the South Platte River Valley, that infernal temperature gauge above the rearview mirror flashes a cool 45 degrees, far below the comfort threshold of thin-feathered birds. The worry is the same nearly every year: Will some or most or all of the doves turn tail for parts south?
An eager hunter who has spent the past two weeks with eyes glued to the weather map can stand only so much trepidation.
Jeff Birt, a Colorado Springs resident who located this place where sunflowers, snaggy trees and just the right amount of water coalesce to form a sort of dove heaven, reported birds galore last weekend.
Now, shivering slightly beneath a jacket, a hunter had cause to wonder.
Like all agreeable experiences, the unease didn’t last overly long. With the sun still hanging in the tassels of a cornfield, doves began to fly. First a single. Then little groups of three or four.
Soon this confederation of acquaintances who gather once each year was banging merrily away with a variety of armament, delighted that another northeast season had – at least for the moment – escaped the chill.
Birt pronounced the action slightly better than average, but also noted the passing of a couple flocks of 50 or more birds, a migratory formation that served as a sober reminder that movement isn’t far away.
Northeast Colorado hunters are lucky to enjoy a couple good weekends – barely three days last year. The only true guarantee after the first real cold comes is to follow the birds, which in Colorado means a trip to the Arkansas River Valley.
Most years, you can expect the birds to hang in the southeast corner of the state through much of September, their numbers pulsing with succeeding waves of refugees from the north.
The inevitable passing of the doves doesn’t spell the end to September bird hunting, merely the easiest part. For those willing to invest a bit of boot leather, ample opportunity awaits for species such as blue grouse, sage grouse, ptarmigan, chukar and turkeys, much of it on public land.
Best of all, none of these birds fly south when there’s frost in the air.
