On the way to a deer hunt, a friend and occasional crow hunting partner called me about “thousands“ of crows in a peanut field. This was weeks ago and ever since, he has been trying to connect with the landowner for permission...dead ends right and left. With each passing day there were fewer and fewer birds, so we took a (2 hr.) trip to find someone who could help.
We went to an adjacent neighbor who said the lady who owns that land is “old, cranky and turns down everyone who wants to hunt anything on that property.” UGH. The neighbor was a nice guy and we hit it off pretty well, so after 15 minutes of talking, I asked him if we could set up a blind on HIS front hayfield and coax a few birds over. He said he had to check with his wife and, amazingly, they both agreed! Woo Hoo! A new site to hunt! (See aerial photo below)
New Year’s Eve was the only non-rainy day in the forecast so we planned on an early start. In anticipation, we pulled two round hay bales together for a backdrop to the blind. Then the next problem surfaced at 12:30AM the morning of the hunt...my friend came down with a case of the flu!! While traveling alone to the hunt & setting up the blind it took 3 texts to find a replacement, but while waiting for him, the next issue popped up...heavy fog!
The crows wouldn’t leave their roost, so by 11:00 we broke for lunch with 11 birds down. Nationally-known Rodney Scott’s BBQ was 5 minutes away from us and we enjoyed the food there almost as much as the green sign posted over their serving counter (picture below).
Returning, the fog lifted a little, but it was still hard hunting. We pulled up stakes at 1:00 with a total of 21 crows. Hopefully future hunts next year will not be as problematic.
Great report and great story of persistence. Sounds like Mother Nature three everything at you boys and you stayed the course. 21 less “feathered assassins” as Bert so eloquently put it, on the ground. That’s a good hunt.
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"If men had wings and bore black feathers, few of them would be wise enough to be crows." Thoreau.
Sounds like you overcame some long odds Demi. Old cranky lady landowner. Dwindling numbers. "I'll have to check with the wife", is never good. The flu. And heavy fog. (Which can be good).
Still downed 21 and ate well. Pretty classy joint to eat at during dinner break on a crow hunt. A buck for a pigs foot? C'mon.
21 !!! Welcome to my world Demi ! But i only drive 30 minutes for them. I used to say that you always do so well . I may have to adjust that. LOL. It makes me feel better knowing the pro's dont get home runs on every outing. Good Job.
With a little help, every one of our hunts will make the Century Club... After arriving in Heaven! Until then, this mortal will be happy with whatever I can bring down on any hunt!
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Randy,
That 4-table out of the way BBQ joint in a small hard-to-find hick town was the start of Rodney Scott’s amazing rise to stardom! While his original location hasn’t changed (including the $1 pig foot), Scott and his great BBQ are now famous. He has a newer location in Charleston and recently Scott received the 2018 James Beard Award for best chef in the Southeast!! Even with his fame, however, he still serves hungry crow hunters as long as their camo pants are not “drop down.”
Demi
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The man who thinks he can, and the man who thinks he can’t are both right.
Nice report and this hunt is how things often go. Landowner struggles are common and that is what motivates me to treat the good landowners with a lot of respect. It is absolutly exhausting to knock on a string of doors just to find out who a landowner is and then if they say no it’s deflating but persistence always wins.
will not be as problematic. 
