doublegunshop.com - home Forums General Discussion DoubleGun BBS @ doublegunshop.com Ptarmagan in Utah

Has anyone been to the Uinta Mountains in Utah for ptarmagan? I am thinking about it and I know it is a very strenuous endeavor hunting above tree line and hard on the dogs feet. I am not a back packer and would prefer to do my walking and hunting within one days time, returning to my hunting vehicle by nightfall. Is this possible and still be successful in seeing birds?

The high Uintas is not the place for someone wishing to pop off a quick day trip for ptarmigan. To be successful you need to be prepared. Training at elevation, going vertical, and experience tackling alpine conditions is a must. Scouting areas and planning your hunt with meticulous detail is also required. If you're not from the area and don't know where you're going, it would be much safer for you to get in touch with a reputable guide service. Now if ruffs and blues are your thing, there will be much more opportunity for day hunts at friendlier elevations.

There was a video of a couple young guys that packed up in the high Ruby Mtns of NV for ptarmigan. Looked like a trek for the young and strong. Lots of vertical.

I can vouch for the blues in central UT. Not a challenging bird IMO. But probably the best eating bird I've had.

shortround, how is the name, Uinta, pronounced? I have wondered ever since reading the book MOUNTAIN MAN, by Vardis Fisher, in the '70s. They were supposedly named after a sub-tribe of the Ute Indians, the Uintat tribe. I don't speak Uintat very well.

I envy your bird hunting opportunities out west. Having hunted only Gambel's, my appetite is now whetted for more.

SRH

U-in-ta with a long U.

Just like it's spelled, eh? Thanks, Sam.

SRH

Gorgeous range - purportedly the only east-west running range in the US. But high - I believe some of the peaks are close to 14k feet high.

Yes, gorgeous and remote and that is partly why I want to see it. As I said, since I don't pack pack (swore to never again after my Army/LURP training days) I intend to drive on highway 150 to 10,700 feet, and give it a go from there, walking with the dogs to around 13,000 feet or so. Quite frankly, I don't know if I will be able to even do that with that altitude working on the dogs and me, but the scenery should at least make it worth it. I will later drop down to the 4 - 6,000 feet areas for forest grouse. I have never hunted this part of our country so it will be something new for me. After Utah, I then will head north on a guided hunt in Idaho and then further north and east into Montana, heading back east in late September.

I have hunted some very tough and remote areas in the past so I think I know what I am getting into and I am mentally prepared to fail at this quest to see a few ptarmagan...and, don't we learn something through failure?

Are these mountain ptarmigan the same thing as what the game departments out West call "snowcock"?...Geo

No. Mountain Ptarmigan are small native grouse. The Himalayan Snowcock is a large import from the high Asian mountains-Himalaya areas weighing five to six pounds. And, as far as I know, located only in the Ruby mountains in Nevada.