doublegunshop.com - home Forums General Discussion DoubleGun BBS @ doublegunshop.com .410s and 28s

Spruce grouse, prior to December, at least, taste just fine. They are very similar to Sharptails.

Ruffs are good. About like bobwhites. But nothing super special, just good and extremely mild, especially the breast meat.

Brent: I have always thought that they were pretty special.

Rebecca Grey (of Grey's Sporting Journal) mentions in her game cookbook that they are at the pinnacle of gamebird tablefare (given proper consideration). That's not a direct quote but you get my meaning.

I have had tough and flavorless examples, but that wasn't the bird's fault. Pan fried immediately after harvest, while still in rigor, and they can be just allright. Age them a bit and then brine them and you will be in for a serious treat.

That's what I did. My shoulder was extensively repaired, not replaced. Doc says if I injure it again, I get a titanium joint. Lots of physical therapy, and I was shooting doves 10 months after the surgery with a new Beretta A400 Upland, 3" chamber. Also shot ducks successfully with it, using 3" Hevi-XII factory shells. Gun turned out to be a lemon, would not cycle reliably, mostly a single shot. Gunsmith could not make it work, so I got a full refund. Having said that, I have a friend who has been shooting ducks with an A400 2-3/4" chamber gun for a few years, using the same 3" Hevi-XII with no issues. After dumping that Beretta, I went back to my Win SX3 20 ga with light loads, and got along fine. As my confidence and comfort improved, I stepped back to my Win SX3 12ga with light loads for ducks. The Beretta 28 was a nice gun, killed ducks just fine with the right ammo, did fine on doves with steel shot. Would have kept it if it had run properly. Hoping to go back to my O/Us, SxSs, and hammer guns this fall. Doc told me that I could shoot whatever does not hurt. If it hurts, don't do it.

They don’t.
They’ll keep you alive, are relatively abundant in their range, and are not particularly wary.
When they’ve been on spruce needles for a bit they become “infused” with a turpentine -like smell. Not a “pleasant” pineyness like a mango, a more “robust” emanation.

That said, early season “cheepers” (young of year) are dark, but edible.

Depending on my mood, I like a hen Blue grouse or a Sharptail more than Ruffed grouse. Mostly because a Blue is 2x as big, and a Sharpie will eat like tender steak.

I’d have to be plenty hungry to start shooting Spruce grouse off limbs.

Hunting spruce grouse up in the AK…..they make delicious table fare when harvested early in the season when they have been gorging themselves on high bush cranberries & blueberries, including all the other forest & basin berries that are available early in the season. When the snow & cold comes…and they start feeding on spruce needles, forget about it. In my experience, the spruce grouse also flush harder and are more cautious when they’re in the berries and bugs. They get extremely tame when the cold comes. Not a very sporting bird when they get like that.
When they get into the spruce needles….You don’t even want to cook them in the house let alone eat them.

Sharptails are still my favorite. CZ is right, they eat like tender steak filet.

On another note….When I was in the AK, didn’t matter if I was in the interior or in the coastal areas…I was usually the only person who hunted birds with a shotgun. 98% of the folks up there shoot them with a .22. Pretty rare to see someone up there shooting upland birds with a shotgun.

Shooting “Hooter’s” with a rifle always bothered me. But hey, the season is open in May! As they say, “when in Rome…”
Big, beautiful, retro migrating birds.

So then Clapper, you'd be shooting one on the wing, with a rifle! I'm quite impressed! Sounds like a pre flight shot to me! Cheers!

No, no. I shot Sooty’s in Alaska with a rifle, outside of Juneau. Just like everyone else on that trip.
In Late April. They sound like somebody blowing across a pop bottle. That’s how you find them.
The big males strut around up in the top of the fir trees, and people shoot piles of them with 22 cal rifles.
They are a very big bird.
Not a wingshooting challenge by any means.
Just a specimen collection while visiting my sister in law.

I shot them over dogs in coastal Washington. And also west slope Co.

Dusky’s on the east side of Co., WY, and MT

I’m not that into shooting birds that aren’t wary.
Blues, and Franklin’s can be unconcerned about man.

After reading a book by Charlie Waterman I went on a 15 year long quest to shoot them all over the same dog.

Damn! Now there is something worthy of doing. Did you get it done? Either way, an awesome quest. You should start a new thread on that!

No. I was 3 shy. Didn’t kill my rock ptarmigan, Mt Quail, or Snowcock over that dog.
Lots of things have changed since then, making it more expensive than I deem worth repeating.

Nah, too much drama would ensue. Not really interested in the back and forth.

I’ll be in the UK shooting Red grouse on a selection of estates starting in about 3 weeks. That’s always a treat.