By Steve Weisman
Outdoor Editor
What can I say, but “What a weekend!” I kicked it off on Friday with a trip to Sioux Falls for the 2024 Pheasants Forever National Pheasant Fest & Quail Classic at the Denny Sanford Premier Center and Convention Center on Friday. My wife went along to rendezvous with her sister, while I spent over three hours just taking in everything possible!
Billed as the nation’s largest upland trade show and convention…from my perspective, “Yup, they’re right!”
Think of a huge under-the-roof shopping mall, and you’ve got Pheasant Fest: annual Bird Dog Parade, the Friday Night Upland Rally, Public Lands Pavilion, Path to the Uplands Stage, Habitat Help Desk and Stage, Bird Dog Stage, Youth Village, and more than 400 unique vendors featuring outfitters, gear, food, and more. Wow!
As I walked in the entrance at about noon, I would guess there were already well over a thousand people milling around already. While it kept getting busier and busier as the afternoon went on, I never felt claustrophobic or anything. Things were spaced out so well and in different sections of the Premier Center and Convention Center.
Going back home
I’ve been an upland hunter for over 60+ years, and it was all there for me to explore. For me, it was a homecoming of sorts, since I spent my first 30 years in South Dakota, so I had a great time visiting with tourism groups and outfitters from South Dakota and making connections back to the conferences I coached in and people that I remembered from 40+ years ago.
I went to the Redfield (Pheasant Capital of the World) tourism booth and showed them my ROOSTERS Supper Club black hooded sweatshirt that my grandson, Hunter had bought for me when he was out there in early December. I jokingly asked, “What have you got here that you can give me for advertising Redfield?” Well, I now have an orange T-shirt that sports the slogan, “Hunt Redfield South Dakota – The Pheasant Capital of the World!”
It was especially cool, since my wife grew up in Redfield, while I grew up on a farm 10 miles south near Tulare! Yup, they’re still Redfield/South Dakota friendly!
Lots of stuff – but oh for the dogs
Upland game hunters have a true “love affair” with their four-legged friends. If it weren’t for the dogs – flushers, retrievers, pointers, setters, etc., most of us would flush and bag very few birds.
So, the Pheasant Fest was truly about the dogs. I would guess during my wanderings, I saw well over 100 hunting dogs. Now get this. All that commotion, noise and all those dogs, and I heard NOT one bark! NOT one whine! NOT one dog going after another dog, NOT one jumping up on a person. They simply and happily sat, rested on cushiony beds and heeled…doing what they were expected to do. All I can say is this: Wow! Those hunting dogs were so well trained and well behaved! Probably way better than we humans!
I saw some really great tillage and seeding machinery, both large and small. Oh, and for the seminars each day! Conservation experts, upland biologists, dog experts, habitat design consultants, the Pollinator Pathway and even a Public Lands Pavilion.
Oh, yes, there was something for the youngsters – the Youth Village with hands-on habitat activities, face painting, indoor BB gun range, indoor archery range, coloring and crafts, animal furs and fly tying.
By Friday evening, it was time to head home to relax and watch the Iowa State Girls Basketball Tournament. The ELC girls, where I taught for 25 years, came so close to a state championship losing to Solon in the finals. Would you believe that I taught/coached parents of at least nine of the members on the team!
Chasing trout
Many of you know I really enjoy fishing for rainbow trout over at Scharnberg Pond southeast of Everly. That was my destination for Saturday. I headed down there with Shane Akin of Great Lakes Guide Service and Matt Ahrenholtz from Carroll, who has fished with Shane for nearly 20 years.
It was chilly in the morning, but the wind was down when we arrived about 8:30. We used tiny 1/64-ounce hair jigs tipped with either wax worms or wigglers set about 16-20” below a bobber. The trout were right on the break between the shallow ledge and deeper water. Just a cast, let the wind move the bait, and a little jiggle, jiggle…then bang! However, you had to set the hook (not too hard) as soon as the trout hit the bait. Wait too long, and they were long gone!
There is a lot of shoreline, so the key is to keep moving along until you find or run into a school of meandering trout. Then it’s pretty much solid action. Over the course of about 2½ hours w caught maybe 80 or so trout, but it was all catch-and-release. No cleaning on this day.
Most were 10-14 inchers, just plain fun to catch. However, when I set the hook on a trout just before we were ready to quit, the rod really bent and by the tug, I knew it was definitely a lot bigger than the normal size. So, I kept the rod tip up, the line taut and babied it close to shore. When it rolled the first time, Matt said, “That’s no 12 incher!” Of course, we had no net, and it was very shallow along the shoreline. So, I just took my time and prayed until I slid it up on the shore. How about a 20 incher! Yes!
My suggestion was for Matt to get his 9-year-old son up here on Sunday. It’s just plain fun! With our open water areas now, it’s time to get the boats ready. Shane checked out his boat later on Saturday afternoon and found some nice crappies.
The good news is this is a great time to target fish from shore! Now if the wind will just settle down a little bit!
(photo by Steve Weisman) Youth enjoy learning how to tie flies at the Youth Village.
(photo by Shane Akin) The author with a 20” beauty! Caught and released.
