NE Washington Upland Hunting?

[nutntoit]

Does anyone hunt for birds in North East Washington? I do most if not all of my bird hunting in South East Washington, but am looking for some new spots. There is a ton of huntable land in the NE so I am wondering if anyone has had any success? I have happened onto some quail while deer hunting before, but don't know if it would be a waste of time to go up there specifically for birds.

[boneaddict]

Like how far NE?

I’d do more grouse and forego upland unless you have a bead on some spot.

[Birdguy]

Used to hear a few pheasants around Colville turkey hunting but certainly not enough to justify a trip over that way. Grouse, yes! Some great grouse hunting. Guess it depends what you consider NE?

[nutntoit]

I am thinking pretty much anywhere north of Spokane. Hunting Turkey up that way I couldn't help but notice how much public land there is in the area. Also much better land ownership and boundary information available. Whitman county sucks for any decent GIS information. 

[Henrydog]

The fields north of Colville had quite a few quail....and I have seen a couple of roosters over the last 25 years.  Have a lot of family up there that told me there was no chance in hell of getting permission

[nutntoit]

The fields north of Colville had quite a few quail....and I have seen a couple of roosters over the last 25 years.  Have a lot of family up there that told me there was no chance in hell of getting permission

That seems to be the issue everywhere lol

I am headed up that way this weekend to visit some friends I may drive around and check out some of the public land in the area. I always seem to run into quail when I am not expecting it. Last year hunting late season deer I ended up running into some grouse and a covey of quail half way up a mountain. Lucky for me I brought the shotgun just in case.

[tlbradford]

When I first moved to Spokane in 1999 I was able to hunt around Colbert in several areas.  There was a ton of pheasant and they didn't get hunted much do to the patchwork of huntable parcels.  By 2006 the last of my spots was built up and now I only go south.  There is still great habitat and a lot of pheasant, but you are hard pressed to get permission in those areas, they are too built up, or you might only get a total of 30 minutes of field time because the spots are too small for more than a 10 minute hunt.

[dwils233]

When I first moved to Spokane in 1999 I was able to hunt around Colbert in several areas.  There was a ton of pheasant and they didn't get hunted much do to the patchwork of huntable parcels.  By 2006 the last of my spots was built up and now I only go south.  There is still great habitat and a lot of pheasant, but you are hard pressed to get permission in those areas, they are too built up, or you might only get a total of 30 minutes of field time because the spots are too small for more than a 10 minute hunt.

I'd say that's a pretty spot on answer. I've seen more than a couple pheasants in the Riverside/Deer Park/Colbert areas but the access is difficult to get and the parcels aren't very big and the numbers aren't that high for overall birds. If you were able to go west to 4 mound/medical lake/airway there are larger and more rural tracts, but I imagine access is still not very common.

[nutntoit]

Thanks for all of the information and insight. I didn't grow up in a hunting family so I never had anyone to show me what to do or where to go. I have had success down south but I am always looking for new spots to check out.

[stephensnelson]

I grew up in Colville and my folks still live up there. While quail numbers are up in some areas I never shot a pheasant up there. Sherman creek has a release sight but it's pretty well picked over by the third weekend. Grouse hunting is fantastic and the access to public land is about as good as it gets. If you're looking for pheasants Whitman or Spokane County would be best. The Fishtrap release sight would actually probably be ok as its a huge piece of land. GoHunt is a good resource and I'd check out the BLM web page as well for some clues about open land in the area.