Requiem To a Grouse

Requiem To A Grouse

No This Is Not A Walt Disney Movie, But Gunther Would Have Been The Star If It Was!

By Dave Freeman

It’s the opening day of turkey season 2003. I am walking along a logging trail on a piece of property that I have had for years. As it turns daylight, I arrive at a certain position on the logging trail and listen intently. For gobbles, yes, but not just gobblers; but for the sound of my friend, Gunther, the grouse.

The thousands of readers of Ohio Valley Outdoors who have been with us for the past two years will remember in the second edition of OVO, we introduced you to a grouse named Gunther. For those of you who did not have the opportunity to read our story here is a summary:

While bowhunting some five years ago, I was fascinated by the appearance of a grouse that not only did not run, but literally sat in one position and watched me prepare to go to my treestand. Through a period of months, the grouse not only didn’t run, it would run alongside the quad. It got to a point where it (by then named Gunther) would actually try to land on the quad or my head or whatever happened to be traveling up the trail at given points of time.

I think our original interpretation was that Gunther was trying to be friendly. It was finally determined that Gunther’s main objective was to defend his territory. From our dealings with Gunther over the years, it was a very defined (you could almost draw a line) territory. Well, as the years went on, Gunther became kind of a celebrity in that part of the country and probably no less then 50- to 60 people rode my quad and ventured up that road to see if Gunther would come out to do his antics. They ranged anywhere from running alongside the quad, to running into the quad, to flying at us while we were on the quad.

One of the highlight stories was the opening day of archery season 2001. As I left my treestand at approximately 10 a.m. I loaded up my archery equipment (including a garment bag with my de-scented gear in it) and traveled down what we in the area referred to as Gunther Boulevard.

All of a sudden, for some reason, I turned to my left and saw a grouse with feet outstretched about four feet away from my head. Reaction took over at that point and I hit the brakes of the quad. I went partially over the handlebars and felt the rush of wings as Gunther just cleared the back of my head and landed on the ground in front of me, again, at about four feet away.

Needless to say, the verbal exchange from myself to Gunther may not have been the most complimentary words said to a grouse. But as I hung there over the handlebars of the quad chewing out my little feathered friend, I noticed that about 25 yards to my left a large doe had been standing there watching the whole scene take place.

The doe looked at me, looked at Gunther, looked at me, looked at Gunther again, turned around, (and if a deer could shrug their shoulders) she walked up over the hill thinking, I have never seen a thing like that in the woods in all my life.

That type of response was much like what a lot of folks had who came to witness Gunther over the five-year period. I have had grouse hunters say that they don’t do that. I actually remember talking to a reader of OVO shortly after I had written the Gunther article in 2001. The outdoorsman introduced me to his son as Dave Freeman, Gunther’s Dave Freeman. That’s kind of how it was as that period of time went on.

Turkey season 2002, actually found Gunther willing to go turkey hunting. Walking into that area, I found Gunther actually following me a half mile into the woods, where he would actually scratch in the leaves as I made turkey calls.

I often wondered what might have happened if a gobbler would have come in and I would have discharged a shotgun that close to my feathered friend.

At the end of muzzleloader season this year, one of the last days, I was on the piece of property prior to the severe winter we had. Gunther and I walked and talked a little bit. I did notice that, as I warned originally, he was a little standoffish, and I commented about this to several folks. As much as I hate to say, that was the last time I ever saw Gunther.

As I walked this logging road that April morning I recalled the many experiences Gunther and I shared over a five-year stretch together.

I remember cutting a trail with a bulldozer in this particular area and having the grouse running underneath the bulldozer. A cartoon came to mind walking on that logging trail. I am not sure of the exact cartoon, but I know it was an eagle swooping down to attack a field mouse. As the field mouse stood looking at the eagle in the eye, it outstretched the middle finger of his hand. I believe the caption for the cartoon drawing was The Final Defiance.

I think if Gunther’s demise occurred this past winter as a result of a coyote, an owl, or a hawk, that is probably how Gunther went out -- as a beacon of defiance. Were the heavy snows and continual snow cover just too much for the grouse or did the age factor come into play, I wondered. I have been informed by grouse experts that five years is a pretty long life span for a grouse in our part of the country.

No turkeys were gobbling that particular morning. So, I proceeded off to another part of the property.

Songs have been written alluding to men and their ability not to show emotion. I have to say, even now, a tear fills my eye as I remember literally hundreds of memorable hours walking or riding this particular road with Gunther the grouse, either spending time entertaining me or other various passersby.

I know that Gunther is in that large grape harbor in the sky.

But at any point of time, as I travel those woods, I will still listen for the rustle of little feet, the swooping of wings and those actual cooing sounds made by Gunther the Grouse.