That year was a particularly challenging one. A record-breaking wet spring during nesting season hit the pheasant hatch hard. The roads into a bunch of properties didn’t fare well, either. Forest fires had been brutal in the Pacific Northwest, burning hundreds of thousands of acres of grouse and quail habitat. The heat dome really did a number on chukar and Hungarian partridge numbers, too. Then, on top of it all, there was the logging. Even though this happens regularly, it was just the first time I felt the impact personally.

Normally, I have a whole slew of locations and species to choose from. It was a new experience for me to not know where to go. It felt like starting back at the beginning. Having a season with so many cards stacked against me, I strategized new ways of finding birds.

Read more at projectupland.com.