materializes into Roger. We exchange versions of the afternoon so far. I tell the woodcock story and he's telling me about the bird he shot. We both agree to work the part of the center he did not cover back to the truck. There's birds here he tells me. Rock got a little wild on him and moved some birds too far ahead for him to shoot. They flew my way and the fact that those woodcock delayed me so, left me thinking they must be ahead of us for they didn't land in the area I went through. I told Roger so and we agreed to take it easy and cover the expanse ahead of us carefully.

We spread out and moved forward and it wasn't long before Rock flushed a bird and Roger tagged it. That's when Parker's collar announced she too had found a bird. As I moved in a bird flushed off to the right of Park. Wild I thought, must be one of those that Rock had flushed earlier, so they are spooky now. Quickly now I make my way to Park, spotting her I try to move in. The bird flushes and I attempt to make a long shot. Once, then twice the little gun barks saluting the bird as it flies off. Okay I say to myself, time to reign Parker in a little. "Hunt close" I command as she sets off again.

For the next hour and a half it was like that, no singles, all twos and three's, like popcorn, as Kevin would say. I had lightened my load of shot shells and now had five left and I was just one shy of my limit. Things weren't looking good considering I had started with about twenty-five. I was averaging about five shots per bird with the last two somewhat higher. I'd have to bear down and make at least one shot count if I was to double out today. It was nearing dusk and the sun was low in the western sky, no time to get more shells. Ahead to my right Parker goes on point and I move up. She's looking into a thick stand of popple and underbrush. I recognize this as the corner where the north south road junctions with the southern most east west one. Aha I think, pinned on the edge. As I move in one, then two flush out the opposite side. I spot one, swing and fire, then fire again. It continues on its way, afterburners kicking in, I swear, any faster and there would be a sonic boom. I chide myself for not keeping my head on the stock. Quickly