DALLAS _ If dove hunting is the most fun you can have with a shotgun, and I'm inclined to believe it is, a good waterhole hunt is dove hunting at its best.
Here's the thing about waterhole dove hunting. If it's a small waterhole, you cannot be in a bad spot. Some shooting positions may be better than others but none are bad.
In a big field, on the other hand, you can find yourself in an unfortunate location and get only a few shots while hunters all around you are banging away.
On the third day of dove season in the Central Zone, I enjoyed a terrific waterhole hunt with Alan Haynes and Kirk Brookshire, both of Tyler. We were hunting in Concho County on a lease that was primarily set up for deer hunting.
The only food source for doves on this lease is native seeds, but there's so much vegetation this year it's doubtful a dove would land to search for food. Lease members have relied on waterholes for their occasional dove hunts.
"We'll hunt the Red Tank this afternoon," Haynes said. "We've had some terrific hunts over the years at that spot because it's in an active flyway. The rancher planted a big field of milo that's not on our lease. The doves will probably feed on milo, but they'll roost in brush and trees on this lease."
On the night of Sept. 1, the Concho County lease got a big rain, maybe two inches, which is unusual for September, but nobody in the ranching business complains about rain. Dove hunters may complain because their quarry will drink from a mudhole. The waterhole hunting at the Concho County lease had been steady but not hot and heavy.
One look at the Red Tank told me it had dove appeal. Some waterholes do and others don't. The bank all around the Red Tank was bare, probably beaten down by livestock and deer.
Doves tend to avoid waterholes where vegetation is growing right up to the water's edge. It's too easy for a snake or a bobcat to hide in the cover.
Luckily for me, there was a stand of a plant called Snow on the Mountain near the tank dam. The tallest stalks were nearly head high, easily thick and tall enough to hide me. Any dove that flew over the dam on my side of the tank would be in shooting range.
Brookshire and Haynes were shooting from mobile blinds that Haynes constructed just for dove hunting. Brookshire was directly across the tank from me and Haynes was opposite the dam, to the east of us. We all had a spinning-wing dove decoy set between the hunter and the water.
The only consideration any of us had was the location of our targets in relation to our hunting companions. If the birds came in too low, Haynes was the only one with a safe shot. Safety is always a consideration when hunting a water source. The Red Tank, about a quarter of an acre in size, could accommodate no more than three hunters.
We started hunting about 5 p.m. The doves came steadily, mostly in pairs, and most shots were taken at less than 30 yards. We filled three limits in about 90 minutes. It's the best waterhole hunt I've had in years.
Most hunters think of waterhole hunting as an afternoon tactic, but doves may water multiple times a day, depending on heat and proximity to water. On very hot days, the birds often fly to water before they fly to feed.
I've heard a lot of dove hunters say that waterhole hunting isn't as good as it once was, and I think they're right. I believe it's because there's much more surface water than existed 20 years ago. If you have a window seat on your next daytime flight out of Love Field, look out and notice how the sun glimmers on hundreds of small waterholes, some built for fishing but most constructed as a water source for livestock and/or wildlife.
Travel west from Dallas and ranches are bigger while waterholes are farther apart. Waterhole hunting works best in the state's dryer counties.
The most scenic waterhole I've hunted was on the Norias Division of the King Ranch, a huge area of sandy habitat loaded with giant live oak trees. The waterhole was the spillage from a windmill in a small opening. It was just a puddle of water, but the birds liked it just fine and so did I.
