Nothing says October like the flush of ruffed grouse from golden aspens. Finding the king of the game birds is no easy task, though, as they are well-known for their complex food and shelter preferences. The solution? E-scouting is the most effective way to find these wild birds’ favorite covers. Here is how to find more ruffed grouse for you and your gun dog this October using onX Hunt.
How to Utilize onX Hunt Access Layers
By toggling on layers such as Walk-In and Possible Access layers, you’ve just opened up thousands of acres of possible land to hunt. Many states offer walk-in programs—private land opened to the public for hunting—and these can be recognized on the map as plots of land marked with red dots. Additionally, the Possible Access layer is great for grouse hunters who hunt the northwoods. The Possible Access layer helps show logging companies that have opened their logging land for hunting in key states such as Maine.
Timber Cutting & Tree Species Data
The single most important factor around ruffed grouse habitat is logging. Where there has been logging, there will be grouse, but to find the most abundant covers, use onX’s Timber Harvest or Forest Disturbance and Tree Species Data layers. You want to look for covers with harvest or thinning 8 to 12 years old with older forest nearby, or better yet—on the edge of this younger cut. You also want a mix of tree species, and this is where the Tree Species layers comes in handy. You can pinpoint young aspen cuts, which are golden for the king.
OnX Hunt Offline Maps
Grouse live in the most remote sections of the country. You do not want to be hunting anywhere near a city. They call it the north country for good reason. The roads are rough, often unmaintained, and far beyond cell signal. Download your pinned areas ahead of time so you can spend all day chasing ruffed grouse safely.
Use Satellite Imagery and Management Areas
Not all states have comprehensive timber harvest data, and this is where identifying cuts from satellite imagery plays a key role. From above, all trees may look the same, but if you look closely, you can identify the young forest that grouse love to drum in. These cuts look very smooth from above, where older trees have very distinct canopies that almost look like a head of broccoli. You can also see where these young cuts butt up against older forest, and these edges are favored by grouse.
Some states are extremely detailed in their forest data, however. This is the case with states like Minnesota that even have data for their ruffed grouse management areas. Turn on this feature where available through onX, and get into prime grouse cover pronto.
