By Dan Bechtold
Editor
The population of Tripp County will increase this weekend as the opening of the state pheasant season is Saturday, Oct. 21.
Hunters from across the country flock to Tripp County which is one of the best pheasant hunting areas in the state.
Hotels and motels will see added guests and lodges will be full with hunters.
The hunting season runs from Oct. 21 to Jan. 31. Shooting hours are 10 a.m. to sunset.
The daily limit is three rooster pheasants with a possession limit of 15 rooster pheasants.
The resident only season was Oct. 14-16 on public lands only.
Places in Winner where persons can obtain a pheasant hunting license are: Winner True Value, Runnings, Jeff’s Gun Vault, Gus Stop and Buche Hardware.
Winner Area Chamber of Commerce is ready to welcome hunters. Banners have been placed on Main Street. The Chamber has information on the community at local motels.
The Chamber is asking business employees to wear orange or Hunt SD t-shirts on Oct. 20 and Oct. 27. “This is a way to show uniformity in the community. It lets hunters know they are welcome and we appreciate them for coming here to hunt,” said Mike Scott, executive director of the Chamber.
Scott added the Chamber will have the doors open if hunters have questions on lodging, restaurants, gun service, vet service or helping them find hunting land.
“I think it will be a strong year for bird numbers,” said Scott.
Conservation officer Dillon Bates says bird numbers should be good. However, he was so sure as he looked out of his office window in February. Winner had a punishing winter with lots of snow.
“Winter was rough and that knocked our numbers down,” said Bates who has been in Winner for three years.
“We really had a good spring and summer so the broods we did have were big. There was a lot of moisture and bugs which was good for the pheasant chicks,” he said. Bates noted hunters are going to see a lot of young birds this year.
He said numbers wise it is going to be close to last year. “We are sitting ok. It is a lot better than I thought we were going to be in February,” Bates said.
The conservation officer says it is hard to tell how many hunters are coming until the day they get here. “I have not had as many calls as I usually have.”
In looking at concentration of birds in Tripp County, Bates says there are more birds in the northern part of the county. He explained the Ideal area is the epicenter of the pheasant population.
“It looks like the weather is going to be good for the opening weekend with weather maybe 60-65 degrees. I am excited,” he said.
Bates says Winner is a great town to work in. “People are super nice to me and glad to see me around. They are very welcoming. It has made it easy for me. It is good to see people come back to the area year after year.”
When asked what he enjoys about the pheasant season, he said: “What I like most is how it brings the community together. Everyone is excited about it and everyone is having a great day. I like being part of it all. I get to be outside and while I am not hunting pheasants I am watching everyone else having fun. It is always enjoyable to me.”
When asked what he wants hunters to remember, Bates said to read the rules and regulations before going hunting. If road hunting, remember to pull over to the side of the road, shut the door and get out of vehicle. “We don’t want guns going off in a vehicle,” Bates said.
The economics of pheasant hunting is big for South Dakota. Tripp County is one of the areas where total dollars spent is high.
In 2022, $11.8 million was the total dollars spent in Tripp County. This includes $2.5 million by resident hunters and $9.4 million by non-resident.
The total number of non-resident hunters last year in Tripp County was 4,151 according to GFP.
Total birds harvested in Tripp County was 48,088 including 34,709 by non-resident and 13,379 by resident.
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