For 27-years, organizers of the Federation of Dutchess County Fish and Game Clubs’ annual youth pheasant hunt have paid close attention to weather forecasts in the weeks and days leading up to the hunt. Weather conditions can make or break the day. Last year, while weather didn’t play a role in the cancellation, COVID did and the event was canceled.

This year the Hudson Valley has suffered from recurring bouts of bad weather all summer long. The region was soaked yet again by heavy rains last Thursday into Friday. Then, Saturday arrived much like a gift from heaven; there was even a bit of a chill in the air as the sun broke over the horizon and exposed a cloudless sky. It was just the break that was needed.

This year, a total of forty-one young hunters were registered to participate in the David Wohlbach Memorial Hunt at Lafayetteville State Forest in Milan and they would start arriving not long after sunrise. Each hunter had been notified of his or her start time and they were asked to arrive at least a halfhour early. Before they went afield each youngster went through a short, yet informative session that highlighted gun safety techniques, and they were introduced to an Environmental Conservation Officer. For many it would be their first encounter.

The Multiple Use area is divided into five sectors for the day and one hunter is assigned per sector. Each is assigned a field dog and handler. A parent is allowed afield with them, but parents are not allowed to hunt because the hunt takes place outside of the regular pheasant season. Pheasants are released throughout the day. The youngsters spend about an hour afield, but because there is a good concentration of birds, they usually get more opportunities to harvest a bird than they would under normal field conditions. Still, not every youngster gets a bird, though most get the opportunity.

The Department of Environmental Conservation schedules several youth hunt weekends across the state each year. They are not just for pheasant hunting. Deer, turkey, and waterfowl are also offered at various times depending on the region of the state.

They are a way to get the kids afield at a time when they will not have to compete with the adult hunters, even though when they are hunting they must be accompanied by an adult.

For some of the youngsters this hunt may be their first time afield even though they have handled firearms before. Some of them are very proficient shooters. Others, not so much. I can’t honestly estimate the number of birds harvested this Saturday. I’m sure it was a fair number based on the number of smiles I saw at the command station. One young lady came back with two. Her brother even took a bird. Their father, Jason Dini, was himself just a kid when the first pheasant hunt took place; it was organized by David Wohlbach of the Town of Clinton in 1995. The hunt was renamed in his honor when he passed away in 2014.

Now, 27 years later, Dini brought both his daughter and son to the hunt. They both got birds and both of them felt it was a great experience. Their feelings about the hunt were echoed all day long as other young hunters reflected on the great time they had participating. Including hunters, parents, dog handlers, and other volunteers, nearly 130 people participated.

Anthony Pittore has been coordinating the hunt since 2015. After the last hunter had left and the volunteers started dismantling the equipment, his first comment was, “The truth is, as I say every year, this hunt can never, ever happen without each and every one of you [the volunteers] , thank you all for being part of it, thank you all for your help. We are looking forward to doing this again next year.”