On February 24th and 25th of 2024, the Yolo County Chapter #566 of Pheasants Forever welcomed 32 junior hunters on Saturday and 34 on Sunday, to Raahauge’s Hunting and Sporting Clays, in Dunnigan, California for our annual Youth Upland Hunt. This was a beautiful day that provided perfect weather for the event. All of these junior hunters were paired with an experienced dog and handler and safety chaperones as they ventured into the field to try their best to harvest a pheasant or two. The excitement and satisfaction seen in these junior hunters when they returned from the field was priceless. They were then treated to lunch and a raffle where each junior was able to pick their own item off a table loaded with fishing rods, tackle boxes, lures, hunting accessories, and much more. There was even a contest for the longest tail feather which was rewarded with a $100 bill courtesy of Steve Rambo and Rambo’s Guide Service.

A big thanks goes out to Billy Roark and Paul Hayhurst, who provided scholarships so that 14 of these junior hunters could participate free of charge. The event also had Peter Maggenti and Kayla Ketchum as volunteers from the First Hunt Foundation who worked as chaperones out in the field during the hunt. We also need to acknowledge all the great volunteer dog handlers and their well-trained dogs, who made the time in the field a phenomenal lifetime experience. Yolo County chapter of Pheasants Forever would also like to thank Raahauge’s Hunt and Sporting Clays and Rambo’s Guide Service for hosting this event. Most of the photos are courtesy of Rick Delgado. Rick helps at all of these hunts by being a dog handler and taking photos. Thanks, Rick! Last but definitely not least, we thank Kevin Englund and Amber McDowell for their generous donations to help sponsor this event!