“Pheasantfest?… like pheasant?… the bird? So there’s a fest… for pheasants?”
This is the typical response we have gotten from people when we mention we’re attending Pheasantfest. This is the second year we’ve gone –– the first was in South Dakota in 2018, and the second was this year in Minneapolis.
Pheasantfest is a trade show organized by Pheasant’s Forever that focuses on wildlife conservation, upland bird hunting, dog training, and wildlife habitat management & restoration –– all things Bri and I love. The show is three days long and has a lot to offer –– hundreds of vendors to check out, four stages of seminars from rotating speakers, raffles, tons of information, a banquet/dinner, and so much more! If you’re interested in learning more about Pheasantfest and Pheasant’s Forever, you can check it out here: https://www.pheasantsforever.org/Pheasant-Fest.aspx
Both times Bri and I went, we purchased the full weekend pass. The best part of the show (for us) is the seminars, so we make sure that we dedicate a lot of our time there. We also buy the full weekend pass in order to attend the banquet & dinner –– we don’t typically go to Pheasant Forever banquet’s throughout the year so we like to attend this one, especially because there are always great keynote speakers on the schedule and they have fantastic raffles.
This year the show was in Minneapolis, where we live, so it was really nice being able to go home at the end of the day. It also gave us the opportunity to enter Murphy into the Bird Dog Parade (yes, you read that right), which kicks off the whole show! Since we live so close, it was easy bringing Murph over to the convention center –– and he LOVED it!
The Bird Dog Parade featured over 35 different bird dog breeds –– there were over 100 dogs in the lineup! Murphy was one of five of the Black Labrador’s –– the oldest but, as everyone who knows him, probably the one with the most energy. HA!
As I mentioned, Bri and I love sitting in for the seminars. This year, the had four different stages:
- Bird Dog Stage: Our favorite stage. Dog training & other topics with the world’s best dog trainers
- Path to the Uplands Stage: People sharing their passion for the outdoors and interest in hunting, conservation and the like
- Wild Game Cooking Stage: Yum! Amazing cooks teaching how to create great recipes with our harvest
- Public Lands Pavilion Stage: This was a new stage, sharing information about public lands across the US
We spent most of our seminar hours at the bird dog stage. Listening to the best dog trainer’s share their tips and answer questions is invaluable, especially since we’re looking to get another bird dog soon! We made it to at least one seminar on each stage, and they were all great. Pheasant’s Forever always does a fantastic job getting great speakers for their events, and this was no different.
Just walking around the convention got us excited about pheasant hunting. There were so many fantastic companies there –– it was great to learn more about them, especially since we’re new to Minnesota! And, if nothing else… there are puppies there!
Next year’s show is in Sioux Falls, South Dakota again. We haven’t talked about whether or not we’re going again, but I’m sure we will if we can!
Again, if you haven’t already, head over to the Pheasant’s Forever website to learn more about their mission. Hunter or not, this organization does amazing work in the conservation of wildlife.
Allie Uffda 