Revel in the First – A Chukar Hunting Film
An Idaho bird hunting film like no other.
The pursuit to hunt chukar partridge in Hells Canyon is not your everyday bird hunting experience. Yet this public lands bird hunt is in the reach of all of us.
Anthony Ferro is a passionate bird hunter and bird dog owner. With his German shorthaired pointers, he journeys 2000 miles to the unknown terrain of Hells Canyon for his first change at bird hunting chukar. From Hungarian partridge to the humble failures of a DIY bird hunt, Anthony’s passion shines through in this short inspiring film by Project Upland.
Hell’s Canyon has a reputation for being hard on its guests. Chukar have a more infamous track record as being the pursuit of the insane. It is said that “The first chukar you shoot is for fun; all others after that are for revenge.” The allure of both these difficult propositions brought Anthony Ferro on a bird hunting road trip to challenge himself and his German shorthaired pointers.
The title Revel in the First comes from Anthony’s passion for first-time experiences. Whether it’s a first bird species, a dog’s first point, a new challenge defeated (or not), the first has a passion like no other time after.
The hunt in Hell’s Canyon in the state of Idaho proved to be a difficult one. But Anthony’s persistence paid off. As he pushed on, things finally came together and he got what he came for. This compelling journey began with a gun dog. As Anthony put it:
“I fell in love with upland hunting because I fell in love with a gun dog.”
No matter what time of the year you will find Anthony in uplands training, planning, and when the time comes, hunting.
The interview with Anthony Ferro on the Project Upland podcast soured my view of this project. He came across as arrogant and disingenuous. His over the top discription of his preparation for the season and then stating he would not offer to take anyone hunting with him that had not done the same. He then said that the people from Idaho that took him to their favorite spots had never met him. What a hypocrite. His flowery description of everything in his life got old fast. His use of “dude” was fake and childish. I enjoy your projects but if he become a regular I will no longer be following
I love these videos. A passion for dogs and upland game hunting is rare among us in our 20’s-30’s. Maybe this is why Anthony mentioned preparation and dedication to the upcoming hunting season as important. I thought this video captured how upland bird hunting can be an escape for many of us, something that takes tolerance and patience but offers real value and a feeling of accomplishment between you and your dog.
After being in heavy into big game hunting for most of my life I’ve fallen in love with upland hunting. One of the biggest reasons is that for me it is purely about watching the dogs work and having as much fun a possible. The videography of this film is stunning. However if I wanted to measure my hunts in sweat, dollars, wins and losses I would keep chasing Elk. Let’s keep the egos out of it and just focus on the dogs and the smiles!