Photo by Bob Fala.

The picture-perfect grouse hunt always seems to include balmy October afternoons, an English setter on point and fall foliage in full color. But for easier shots, November's nippy mornings offer better odds, along with more comfortable temperatures for hunters and dogs alike.

At this time of year, grouse shift to heavier cover -- conifers and mature hardwoods adjacent to brushy tangles and pole-stage hardwoods -- while groves of aspen, birch and alders become their preferred feeding areas.

Hunters should have a dozen favorite areas in mind because a typical day's hunt normally requires hit-and-run tactics that include several destinations.

As New York's landscape has changed to favor turkeys, the search for productive grouse habitat has become an annual treasure hunt. One of the best approaches to locating grouse hotspots this season, especially for public hunting, is to check out the state forests in your area -- tracts of forested land totaling more than 850,000 acres, not including the Adirondack and Catskill park preserves.

WHY STATE FORESTS?
The New York Department of Environmental Conservation's management objectives for state forests are to provide multiple-use benefits and to maintain and improve environmental quality. This program includes wildlife management practices, and timber-cutting operations on these properties especially benefit to grouse.

These forests are widely scattered across the state and are easily accessible to most hunters. More specific information regarding their location, including maps, is available from the DEC's regional offices listed at the end of this article.

EMINENCE STATE FOREST
With more than 12,000 acres, Eminence is a complex of six parcels of forest southwest of Albany in Schoharie County. Stands of hardwoods here are carefully thinned to create wildlife habitat, and conifer plantations, so vital to grouse, are managed by a series of partial row cuttings. Steep hills characterize these properties, and internal roads and trails provide hunter access.

The Eminence forests lie in the towns of Fulton and Blenheim south of Cobleskill. From Interstate Route 88, take Exit 21 at Warnerville and proceed south on Route 4 to reach the east side of the northern tracts.

The southern tracts are accessible after the road changes to Route 31. Local roads provide interior access.

EAST BRANCH STATE FOREST
East Branch is in Delaware County, with 2,400 acres in two tracts. The Plattekill property lies east of Delhi. Take Route 28 to Route 6, continue easterly to Bovina, and then follow Mountain Brook Road for about a mile to the state land.

The Murphy Hill tract lies east of Downsville. Take the BSW Road 1 around an arm of Pepacton Reservoir to Murphy Hill Road, which leads to boundary markers.

This area is heavily forested, and grouse habitat hinges on logging operations and cleared areas along roads and trails.

CHERRY VALLEY STATE FOREST
Cherry Valley State Forest is a complex of seven properties offering nearly 7,400 acres of public hunting in Otsego County in Cherry Valley, Middlefield, Roseboom, Decatur and Westford. The properties are found primarily on steep ridges and hilltops east of Cooperstown.

Forest cover here is predominantly conifers and native hardwoods. Best access is from Route 20 and Route 166 south from the hamlet of Cherry Valley, using county routes and local roads to reach the various parcels.

RURAL GROVE STATE FOREST
The two parcels, totaling more than 2,000 acres, that comprise Rural Grove are reforestation areas in Montgomery County that include reclaimed farms abandoned decades ago. Pulpwood and timber harvesting have created grouse-friendly openings in the old conifer plantations and hardwood stands.