Out and about

Jon Snowdon was delighted to hit the trail again following the easing of lockdown restrictions and curious to see what Lotte made of it

- Jon Snowdon

In these dark times there was a glimmer of light when the guidance for the COVID-19 lockdown was eased and the management on one of my permissions was relaxed to resume deer control.

The guidelines stipulated only one additional person could accompany me, there was to be no sharing of vehicles and we must adhere to hygiene guidance. This was not going to cause us too many diffi culties as we mostly work alone while stalking.

When I say alone, my partner Dean and I had the pleasure of having two young dogs with us. We had been training them for tracking and this would give them their first experience of the real thing, provided we were successful, which is never guaranteed with the elusive roebuck.

First light

So off Lotte, I went to the area of moors on the estate that, along with heather, has several sizeable plantations dotted around. The plan was to stalk to a wooded area across the moors at first light, around 3.30 am in Northumberland. The route meant that the wind was unfavorable as it was behind me until I reached the plantation.

I was not expecting any immediate action, so was surprised when a large buck leaped out of the bracken. He stopped to take a good look before sauntering off. He was in no hurry and did not even utter a bark. That’s the confidence bordering on the arrogance of a mature roebuck for you.