The first few weeks of September are a busy start to our bird shooting season, as we normally have regular dawn flights of Canada geese onto the local Staffordshire stubbles and a few evenings on our duck pond, just to blow the cobwebs off our barrels.
By mid-September, my thoughts are definitely focused on what is becoming our annual trip north of the border for a few days of walked-up sport in Perthshire with an opportunity to take a handful of the wildest of our game birds, the red grouse.
It’s always a quick trip, but lovely nonetheless, as we leave lowland England, with its harvested fields of gold where we have been shooting in shirt sleeves, and head to the early autumn of the Scottish moor where you feel you have been fast-forwarded into another season; the weather can be quite bleak to say the least!
Joining me on this particular trip were two mates: Antony, my friend and local butcher, and Wayne, my shooting partner on our little DIY shoot, who is a passionate game shooter but hasn’t had the pleasure of grouse just yet. Also accompanying us was Daniel, my son, who would be with us on the hill to document (film/ photograph) our trip for our business needs!
The first morning, we were met on the estate by our old friend Roy Cullen, who would be our dog man and guide for the day. Roy is great company, a renowned ‘pointer man’, preferring to use a selection of dogs from his strong breeding line of German wirehaired pointers to work the moor. With his solid black Lab for the retrieves just after the shot, it is a great combination and I have enjoyed and benefited from his expertise and banter on many occasions.
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Esta historia es de la edición September 2020 de Sporting Shooter.
Comience su prueba gratuita de Magzter GOLD de 7 días para acceder a miles de historias premium seleccionadas y a más de 9,000 revistas y periódicos.
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Causeway for concern
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Through a purple patch
The Garrows Estate is taking a conservation-focused approach to restoring the wildlife populations and biodiversity on the Scottish heather moorland.
When the wheels fall off
Losing form on a day’s shooting can be infuriating, especially if you’ve been shooting like a god up to that point. Simon O’Leary looks at some common causes and how to remedy them
Beaches, books & bad behaviour!
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Using the Stop whistle
Now you’ve instilled the basics, it’s time to up the ante with some more tricky distance work. Howard Kirby explains how to take the core Stop whistle command to the next level
The humble teal
They may be tiny, but as far as Rupert Butler is concerned, the appeal of this little duck is huge. He recalls some of his most memorable nights in pursuit of these aerial acrobats
Fab all-rounder
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CALL OF THE WILD
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A yen for the Fens
Tony Jackson recounts a memorable duck flight over an area of Fenland in Norfolk with his friend and author, the late Alan Savory
