The stars of the show are the banks below the moorland edge; these steeply sloping, hanging woodlands enable birds to be launched off the fringe of the heather moor and flown over Guns.
From the edge of Borrowby Moor the views over the North Yorkshire countryside, across wooded ghylls to the North Sea beyond, are spectacular. And on a crisp December morning, with pheasants curling high off the moorland edge in a south-westerly breeze, there must be few more uplifting places to be in Northern England.
Borrowby Moor is one of the signature drives of the Newton Mulgrave shoot, which for the past three years has been run by seasoned North Yorkshire Guns Phil Bottomley and Alistair Reed.
“When our local farm shoot folded in 2005 I really missed it, so I approached local landowners, became shoot captain and got it going again on a syndicate basis,” said Bottomley. “I had shot three or four times at Newton Mulgrave and when I heard on the grapevine that the sporting lease over the estate was being offered, I approached Ali and we visited the estate on a shoot day just so that he could see the potential. The result was that we set up a shoot business together, we took the lease and we had our first season in 2019-20.”
There has been a shoot over the 1,600acre estate for many years, though in the past it was privately run. From the edge of the North York Moors, the country dips east towards the coast, taking in both rough grazing and, lower down the hill, improved pasture, all of it laced with wild, straggling hedgerows and banks of gorse, oak and beech. Cover crops of kale, maize and triticale back up the natural cover on the shoot’s 11 drives.
この記事は The Field の December 2021 版に掲載されています。
7 日間の Magzter GOLD 無料トライアルを開始して、何千もの厳選されたプレミアム ストーリー、9,000 以上の雑誌や新聞にアクセスしてください。
すでに購読者です ? サインイン
この記事は The Field の December 2021 版に掲載されています。
7 日間の Magzter GOLD 無料トライアルを開始して、何千もの厳選されたプレミアム ストーリー、9,000 以上の雑誌や新聞にアクセスしてください。
すでに購読者です? サインイン
Going over old ground
Forget modern tractors and minimum tillage - there is something glorious about the sight of farmer, horse and vintage plough in perfect harmony
Return of the natives
There is nothing as satisfying as creating a magical miniature woodland or conservation hedgerow using our native trees - and now is the best time to start.
Tagging the Cornish tunny
Enormous Atlantic bluefin tuna are once again making waves in UK waters almost a century after their showstopping appearance in the North Sea
In it for the long haul
It may have fallen out of favour at the elite level but long-format three-day eventing is still proving popular with grassroots riders
Unpicking the story of hunt buttons
These treasured tokens are bestowed only upon those who go above and beyond in service of their hunt but the rules around them can be complex
A place of tradition in the heart of town
Cordings has helped shape the sartorial landscape of Britain for 185 years, with its classic country tailoring a firm staple of many sporting wardrobes
Don't play it by ear
Hearing loss can have a devastating impact on day-to-day life, making ear protection a non-negotiable piece of field kit
Back to base-ics
Britain's famously unpredictable climate can make staying comfortable in the field a challenge but the right under layers can be a game changer
Stand and deliver
A good stance provides the platform for shotgun marksmanship and is fundamental to consistent success in the field or breaking clays
Heaven is a High Four
A team of guns enjoy a day of the finest sport Devon has to offer, courtesy of the GWCT and a quartet of generous shoot owners