A bird in the hand…

Nick Ridley recalls some of his fondest days shooting with his dogs and friends

- Nick Ridley

I have a favourite quote and it is from a book called The Old Man and the Boy by Robert Ruark. It is the story of how an old man introduces his grandson to the pleasures of hunting with a dog. The quote sums up perfectly my philosophy on spending time in the shooting field.

“Hunting is watching your dog work, and taking it easy, and shooting just enough, walking slow, and enjoying the day… ”

Over the years I have had the joy and privilege to shoot in many stunning parts of the UK and during the recent lockdown I have had plenty of time to reminisce about some of my most memorable experiences.

For example, the time I shot my one and only grouse. As I drove up a long rock-strewn track to the top of the fell, I had plenty of time for the expectation to build. Despite shooting for the best part of 40 years I always get a shiver of excitement beforehand. I am sure the dogs could pick this up as I could hear the constant thumping of tails against the side of the dog box.

Wish list

Unusually the weather was stunning; it was cold but bright and the sky was as blue as a tropical sea. In fact, conditions were near perfect. The true joy of rough shooting is that you never know what quarry is going to leap or fly up in front of you and this particular day I had been given the opportunity to shoot walked-up grouse, something that had been on my wish list for many years.