The 4:15 AM alarm call was most unwelcome, but up I got and was heading down the M3 to be down to my mentor's grounds by 6:00. Not sure what the temp was there but at home it was -1 Celcius when I was getting ready.
We were in the high seat by 6:30, sitting on my gun case and with a blanket over the legs, but that wind was cutting. Shortly after 7:00 we saw a few Roe does, too near the boundary though. Soon after that a couple of Fallow does ran at full pelt across the clearing. By 7:45 nothing else had showed and it was as light as it was going to get, so we decided to explore other options.
Driving around the estate we saw more Roe does, a nice Fallow buck and a pair of Muntjac, but none were safe shots.
Finally a Roe doe was walking along a fence line away from us, I got out of the Landie and set the bipod on the bonnet. She carried on walking away, my mentor was whistling a bit but she appeared to ignore the sound. Eventually she turned broadside and I took the shot. She took a couple steps forward, turned and leapt over the fence into the wood!
We gave it a few minutes, then went in pursuit. We crossed the fence and went one way for a few minutes, then decided to turn and head the other way. After a few minutes I saw her there on the ground and was happy that I had got my first Roe.
We gralloched the beast back at the barn and by shortly after 9:00 I was on my way home to join all the traffic!
Had the kidneys for lunch with thick brown bread & butter, it'll be liver/bacon and onions for dinner tonight, and I'll butcher the rest in a few days.
Somehow I forgot all about the cold.
We were in the high seat by 6:30, sitting on my gun case and with a blanket over the legs, but that wind was cutting. Shortly after 7:00 we saw a few Roe does, too near the boundary though. Soon after that a couple of Fallow does ran at full pelt across the clearing. By 7:45 nothing else had showed and it was as light as it was going to get, so we decided to explore other options.
Driving around the estate we saw more Roe does, a nice Fallow buck and a pair of Muntjac, but none were safe shots.
Finally a Roe doe was walking along a fence line away from us, I got out of the Landie and set the bipod on the bonnet. She carried on walking away, my mentor was whistling a bit but she appeared to ignore the sound. Eventually she turned broadside and I took the shot. She took a couple steps forward, turned and leapt over the fence into the wood!
We gave it a few minutes, then went in pursuit. We crossed the fence and went one way for a few minutes, then decided to turn and head the other way. After a few minutes I saw her there on the ground and was happy that I had got my first Roe.
We gralloched the beast back at the barn and by shortly after 9:00 I was on my way home to join all the traffic!
Had the kidneys for lunch with thick brown bread & butter, it'll be liver/bacon and onions for dinner tonight, and I'll butcher the rest in a few days.
Somehow I forgot all about the cold.