I didn’t really want to write up a whole article, I’m no good at it, though my day out on the ground with Moses did justify it, and given what he said above, well, I have to.
I went bright and early to the meeting point near the estate, well, before dawn anyway – I’m none too bright at any time of day never mind at early o’clock (about 4.30am).
The day got off to a good start when Moses showed up as arranged and we stood around, chatted and waited for Trevor the keeper to join us which he did a short time later. I had got a good feeling about the day even before we had started, Moses seemed like a good sort and whilst he was checking me out as a client, he wasn’t being a pain about it.
After a quick friendly introduction we went off in Trevor’s Landy for a quick drive to a spot where we dropped off Moses to where he was gonna wait with a camera to try to get some pics of the local deer. Trevor and me carried on to another spot about half a mile away where we commenced the stalk, starting near the estate house. Within minutes we spotted our first deer, a little muntie kid, a real cutie but too small to shoot, in my mind, and it wouldn’t have been an ideal shot anyway. No pressure at all to take the shot from Trevor which happily confirmed what I had been hoping for. I hate being with a keeper or stalker who puts the pressure on, I’ll take or decline a shot on my own call, ta very much.
We saw a right few munties, bucks, does and kids – even buck & doe pairs but just couldn’t get into a shooting position on any of them. Frustrating for sure, but excellent stalking and good practice, we must have tried to close in on at least half a dozen different animals or more, and on some of them for a couple of times. Real stalking, and I love it, no mention of a high seat and out in the woods trying to close in on wary deer, seeing plenty and getting chances on a few. Nothing grassed so far but loving it!
Then things went quiet for a bit and we moved off to another part of the estate. Making our way down the track we slackened off a bit, big mistake! A group of Fallow trotting off into the woods reminded us that we should keep our wits about us, the stalk isn’t over til your back in the vehicle or at the breakfast table. We carefully stalked down the side of the wood and as we came to the end of a track, there were the fallow again. I got the rifle up on to the sticks and all looked set fair for a nice easy shot on a doe, but just as I was about to shoot they all took off like lightning. Neither Trevor nor I could work out what had happened, until seconds later, we saw the dog chasing a yearling which was quite literally running for its life just in front of the ugliest, hairiest shepherd-cross I have ever set eyes on. The dog clocked us, turned tail and just disappeared off into the distance – even quicker than the deer it seemed. We looked around for the owner but there was no sign of one and Trevor had never seen the dog before, it was a mystery and a nuisance for sure. I couldn’t believe our bad, the deers’ good, luck – to lose a gift of an opportunity because of some careless dog owner was a stinker, but at least I hadn’t touched the trigger………….
Speaking of breakfast, we went back to Trevor’s cottage for tea and a chat to plan the rest of the day then Moses and me headed off for a bit of a fry up in the local town and then it was back to Trevor’s for yet more tea and a bit more planning.
We went out again in the Landy for a drive around the estate and after a good look around the place, and there is some good ground there – sign all over the place - we decided to have another short stalk around a different part of the estate. The weather had changed from still and misty to windy and cold. Unsurprisingly we didn’t spot many deer as we had in the morning, but as we were about to quit and head back to the car (Moses had to head home) Trevor spotted a decent muntie buck moving left to right across us about 100yds or so away. The deer was following a stream line and was down in a hollow with a lovely backstop of wet soft ground. I took the shot off sticks and bagged my best muntie yet, later we weighed him at 28lbs clean (head off) and his antlers look pretty good too. He maybe wasn’t a real trophy but he was more than good enough for me.
Following poses with the beast, pictures taken by Moses, it was back to the cottage to clean the carcass and more tea to follow as Moses headed home.
I enjoyed a long chat with Trevor during the early afternoon, over yet more tea, then it was out for the evening stalk.
We arrived where we had finished the first morning stalk and almost right away, as we came round the side of a clump of trees just beside a derelict farm building, we spotted a large mixed group of Fallow about 150yds away. We carefully closed the distance and when it seemed close enough to take a shot I got the rifle up on the sticks, but the inevitable happened. There were just too many eyes and ears, we were spotted and the herd ran off into the distance. We followed them around the place but they kept one step ahead of us. It became obvious that all we were doing was spooking them so we left them alone and went off to look for munties. We saw a few, but the best chance came right at last light and I couldn’t get a good clear sight picture, so didn’t take the shot.
All in all it was a very enjoyable day on a good deer estate in the company of a couple of sound blokes. Bagging the muntie was the icing on the cake for me as I truly and honestly would have had a great day anyway.
A big thanks goes from me to Moses and Trevor for looking after me so well and for giving me the chance to do a fine, enjoyable bit of deer stalking on their patch. I will leave it to Moses to post the pics (he took them) and I will happily recommend that you get in touch with Moses if you fancy a decent bit of muntie and fallow stalking in Essex.