Write Ups

As a child and teenager, I remember epic snowstorms that would pile ice deep around our yard. So deep in fact that my siblings and I would burrow around through the piles of snow that Dad would stack up while cleaning off the driveway. But those distant memories have faded now, partly because snow like that has been scarce for nearly as long as I’ve had children. This year the snow came back, pummeling our mountains time and again with an ever deeper snow pack. So deep in fact that many of the herds of animals that often winter in the canyons around this valley have been driven right into town, even causing serious traffic delays on interstates. As a hunter, I was excited to see how this welcome return to normal snow-pack would improve...

Today I had a plan, appointment in the morning, go to my local BASC office to get a skull measured, then collect my new 270 rifle. After collecting it, stick on the scope, zero with cheap ammo, then run through the 10 lead free home loads in a ladder to get sorted to go stalking tomorrow. It all went pear shaped when I was an hour late for the first appointment as I had it in my head it was 11:50 not 10:50, then off to BASC where it was measured, but he advised a 2nd opinion before issuing the medal as it was very borderline. Next off to get my rifle, it was in the wrong colour stock, but I knew that already. Mount my scope, get my ammo out and alongside the cheap factory 270, I've got my 308 lead free handloads. All up a bit of a...

06.19 and exactly an hour until ‘sunrise’. The car showed a couple of degrees above zero as I pulled off the road and along the land rover track. The wee trailer showing the dull red glow of the brake lights behind me now and then. Turned left onto the hill road and pulled the car into the side. The light was just showing in the east, the fir trees beginning to emerge and stand black against the sky, maybe the forecast of a fine clear morning was right? Checked the thermal and there, not twenty yards away to my right is the unmistakable glowing picture of a roe doe half obscured by rhododendrons, silently watching and waiting. Coat zipped up a bit higher against the cold. Knife, drag rope and torch in pocket. Sticks out, rifle mag...

Yesterday evening I decided to have a wee sit out to see if any activity of the Sika rut, a few boisterous young ones been knocking around. Just as the sun dipped behind the hills the sceery Elk call was deployed and after a few blows a spiker appeared on edge of forestry and within a few seconds he was taken with a kneck shot at about 70m he didn't take another step, 129g sst with no exit. Happy days hopefully I can gather a few more as the rut progresses.

I’m sure there are members on here with thousands upon thousands of acres of permission to shoot on. I am also sure there are members on here with very small shooting permissions. Now my question to you all is - How? I’ve really been struggling recently to find any permissions for any type of shooting. With most replies (if I get any reply at all) being “we already have somone” or the more prevalent one being “we have an old guy that’s been doing it for years, he never really comes but we don’t want to tell him to leave and upset him” I’m all for everyone having a bit of ground to shoot on - However, it seems to be that a lot of ground, around me at least is taken up by “old boots” for lack of a better phrase. I always offer to...

Day one 2 Red Stags and a Sika Stag. One royal red. Dinner tonight sika casserole in red wine. Not a bad day all round.

Walked the 6.5 Cr on Saturday, first time out for just over a month. After shooting a couple of muntjac, a roe buck and a fallow buck last time, I needed a sika pricket for butchering for an owner. After seeing and leaving plenty last time around, I thought it would have been easy, but alas, only 2 shootable prickets seen, both too far with too little time and too many deer on watch, so I failed in my quest. It was an opportunity to see a couple of stags and to see if they've started calling as yet. No calling but saw 7 different stags, varying from a very long antlered pricket or a very poor 2nd head, which I left as I was sure to get a pricket later, just after a small 6 pointer was daring ne to shoot him, and then walked into a...

So picked the lad up from school with a view to clearing some squirrels from the feeders. After driving round and shooting a few we decided to drive down the side of one of the woods and see what was in the edge of the wood. Got to the end and spotted a hear source, that looked like it was sat in the edge of the deep ditch. Binos out and it was a fallow back end, in the bottom of the ditch. Very odd as it had its head down. Assumed it was sick or injured so loaded the 243. Got out of the buggy and started to walk towards to get a better view. Then spotted another head, on the floor looking at me! ****, it 2 fallow prickets, tied together! Assessed and realised there was no way I’d shoot an antler off or get to cut the rope that was...

Owner has just had his pheasants delivered and this lump has knocked over feeders also been in the wheat with his mate so he had to go, only transient also you can't eat the head. Parked up and walked to a bomb hole which gave me a good left/right chance, big heat source in the wood near Num 3 pen so I just waited! 10mins later out he came, 80yd neck shot few twitches all over...now the real work! My £20.00 hoist (home made) makes light work of this lump.

Last night my wife booked (yet another) B&B for the upcoming trip to the Highlands. So that will make seven nights away, at three different locations. One B&B on the way up, and the same again on the way down. Four nights at the venue. An additional B&B on route home; as duty demands that I drop in on family, but have no wish to overnight with them, and in any event I don't think the rules allow guests to overnight... :-| Rifle of choice for this trip will be the Sako 75 in .308. Just start getting my sh*t together... The rather large (and expensive) range bag, is starting to pay for itself. Those eagle-eyed amongst you will notice that the @Stuart Mitchell knife (the one that went to Africa) has been selected... It...

This is an actually a few weeks old now but as I’ve been more of a lurker on the forum it’s taken me a while to get enough posts to be able to add photos. This place is an absolute goldmine of info and has been incredibly useful, so thank you. I hope to add some decent content of my own as I get more into deer stalking (with some foxing and bunny bashing for good measure). Anyway….As per the title, I am so pleased to finally be writing these words, I shot my first Roe Buck. This was from back at the end of July on a Sunday where I had the opportunity to go out stalking that morning with a good friend of my mentor. I was still waiting on my FAC to come through the post, so this was a welcome opportunity to make the waiting process a...

Good start to the day, in the highseat nice and early, watched many fallow grazing out of range of the 30-30 rifle in my hand. Many came agonisingly close to being in range but then turned at the last minute and walked away, until this unsuspecting pricket wandered right into the danger zone. He wasn’t stopping though, watched him walk in front of me about 70 yards out, then he just kept going, had to give him a whistle and he stopped, head up quartering slightly, squeeze of the trigger and the 150gr soft nose was on its way then the job was done. Ran about 30 yards with a really strong blood trail so easy to find, marking the first deer taken with the 30-30 lever action, definitely won’t be the last though, here’s to many more this...

Have failed a couple of times to get onto a roe buck close to home (field across the road 😖) I decided to drive the 45 mins to a permission where I have a good high seat. The wood has a field of poor looking barley still standing in front of it as one approaches. Looked ideal for deer to come out on. However in my enthusiasm I had arrived way early so decided to park in the usual spot just in the wood. Stalked up to the high seat and waited, couple of roe does with young come through but no bucks or muntys. 19:00 decision time , stick or twist. Stay in seat until last light or go back past vehicle and get on to edge of barley field which has a perfect back stop bank between it and the wood. I decided to move expecting to bump...

A friend came with me last night as the last few years we never get out together so that was put right last night, I have worked out the timing of these deer also a waste of time trying to stalk into large groups of fallow on an open field in daylight too many eyes! The usual trickle soon turns into 20 on one spot which you can see are does with young but they can wait as there is no profit in trying to work a shot. As the light started to go a few hot spots on the neighbour's were showing which meant a change of position, wind was good but then a second group of youngster's and does came across us with a various size but nothing to say Buck, they went past us around 40 yard with one doe giving a bark but just keep still "head down"...

Well it was a quiet work day and I've finally got my ticket opened up, so I dropped the kids off and went stalking. I let it be known that I'm on the ground, and I check the wind and head into the larger of the two woods. I'm being careful and scanning the thermal but I bounce two fallow right away. Good start 😒 I don't beat myself up too bad though. I am learning the ground and learning where they like to pay up, so I do loops of the two woods until lunch, annoying more fallow with my blundering along (one was a nice melanistic buck with a decent head). I eventually stop back at the truck, bite to eat and a drink and then back down into the smaller of the woods. I go right the way through the small woods, cross over into the larger...

Well CalMac have finally published their winter timetable... ...and so I jump onto the computer, and start smashing into the keys, to book the necessary crossings. My wife yells:- "Don't forget to put the correct year!" "I'm not an idiot!" She is kind enough to remind me of last year's trip to Harris - when I booked the hotel with the correct date but for the following year. She also reminds me that when I booked the crossing, I forgot to add the car. OK fair enough. I am an idiot. I cannot complete the online booking - well I can get across to the isle, but I cannot seem to get back. I give in and my wife takes over. Long short - the confusion is that because of the winter timetable, the Port on the isle changes. You...

With rain predicted I decided to give myself a chance and go early also his pheasants are wandering so in the half light the stupid things can get nailed going back into the wood, they leave the fields in stubble both side of the wood as the birds will work the tram lines picking as they go to the cover strips. After coming out of the high seat I will use the time left but way off in the distance was a dog walker heading my way so I jumped in the truck and moved to the other side of the wood with the 200 yds long cover strip also it covers a large field. He has seen in the past deer using "the bomb hole" which is at the other end of the cover strip, a peak around the corner "that's not a fox Tim" checking the time I went into the wind...

Five of us from our syndicate headed up into Lancashire for some early season walked-up partridge shooting. It was meant to be six of us, the same group as shot that ground last season, but one dropped out last minute and we were unable to replace him even with 50% of the cost already paid! 0500hrs woke, took my dogs for a walk and fed them. It is a field trial training day so we would be shooting over other dogs. Normally I take mine to these sorts of things and have them to heel during the social parts, then away (good training of the not being used on a shoot day) then out for some retrieves etc. With the forecast of all day sunshine and 27°C I decided to leave them at home. ☀️☀️☀️ 0745hrs we arrived at a nice country house hotel...

With echoes of my last thread also the farmer finishing off his field prep by topping the waist height dross the deer were feeding on, a trickle of Fallow came out a good 250 yards 3 big does 6ish fawn's and 3ish yearlings. They disappeared further down this long field so I bailed out as the top end of the farm has produced more deer. A big John Deere quad track was working the neighbour's last field with all the wheat stubble having been pulled down which will change what the deer do. With it being dry I can use the farm track which saves a road trip also deer are used to the farm kit moving around, this spot covers 4 fields with a muntjac buck making a dash across the last small field I have seen him before but I will get in a better...

Got my own private beach too 😂 Seven skool bass and a thornback ray so far. All gone back. 👍