Well, finally got over my slight doubt about evening stalking with a nice trip out yesterday. Said to my wife that I was heading out when she got back from work and she asked if she could come along...who was I to say no!
Headed out around 7.30pm and stalked up to a nice spot by 8.30 - saw a doe and a freshly discarded fawn, slightly disorientated, on the way in, along with some good scrapes. Figured we'd sit by the edge of a field with a good overlook to woodland edges where I know there are a few bucks.
Planted ourselves nicely on a dyke, with the wind in our favour, and tried out the buttalo call for the first time - feep feep, 10 secs, feep feep fep, etc etc. No idea if it was what I should be doing!
Waited calling for a fruitless half hour - heard a good bit of barking, but saw nothing and certainly didn't draw anything in magically with my call as I had imagined! Might have been successful if we'd stayed there for the rest of the evening but I'm not good at sitting still, and somehow the wife was getting cold so thought we shoulk walk back to the car.
So decided to head over to another area on the same bit of ground. As soon as we got there in the car I spotted a buck chasing a doe around in a field - brilliant! They chased off into a block of young replanted stuff that borders the field we were headed to anyhow, so I thought we could head up there and try calling again.
Parked up and walked in to the field hugging the dyke at the top of it - scanning the wood for the pair, just in case they came out early. No sign of them so kept creeping along to get to the best vantage point, where the dyke met another and ran through the field. As I was scanning, my wife goes "buck" in my ear and lo and behold, on the other side of the dyke is a buck who must have only just heard us and sprung up!
He started his way down the dyke on the other side of it, and I set off in pursuit - he was only trotting along, not really looking back so must have had rut on his mind! I dropped everything other than my rifle and crouch ran alongside him on the other side of the dyke, hoping that he'd come to a natural stop, though it became clear that he was making for the forestry where the other pair had gone.
Eventually I got to a natural break in the dyke as he slowed - so I leant down into it, accidentaly leaning on the buttalo at the same time! It squeaked, and he stopped and turned to look my direction! I had just got into position and he was looking almost square on to me, at 120 yards. Amazingly I wasn't too shaky so thought why not, and popped him clean through the neck. He dropped on the spot...
Wife got to watch the whole thing play out from up the hill, and came down with all the kit. A nice easy gralloch in the fading light, and I popped him into the roe sack. Not a huge chap, I jokingly asked if my wife would like to try carrying him back to the car - and she said yes! So I helped her get it on her back, picked up the rest of my kit, and we walked slowly back up the hill. She had much more trouble getting it off her back and into the car!
All in all, a great evening out though definitely need to bring headtorch for the next time - fading light made me rush the gralloch, though it went fine. Wife not a fan of getting home at 2300 but she was the one who wanted to join me, and she really enjoyed the evening.
Skinned and butchered him, and cleaned up the head this morning and it's come up nice - he had a healed wound on his front leg, with a big cyst underneath. Probably a decent chap to take.
Will put up some photos when I figure how to get them on from my phone! Is there an app for the forum that I can use?
Hope that's of interest to some folk!
Headed out around 7.30pm and stalked up to a nice spot by 8.30 - saw a doe and a freshly discarded fawn, slightly disorientated, on the way in, along with some good scrapes. Figured we'd sit by the edge of a field with a good overlook to woodland edges where I know there are a few bucks.
Planted ourselves nicely on a dyke, with the wind in our favour, and tried out the buttalo call for the first time - feep feep, 10 secs, feep feep fep, etc etc. No idea if it was what I should be doing!
Waited calling for a fruitless half hour - heard a good bit of barking, but saw nothing and certainly didn't draw anything in magically with my call as I had imagined! Might have been successful if we'd stayed there for the rest of the evening but I'm not good at sitting still, and somehow the wife was getting cold so thought we shoulk walk back to the car.
So decided to head over to another area on the same bit of ground. As soon as we got there in the car I spotted a buck chasing a doe around in a field - brilliant! They chased off into a block of young replanted stuff that borders the field we were headed to anyhow, so I thought we could head up there and try calling again.
Parked up and walked in to the field hugging the dyke at the top of it - scanning the wood for the pair, just in case they came out early. No sign of them so kept creeping along to get to the best vantage point, where the dyke met another and ran through the field. As I was scanning, my wife goes "buck" in my ear and lo and behold, on the other side of the dyke is a buck who must have only just heard us and sprung up!
He started his way down the dyke on the other side of it, and I set off in pursuit - he was only trotting along, not really looking back so must have had rut on his mind! I dropped everything other than my rifle and crouch ran alongside him on the other side of the dyke, hoping that he'd come to a natural stop, though it became clear that he was making for the forestry where the other pair had gone.
Eventually I got to a natural break in the dyke as he slowed - so I leant down into it, accidentaly leaning on the buttalo at the same time! It squeaked, and he stopped and turned to look my direction! I had just got into position and he was looking almost square on to me, at 120 yards. Amazingly I wasn't too shaky so thought why not, and popped him clean through the neck. He dropped on the spot...
Wife got to watch the whole thing play out from up the hill, and came down with all the kit. A nice easy gralloch in the fading light, and I popped him into the roe sack. Not a huge chap, I jokingly asked if my wife would like to try carrying him back to the car - and she said yes! So I helped her get it on her back, picked up the rest of my kit, and we walked slowly back up the hill. She had much more trouble getting it off her back and into the car!
All in all, a great evening out though definitely need to bring headtorch for the next time - fading light made me rush the gralloch, though it went fine. Wife not a fan of getting home at 2300 but she was the one who wanted to join me, and she really enjoyed the evening.
Skinned and butchered him, and cleaned up the head this morning and it's come up nice - he had a healed wound on his front leg, with a big cyst underneath. Probably a decent chap to take.
Will put up some photos when I figure how to get them on from my phone! Is there an app for the forum that I can use?
Hope that's of interest to some folk!
