The Uk 6

[Tim.243]

Not always that simple mate and not really for me to dictate what I do on someone elses ground. We finished shooting when it was last light..loaded the deer and then a 3/4 hour drive for my mate to the game dealers and 1 3/4 drive for me in the opposite direction.

LOL fair play but I would have asked

 

[Mike1979]

LOL fair play but I would have asked

I know what the answer would have been...Theres a 25 year age gap between me and my mate...and he has a lot more sense then me so tries to make life as easy as he can for himself. I get up to shoot crows at 3 in the morning so I can be out first light (same with the deer)...he gets up about 7 or 7.30...I can learn a lot from him

I did watch with interest every time I was at the game dealers....but watching someone gralloch a decent size Sika in around 4 minutes is just staggering...but if you do it for a living and have to do 25 reds in one go then you have to be quick....impressive stuff

 

[gelert]

One thing is for certain, we are incredibly lucky and spoilt to have 6 species of deer to hunt with something available 12 months of the year.

Traveling around the UK to hunt for me, evokes a deep nostalgia not just because of personal memories or tradition, but because the practice taps into centuries of cultural, historical, and natural heritage.

Red deer stalking in the Highlands has been practiced for centuries. With the infamous Highland stalker’s image in tweed with the spotting scope perched in the heather, you can’t help but fall in love with the allure of those vast swathing landscapes. That grueling slog up the A9 or A11 to Norfolk with the wonderful scenery adds to the excitement and fuels the flame.

Each deer species has it’s own symbolic sense of place. From the flatlands of Norfolk to the rugged Borders or some ancient woodland down south.

Traveling from region to region to pursue different deer species mirrors a kind of personal pilgrimage. It revives the older idea of “the Grand Tour”.

There’s a romance to the road, staying in country inns, sharing stories by the fire, waking up before dawn to watch mist rise, then back for breakfast to share the mornings foray.

 

[opticron1]

Only three out of the six so far, Roe, Red and Sika.
At this rate I'll be in my 80's by the time I get all six (and 90's if I add Boar and Goats!).
No rush, just enjoy being out when I get the chance. Based in Ayrshire, it'll be a bit of travelling to get CWD and Muntjac, but the fallow is definitely more doable. I think I've reached that time in life when chasing targets is less important than just having a good day on the hill or in the woods.

 

[opticron1]

Classic "Arrival Fallacy"...


View attachment 428897


P.S.

It is something I have suffered (pejorative) with, all my life.

Aspire, value and admire anything and everything, only to feel it devalued and worthless, when I achieved it.

Sad really.

Does this mean you are going to try (fruitlessly) for another MacNab this year then......I look forward to the tale of angst and missed chances!

 

[sh1kar]

From memory about 4 years. Shot a lot of roe and muntjac locally, a few fallow round Petworth and regular trips to Scotland on reds and sika. Realised I only needed CWD so booked a guide and shot the 2 needed, They were the least challenging in terms of stalking

S

 

[wytonpjs]

My question is who has shot all 6 cleaned them out themselves skinned and butchered them up which is a lot of difference.

 

[Tim.243]

It won't be a very long list Peter

 

[filzee]

Pretty much only stalked in Nottinghamshire and somehow shot more reds than anything else. Never even had a shot at a roe despite them being everywhere. One day I may go for the 6 but more as it’s happened rather than chasing it. So far red spiked/hind and a munty buck

 

[geoshot]

Went on an invite for cwd but swapped that back for muntjac and pigeon shooting, shot the other 4 in Essex also have a open invite for Sika in Dorset but mainly to meet the chap I have got to know, so will go one day when I can find someone to look after the dogs for a couple of days.
My question is who has shot all 6 cleaned them out themselves skinned and butchered them up which is a lot of difference. There will be a few but not many, If I shoot a sika I will clean it out bring it home and skin it myself as the 5 others.

Yep, have done that
Pound for pound, muntjac are the toughest to skin and are fiddly to butcher too
Shifting a few fallow or a couple of reds is a lot of work, but relatively simple in comparison, the real work is in bringing the carcasses back to the larder in the first place
CWD are the easiest to skin, but messy with all those damn pins every where, again fiddly to butcher if doing more than quartering or primals
Roe I have to be careful with as I have an allergy to either the blood or the dander - maybe both - and they're about as big as you can get away with carrying secretly on public transport
Sika give the best meat but it's either them or fallow for the smelliest males in rut - imo only billy goats smell worse

 

[Tim.243]

Yep, have done that
Pound for pound, muntjac are the toughest to skin and are fiddly to butcher too
Shifting a few fallow or a couple of reds is a lot of work, but relatively simple in comparison, the real work is in bringing the carcasses back to the larder in the first place
CWD are the easiest to skin, but messy with all those damn pins every where, again fiddly to butcher if doing more than quartering or primals
Roe I have to be careful with as I have an allergy to either the blood or the dander - maybe both - and they're about as big as you can get away with carrying secretly on public transport
Sika give the best meat but it's either them or fallow for the smelliest males in rut - imo only billy goats smell worse

Good stuff, like I said it will be a short list or they will be queing up lol

 

[fixedwheel]

Roe I have to be careful with as I have an allergy to either the blood or the dander - maybe both - and they're about as big as you can get away with carrying secretly on public transport

That was slotted in, but I'm sure I'm not the only one that wants to hear this story!

 

[Norfolk Deer Search]

That was slotted in, but I'm sure I'm not the only one that wants to hear this story!

I now have a reaction to red deer, shot that many my body no longer wants to be in contact with them!

Which to be fair suits me just fine. I’ve got two good friends to deal with those buggers.

 

[Mungo]

Sika give the best meat but it's either them or fallow for the smelliest males in rut - imo only billy goats smell worse

Really?

I don’t find sika stags anywhere near as smelly as red!

And the meat is still perfectly delicious, when rutting red stag is just vile.

 

[fixedwheel]

I now have a reaction to red deer, shot that many my body no longer wants to be in contact with them!

Which to be fair suits me just fine. I’ve got two good friends to deal with those buggers.

I meant the bit about how big a carcass you can get on public transport, secretly!

 

[geoshot]

Really?

I don’t find sika stags anywhere near as smelly as red!

And the meat is still perfectly delicious, when rutting red stag is just vile.

yeah, worst smelling carcass I've ever tried to deal with was a Sika stag, even dogs refused to touch it at first

 

[geoshot]

That was slotted in, but I'm sure I'm not the only one that wants to hear this story!

When I used to live well within the M25 in NW London, I regularly travelled on bus and tube with a broken down rifle (I had a Blaser at the time - just for that reason/purpose) and a broken down deer (Muntjac/CWD/Roe) in a rucsac
Usually got away with it without any trouble at all until a mate of mine didn't pack one of his deer too well
The blood dripping all over the floor of a Piccadilly Line tube earned us a lot of attention from the BTP
Now that I live a bit further out in West London proper I can take whatever I want straight home in the back of the Jeep, which isn't half as much fun, but simpler overall

 

[TringSaint]

I have shot 4 of the 6. Reds I’m not too bothered about because I don’t like the venison, but I do want to do a sika stalk - just need to go down to Dorset.
So I am unlikely to shoot the 6 unless I suddenly get a taste for red venison.
Goats would be of interest tho as I like goat meat!

 

[TringSaint]

.

 

[Mungo]

When I used to live well within the M25 in NW London, I regularly travelled on bus and tube with a broken down rifle (I had a Blaser at the time - just for that reason/purpose) and a broken down deer (Muntjac/CWD/Roe) in a rucsac
Usually got away with it without any trouble at all until a mate of mine didn't pack one of his deer too well
The blood dripping all over the floor of a Piccadilly Line tube earned us a lot of attention from the BTP
Now that I live a bit further out in West London proper I can take whatever I want straight home in the back of the Jeep, which isn't half as much fun, but simpler overall

I know of at least 2 other people who have stalked using public transport in London. Same procedure: back back and take down rifle or combination gun.

I don’t know if any still do…