This year has not been the most productive Stalking wise for me as my business has taken priority, this weekend was my first decent opportunity to get out for a Sika Stag.
Friday evening I head out to a block of forestry with a Turnip field right upto the dyke, wind was good got my self settled on a grassy knoll and never seen a deer, slipped back to truck to do the rounds with thermal, found a small herd of hinds and calfs in silage field.
Saturday Morning I spend a bit of time scanning but apart from an odd hind it was pretty quiet, not much sign of stags rubbing either so went about setting my new Secacam 3 bundle of four trail cams up they seem to be of decent quality.
Saturday Evening i head to the other side of forestry to a couple silage fields that never get stock on which imo the deer will favour every time.
I find a nice wee corner and get settled in, unusually a spiker appears with a hind, I patiently track him on edge of forestry for him to disappear back in, half hour goes by and he appears again but very edgy something was keeping him alert, within a minute a quality mature stag comes out scatters him then returns to forestry, I thought that will be that when out of no where a 6 pointer appears and presents a shot, 130m kneck shot and the evening was a success.
The way these stags were acting suggested to me the rut is very close, the air is cool and fresh with a threat of frost in mornings.
Friday evening I head out to a block of forestry with a Turnip field right upto the dyke, wind was good got my self settled on a grassy knoll and never seen a deer, slipped back to truck to do the rounds with thermal, found a small herd of hinds and calfs in silage field.
Saturday Morning I spend a bit of time scanning but apart from an odd hind it was pretty quiet, not much sign of stags rubbing either so went about setting my new Secacam 3 bundle of four trail cams up they seem to be of decent quality.
Saturday Evening i head to the other side of forestry to a couple silage fields that never get stock on which imo the deer will favour every time.
I find a nice wee corner and get settled in, unusually a spiker appears with a hind, I patiently track him on edge of forestry for him to disappear back in, half hour goes by and he appears again but very edgy something was keeping him alert, within a minute a quality mature stag comes out scatters him then returns to forestry, I thought that will be that when out of no where a 6 pointer appears and presents a shot, 130m kneck shot and the evening was a success.
The way these stags were acting suggested to me the rut is very close, the air is cool and fresh with a threat of frost in mornings.
