Hello everyone. I haven't posted one of these for a while, but last weekend, what has now become an annual event rekindled my enjoyment of stalking and made me want to share that again. For the past few years, @JMikeyH has been a guest on our little syndicate shoot, and in return very generously invites those of us who stalk for a day stalking Chinese water deer on his ground. It's not actually transactional like that, and really it's because of a shared love of wild mushrooms, but I'm grateful that he gives reminds me why I love stalking deer. Now usually, stalking on this ground involves crawling through muddy fields, getting stuck trying to go through hedges, infuriatingly bumping deer or them running off at the last second. Once it was so windy that a gust made me miss my shot. There is very little cover so it's all about hugging the contours of the terrain and hoping that when you peer over the ridge, they're still there. I know people say water deer are easy to stalk, but not on this ground theyr'e not! They sit out in the middle of a field with no means of approaching them without being seen, just out of range, showing just the tips of their ears. You always see plenty but trying to go anywhere near them is a different matter.
Anyway, this weekend, I arrived at the ground a little after dawn, and as always, @JMikeyH said "These are just about the worst possible conditions". This doesn't phase me anymore, I take it as given that I should have been there yesterday or should come back tomorrow. From the start, we can see a deer curled up in the middle of a big flock of geese. Nice trick. Let's leave that one then. It's 7.40am when we head into the field. We spot a deer curled up at the far end of a field, and decide to head towards it which involves a large detour around the edges and hedges to stay upwind, thinking we may encounter others on the way. We bump one in a scrubby corner, and finally start following the hedge close to which we'd seen the deer, keeping below the skyline as we hope it's just over the brow of the slope. Another deer appears from the hedge on the way, sees us, and runs past, but crucially away from the one we're stalking so doesn't scare it. Eventually, we see tips of ears over the ridge. Now here's where a first happens. J says "There's a head shot if you want it". I have never taken a head shot. But somehow, being told that gives me the confidence that I can. This is where the 4-Stable Sticks come into their own, as the rest feels completely solid, no wobble at all, I place the crosshairs in the deer's right ear and BANG. And it rolls over, flailing around a bit. That was too easy.
As I said I've not head shot a deer before, and it's surprising - not in a pleasant way - that despite having bits of its' brain on the ground around it, the deer keeps kicking periodically for ten minutes. No eye reflex, and it's not breathing, it's dead as a doornail, so no suffering caused, but still. It's a healthy two year old buck and I have to say it was nice for once to have an intact carcass to deal with.
And it's while processing the deer, when I finally looked on the 5.5kg of beautiful veal-like venison that I once again felt the desire to share the story. The stalk itself was untypically straightforward, but it's in the preparation and eating that it all comes together and makes sense. So thank you J!
(I am not sponsored by 4 Stable Stick, Steyr-Mannlicher or Fox bullets)
Anyway, this weekend, I arrived at the ground a little after dawn, and as always, @JMikeyH said "These are just about the worst possible conditions". This doesn't phase me anymore, I take it as given that I should have been there yesterday or should come back tomorrow. From the start, we can see a deer curled up in the middle of a big flock of geese. Nice trick. Let's leave that one then. It's 7.40am when we head into the field. We spot a deer curled up at the far end of a field, and decide to head towards it which involves a large detour around the edges and hedges to stay upwind, thinking we may encounter others on the way. We bump one in a scrubby corner, and finally start following the hedge close to which we'd seen the deer, keeping below the skyline as we hope it's just over the brow of the slope. Another deer appears from the hedge on the way, sees us, and runs past, but crucially away from the one we're stalking so doesn't scare it. Eventually, we see tips of ears over the ridge. Now here's where a first happens. J says "There's a head shot if you want it". I have never taken a head shot. But somehow, being told that gives me the confidence that I can. This is where the 4-Stable Sticks come into their own, as the rest feels completely solid, no wobble at all, I place the crosshairs in the deer's right ear and BANG. And it rolls over, flailing around a bit. That was too easy.
As I said I've not head shot a deer before, and it's surprising - not in a pleasant way - that despite having bits of its' brain on the ground around it, the deer keeps kicking periodically for ten minutes. No eye reflex, and it's not breathing, it's dead as a doornail, so no suffering caused, but still. It's a healthy two year old buck and I have to say it was nice for once to have an intact carcass to deal with.
And it's while processing the deer, when I finally looked on the 5.5kg of beautiful veal-like venison that I once again felt the desire to share the story. The stalk itself was untypically straightforward, but it's in the preparation and eating that it all comes together and makes sense. So thank you J!
(I am not sponsored by 4 Stable Stick, Steyr-Mannlicher or Fox bullets)
always good to read about you getting out & about, not to mention your success & the knowledge that the carcass will be feeding you & yours.
