New piece of ground yesterday, landowners want the Munties reduced in densely wooded valley.
Took the .222 as roe not on the agenda. Wandered up and down, getting the layout of the place and bumping a few. Place is overrun with them. But getting a shot without being up in a seat and getting a clean line to target proved tricky/frustrating to say the least.
Golden hour and a young buck comes onto the ride that runs along the top of one side.
I manage to get behind a tree which I also use as a rest instead of the sticks. Nice 85m rising ground behind, safe shot, broadside, bang, down, job done.
Complacent Prat !
Up he jumps as I reload too slow and not focusing through the scope, and crashes down into the thick stuff. Quick curse and out with the thermal to find and retrieve.
Can I find him ? With the damp ground, spring lines, warm tree stumps and cover I start to struggle and then doubt myself. Then that horrible feeling, have I lost it?
Getting dark and crashing around the cover with a sinking feeling. Not least what to say to the landowner who “wanted a humane job done”.
20 mins of thrashing about, now with head torch on, one last try. Back to where I took the shot, then to where he initially fell, picked up the line I think he took and got a heat source that looked promising. Relief there he was under some thick scrub not 20m from where he initially fell.
On reflection, if I had reloaded quicker and stayed focused I could have put another shot in as soon as he kicked up. Got away with it this time.
Confession over !
Sharpen up old boy.
Took the .222 as roe not on the agenda. Wandered up and down, getting the layout of the place and bumping a few. Place is overrun with them. But getting a shot without being up in a seat and getting a clean line to target proved tricky/frustrating to say the least.
Golden hour and a young buck comes onto the ride that runs along the top of one side.
I manage to get behind a tree which I also use as a rest instead of the sticks. Nice 85m rising ground behind, safe shot, broadside, bang, down, job done.
Complacent Prat !
Up he jumps as I reload too slow and not focusing through the scope, and crashes down into the thick stuff. Quick curse and out with the thermal to find and retrieve.
Can I find him ? With the damp ground, spring lines, warm tree stumps and cover I start to struggle and then doubt myself. Then that horrible feeling, have I lost it?
Getting dark and crashing around the cover with a sinking feeling. Not least what to say to the landowner who “wanted a humane job done”.
20 mins of thrashing about, now with head torch on, one last try. Back to where I took the shot, then to where he initially fell, picked up the line I think he took and got a heat source that looked promising. Relief there he was under some thick scrub not 20m from where he initially fell.
On reflection, if I had reloaded quicker and stayed focused I could have put another shot in as soon as he kicked up. Got away with it this time.
Confession over !
Sharpen up old boy.
