My ground is Fallow and Roe. Plenty of Fallow, and the occasional Roe.
I have seen Muntjac close, but not yet had an opportunity to have a crack at one.
This has left me with a bit of a hankering to try the other species of the UK six.
Well a fortuitous meeting led to an invite to head up to Bedford to have a crack at CWD and Muntjac. Also, it's the day before we go and I am sitting eating my dinner and tracking the DPD driver with my new arrival... The new Pixfra Draco D635. A prefect first outing for them then.
We've an early start to get up there, so my alarm is set for 0415. If I am solo stalking, I wake up with my alarm. Stalking with a guide means the butterflies naturally have you up earlier, so I am awake at 0300.
I finally give up and head down stairs, get ready for a cold day, throw down some cereal, and I am out the door and on the way.
By the time we get there it's around 0700. Pretty much perfect timing for first visible light. A quick scan on the new thermal and they're lovely. Such a step up from my entry level Habrok. The review is on another thread though, so back to the stalking.
Walking across the first field, the ground is like sticky clay. By the time we reach the opposite side, our feet are heavy and swollen with mud. There's nothing visible but we make our way to the plantation to check there. We arrive and spot two deer on the thermal, browsing the edge. We stalk into them but they go out and into the neighbouring land. Not before we bounce a CWD that was laying up in the tall grass. It goes bounding off so we head for the crest of the hill. My guide knowing there is a valley below that would offer a good shot should any be there.
He's not wrong. We spot one wandering across the other side of the small valley, about half way up. It's clear on thermal but crikey these things are well camouflaged in tall grass. It takes me what feels like an age to finally pick it out with my scope. It's 104m away and once it turns broadside I paint the shoulders and pull the trigger. Bang... Thwack.
Perfect, the sound that means you know you have hit good. It's straight down, which is not exactly surprising as it is a 308 and these are small deer.
This area is also a Muntjac hotspot, so with it being nice and cold we opt to stay put and leave the carcass there for a short while.
After a bit of waiting, there's nothing showing so we walk over to find our prize.
My first ever CWD. A doe.
I'm chuffed and we set about dragging it over for the gralloch.
Now I am certainly no pro at the gralloch, but these things are tiny and annoying. The shot was perfect so I am very pleased.
We hang around a bit longer, making our way around the edge of the plantation and hoping for that Muntjac. We see some more heat signatures but they turn out to be a Hare and a limping fox. Unfortunately she clears off before we can get a shot on her to end her pain.
We head back towards the open fields and when we get to the last field we spot a sky-lined CWD again.
We know it's going to see us and run. It's in a bugger of a position so we opt to go left and push it right. This will put it in the next valley where it's likely to stop and be a safe shot.
We are right on the money and it runs off in the exact direction we want.
Making our way round the hedge line, we finally make the valley and see 3 heat signatures stopped. We stalk along, making our way to the nearest one. We have a plan to get that one and then see what happens with the other two. As we get closer, our target CWD spreads its wide wings and takes flight!
Red Kite!
Never mind, on to the two slightly up the hill. They're a bit further and we can't get closer so this will be my longest shot, and on the smallest species.
It's 200m and it's laying down. I am told CWD will lay like this all day, so I opt to take the shot. My Alpex 4K Lite has ballistics, and I have popped in the details but haven't given it a proper 200m test. I trust the math.
I line up on the shoulder with the adjusted POA, and I squeeze the trigger. Bang... Thwack!
I know it's a hit but the CWD is up and moving. I reload and it stops a short way off. 170m now, and it's still standing so I take a second shot. It's a good hit and it's straight down.
My Alpex 4k Lite is a bit hit and miss with the recoil recording. This is the first shot of the day that it actually records.
I unload and hand the rifle over to my guide whilst I get walking to go and collect. When I arrive it's moving, but I can hear the air escaping the holes. It's a good chest shot, but it's hanging in there. I take out my knife and finish it.
It's a buck!
What a day! I drag it back and I gralloch this one too. Fallow are so much easier to gralloch.
I get back and my guide is cursing. He didn't bring his rifle but the other CWD had ran right over to him when I shot the buck. He had my rifle but I had the ammunition in my pocket. Oh well.
No Muntjac, but still. You never forget your first of a species and this day won't be forgotten.
I'll spend the rest of this year after my Muntjac, and I'll see if the opportunities arise to take a Red too. I think the Sika is going to be the problematic one.
Many thanks to my anonymous host for a cracking day.
I have seen Muntjac close, but not yet had an opportunity to have a crack at one.
This has left me with a bit of a hankering to try the other species of the UK six.
Well a fortuitous meeting led to an invite to head up to Bedford to have a crack at CWD and Muntjac. Also, it's the day before we go and I am sitting eating my dinner and tracking the DPD driver with my new arrival... The new Pixfra Draco D635. A prefect first outing for them then.
We've an early start to get up there, so my alarm is set for 0415. If I am solo stalking, I wake up with my alarm. Stalking with a guide means the butterflies naturally have you up earlier, so I am awake at 0300.
I finally give up and head down stairs, get ready for a cold day, throw down some cereal, and I am out the door and on the way.
By the time we get there it's around 0700. Pretty much perfect timing for first visible light. A quick scan on the new thermal and they're lovely. Such a step up from my entry level Habrok. The review is on another thread though, so back to the stalking.
Walking across the first field, the ground is like sticky clay. By the time we reach the opposite side, our feet are heavy and swollen with mud. There's nothing visible but we make our way to the plantation to check there. We arrive and spot two deer on the thermal, browsing the edge. We stalk into them but they go out and into the neighbouring land. Not before we bounce a CWD that was laying up in the tall grass. It goes bounding off so we head for the crest of the hill. My guide knowing there is a valley below that would offer a good shot should any be there.
He's not wrong. We spot one wandering across the other side of the small valley, about half way up. It's clear on thermal but crikey these things are well camouflaged in tall grass. It takes me what feels like an age to finally pick it out with my scope. It's 104m away and once it turns broadside I paint the shoulders and pull the trigger. Bang... Thwack.
Perfect, the sound that means you know you have hit good. It's straight down, which is not exactly surprising as it is a 308 and these are small deer.
This area is also a Muntjac hotspot, so with it being nice and cold we opt to stay put and leave the carcass there for a short while.
After a bit of waiting, there's nothing showing so we walk over to find our prize.
My first ever CWD. A doe.
I'm chuffed and we set about dragging it over for the gralloch.
Now I am certainly no pro at the gralloch, but these things are tiny and annoying. The shot was perfect so I am very pleased.
We hang around a bit longer, making our way around the edge of the plantation and hoping for that Muntjac. We see some more heat signatures but they turn out to be a Hare and a limping fox. Unfortunately she clears off before we can get a shot on her to end her pain.
We head back towards the open fields and when we get to the last field we spot a sky-lined CWD again.
We know it's going to see us and run. It's in a bugger of a position so we opt to go left and push it right. This will put it in the next valley where it's likely to stop and be a safe shot.
We are right on the money and it runs off in the exact direction we want.
Making our way round the hedge line, we finally make the valley and see 3 heat signatures stopped. We stalk along, making our way to the nearest one. We have a plan to get that one and then see what happens with the other two. As we get closer, our target CWD spreads its wide wings and takes flight!
Red Kite!
Never mind, on to the two slightly up the hill. They're a bit further and we can't get closer so this will be my longest shot, and on the smallest species.
It's 200m and it's laying down. I am told CWD will lay like this all day, so I opt to take the shot. My Alpex 4K Lite has ballistics, and I have popped in the details but haven't given it a proper 200m test. I trust the math.
I line up on the shoulder with the adjusted POA, and I squeeze the trigger. Bang... Thwack!
I know it's a hit but the CWD is up and moving. I reload and it stops a short way off. 170m now, and it's still standing so I take a second shot. It's a good hit and it's straight down.
My Alpex 4k Lite is a bit hit and miss with the recoil recording. This is the first shot of the day that it actually records.
I unload and hand the rifle over to my guide whilst I get walking to go and collect. When I arrive it's moving, but I can hear the air escaping the holes. It's a good chest shot, but it's hanging in there. I take out my knife and finish it.
It's a buck!
What a day! I drag it back and I gralloch this one too. Fallow are so much easier to gralloch.
I get back and my guide is cursing. He didn't bring his rifle but the other CWD had ran right over to him when I shot the buck. He had my rifle but I had the ammunition in my pocket. Oh well.
No Muntjac, but still. You never forget your first of a species and this day won't be forgotten.
I'll spend the rest of this year after my Muntjac, and I'll see if the opportunities arise to take a Red too. I think the Sika is going to be the problematic one.
Many thanks to my anonymous host for a cracking day.
