Letzter Bissen-Last Bite

Browning X Bolt 2 Cashback
Shi-te militia! I'm not having a banned member have the last word! What was the thread? Oh yes! Surely we all have some little 'thing' we do when we grass our deer?
I thank God, the Baby Jesus, Herne the Hunter, Odin and Jack Hargreaves for the bounty put before me.
Surely we all respect enough our deer to send them to 'Valhala' , 'Paradise', 'Deer Heaven', none of the above (tick here )with some last words? Or is it just me?
Come on! dig deep! show and tell! ;)
 
I always say, "wow that was some shot wasn't it" and look round to see if anybody was watching, they never are, but one day someone will answer and I'll have a heart attack!! lol

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Just in case I'm taken seriously, the above was posted in jest.
 
I mostly use one of two phrases.

Where's the quad? or How far is the truck?

I'm not kidding when you have just dropped some 20stplus woodland red stag those 2 things are important. I have the hernia repair operation scar to prove it.
 
Your other choice after patting the beast on the neck and a few moments of reflection is

" Let the hard work begin!"

Mark
 
Cossack,
"I'm not kidding when you have just dropped some 20stplus woodland red stag those 2 things are important. I have the hernia repair operation scar to prove it."

I know exactly what you mean. The first (and only) red stag I shot, I ran up to it with excitement, then when I realised how big it was, I nearly dropped in my tracks.
I looked at my mate, who knew I had only had dealings with Roe all my life, and he just stood there grinning then said "you shot it now get on with it and burst out laughing".
I took out my knife and leant across to grab the front leg intending to pull it on its back to gralloch it, like I've done many times with Roe, and then saw the thickness of the leg. Not to look a sissy, I grabbed hold of it and braced myself and gave it a pull and nearly janked my arm out of its socket!
That was when I realised why I had never seen a Scottish stalker with a Deer sack on his back!! and was glad my mate had a pick-up, sledge and pully and most of all someone else there to give me a hand!!
 
Blimey! I think I'll stick to Roe!!!
So far tonight I've learnt that Sika are hard to kill and Reds are very difficult to move.
Ho Lord God why have you cursed me with this fixation with everything deer!
The heat, the cold, the early mornings, the late nights, the ticks and the keds, the grollach, the arguments with the wife! the waking thought and the last before your eyes close at night, the piles of books and deer mags next to the bed! Why...Lord..why?

Trainspotting is so much easier and less expensive!

Nah you can't beat it really can you. Nothing compares to it! Infact it should be X rated!!!! :lol: ;)
 
I know exactly where you are coming from. A big woodie Red is a nightmare especially if its right in the middle of a forest and way off the nearest fire break.

Moving Reds off the hill is bad enough, the area I have access to on the West coast has no tarmac in it at all. Two years ago I dragged a 235lb stag for 3 hours back to a loch, and then loaded it in a boat. The client who was 60 at the time also helped, but I swore that would be the last time I would do that. After a good many years of dragging my knees are shot and I have to be careful.

A good many stalkers have bad backs, hips, knees and of course hernia repairs. Its all very well while youth and strength is on your side, but it will catch up with you in the end.

I prefer Mr Honda (quad) or Argo, they are a stalkers best friend. Apart that is from a good dog.
 
Does such a thing exist these days?

They were hard enough to find 30 years ago when I started my stalking career. Even then they were always a cause for concern. Having one decide that it wanted to take off for the home paddock with you piece bag firmly attatched with your coat and piece inside was no joke I can tell you or decide that it didn't want that particular stag on its back that afternoon and wont stand still.

Give me a decent quad or Arggo any day, no feeding, gromming, tack cleaning, no teeth, no hoofs, no horsey deposites.
 
I do agree Mark H. The first year on the west coast we had two Garron's, but we ended up using machines. The horses were fine but it took too long with a cull of 200 to achieve it was quicker with a quad.

There are not many estates using a Garron these days, some of the bigger ones keep them for the traditional day on the hill for clients, and very nice it is to. Its ok for taking the odd beast off in the traditional way, but it is not ideal when there is a large cull to get off, in a short period of time.

As for them running off with everyones lunch, or bucking under the threat of a stag being put on the saddle, yes I have heard many stories to that effect. But I admit I have never seen it myself, and my experiance with Garrons is very limited.
 
Count your limited experience of Garrons as a blessing.

The annoyance of having one take off for home is nothing compared to the wrath of the stalker, when he calls you up and your not in postition but arechasing the pony down the glen. Or the embarresment of being told every morning there after in front of everyone not to let it happen again.Having one decide that its just not going to cooperate it not nice either as its usually late in the day, everyone just wants to get off the hill and home to their bath and evening meal, and there is always the chance of injury. Which just adds to the delight of dealing with an animal that can bite and kick at once should it decide to. We had one mare that would always start peeing when you went to load her. Which was nice....
 
I have stalked and managed areas in Scotland for sometime and I have always used drag ropes, Quad and Argocat. For sometime I shared the larder of the neighbouring estate, who had every piece of machinery you could wish for and more. But they still kept two Garrons, which the owner at the time used, and the occassional client., but not often

I do count my very limited experiance of Garrons as a blessing, I know nothing about horses. And having known many Scottish stalkers i can also sympathise with what Sycomb has said about Garrons and the rough edge of the stalkers tongue. It is embarassing for the client to hear someone being chastised, let alone the person receiving it and it should not happen.

Iwould agree that the ony horsepower to use is mechanical, but it is still nice to see a well trained Garron carrying a beast off the hill. As for your story of the mare that peed every time you loaded a beast, well it is funny now, but at the time I dont doubt you were just as peed off?

What part of Scotland did you ghillie in?
 
Ah Sycomb, then you would have probably been a member of the Wester Ross deer group? We may have met whilst on a visit to Mr Listers estate, you know the one I am sure.

Did you work on Corriemulze estate?

I know a number of stalkers in that area, interesting to know who still uses a Garron.

Mr B I can assure you that there is no relation to Diana Ross, not her sort of terrain up that way. It hard going on the high heel shoes!!!
 
Quote:-Mr B I can assure you that there is no relation to Diana Ross, not her sort of terrain up that way. Its hard going on the high heel shoes!!! :lol:

How do you know!! :shock:
Malcolm I hope that you haven't got yourself caught up in the middle of a chain reaction!
 
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