The queue of shooting club friends wishing to experience stalking is not getting much shorter so this morning was Paolo’s turn. Wind direction changing at the main permission over the week, the same stalk approach wouldn’t be possible as the wind would be directly behind. We consequently opted for my original approach, hastening toward the railway embankment marking the furthest end boundary, all movement directly cross wind from there. Nonetheless, I decided to start at the top of the farm and have a look back upwind into three key fields on the way through. On the ground promptly for 05:00 first light, exiting the Landy for a thermal scan showed a family of four Roe in the third field. Still too dark to confirm sex with binos, rifle and kit were retrieved from the Landy. Paolo, shocked at the degree of increased light in just the few minutes between, positive ID was now possible in full daylight. Disappointingly however, the suspect buck had disappeared and with him, any hope of a quick and easy cull.
Driving through the farmyard we parked up with a good 1km cut off the previous walk prior to Landrover ownership, immediately spying another family of three just 100m down the hedgeline. Just no Buck. Gearing up again we started the pleasant early morning walk towards the Roe, pushing them back towards the off limits area of public woodland at the other end, irritatingly missing a Muntjac that had popped out of the hedge as we had watched the Roe Doe elevate her neck and firmly wind us before ushering her kids off down the field.
Hopping over the locked gate at the end, this time with no early dog walkers in evidence, we pushed on over the next field to the railway embankment, bypassing a lone young Doe on the way. The next three fields were crossed without incident or presence of deer, just a lone fox which I briefly pondered but fortuitously deciding against owing to the close proximity to the prime Roe spot in the next door field.
Now at the border of the largest field and main area the Roe frequent, I’d only just stepped into the entrance of the crossing point in the unseemly wide hedgerow and a rich brown silhouette was clearly visible over the ditch, two strand barbed wire fence and other side of the field, 100m away. Turning to Paolo and pulling the ear defenders down he got the hint and slipped his own into place. Raising the sticks and mounting the rifle to try for a sight picture through the foliage between and the Buck sensed something he didn’t like and made off. Quietly crossing the muddy ditch, Paolo hushed that the buck had stopped only 20m from where he had started. A shooting position simply impossible this side of the barbed wire I stepped over, grateful for the low hanging tree branches making passage extremely difficult but also obscuring us from the Buck’s view. Briefly pausing to range find at 106m, the rifle came up onto the sticks, the moderator nudging out of the branches between. Pausing and steadying, the Buck presented perfectly broadside and although another neck shot was tempting, I resolved to see the impact of the 6.5CM broadside.
The now monthly range visit to check zero and practice yesterday resulting in an additional 142gr target round to the 130g hunting round for prospective Bisley visits, we had tweaked my 100m zero back to 1" high, so that my target round could be set on the ballistic turret for the five settings equating to 2,3,4 and 500m. The brain screamed that I needed to aim that inch low but muscle memory didn’t seem to follow and with breathing paused and sight picture steady all focus was on smooth shot release. The recoil pushing sight picture well off from the awkward stance, it took Paolo’s excitement to assure of the Buck having dropped hard on the spot. Reloading, I briefed on the 5-min wait to ensure expiry, soaking up the wonderful warm bright morning atmosphere and several other deer visible further into the field, the closest not 200m away but not at all put off by the moderated shot. Moving forwards and again briefing on the eye check with sticks, the Buck was stone dead.
Mulling over whether to at least partially extract towards the Landrover for a now much preferred and enormously appreciated suspended gralloch, Paolo kindly volunteered to carry over his shoulders. However, before we had the chance to load up, we spotted yet another family of four not another 100m away.
Glassing, the Buck was absolutely enormous. The previous visit, with significant deer numbers on the ground and only 2-years left until becomes a housing estate, I had reluctantly taken the best Buck I’d ever seen on the land. However, this one was even better and surely genuinely the Master Buck. I again agonised over what to do. Having briefed Paolo on the drive that we were firmly there to reduce the significant numbers, he commented that we really should take. Realising he was right but still reluctantly reloading, popping ear defenders on and mounting the rifle, the family clearly unsettled, started moving off down the field away from us. Tracking through the scope, only pausing briefly every so often, I was relieved there never appeared a suitable shot and after reaching over 160m which would have been a long way off dual sticks, I was relieved when they all hopped through the hedge and into the next field on the next door farm. There will be other opportunities when another cull hasn’t already been made and when the shot will be right and although not in the least interested in trophies, in memory of the land I literally grew up and learned to shoot over and in honour of such a fine animal, he will end up mounted on the study wall.
Back to the business in hand and Paolo stoically carried the Buck the ~350m of the 400m or so to the end of the field. Pushing another family of four and a solo Doe over the field boundaries a rest was in order so we paused. A fox I had watched mooching around at the far end of the field had stopped and was sitting watching us 105m away. Realising we would be leaving the Buck for 15-minutes or so in the next field while we fetched the Landrover, I knew I couldn’t just leave the fox or would be risking him helping himself to the carcass while we were gone. So reloading and mounting onto sticks once more, the Fox sat starring brazenly at us while he filled the sight picture. The muscle memory allowing for that extra inch this time and the recoil once again threw the sight picture such that I wasn’t sure of a strike, except for the incredibly loud and sharp “thwack”. While Paolo carried on staggering towards the field exit with the Roe, I retrieved the Fox, to find that even at 105m the 130gr 6.5CM had again punched out a solid section of spine. An absolutely devastating round, further cementing my admiration and appreciation of its performance and Gratitude to Paul of Corinium for giving me access to.
Dropping the Buck before the gate in the small section of transitory field beyond the big field containing an old pheasant rearing pen, we headed through back to retrieve the Landrover, the resident cattle dancing and prancing around us in excitement at rare human company beyond the Farmer’s twice daily checks.
Explaining the initial carcass checks to Paolo and how to remove the limbs, the gralloch went even more smoothly this time, although disappointingly finding the shot was the full inch high having succeeded by firmly taking out the base of the spine and split the oesophagus in the process, leaking a small amount into the wound area which was washed off with water bottle. More practice to get back into muscle memory and the sub conscious clearly required.
Although the pluck and glands were as clean and clear of anything even remotely looking like disease, if any more experienced members are still reading at this point, some advice on the liver would be appreciated. Cutting into it presented perfectly healthy but a much darker almost black colour than the rest.
Now up to 15-deer and moving towards the required experience from 25-30 cull’s and being ready to register for DSC2. Having seen 21 deer over the course of this morning’s outing and actual numbers likely double that, hopefully DSC2 will be able to be achieved on the ground in the 22-months remaining before the builders move in.
Driving through the farmyard we parked up with a good 1km cut off the previous walk prior to Landrover ownership, immediately spying another family of three just 100m down the hedgeline. Just no Buck. Gearing up again we started the pleasant early morning walk towards the Roe, pushing them back towards the off limits area of public woodland at the other end, irritatingly missing a Muntjac that had popped out of the hedge as we had watched the Roe Doe elevate her neck and firmly wind us before ushering her kids off down the field.
Hopping over the locked gate at the end, this time with no early dog walkers in evidence, we pushed on over the next field to the railway embankment, bypassing a lone young Doe on the way. The next three fields were crossed without incident or presence of deer, just a lone fox which I briefly pondered but fortuitously deciding against owing to the close proximity to the prime Roe spot in the next door field.
Now at the border of the largest field and main area the Roe frequent, I’d only just stepped into the entrance of the crossing point in the unseemly wide hedgerow and a rich brown silhouette was clearly visible over the ditch, two strand barbed wire fence and other side of the field, 100m away. Turning to Paolo and pulling the ear defenders down he got the hint and slipped his own into place. Raising the sticks and mounting the rifle to try for a sight picture through the foliage between and the Buck sensed something he didn’t like and made off. Quietly crossing the muddy ditch, Paolo hushed that the buck had stopped only 20m from where he had started. A shooting position simply impossible this side of the barbed wire I stepped over, grateful for the low hanging tree branches making passage extremely difficult but also obscuring us from the Buck’s view. Briefly pausing to range find at 106m, the rifle came up onto the sticks, the moderator nudging out of the branches between. Pausing and steadying, the Buck presented perfectly broadside and although another neck shot was tempting, I resolved to see the impact of the 6.5CM broadside.
The now monthly range visit to check zero and practice yesterday resulting in an additional 142gr target round to the 130g hunting round for prospective Bisley visits, we had tweaked my 100m zero back to 1" high, so that my target round could be set on the ballistic turret for the five settings equating to 2,3,4 and 500m. The brain screamed that I needed to aim that inch low but muscle memory didn’t seem to follow and with breathing paused and sight picture steady all focus was on smooth shot release. The recoil pushing sight picture well off from the awkward stance, it took Paolo’s excitement to assure of the Buck having dropped hard on the spot. Reloading, I briefed on the 5-min wait to ensure expiry, soaking up the wonderful warm bright morning atmosphere and several other deer visible further into the field, the closest not 200m away but not at all put off by the moderated shot. Moving forwards and again briefing on the eye check with sticks, the Buck was stone dead.
Mulling over whether to at least partially extract towards the Landrover for a now much preferred and enormously appreciated suspended gralloch, Paolo kindly volunteered to carry over his shoulders. However, before we had the chance to load up, we spotted yet another family of four not another 100m away.
Glassing, the Buck was absolutely enormous. The previous visit, with significant deer numbers on the ground and only 2-years left until becomes a housing estate, I had reluctantly taken the best Buck I’d ever seen on the land. However, this one was even better and surely genuinely the Master Buck. I again agonised over what to do. Having briefed Paolo on the drive that we were firmly there to reduce the significant numbers, he commented that we really should take. Realising he was right but still reluctantly reloading, popping ear defenders on and mounting the rifle, the family clearly unsettled, started moving off down the field away from us. Tracking through the scope, only pausing briefly every so often, I was relieved there never appeared a suitable shot and after reaching over 160m which would have been a long way off dual sticks, I was relieved when they all hopped through the hedge and into the next field on the next door farm. There will be other opportunities when another cull hasn’t already been made and when the shot will be right and although not in the least interested in trophies, in memory of the land I literally grew up and learned to shoot over and in honour of such a fine animal, he will end up mounted on the study wall.
Back to the business in hand and Paolo stoically carried the Buck the ~350m of the 400m or so to the end of the field. Pushing another family of four and a solo Doe over the field boundaries a rest was in order so we paused. A fox I had watched mooching around at the far end of the field had stopped and was sitting watching us 105m away. Realising we would be leaving the Buck for 15-minutes or so in the next field while we fetched the Landrover, I knew I couldn’t just leave the fox or would be risking him helping himself to the carcass while we were gone. So reloading and mounting onto sticks once more, the Fox sat starring brazenly at us while he filled the sight picture. The muscle memory allowing for that extra inch this time and the recoil once again threw the sight picture such that I wasn’t sure of a strike, except for the incredibly loud and sharp “thwack”. While Paolo carried on staggering towards the field exit with the Roe, I retrieved the Fox, to find that even at 105m the 130gr 6.5CM had again punched out a solid section of spine. An absolutely devastating round, further cementing my admiration and appreciation of its performance and Gratitude to Paul of Corinium for giving me access to.
Dropping the Buck before the gate in the small section of transitory field beyond the big field containing an old pheasant rearing pen, we headed through back to retrieve the Landrover, the resident cattle dancing and prancing around us in excitement at rare human company beyond the Farmer’s twice daily checks.
Explaining the initial carcass checks to Paolo and how to remove the limbs, the gralloch went even more smoothly this time, although disappointingly finding the shot was the full inch high having succeeded by firmly taking out the base of the spine and split the oesophagus in the process, leaking a small amount into the wound area which was washed off with water bottle. More practice to get back into muscle memory and the sub conscious clearly required.
Although the pluck and glands were as clean and clear of anything even remotely looking like disease, if any more experienced members are still reading at this point, some advice on the liver would be appreciated. Cutting into it presented perfectly healthy but a much darker almost black colour than the rest.
Now up to 15-deer and moving towards the required experience from 25-30 cull’s and being ready to register for DSC2. Having seen 21 deer over the course of this morning’s outing and actual numbers likely double that, hopefully DSC2 will be able to be achieved on the ground in the 22-months remaining before the builders move in.
