We had our first driven shoot on Wednesday and what a foggy start to the day!
For the first part of the morning the farm was wreathed in swirling water vapour.
I didn’t dare risk my camera so the photo is from last year!
Driven shoots
For those unfamiliar with British game shooting, driven pheasant shoots in the UK range from very small and informal, to very formal indeed.
At one end of the spectrum are walk and stand shoots where the guns take it in turns to beat for each other.
And at the other end are very formal shoots where beaters may not even come into contact with the guns at all, and certainly don’t eat with them! Ours is a small friendly shoot where everyone mixes in together.
Our shoot
We meet in the yard at around 8:30, and the guns take it in turns to bring ‘elevenses’ for the rest of the team including the beaters.
We usually stop and have this ‘mid-morning’ break after the first three drives.
We have ten standing guns (ie, the guns do not take part in beating) a small team of beaters who also help with picking up when needed. And me – the picker up.
The first day
Our first shoot of the season is always the quietest in terms of the bag (numbers of birds shot)
We tend to avoid the pens and concentrate on outlying parts of the farm and usually aim for a bag of just thirty or so birds. About a third of what we normally shoot.
The dogs
In addition to my trusty old cocker I had two youngsters out picking up with me for the day. I alternated drives so that they took it in turns, but they both did me proud and will probably work together next time.[wp_ad_camp_1]It is so much easier to keep younger dogs steady when you have an experienced dog to take care of any runners and to step in if the younger dog is getting a bit hyped up.
If you don’t have an older dog and you want to take your dog picking up, ideally you need to find a ‘mentor’ picker-up to accompany, so that your youngster does not need to be thrown in at the deep end!
We also have some experienced Springers and Labradors in the beating line, and they all did a grand job of finding and flushing birds throughout the day. Large areas of standing linseed (it has been too wet to get the combine onto the fields) was an added complication this time out.
Memories
In the morning my older cocker pulled off a fantastic long retrieve on a runner, across a field of tangled linseed, through a wood, and across a stream, returning with a very angry and sopping wet cock bird in her mouth.
It is moments like this that emphasise the crucial role of gundogs in ethical game shooting. We would have had no chance of recovering this bird without an experienced dog.
Retrieves like this also really make your day when you are picking up. I don’t think you ever forget any of them.
Flapjack!
Our lady gun put on a fantastic spread for us at our mid morning break, and we all set off again after half an hour or so, stuffed full of the best flapjack in the land!
The rest of the day passed very pleasantly. The fog lifted and five duck and a few more brace of pheasant were added to the bag. Some good shooting was had and it was great watching the dogs busy at work.
Because we focused on the outlying parts of the shoot we all, and the beaters in particular, had to walk a long way. Everyone was pretty tired by the time we finished the last drive and made our way back to the yard to share out the bag.
A successful day
The guns had done a great job of selectively shooting some nice mature birds that were ready for the table. These were divided amongst guns and beaters. Nothing goes to waste on a shoot day which is just as it should be.
The dogs were then tucked into their travel crates, muddy kit packed into vehicles, and we all set off in convoy for our local pub where a feast of lovely home made chicken pie and fresh vegetables lay waiting.
A team effort
We all eat together, and the beaters’ food and drinks are paid for by the guns as a thank you for their efforts. We are a real ‘team’ with everyone giving and getting something out of the day.
Although we look forward to it immensely, making sure that the day runs smoothly and everyone has fun is quite a responsibility and it is a great feeling to get the first shoot under our belts without a hitch.
How about you?
Have you started your season yet? How is it going? You are welcome to drop your comments in the box below.