Golly, the latter part of December was a busy time, no wonder the Christmas cards didn’t get written this year! I visited a wonderful set of shoots that took me to Wales, Cumbria, East Anglia, Exmoor, back to East Anglia and then to Wiltshire.
Running GunsOnPegs presents me with some tremendous shooting opportunities to see some of the very best shooting estates, some hidden gems, some long established historic shoots, but above all meet some wonderful people that make shooting the joy it is.
Brithdir – Wales
The journey started at Brithdir near Montgomery, a super shoot run most effectively by Jeremy Rye. Kindly invited as a guest of Phil Coley, I joined a team of 10 guns. The shoot bounds the famous Vaynor Park shoot and has some challenging drives, it lived up to expectations! With both high and fast birds in open and wooded ground our shooting skills were fully tested on a dry overcast day. A fine lunch surrounded by some famous paintings (Jeremy is an art dealer) I met several interesting people, even an actor from Coronation Street!
The Brigands - Wales
Onto the world renowned Brigands shoot. As I was in Wales and then going onto Cumbria, I picked up a spare peg from the Bettws Hall group of shoots. This was a little extravagant as I seldom go to a shoot on my own, but having been there before, the thought of some of the most testing birds possible was a temptation too great to resist. With my loader an 80+ year old local Shooting School owner we had a ball. On the first drive in windy conditions the bag was over 250 birds. I let off around 120 cartridges. Using my pair of 1897 Purdey’s with their new fully choked barrels on Eley VIP 32 gram 5 shot we had some the tallest possible birds. Others using 50gram plus cartridges didn’t do any better, which shows how important beautifully patterned plated barrels can be. I will particularly remember this day not just for the shooting but also for following another local gun when driving on a back route to Oswestry. All I will disclose is that he is in the timber business and the police are still looking for him…. It was the fastest, most scary 25 mile journey I have driven in years. Follow me he said, well, he was nuts!
Flakebridge - Cumbria
Once on the A5 and on up to Cumbria I sedately drove, a huge relief. I picked up Chris at Penrith station who had travelled from the office in London, someone has to man the fort! Greeted by me and our wonderful Retriever called Fly, we were both looking forward to some special Cumbrian shooting. We were delighted to be guests of one our main sponsors SG Hambros who generously laid some super hotel accommodation. Having been soaked on the last drive at Brigands, I laid out my wet kit in the bedroom. Coupled with wet dog towels the odour was pretty extreme as I flopped into bed after yet another meal. Shooting is not good for the waist line and Christmas was yet to come! A super days shooting ensued and being drawn next to the very accurate Chris, I was on my mettle all day.
Stuntney - Cambridgeshire
A day off to catch up with the endless emails was much needed before joining a group of friends at a shoot called Stuntney that overlooks Ely Cathedral and the city in East Anglia. The land could not be more different to the previous shoots, absolutely flat! High bird shooting is a skill in itself, but adapting to low fast partridges I always find tricky. Bright sunshine with no wind makes organising any East Anglian shoot difficult. After 4 years of running Chippenham Park near Newmarket, I know this only too well. This day could not have been more exasperating, but with a marvellous sense of humour from everyone we persevered and then the weather changed for the better. A great fun day was had by all with John Griffiths in spectacular form.
Wood Advent - Somerset
Next stop Wood Advent on the Somerset / Devon border for a weekend shooting with family and close friends. Wood Advent, set in Exmoor is a wonderful family shoot run by John, Diana and David Brewer. With a magnificent barn with 8 rooms this is the most fabulous setting for a shoot party. What a great day we had with friends, in perfect shooting weather we were all tested. Sumptuous food served in the barn throughout the weekend made for a great party atmosphere. The Sunday was spent doing archery on the lawn not only aiming at a target but also trying to pierce cans of Strongbow cider. We had a super long Sunday lunch in the Royal Oak at Luxborough where we were joined by more friends for the Monday shoot at Wellshead near Exford.
Wellshead - Somerset
The Wellshead shoot organised by Dan Reynolds of Roxtons was great fun. A super estate with some magnificent drives kept the team busy. The last drive was spectacular with my friends being beaten by some very high birds. Despite the occasional rain shower we saw another fine Exmoor shoot in all its glory.
Hundon - Suffolk
With a day off to deal with some RodsOnRivers business in Wales, our next shoot was back in East Anglia. As a guest of Michael Beach we were at Hundon. With a strong wind, East Anglia can produce some fabulous shooting and we were really tested. Whilst the height may not be like Exmoor, good quality, fast curling birds can really ensure even the best guns are humbled. The excitement of the day was measurable by the banter in the gun bus, no one escaped some ridicule. We ended up in one of my favourite pubs the Queens Head at Hawkedon in front of a log fire. Perfect!
Six Mile Bottom - Cambridgeshire
The following day I was at the famous Six Mile Bottom shoot near Newmarket. With the windy conditions continuing, the first drive was as good as at any high bird shoot. Our host even ran out of cartridges! We saw top quality partridge shooting throughout the day and with great company to match. The lunch was one of the finest I can remember during the season and sitting amongst some legendary East Anglian personalities was a great privilege.
Brixton Deverill – Wiltshire
Chris was wondering when I might next appear in the office, however my early Christmas present was to shoot at Brixton Deverill in Wiltshire run by Kim Beddall. This is possibly one of the finest shoots I have ever attended. With great shots in the line including Peter Schwerdt this was an awesome day with some fantastic drives. Backgunning on one drive behind Peter and another fine shot Bill Joyce, I was simply a spectator watching at times 4 dead birds in the air, a lasting memory! The lunch was in a lodge at the top of one of the many coombs in the area with spectacular views over the shoot and the countryside beyond. Kim has developed this shoot over many years has certainly created a world class shoot, no wonder the waiting list is huge.
4 January 2012 by James Horne, 0 comments
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