marsh man Posted January 8, 2015 Report Share Posted January 8, 2015 We have all had minor accidents while out fowling , like slipping in the dykes or drains , cutting or grazing your legs while crossing barbwire and in Big Mats case getting mugged by one of the Kray twins of the Pinkfeet world........and thank God he came out the winner But sadly some are a lot more serious resulting in life changing injuries or even death . When I had a couple of gun punts in a boat shed near mine in the 60s, the chap who had the one next door was one of the last punt gunners on Breydon before it was banned around 1968 and from the time I knew him he was totally deaf , I was told around that time it was caused by a shooting accident , and that was about all I knew what caused him being deaf. Well a few days ago a chap I know sent me a paper cutting with the details about this accident and I thought you might like to hear how it happened , the title on the paper was called. WILDFOWLER HURT IN PUNTING ACCIDENT It was around Christmas time in the 1920s and George had took his punt up to Duffels Rond on Christmas Eve for a early start on Boxing Day , the punts firepower was a two pound , breach loading punt gun with a nine foot barrel that gave a one ton recoil when fired ,the weather over that festive period was a severe frost with a lot of ice about but George was still out early on Boxing Day pushing his punt about until he saw a large amount of Widgeon that was worth trying for a shot , when he was well in range he slapped the side of the punt to make the duck jump and pulled the lanyard at the same time , there was a almighty bang and that was all George remembered about it , the gun flew back smashing and breaking his jaw, went under his body, smashed through the stern and disappeared in the water leaving the punt sinking and George in serious trouble. As luck would have it, another fowler who was out at the same time went to help George and managed to get him back to dry land. What happened was the sharp frost had crystalised the guns trunnion and made it brittle resulting in it snapping when the gun was fired leaving it unsecured. Afterwards George told the chap who wrote the article the last thing he heard when he had his hearing was the whistling of the drake widgeon as he was about to discharge his gun...................... What a lovely sound to remember when the ole boy could still hear different things. It didn't state what happened to the gun , but I would have thought if he was in shallow water it could have been retrieved at low tide. George lived to be a good ole age and he carried on fowling till his days were up....Someone I always looked up to. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
martindd Posted January 8, 2015 Report Share Posted January 8, 2015 Good tale that,thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fenboy Posted January 8, 2015 Report Share Posted January 8, 2015 A good read marsh man , no doubt there could be a book written about all the mishaps on the marshes and in punts . Only the other week I heard of a fowler stuck up to his crown jewel's in the wash mud needing to be rescued by a mate Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chad63 Posted January 8, 2015 Report Share Posted January 8, 2015 (edited) One day back in the early 60s my Father was in his punt on the Exe making his way home when he came across a fellow fowler on a mussel bed waiting for evening flight. They chatted for a few minutes during which Father warned him that "fog was forecast". Anyway, they said their good byes and Father headed for home. Sure enough the fog came down right on dark and just as Father hit dry land. The next day word was about that a fowler had gone out from Lympstone the previous day and was missing! To cut a long story short, they found his gun & bag but never his body.... It's most likely that Father was the last person to ever speak to him, something that still plays on his mind to this day... Edited January 8, 2015 by Chad63 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
roostshooter1 Posted January 8, 2015 Report Share Posted January 8, 2015 Thats a very remarkable story and a good read i can remember being out on one of the somerset estuary with my dad at the age of 14 and coming across a fellow fowler who had got stuck in a mud wollow right upto his nuts with the tide pushing in hard and my dad frantically trying to pull him out for nearly 30 mins . When he was finally pulled free he had around 3 inches of water around him and when we walked him back upto the field he sat down lit a fag and broke down crying and he never went out fowling again :( i had always been careful when fowling and fishing the bristol channel which has the second highest tidal range in the world to make sure im not the next victim but i have had my fair share of close shaves and always try and learn from my experiences Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rjimmer Posted January 8, 2015 Report Share Posted January 8, 2015 My dad once told me a story of how a punt gunner was creeping along close to shore. It would have been about 100 years ago now and there would not have been any artificial light like there is now. A waiting gunner on the shore mistook the shadow of the punt for a patch of duck and took a shot at him. The charge hit him across the back and he would have been seriously injured if he hadn't been wearing a dog-skin waistcoat. The punt gunner was Tom Russell and the shore gunner was Joby Randall. Tom Russell once killed 28 wigeon with 2 shots with a 12-bore from his punt in broad daylight. Those were the days. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
happy.plinker Posted January 8, 2015 Report Share Posted January 8, 2015 Interesting thread ,all alien to me but I understand how mud,guns and strong tides can be a dangerous mix. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grandalf Posted January 8, 2015 Report Share Posted January 8, 2015 Interesting thread ,all alien to me but I understand how mud,guns and strong tides can be a dangerous mix. Yes but totally addictive I'm afraid. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ayano3 Posted January 8, 2015 Report Share Posted January 8, 2015 Hope you had a nice meal tonight Ben. 😆 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
roostshooter1 Posted January 9, 2015 Report Share Posted January 9, 2015 I had pheasant new yorker for tea which is pheasant breast wrapped in nice fatty bacon and served with melted cheese over the top with little somerset twist of some nice baked bramley apples chucked in it aswell all served with a creamy leek and potato bake very yummy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marsh man Posted January 9, 2015 Author Report Share Posted January 9, 2015 One day back in the early 60s my Father was in his punt on the Exe making his way home when he came across a fellow fowler on a mussel bed waiting for evening flight. They chatted for a few minutes during which Father warned him that "fog was forecast". Anyway, they said their good byes and Father headed for home. Sure enough the fog came down right on dark and just as Father hit dry land. The next day word was about that a fowler had gone out from Lympstone the previous day and was missing! To cut a long story short, they found his gun & bag but never his body.... It's most likely that Father was the last person to ever speak to him, something that still plays on his mind to this day... A very sad story Chad63 , and one to take note of when we venture out in the fog , with mobile phones and different aids in the shops now we are and can be better prepared , but don't take unnesarsary risks as fog can play tricks in your mind. I was out under the moon in my punt one night when the mist turned to thick fog , and being young and adventures it didn't bother me one bit . the top of the tide was around 11pm and I had been out since 8pm and hadn't had a shot when the tide had started to turn , I was around three miles up the river at the widest point of the estuary when it was time to start making my way back. It wasn't any problem rowing close to the north wall as I could just make out where I was , it was only when I turned to cut across the flats to the main channel I realised I had made a big mistake as I lost my bearings and didn't have a clue where I was , at one time I even thought the tide had turned as the tide looked as if it was going the oppersite way to which I was rowing , as it turned out I was rowing the wrong way , anyhow after rowing about for ages I finally came to the safety of one of the walls , but I still didn't know where I was so I put a oar in the mud and tied the punt up and had a walk along the top to find a gate or a style as I knew every one like the back of my hand.....or so I thought . The first gate I came to shouldn't have been there nor should the next style , the side I was on only had one and that was a fair way up from where I was , it then dawned on me I was back on the wall where I started from and walking in the wrong direction. By now it was early hours in the morning with the tide well down so I made the boat safe and walked home , had a couple of hours sleep and back up there in daylight to bring the boat back.........All part of the learning process. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grandalf Posted January 9, 2015 Report Share Posted January 9, 2015 Hope you had a nice meal tonight Ben. Very nice and the wee dram or two went down well too. In this evening after dark. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wymberley Posted January 9, 2015 Report Share Posted January 9, 2015 One day back in the early 60s my Father was in his punt on the Exe making his way home when he came across a fellow fowler on a mussel bed waiting for evening flight. They chatted for a few minutes during which Father warned him that "fog was forecast". Anyway, they said their good byes and Father headed for home. Sure enough the fog came down right on dark and just as Father hit dry land. The next day word was about that a fowler had gone out from Lympstone the previous day and was missing! To cut a long story short, they found his gun & bag but never his body.... It's most likely that Father was the last person to ever speak to him, something that still plays on his mind to this day... Bradford? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
anser2 Posted January 9, 2015 Report Share Posted January 9, 2015 (edited) I guess my most frightening expriance was when taking a novice curlew flighting on the Wash. There had recently been a new sea wall built and it had a deep " burrow dyke " dug on the seaward side and a low breakwater bank was put up to protect the bare soil of the new sea wall from wave action. Every 1\4 a mile the breakwater was breached by a creek. I left the guy on a corner of the breakwater wall with strict instructions no matter what he was not to cross the side creek. I settled a few hundred yards away and awaited the curlew that were being pushed off the marsh infront by a very big spring tide. As soon as the tide was within 100 yards I singaled to my mate it was time to go and i saw him stand up so i set about stowing my birds away. When I finnished i looked back at him and he was still standing there undecided what to do. I ran up to him finding he had crossed the creek that I had told him not to and was now cut off. I told him there was only thing he cpuld do , he had to jump in and get to my side. Once he was across we set off for a 1\4 mile jog to where there was a crossing place on the Burrow dyke. Mean while the tide came pushing in hard and was now pouring over the breakwater wall and flowing into the burrow dyke like a waterfall. At one point I looked back and all I could see of my mate was a hand and gun above the water. Somehow we made it back to the crossing point and it was two young ,very wet , very frightened wildfowlers who sat on the sea wall counting themselves very lucky to have made it. The simple moral of the story if you are a guest and told to stay put do so or your life might be at risk. Edited January 9, 2015 by anser2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Konnie Posted January 9, 2015 Report Share Posted January 9, 2015 those creeks on the wash seem twice as wide when they are filled with water. need a lot of knowledge and sometimes a decent set of gonads, out there. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grandalf Posted January 9, 2015 Report Share Posted January 9, 2015 Many years ago my son, 18, and myself stayed at the pub at Tydd Gotte (spelling?) for a weeks fowling. One lunch time the pub filled with people who had just buried uncle someone. Most were Irish and they got down to a wake. We were pulled into this by the spirit of the Irish for doing these things correctly. A few pints later we departed to the marsh - before the days of the breathalyser - for the evening flight. Laid out there in the late afternoon sun waiting for dusk - we both fell asleep. Woke up in almost dark with water coming down the back of by neck. We weren't on a bad piece on marsh - Ongar Hill area - but god how we ran. Both got wet crossing the back gutter but didn't have to swim. Never did that again. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marsh man Posted January 9, 2015 Author Report Share Posted January 9, 2015 Many years ago my son, 18, and myself stayed at the pub at Tydd Gotte (spelling?) for a weeks fowling. One lunch time the pub filled with people who had just buried uncle someone. Most were Irish and they got down to a wake. We were pulled into this by the spirit of the Irish for doing these things correctly. A few pints later we departed to the marsh - before the days of the breathalyser - for the evening flight. Laid out there in the late afternoon sun waiting for dusk - we both fell asleep. Woke up in almost dark with water coming down the back of by neck. We weren't on a bad piece on marsh - Ongar Hill area - but god how we ran. Both got wet crossing the back gutter but didn't have to swim. Never did that again. When your younger you look at danger as an adventure and excitement and you don't expect it will do you any harm. When the young boys signed up and went to war a lot of them didn't expect to be killed or badly injured ,they looked at it as a game and not somewhere where there is a good chance you could get killed. It is only when you get older you look back and realise how lucky ( or how stupid ) you were at the time you done it . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brian28 Posted January 9, 2015 Report Share Posted January 9, 2015 Nice read, but whats the story to this [and in Big Mats case getting mugged by one of the Kray twins of the Pinkfeet world........and thank God he came out the winner ] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
motty Posted January 9, 2015 Report Share Posted January 9, 2015 Nice read, but whats the story to this [and in Big Mats case getting mugged by one of the Kray twins of the Pinkfeet world........and thank God he came out the winner ] Big Mat managed to knock down the world's unluckiest pinkfoot, this season. He had a fight to the death to finish it off. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fenboy Posted January 9, 2015 Report Share Posted January 9, 2015 Here is the pic and story of Mats goose wrestling exploits , I still think it was a brent he was trying to cover up with mud. http://forums.pigeonwatch.co.uk/forums/topic/298423-at-long-last/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chad63 Posted January 9, 2015 Report Share Posted January 9, 2015 Bradford? Sorry lost me there? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wymberley Posted January 9, 2015 Report Share Posted January 9, 2015 Sorry lost me there? His surname. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chad63 Posted January 9, 2015 Report Share Posted January 9, 2015 His surname. Ah I see. Sorry I don't know but I'll try and find out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
anser2 Posted January 9, 2015 Report Share Posted January 9, 2015 I have never been attacked by a goose I have shot , but twice my dogs have. The first time it was a young pink that i sent my rather inexperianced golden retriver for one dark morning. I was surprised when she came back without it so sent her again and this time followed her. She was dancing around the goose while the goose held its wings open and hissed at her. I quickly picked the goose up myself , but the dog learnt that if a goose was still standing she would run into it hitting it with her sholder and when the goose was bowled over she would then pick it up. A few years ago a friend winged a pink that fell close 100 yards behind me. My lab went for it , but came back without it. After flight we went in search of the bird and when we found it it ran at the dog with its wings open and hissing. Again it had to be picked by hand. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marsh man Posted January 9, 2015 Author Report Share Posted January 9, 2015 Here is the pic and story of Mats goose wrestling exploits , I still think it was a brent he was trying to cover up with mud. http://forums.pigeonwatch.co.uk/forums/topic/298423-at-long-last/ One of the best photos and thread last year......And a big thanks to " MAT " for taking it in the light hearted manner it was meant to be . A good old Norfolk boy........well maybe not that old. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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