wildfowling

[marsh man]

When we were younger we would accept whatever dangers came with our chosen sport , both inside our bodies and the outside , weather it was going out in adverse conditions with whatever clothes we had available or pushing the body to the limit by walking or in my case rowing miles , some of us get away with it and unfortunately some don't.

 

The first decent coat I had , or what I thought was decent was my brothers camo smock he had when he came out of the parachute regiment , it was totally un waterproof , cold and was like a straight jacket in freezing conditions , the water boots were Bulldog with no lining so you had to wear two pairs of socks to keep your feet warm, and there were times when we never had two pairs of socks.

 

In our early days before we had marshes where we could legally shoot we looked forward to freezing conditions with a strong Northerly wind so we could get a shot at fowl sheltering near the estuary wall , to do any good you had to walk nigh on the length of the wall which is over five miles long and there were days when you would do it in the morning , come home for breakfast or early dinner then do it again in the afternoon .

 

At the time we never gave our health a thought and over the years working most of my life outside getting cold and wet is starting to take its toll , yet I always think there are loads of people worst off than me who would love to go out as often as I do at the moment , so I never complain and enjoy what I do while my body is still able to do it , but I know one day my head is going to have to agree with my body and say start taking it easy and only do what it is capable of doing without pushing it to hard and over doing it .

[Grandalf]

Ah, but we'll always have the memories...

[washwildfowler]

When we were younger we would accept whatever dangers came with our chosen sport , both inside our bodies and the outside , weather it was going out in adverse conditions with whatever clothes we had available or pushing the body to the limit by walking or in my case rowing miles , some of us get away with it and unfortunately some don't.

 

The first decent coat I had , or what I thought was decent was my brothers camo smock he had when he came out of the parachute regiment , it was totally un waterproof , cold and was like a straight jacket in freezing conditions , the water boots were Bulldog with no lining so you had to wear two pairs of socks to keep your feet warm, and there were times when we never had two pairs of socks.

 

In our early days before we had marshes where we could legally shoot we looked forward to freezing conditions with a strong Northerly wind so we could get a shot at fowl sheltering near the estuary wall , to do any good you had to walk nigh on the length of the wall which is over five miles long and there were days when you would do it in the morning , come home for breakfast or early dinner then do it again in the afternoon .

 

At the time we never gave our health a thought and over the years working most of my life outside getting cold and wet is starting to take its toll , yet I always think there are loads of people worst off than me who would love to go out as often as I do at the moment , so I never complain and enjoy what I do while my body is still able to do it , but I know one day my head is going to have to agree with my body and say start taking it easy and only do what it is capable of doing without pushing it to hard and over doing it .

You are so right marsh man .. when I was young I thought I was invincible. Working on the land from a very young age..

 

I remember myself & best friend working along side each other back bent pulling Brussels in just leggings a T Shirts in rain,snow ,frosty weather without a care in the world. .

 

My Dad said you will pay for it in the long run boys .. we just thought yea yea ...

How he was so right ..

 

Then Down the foreshore after work again in the worst conditions .. just in a camo jacket ..

 

I thought I was the beas knees .. when my wife ,mother,sister .. all chipped in together and bought me a long shoreman jacket for my 25th Birthday. . Lasted me till I was 36 .

 

They don't make um like that anymore. ..

 

Happy Days. .

[6.5x55SE]

You are so right marsh man .. when I was young I thought I was invincible.

 

Same as Mate.

One freezing Snowy February morning having misjudged the Pink's flight line and with a creek i could not jump a to long of a walk to get round it I stripped down to boxer's bagged my clothes with my dismantled gun threw them across the creek ran jumped was in and out the creek so fast i hardly got wet. Dressed again i hurried to a creek the Geese was crossing missed the first two bunches Both barrels but finally managed to bag a Pink i walked of the Marsh feeling 10ft Tall when in reality i was a complete fool with marbles for a brain !!!!! I never learned as a few years later i half jumped swam another Wash creek to pick my first Foreshore R/L at Whitefront. Now as I'm no longer in my early twenties i leave the creek swimming to my Lab's

[anser2]

This is turning into an old coddgers thread...........and why not. Like you Washwildfowler I started shooting in the late 60s , but it was 1970 before I started fowling on the coast. My home shooting was in the Broads , but when my parents moved to kings Lynn I went with them and joined Kings Lynn Wildfowlers. I returned to the Broads a year later , but kept my membership of KLWA and had some magic fowling there over the next 30 years years. My first pink foot and pintail both came from the Wash and I would not have missed them for the world. Now my coastal fowling fowling is on the N Norfolk coast and after a long absence I returned to regular flighting in the Broads 8 years ago and how that has stired many forggoten memories. Three years ago I wondered if my fowling days were over following a stroke, but I fought back and was out of care a month before the doctors expected to discharge me and within three months started to shoot again. Thanks to a good mate I was able to make that seasons opening day and though my shooting was pretty poor both mallard and gadwall ended up in the bag. For the next few months my balance was poor at times but I managed to fight off the effects of the stroke only to develope some heart problems and now though I have to respect my limits for the past few years I have started to shoot again on the foreshore. My days of hurrying back before a spring tide have long gone , as are long treks out to far flung spots on the marsh. But by making good use of the weather and tides I can still get good fowling without having to walk too far if i pick my days. Like you Marshman my head often wants do more than my body will let it , but as long as I get so much enjoyment from the sport I will keep going.

Edited February 23, 2016 by anser2

[marsh man]

Maybe there will be someone reading these posts with some business sense and think there is a gap in the market for a care home for retired and worn out wildfowlers, decked out with the sights and sounds of what has been our playground for a great part of our life , we wont want pampering , a few arm chairs where we can sit there with our cut down water boots that we can use as slippers and some ole copies of the Shooting Times , then when its time for dinner give us a couple of honks on the latest goose call .

 

After reading the above the above posts I don't think it would be to long before we could become there first residents

[TONY R]

Blimey whats this growing old busines about when it gets i cant walk ill get a skegway thingey like clarkson uses in that telly add. Never give up.

Edited February 23, 2016 by TONY R

[kent]

Maybe there will be someone reading these posts with some business sense and think there is a gap in the market for a care home for retired and worn out wildfowlers, decked out with the sights and sounds of what has been our playground for a great part of our life , we wont want pampering , a few arm chairs where we can sit there with our cut down water boots that we can use as slippers and some ole copies of the Shooting Times , then when its time for dinner give us a couple of honks on the latest goose call .

 

After reading the above the above posts I don't think it would be to long before we could become there first residents

Those "pubs" have all closed now lol become prime bistro gastro whatsits they weren't ever homes but some obviously got confused in thier advanced years lol

[IEH]

Maybe there will be someone reading these posts with some business sense and think there is a gap in the market for a care home for retired and worn out wildfowlers, decked out with the sights and sounds of what has been our playground for a great part of our life , we wont want pampering , a few arm chairs where we can sit there with our cut down water boots that we can use as slippers and some ole copies of the Shooting Times , then when its time for dinner give us a couple of honks on the latest goose call .

 

After reading the above the above posts I don't think it would be to long before we could become there first residents

I'd be up for that!

[marsh man]

I'd be up for that!

If one or two of you gents can suggest any more home comforts for our twilight years in sheltered accommodation , or whatever they call it please feel free to add to the list , but PLEASE keep it clean

[Grandalf]

No duvets. Just a blanket and a heap of labradors on the bed.

Only real ale in the bar. Plus a few selected malts.

Fowlers breakfast about 10.30 every morning except Sunday when it's fowlers brunch at noon.

Hot botties for the beds in the winter months aka Mrs Mitchell at the Long Sutton Bull circa 1965. (Stone ones - of course).

Anti's are barred - of course.

Polo neck sweaters and cord trousers are mandatory - Preferably with braces over the sweater.

Woolen hats may be worn in the bar.

[harrycatcat1]

No duvets. Just a blanket and a heap of labradors on the bed.

Only real ale in the bar. Plus a few selected malts.

Fowlers breakfast about 10.30 every morning except Sunday when it's fowlers brunch at noon.

Hot botties for the beds in the winter months aka Mrs Mitchell at the Long Sutton Bull circa 1965. (Stone ones - of course).

Anti's are barred - of course.

Polo neck sweaters and cord trousers are mandatory - Preferably with braces over the sweater.

Woolen hats may be worn in the bar.

 

Would a flat cap be acceptable?

[anser2]

If things go to plan when I retire in a couple of years I already have a place in mind overlooking my childhood fowling grounds in the Broads, with several old fowling chums living quite close by and a sizable pink foot goose roost within sight of the windows ( that was not there when I started fowling, but what the hell you have to move with the times. )

 

 

 

Now even us oldens are getting to grips with computers how about a new computer game, we select what sort of marsh we want to shoot on, select the weather , tides ect , pick what sort of guns and shells to use and then try to shot duck with the computer joy stick. At the end of the game if we are sucessfull we can open a draw under the PC and find a fresh roasted duck for supper. So you can go fowling without ever having to leave your nice warm lounge.

 

The yanks already have a Duck Hunt game though its geared to younger hunters called Duck Hunt. You earn points for every duck you shoot to buy new guns, shells , decoys and a call, but you have to keep to their US duck shooting laws by having a duck stamp, keeping to the permitted times , keeping within the bag limit and shooting drakes rather than ducks. There is even a loopy lab to retreve the birds , but put a foot wrong and a buxtom US wildlife officer fines you or if you do something serious they take your gun away and send you to prision. Never got beyond level 2 , but there five levels to do all set on different marshes. Its a bit of fun.

Edited February 23, 2016 by anser2

[Grandalf]

I'll give the game a miss thanks all the same.

[marsh man]

I'll give the game a miss thanks all the same.

Yea , I think I will join you on that idea Grandalf , I doubt if I would ever learn the rules let alone get to stage one .

 

Although I do like the idea of anser2 plan when he retire in a couple of years time , with us both living not to far from his idyllic location we could take the digestive chocolate biscuits when he have a brew, and with a bit of luck we could become two of his old fowling chums .

[anser2]

Look forward to it , marshman , will put the kettle on as soon as I move in. But it might be a good idea to meet up for a drink the next time I am shooting down your way, though that might not be until next season. A recently retireing mate has already got his dream location sorted close to the river Chet. He exchanges keys in April.

 

The house overlooks some of his shooting ground where we flight pinks and greys and the duck shooting can be quite good too.

[Sportingrodandgun]

I just completed my first season and I absolutely loved it. Hooked. Things that caught me out a little bit.......

 

1. Thought I'd make do in my army surplus gear I used for fishing and pigeon shooting. Was fine in September but I quickly invested in a better coat and sallopettes as the year went on.

 

2. Also thought I'd muddle through the season with my game gun and look at getting a semi over this summer. Read a few more books, spoke to a few more people, got cold feet about muddy stocks and scratched barrels = Bought a 3.5" chambered pump before the first flight and it works really well.

 

3. I Don't have a dog. When I went on my own, I have had to let loads of birds go over me without a shot this season because I would have had little chance of a retrieve. Even a well marked fall onto marsh grass isn't that easy to find in the dark with a head torch (trust me). A lab is my next acquisition. Chances are hard to come by and even accounting for some schoolboy shooting by me, I reckon a good dog would have increased the bag.

 

4. Do it! Join up, get out there. My only regret is not starting years ago. This is the finest shooting sport there is, no doubt about it!

[happy.plinker]

Sportingrodandgun, think you've summed it up nicely and had a good time,well done.The marsh and mud is alien to us up here but can picture it well,it's still pretty wild on the rocks and weed on a big ebb with 50knots and rain/snow. I have a ess pup at 7 months and hoping he'll be ready for next season or maybe later in it.Not sure what a dog will be like running across weedy rocks in the half dark though,don't want him getting hurt.

[Grandalf]

Sportingrodandgun - Welcome to the nutters club. Seems you are hooked along with the rest of us poor mutts.

First fifty years are the worst. After that you don't have to buy new gear - Just go and rummage in the shed.

Glad you enjoyed the season.

[kent]

I just completed my first season and I absolutely loved it. Hooked. Things that caught me out a little bit.......

 

1. Thought I'd make do in my army surplus gear I used for fishing and pigeon shooting. Was fine in September but I quickly invested in a better coat and sallopettes as the year went on.

 

2. Also thought I'd muddle through the season with my game gun and look at getting a semi over this summer. Read a few more books, spoke to a few more people, got cold feet about muddy stocks and scratched barrels = Bought a 3.5" chambered pump before the first flight and it works really well.

 

3. I Don't have a dog. When I went on my own, I have had to let loads of birds go over me without a shot this season because I would have had little chance of a retrieve. Even a well marked fall onto marsh grass isn't that easy to find in the dark with a head torch (trust me). A lab is my next acquisition. Chances are hard to come by and even accounting for some schoolboy shooting by me, I reckon a good dog would have increased the bag.

 

4. Do it! Join up, get out there. My only regret is not starting years ago. This is the finest shooting sport there is, no doubt about it!

And the dog will never let you down as regards getting out of bed at 3 am Is always enthusiastic. Positive and hopefull

Is a lot better at spotting incoming birds

And don't talk rubbish.

[Sportingrodandgun]

Haha Kent! I bet I'll end up talking rubbish to the dog though! Cheers guys.

[storm in a teacup]

I just completed my first season and I absolutely loved it. Hooked. Things that caught me out a little bit.......

 

1. Thought I'd make do in my army surplus gear I used for fishing and pigeon shooting. Was fine in September but I quickly invested in a better coat and sallopettes as the year went on.

 

2. Also thought I'd muddle through the season with my game gun and look at getting a semi over this summer. Read a few more books, spoke to a few more people, got cold feet about muddy stocks and scratched barrels = Bought a 3.5" chambered pump before the first flight and it works really well.

 

3. I Don't have a dog. When I went on my own, I have had to let loads of birds go over me without a shot this season because I would have had little chance of a retrieve. Even a well marked fall onto marsh grass isn't that easy to find in the dark with a head torch (trust me). A lab is my next acquisition. Chances are hard to come by and even accounting for some schoolboy shooting by me, I reckon a good dog would have increased the bag.

 

4. Do it! Join up, get out there. My only regret is not starting years ago. This is the finest shooting sport there is, no doubt about it!

This mirrors my first season this year as well.

[kent]

Haha Kent! I bet I'll end up talking rubbish to the dog though! Cheers guys.

Yeah and it won't ever complain. Infact I think they actually get a lot of what we say ( makes you wonder who is the dumb animal)

[riptide]

i'd like to join my local club, i am new to wildfowling. having shot pheasants, pigeons,rabbits ect i now want to try my luck wildfowling.

can anybody tell me what kit i would need to buy to be able to go wildfowling. best gun for the money, cartridge,size brand ect.

thanks. E27N_JD

 

Enjoy your trip into the life of wildfowling ,,but first I have 6 Fordson E27N s in Our Tractor shed ,just thought you would enjoy reading that !!! I am sure their are some on here more qualified than me to give you info as to what gear you need .. All I can suggest is you need to be Thick Skinned !!!

[anser2]

I have given up with my Browning S\A. 4 times back to gunsmiths and a S\A expert and still after a few rounds are fired it jams so I am looking for a new gun that will handle 3 inch steel in comfort. This winter I have been using my old AYA No 3 3 inch magnum and its been ok for duck with 32 and 34 gr loads of steel , but it cant take the heavy loads of steel for geese ( BB are almost impossible to get in 32 gr loads ) and I have been using my rapidly dwindling stocks of hevi-shot and Tungstun.

 

In an ideal world I would like a S\S , but 3 inch steel proof S\Ss seem to be few and far between and those I have handled seem to have poor balance and feel like lumps of gas pipes rather than a sporting gun. O\Us are a non starter for me so it looks like it has to be a S\A. Having spent a fortune on my Browning a gun that has been a problem since day one I am not inclined to spend a thousand or more on another so thinking about the cheaper end of the market. Escorts did have a lot of bad press though the later guns seem to be a lot better. However I have been looking at the Armsan A612 3 inch. It handles like a dream and though I have not shot it feels like a nice gun. The gunsmith assures me that he has sold quite a few and had no bad feedback, but that could be just sales talk!

 

Has anyone on here experiance with the Armsan A612 , 3 inch ?

Edited March 6, 2016 by anser2