pigeons in the fog , can be magic .

[Harnser]

Got the first of the millions of pigeons on the rape phone call from my farmer friend this year . Went and had a look today at a 100 acre field of rape . It was so foggy I could not see half way across the field . My dear farmer friend had insured me that hundreds of pigeons were feeding this field yesterday .

 

This field is about 100 acres in total and fairly narrow for a field of this size and must stretch alongside a narrow country lane for about 800 yards . My farmer had put a gas gun at both ends of the field pointing towards the middle . I think that I would have set them up in the middle of the field back to back facing towards the ends .

 

When I arrived at the field at about 7-30 am I never saw a single pigeon moving any where .It was very foggy and had not got light properly and was still very dull because of the fog . Knowing this field well I decided to take a chance and set up between the two bangers and leave them on . This would hopefully keep the pigeons of the bottom ends of the field and push them towards the middle where I was going to be .

 

I set up smack bang between the bangers in the far hedgerow away from the lane . I decided to only use a few flocked decoys just incase I had to move and opted for 20 coys and 4 floaters .

 

I was set up and in the hide by about 8-30 am .There was still a lot of fog and I couldnt see the other side of the field .Both the bangers were going off at about 30 minute intervals and sounded very muffled by the fog . At 9-15 am I saw the first pigeon cross the field and put its feet down about 50 yards out side my pattern . I left it there to see if it would pull any more birds nearer to me . Lo and behold an other bird came in very low to the decoys and I killed it clean at about 30 yards . It all went quiet again for about an other half an hour ,and then a pair came in right into the coys and I took a loverly left and a right . The fog had just started to lift a little bit and I could just about make out the lane opposite me . The shooting really started to pick up and the birds were coming in regulary now and I was having some good shooting . The fog was keeping them down low and they were committing straight into the coys . I had made the right decision to set up between the bangers and to leave them on . This experiance comes with knowing your filds and how the local birds react to you being there . Its not rocket science just good field craft and knowing your farms .

 

I packed up at 2-15 pm and picked up 57 birds . I was using black gold 6 and a half shot 28 gram and these cartridges are the best shell I can ever remember using .

 

So dont let a little fog put you off a days pigeon shooting , its worth sitting it out to see if the birds will come .

 

Harnser .

Edited November 20, 2010 by Harnser

[vampire]

You did better than us,mind you it was so thick where we were that you could only shoot at the sound of the wings as visability was down to nothing,we got 10 pigeons and a micro lite

[adi1210]

nice one mate well done.. had a simalar day like that last year, great fun..

[Cookiemonsterandmerlin.]

I too had a reasonable day today in heavy mist.

 

Last week had two cracking nights longnetting in the fog.

 

Cheers OTH

[proTOM1]

Nice shooting I like pigeon shooting in the fog makes for good sport plus the fog muffles the bang

[turbo33]

Good shooting Harnser I have tried the black gold 28grm 6's. Stunning shell, pulls them out of the sky from phenomenal distances. I found them a bit on the loud side, can hear them echoing for miles!!

Edited November 20, 2010 by turbo33

[Harnser]

Sorry boys ,had to edit my post . After reading it again I realised I had said that I had shot 87 but in fact it was 57 . Still a good day out on early season rape .

 

Harnser .

[mossy835]

well done, i ony shot 1 today not any about.

[bucolic]

Set up yesterday morning in the fog about 7 nothing all morning, so I decided to pack up about 12 and had a walk through the wood that sits on the edge of my rape fields and low and behold there they were about 500 pigeons at the top end of the wood, I`d left my gun in the motor just me and the dog, never mind It will get better I hope.

Edited November 21, 2010 by bucolic

[shoughton]

Thanks for the write up. Interesting as I thought it wasn't even worth trying in fog - but now I now.

 

They don't seem to be getting onto the rape atall around my parts - searched for pigeons all weekend as I planned to shoot today and tomorrow. All I found were rooks on the drilled wheat. So I've ordered a set of rook decoys just in case that's the only shooting to be had next weekend.

 

Not sure where our pigeons are at the moment - I know they're somewhere .........

[anser2]

You did better than i did in the fog last week Hanser. I got a phone call from the farmer to say the pigeons were hitting a winter drilling. I arrived the next morning in thick fog to find not a bird on the drillings. But the next door rape was covered in them. So set up on the rape and though I got 7 birds , but as soon as the fog lifted all the pigeons switched to the drillings. Unfortunetly I had to leave at miday so it was not worth moving.