vole Posted March 2, 2007 Report Share Posted March 2, 2007 Apart from a squirrel and trapped moles I have had a blank week or so.Overflying pigeon few and far between and they mostly out of range and unpredictable flight paths.Tried today with magpie call i bought and decoy.Zero.Walked along hedgerows.Nowt.Not a crop farm either.Any ideas?? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
young gun Posted March 2, 2007 Report Share Posted March 2, 2007 Pigeons seem to be a bit off round here as well they don't hang about, one minutes there is loads around and then they're gone, i think it's because we had such a mild winter there is so much food availlible for them their not having to gang together and search out food so there all scattered all over the place meaning they don't have set flight paths either as they aren't all heading for the same location. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vole Posted March 2, 2007 Author Report Share Posted March 2, 2007 Suppose that confirms what the magazines say too then.Glad its not just on my patch.Cheers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fisherman Mike Posted March 2, 2007 Report Share Posted March 2, 2007 Vole 21.... I am not at all criticising you, as I dont know your circumstances but it appears to me after reading and writing on this forum many times that many of us feel we have to get out and shoot pigeons weekly if not daily ! or some how we have failed Im a bit old fashioned and only shoot primarily as crop protection, my shooting trips are tailored to when the birds are a problem in the areas I shoot. As such they can be few and far between, but take it from me, much more enjoyable when they do occur. Why not consider another passtime and give your guns a rest. I go Fishing, Birdwatching, Keep canaries and Finches, paint and draw, have two dogs, make sticks, passionate about national hunt racing ( go at least twice a month ) and have a cracking allotment, so I dont really miss the smoking gun in my hand. I bet if some of us left our guns in the cabinet for a few weeks the pigeons would slowly creep back into the areas we shoot. without a doubt ! All the best. FM. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vole Posted March 2, 2007 Author Report Share Posted March 2, 2007 Guilty as charged!I am happy to take it from a fellow fisherman tho.I do admit to getting the shooting bug badly and with doing shift work have been able to go quite a bit.In two months have had a handful of pigeons i am chuffed with.Had my sgc 2 months only.Thought it would occupy me during the trout closed season but i admit to getting a bit obsessive and an antidote to a fairly stressful job picking up the pieces following folks heart attacks.By way of defence my shooting trips are usually couple of hours tops.Change of shifts and trout season will enforce a spell off.Sound comment.regards. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
njc110381 Posted March 2, 2007 Report Share Posted March 2, 2007 Vole 21.... I am not at all criticising you, as I dont know your circumstances but it appears to me after reading and writing on this forum many times that many of us feel we have to get out and shoot pigeons weekly if not daily ! or some how we have failed Im a bit old fashioned and only shoot primarily as crop protection, my shooting trips are tailored to when the birds are a problem in the areas I shoot. As such they can be few and far between, but take it from me, much more enjoyable when they do occur. Why not consider another passtime and give your guns a rest. I go Fishing, Birdwatching, Keep canaries and Finches, paint and draw, have two dogs, make sticks, passionate about national hunt racing ( go at least twice a month ) and have a cracking allotment, so I dont really miss the smoking gun in my hand. I bet if some of us left our guns in the cabinet for a few weeks the pigeons would slowly creep back into the areas we shoot. without a doubt ! All the best. FM. I think there may be a fair bit of truth in this statement. I see loads of pigeons on my permission, but don't try to shoot them more than once or twice a month normally Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peter_HMR Posted March 2, 2007 Report Share Posted March 2, 2007 Clays can be a good subsitute in the down periods plus when they are there means you can hit them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul in North Lincs. Posted March 3, 2007 Report Share Posted March 3, 2007 Apart from a squirrel and trapped moles I have had a blank week or so.Overflying pigeon few and far between and they mostly out of range and unpredictable flight paths.Tried today with magpie call i bought and decoy.Zero.Walked along hedgerows.Nowt.Not a crop farm either.Any ideas?? Do not get fustrated mate with the fact you're not shooting a great deal of gear.......the pleasures derived from shooting shouldn't be quantified by how much you've shot. Appreciate the fact that you out there, with permission doing abit!..... as I as a young lad I was so keen and hungry to hunt and gather, so I get where you're coming from...............You will find that time out in the field watching, and learning about your target species is also rewarding... enjoy what the outdoors has to offer................... we all enjoy pulling the trigger...........................but its not the 'be all and end all' Happy hunting my friend :blink: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vole Posted March 3, 2007 Author Report Share Posted March 3, 2007 Cheers fellers.I always enjoy my days out even with an empty bag at end of it.The farmer is pleased i have wiped out a few moles anyway so am being useful.Handy that my favourite trout and grayling stretch is on same farm too.Isnt clay shooting pricey though?Paid £23 for 50 clays and cartridges last week.Least a blank day is a cheap one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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