Quarrybrae syndicate shoot

[Rob525]

Will be a good pond when its grown back abit, I think you'll be on for a bumper year! 

[Nmb]

Hello everyone.

here is a short video showing the kilduthie pen and it’s inhabitants! 

[Nmb]

Hello everyone!

Its been a busy spell since my last update with out first partridge and duck flight having taken place.

First up was the Partridge day on the 7th of September. This was never going to be a huge red letter day as we don’t put a huge amount of birds down but everyone seems to enjoy the opportunity to get out with the gun so early in the season.

it would be one of our new drives - the Rough ground which would kick the season off and despite there being a healthy number of partridges in the drive many seemed to prefer flying back over our heads than forwards! Despite this four strong flying birds were shot and more importantly the banter was in full flow!

it was a calm and bright day which is never ideal with young birds but the next drive the ruinwood always seems to perform so I was confident we would get some shooting.

i had a couple of hopeful shots at pigeons but the first few partridges evaded me and flew to my right over pegs 6 and 7. This was followed by a huge covey of partridges which flew straight over the bulk of the line giving most of us a shot! 

After this it was fairly quiet and after picking up it was time for lunch.

unfortunately the afternoon drives (Containerwood and Jaffreys) were almost devoid of partridges so we cut short our day and decided to bag some recently delivered wheat.

it had been a enjoyable day but I would have hoped for a few more to have been seen but that’s just shooting!

total bag

10 Partridges 

1 rabbit 

 

 

 

[Nmb]

As I mentioned we also had our first duck flight last friday.
there had been good numbers coming in when we had watched the ponds so we were confident of getting some shooting!
Typically it was a lovely day when I was inside at work but as the working day neared its end the rain started to increase and would persist most of the weekend causing flooding in many places!
Despite the weather 9 of us met at the bothy and after a cup of coffee and some cakes we picked pegs. 1,2,3 would shoot the Drumfrennie pond, 4,5,6 Bohill and 7,8 and 9 would be at the containerwood.
Ian, Mark and I headed to Drumfrennie which along with Bohill are new areas to us this year and we were all intrigued to see how it would work out after the work put in over the previous months some of which can be seen in the above posts.
As we approached the pond which is surrounded by trees two mallard were flushed and despite ians efforts escaped unharmed. We then settled into our duck butts and after deciding the boards restricted her view too much my old dog Fern refused to sit with me choosing to instead sit outside the butt! Every time I tried to get her back round she just looked at me as if I was stupid!
After a few minutes we could hear the Bohill guys getting some serious shooting and it wasn't long before we also had some duck make an appearance with several groups of Mallard numbering between two and six coming in to land. 
I shot quite well accounting for two Mallard the first a low incomer and the second another attempting to make a hasty exit!
After a half hour we called it a day and after hearing so much shooting at Bohill we were confident of a bumper bag however upon arrival at the bothy we found out they had only matched our efforts of four! Unfortunately the containerwood pond didn't have a single duck so hopefully this will change in 3 weeks for the next shoot!
After some lovely soup it was hometime and after a long day a well earned rest!

Total bag
8 Mallard

[Nmb]

Hello everyone.

We had our first Pheasant shoot of the season yesterday and after all the hard work put in over the spring and summer everyone was looking forward to getting some shooting.

'It was an early start for me as I had some dogging in to do first thing and the rain on the journey  across made me nervous for the day ahead however upon arrival at the cabin it had stopped. After pushing a lot of birds into the drives it was time for a bacon roll and coffee followed by the safety brief and peg picking before heading to the first drive - Bohill Thinstrips.

My team would be beating this new drive and I was keen to see if the promising amount of birds that had been seen over the last few weeks would still be hanging around! It is a long narrow conifer belt which rises up a decent hill with a rocky area full of ferns and brambles jutting out in the middle. At the base there is s broom flanked ditch which runs towards a release pen a few hundred yards away.

As I blanked in the ditch only a few birds were flushed which was a concern as we had seen over a hundred in the morning and the uneasy feeling increased as they were still absent as we beat  the bottom half up towards the rocky area. Thankfully birds started to appear running forward  and as the beaters we had put in from the top started to make their way down towards us the flushing point started to fill nicely. A nice stream of birds started to flush but  despite the flaggers best efforts some of the birds didn't quite have the strength to fly as high as we would have liked but the potential was there for us all to see!

Next up was Baldaroch for my team and I was eager to see what would appear as its one of my favourite drives despite it not having a great first season with us last year. I was peg number 7 and although the increasing wind was going towards the lower numbers I was confident id get a shot. Two jays made the fatal mistake of flying over Steve and Alex followed by a Pigeon which I bagged to win the first pigeon sweep!

Next it was the intended species turn to test the guns with pheasants mainly flushing forwards before swinging right and curling back to their pen. Despite this the majority had some shooting and I managed to add 3 nice Pheasants to the cart. As before we could see that with a few tweaks this could be a brilliant drive over the next few months.

The Rough ground was next and despite being a new drive for this season it had been the signature drive in years gone by for the previous syndicate and with the help of the guys that had joined us from there we were hoping that it would continue to be a hot spot for pheasants!

The drive is a fairly large conifer block with a large ride filled with broom, ferns and brambles being a popular spot with birds. There is also a rough ground area which leads away from the wood at its mid way point and when blanking it in at the start of the drive a huge amount of birds were flushed into the main part of the wood. It seemed like a bumper bag would surely be achieved and indeed a fantastic show of birds were raised by the beaters, the problem being that they seemed determined to fly back to their pen which is situated in the middle of the wood. Despite this it accounted for 15 Pheasants so a good way to finish before lunch.

After a nice lunch and homemade cakes which my mum made it was off to Matt Steels and being a walking gun I didn't think id see much of the action. Just like the previous drives there was a huge amount of birds and I even managed to bag 4 Pheasants  trying to beat the line and head back over the beaters! This has always been a banker drive where most of the line gets shooting and the 19 accounted for today was a fantastic start.

Kilduthie followed and a good amount of birds were to be seen with the recurring issue of them flying over the beaters heads to return to the safety of their pen. We could have put more guns along the edge of the wood to try and bag a few more however the season is young so we will get the next time!

Last drive of the day was Bohill farm and like the first drive of the day this wood goes up a nice slope and looks like it could provide some cracking birds once they are stronger on the wing. It will take a couple of times to get it all worked out and the birds seemed to run out of steam  and dive down after the flags rather than taking on the guns but we had all enjoyed a fantastic day and could see its got the potential to be a fantastic season for the shoot.

It was time to head back to the bothy for a cup of coffee and a count of the bag. It had been a record Pheasant bag for the shoot and with arguably the best drive being rested alongside several other good ones it really is an exciting time for the shoot! Im sure in two weeks time the birds will be even stronger and I wouldn't be surprised if the record is broken again although its probably better to try and keep it to a similar amount to this one as its a long season! The debate as to whether the Containerwoods title as being the best drive might soon be taken by the Roughground will continue but im sure both will be one the guns will look forward to.

Total bag

81 Pheasants

2 Jays

1 Pigeon

Shots- 180

Edited October 7, 2019 by Nmb

[Walker570]

A bit late I know but only just catching up on progress.  Noted you where building duck blinds. Easy peasy way to sort that is to scrounge some potato boxes from a local potato farmer. Often they have some which are slightly broken or worse for wear but make superb blinds and big enough for two people and they have a floor.   We just put some tnalised legs on each corner and cut a doorway. Corner seat in each corner.

Glad you had a good first day and a not so bad shot count either.

Edited October 6, 2019 by Walker570

[marsh man]

An excellent detailed account of what sounded very good sport on your first day .

We would find your first date a bit to early to shoot Pheasants down our way , is it normal to make an early start in Scotland , not finding fault just curious as you are a long way North from us .

[Nmb]

10 hours ago, Walker570 said:

A bit late I know but only just catching up on progress.  Noted you where building duck blinds. Easy peasy way to sort that is to scrounge some potato boxes from a local potato farmer. Often they have some which are slightly broken or worse for wear but make superb blinds and big enough for two people and they have a floor.   We just put some tnalised legs on each corner and cut a doorway. Corner seat in each corner.

Glad you had a good first day and a not so bad shot count either.

Thanks for the reply!

That would have saved a lot of work so might have a ask about as we still have one pond that needs to get some new butts! 

10 hours ago, marsh man said:

An excellent detailed account of what sounded very good sport on your first day .

We would find your first date a bit to early to shoot Pheasants down our way , is it normal to make an early start in Scotland , not finding fault just curious as you are a long way North from us .

Thanks Marsh man!

its quite early for us as well we tend to start last week of October however we have had to increase the amount of days we shoot to incorporate the remaining members of the previous syndicate on the new ground into ours.

We got the birds a couple weeks earlier and although a few aren’t quite there with a bit of caution it seemed to work well! 
The next shoot is in two weeks so think they will be a lot stronger then!

[Nmb]

Hello everyone.

We had a duck flight last night and despite it being dry all day at work as soon as I started to drive to the shoot it started to rain!

When I arrived at the bothy it was nice to see a huge amount of Pheasants  heading back to the Containerwood to roost and it looks like plenty of shooting will be had here if we shoot it next Saturday!

Once everyone had arrived and had a chat we drew pegs. Four would go to the Bohill pond and the other four to the Drumfrennie pond. Due to there being a big turnout I decided to sit at the far right of the Bohill pond in line with the Duck Butts but against a dike about 40 yards away.

It was pretty miserable sitting in the rain however after hearing the distant echo of shooting from the other guys we started to scan the skies that little bit harder hoping to spot some ducks.

it didn't take long for the first Mallard to appear a nice pair heading in straight towards the guns. Steve shot one and I managed to take the other as it made its escape from the pond which pleased me as it was quite far out at this point.

For the next twenty minutes shots rang out from both teams as Mallard along with some Teal at the other pond provided some great sport. After a pick up with the dogs it was back to the bothy for a count of the bag and a cup of coffee! Despite having less  shooting our team had accounted for all but two of the bag so some leg pulling had to take place!

Total bag

9 Mallard

shots - ample

[JDog]

Nmb 

You put a lot of effort into your reports which are greatly appreciated. 

[Nmb]

On 11/10/2019 at 17:20, JDog said:

Nmb 

You put a lot of effort into your reports which are greatly appreciated. 

Thanks JDog! 
 

We are all set for our shoot tomorrow and there seems to be a huge amount of birds in all the areas so with this in mind we are shooting 5 different drives from last time so will be interesting to see if they perform well.

i will have a few more video cameras working this time so hoping to get a fair bit of footage. 

 

 

[Nmb]

 Hello everyone.

We had our third shoot of the season on Saturday and despite having endured torrential rain for the whole of Friday it seemed to have dried up for us all arriving at the cabin in the morning!

First drive of the day would be the Bohill Thinstrip which had been affected heavily by the rain with the bridge crossing the ditch at the base of the drive being completely submerged and the bottom 3rd of the wood  being flooded. Because of this we struggled to get the beaters in position however a good amount of pheasants were flushed and although most seemed to be dipping in front of the guns a few good birds made their way into the game cart.

Next up was the Beeches which again had been hit by the previous days weather making this new drive much harder to organise. Its a large conifer plantation which leads out towards a thin strip of Beech trees that gives the drive its name. The guns would be lined in front of the Beech trees where a release pen is situated. Surprisingly many of the birds curled back over the beaters which meant the bag wasn't quite as high as we would have hoped at the end of the drive.

The Roughground would hopefully bolster the bag and with so many birds being seen around here in the run upto the shoot we decided to drive the nearby broom and long grass block where the pheasants appear to favour in the morning. I was a little nervous when showing my team to their pegs as we could all see that a huge amount of birds were in the main drive behind us but after only a few minutes birds were streaming across the entire line and for a few minutes I couldn't reload quick enough! It had been a  great success and most of the line had added a bird or two to the bag.

Most shoots have there signature drives and ours is  probably the Roughground and Containerwood so shooting them one after the other was exciting as we would see which was looking the most promising for the next few months! When I lined out the beating line it was clear that the wood was full of Pheasants however the majority flew back over our heads towards their release pen and safety. Despite the birds not reading the script it was good to see so many in the area and it looks like this will be a cracking drive next time when we tweak the way we drive it.

After a quick lunch we headed to the last two drives Drumshalloch and the Willows. it would be our first ever time trying Drumshalloch and by chance I was in the hot spot with most of the birds flying over my peg 6 and number 7. I hadn't been expecting much from this one so it was a pleasant surprise seeing such strong flying birds! The Willows is usually a banker drive and it was good today with the only drawback being the birds struggled to get through the willows which were still clinging to their leaves. With the horn blown for the last time it was time to count the bag and have a cup of coffee back at the bothy!

It had been a strange day as despite seeing so many birds some of the drives didn't go to plan but its early season and we have plenty time to fine tune the drives and get them working at their best!

Total bag

50 Pheasants

1 Jay

218 Shots

[Walker570]

Always good to read your excellent reports. Wishing you a succesful season and hope the weather improves, even a touch of frost wouldn't go amiss.

[Nmb]

Hello everyone!

we had our 4th shoot of the season on Saturday and yet again wet weather seemed to dominate the days leading upto the shoot.

Despite the heavy rain there was plenty of birds wandering around at 07:15 so after dogging in the various drives I had enough time to scoff down a sausage roll and a coffee before setting off for the first drive Bohill Thin strip.

We had the guns positioned out slightly differently today and although there were quite a few birds flushed it didn’t quite go as well as we would have liked. 
With many birds being spotted in the farm wood drive next door it might be worth giving it a go next time.

Next up was Baldaroch and as always it provided good sport for the majority of the line with the birds getting up well and flying strongly over the guns.

i managed to get my first bird of the day but missed a nice high cock pheasant which effortlessly glided over me!

With the game cart starting to fill it was the Roughground next which had been a steady drive so far and today would be no different with the only disappointment being much of the birds flying over the lower numbers.

it was a great drive to beat as you could see the birds lifting probably 400 yards back from the guns and see them lift higher and higher before either folding or continuing onto safety.

My teams next drive was the Containerwood and after it being fairly average at best last time out we were all hoping to see it return to its normal self.

i was a walking gun and it was clear very quickly there was alot of birds present with them sprinting forward as the beaters approached! Eventually they started to flush and everyone had plenty of opportunities to add to the bag and I even managed to account for 6 pheasants myself! 
After a very quick stop for elevenses at the Bothy we cracked on as the rain was only getting heavier.

Mattsteeles wasn’t as busy as it can be and it seemed to take forever for the first bird to flush but as we approached the last 100 yards of the drive birds started to take flight and give the guns some sport!

last up was kilduthie one of the original drives of the shoot and despite it being our 10th season here we decided to change the gun line to see how it would work and happily it seemed to work well with quite a few good high birds being shot. It just goes to show you can’t just stick to the same routine all the time. 

After a coffee and bag count we went to shoot ducks and for those of us lucky enough to be at the bohill pond we were treated to a fantastic flight of mallard coming in steady for a good 20 minutes!  

with that it was back to the bothy for a bite to eat and discussion of the day!

total bag

85 pheasants

9 mallard 

1 pigeon

280 shots (excluding ducks)

Edited November 5, 2019 by Nmb

[bigroomboy]

Great write up, I look forward to these!

[Nmb]

Hello everyone!

Our fifth shoot of the season took place on Saturday and it finally looked like we might get a nice crisp day without rain for the first time!

First drive of the day would be Bohill which would incorporate the farm and thinstrip woods which we normally do separately. Unfortunately it wasn't very successful with only a handful of birds being added to the cart and a surprising lack of pheasants in the drive given how many had been seen in the run up to the shoot!

Next up was the Roughground drive and after such a disappointing start we really needed this one to perform. As we have been doing recently the scrubby cover that runs out the side of the wood  was done first which gave myself and pegs 1-4 some fantastic shooting and once this had been finished the beaters took the main part of the wood which was behind us towards the higher numbered guns which resulted in a huge amount of shooting over the course of the drive for all the guns. The birds are really strong now and gaining some good height.

Kilduthie was to follow and after the A-team having given us such a great drive we wanted to make sure we returned the favour. The early signs were good with a good number of birds being pushed towards the flushing point in the Willows. The issue here is that a deer fence surrounds the willows so as we started to corner the birds they started to flush in larger numbers than would have been ideal but there was plenty of shooting and again some fantastic birds really tested the guns.

After this we headed for the Ruinwood which used to be the best drive on the shoot however this season we had barely seen a pheasant when feeding. Despite this we decided to give it a try as we have to try and rotate the drives so that we can get good sport all season! As we approached a reasonable sized covey of Partridge flushed infront of where the guns would stand and headed for safety so expectations were low! There wasn't a huge amount of birds present but 10-15 partridge and a few pheasants were flushed and I managed to bag my first redleg of the season!

The Containerwood was next and as per usual there was a huge amount of birds in the drive however with time marching on many elected to land in the trees instead of testing themselves against the guns. it was still a good drive with a decent number of birds added to the cart and it seems like we will have a good amount of birds here for a good while yet.

Last drive of the day was meant to be the Willows however we elected to shoot Matt Steeles instead due to daylight running out fast. It was a fantastic way to end the day with a good number of high birds flushing over the line and giving the entire line the opportunity to get one last bird for their day! I was a walking gun and had a couple of nice birds which were trying to fly back.

With the horn being blown for the last time it was back to the bothy for a cup of coffee and a count of the bag.

Total bag

82 Pheasants

3 Partridges

1 Jay

276 Shots

 

[Nmb]

Morning everyone.

we have a walk/boundary day on Saturday and since we’re a little short on numbers if anyone on here fancies a day out then feel free to come along. 
Give me a shout if anyone wants more info. 
Only thing would be you need insurance through basc, sacs etc. 

[m3vert]

Great to read your ongoing reports for your shoot, I have enjoyed your reports since you started them. An excellent opportunity for someone with your kind offer :-) I hope someone can take you up on this. Keep them coming.

[London Best]

2 hours ago, Nmb said:

Morning everyone.

we have a walk/boundary day on Saturday and since we’re a little short on numbers if anyone on here fancies a day out then feel free to come along. 
Give me a shout if anyone wants more info. 
Only thing would be you need insurance through basc, sacs etc. 

What a generous offer. Well done that man!

[Nmb]

Hello everyone.

We had our first walk day of the season last Saturday and hopes were high for another good day.

it didnt start quite as well as we hoped as our ambush on the geese which were in a stubble park near the lwood lifted before we could get a shot! 

After this we headed to the Snipe bog and Glashmore to see if any of the little waders were present. There was no problem getting the guns positioned this time and it wasn’t long before a number of unsuccessful shots were taken! It’s amazing watching how quickly they can turn and despite 20-25 being flushed which is much less than normal with just one added to the bag along with 3 cock pheasants.
The Ruinwood and Tall trees were next and both were quiet with a couple of pheasants being shot at the Ruinwood and only a fox being seen in the Tall Trees which managed to escape unfortunately!

With a fairly meagre bag we headed to Jaffreys which I hoped would give us some good sport. There was a good number of pheasants many of which flew back over the beaters which normally means safety however today with us carrying guns a few were added to the cart! The standing guns had a bit of shooting too and we had reached double figures finally! 
At this point the weather started to turn for the worse with rain starting to weigh us all down so with time marching on we decided to do Hattonburn and Drumshalloch.

My old lab Fern decided it would be fun to flush a half dozen birds out the bottom of hattonburn before they were in range!

A few birds were flushed but like most of the day there wasn’t really as much as we had expected.

its always nice to finish on a good drive and I thought Drumshalloch might provide some good  shooting and it didn’t disappoint with a good mix of birds flying over the standing guns and back over the beaters resulting in 7 pheasants bagged.
Everyone was keen to get back to the bit by for a count of the bag and a cup of coffee!

with just under 4000 acres I think we need to have more walk days as we didn’t manage to do half the bits we wanted!

total bag

15 Pheasants

1 Snipe

83 shots 

 

Edited November 29, 2019 by Nmb

[Nmb]

Hello everyone!

We had our 6th driven shoot of the season on Saturday and after enduring rain on every outing so far we were finally given a frosty and clear day to hopefully enjoy some good shooting in..... fingers crossed.

After the usual breakfast at the Roughground bothy we headed to the Roughground drive to begin the day. My team were beating and early signs were promising with birds moving ahead of us towards the flushing point at the end of the drive. Unfortunately many of the birds decided to fly back over our heads instead of testing the guns which was a shame however there was still a good amount of shooting with 19 Pheasants being added to the gamecart. 

Next up was the Implements and I would be peg number 4. With a busy schedule of 3 shoots on consecutive Saturdays we decided to do this as a filler drive and despite there being a reasonable amount of birds flushed most struggled to gain height and only 5 were shot. This drive is a warm fir tree block which tapers to a point where it is then met by a large bank of broom and I wonder whether the guns being partially hidden by the broom means the birds have no incentive to get up and fly. Despite this I managed to shoot a brace of pheasants and should have had another!

After some lovely game sausage rolls( thanks Tom) we headed to Baldaroch where I was hoping we may see some Woodcock! Once the guns were in position we started to beat and within the first 30 yards a nice pair of woodcock rose in front of me and zipped away to safety. There were several more flushed and one was shot however arguably it was some of the tall Pheasants which stole the show rising through the silver Birches and powering high  over the guns. Ian shot a fantastic Cock pheasant which he folded brilliantly after several missed it before him.

My team would be standing at the Containerwood and I had a frustrating drive. It started well with a strong covey of Partridge testing the guns before some nice pheasants started to show over the middle numbered guns. I was slightly to the side of the line and despite having a huge amount of birds fly my way almost all were too low to shoot at and I only managed to bag a single hen. With both the Roughground and Containerwood not really working a record bag was never on the cards but its a long season so perhaps a blessing in disguise!

Matt Steeles had been amazing so far this season but  the good run would have to come to an end at some time. Although quieter than normal there was still a few birds present and another Woodcock was added. The Pheasants here have flown really well which is unusual for the drive but we have a number of Bluebacks which may be the cause of this.

Last drive of the day would be the Willows and I would be a walking gun. It was a good drive with plenty of shooting taking place however I couldn't find the right spot and ended up always having to take the Pheasants as long tall crossers! I shot two and judging by the amount of birds being carried to the gamecart I hadn't been the only one to get one last pheasant for their day!

It was then time to count the bag and get a well deserved coffee!

Total bag

69 Pheasants

1 Partridge

2 Woodcock

1 Jay

228 Shots 

Edited December 4, 2019 by Nmb

[bigroomboy]

Excellent account of what sounds like a great day shooting!

[Nmb]

Hello everyone!

We had another shoot on Saturday and with it being the 2nd of 3 shoots in consecutive weeks a few different drives had been selected from the shoot last week to try and not hit the drives too hard.

After a sausage bap it was time for the first drive The Roughground. We had decided to shoot it the opposite way to last week to try and see if the birds would fly better. I was peg number 4 and as it turned out I would be in the hotspot! It was a good drive even though a large flush of between 30-40 pheasants had me fumbling in vain for cartridges! I ended the drive on 9 pheasants and a jay and had 3 left and rights So a great drive for me and plenty left to fly another day! 
Next up was the Bohill Thinstrip which had been struggling a bit recently.Today however It became apparent very quickly it was going to be a good drive as we started to move lots of birds slowly up the hill and into the flushing point about half way up the slope where they then started to flush in ones and twos as the beaters at the top of the wood slowly took the wood out towards the guns. It is was nice seeing some high and fast birds really challenging the guns and the fact that there was a good spread across the line helped make it one to remember!

Next up was kilduthie which has been fairly steady this season and today was no different with a good amount of birds being flushed and testing the majority of the guns. I managed another left and right and a couple of singles so a real red letter day for me! The birds are really starting to fly well and you have to be on your toes to shoot them!

Having had 3 good drives we hoped the Container would keep the birds coming and yet again it proved to be reliable with good flushes of birds testing the guns with either end of the line getting the most opportunities to add to the bag. Also worth saying a well done to Angus who bagged his first ever pheasant! 

After a bowl of soup it was off to Bohill farm to see if it would perform better than it had recently and like the thinstrip next door it seemed to be much busier than normal with a good amount of pheasants being shown over the guns. My hot streak hit the skids with me missing some pretty hard crossers but I probably should have shot a couple atleast! These are pretty high birds flushing off a large wood at the top of a hill next to a farm yard and with them speeding down the slope towards the guns it can be hard to catch up with them!

Last drive was the willows and as always it was a nightmare fighting our way through the huge plantation but it was worth it as shots started to be heard at both sides of the line and some really nice birds being shown. A good way to end a fantastic day.

With the horn sounded it was time for a count of the bag and a coffee!

A record bag for our shoot!

total bag

88 Pheasants

1 jay

1 pigeon

327 shots 

Edited December 9, 2019 by Nmb

[bigroomboy]

That sounds like a brilliant day!

[Nmb]

Hello everyone.

We had our 8th driven shoot of the season on Saturday and despite having shot the ground pretty hard recently we were still hopeful of another good day. 
First drive of the day would be Matt Steeles for the A-team and after a very frosty night I was a bit concerned the birds might have headed out to the stubbles to heat up in the sun rather than staying in the drive.  There were a few birds present including one of the white marker birds but it wasn’t as full as we had become accustomed to so a slight disappointment. 
Next up was the Bohill strip which had probably been drive of the day last week so it would be interesting to see how it would perform today. I was peg 3 and wasn’t expecting much shooting however as the beaters blanked in the ditch that runs along the bottom of the wood a good number of birds flew back towards the release pen behind me which gave myself and the lower numbers some shooting.

unfortunately there wasn’t many birds in the main drive which was a shame but atleast we had seen a few in the ditches.

The Roughground would hopefully boost the game cart a bit as there always seems to be a good show of birds here. Today was the same but a lot went straight back over the beaters heads which was a shame but a good number that went forward we’re shot so not a complete disaster! 
Baldaroch would round the morning off and much like the first two drives there were birds but not the same amount as we have been lucky enough to have previously. I shot a nice high cock bird but didn’t have another shot after that however Harrie and mark both had crackers so quality over quantity here! 
After a cup of broth and a couple of cakes to get the energy levels back up we were away to the Willows. This was a disappointing drive with very few birds being seen and only a couple shot perhaps the cold weather really was making the birds head out into the sunny fields for a heat up.

last up was the Containerwood and for the first time during the day a drive went to plan with good flushes of strong birds testing the guns. It was a good ending to a mixed day with most of the guns getting a few shots.

With the horn sounded it was time to count the bag!

51 Pheasants

1 pigeon 

208 shots