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A man on a tractor.


JDog
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Yesterday afternoon whilst on my dog walkabout I saw a few pigeons going into a field recently drilled with spring barley. I watched for a while and it looked like there was a decent prospect of a flight as long as I could get on. Fortuitously as I was watching a man on a tractor came to top dress the next field which had emerging beans in it. At the end of one of his runs I ambushed him, told him what I was all about and he gave me permission there and then.

 

Today my chores started very early in order to make time this afternoon to go shooting. Does anyone else dislike 'eggshell' paint as much as I do? Anyway I got through the preparation and the painting by 1:00 and I set off for the field which was three miles from home. There wasn't a bird to be seen when I got there and I almost decided to return home when I saw fifty pigeons coming from a long way off at a great height and dropping like stones into the field, followed by slightly less ten minutes later doing the same thing.

 

I had to set up with the sun partially in my eyes which was a nuisance but I struggled on. One major difference between here on top of the Lincolnshire Wolds and my shooting in Gloucestershire is that here birds suddenly appear out of a 'big sky'. I have been used to seeing them flying along a belt of trees or some other landscape feature and this is pretty scary stuff.

 

Thirty meters to my right the wind was blowing round the end of a wood across the field from right to left. Where I set up the rotary the wind was blowing in the opposite direction. My pattern could not be right for both wind directions so random it was.

 

I had to be back to see tradesmen before they left for the afternoon and my session was restricted to less than two hours during which time I shot 39 pigeons. I really enjoyed my afternoon out. I do now have to rub down and paint more woodwork but that was a nice break.

 

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Edited by JDog
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What a great afternoon. Congratulations, JD.

 

My chum and I were given another thousand or so acres to shoot over recently. The next day we shot over the rape fields that the pigeons were hammering properly and left a dozen pigeon crowns and a couple of bottles of wine on the farmer's doorstep. When he put his beans in we got a call the same day so sometimes the little things make a difference.

 

I dare say you will have plenty of acres before long, if you haven't already.

Edited by Milo
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Very good going for two hours shooting at this time of the year , come to that 20 a hour is not to bad for any time of the year and that includes harvest time.

 

One thing that did stick out was how easy it was for you to obtain permission to go on the field you went on , but then again if I look back to when I started to knock on a few doors in the late 60s to go on Peas and laid wheat , which at the time seemed to be the main crops we shot over , very few ( if any ) said no and within a few years we had as much shooting as we could cope with.

 

For the last year or two I have been contented in going on the land I have got without looking for any more , but we keep hearing from some P W members saying how hard it is to get some land to shoot on , yet P C goes out most weekends looking and if he havent got the go ahead when he finds some, a few calls or texts and bingo ....another photo for P W mass to look at.

 

There are new people starting up every week, and at the other end of the scale there are as many packing up through age , illness or moving from that area like Mr JDog have now done , so the ones who are still looking don't give up as new doors are opening every week.

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PC it helps that I am very ugly. Even hardened old Lincolnshire farmers have sympathy for me.

 

Marshman. I have not had to seek out extra shooting for some time. I am so keen I couldn't bear to think that an opportunity was missed just because I didn't ask.

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