One of those days

[bluesj]

This maybe should be moved to the joke section Or a donkey of the week thread!

 

Had a weekend of crow shooting lined up, today we should have been at one of my mates permissions and tomorrow at mine plenty of crows at both . Neither of us could start early today so we were going to go on his bit today as there are a couple of houses near one of the fields we were to shoot and didn’t really want to be waking them at first light tomorrow .

We arrived at 9 ish to find a film crew still on site as they ran out of time yesterday, scrap that idea and go to the next. We needed another gun for my bit as the crows have been feeding in three different places, so i called a lad that has been wanting to have a go at crows (he shoots clays, and very well) yes he’d be more than happy to help out. Great so off we go, to try to get set up by just after 10. Me on a bit of barley that hasn’t grown as it should have, my mate on another bit behind and to the right of me and the lad was to be on the third bit about ½ a mile away but we are all within 500 yards of the same wood plus we had my dad set up in his garden ( garden chair, news paper, cup of tea and his 410) just in case they head for the cut hay. I and my dad have been watching where the crows are going for the last week or so, from first light until about lunch time they have been leaving the wood and heading out to a line of trees at the end of the field I was in then about half would drop in where I was set up and half to where my mate was, after that they would go across to where the lad was until 5 ish and back to us before roosting or that’s what has been happening for the last week or more.

About 100 lifted off from where I was to set up when I arrived and they were joined by another 100 plus that my mate had move, well setting up the birds were coming over so i thought we should be in for a good day. As soon as I was set up and in the hide a couple came in, I missed the first the first (could of hit it with a stick but I missed with a shotgun) but I did get the second after that I could see them coming from the wood and up to the tree line then they all went right and over to my mate, so thinking they must be able to see me or the hide I had a look at the hide from the other side of the field. If I hadn’t known where it was I wouldn’t have been able to see it but added some grass and bits but still most went over to my mate, it seamed he was having 10 shots to my 1.

A new plan was needed so took the hide down and stood in the middle of the hedge (its about 20 foot wide) Still no birds! Changed the decoys no change took the decoys in no change move to somewhere else in the field and picked up a few that where leaving in a hurry from where my mate was at about 12 I heard a couple of shots to my left and thought it must have been my dad then realized it was someone having a bash at some clays and that was the last time anything came near me but my mate was still having a few shots so thought I’d stick with it in the hope that the birds would be back in the late afternoon. My mate rang at 4 ish to see what was happening as he hadn’t seen any for a bit I said I was going to give it till 5 just in case, 5 o’clock came and went so I packed up on 16 assorted rooks, crows and jackdaws plus 5 pigeons and managed to get 4 rabbits on the way back to pick up the truck. My mate finished 53 assorted rooks, crows and jackdaws and 18 pigeons. Checked with the lad who was meant to be on the 3^rd bit of barley to see if he had any joy only to find out he didn’t go! I had a look up there on the way home, I made my way 100 od yards through a bit of rough ground over grown with brambles and stingers to find 300 plus sat out on the grass at the edge of the barley! I shouted and waved my arms about and watched as the lifted off circled round above my and dropped back down, might have a chance for a couple here me thinks, so back through the brambles and stingers to the truck to get the gun. Get to the truck and no keys !!! 2 hours on my hands and knees to find them! But on the plus side my mate had a good day

[fenboy]

can't win them all , shame the other fellow let you down , I take it he will not get a second invite !

[bluesj]

He won't be top of the list that's for sure

[STOTTO]

Yes Crows, ‘Dead Loss’ in all their forms!

[PaulJC]

What a waste of an opportunity...

[bluesj]

One little bit of karma, the reason the film crew was over running was because the crows kept getting in the way

I'm may not have been the days shooting i had hoped for and it may have been better if not for the film crew, the lad that didn't turn up and more importantly if i could have shot straight, but it was lovely weather to be out and about and I did see the raven and watched the kite for a bit

I could have been stuck painting the lawn or mowing the fence

Edited July 5, 2015 by bluesj

[WelshMike]

At least you can see the funny side of it and had a bit of shooting, though not as much as you wanted. I once went to a new patch of ground about 3/4 of an hour away from home with the .17 hmr, shown round by the farmer and said I would have a walk around for 1/2 hour to get a better idea of the terrain and shoot a few crows and rabbits....ooops I left the bolt at home..so went for a walk anyway, I didnt shoot anything on that occasion surprisingly...what a tool.

[bluesj]

At least you can see the funny side of it and had a bit of shooting, though not as much as you wanted. I once went to a new patch of ground about 3/4 of an hour away from home with the .17 hmr, shown round by the farmer and said I would have a walk around for 1/2 hour to get a better idea of the terrain and shoot a few crows and rabbits....ooops I left the bolt at home..so went for a walk anyway, I didnt shoot anything on that occasion surprisingly...what a tool.

Think we've all done something like that