what makes wildfowlers tick ?

[Davyo]

There are many things that make a wildfowler tick and not all will apply to all fowlers , but here are a few of my quirks.

 

Planning days , sometimes weeks or months ahead of your next wildfowling day, checking the tide table, and as the day draws closer following the weather forecasts.

 

Variety. The game shooter only has a few quarry species he is likely to shoot. The wildfowler has 9 species of duck, 5 species of geese and a few waders to bring variety to the bag. Variety too in the guns and ammunition you use.

 

Watching the light spread across the sky in anticipation of the coming flight.

 

Seeing the marsh come to life as the dawn breaks, bunches of duck , half seen flying past while you wait for the geese, A wader perhaps curlew or redshank feeding in the creek at close range. And the distant murmur of geese out on the sea getting ready to flight.

 

A love and respect of the quarry we hunt. The subtle difference between our quarry and all other birds.

 

The excitement as you know that approaching skein of pinks is going to fly over you within range.

 

The jubilation of outwitting a wary quarry that is well able to take care of its self. That great moment when the distant duck set their wings and turn into your decoys.

 

 

The weather. Nobody looks forward to a days game shooting in bad weather , but to the wildfowler bad weather brings the promise of getting to terms with the birds. But is not just bad weather . The atmospheric magic of a perfect dawn with wraths of mist rising of the river , The nodding reed heads with their dew drops sparkling in the weak sunlight , the splash of a fish breaking the mirrored waters surface and the quacking of a bunch of mallard , out of sight in the mist and then the moment they jump. Or the excitement of a wild days tide flighting as you watch packs of duck , low hugging the wave tops.

 

The satisfaction of sitting back after a successful flight with a cup of coffee in hand and watching the life of the marsh pass you by.

 

Then there is the other end of the day watching it fade away until you that moment you can no longer see individual blades of grass at your feet , its flight time.

 

Dark shadows arrowing out of the darkness to flare away at your shots sometimes to leave one or two of their number behind for the dog to find..

 

Having a dog who loves the sport as much as you and can be left to its own devices to find a shot bird away in the darkness. Followed by the glow as she delivers it to hand out of the darkness.

 

A few days later enjoying a roast duck Sunday lunch.

 

And as the final embers of the season dies there are plans to be made for the next. But before that day comes many wildfowlers become wildfowl watchers enjoying the sights as the birds gather for their return migration , keeping an eye out for the first ducklings of the year and watching them mature and then as the mallard start stubbling in late summer the old hunting instinct comes again to the fore and a new season is just around the corner.

 

If any of this stirs your heart then you have the makings of a real wildfowler.

Wow! "answer 2" You just took me there mate thanks.

[Davyo]

The look of expectant excitement on my dog when I get my Wildfowling gear out for a flight,my wife laughs at him every time when his little face drops and he sulks thinking he is getting left home as I fill the car then bouncing around as I come in for him. Getting set up in what you hope is a good splash or pool. Listening to birds fly past you can't see but your dog can and the look he gives you of disappointment for not shooting and giving him a retrieve. Calling in birds from a distance being happy they turned calling them in to your gun only to stumble or miss the shot and not mind one bit. Hopefully another chance will present itself. Walking off the marsh happy as can be with only one bird that was well retrieved by your dog over various E bits of water. Thinking can't wait to be out again for the next flight you can make.

 

Davyo if my club weren't so small as to not allow guests I would have taken you out to see for yourself. Bit of luck a member with more leeway will offer you.

 

Even if you don't lift your gun it's still nice to be out on the marsh for the flight.

Hi figgy,hope your well, thanks its something i wish id done before packing in shooting.Specially with Northumberland and Lindisfarne just up the road.I had every intension of getting a permit and just watching for a season and learning the ropes.I even had an app on my phone with calls to learn and a flight recognition book.I wouldnt want to just go without some amy experiance.Im really pleased with the replies to this thread.

[TONY R]

I was born into a family of wildfowlers my dad grandad both took me from childhood i was hooked on it then and still feel the same today over 40 years latter.

Just love the wild places and all the diversity of life that lives there the dawn over the marsh never disapoints, watching the marsh come alive owls gulls herons lapwings dun birds etc are entertainment besides the species we hunt, getting a bird of any kind is a bonus just being there is worth the effort.

Crouched in a creek up to your thoighs in freezing cold water dog perched precariously on a ledge on the creek wall waiting for those distant geese to lift is not for everyone but for those who crave this life choice there is nothing better, hearing the clomour as they lift scaning the horizon for the first signs .. are thhey on for a shot are they wide seeing the next lot jump behind them a little closer the anticipation is awesome im never more alive than when im doing this, watching them approach knowing they are on picking your bird in the multitude up there the one directly above you where you want them time to move your up and on it its crumpled up falling and the sound i love most the thud as it hits the frozen merse stone dead thats the sound of a job well done. nothing better.

Curled up in the rocks at the side of a bay widgeon piling in picking your shots trying to work the dog to shot birds while more are still pouring in stopping at your self imposed limit when you know full well you could have gone on till you run out of ammo if you were a shooter not a wildfowler.

Greys in a northern firth in the freezing cold the sound resonating of the hills around the firth the dog sat beside you that eye contact you both know whats coming and your in this together its instinctive its primal drawing a peg number and walking up a ride in anticipation of how the birds are going to fly in this wind is not the same league its exiting perhaps but nothing like wildfowling.

Shooting is important of course it is but with fowling you often walk off a marsh thourghly satisfied with your visit when you never saw a quary species never mind shot at one, now how happy would you bee leaving the shoot when no phesants were on offer.

Wildfowling with a strong emphasis on the wild part in the name is for me shooting on another level compared to anything else, and i have done most other forms of shooting in my time with both rifle and shotgun, wildfowling is as you say what makes me tick. I will do it while my health and the laws in this land alow me too which gives up first im not sure but im wildfowling for the long haul .

[grahamch]

Thgew opening page to Alan Savoury's The Shore Shooter sums it up for me but substituting the Northumbrrland coast.

 

A good alternative is Wentworth Days description of the wildfowler but I cant find the wording at present.

 

Added to that I waste my life driving a computer in an boring and anti social workplace doing a completely pointless job

so the shore is what keeps me sane and in touch with the real world!

[Wilksy II]

I've really enjoyed reading all those replies great question Davyo, I've got the Humber up the road but without a good dog I'm goosed!!

[greylag]

Everything written in these replies rings true,anyone who has taken up this grand pastime of ours has many many stories to tell.The excitement of ever trip is still fresh after 45 plus years and I hope it will continue.

[SuperGoose75]

I honestly think it is something that is in the Blood of some people. Some have likened it to a form of madness' which i think there is some truth in.!

 

I have recently set up an Account on Facebook' 'To see photo's of what the Kids are at up to at School' and also joined a couple of Widfowling groups which I havent posted on. It seems the thing for a lot of Shooters is to be pictured looking very happy behind big bags of geese shot inland. Now its not for me to say what is right or wrong as its up to them what makes them happy but its a far cry from what I consider Wildfowling to be all about.

 

There are better Men with words than me to describe the emotions Wildfowling can conjure up' but two pieces that come to mind and how i would feel about it all are 'Bonxies' Chapter in J. Youngs book A Pattern of Wings and 'BB's Book The Shooting mans beside book where he takes a Quotation from J.G. Millais's book The wildfower in Scotland. One thing I can say is' that it has taking up a large part of my existence and there was a time that if i wasnt Fowling' I was thinking about Fowling and if i wasnt thinking about it,i was reading about it and if i wasnt reading about it,I was writing about it, and if i wasnt writing about it I was talking about it and if i wasnt talking about i was getting ready for it. Yes I was obsessed and i think this may have something to do with the madness I mentioned. Im not as bad now as i think i have done to much Fowling to be considered healthy. However i wouldnt change it for anything.The person who can appreciate Wildfowling for what it really is' is a very lucky man indeed and will have seen things the ordinary shooter will not encounter and as above will have many memmories and stories to tell that will stay with him forever.

[islandgun]

some great replies on here,

Fowling for me now, consists usually of dusk and darkness watching the wet meadows and small estuary from behind an old stone wall, built a long time ago by men who would have witnessed the same dusk and heard the same birds calling, Snipe moving with their distinctive screech, the unmistakable curlew a sound of moor and shore, gull and distant sheep not seen, fowling is sitting and thinking sometimes speculating about the ethics of shooting, fowling is about being there and a peacefull part of the day, its about the beauty of an old gun. the knowledge of the ballistics behind your home-load and now the interest of a young enthusiastic dog, Now the point ! geese lifting and calling some high mallard, crouching low, will they pass within range, no oh well theres alway tommorrow !