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Dog walker in pea crop calls the police Part 2


ShropshireSam
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Shot the same field of peas next to a town as last week.  Decided not to bother ringing 101 as know it takes some time to get through and then explain why your ringing.  Yesterday was nice and breezy and wind ideal direction for my chosen location.  I moved the hide 20 yards down the field to be under an oak tree.  This limited my shots to the right due to some low branches but meant birds coming over the kill zone (a nice patch of thin peas) were a bit further out and not flying directly towards me.  I was set up by 1:30 with a mate due join me who couldn't get to me until after 3.  I'd taken more kit as I was planning he could help carry some of it.

Set up with two flappers on longer metal poles so they sit above the peas (ca. 4ft) and look very natural as you see birds gentle flapping to keep balance as the peas drop under there weight.  Then had 4 dead birds on 4ft white flexy canes, again  holding the birds above the crop and four half-shell decoys on the floor in the gaps.  Had a busy half hour then steadyily slowed.  Put another 6 fresh birds on flexy canes and replaced the shells with fresh birds.  Birds from all directions but best shooting ones were quartering in on the wind at great speed and curling into the kill zone.  After about an hour the wind dropped and the quartering flightline dried up .  Was careful to shoot only at birds over the thin patch with no chances to take doubles.  Saw a dog walker on a tramline at the top of the hill but she turned the other way when she heard the shooting.  Mate joined me around 3pm by which I had 44 dropped.  He hasn't done much pigeon shooting but started well with 5 from 5, then went downhill and he couldn't connect with birds decoying well. Any crossers or birds coming up into the oak above us he could hit.

Bobbies turned up around 4pm.  Complaints that we were shooting over a footpath.  They could see we weren't and I explained I had the same issue a week earlier.  Did a check on our gun serial numbers and then left us to it. Pleased they did not ask to see our certificates as both had left them in the cars.  Both friendly and interested in what we were doing.  Told them I'd ring 101 if out on this field again.

About an hour later had another dog walker coming down the tramline.  Walked up the hill to speak to her.  She thought there was a path along the edge of the field but when advised there was not, apologised and returned up the hill.  So I'm assuming several dogwalkers have been  doing a circuit of this field (ca. 70 acres) with paths at the top and bottom and a track on the far side and now assume its a public path all the way round.  And hence the calls to the police.

Shot until we ran out of cartridges about 7 and finished with 76 picked (106 counted down).  We had more carts in the cars but traffic had slowed to the point as not worth fetching more.  Any we dropped wounded with second shots in the thick peas we marked and retreived but any dropping dead outside the kill zone were left as the dog was doing too much damage to the crop to retrieve these.  I shot 76 with a 100 carts which is a good ratio for me but mainly due to not taking on any doubles.

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If it's the same Complainant/s could you not turn the tables on them and report to the police that you are the subject of harassment by this person/these people who are making vexatious complaints?

Edited by panoma1
Predictive text predicted wrongly....again!
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Sam,

 I think you need to be very careful here .

There is a public footpath from Longford road to the white cottage at Aston Hill .

But knowing you as I do , you will have been operating within the law .

Sadly many people (dog walkers ) have little idea of what we do . They and the Police need to be educated by BASC and other countrysports associations .

I used to do Proficiency Award educational courses for BASC , in Newport & Telford but one of the flower pickers from the Ivory White Water Mill didn't think that was a good idea. 

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3 hours ago, panoma1 said:

If it's the same Complainant/s could you not turn the tables on them and report to the police that you are the subject of harassment by this person/these people who are making vexatious complaints?

Different dog walkers I think as last week the officer apologised and said he would visit the complainant and "educate her".

 

1 hour ago, Salopian said:

Sam,

 I think you need to be very careful here .

There is a public footpath from Longford road to the white cottage at Aston Hill .

Yes, this is the path along the bottom of the field.  Only seen one couple walking on it.  Probably 200 yards on the right from the hide at the nearest point.  By setting the decoys to the left we were shooting away from the path.  The cottage and the track to it are 300+ yards away and the path at the top is 750 yards away .... so no issue in that those directions.  Had three bobbies all agree not an issue for them so happy to shoot there.

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Sam,

 Agreed , you were doing it properly , as you know I would have been out and about with the dogs and saw where you were .

But as we all know , we can't fix stupid . With the acreage we have there at our disposal we are bound to have dog walkers passing by and we are sadly also going to have issues with them . The top field by Church Aston is attracting a lot of birds due to the crop being knocked down by dogs and walkers , but sadly I think it is not advisable to shoot over it because of the new houses proximity. Thankfully we have lots of choice around there so good luck with a few days good sport.

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