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Possibly the last time on the disced Maize, or not


Old Boggy
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Last Wednesday, due to an invitation to an evening duck flight, I had not intended to go after the pigeons that day. However, during the afternoon, I could see a regular flightline to and fro the disced maize field from my house and noted plenty of pigeons dropping in. This I found irresistible, so I decided to go out just for about an hour and a half and hopefully have a few shots.

The adjacent field was being drilled with wheat and having a chat with my farmer friend on the way out, he assured me that I should have a few more days before he drilled 'my' field.

Although I could drive to my usual hide position, I still went light, with just the rotary with two dead breasted birds, a seat, my 20g Macnab Highlander and just a box of RC Sipe 28 gram fibre wad cartridges, on the basis that I wanted a quick set up and pack up due to the evening arrangement. 

My hide position was in my usual ditch, almost a dug-out surrounded by hawthorn bushes, giving a small window of opportunity in front with the pigeons crossing right to left towards the rotary which was set upwind and to my left, all as the previous week. Once again, I found that no net was necessary, providing that I kept still until the last minute.

I cannot pretend that the shots were particularly difficult apart from one or two just flighting over from behind unseen, and showing no intention to decoy, requiring a snap shot before being out of range.

Within 1 1/4 hours I had run out of cartridges. Not exactly schoolboy error as I had no intention in shooting more than dozen or so. However, I picked up 18 which represented a good kills to cartridges (25), for me anyway. Shooting on a flightline or roost shooting would have been a completely different story.

I packed up and stopped to have a chat with my farmer friend still drilling the adjacent field and who reiterated that 'my' field would be drilled sometime next week. I'd been home just half an hour and got a call from said farmer who apologised profusely that he had decided, due to the fine weather, to start drilling 'my' field the following day. "It's your field, you're the farmer to do what and when you like, I'm just a humble pigeon shooter grateful to be able to have free access" I said. He responded with " I like to keep you old boys happy as you help me out in the winter shooting the pigeons on the rape". Quite a nice response I thought and an indication of the good rapport that I have built up over the years. I am fortunate that there are only three of us that shoot his farms regularly. One of my pals who still works and shoots mainly at weekends and myself and Stourboy who shoot normally together in the week.

Even though it's now been drilled, there are still maize cobs all over the field and plenty of pigeons in attendance, so many more days shooting in the near future. The aforementioned 'working' pal was out there today and I could hear plenty of shooting from my garden. His last text at 3.30pm today advised that he had 49 on the clicker, so what the final tally was I've yet to discover. I would add that he goes out for longer periods, is younger and consequently has more stamina than me, but good luck to him. I am more than content with 'little & often' trips out.

OB

 

Edited by Old Boggy
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I've got a great bit of land/perm that has harvested maize and the pigeon love it at the moment. That's great I hear you say; but from last Saturday till last night, we were in Somerset visiting relatives and if the weather is dry, I'm going to be in Brighton for a VW show this Saturday. I have to earn a crust working, so will not be out in the fields for another 8 days. Almost certainly the land will be cultivated and all food gone by then 😥 Missed the boat again, I reckon. 

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1 hour ago, getthegat said:

I've got a great bit of land/perm that has harvested maize and the pigeon love it at the moment. That's great I hear you say; but from last Saturday till last night, we were in Somerset visiting relatives and if the weather is dry, I'm going to be in Brighton for a VW show this Saturday. I have to earn a crust working, so will not be out in the fields for another 8 days. Almost certainly the land will be cultivated and all food gone by then 😥 Missed the boat again, I reckon. 

You'll be surprised how much of the cobs will remain on the surface even after being cultivated. The field of maize mentioned in my initial post has been disced twice and now drilled with wheat but still has plenty of maize on the surface of interest to the pigeons. My pal and I went out on Tuesday for about 3 hours and picked up 34.(Full report pending).

I'm hoping to get on it again for at least another 2 to 3 weeks, if not more, so all is not lost on your field producing sport in 8 days time. They will take quite some time to clean it all up. 

Good luck.

OB

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12 hours ago, getthegat said:

I've got a great bit of land/perm that has harvested maize and the pigeon love it at the moment. That's great I hear you say; but from last Saturday till last night, we were in Somerset visiting relatives and if the weather is dry, I'm going to be in Brighton for a VW show this Saturday. I have to earn a crust working, so will not be out in the fields for another 8 days. Almost certainly the land will be cultivated and all food gone by then 😥 Missed the boat again, I reckon. 

My dad and I had a very good bag of pigeons in the April of one year following the maize harvest and cultivation the previous autumn, so never say never.

Edited by Penelope
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