Finding The Time ?

[marsh man]

One of the main problems with most forms of field sports connected to shooting is finding the time to take part in it , with clay shooting it is normally a round on a Saturday or Sunday morning , rough shooting is the same , again mainly on a Saturday , Pigeon shooting can be done late afternoons in the Summer if you are working or both days on the weekend , wild fowling is slightly different , depending on how near your shooting grounds are and what time you have to be at work ,( unless you are retired or no longer working )there is nothing stopping you going for a flight early on in the season while the mornings are still light , again when you leave off you can go for a hour or so until the clocks change , once the clocks change it becomes a bit more difficult, that is until you get three days either side of the full moon and way you go again, and I am sure there will be some members like me who have been three times in a day and still gone to work , or is there 😊

Sometimes you might get lucky where your job allow you the time to do a bit more fowling , this was the case around 1970 , how do I know it was around 1970 ? , well at that time we done a lot of work for the Ministry Of Public Buildings and they looked after the Berney Arms windmill which is a very isolated mill that is at the top end of the estuary, to get to it you had to catch a train in the morning and walk over the marshes to the mill , then when the train went past in the afternoon to the beet factory you then had to pack up and make your way across the marshes to pick it up again , this is how I know it was early 70s as they changed our old money on the train and replaced your change with decimal coins that looked a lot like monopoly money .

Well this job suited me down to the ground as at least two days a week I would take my gun and my dog with me to work , at the time we could leave our motors at the railway station all day and we had to catch the train a little after 8am , it only took seven minutes to the un maned station and a good twenty minutes walk to the mill , in the afternoon the train went past around 3pm and that was it for the day as the train got back to the little station half an hour later and if you wasn't there it would carry on back to Yarmouth without you .

When the other three or four work mates got there bags to leave they thought I was mad as it was starting to get dark and the walk back for me was around six miles , I don't know about being mad , here I was in some of the best fowling grounds around and getting paid until four o clock , I would walk along the bottom of the estuary wall and often get a shot a bunch of duck sitting off the wall and then make my way down towards the town where I knew the best place for a shot or two would be , sometimes I would get home with an empty bag and the odd time where the bag would be fairly heavy , when the season finished then I went back on the train with the other blokes , but I can now look back to the time when I took advantage of the opportunity and got paid for it at the same time . THANKS 

[JDog]

You have certainly had your fair share of exploits like that MM. That is a great story.

I have shot Roe deer early morning, gone to work then gone out sea trout fishing in the late evening. 

[motty]

I am lucky to be able to get out many times during the season, as work is quite flexible. Recently I have been out for morning flight, gone to work, then got out for evening flight. It can be very tiring though!

I have also recently done about a dozen flights in a week. When conditions are right and birds are there, I have to get out!

[marsh man]

3 hours ago, JDog said:

You have certainly had your fair share of exploits like that MM. That is a great story.

I have shot Roe deer early morning, gone to work then gone out sea trout fishing in the late evening. 

Where there is a will, you will normally find a way , when I done a bit of salt and sea fishing I would take my rods to work , we were doing an extension to Birds Eye which is down towards the harbour's mouth , every other week the tide would be flooding when we left off and I would get two or three hours fishing in the river before going home for a late tea , Whitings were the main species and if you were lucky you would get the odd Codling .

 

1 hour ago, motty said:

I am lucky to be able to get out many times during the season, as work is quite flexible. Recently I have been out for morning flight, gone to work, then got out for evening flight. It can be very tiring though!

I have also recently done about a dozen flights in a week. When conditions are right and birds are there, I have to get out!

That is the only way to get amongst them , you have got to after them as they are not going to come to you , sadly some people live to far away from the shooting grounds and with work and family ties they will never have time to do that number of flights.

In comparison to the distance you might have travel , my main marshes are only a few minutes drive down the road, and from my old house they were one road away , when I worked for a builder in Yarmouth I used to drive a small lorry , the farmer where I done most of my shooting wanted all the brick rubble we came across , many a time I would call in my old house last thing in the afternoon , get the dog and the gun , go down the road to the farm , tip the rubble up and then go for flight , on the way back I would drop my dog and the gun off and then take the lorry back to where we parked it at the yard , if the office was still open I had to make sure I didn't have any blood on my hands or feathers to be seen , as far as I know up until the time I moved on no one was any the wiser . 

[Big Mat]

I always save my holiday up for the winter, I usually manage a flight a week up until mid November. It can be hard getting out, luckily my closes marsh is less than 10 minute drive. 

I've two weeks off between now and Christmas to catch up on Wildfowling!

[m greeny]

I'm lucky in that I work shifts so get out more than most but this year I've been off work since august 22nd and have been doing morning and evening flight every day and some days a tide flight too. Ain't seen my own bed since august 30th as I sleep on the sofa so I don't wake the boss at daft oclock in a morning

[shakin stevens]

Cracking write up marsh man!

I've moved up to the far north now, as motty stated you have to go when it's good.

I probably watch fowl 60 % of the time without the gun , then 40% trigger time when the going is good and the weather swings in your favour.

Nice when you can hear the sea from your back door and pinks fly over the house ! 

 

 

[marsh man]

56 minutes ago, m greeny said:

I'm lucky in that I work shifts so get out more than most but this year I've been off work since august 22nd and have been doing morning and evening flight every day and some days a tide flight too. Ain't seen my own bed since august 30th as I sleep on the sofa so I don't wake the boss at daft oclock in a morning

That is some dedication m greeny , do it while you can and when you get to my age you can always look back on it , how have it been up to now ?

 

1 hour ago, Big Mat said:

I always save my holiday up for the winter, I usually manage a flight a week up until mid November. It can be hard getting out, luckily my closes marsh is less than 10 minute drive. 

I've two weeks off between now and Christmas to catch up on Wildfowling!

I always enjoyed my Christmas break , in the building trade you packed up for two weeks and most of that time I would be out doing something connected to shooting , Boxing day was my main day , from my courting days and throughout my 40 odd years of married life I have never made family arrangements on Boxing day , I normally have some sort of plan but it always involve something to do with shooting , and this year will be exactly the same if the good lord spare me .

 

57 minutes ago, shakin stevens said:

Cracking write up marsh man!

I've moved up to the far north now, as motty stated you have to go when it's good.

I probably watch fowl 60 % of the time without the gun , then 40% trigger time when the going is good and the weather swings in your favour.

Nice when you can hear the sea from your back door and pinks fly over the house ! 

 

 

  GOOD LUCK on your move up north , as you say it's nice to see the geese fly over your house 

[Penelope]

In the vein of this thread, back in the early 90's I worked in the mailroom for a large merchant bank; the equities corporate finance dept used to have regular underwriting letters that had to be hand delivered to Edinburgh and Glasgow and I was on the rota (a good earner). It would involve being picked up by taxi from home in the early hours of the morning, getting into work to wait for the printer to deliver the letters and then get the taxi to take you Heathrow to catch the first BA business flight to Edinburgh at 7am. Meet Andy, the pet cab driver at the airport and get him to drive you round to the various company addresses, delivering the letters, then off the Waverley station to catch the train to Glasgow and do the same, flying back to London from Glasgow.

On one occasion there were two letters to deliver the Edinburgh only, on a Friday. At the time I used to go twice a year to shoot geese around Loch Leven. Anyway, it was my turn on the rota and I thought I'd try and turn it to my advantage.

A call to Sandy Aitken, the guide from Scotlandwell, to see if could fit me in for a morning flight on Saturday, which he could, then a chat with the chap in CF to see if he could change the return flight from Friday afternoon to Saturday afternoon, which was duly granted. Then a call to BA to inform them that I would be carrying a gun.

With letter delivered, Andy the cab driver shuttled me over the Forth Bridge to Scotlandwell, where I met Sandy for a meal and a few beers in the Well Inn, back to Sandy's for kip on his sofa, then out for the geese in the morning.

Fortune favored the cheeky, has the wind howled and I shot two pinks that morning, flighted, lined out along a stone wall to the west of the Loch.

Back the Well for breakfast, and then Split Pin, the barman, kindly drove me back to Edinburgh to catch the flight back to Heathrow.

Oh, did I mention that this was all paid for by work, too!

The only occasion that I have been paid to shoot geese.

[marsh man]

25 minutes ago, Penelope said:

In the vein of this thread, back in the early 90's I worked in the mailroom for a large merchant bank; the equities corporate finance dept used to have regular underwriting letters that had to be hand delivered to Edinburgh and Glasgow and I was on the rota (a good earner). It would involve being picked up by taxi from home in the early hours of the morning, getting into work to wait for the printer to deliver the letters and then get the taxi to take you Heathrow to catch the first BA business flight to Edinburgh at 7am. Meet Andy, the pet cab driver at the airport and get him to drive you round to the various company addresses, delivering the letters, then off the Waverley station to catch the train to Glasgow and do the same, flying back to London from Glasgow.

On one occasion there were two letters to deliver the Edinburgh only, on a Friday. At the time I used to go twice a year to shoot geese around Loch Leven. Anyway, it was my turn on the rota and I thought I'd try and turn it to my advantage.

A call to Sandy Aitken, the guide from Scotlandwell, to see if could fit me in for a morning flight on Saturday, which he could, then a chat with the chap in CF to see if he could change the return flight from Friday afternoon to Saturday afternoon, which was duly granted. Then a call to BA to inform them that I would be carrying a gun.

With letter delivered, Andy the cab driver shuttled me over the Forth Bridge to Scotlandwell, where I met Sandy for a meal and a few beers in the Well Inn, back to Sandy's for kip on his sofa, then out for the geese in the morning.

Fortune favored the cheeky, has the wind howled and I shot two pinks that morning, flighted, lined out along a stone wall to the west of the Loch.

Back the Well for breakfast, and then Split Pin, the barman, kindly drove me back to Edinburgh to catch the flight back to Heathrow.

Oh, did I mention that this was all paid for by work, too!

The only occasion that I have been paid to shoot geese.

Brilliant , a man of my own heart .

A little instance like that could well have triggered the start of the banking crises at around that time, and is why I am now getting next to nothing interest on the small amount of money I saved up for my retirement , all because you were jetting up and down the U K and shooting geese on your expenses . 

[panoma1]

46 minutes ago, Penelope said:

In the vein of this thread, back in the early 90's I worked in the mailroom for a large merchant bank; the equities corporate finance dept used to have regular underwriting letters that had to be hand delivered to Edinburgh and Glasgow and I was on the rota (a good earner). It would involve being picked up by taxi from home in the early hours of the morning, getting into work to wait for the printer to deliver the letters and then get the taxi to take you Heathrow to catch the first BA business flight to Edinburgh at 7am. Meet Andy, the pet cab driver at the airport and get him to drive you round to the various company addresses, delivering the letters, then off the Waverley station to catch the train to Glasgow and do the same, flying back to London from Glasgow.

On one occasion there were two letters to deliver the Edinburgh only, on a Friday. At the time I used to go twice a year to shoot geese around Loch Leven. Anyway, it was my turn on the rota and I thought I'd try and turn it to my advantage.

A call to Sandy Aitken, the guide from Scotlandwell, to see if could fit me in for a morning flight on Saturday, which he could, then a chat with the chap in CF to see if he could change the return flight from Friday afternoon to Saturday afternoon, which was duly granted. Then a call to BA to inform them that I would be carrying a gun.

With letter delivered, Andy the cab driver shuttled me over the Forth Bridge to Scotlandwell, where I met Sandy for a meal and a few beers in the Well Inn, back to Sandy's for kip on his sofa, then out for the geese in the morning.

Fortune favored the cheeky, has the wind howled and I shot two pinks that morning, flighted, lined out along a stone wall to the west of the Loch.

Back the Well for breakfast, and then Split Pin, the barman, kindly drove me back to Edinburgh to catch the flight back to Heathrow.

Oh, did I mention that this was all paid for by work, too!

The only occasion that I have been paid to shoot geese.

I’ve probably shot a few from behind that wall too, I reckon! Lol!👍

[m greeny]

1 hour ago, marsh man said:

That is some dedication m greeny , do it while you can and when you get to my age you can always look back on it , how have it been up to now ?

 

I always enjoyed my Christmas break , in the building trade you packed up for two weeks and most of that time I would be out doing something connected to shooting , Boxing day was my main day , from my courting days and throughout my 40 odd years of married life I have never made family arrangements on Boxing day , I normally have some sort of plan but it always involve something to do with shooting , and this year will be exactly the same if the good lord spare me .

 

  GOOD LUCK on your move up north , as you say it's nice to see the geese fly over your house 

Thanks marsh man it's a short season so got to make the most while we can. The shooting up to now has been very hit  and miss with plenty of birds about for a few days then they disappear for weeks so really having to put extra effort and mileage to put a few in the bag but that's part and parcel of fowling so just got to keep plodding away

[Penelope]

21 minutes ago, marsh man said:

Brilliant , a man of my own heart .

A little instance like that could well have triggered the start of the banking crises at around that time, and is why I am now getting next to nothing interest on the small amount of money I saved up for my retirement , all because you were jetting up and down the U K and shooting geese on your expenses . 

Yep, a days money, 30 quid for being on standby and 150 pound for expenses.

Oh, and firm stamped up for two days clay shooting a year at the West Kent Shooting School as part of the sports and social club, and as it was part of the Barclays group, two days representing the company (BZW) at the Barclay's National Clay Shoot, which we won on a number of occasions at various grounds across the country, including at what was our home ground at West Kent (at the time the only ground in the country that had Helice or ZZ, which was dam good fun Pat Lynch, the owner, shot at live pigeon events in Portugal and the states).

9 minutes ago, panoma1 said:

I’ve probably shot a few from behind that wall too, I reckon! Lol!👍

This was the other side of the M9 on Colin and Mary's farm at Ardgairney, where we ended up staying in later years.

Edited November 14, 2019 by Penelope

[panoma1]

18 minutes ago, Penelope said:

Yep, a days money, 30 quid for being on standby and 150 pound for expenses.

Oh, and firm stamped up for two days clay shooting a year at the West Kent Shooting School as part of the sports and social club, and as it was part of the Barclays group, two days representing the company (BZW) at the Barclay's National Clay Shoot, which we won on a number of occasions at various grounds across the country, including at what was our home ground at West Kent (at the time the only ground in the country that had Helice or ZZ, which was dam good fun Pat Lynch, the owner, shot at live pigeon events in Portugal and the states).

This was the other side of the M9 on Colin and Mary's farm at Ardgairney, where we ended up staying in later years.

My mistake Penelope!....I flighted on the East side.........not the West!  

[Penelope]

8 minutes ago, panoma1 said:

My mistake Penelope!....I flighted on the East side.........not the West!  

I have shot all round it, near and far, so it's possible we've been tucked under the same dyke.

[panoma1]

11 hours ago, Penelope said:

I have shot all round it, near and far, so it's possible we've been tucked under the same dyke.

I too have shot all around the loch, decoying....but have also flighted geese on the east side, both on and coming off the loch! That is going back a few (maybe 25) years ago now though!.......but never fished it in its heyday!

[Old Boggy]

Another great story MM, which has generated more interesting anecdotes from others.

Keep 'em coming Marshman. I'm sure there's many more stories to be told.

OB

[Penelope]

On 15/11/2019 at 09:31, panoma1 said:

I too have shot all around the loch, decoying....but have also flighted geese on the east side, both on and coming off the loch! That is going back a few (maybe 25) years ago now though!.......but never fished it in its heyday!

Around the same time as me then, early 90's.

[figgy]

You been very lucky mm. 

I have the time this season but the conditions locally have not been good.  This cold spell could be good to get birds back to the marsh.

[anser2]

Hi Marsh Man , good to be back on line after a prolonged break moving house ( now living in te same village as you ( if you can call it a village. As for making time to shoot. I have plenty of ground , and when the wind blows or it is foggy I go wildfowling. In clalm ( nice weather ?) I go freshwater fishing. Problem solved.

[Pushandpull]

Good to see you on here Robert. How is that book progressing ?

[anser2]

It was finished some time ago but with moving its been on the back boiler for some time. Early in 2020 I will have to see about getting it published.But thanks for asking.

 

Edited December 10, 2019 by anser2

[Penelope]

13 hours ago, anser2 said:

It was finished some time ago but with moving its been on the back boiler for some time. Early in 2020 I will have to see about getting it published.But thanks for asking.

 

Oh, good! Been looking forward to that.