A quick morning session

[Clodhopper]

One farm I shoot has some very good lines during the winter months but is often difficult to shoot as my cousin runs a game shoot on there and I don’t want to disturb the game during the season. 
 

This morning presented an opportunity with good winds to concentrate the lines which would be passing over a drive which will no longer be used this season. I invited my cousin along too as he enjoys pigeon shooting as much as I do when he gets a chance to get away from the farm.

I knew the birds would be coming from a roost wood in a valley 2 miles away and would head over a small pond surrounded by tall Ash trees.This is where we concealed ourselves just before dawn.  The wind was gusting up to 35mph according to the forecast, the birds would be flying into this, perfect😄. All we had to do was wait.

At 07.50 the first birds started to appear but not quite as I had hoped as they were in groups of 50-100. I was hoping for smaller groups but we took what was on offer. 
 

The birds were junking around, some close to the ground and others 30-40 yards up which made for exciting shooting. The action lasted for about 45 mins before the line stopped. We had some great fun with every shot in the book presented to us. We picked 25 pigeons with one more dropped on the island of the pond( no dog to pick it). 
 

At around midday I had a ride round and spotted another line going to a rape field further up the valley, there were around 600 birds down feeding. Looks like tomorrow morning will be another windy one so I will be tucked up in a hedge again seeing what this line brings, with a bit of luck there maybe a bit of sport.

[pigeon controller]

Well done , some interesting shooting in the wind. Could you not decoy them away from the game birds?

[Clodhopper]

Just now, pigeon controller said:

Well done , some interesting shooting in the wind. Could you not decoy them away from the game birds?

It is a bit awkward on this particular farm as the well established lines just happen to run along where the drives are ( a series of small woods/spinneys which the pigeon aim for and then drop down onto the rape).The birds are difficult to pull off the lines. The flip side is when I can get on there I can right on the line and the sport is often really good.