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A Season Remembered For All The Wrong Reasons .


marsh man
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Touch wood I have never suffered from depression , but having said that I have found this last inland season being on the very edge of being depressed .

I now don't start till well into October and last year the rain started to put small splashes on the fields in early October so the cobwebs were blown off the boxes of steel cartridges to make a start , on the first night I went , apart from having a herd of cattle on the field I did manage to get three Widgeon , these cattle followed me in the dark and were getting a bit lively with my dog that was sticking very close to the edge of the dyke in case he had to make a hasty retreat , having got back in one piece I decided to leave these marshes alone until the cattle and horses had been removed which is normally by the first of November .

Come November , not only were the water on the marshes increasing so were the numbers of people catching the virus and another four week lockdown was just around the corner , luckily enough we could carry on fowling during the lockdown , what with the virus and never ending rain it was becoming a very strange season with shoots being cancelled and marsh after marsh being flooded , then we got through the November lockdown and then went into different numbered tiers , our shoots restarted and at the last one just before Christmas we were in tier two , little did we know then that the game season was all but over as a few days latter we jumped into trier four.

Unlike some of the coastal boys we could still go on our inland marshes during the lockdowns as long as we didn't have to travel any distance and we didn't go with more than one other person , as I lived just down the road and I go by myself I was alright to go when I want , over the Christmas period we were alright on Christmas day and then back into full lockdown on Boxing day , this was something that has never happened in any ones life time and you couldn't help worry about what was going on all around you .

Come January we had water on every marsh as far as the eye could see and getting on the right marsh was pot luck , I battled on through force of habit and lost count of how many times I got wet with very little in the bag , yes I did get the odd pair and single ones but never anywhere near what I would call a good flight .

Geese were about in good numbers and I got the one I wanted before Christmas , as I didn't know anyone else who wanted one I left them alone till I had a order for one , when we got to the last week I went each night and only managed three duck for the whole week , our last night was the Saturday night , I sat there in the freezing wind waiting for it to get duck and when it did I only saw a few duck and kept my gun barrels clean , it might be a age thing but for the first time in 60 years chasing fowl , I wasn't that sorry to see the season draw to a close .

That was my season , How was yours ?

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52 minutes ago, Big Mat said:

Given the varying restrictions, I had a pretty good season. The only bad part was making a mess off my new gun, but when you spend every weekend on the shore, it's to be expected.

Glad you had a good season , reading in the various magazines it have been a decent season for the ones who were still abel to shoot, number wise , we had very good numbers of fowl , looking at the R S P B numbers , it stated up to 15,000 Pinks and up to 25,000 Wigeon , I think that might be over estimating with the duck but there were certainly good numbers .

Treat yourself to a good side by side to use on the foreshore , very little can go wrong with one , mind you , I did have the bottom rib fall off one of mine and is now in the melting pot , bought it second hand , had it for around 20 years and owed me nothing , you most likely spent more on one box of HEVI- shot  than I paid for that ole gun .:lol:

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My season didn't involve bags even without a lockdown, Im just very grateful I was able to sit behind the old stone wall or tuck into a bank to see that beautiful moon come up and listen to the real world go about its business 

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Edited by islandgun
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Over the year for me it's been a dismal one. Walked up days down to just a handful. Deer numbers down to to around 30 and fox to just 60 odd. Pest control has t changed so much but interaction with friends and the lack of getting them out for shooting  has put a dampner on the whole year. To top it all my African Trip was canceled last year and also for 2021. The good news is that I will roll all the trips forward andgo for a month in 2022.  

It could be a lot worse and there is much to be thankful for. 

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It was clear Back in last summer this season was going to be different, and the run up to the start of the season lacked the usual enthusiasm for me.
  Things started slow, but it was clear early on that the Pinks were coming over in good numbers.
   By October we were into some decent flights, and with the restriction i tended to be fowling on my own or with my teenage son.
  I was not 100% on the rules for travelling to Scotland, i did not want to catch or possible spread the virus, so i decided from the start i would not travel up there at all this year.
   The teir system we had allowed me access to some club marshes, but i knew Lockdown would come at some point. With this in mind contacted an old school friend who has land adjacent to a river which tends to flood most years.
 Acquiring permission there would prove invaluable latter in the season.
  I had a decent run through October and November both geese and ducks, But the pinks though still here were less prolific local many  having moved down south.
   Come the lockdown in December it was initially unclear if we could even Cary on fowling, and Any shore shooting was out of my county so i decided to be responsible. And i just stayed local on a couple of rivers and the Flooded land i had picked up earlier.
  I had several memorable flights on widgeon and even a few days or consistent Pink activity along a flight line straight down the river over the flooded land.
  Standing in the flooded field at the back of a fence with the Dog in a bic boat moored behind me, though not coastal fowling. it certainly felt like proper wildfowling in it was inland or not.
   Beggars can not be choosers and i did what i had to do to keep going, and i made a point of flighting geese like i would on the shores, and i refused to use decoys. I have nothing against decoys, I just decided i wanted to Wildfowl this way that is all.
  My young Lad came on well this season and although his second year on the marsh he gained a lot of experience thanks to decent widgeon numbers, and the restrictions. Normally i would be off chasing Geese, but this year, my enforced duck flighting did re kindle my enthusiasm for this aspect of wildfowling i feel i have been neglecting for too many years. I would say without checking i have had about 20 good duck flights this season and i have loved it.
  Being inland its all over now for me, but i have enjoyed it and its been a welcome relief from the pressure of the covid lockdown.
   I am not sure about going roost shooting over the next few weeks, but i might just watch and wait local for any pigeon activity before i venture out again.
   All the best to those who can still get out on the shores until the 20th , i only wish i could get out. This will be the first year i have missed going out on the shore on the last day on the shore. Anoying but this virus decides what we can do at the moment.
 

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8 hours ago, marsh man said:

Glad you had a good season , reading in the various magazines it have been a decent season for the ones who were still abel to shoot, number wise , we had very good numbers of fowl , looking at the R S P B numbers , it stated up to 15,000 Pinks and up to 25,000 Wigeon , I think that might be over estimating with the duck but there were certainly good numbers .

Treat yourself to a good side by side to use on the foreshore , very little can go wrong with one , mind you , I did have the bottom rib fall off one of mine and is now in the melting pot , bought it second hand , had it for around 20 years and owed me nothing , you most likely spent more on one box of HEVI- shot  than I paid for that ole gun .:lol:

Been there done that with old side by sides, can't get on with them. Have been using a Beretta Silver Pigeon 3 1/2". Modern synthetic autos are the way to go for the muddy stuff I end up in.

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18 hours ago, MARSH GUN said:

It was clear Back in last summer this season was going to be different, and the run up to the start of the season lacked the usual enthusiasm for me.
  Things started slow, but it was clear early on that the Pinks were coming over in good numbers.
   By October we were into some decent flights, and with the restriction i tended to be fowling on my own or with my teenage son.
  I was not 100% on the rules for travelling to Scotland, i did not want to catch or possible spread the virus, so i decided from the start i would not travel up there at all this year.
   The teir system we had allowed me access to some club marshes, but i knew Lockdown would come at some point. With this in mind contacted an old school friend who has land adjacent to a river which tends to flood most years.
 Acquiring permission there would prove invaluable latter in the season.
  I had a decent run through October and November both geese and ducks, But the pinks though still here were less prolific local many  having moved down south.
   Come the lockdown in December it was initially unclear if we could even Cary on fowling, and Any shore shooting was out of my county so i decided to be responsible. And i just stayed local on a couple of rivers and the Flooded land i had picked up earlier.
  I had several memorable flights on widgeon and even a few days or consistent Pink activity along a flight line straight down the river over the flooded land.
  Standing in the flooded field at the back of a fence with the Dog in a bic boat moored behind me, though not coastal fowling. it certainly felt like proper wildfowling in it was inland or not.
   Beggars can not be choosers and i did what i had to do to keep going, and i made a point of flighting geese like i would on the shores, and i refused to use decoys. I have nothing against decoys, I just decided i wanted to Wildfowl this way that is all.
  My young Lad came on well this season and although his second year on the marsh he gained a lot of experience thanks to decent widgeon numbers, and the restrictions. Normally i would be off chasing Geese, but this year, my enforced duck flighting did re kindle my enthusiasm for this aspect of wildfowling i feel i have been neglecting for too many years. I would say without checking i have had about 20 good duck flights this season and i have loved it.
  Being inland its all over now for me, but i have enjoyed it and its been a welcome relief from the pressure of the covid lockdown.
   I am not sure about going roost shooting over the next few weeks, but i might just watch and wait local for any pigeon activity before i venture out again.
   All the best to those who can still get out on the shores until the 20th , i only wish i could get out. This will be the first year i have missed going out on the shore on the last day on the shore. Anoying but this virus decides what we can do at the moment.
 

Excellent account of your past season Marsh Gun , I agree with Islandgun . it is not all about the bag as he enjoy watching the sun rise and the sun set , don't we all , but not every one is for the photo album and this past season seem like non stop rain with the odd dry day in between the wet ones , even the most dedicated can only withstand so many blank flights while waiting about in the cold and rain before the enthusiasm wear a bit thin, if it was all about bag contents a lot of us would have called it a day years ago , but we all enjoy the sights and sounds in wild places and the chance to pit your wits in bagging a few fowl .

Ever since the lead ban came into force we have been more or less left alone , very little ( if any ) species have been removed off the shooting list , start and the finish of the season kept the same , no bag limits and so on , now this season it all went wrong , the threat of a ban was in force from the word go as numbers who had caught the virus started to seriously increase , then around Christmas there was talk of a hard weather ban , on top of this we have found members of the public just about everywhere taking themselves and the dog for there daily exercise , things will get better and like poor ole Captain Tom said , Tomorrow will be a better day , hopefully the same meaning will apply next season as well .  

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3 hours ago, marsh man said:

Excellent account of your past season Marsh Gun , I agree with Islandgun . it is not all about the bag as he enjoy watching the sun rise and the sun set , don't we all , but not every one is for the photo album and this past season seem like non stop rain with the odd dry day in between the wet ones , even the most dedicated can only withstand so many blank flights while waiting about in the cold and rain before the enthusiasm wear a bit thin, if it was all about bag contents a lot of us would have called it a day years ago , but we all enjoy the sights and sounds in wild places and the chance to pit your wits in bagging a few fowl .

Ever since the lead ban came into force we have been more or less left alone , very little ( if any ) species have been removed off the shooting list , start and the finish of the season kept the same , no bag limits and so on , now this season it all went wrong , the threat of a ban was in force from the word go as numbers who had caught the virus started to seriously increase , then around Christmas there was talk of a hard weather ban , on top of this we have found members of the public just about everywhere taking themselves and the dog for there daily exercise , things will get better and like poor ole Captain Tom said , Tomorrow will be a better day , hopefully the same meaning will apply next season as well .  

We could well be out of the grip of the virus by the start of next season, We might see no lockdowns or travel restrictions too. This would make life easier , this is a hard enough sport to begin with but working around the virus restrictions and weather, it was hard this last season i will admit.  You have to have a positive attitude to wildfowling, There is always something to be gained from an outing if you shoot something or not. If Wildfowling was simple it would not hold the same esteem it does with widfowlers.

 

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