Accuspell Posted January 16, 2022 Report Share Posted January 16, 2022 I have sat by the fire most of the day with freezing fog all around us there was little incentive to go fishing or shooting. After lunch it started to thaw and clear a bit, so I decided to take the easy option and nip up to the wood. As we approached there was still thick fog but it wasn't as cold as this morning, Tigs put up a couple of packs of pigeons out feeding on some resting ground that will be used for muck dumping in the late winter and spring, then ploughed and drilled. We were heading for the trees though, which already had quite a few pigeons sat in them digesting. We settled in under a couple of very tall ash trees that are popular landing spots, they are a good 80 feet high, so a good shot to the top. I like being mobile so hardly ever take a net or anything, preferring to just make use of what natural cover there is. Keep tight to a tree and you can get away with murder, provided you are quiet and move very slowly and smoothly. I always clear the ground around the base of the tree too, to sweep away all loose ground cover, leaves, twigs, branches, anything that will hinder my footwork or make a noise. The leaf mould base is what I stand on, not woodland debris. It takes seconds to do. There we huddled and within 10 minutes the first couple of pigeons flopped in, but too far through the branches to slot a pellet, just too many twigs between us, so they were left alone to provide confidence to the next arrivals. Another 5 minutes at most and I was lifting the sight onto the first victim. I prefer boiler room shots on birds, they are always successful and provide a much greater margin for error than trying to hit a target the size of a pea through the branches. Tigs nipped out and fetched it back. We had a couple more from this stand and heard the cackling of the pheasants as they prepared to go to bed. I made a mental note of where in the woods they were going to rest up for the night, they always give their position away when they go up to roost, thinking they are safe from ground predators. By 17.30 (half past five) it was getting dark enough to start to make a move through the woods. The Nikon scope makes short work of these conditions, allowing me to shoot hours after those with more accepted scopes have to give up or use some kind of illumination device. Seeing to shoot right through to gone 19.00 this evening. I stalked carefully through the woods, going from tree to tree, making sure not to crack a twig and placing my feet very carefully. The pheasants were confident and it was simply a case of finding the trees they had chosen, approach with some consideration and choose the birds. Tigs fetches the fallen and if you do it right you can get a couple from each group. I finished this session with 5 pheasants, two brace and a hen and just four pigeons, which is plenty for a few days. For the purists, this is my newer Rapid, but it is still an 'old nail'. The barrel won't come to any harm, it had a good coating of Hammerite many years ago! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dead eye alan Posted January 16, 2022 Report Share Posted January 16, 2022 Nice report well done you. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BinaryB Posted January 16, 2022 Report Share Posted January 16, 2022 Nice post - is your Rapid a FAC version? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Accuspell Posted January 17, 2022 Author Report Share Posted January 17, 2022 Just an old one with the long BSA barrel. My other one is actually older, but looks newer! That has the 16" Anschutz barrel on it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.