Shooting Times & Country – 21 August 2019

SHOOTING TIMES & COUNTRY MAGAZINE • 41

seatandtotiltthechancesofsuccess

slightlyfurtherinmyfavour.

A freestandingtowersolvesmany

oftheseissuesat a stroke— it canoften

beplacedexactlywhereit is required

andnotat a locationcompromised

bytherequirementfornatural

support.Thefreestandingtowercan

alsobeplacedinthecentreofanarea

suchasa gladeat thepivotalpoint

ofconvergingrides,whichoffersthe

possibilityof360°viewing and, if safe,

360°shooting.

I’vebuilta numberofsmalltowers

modelledonthetypesseeninthick

woodlandsfordrivenshooting.

Roughly2mhighwitha smallsquare

ortriangularprofile,a simplebench

seatandall-roundflat supportforthe

rifle, theyprovidea snugcapacityfor

oneperson.Madeofwoodandeasily

portablebytrailer,theyareperfectfor

deployinginyoungtreeplantations

wherethedeerareeasilyvisibleas

they pick their way slowly through the

newlow-levelgrowth. They are also

idealforfoxing.

Thereareseveralmedium-sized

towersinmyarmoury.Theyare

around3mhighandlargeenoughfor

twoinreasonablecomfort,though

stillexposedtotheelements.Theyare

farheavierandmoredifficulttomove

withoutassistance— preferably the

estateliftingvehicle.

Finally,therearea coupleofwhat

mustbetheRolls-Royceofhunting

towers.Theseareessentiallysmall

gardenshedson4m-highstiltswith

wide-openingshuttersandtopped

offwithmetalroofingsheets,plusa

weldedandgalvanised access ladder.

C y m b a l e ffe c t

A snughomefromhome,theywill

accommodatetwopeoplewiththeir

riflesandeventheirdogs,providing

goodshelterfromsun,rainandsnow.

Theonlyproblemwitha metalroof

is its unintended eff ectiveness as a

“Thecontinentalhuntingtoweris nowan

established part of my shooting armoury”

cymbal,scatteringallfaunaformiles

aroundwhenaccidentallystruck

withbarrelorsoundmoderatorin

theexcitementofa long-awaitedand

ultimatelyshort-livedopportunity.

Naturallyblending

Allmytowersarebuiltfromwood

— it’srelativelyinexpensive,easily

obtainableandperfectlysuitedto

constructionandsubsequentrepair

onsite.Woodenconstructionalso

naturallyblendsintoa woodland

settingandis simpletocamouflage

withshedpaints,woodstainsand

readilyavailablepigeon-shooters’

camouflagenetting.

It goeswithoutsayingthathealth

andsafetyshouldbea criticalconcern

foranybodystalking,outalonefrom

beforedawnuntilafterdusk.The

presenceoffirearmsandsharpknives

isobvious,andthatriflesmustbe

madesafebeforeclimbingup— and,

asis moreoftenforgottenintheheat

ofthemoment,climbingbackdown.

However,thegeneralrisks

associatedwithclimbingladders

andmovingonwetorsnow-

coveredplatformsmustnotbe

underestimatedeither.Wemust

alsorememberthathighseatsand

towersleftunattendedcouldbecome

a magnetforunwantedattention,be

thatsabotageormerelytrespassing

to‘havea look’.Sowemustensure

thatwarningnoticesareplacedand

maintained,asrecommendedby our

representativeorganisations.

Theadvantagesclearlyoutweigh

anyconceivabledisadvantagesand

thecontinentalhuntingtower,albeit

witha Wessextwist,is anestablished

part of my shooting armoury.

Shootingfromthe

mediumheight—

about 3m — tower

Deerhaveanexcellent

senseofsmellanda

towerliftsyourhuman

scent above their heads

Agalvanised

laddergoesup

4m to the tower

West Country stalker