and joke as we picked our way over brambles and ferns. We
both managed to shoot a couple of greys each, and when we
eventually met back up with the others, Christian was on
cloud nine again having shot his first squirrel. He had us in
stitches marvelling at how well-endowed the little rodent was.
We whiled away a few hours eating lunch at a local pub,
said goodbye to Jess, who had evening plans, and finally it
was time to head out for a last stalk before the light faded.
/$67+855$+
Following the same format as the morning, we dropped
Christian and Lewis at the high seat and crept into the
woods. We saw enough muntjac to feed the five thousand,
but they’re nippy little buggers, and more often than not the
sight picture was of their departing derrieres. They’re
incredibly tricky to stalk, seeming to appear out of nowhere
and disappear just as fast, with lightning-quick reactions
giving them a distinct advantage over their lumbering
pursuers. We tried and tried, but it seemed like it just wasn’t
meant to be, and with slightly heavy hearts we loaded back
into the wagon to pick the others up.
It was raining by now, so I took the cosy option and
hopped in the cab with Dan, while Justin perched on the
back with his rifle resting on the bar, hoping, but not
expecting, to get lucky on our way back. Dan decided to take
the scenic route to give him the best chance, and veered
off-road onto the dirt tracks that ringed the fields. The hare
population on this estate is healthy... and incredibly
irritating! From a distance, the rounded brown backs look for
all the world like small muntjac. It was false alarm after false
alarm. We turned into the last field to head for home.
Thump thump! Justin pounded on the roof of the wagon
and Dan stopped the vehicle. Just a few seconds later, the
sound of the rifle shattered the peace, and about 160m
away I spotted a muntjac dropping where she stood. It was
an almost perfect duplication of the events that had started
the hunt for Christian earlier that morning. I gave Justin a fist
pump through the window and we rolled down towards her.
The big burly hunter clearly had a lump in his throat as he
bent down to examine the doe; after an exhausting day of
attempts, the relief of placing a perfect shot in such a tight
window of opportunity, coupled with the sight of the beautiful
little deer, was an emotional combination. We loaded her
onto the truck and went to pick up the others. Christian had
also got lucky; after failing to get a good shot from the high
seat, he had tried a foot stalk and ended up shooting a
phenomenal double off his sticks to take another doe and a
buck within seconds of each other. He was justifiably proud
of that achievement! It was big hugs all round – the perfect
end to a long day’s hunting.
We pulled up to the yard in darkness after an amusing
drive back (the left headlight worked on full beam, the right
on low beam, but they never worked together!) and Dan
hurried off to gralloch the two deer. We said our goodbyes
with hugs and promises to do it all again soon.
What started out as a day of work for me had turned
into so much more. Dan and Jess had never met me
before, and had no obligation to include me in the fun... but
they did so without question. Justin thought nothing of letting
me join in with his squirrel hunting – or sharing his cartridge
supply with me! Jess even took my number and said she’d
take me out for my own deer soon. So, there you have it, the
true spirit of the hunting community summed up in a day:
friends and memories made, and exciting new opportunities
on the horizon.
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Several companies kindly provided kit to support the hunt:*0.²ZZZJPNFRXN
7LNNDULIOHV²7[/LWH6WDLQOHVV 553
The Tikka T3x is a key model in the T3 range. The Tikka T3 is
probably one of the most popular rifles in the UK thanks to
the excellent build quality and outstanding accuracy. The T3x
has many excellent features including a modular stock,
excellent grip, soft recoil pad, redesigned ejection port and
metallic bolt shroud. With the metal parts made of high-grade
stainless steel, this is a sturdy and long-lasting choice for all
weather conditions. It performed really well on the hunt, and
both Justin and Christian were impressed with the accuracy
and lightness-for-calibre.6WDORQ0RGHUDWRUV
:DQG9LFWRU 553V :
9LFWRU
Stalon, through continuous product testing and trialling of
new materials, have produced a suppressor that excels in all
elements. Impressive performance in sound attenuation is
complemented by the telescopic design, meaning their
moderators give only a short extension to the barrel. They
are low in weight, keeping the overall weight of the rifle and
moderator to a minimum. The W110 gives outstanding
performance with a weight of around 380g and extends to
110mm beyond the barrel. The Victor provides excellent
sound reduction with minimal weight (290g), a slim,
telescopic design and excellent performance for its size. »http://www.rifleshootermagazine.co.uk 21STALKING WITH EMILY DAMMENT
CHRISTIAN RYSGAARD
(INSTGRAM: @JAGTGLIMT)
“The hunt was organised and prepared as part of a hunting adventure
spanning most of England, showcasing not only great hunting but the
community spirit and unity which comes with it, particularly at the moment
when hunting is under such a critical spotlight. The idea, through a series
of articles for several magazines, is to really promote and bring back the
idea of community within hunting first and foremost. Without community,
the industry will cease to exist.
“The original boring event that kickstarted the entire trip was me having
to visit my development department in Wolverhampton (in civil life I am the
system architect director of a large software development company in the
financial sector). This means a considerable amount of traveling, and time
wasted in hotel rooms that could be used for good hunting.
“I complained to Justin, and no more than four hours later he called me
back with two different guys to contact. And Justin didn’t stop there, he
had bigger plans. Being a hunter himself, he wanted to come along and
show me the British hunting community. To him, the trip was about putting
community in front of industry, to show that you can use social media as
an extended community and exchange hunts across networks and borders.
Your boring local vermin control might turn out to be pretty exotic hunting
for foreigners. I got seduced by the idea of visiting foreign gamekeepers
and seeing what hunting meant to them. I would challenge myself to build
friendships through the common joy of hunting.
“We had an excellent hunting experience with roe buck, muntjac,
pigeons and grey squirrels. And the trip turned out exactly as planned... or
maybe not! The industry turned out to equal the community. Lots of great
companies chipped in with equipment and helped get the paperwork in
order, a feat that we would have been unable to complete by ourselves.”