Monday 11 December 2006

Top Guns!


Saturday saw a motley crew of men and dogs meeting promptly at Kemerton http://www.kemerton.org/for a pheasant shoot. The guns came from far and wide, all invited and all relishing the challenge!
I drew the peg (stand) next to William Fox ,(AKA- by the end of the day Tail Gunner Foxy). Our aim was to try and shoot each others birds and drop them at the respective guns feet! The tally was close until the last drive when my adrenaline overtook my limited shooting ability! I missed the lot leaving them to the mercy of the tail gunner!!
After much merriment and mickey taking we retired to The Crown in Kemerton for supper and a few drinks! Guinness and Bass aided the conversation, which inevitably got around to farming, energy crops, and of course shooting! Each bird shot today was remembered and talked about with enjoyment. Thoughts turned to the game birds we had seen that day, mallard, partridge, pheasant, wigeon, teal and woodcock. Only pheasants and partridge were in our sites but the environment created for wildlife was emense! Areas of water, woodland (young and old), grassland, arable land all hosting diverse wildlife, brilliant. All these habitats need managing; people to manage them with care and an eye on the next 100 years of shooting.

2 comments:

Heather @ Wiggly Wigglers said...

Jake Will all the birds be eaten?

Jake Freestone said...

Yes all of the birds were taken by the guns and beaters. There were a few left that were given out as gifts around the village.