I have been working towards getting a pointer puppy. My entire life on the hill would be a hundred times easier if I had access to a pointer, particularly since the red grouse are so sparsely scattered across the farm that it’s now been some months since I’ve seen any of my birds at all. Continue reading

As was driven home quite firmly once again last week, rifle shots on the Chayne are always long. 1600 acres of open, undulating moorland mean that stalking skills are almost  totally redundant. You either take a long shot or you don’t fire at all. My confidence with rifle accuracy is steadily building, but only because Continue reading

Six weeks ago, I missed a chance at a nice buck on the back of the hill. The fog was swirling around me when I spotted him, striding  through the heather. I tried an ambush, but it was hopeless. I left the hill that morning buzzing with ideas for how to outwit him, but it Continue reading

Two weeks ago, I missed the chance to take a nice roe yearling off the Chayne. Walking over the mossy banks at the back of the hill, we were spotted by vigilant eyes, and before we could do anything, two white bottoms bounced down over the dyke and into the forestry blocks. There aren’t many Continue reading

I have never shot a roe deer. It’s something that I have always wanted to do, but for some reason or other I have just never done it. Roe deer belong to a culture that I don’t really understand, even though they live on my doorstep. Stalking in the highlands is a very distinctive experience. Continue reading