Today’s post comes from James Dunn one of our recent clients who described their experience on our ‘Introduction to Deer Stalking’ day as a fantastic opportunity to truly understand the sport. They found the morning theory session to be incredibly informative and the hands-on time with the rifle and the high standard of guidance provided by George, all delivered in a friendly and informal manner, which really stood out to them. Their feedback highlighted that, for anyone even slightly curious about deer stalking, this experience is highly recommended.
Whilst we receive many testimonials like this from our clients in this case we were thrilled to hear that after their initial session, they have returned to the estate multiple times to pursue live quarry under the expert guidance of our team. If you’ve had an experience you would like to share with us, send us your story and a picture or two and we will be happy to feature you on our upcoming blog posts. You can find our contact details in this section of our website.
“After several years of wanting to experience a day’s deer stalking, I carried out some research and came across the ‘Introduction to Deer Stalking’ day offered by George Sandys of Graythwaite Estate, located on the banks of Lake Windermere. After the initial enquiry via Guns on Pegs, George and I arranged a phone call to discuss my expectations and previous experience levels. Once I was happy with the answers to my questions, a time and date was set.
Upon arrival to the Graythwaite Estate, I met George at the Grand Chapel next door to the estates residence and then proceeded to the Shoot Room which presents a fine display of the Red Stags taken on the estate over the generations of the Sandys family residency. A brief introduction about ourselves was carried out before focusing on the days itinerary and the learning outcomes to which was expected.
The morning session covered comprehensive theory topics such as safety, law, species of deer and covered general knowledge including gun construction, typical equipment used, and the environments deer are usually found.
After the theory introduction was over, we proceeded to the estates range. Here, George reiterated gun safety and once again demonstrated the safe handling of a rifle and best practices to follow (which I still follow to the letter today). Once this was covered, I spent the remainder of the morning practicing and honing my marksmanship skills at the 100m target with the estate rifle provided with George coaching.
Lunch was provided by the estate with the sausage rolls and pork pies been outstanding. The afternoon session was continued on the estates range initially moving onto the metal silhouette targets. The purpose of this exercise was to apply the knowledge of shot placement. Once I had demonstrated a consistent shot placement, we moved onto the next location.
Due to the extremely unfavorably hot day, George had insisted that instead of the usual live stalk in the PM session offered as part of the ‘Introduction to Deer Stalking’ package, we would utilize the estates Simulated Stalk set up located on the tops of the hills overlooking the Lake District with stunning views. The simulated stalk was a hugely beneficial experience as the theory learnt in the morning session could be implemented without the pressure of live quarry becoming aware of any mistakes. During this time, we discussed and practice techniques which are followed on a live stalk such as regularly stopping to ‘glass’ an area, consideration for wind direction and using the terrain to conceal our positions.
At the end of the day, a debrief session was carried out to discuss the learning outcomes and overall experience. I was extremely satisfied with the knowledge and experience and would not hesitate to recommend it to anyone who is considering it.
James Dunn – Graythwaite Shoot, Stalking Client
COMMENTS