Out in the hide

In the summer of 2019, I started to step away from just shooting clays and ventured into learning to shoot pigeons from a hide; I initially came across Steve Caple on Twitter, we got chatting about pest control and shooting, and he kindly invited me out one evening to shadow him, while he carried out some pest control on the local golf course. He also set up an area where I could safely have a go at shooting some targets with his rifle, and it has to be said, I am more a shotgun lady (aka I don’t have the patience to be a rifle shooter!)   

Now our first few outing in the hide that first summer, the only thing I did shoot was many photos and got a very good tan! Mainly through lack of confidence, experience and an unsuitable gun (yes, the trusty old Beretta 682). I also got tangled/caught in the net many times, which Steve had warned me I would , and a few fair of my misses, were because I was too busy sitting having a cuppa and watching the world go by, instead of concentrating on the pigeons coming in, but I gained experience of being out in the field instead of on a clay ground, using a different load and gram of cartridge compared to what I used for clays (I normally use Hull Comp X 21g for clays, but our choice for actual pigeon shooting is the Eley Pigeon Select) and build a great friendship with Steve, which carries on to this day. Those summer days spent in the hide, also gave me a good foundation to build on and prepare me for my game days that were to follow later that year. 

Steve was soon teaching me how to lay out the decoys, how to set up the hide, species identification and I looked forward to our afternoon sat out in the hide, and as the summer drew to a close, so did our outings. Steve was disappointed I had not yet bagged myself any pigeons, but we said there was always next year; little did we know what 2020 would have in store for us all! 

At the start of 2020, and after struggling through 2 game days with my trusty old Beretta, I finally admitted defeat and bought a new gun, a 12b Lanber with shorter barrels that was also a lot lighter, and was looking forward to getting back out with Steve in the hide. And then Covid hit. 

My guns gathered dust in the cabinet, and I could only count down the weeks until they could come back out again and escape back to the clay grounds and fields. 

As soon as restrictions were lifted, I was back out at Sporting Targets and went through so many cartridges in one session; I had a sore shoulder the next day, but also had a huge smile, and did not waste any time in asking Steve when we could get back out in the hide, and on the first opportunity we got, we headed out; me equipped with my new gun, determined that today would be THE day, and also of course, brought along my flask of tea and cake! 

We set up and the decoys and hide, and didn’t have to wait long for the pigeons to start to be drawn in, Steve had success at first and then it was my turn. I was perched on my seat, peering through the netting, ready to pop up and take the shot. A handful of pigeons started to drop in; Steve gave me the nod, I popped up, gun in my shoulder, and *click*- I had left my safety on! By the time I had figured that out, the birds had long gone and I sat down to the sound of Steve quietly laughing at the look of frustration and annoyance on my face. I had just started to pour myself a cuppa when I spotted the next few pigeons coming in, I had to make the quick decision of if to let Steve take these and have my cuppa, or abandon the tea and see if I had any luck; the tea lost!  

This time I ensured my safety was off and success! I bagged myself my first pigeon. In my delight and excitement, I nearly leapt into Steve’s lap and he had to tell me to sit down and calm down or I would scare the rest of the birds off for the day. Lady luck stayed with me that afternoon and my total bag was six, enough to easily turn them into a stir-fry for our dinner that night and in keeping with our ‘field to fork’ ethic. 

Our next time out on the pigeons was a bit different, after sharing my success and enthusiasm on twitter, I was approached by another true country gent,; Matt Limb, who asked if I was interested in doing a video interview/short film about pigeon shooting and how I had got into shooting. 

Matt is a fantastic photographer, and has done a few other interviews for his Youtube channel, so it was honour to be asked to be involved, and of course, Steve would feature in it with me. We managed to arrange a date that suited all three of us, and although Steve is an old pro at being filmed, I was incredibly nervous, but Matt is such an easy going gent, I soon forgot he was there. We had a successful afternoon filming me setting up the decoys and discussing the layout with Steve, and taking shots , and then we set up for the one to one interview with me; at which point, I ended up sprawled in the ditch, as the stool I about to sit on, blew over in the wind. Matt and Steve; in between laughing at me, were good enough to pull me back up onto my feet and check I was ok. 

The interview with Matt went really well, he made me feel so at ease that I didn’t struggle to think about what to say or feel like I had been put on the spot, and the interview was uploaded to Matt’s Youtube channel a few weeks later as well as being shared to social media sites, and it has given me the confidence to go on to do other things; like write articles for The Countrymans Weekly and The Ladies Clay Shooting League magazine.