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 I have just returned home to England after having a few days stalking roebucks on Lax-a’s shooting grounds near Banchory in Scotland. My friend, Martin, and I had very good sport and saw many roe deer on each of our stalking sessions. The first morning we met the two professional stalkers at 3.00am just as dawn was breaking. Martin went with Johnny McClaren to the Raemoir estate while I was under the guidance of John Bell at the Dunecht estate. John had obviously done plenty of recent research and had a very good idea where we might find some mature bucks.
This area of Scotland has a large and healthy population of roe deer but there are not that many actual “medal” heads, so Martin and I decided that we would leave any “medals” for future clients. As it turned out we saw three or four bucks which surely were fine trophies. Having spent wonderful and exciting moments watching some does and a young buck, at around 5.00am John pointed out a mature buck making its way out into a grass field from the adjoining woodland. Using a stone wall for cover we were able to get within 100m of the buck where I then made a successful shot. By 7.30am John and I had made a further three successful stalks which completed a remarkable morning session. John was very eager to point out that it very rarely happens like that! Martin had shot one buck at Raemoir but seen a couple of fine mature deer with trophy-sized heads. Having made ourselves a large breakfast we took a few hours rest in preparation for the evening session.
That evening we met our pros at 7.30pm and decided to have another session with the same stalkers, so again I went to Dunecht with John. That evening we spent two hours stalking a very old buck which John had last seen in the same area two years ago. For the last three seasons perhaps he had a “medal” head but now he was getting old and the hard winter may also have hastened his diminishing stature. We were determined to get him but could get no closer than 170m as he wandered in and out of some thick areas of whin bushes. After what seemed an eternity he stood in a tiny open patch of grass and I was able to despatch him. It had been a memorable stalk, successfully completed in the failing light. Martin had seen many more bucks than I had, but actually failed to get a shot after two abortive stalks. These deer have remarkable powers of sight and hearing and getting close enough for a shot is no easy task. I had, indeed, had a very very lucky day!
After only two hours sleep, we were up again meeting the pros soon after 3.00am. Today we swapped over and I went with Johnny McLaren to Raemoir. This morning was memorable for all sorts of reasons. I saw my very first Goshawk which had a nest in the nearby woods and then later encountered a very rare pine-marten no more than five meters from the vehicle. It appeared almost tame and took no notice of the vehicle. Sadly, but typically, I had left my cameras back in the cottage. Never will I see one again at such close quarters. Johnny and I found several mature bucks, but it was nearly 7.00am before I got the opportunity to take one. At Dunecht on the other side of the hill, Martin and John were hampered by thick early morning fog which restricted where they could go. Martin eventually shot a roebuck as it emerged from the mist with a few does.
That evening Martin again went to Dunecht with John with the intention of going onto some higher ground. But having gone onto the hill they spied some bucks down in the fields below and decided to stalk them. This proved successful but did not leave enough daylight time to be worth going back on the hill. At Raemoir, everything seemed much quieter this evening with very few deer out of cover. We watched a pair of peregrines for a while as they showed alarm at us being so close to their nest on a quarry wall. With binoculars I could make out one chick, but there may have been more. Eventually, and in fading light, as we were walking alongside a wood in a field of long grass, I just caught a glimpse of a buck’s head moving behind some boulders only 25m away. Johnny, not being as tall as I, had not seen it and I feared that it may have caught our movement and run off. However, when we got above the “dead ground” I could see the buck still only about 40m away. I managed to get to the nearby wall at the field’s edge and just as I found a suitable rest for the rifle, the buck turned broadside and in an instant he was dead. We had been fortunate, but sometimes you need a bit of luck!
For business reasons it suited both Martin and I to get back home to England on the third day of our hunting. So we both met Johnny at Raemoir as usual at 3.00am for a final session. We saw plenty of deer but it was after 6.00am when Martin shot the last buck of our stalking trip. We thanked the stalkers for a memorable trip and set off on the long drive south.
For accommodation, we rented one of the self-catering cottages at the new golf resort at Inchmarlo, only a few minutes walk from the middle of Banchory. The resort has its own restaurant serving food from 9.00am to 9.00pm which is very useful for roebuck stalkers and their unsociable hours. The cottages have two twin-bedded rooms and two bathrooms, good kitchen facilities and a large lounge area with TV,DVD etc and the all important wireless broadband (free of charge).
Having had these few days in beautiful countryside, teeming with all sorts of wildlife, and being looked after so professionally by John and Johnny, I can wholeheartedly recommend the experience. We are sold out for this season, but I would welcome any enquiries for 2011 and beyond. Normally we sell the stalking as a package of nine sessions (Monday – Friday am.) with the expectation of shooting FIVE bucks per rifle. We would expect at least three of the five bucks to be mature animals. I can advise on the varying accommodation available and any other details that you may want.
Please contact me, Mark Ainscough, on
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