Our final day staking out Broubster before breakfast and trying to use the dogs to help find grouse. Then later a great day on Loch Saorach for Greylag Geese with the geese arriving in the windier and wet weather attracted by the goose call
It was another early morning as we got up to Broubster before breakfast and this time we were trying to use the dogs to help find grouse. having not found any during the day, we reckoned that the first hour after dawn should have given us the best chance. I did not do very well as Sam immediately run off over the hill and I lost the others trying to regain him. Nigel strode off on his own, reckoning to do better without the dogs and got nothing but Jim had more luck.
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Ben, who is several months older than Sam and pointing more reliably, successfully pointed, flushed and then retrieved a grouse and made his day. Jim even managed to take a photograph of Ben pointing it which showed confidence or something! Another opportunity by chance with a snipe the victim made a nice bag for him and he was a happy man for breakfast. Once fed, we went to Thurso again to do some shopping, me buying a bottle of whisky to drop off at Charlie's. Having heard that his father was an Orcadian, I bought him a bottle of Highland Park which came from The Orkeney Isles.
This afternoon, I took my companions to other parts of Broubster where the plantation was younger. Having been chatting to Charlie about my stag and the grouse, I was learning that the grouse will be feeding on the younger tender heather shoots during the day and just resting in my more mature stuff night and morning. With both dogs in use we started quartering the ground and soon found grouse. Though Sam was quartering widely and more freely, he was not pausing to point and flushing the birds by himself out of range and so I had to rest him and we relied on Ben. He was slower but successfully pointed several coveys of grouse and we downed one bird and could have had more with experienced dogs and more time.
Then back to the hotel for some frantic packing as we were to be off at first light in the morning. The rain had returned to complete quite a wet week and Nigel thought of calling things off but we were undaunted and needed to gather in our decoys anyway. So off to Loch Saorach with the geese already arriving in the windier and wet weather. By use of the goose call, I attracted and held a flock of greylags who landed on the loch and then started swimming right over to the decoys and in front of us. It was nerve-wracking to wait but we did so and Jim was the first to open up and we all followed.
Three dead and recovered, a fourth dead but out of reach in the wind and a fifth downed but lost. By the time I had returned with Sam it was too dark to see to find the others but it was a good evening and suitable climax of the week. From this I learnt that it would be best to have Sam by me for future goose shoots. Back for our late meal and then to bed after getting everything ready for the morning.