Relaxing with a long lay in and then shopping at Wick with a visit to the Caithness glass factory and then evening shooting geese at Thormaid after an altercation with visiting shooters.
I discussed the fishing in the White Loch with Ian McGregor before I retired, and he could be interested in letting it from and from me.
I had a long lay in this morning and then sorted out the things in my room before breakfast. I chatted to Mrs McGregor about all and sundry and then borrowed one of their bird books to identify our geese from yesterday. Nigel had all of his geese to prepare but baulked after one because of the feather volume and effort and so wanted to go out, necessitating me dropping my journal etc and going out with him. We went first to Thurso where Nigel got some cartridges at Alan Brookes' shop and I bought some camouflage netting to improve the performance of the hide. Then in Wick we spent a long time at the Caithness Glass factory where I bought sculptures of a field mouse and harvest mouse for the girls and a rose bowl for Diana. The sports shop sold me some Eley No3 cartridges and Nigel some No2 Winchester ones and then, after lunch in town, we came back to the hotel where I wrote up this last three days' journal and Nigel had to come to terms with his geese.
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He is not only having problems with me but his work-place seems to be falling apart with people problems which makes him even more grumpy. We arrived in late afternoon at Broubster for an evening's goose shooting after I had a little trouble getting Nigel out of his hotel bed, where he was watching Nick Faldo win his semi-final in the World Match-Play Championship. Once installed at the lake edge at Loch Saorach with the decoys in position, we barely had a chance to prepare our cover before the first flight of geese came in upwind of our decoy and, though they did not land, I missed a golden opportunity to lead the sport of shooting them as they saw us and flew away again. Then settled, another couple of shooters came by and, claiming permission from the Fountain International game-keeper, demanded to know what we were doing there. This somewhat spoiled both the sport and our enjoyment of it and, although they gave way in our favour somewhat reluctantly, we did not manage to bag any geese after that.
I did down one at dusk but I think that I had a misfire with a second barrel and failed to stop it getting away by flapping off across the loch in the growing dark. I am resolved to resolve this conflict with this neighbouring land-owner because him and his clients need access over my land and they could not me stop shooting at the geese if I moved back a bit when any other sport would not be possible. It was interesting that the shooters were friends of the game-keeper and were shooting without permits on a "grace-and-favour" basis. Very little sporting revenue seems to get back to the land-owners as I have found to my own cost. Back cold and tired after a fruitless search for the injured goose and then, after dinner, to pay our bills and retire to bed ahead of an early morning. I discussed the fishing in the White Loch with Ian McGregor before I retired and he could be interested in letting it from and for me.