Driving from Paxton to Horning after a some good retrieving with Sam and via Jim’s house for a meal and finally to Heronshaw and the new Harnser which Jim saw for the first time.
Off to join the Norwich & District Wildfowlers Club who ease a lot of duck and goose shooting on the banks of the Bure and in the Halvergate marshes and to be welcomed as a full member in view of my experience.
The warm weather continues but with some chance of change soon. A nice run with Sam this morning where he was entering the water nicely. The main trouble that I have with him is the incorrect way in which he holds the dummy but at least that is not a major fault. A few election enquiries but not much I could do before preparing to leave for Norfolk this morning.
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I did update this last couple of days' journal which was overdue and then packed things up ready to go. A few trial shots with my upgraded air rifle this morning which takes some getting used to in view of its power and trajectory. I am very pleased with it so that the starlings and pigeons will be doubly vulnerable from now on. Had to type up and print out some letters for my fellow residents of Ropes Hill Dyke about calling a meeting to discuss road repairs and, what with this and my other preparations, it was lunch time before I could get out.
In fact I stayed and made myself some salad sandwiches for lunch before leaving and then set off with Sam happily in the back. The journey went all right but I had no time to go into Norwich before collecting Jim's dog Ben from his home. I met Julie there who gave me a mug of tea and she helped me collect the dog up and get him in so that I could meet Jim direct from his work. I had arranged to do this to save time so that we could get a little dog training in before this evening's meeting. I took him in my car and we dropped my food off into the refrigerator at Heronshaw and this was Jim's first chance to see Harnser and The Paxton Princess and he was very impressed.
It was still gloriously sunny and it was ideal for us to drive up to St Bennett's Abbey afterwards to try some quartering and retrieving practice. Both dogs did quite well as witness to all of the hard work that we had been doing. Then back to Wymondham where Julie had prepared us a nice salad for us to add the crab. There was still time for us to take the dogs over to a nearby field of grass for some more work before they had to be fed and put down for the night: Jim's dogs to their kennels; and Sam into the car where he settled well as we drove over to Norwich for our meeting. The Norwich & District Wildfowlers Club lease a lot of duck and goose shooting on the banks of the Bure and in the Halvergate marshes and I was in the process of joining their club to get this shooting and opportunity to run the dog as well.
I was fully expecting to be only made a probationary member with a need to be accompanied for the first year but, to my surprise, they voted me full membership straight away in view of my shooting experience. Some interesting conversations with other members and then away to drop Jim home in Wymondham before going back to Harnser to settle for the night. Up late addressing all of the neighbours’ letters ready for early morning delivery so that it was after midnight before I retired.