First foxes of the year!

[ianm 2,594]

Every year i like to get out on new years night but the weather this year certainly wasn't conducive to foxing. I decided to give it a miss and go on the night of Jan the second instead. The owner of a farm localish and caravan park had sent me a message asking when could i go again as he had heard foxes calling all around the farm. It seemed a good place to start the year off, so i made arrangements with my mate to pick him up at seven thirty and carry on to the farm. This is the place that had the dimwit horses out earlier in the year but are now safely stabled indoors and can't interfere with proceedings. As usual we drove through the extensive farm yard to a gate at the far end on the left. This gate leads into a field behind the buildings and offers a shadow to park the jimny in so that we aren't lit up by the permanently illuminated security lights. It is a good vantage point as from here i can see for several fields with the thermal. I swung the jimny round to face away from the building and reversed up to it and into the shadows. As is customary on exiting the vehicle i had a quick scan with the thermal. Immediately i saw a fox halfway into the field next to where we had parked. I whispered "fox" to my mate who kept still whilst i nipped to the back of the jimny as quick as i could. I clipped the magazine into the t3 and pulled the bipod legs down. As soon as i had climbed onto the shooting platform i switched the Drone on as well as the laser. The rear bag was still just inside the back of the motor so i bent down and placed it under the stock. Would the fox still be there, a quick check with the thermal confirmed it was so a round was chambered and the trigger set. I found the fox in the Drone quickly and noted it had sat down and was looking over in our direction. As soon as the scopes dot settled on it's upper chest area i released the little thirty two grain pill at circa four thousand two hundred feet per second. The fox threw it's head back and fell sideways like a log falling over, dead as a nit without so much as a twitch.

It was at this point that my mate asked if he should put the foxpro out, i whispered "yes" and gave it to him along with the hide pole it sits on whilst being used. He put it out about fifty yards to our left. I ejected the spent case into my hand to reload again and chambered another round before applying the safety catch. Seeing as the foxes are pairing up and mating i thought "vixen on heat" would be the order of the day and so commenced playing it loudly. The eerie call echoed off the buildings and travelled a long way in the near still night. I had planned on calling for half an hour before moving on just to give any distant foxes chance to come closer. About fifteen minutes into calling i scanned to my left and saw another fox moving down the field about eighty yards away heading for the bottom of the field we where in. I switched the Drone and laser on in readiness but followed the fox through the thermal. It went straight to the hedge in front of us through it and into the next field where the shot fox lay. This hedge is roughly four feet high but it has whispy twigs stuck up along its length which can be several feet high. After travelling around thirty yards into the field it started to turn in a tight circular motion as if to bed down. It continued to do this for half a minute or so before curling up laid down. As i looked through the Drone i noticed only a head shot was on but one of the wispy twigs obscured the line of sight. I slid the rifle and rear bag to the left side of the jimnys roof and had another look. Now the path of a bullet was clear so i pushed the safety forward and set the trigger. I waited till it lifted its head slightly and squeezed the trigger. The fact that its head just slumped forward accompanied by the unmistakable noise only a head shot makes told me the shot was good. We gave it another fifteen minutes of calling before going to collect the fallen. Both shots where around one hundred and forty yards. The first was an eighteen pound dog and the second a fourteen pound dog.

We relocated a short distance down the road to the owners caravan park. After driving through the lines of caravans etc we eventually reach a gate on the track which is secured by padlock. I have a key for this and so my mate went to unlock it so that we could enter this area which is off limits to the public. Having driven about one hundred and fifty yards down this track towards some buildings which are stables, work sheds, cattle sheds, storage areas and an area for chickens we turn immediately right and enter a field via a metal gate. This is a particularly wet field but has the advantage of having a hard standing on the field side of the gate. This is where we set up camp. Again there is a permanently lit security light on the side of the building, so i park as far into the shadow as i can. As i was setting up on the vehicles roof my mate was putting the foxpro out to our right fifty yards. As you enter this field there is a huge unkempt hedge running directly away from us down to a small river. The jimny is parked at forty five degrees to this hedge looking into the field. The small river runs right along the boundary of this field which is eight hundred yards long and between two hundred and fifty and three hundred yards wide. Along the bank of the river is a variety of cover from large bushes to patches of nettles. In front of us there is also a footbridge. The chosen call once again was "vixen in heat" and five minutes into calling i could hear a fox shouting back at the foxpro. The sound was coming from across the river and further along than the unkempt hedge. It was a series of yaps which i recognised as a vixen not being happy at another vixen on her territory. I let the foxpro call for five minutes all the while being answered back by the fox. It was a bit of a stand off really so i decided to mute the caller to make the fox think "the trespasser" had moved on. It would of been a full ten minutes before i saw the heat source of a fox moving along right to left on the opposite bank of the river. I kept seeing it in gaps in the foliage making steady progress towards the footbridge. At this point i switched on the Drone and laser thinking it will probably use the footbridge and may pause at this side of it. Well use the footbridge it did but pause it didn't, instead it made it's way away from us along the river bank utilising the cover as only a fox can. Eventually it broke cover out of some thick bushes and paused for a look around. I took the opportunity given to me pushing off the safety setting the trigger and settling the dot on the chest half way up behind the front leg. AS i touched off the trigger i was greeted by nothing more than a loud click. Yep! i had forgotten to chamber a round. The fox looked straight at me and i didn't move anything but my hand to chamber a round quickly. I reset the trigger and found the target again as quickly as i could. This time there was no mistake, the fox dropped on the spot and slid a few feet down the bank. Curiosity at the strange noise had been its undoing and my good fortune. We called for another half hour before going to collect the fox. It was indeed a vixen of twelve pounds and had been shot at two hundred and thirty four yards. A good start to the year!        

[ianm 2,594]

The vixen

[ianm 2,594]

The dog curled up.

[Big rowie 171]

Good write up mate. Enjoyed it. Nice shooting 

[BenBhoy 4,706]

Great writing again Ian, enjoyed that thanks. 

[Sausagedog 7,381]

Good sized lad that

[shovel leaner 7,648]

Cracking write up . And a bit of inspiration for me to get off my lazy arse and get out myself. I’ve yet to open this year’s account.

[FOXHUNTER 5,020]

What a great start to the New Year I'm yet to open my account. 

[BenBhoy 4,706]

2 hours ago, shovel leaner said:

Cracking write up . And a bit of inspiration for me to get off my lazy arse and get out myself. I’ve yet to open this year’s account.

Same here John, I'm ashamed to admit I was all set Saturday night, but then it started sleeting.....so it was the masked singer & 3 bottles of doom bar instead!! ☺

[shovel leaner 7,648]

1 hour ago, BenBhoy said:

Same here John, I'm ashamed to admit I was all set Saturday night, but then it started sleeting.....so it was the masked singer & 3 bottles of doom bar instead!! ☺

I was given a few bottles before Christmas and it’s been nice and cosy in the the SL house . On a few forays outside to put the recycling out in the evenings saw me scurrying back indoors, muttering things like “ feck it’s cold out there . I’m just going to have to man up and wrap up and get out .

[David.evans 5,323]

I’m out now hoping to Christen the new thermal with a bit of luck 

this could be the last time for a while come 5pm and my boss still wants me to go to work tomorrow

atb 

[FOXHUNTER 5,020]

Scotland in lockdown from midnight , we will follow shortly

[BenBhoy 4,706]

42 minutes ago, David.evans said:

this could be the last time for a while come 5pm

Have I missed something?? 

[David.evans 5,323]

Sorry I thought borris was On bbc 1at 5 , he’s not but it won’t be long before he is 

atb 

[Stavross 13,735]

Please please please write a book