Grouse on a Shoestring

Shooting grouse outside of the peak months of August and September can provide exceptionally challenging sport at an affordable price if you know where to find these highly sought after days.

Traditionally, late-season grouse are offered to existing syndicate members or close friends of the moor owner. However, if you are an experienced shot, with a team of Guns on stand-by there are ways of finding late-notice days on some of the UK’s 400+ grouse moors.

Late-season days are often held to reduce the grouse population to correct breeding levels – if too large a population is left on the ground at the end of shooting season, it is likely that disease will decimate them during the following spring and early summer. Hence it will only be the moors with surplus stock that have late availability.

Plan early for a late start

However, there is always a lot of competition for late-season days, so Guns should start planning now. Invitations are regularly made just a day or two in advance. If you try to put together a party of friends at the last minute, it can prove almost impossible as their diaries have already filled up with low ground shooting. Not having a team at the ready could actually mean you miss out.

Electing to shoot grouse in October and November can make the notoriously expensive sport much more accessible. On average, the day should be 25 per cent cheaper as the Guns are helping the moor reduce grouse stocks. However this is double-edged sword, as only good grouse teams will be given the opportunity to shoot late-season birds. Poor shots will incur the moor owner’s displeasure, so do not regard this as a way for a novice to get cheap sport.

GunsOnPegs’ Managing Director Chris Horne commented that it is always worth enquiring about fixed-price days when it comes to this kind of sport. He explained that a bag can be anything from 40 brace up to 150 brace and a walked-up day could be anything from zero to 25 brace. “The lower bag sizes make it more affordable to a wider range of Guns, so it is worth asking if you can pay per brace. Otherwise, if the bird stocks are there, you could find yourself with a big overage bill,” said Chris.

Get walking for a great day's sport

It’s not only late-season shooting that can give you a financial leg up on to the grouse moors. Shooting grouse over pointers, or on a walked-up day, will make this exclusive sport affordable to most. Bird for bird, shooting over pointers is close in cost to driven birds, however the bag will be far smaller. Walked-up shooting will cost less per bird, and with the smaller bags, this makes it a far less pricey option. Remember though, that both shooting over pointers and walked-up days are unpredictable in terms of the number of birds you will see. You’ll also need to be fitter, as you can expect to cover large amounts of ground in pursuit of these exciting birds.

For those intent on shooting driven grouse, and opting for a late-season day, winter grouse are much trickier to shoot compared to their naïve early-season cousins. As Chris explains: “The birds are fast, much more intelligent and provide a real variety of challenging shots,” he explained. And remember those light loads and open chokes you used in August? Put them away if you are serious about bringing down late-season grouse. “Personally, I I'd change my chokes come October if they weren't fixed! It's certainly time for a tighter choke and 30-32g, 5 or 6 shot as you will definitely be taking longer shots,” advised Chris.

Shorter day's with wilder weather

There is also the reduced amount of daylight to factor in. It will get dark much earlier at that time of year, so the day’s shooting will be reduced, meaning lunch may well be a hurried affair. The weather is another thing to take into consideration. On the open hill, the weather is often foul at that time of year, with wind blowing from the wrong direction and there is an increased risk of fog.

The grouse are also much wiser and are not likely to hold still for a pointing dog. Instead, they are more likely to slink off 50 yards before they flush or slip out on a quiet low glide at the first sight of a dog. Birds can form big coveys and are increasingly difficult for the beaters to manage and drive. The older birds will have also learnt to avoid the butts. So if you are shooting later on in the season, you might not be shooting in a butt but a dip in the terrain.

So where should shooters look for these days? It is always worthwhile placing a ‘wanted’ advert on the GunsOnPegs website. The Classifieds section is free to use and is the perfect place to advertise that you are after late-season grouse shooting.