Cockmill Conservation Shoot

Cockmill Conservation Shoot is split between landowner and syndicate.  This is a non profit making shoot and all monies collected goes straight back into the shoot to enhance the performance of each following year.  We are situated within the beautiful rolling hills of Somerset, adjoining the prestigious Glastonbury Festival.  Here we can offer you amazing high and challenging birds coming off of the East Pennard Hills.  There are sixteen drives in total, and the shoot itself covers over 1000 acres.

February 2016 -  the season albeit a wet one gave us some fantastic days with a 41.92% return on pheasants released. Figures show that there was almost 6000 shots in just 15 days. With that in mind most of the new guns had such a great time they have already contacted the keeper to come again.

The day commences at the Coffee Den at Pylle where we meet at 8.45.  Here you will be greeted with a cup of tea or coffee and have the opportunity to meet and have a chat with the syndicate members.  A briefing on the order of the day and the drawing of pegs would follow and we would then aim to be on the 1st peg by 9.30. Normally five or six drives are completed each week depending on the size of the bag or shots had.

Now depending on what the keeper has organised for the day we could start off at the Farm Drive whereby a mixture of pheasants and ducks are available, this area has become one of the owners favourite places, six years ago very few birds stayed, now with the old pond dug out and freshened up and the new one completed quite a few different wild fowl now reside here, from wild ducks to Canada Geese, please note however only the duck and pheasant can be shot,  

Following on from here you could go to the infamous High Bank whereby even the most experienced guns have trouble shooting the pheasant coming off of here, many a time this has produced well over 250 shots for rarely more than half a dozen birds.  This continues to be quite a challenging area and causes much conversation on what could have been.

Continuing on from here you may encounter a further two high drives from cover crops that are cut back and re-planted every year and ready for the new season. One of the drive's situated at the nearest point to the festival site has an abudance of Melanistic birds and proved to be very sucessful last season.

The pheasants released are a combination of ring necks, bezantes, kansas and the ever popular melanistic which always proves to be fast and furious.

At about this time we will stop for refreshments and cake - each of us takes a flask but the cake is always provided, this break gives us a chance to have a chat on how the day is going.

Another drive albeit flat shows some of the fastest birds coming over the 'Copse'. this was one of our best drives of the season last year and produced the largest bag on the day. As with other drives this is an exciting and challenging drive.

At the end of the day we return to the farm, where the birds are counted and a brace is issued by the keeper, and everyone gets together to discuss the day and have a cup of hot home-made soup.

We can if you wish and with prior arrangement return to the Coffee Den whereby a meal will be ready for you. This is ordered and paid for by yourself.

2016/2017 Update.  Dates for the coming season will be available within the next couple of weeks, for individuals or small groups please contact the keeper.

All in all Cockmill Conservation Shoot provides a fun day out for individual guns, syndicate members and owners alike.