Out Foxing Charlie 18
Night Pearl A Shot In The Dark
By The Ole Hedge Creeper
Blimey here we are in out Foxing Charlie 18, who would of thought that I knew so much about tracking, hunting, or the life cycle of the humble fox or hunting them for that matter, I suppose its been a journey of discovery and adventure that started well over four decades ago now.
When I started out it was an old motor bike battery and the headlamp off of that said motorbike, the battery being carried in an old army rucksack, the battery acid leaking and rotting my uncles coat and indeed the army rucksack.
Oh how times have changed, we have gone from those early days to lamps of all descriptions, I still have some of the early ones hanging in the cupboard for nostalgic reasons, they still work too, my son Ryan was a lamp buster, his quickest time to break a lamp straight out of the box is 45 seconds, I still love to lamp old school style too this very day, I will tell you of this further along the line in this article.
When I started out it was an old motor bike battery and the headlamp off of that said motorbike, the battery being carried in an old army rucksack, the battery acid leaking and rotting my uncles coat and indeed the army rucksack.
Oh how times have changed, we have gone from those early days to lamps of all descriptions, I still have some of the early ones hanging in the cupboard for nostalgic reasons, they still work too, my son Ryan was a lamp buster, his quickest time to break a lamp straight out of the box is 45 seconds, I still love to lamp old school style too this very day, I will tell you of this further along the line in this article.
From lamps we moved into the space age with Night Vision of all sorts, from home made to professionally made kits of all descriptions, the best there has ever been in my humble opinion and I have tried it all, that's the awesome NiteSite System, right from the start the NS50 revolutionised my night hunting, both professionally and not, the NS200 wow what a bit of kit that was, then came the Viper, the Wolf and the Eagle by golly I was like a kid at Christmas, add into this the NiteSite Spotter and the mini Sentinel Pro spotter, could we do any better, NiteSite weren't done there as they brought out The Dark Op’s Viper, wolf & Eagle night vision systems, but all the gadgetry in the world only gave you an edge, as I have always maintained, good field craft and knowing how to lamp correctly is the only way to maintain good standards, be consistent and get the quarry you seek, for the gadgets don’t bring home the bacon, good hunting knowledge does, the rest of the time you rely on luck, alas what with the outbreak of Covid and many other factors my beloved NiteSite Company closed its doors in good order, I still say it now to this day NiteSite is simply the best night vision there has ever been in my humble opinion, you may not agree that's your prerogative.
Now I have been lucky enough to have hunted, fished, shot and indeed cook and eat game all over this wonderful planet of ours, both by day and by night, I suppose this is one reason I was asked to be the international Eley Ammunition Out Doors Ambassador, a couple of years back at The Game Fair 2019 I purchased out of my own pocket a Night Pearl Thermal 13 Spotter from the then NiteSite team, this worked so well with my NiteSite Hunting, for I spotted my quarry on Thermal and shot it on night vision, a system I truly think I have really mastered especially with the Dark Op’s system, I have shot all over the UK with it after being called in to deal with Charlie Foxes attacking live stock, often where other shooters have failed and I have been paid to come sort the problem out, this has ruffled a few feathers here and there as folk think I am after poaching their lands, this is not the case, I come in deal with the job, get paid and leave again, I cant abide people poaching other peoples permissions, I have had it done to me just recently by ghastly people who should know better, when I am called in I always say have you someone else shooting here, if so tell them to call me and we can work together, I leave knowing that person will be taught to my standards and they know I have no intention what so ever to poach their land from under them, this system has gained me many friends along the way, poaching someones permission its not the done thing at all or the way of the true Countryman.
So here we are in the Autumn of 2021 and wow what an 18 months this really has been for so many of us, but as always our British defiance to not give in, never back down has stood us in good stead, yes along the way we have lost family, friends, Brexit and indeed awesome companies like NiteSite and more, in many ways I say this has brought us together and made us stronger and more resilient, Hitler never beat us, nor will this dreadful Covid, just like the former its an irritating little annoyance we will beat with our Great British Tenacity of Defiance now pass the Mug of Tea Mucker.
Now I have been lucky enough to have hunted, fished, shot and indeed cook and eat game all over this wonderful planet of ours, both by day and by night, I suppose this is one reason I was asked to be the international Eley Ammunition Out Doors Ambassador, a couple of years back at The Game Fair 2019 I purchased out of my own pocket a Night Pearl Thermal 13 Spotter from the then NiteSite team, this worked so well with my NiteSite Hunting, for I spotted my quarry on Thermal and shot it on night vision, a system I truly think I have really mastered especially with the Dark Op’s system, I have shot all over the UK with it after being called in to deal with Charlie Foxes attacking live stock, often where other shooters have failed and I have been paid to come sort the problem out, this has ruffled a few feathers here and there as folk think I am after poaching their lands, this is not the case, I come in deal with the job, get paid and leave again, I cant abide people poaching other peoples permissions, I have had it done to me just recently by ghastly people who should know better, when I am called in I always say have you someone else shooting here, if so tell them to call me and we can work together, I leave knowing that person will be taught to my standards and they know I have no intention what so ever to poach their land from under them, this system has gained me many friends along the way, poaching someones permission its not the done thing at all or the way of the true Countryman.
So here we are in the Autumn of 2021 and wow what an 18 months this really has been for so many of us, but as always our British defiance to not give in, never back down has stood us in good stead, yes along the way we have lost family, friends, Brexit and indeed awesome companies like NiteSite and more, in many ways I say this has brought us together and made us stronger and more resilient, Hitler never beat us, nor will this dreadful Covid, just like the former its an irritating little annoyance we will beat with our Great British Tenacity of Defiance now pass the Mug of Tea Mucker.
Internationally I hit the hunting seen yet again, this time with an old friend and that’s the brilliant Night Pearl Team International, after many months of negotiations and finalising contracts, I have accepted their awesome offer to join the Night Pearl International Hunting Team, they liked what I had done with NiteSite brand and indeed seeing me use the Night Pearl 13 spotter that I purchased with my own hard earned money, a Russian hunting journalist friend of mine Alex was testing out their system for the Russian hunting magazines, he introduced me to the wonderful Night Pearl head honcho’s and well here we are now heading them up here in the UK, also the entire Night Pearl Thermal Systems can be purchased through my shop over at the Really Wild Adventures website ([email protected]) I am helping sell this awesome product here in the UK as I believe in the product and the companies ethics, Night Pearl is a company of actual Hunters, they understand what we need out in the field, so as we say its made by Hunters for Hunters with A Passion For Hunting, this is one reason I am on board, they share the same ethics for Hunting with Conservation at their core the same as me, plus they see the importance of educating the next generation too, I will get on with this article and share with you some of my experiences of hunting with The Night Pearl Thermal Systems, from rats to predators and more we have got you covered.
The first night out using the amazing Night Pearl Seer 35 front add on system, plus the Scops Max II thermal spotter, this really was a nostalgic one this night, my boyhood hunting mentor, my Uncle Dave came with me on a fox control job, an ageing man who has forgotten more about hunting than I will ever know, he is the old master who first taught me about the correct way to lamp, track, field craft, and shoot a rifle, he cannot walk far now but hey I have a perfectly good 4x4 so no walking needed Uncle, I knew where the fox was coming into the field of play and knew where he was going, a huge open hillside undulating meadow, the wind swirled from all directions giving our position away, so we could not get in close and personal as I had been taught as a boy, Uncle Always said two things, you must get so close you can put salt on their tail or see the whites of their eyes.
Alas from this huge meadow we had no cover at all apart from the night herself and the undulating land, I gave Uncle the Scops Max 50 II to use and be my spotter, this was a complete role switch from my boyhood days, as I was always his lamp man as a boy and Uncle was always the shooter with his Remington 22,250, right from switching the unit on my Uncle was blown away with what he could see, all I kept hearing was this is amazing, oh WOW, as he watched barn owls and Tawny Owls go about their business, he watched them take the voles and mice etc, he watched bats take insects, a badger trot right past us 25 yards away none the wiser we were there in the dark of the night, he watched rabbits and hares, a hedge hog snuffle past in the hedgerow behind us. I thought he was going to faint with joy when a young spiker roe buck walked within ten yards of him, he had a graze on some grass right there withing touching distance of my Uncle, then trot off down to a doe, Uncle Dave just could not get over it all, this all happened in complete silence on a night as black as ash cloth.
Alas from this huge meadow we had no cover at all apart from the night herself and the undulating land, I gave Uncle the Scops Max 50 II to use and be my spotter, this was a complete role switch from my boyhood days, as I was always his lamp man as a boy and Uncle was always the shooter with his Remington 22,250, right from switching the unit on my Uncle was blown away with what he could see, all I kept hearing was this is amazing, oh WOW, as he watched barn owls and Tawny Owls go about their business, he watched them take the voles and mice etc, he watched bats take insects, a badger trot right past us 25 yards away none the wiser we were there in the dark of the night, he watched rabbits and hares, a hedge hog snuffle past in the hedgerow behind us. I thought he was going to faint with joy when a young spiker roe buck walked within ten yards of him, he had a graze on some grass right there withing touching distance of my Uncle, then trot off down to a doe, Uncle Dave just could not get over it all, this all happened in complete silence on a night as black as ash cloth.
Entrance stage left Charlie fox, I spotted it on my own Night Pearl 13 Thermal spotter at the Same time as Uncle did on the Scops Max 50 II, I crept as Silent as a mouse around the truck to where my 223 rifle was mounted on the Primos Gen 3 Trigger Sticks, the Night Pearl 35 seer system all set up on the gun, oh blast I forgot to read the instructions and had actually turned the unit off instead of in the stand by mode, this only took a second or two to power up, but it felt like a life time when your ready to dance with a Charlie Fox. Especially as I had been after this live stock killing Charlie for some weeks now, I eventually got on target, I used the in built rage finder as I knew he was way out there, it said 200 yards, now there is a lot to learn about this gear, like I always say I am a low tech man in a high tech world, so I really should of read the instructions, yeh right when does a man really read instructions, I can see the ladies rolling their eyes right now, there we are 200 yards and the fox is not stopping, he is on a mission to kill some hens, by the time I had started the Night Pearl System up he had already crossed the huge valley ground and was about to disappear over the bottom of the hill across the valley, I whistled at him and he stopped then moved again but stopped for a pee, too late I was already on him, safety off, I squeezed the shot off and the distinct thump of a perfect shot to the engine room was heard.
I swear the sound and cheer of elation my uncle let out they heard this in the next county, he got out the truck and hugged me and shook my hand saying that was a topping shot my boy, at that moment I don't know who was more proud my old mentor or myself, for this was the very first time My Uncle, My Mentor had ever seen me shoot rifle off my own merit in all these years, I had tears in my eyes and still do as I write this and remember this night, I range found it with my own range finder to check the distance it was 203 yards exactly, I will say the long walk down the hill was one thing, but back up carrying a fox back up that hill was something else, lets just say my heart rate needed a mug of tea from the flask to calm myself down, one thing to remember your max zoom is about 6x but will then start to pix-elate, 3 to 4 is better but remember you are zooming in on the screen of the Seer 35, not the thermal zooming in, I am told the newer models may have a zoom function, what I really like is I don't have to change scopes it turns your day scope into a thermal scope. It literally pops off one scope onto the next, but you must remember to have the right size collars for each scope front, you also don't have to re zero it uses your own scopes cross hairs and zero, watch my videos that are with this article they will help explain things, we left not long after both feeling a real pride and joy from teacher to student thanks to the awesome Night Pearl Thermal System.
I swear the sound and cheer of elation my uncle let out they heard this in the next county, he got out the truck and hugged me and shook my hand saying that was a topping shot my boy, at that moment I don't know who was more proud my old mentor or myself, for this was the very first time My Uncle, My Mentor had ever seen me shoot rifle off my own merit in all these years, I had tears in my eyes and still do as I write this and remember this night, I range found it with my own range finder to check the distance it was 203 yards exactly, I will say the long walk down the hill was one thing, but back up carrying a fox back up that hill was something else, lets just say my heart rate needed a mug of tea from the flask to calm myself down, one thing to remember your max zoom is about 6x but will then start to pix-elate, 3 to 4 is better but remember you are zooming in on the screen of the Seer 35, not the thermal zooming in, I am told the newer models may have a zoom function, what I really like is I don't have to change scopes it turns your day scope into a thermal scope. It literally pops off one scope onto the next, but you must remember to have the right size collars for each scope front, you also don't have to re zero it uses your own scopes cross hairs and zero, watch my videos that are with this article they will help explain things, we left not long after both feeling a real pride and joy from teacher to student thanks to the awesome Night Pearl Thermal System.
The next couple of jobs the Night Pearl Systems joined me on were professional rat control contracts, the first one my brother joined me, he loves rat shooting and is always keen to help me on those contracts, I cant think why can you? My brother used my Air Arms Ultimate Sporter he loves that air rifle as do I, but being the kind big brother I am I let him use that gun with my old NiteSite Wolf mounted on it and using my Night Pearl 13 Thermal Spotter he made short work of the rats in this huge grain storage and milling centre, I on the other hand was using the Night Pearl Seer 35 front add on, mounted on the awesome Air Arms S510 TDR in .22 my favourite calibre, I was also using the Night Pearl Max Pro 50 II plus thermal spotter, by golly those rats never had a clue what was hitting them, bear in mind this was in complete darkness you could not see a hand in front of your face, one moment there are 2 rats then one looks round for the other as if to say what's wrong Burt are you tired, next the other drops too, that Air Arms moderator on that S510 TDR is so whisper quiet, sometimes I have to question myself did I actually pull the trigger, the usual sign is yes as the rat falls over dead with a perfect head shot, if you watch the video that accompanies this article you will see I was there less than 5 minuets and had a reasonable bag, Goose my Cocker Spaniel is a dab hand at retrieving the rats etc for me, actually he likes to catch a few himself, since he got bitten by the first rat he caught he pays them no quarter, one bite, a crunch a shake and the rat is dead, I must say using the Night Pearl Thermal System really makes my night pest control work an easy job, I hear folks say thermal for rats? That's a bit over kill is it not, I say no not at all, why have a dog and bark yourself, I am trying to show you that the investment in this top quality equipment is worth every penny spent, its so versatile you can use it for big beast or small beast, save up that little extra and get something of quality that can cover all your night work and indeed day work, I often use the spotter when dealing with squirrels, you can tell a live squirrel drey from a dead one just by the heat source, so I say this save up a little longer and buy the best you can, or as my Pappy (Grandfather) always said, buy the scope and with the change buy the rifle, for if you cant see it, you cant shoot it, so buy once, cry once, why have a dry biscuit when you can have the finest steak I say, that night we finished on a huge pile of rats, so much so the owner helped us clear up with a wheel barrow, I am not much for taking photos of bag size, but that's one photo I will keep for my personal records, my brother had a most wonderful time his smile was like a Cheshire cat at the end of that night shift.
The next Night Pearl Hunt was with one of my Young Sports Ambassadors, he has got himself a summer job on an old friend of mines farm, he loves it and I am very proud of him, my old chum asked could I pop down as there were a few rats about and could I work my magic, of course I said yes and my Young Sport Ambassador would be joining me too, Farmer laughed and said well he may as well stay on after work then, I got there just after tea time and had a walk round with the Air Arms S510 Ultimate Sporters, one each for me and Young H, I like to familiarise myself during daylight hours to the job in hand, this help invaluably for when the night falls, not only tracking and getting a feel for the vermin's activity but also the safe and no safe shot zones, Young H got straight on with dealing with the feral pigeons and by the time it was Night Pearl Time he had quite a bag of ferals on the ground from around the various barns.
Right time to get on and deal with these rats, I had already shot a few during daylight around the feeders and mill etc, so we were already off and running as it were, but as night fell so the rats came out to play, Young H could not believe it as rat after rat fell to his shots with my Air Arms S510 Ultimate Sporter and the Night Pearl Seer thermal add on, I let him do the lion share of the shooting, I had the odd go but for me it was watching my Young Sports Ambassador for Country Sports in action, he earned that top title and keeps on earning it every day, like I said I am very proud of him and all the other Young Sports that earn the title of Pass It On Young Sports Ambassador, for they have worked hard to rise above the others to earn this coveted title on my young sports programme, back with Young H he was making short work of those scaly tailed Ratticuss, by the time we had finished we had quite a pile of feral pigeons and rats in the wheel barrow, my old farmer friend and Young Hs Boss was very happy with our efforts, he said see H that's why I call him the resolver, no matter what the job is he works his magic and the job is done, I did laugh and say this job was all Young H hard work, I just supervised, I do have to go back very soon, I just have to find the time to fit it all in as I am so busy at the moment, not just with Pest Control.
Right time to get on and deal with these rats, I had already shot a few during daylight around the feeders and mill etc, so we were already off and running as it were, but as night fell so the rats came out to play, Young H could not believe it as rat after rat fell to his shots with my Air Arms S510 Ultimate Sporter and the Night Pearl Seer thermal add on, I let him do the lion share of the shooting, I had the odd go but for me it was watching my Young Sports Ambassador for Country Sports in action, he earned that top title and keeps on earning it every day, like I said I am very proud of him and all the other Young Sports that earn the title of Pass It On Young Sports Ambassador, for they have worked hard to rise above the others to earn this coveted title on my young sports programme, back with Young H he was making short work of those scaly tailed Ratticuss, by the time we had finished we had quite a pile of feral pigeons and rats in the wheel barrow, my old farmer friend and Young Hs Boss was very happy with our efforts, he said see H that's why I call him the resolver, no matter what the job is he works his magic and the job is done, I did laugh and say this job was all Young H hard work, I just supervised, I do have to go back very soon, I just have to find the time to fit it all in as I am so busy at the moment, not just with Pest Control.
The next Night Pearl Hunt was a problem fox job, this chicken thieving Charlie fox was hitting one of my oldest pest control clients free range fox, as with everyone they try and sort the job themselves first, but normally end up having to call me to deal with the job regardless, I got there in daylight as always, like I said before I like to see the job in daylight, track the quarry and see safe shot zones etc, this is when good old time learnt field craft comes in, I have said it before and I will say it again, all the gadgets in the world just give you the edge, its no good relying on luck, it makes all the difference where the metal meets the meat, I had worked out there were two foxes attacking, the first I was sure it was a vixen or could be a small dog fox, the second was most definitely a large dog fox, just the paw prints in the soft soil told me this, I suppose it comes down to experience and sometimes a sixth sense I think, a gut feeling, them that knows will know what I mean, I was also lucky enough to pick some field mushrooms in the big paddock, I had these the next morning for breakfast with bacon and eggs, now the problem this night the moon was full and like daylight here, this accompanied with the ambient light from the farms security lights really made for it to be a difficult shooting position.
I managed to find a nice spot in the shadow of a lorry trailer that looked out onto the hill ground rising before me, the night fell and I set up in position, I was not there ten minuets and I had the first fox in the bag, I would like to say it was a momentous shot at great distance in a high wind, it was a bit more like oh bugger there the fox forty yards away waling right to left broad side heading straight for the roosting flock, I was quite simply not ready, I was just playing with the Scops Max II thermal spotter and its settings, I had not really set the seer system up to my favourite settings at this point, I had literally just put it on said yes that's OK for a moment and was sorting the spotter out, but none the less there was the fox, I mounted the gun, put the cross hairs on the engine room and squeezed off the shot, crack thump, fox down with a humane shot to the engine room, my cameraman for the evening could not believe it, neither could I, but sometimes luck does play a part, for the next couple of hours nothing showed apart from rabbits etc, I opted for a drive around the farm and a shine about with my lamp, all quite there too, I headed back and my cameraman and I started the video re cap of the lucky or well unlucky fox, at this point I heard a fox bark to my left, I spotted him on the spotter, range found him with the Seer and basically dropped him on the spot, he must have been watching us film, I was right it was a smaller vixen and a large dog fox, my client was very happy with my efforts and he has reported no more attacks on his flock since, I will say that was a funny ole night, mere words, photos and the video really does not do it justice, but again it was time learnt field craft, and technology that brought home the bacon, well yes and a bit of luck too, but it was the tracking and field craft that put me in the right spot, the rest as we say is all gravy.
The final hunt was not with any Night Vision or Thermal or indeed the awesome Night Pearl System but the good ole lamp, like I said at the start it has always been my opinion to be any good with night vision or indeed thermal, you must master the old art of the lamp man, this hunt this night proves I have still got this old skill, my wing man this night was an inexperienced person, we were out dealing with mole jobs, rat jobs, feral pigeon jobs etc, I had the ole 223 with me as I might have had to go deal with a daytime fox job, this did not happen, but I had a phone call from the lady who owns the estate where I keeper, could I pop around and make sure all the gates were shut, the contractors had finished all the grass cutting, bailing etc, the last time they left all the gates wide open and we ended up with fly tippers dumping rubbish, of course my lady I will do that no problem at all I said.
Actually it was a perfect opportunity for me to have a look round for some of the problem foxes that had been taking my Grey Partridges, we don't shoot these they are a conservation project I am running with Pass It On Young Sports, blast no night vision or thermal with me, oh well old school it is then, Lamp, Gun, Trigger Sticks and time learnt field Craft, I went around shutting all the gates, having a shine with the lamp before I shut each one, I got to the quarry ground as we call it, right in front of me no lamp required I saw a fox dash off across the grass land right into one of my woodland drives, gun on the shoulder sticks and lamp in hand I went after him, I circled around so the wind was in my face, my scent and indeed sound if any being taken away in the opposite direction of where I knew the fox would be, I stationed myself right in the valley knowing I had a good back stop behind the fox, I gave a few hand squeals and scanned with the red filter, there he was coming out of the bottom of the wood on the old game trail, he sat to my squeal looking right at my beam, I used the bottom of the beam to illuminate him, left hand above my head with the lamp, gun mounted on the Primos Gen 3 trigger sticks, I exhaled and squeezed off the shot, I don't normally do head shots but this one just presented itself just right, that clear distinct thwack of a perfect strike as the fox dropped stone dead to the shot, I composed myself and made the gun safe, then Goose (My English Cocker Spaniel) and myself headed over to retrieve this fox that had been giving me the run around in the long grass for months, tonight his luck ran out, a solo mission on foot old school style, safe to say I still have the skills when I need them, so like I say learn the Lamp Man’s craft and field craft first then you will get the full benefits of the Night Vision or indeed Thermal, I walked back to my Opo who was at the truck, excitedly he said I heard a shot did you get it? I laughed and held up this big dog fox and said you could say that, again I think the video shows my joy better than mere words or photos.
Well until my next humble scribbles, I hope you have enjoyed this article, as I type I am preparing to head North to the South Yorkshire Shooting Show in Doncaster, if you would like to see the Night Pearl Systems in action come say hello, don't forget all the Night Pearl Systems are available through Really Wild Adventures on the links below, but remember these words, Field Craft, Mastering The Lamp and Knowing Your Quarry will make you a more successful Hunter and or Countryman.
Out Foxing Charlie 18
By The Ole Hedge Creeper
Out Foxing Charlie 18
By The Ole Hedge Creeper
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