Innehållsförteckning för February 2015 från The Field

TRAVEL KIT INTELLIGENT PELICAN Six travel essentials, including headlamp, charger and towel. Price £125 Tel 01672 516588 www.intelligentpelican.com WOVEN CLOTH NOTEBOOK THE STAMFORD NOTEBOOK Jot your observations on best paper, hand bound in England. Price from £15 Tel 01780 762550 www.stamfordnotebooks.co.uk HARRIS DRYBOOTS THE DRYBOOT COMPANY The new incarnation of the Viking Dryboot. Still essential field kit. Price £60 Tel 01989 730368 www.thedrybootcompany.com BIG FIVE KEYRING RIGHT AND LEFT Four designs in silver with sapphires to keep keys safe. Price £150 Tel 020 8441 5604 www.rightandleft.co.uk CAMPING BEDROLL SHEEPSKIN BEDROLL COMPANY Westcountry sheepskin on waterproof fabric for guests or the great outdoors. Price from £200 Tel 01736 810881 www.thesheepskinbedrollcompany.co.uk BIG FIVE SILK SHAWL HOLLAND & HOLLAND Elegant on hunting grounds from Sloane Street to South Africa. Price £395 Tel 020…

PROPERTY OF THE MONTH THE OLD RECTORY Brockhall, Northamptonshire Agent Strutt & Parker Tel 01858 438710 Guide price £1.35 million This former rectory dates from the early part of the 19th century with extensions in the 1850s. Its style is very much of the period with mellow, redbrick elevations, a shallow, pitched and slated roof and deep sash windows. It has been extensively restored and updated in recent years. The house is laid out over two floors with cellars below. It stands in a private position, surrounded by a mature garden and grounds of almost four acres, on the northern edge of the village of Brockhall, nine miles from Northampton. There is a farmhouse-style kitchen and breakfast-room, drawing-room, dining-room and sitting-room, six bedrooms and three bathrooms, including a wet room…

NOW that the closed season for inland gamebirds is upon us, I sometimes break the ennui by popping my polecat hob into his travelling box on crisp February mornings and spending an hour or two having a go at bolting bunnies to my old Holland & Holland single-barrelled .410. In many ways, these rabbiting forays are a trip down memory lane. I was first taken ferreting by our gardener, Joe, when I was six years old, my introduction to fieldcraft and the responsibilities that go with looking after a working animal. More importantly, after a little initial tuition, bolting rabbits to nets was something I could do without adult supervision and learn from my own mistakes. Success depended on silence, identifying wind direction, proper care of the equipment and sensible…

The price per gun per night is $1,250 at both Jacana and Los Crestones. This includes accommodation, food, drink and the shooting. Minimum reservation is for two guns and for two nights. Jacana has five double bedrooms, Crestones has 10 single bedrooms. Season: 1 May to 31 July at both lodges. Cartridges cost $16.50 per box; gun rental $70 per day. Both lodges are run by the David Denies company. The UK office of David Denies and Nervous Waters is run by Nick Zoll, Choseley Farm, Docking, Kings Lynn, Norfolk PE318PQ. Call 01485 512046 or email nick@daviddenies.com or nickmonica@nervouswaters.com.…

A holiday in Tasmania with Red Tag Trout Tours consisting of six days’ guided fly-fishing costs from £2,595 per person based on two anglers sharing twin/double accommodation, including transport, kit, licences, seven nights’ accommodation, most meals, drinks and airport transfers. Flights to Tasmania are not included. For further information on tailor-made fly-fishing holidays call Tasmanian Odyssey on 01534 735449 or visit www.tasmanianodyssey.com.…

IT started 200 years ago as the Duke of Wellington’s armies swept through south-western France pursuing Napoleon’s defeated regiments. On 27 February, 1814 the armies met at Orthez, where the French put up a hard fight before, once again, retreating. Yet, according to local tradition, an extraordinary rapprochement took place after the battle. Like-minded British and French officers put their enmity aside and decided to hunt together. They met in the vicinity of Pau, where there was such an abundance of foxes and the country was so good that many of the British officers made a mental note to return. One of these was Sir Henry Oxenden, a keen foxhunter, whose father was a close friend of the Duke of Wellington. He took the view that the local region, the…

THIS year The Field’s Macnab, held for the first time in association with Glenfarclas Whisky, Hine Cognac and Champagne Pol Roger, was the most successful in its five-year existence. Seventeen Macnabbers claimed success on hill and moor and river. As ever, the Gannochy estate in the Angus Glens provided a large part of the bag with seven Macnabs. Tulchan Lodge played host to another four. Most stuck to the classic interpretation but one Corinthian version made it, too. Gannochy’s owner, Allan Hemmings, has created a cornucopia of sporting bliss in Glen Esk, alongside his team: David Clement, Colin Lanyon and Sam Wordingham. His son, Dean, chalked another Macnab on to the Gannochy board on 13 August after an abortive start the previous day. “I started my Macnab on the 12th,”…

EVERY old object has a story to tell but the shot-blasted Napoleonic Eagle, sold at Osenat’s Fontainebleau auction on 15 November, looks as if it has a blockbuster novel in it. Pierced by two balls and with sabre cuts to the head and wings, this magnificent gilt bronze bird evidently saw some ferocious fighting as its French standard bearers fought to save it and their enemies gave their lives to seize it. Because an eagle – given by Napoleon in person – was the embodiment of that regiment. Lose the eagle, lose your honour; my old regiment wears a Napoleonic Eagle, number 105, captured at Waterloo, on its uniform to this day. That’s what such an eagle means to a soldier. The integral box, on which the eagle stands, bears…

WITH spring still some way off, the best place to forage is in your freezer. At this time of year you’ll have a deep freeze full of game. If it is from the season just ended, congratulations. If it needs carbon dating, these recipes are definitely for you. I have worked in many lodges and houses where these goodies remain in the freezer until frostbitten and well past their prime. So with not much on the food calendar right now (besides the challenge of different ways to serve turnips and cabbage), it seems the perfect time for some freezer management. BRAISED GROUSE WITH TOMATO, PARMESAN AND WET POLENTA Serves 12 For the braised grouse 6 grouse (defrosted) 6 tbsp olive oil 3 red onions, finely diced 3 heads fennel, finely…

RECENTLY introduced by GMK, the Sako Black is sure to secure a significant market share. With its distinctive, fluted barrel it is really no more than an 85 Finnlite that has been blued on the parts what would otherwise be shiny stainless. So, with blued barrel, action, bolt shroud, trigger housing and magazine base plate, the entire rifle is of soft, matt-black and non-reflective appearance. The rifle is not screw cut as standard but GMK can arrange for this to be done for the buyer. The composite black stock with cheekpiece is slightly refined by the addition of rubberised chequering for improved grip. At just over 6lb it is a light rifle but one that is surprisingly limited in calibre options. Available in .308 Win,.270 Win, 30-06 Spr and 6.5x55…

THE forbidding black birch of a Grand National fence thrown into menacing relief; a pale winter sky filled with the dark punctuation marks of geese; hunters steaming at the end of the day. Jeremy Houghton’s work is all about the spaces in between, which somehow convey the realities of the sports he depicts more convincingly than any amount of photographic detail. Houghton has developed his own technique for creating those telling, light-filled gaps. “I paint in watercolour but the white that you see is the white of the paper. To make that happen I use masking fluid, which I paint precisely on to the areas of the paper that I want to leave white. This provides a seal against the watercolour paint and then it is a laborious task to…

A once-derelict house in Wales and a revived family home in Dorset have jointly won the restoration of a Georgian country house category of the 2014 Georgian Group Architectural awards sponsored by Savills. Hendre House in Caernarvonshire had major structural problems, was riddled with dry rot and had been vandalised when bought by Michael Tree in 2000. The house was vacated in 1932 when the Blackwall family sold up after a hundred years and, apart from being requisitioned for a short time during the Second World War, had remained empty. It was rescued by its new owner, who re-roofed, rebuilt chimneys and renewed floors. The park was also underplanted and the walled garden replanted with vegetables. Most of the drystone walls had to be rebuilt and the woods fenced off…

"WE are a nation of philatelists,” announced the chancellor, George Osborne, in his Autumn Statement. Well, I assume that’s what he said because all everybody has been talking about since is stamp duty. Its full name is Stamp Duty Land Tax or SDLT, which sounds like something you might need antibiotics to clear up, rather than the Exchequer. Property is seared in the national consciousness not merely because it is the very expensive roof over our heads but because it is the barometer of everything – be it money, mood or marriage. Feeling “up and down” is not about your emotions but the price of your home and the weight of your mortgage. The Autumn Statement may be stated in December, which to most of us is winter, but had…

LIKE so many small businesses, Peter Dyson’s has its roots in a hobby but was kick-started by an ultimatum. “You either need to make a business out of all this making and repairing or a get a new interest,” said Wendy Dyson. Her husband was working full time for an engineering company then spending every hour of his spare time repairing old guns and crafting parts. He took her advice and, in 1964, bought premises in the couple’s home village, Honley in West Yorkshire. His passion for antique weapons had been ignited a few years previously by a muzzle-loading gun. “When a chap from college came shooting with me, he turned up with a single-barrel, muzzle-loading shotgun from the 1850 period. I was spellbound watching him load it with black…

I AM indeed fortunate – I fish and host fishing trips for a living. I travel in search of weird and wonderful swimming critters to throw fly at. I investigate fisheries, sometimes fishing where a fly has never before been thrown, other times attempting to catch fish on fly that have been conquered only on conventional gear. Often, I am reconnoitring a luxury lodge with renowned fishing, guides and service, researching a venue and fishing it thoroughly. As a result, I know when is the best time to go, what the conditions will be like and the most trouble-free and cost-effective route to take. On a hosted trip, the host takes care of the travel and fishing arrangements, the fishermen paying what the lodge or operator would normally charge, the…

LAST year marked my 51st season as a full-time professional hunter in Africa. During that time I have witnessed much change. Human populations have increased dramatically and are in conflict with wildlife while, north of the Zambezi river, poaching pressure – particularly on elephant and rhino – has led to a staggering decline in wildlife numbers. Southern African countries largely escaped this poaching menace until recently. I have been fortunate. My business and way of life has led me to safari in most of Africa’s premier game fields. Some countries are now closed to hunting or their wildlife populations mostly poached out. On the other hand, some destinations offer increasing wildlife numbers resulting in superb hunting opportunities. What I have learnt is this: if people living in the bush neighbouring…

THE River Ribble starts as a tiny spring in Jam Syke, high on Newby Moss at the head of Widdale, on the old boundary between the North and West Ridings of Yorkshire. It is the only river in Yorkshire that flows west, passing through Settle, Clitheroe, Ribchester and Preston on a 75-mile journey that ends when it meets the Irish Sea at the estuary between Lytham St Annes and Southport in Lancashire. The Ribble estuary is a “slough”, or shallow tidal estuary, and over many millennia silt carried downriver and sand brought in by the sea have created a vast area of mud and salt flats that, at low tide, become a glistening Sahara 10 miles wide. Extensive salt-marshes have developed on the landward side where the mudflats are exposed…

THE Great Exhibition of 1851 was a remarkable celebration of crafts and industries, representing a coming together of the very best and newest the world then had to offer. Under the auspices of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert, an enormous “Crystal Palace” was erected in London’s Hyde Park to showcase the amazing collection. No area of endeavour was knowingly neglected. Advances in science and engineering, art, design and technology were included along with work depending on much older, traditional methods. It has been estimated that almost a third of Britain’s population visited the exhibition during the five months or so for which it ran, and some of the profits were used to finance several of London’s museums. Somewhere among the vast number of exhibits, taxidermy was represented. The work of…

SOME time ago, we tested the three-litre V6 diesel version of the XF Sportbrake and found it utterly lovely. It went beautifully, stopped magnificently (saving us from piling into a heap of crashed motorcyclists round a hidden bend) and, all in all, seemed to want for nothing. It turns out we were wrong. Across the Channel and left a bit, Jaguar’s keenest competitors produce luxurious executive cars with four-cylinder diesels that are remarkably popular. Why anyone would choose a clunky inline four over a smooth-as-silk V6 is a mystery to me – probably something to with economy or tax breaks. Whatever the reason, without such an engine, the XF was always going to lose sales. So Jaguar has installed its 2.2, four-cylinder diesel in the XF. There’s no doubt it’s…

Pubs in Kent, Merseyside, Cheshire and Gloucestershire are vying to be the best pub in Britain. The winner of the National Pub of the Year competition will be announced by CAMRA, the Campaign for Real Ale later this month. The pubs in the final are: The Windmill in Sevenoaks; The Freshfield in Formby; The Harewood Arms in Broadbottom; and The Salutation Inn, Ham, Berkeley. Pubs are judged on their atmosphere, décor, welcome, service, value for money, customer mix and – above all – the quality of their beer. The Swan with Two Necks in Pendleton won last year’s competition. The family-run pub devotes five pumps to real ale and one to cask cider and is popular with locals and tourists visiting the Pennines. According to the Good Beer Guide 2015,…

FEBRUARY 14 JAN - 16 ATLANTIC SALMON TRUST 2015 AUCTION With 200+ lots of salmon, sea-trout, brown trout and grayling fishing on major UK rivers and abroad. Guide prices start at £30; www.atlanticsalmontrust.org . 31 JAN - MAR 1 SNOWDROP WEEKENDS Colesbourne Park, near Cheltenham, Gloucestershire, Sat/Sun only, tel 01242 870264; www.colesbournegardens.org.uk . 1 MID DEVON HUNT POINT-TO-POINT Black Forest Lodge Kenton, near Exeter (includes first pony race of the season at 11am), tel 07885 699802. 1 SOUTH DURHAM HUNT FARMERS CLUB POINT-TO-POINT Mordon, near Sedgefield, Co Durham (first race 12 noon), tel 07798 776726. 7–8 MAR SNOWDROP WALKS Rode Hall, Scholar Green, Cheshire (except Mondays), tel 01270 873237. 8 COMBINED SERVICES POINT-TO-POINT Larkhill, Wiltshire (first race 11.30am), tel 07789 544498. 9–8 MAR SNOWDROP…

IF I ruled the world I would end all wars, murders, crimes against humanity, torture and abuse of all kinds. Bullies would be a distant memory, neighbours would live harmoniously side by side and life would be free of anxieties and hardship for all. Anger management would be on the national curriculum, as would how to set the table for dinner. And before anyone bought a ticket to travel on public transport they’d have to pass a test to ensure they had good manners and respect for others. That would mean an end to those unthinking individuals who leave their banana skins on the seat, spill takeaway coffee all over the floor for unfortunate passengers to slip in, put their feet up so that the next person has to choose…

WE drove past Lincoln into the fens, a watery land, grey and flat as slate, the sky broken only by windmills endlessly pumping the dykes. The rain bent the wheat fields and huddled the cattle but failed to sodden our spirits. Wildfowlers either grow to love the wet or pursue drier pastimes. Even so, we cursed Hurricane Betty – or was she Charlotte? Whatever her name, she’d partied hard in the south Atlantic, crashed out somewhere and left Argentina’s taps running. We’d travelled 7,000 miles to swap a dank Britain for a soused South America. “They’ll be everywhere,” murmured Nick Zoll, raising a leaden eyelid from the back of the minibus to watch a pair of silver teal dibble in a ditch. “Bleedin’ everywhere.” Difficult not to agree as we…

THERE was no time to waste when Francis Francis, The Field’s angling editor, arrived at London docks in 1864. He was delivering two boxes of fertilised eggs of brown trout collected from tributaries of the Thames. He little knew that, when hatched, his fish would leap into the history books. The passenger ship Norfolk was bound for Melbourne, Australia, where detailed plans had been put in place to transfer the 3,000 ova, together with 100,000 Atlantic salmon eggs, to the colony of Tasmania. Francis, later a founding member of the Flyfishers’ Club, London, could merely watch as the Norfolk cast off with his precious cargo on board. One hundred and fifty years later and thanks in no small part to Francis, Tasmania has become one of the great, unspoilt destinations…

IT is November 1963. A team of guns, mostly former RAF officers, pitches up at Kingston Wood Manor, Cambridgeshire, to be greeted by the host, Group Captain John Peel, a highly decorated wartime fighter pilot credited with firing the opening shots of the Battle of Britain. Things go well, they have a memorable day and, according to Field correspondent Group Captain HW Pearson-Rogers, the pheasants and duck come over the woodland rides “flak-high”. Wind the clock on 50 years and it is Peel’s granddaughter, Sara Metherell, and her husband, Julian, who greet the guns as they roll up in the yard outside the shoot-room. Nothing strange in a sporting estate passing down the generations, you might think. But you would be wrong. Kingston Wood Manor was sold shortly after the…

DURING your first evening as a guest at Ngala Safari Lodge, on the edge of Kruger National Park, they warn you not to go back to your cabin without an armed guide. Apparently, a lady popped out for her cardigan during dinner one night and was attacked. They know she was on the way back from her cabin because they found a sleeve of the cardigan with her arm in it. All the same, it’s not until about day three on safari, when you are bitten, bruised, burnt and blistered, that you realise you are so far down the food chain that even the vegetation regards you as easy meat. And that’s just what we are to a lion: easy meat. “Even an impala is a more fierce opponent than…

MUTTON is a prime example of a neglected British food that is making a comeback. A growing number of food-lovers, as well as farmers, say they prefer mutton to lamb. Good mutton simply tastes better, they say; like proper, aged beef compared to mild veal. Mutton, once a mainstay of the British table, is the meat of two-year-old sheep, beyond the stage of lamb and year-old hogget. In 1861, Mrs Beeton wrote: “Mutton is undoubtedly the meat most generally used in families.” But changes in supply and demand for meat, wool, milk, fat for tallow candles and even manure, mean older sheep are less economically viable – hence the decline of mutton. Mutton also has an image problem, a result of the greasy, tinned meat and tough stews of wartime…

THIS month’s test concerns a pair of high-grade, William Powell Continental sidelock side-by-sides. They have been made in association with Arrieta of Spain (with which Powell has had a long-standing connection). The guns were specially ordered to match an existing pair of Powells. Stuart Eborall, Powell’s gunroom manager, notes: “We are asked to copy guns quite frequently. Typically, clients have had an old pair of our guns handed down from father or grandfather but don’t want to strain the heirlooms too much. We can replicate them with guns of similar style, which can take the punishment of regular use with modern cartridges. Our guns come with a five-year warranty as well. We still make our No 1 model in England but the Continental range – carefully specified by us and…

The Field cannot accept legal responsibility for answers given in these columns. TUSKS TO USE Q My wife and I shot warthog in South Africa recently, the largest of which are to be mounted. The other tusks are being sent back loose. I was thinking about having them set in a carving and/or desk set. Can you recommend someone who could offer ideas or do this? TWBC, London A Jonathon Miles runs the Trumpington Gallery in Cambridge. He and his team have much experience in picture framing, conservation, restoration and collections management. They would be delighted to discuss the tusks, your requirements and costs involved. Call him on 01223 301330 or visit www.trumpingtongallery.co.uk. MOVEMBER MOUSTACHE Q Thanks to Movember I have a moustache and have decided to keep…