Brocock hunting consultant Rich Saunders pits his skills against the wild animals of south Oxfordshire with only the Safari XR for protection
I’ve never done it, and I certainly wouldn’t dismiss the obvious skill involved, but when it comes to stalking prey, I doubt the deerstalkers in the Highlands of Scotland, or the hunters on the great plains of African could hold a candle to the humble air gunner attempting to close in on a rabbit or pigeon.
Funny isn’t it? The things you think about when you’re on your own in the woods. Or is it only me? Here I am, plodding about one of my permissions in south Oxfordshire, thinking what it must be like to hunt big game when I should be concentrating on pigeons and squirrels. And yet, I am absolutely certain the sensations and thrill I am experiencing are the same as any big game hunter. Alright, I’ll admit it’s unlikely a squirrel or pigeon will tear me limb from limb if I miss, but no matter what size the game, the challenge of stalking your quarry is uniformly absorbing.
These rambling thoughts are triggered by the use of a Brocock Safari XR rifle. At 12 ft. lbs. and .177 calibre, I’m woefully ill-equipped to take down any charging tigers I come across, but squirrels and pigeons are a different story. And that’s what I’m after today. The permission is a commercial lumber plantation. The squirrels cost a small fortune each year by stripping bark and pigeons use the woods as a staging post to raid nearby crops.
The section of the woods I’m in today is planted with fir trees that provide a year-round carpet of relatively quiet vegetation to stalk over. Entering from the track is like stepping into another world as the thick overhead canopy blocks out much of the light and any wind. It’s like being in an airgunning Narnia but without the irritating posh kids and weird animals.
I shoot most of the squirrels in the woods by sitting in one of several hides I have dotted around the place, staring at peanut feeders. Its very effective but prone to long periods of inactivity. I’ve often nodded off only to wake up in time and see a squirrel leap off the feeder and disappear.
In terms of success rate, stalking in the woods produces a much smaller return but is far more absorbing. Although the trees are thick overhead, the woodland floor is relatively sparse, making it easy to see the pests as they forage about. As a result, I’ve often stalked a squirrel over 100 yards or more. Hardly lions and red deer I know, but I enjoy it.
Added to that is the challenge of tracking down pigeons. They are easy to spot as they flight in, and easy to hear when they start cooing, but locating them in their perch and getting close enough for a shot before they spot you is captivating and frustrating in equal measures.
Air rifles are perfect for this kind of shooting; easily powerful enough to dispatch quarry humanely without posing undue risk or danger when shooting up in trees, especially with a buffer of several hundreds of acres.
The Brocock Safari XR is made for this kind of work. Like all the XR rifles, the sidelever action superseded the older bolt action, transforming good rifles into truly great ones in my opinion. The system is smooth, quiet and utterly reliable and works well with the newer style 13 shot (11 in .22) self-indexing magazine.
At 863mm (34 inches) and 3.3kgs (7.3 lbs), the Safari is light and compact – ideal for sneaking about in the woods, and the muted colour of the Safari stock not only affords excellent grip but won’t give you away. And the height adjustable shoulder pad means the rifle fits me comfortably, both in terms of shoulder fit and eye/scope alignment.
The 480cc carbon wrapped air bottle is a real luxury for someone as disorganised as me. Once filled up, I know it’s good for hundreds of shots and plenty of trips. And thanks to the Huma-Air regulated action, there’s no power curve to have to worry about.
The pigeons were far too clever for me this particular evening. The enclosed environment of the fir trees seems to make the noise from a snap twig or stumble echo around the woods and the pigeons have come to associate the sound with danger.
The squirrels were far more obliging though and I manage to bag three before the light in the gloom of the woods got too bad. I managed to creep up close enough to each of them, and whilst they all scurried up trees at the last minute, they froze long enough for me to get a shot off and the Safari XR didn’t let me down.