A Sweaty Sim Day

As with most things in the countryside, I found out about a ladies simulated game day through word of mouth. Before I knew it, I had a hybrid game/simulated game shoot up near the North Norfolk Coast in my diary.

For me, a sim day was the natural progression from tuition days and lessons, and I saw it as a chance to get to know what a game shoot may be like and have a go at shooting some clays in a different environment from my usual shooting lodge.

I wasn’t entirely sure what to expect or even what to wear (it was forecast to be a very hot day) but I went into it with an open mind.

Getting lost

Those who know Norfolk will know that our internet is atrocious, and some areas are essentially like entering a black hole of communication. After a few loops of Ringstead and considering whether to take up residence in the local pub until someone found me, I eventually found the Le Strange Shoot and was ushered to the shoot lodge.

I went into the day knowing one person attending but I always find that ladies on such days are always so friendly and of course, having the same hobby helps. I also got a glimpse of the incredible food that was being prepared for the shoot lunch including homemade focaccia proving away…but on to that later.

The schedule

The gamekeeper outlined how the day was going to go before we set off. We were going to do 2 drives, elevenses, 3 more drives and then the shoot lunch. The drives were going to be a mix of pheasant, partridge and grouse which were all new to me, but I was excited (albeit sweating already by the end of the first drive).

The Le Strange shoot is set out in a beautiful estate with one drive taking place in a stunning valley. I also had my first experience in a grouse butt which was very alien to me and rather quick paced.

What I liked about the day was that the clays were set out at a steady pace rather than having fast and furious clays flying up in the air and becoming a very overwhelming experience to a novice gun like me.

Elevenses

By the end of the third drive, I was very grateful for elevenses sat atop a hill on the estate. We were presented with a tray of vension sausage rolls with dipping sauces and of course the obligatory sloe-gasms with pink lemonade for those not fancying a tipple in the heatwave.

This was really a moment for me where I sat and thought ‘this is where I belong’.

The final drives and the shoot lunch

As the midday sun was blaring out heat above us, the last two drives ended up being a little bit challenging as I had just got to the point of no return with being a hot, sweaty mess and my gun barrels were hot enough to barbeque meat on.

Admittedly I decided I’d had enough part way through the last drive but had the wonderful companionship of Amber, the keeper’s fox red lab who provided me with ‘refreshing’ face licks as well as sharing some of my bottle of water with me.

Afterwards, we were driven to the most magnificent set up for lunch. The estate has a building called The Octagon, built in 1655 as a banquet hall or music room. A table had been set out for us and the barbeque was smouldering away.

Lunch was vension with tomato salad and homemade focaccia as well as a burnt basque cheesecake for dessert. All of this was washed down with an elderflower spritz and chatter of how much we enjoyed the day.