.

This was the culmination of my 50th year celebrations ! I decided – with my wife’s approval of course – that I would have a 50th Year as opposed to a 50th Birthday Party. We had the Childrens Party (14 – 28) in RSA in April this year (reported on AR) so this was the Adults Party (28 – 68)!

Most of the very close friends that I wanted to celebrate with have hunted Southern Africa with us on more than one occasion – the last trip being a wing shoot in July/August in Namibia – so a hunt in Africa, although always something exciting would not necessarily be unique. A driven hunt in Europe crossed my mind; but most of our European friends have been there and done that and have the boars tusks’ and antlers on their walls to show for it. I thought about the US, but for our friends from Texas, the US would not be anything new. And then I thought of Scotland!

I hope that the pictures and some short text highlights can do this trip of a lifetime fair justice …..






We rented Inverbroom Lodge for the last week of the stag season. A Victorian sporting lodge with accommodation for 16 plus, a great lounge, dining room, a games room and a fantastic kitchen.









With a very comfortable living room -





And a great dining room -




With sporting art ...






Inverbroom Lodge sits at the head of Loch Broom, some 8 miles from Ullapool and the Irish sea. Spectacular scenery to say the least!












Ullapool - a traditional West Coast fishing town ....









Looking out over the Irish sea



This picture so reminds me of the classic film 'Local Hero' from the '80s





We loved Ullapool so much that we looked at property there. The only house we saw had a double yellow no parking line in front so that put us off! Kind of like a Scottish version of Grant Wood's 1930 American Gothic but without the hay fork!






The stalking was fantastic with breathtaking scenery on a 50.000 plus no fences Wester Ross highland estate. The rut was still on so we had stags roaring throughout the whole week. Simply fantastic!





Craig King, the estate stalker / ghillie looked after us magnificently! We all used his .270 Sako rifle mounted with a Zeiss scope with shots from 125 to 275 yards.


Rob and Ilsa were first up Monday morning, with Rob taking his first Scottish stag ....




Ilsa and her stag !








Ulrike and Hermann went out Tuesday, with Hermann taking a good old stag and Ulrike too.








Weidi went out with his wife and Uwe and Astrid on the Wednesday, and between them they took two stags in glorious Scottish sunshine (in October!)







Emeka and Rahwa went out Thursday on their first ever hunt / stalk and were both successful in taking two stags with one shot each! The estate stalker / ghillie had fun he blooding them both in keeping with tradition!
In fact he blooded 5 of the group throughout the week!


Emeka spying for stags




Emeka and his beast!





Rahwa's stag. This was / is the first animal that she has ever taken!





Sia and his wife went out Friday, and after a two hour sit and wait (with a pic nic!) for his stag to stand-up from its bed, he too took a stag with one clean shot. Which in true Scottish form he then dragged off the hill ....







And my wife and I also went out on the hill and successfully took two stags after stalking, bending and crawling over 8 miles at the top of the highest hill!
















The 21st century garron pony - the Argo 8x8









We flushed a number of grouse during the week whilst stalking just adding to the whole experience






It was great to come down off the hill to this .....





And this .....





In addition to stalking we enjoyed a champagne pic nic on Gruinard Beach and were entertained by seals in the shallows -









A walk / hike down to Corrieshalloch Gorge and Falls which was an amazing site to see






A day trip to the Glenmorangie Distillery (photos not allowed!) and we went out to Ullapool to see the sights and dine in the Argyle Hotel ...





Alyson and Iain catered for us for the week with fantastic menus starting each day with a full English breakfast - inc Black Pudding! - or continental or porridge and kippers! Followed by lunches, teas and amazing dinners with the emphasis on British fare - starting the first evening with roast beef with Yorkshire pudding and all the trimmings and finishing the last night with a 4 course black tie dinner with lobster soup, haggies neeps and tatties (when in Rome), venison roast and chocolate mousse! Everyone's waistlines suffered!





Scones for tea !








We enjoyed excellent meals and great beers,
champagnes, French wines and British ports!










We played snooker before dinner ....





And Hermann and Ulrike played / sounded their hunting horns before dinner every day with 'Hirsch tot' (stag dead) and 'Jagd vorbei' (hunt over) adding a European touch to an otherwise very Scottish week!




And we rounded it off with a fun black tie dinner!

The ladies ....





The gents .....





We had a piper who played before dinner and although only 17 (and a ghillie on the next estate) he was excellent and pipes in the regional pipe and drum band!








We enjoyed, soup and then haggis neeps and tatties as Scotland is just not Scotland without pipes and poetry!


Address to a Haggis, Robert Burns

Fair fa' your honest, sonsie face,
Great chieftain o the puddin'-race!
Aboon them a' ye tak your place,
Painch, tripe, or thairm:
Weel are ye worthy o' a grace
As lang's my arm.


And on the final morning we laid out a bag for the week of 11 stags. Craig was excellent in boiling, cleaning and shaping all the heads for us so that we could take them with us on Sunday when we departed and Hermann and Ulrike announced the end of the week's hunting on their horns in glorious October sunshine.








We had all come prepared for the worst but - and I kid you not - we did not have a drop of rain during the day the whole week that we were there !




It was a truly amazing week, with great friends, superb hunting and stalking and in line with true Scottish deer management ethics we took old beasts beyond their prime, the poor and 'bloody ugly' (quote) heads and the heads with spikes of long tains. No trophies were taken per say but the sport was in the stalking and taking the beasts cleanly. The day on the hill was our prize and the head / antlers more a reminder for the wall of a wonderful weeks stalking!

And finally you all need to remember that at 50 you have to keep the fires burning!!





Although the general opinion was that my wife looks a darn sight better in a tartan skirt than I do !




It was the perfect birthday week and I would not have changed a thing!

Thanks to all AR readers for coming along!






.

Fantastic - looks like a great week in the highlands with friends.

Congratulations and thank you for a splendid summary with great pictures

Congrats on a great week.

You are right that stalking Stags in Scotland is not about the antlers, but about being on the hill. It is such a special place to hunt.

K

Thanks for sharing a great week's experiences in Scotland with us.

Wow!



Thank You for sharing, great hunt report & photos - Waidmannsheil!

Looks like ya'll had a wonderful time. Thank you for sharing your vacation photos with us.

Larry

Thank you for letting me come along!

Great report and photoes. Thanks for sharing :-)


Morten

Looks like a great trip - funnily enough i was looking at Inverbroom on sporting lets earlier this week as a potential location for next year.

Great report

.

Thanks all for the comments ! It was an amazingly fun week.

Guy - can only heartedly recommend Inverbroom. Everything was perfect - the lodge, the rooms, the estate, the stalking and the ghillie/stalker. However they are booked out for 2015 other than the final calender week of the stag season which only gives you two days of stags !? 2016 maybe?
.

Not unlike Africa really apart for the Stags, Snooker, bagpipes, Haggis and single malts.

You chose well. A classic traditional experience in proper country.

I thoroughly enjoyed that. Thanks.

quote:

Originally posted by Charlie64:
.

We enjoyed excellent meals and great beers,
champagnes, French wines and British ports!


.

Congratulations on your great hunting trip and report.
Now let me correct you: there are no "British ports". Port wine is a Portuguese wine (take a closer look at the label)

B.Martins

Always a pleasure to read a well-written and illustrated trip report. Thanks so much for sharing.

BM,

quote:

Now let me correct you: there are no "British ports". Port wine is a Portuguese wine (take a closer look at the label)

Yes, you are correct however Smith Woodhouse, Croft, Warre, Cockburn, Dow, Taylor Fladgate, Fonseca, Grahams are all British ports IMO. Made in Portugal yes but quintessentially British!
.

Charlie,

Try the Krohn Colheita next time you get a chance. You will never go back!!

K

quote:

Originally posted by Charlie64:
BM,

quote:

Now let me correct you: there are no "British ports". Port wine is a Portuguese wine (take a closer look at the label)

Yes, you are correct however Smith Woodhouse, Croft, Warre, Cockburn, Dow, Taylor Fladgate, Fonseca, Grahams are all British ports IMO. Made in Portugal yes but quintessentially British!
.

Charlie,
A true "Vinho do Porto" (or "Port wine") as to be produced in Portugal with grapes from the "Douro" area (the oldest wine demarcated region established back in 1756).
Since the very beginning most of the trade of "Vinho do Douro" has been done trough British merchants established in the city of "Porto" (or Oporto) hence the name "port wine" and the confusion about its origin.
B.Martins

I was never confused about the origin or port ! I have been enjoying port for 30 odd years. A great invention, grown in Portugal and (mainly) consumed by the British and controlled by British shippers / houses.

A great product ! And I guess from your posts that you too enjoy port ?

Cheers

Absolutely brilliant!