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We dubbed this the Chinese Take Away hunt!


For some reason, Chinese Water Deer (CWD) and muntjac go together as a sort of brace of deer trophies on the English game list. Oufitters and stalkers offer them as package deals over short 2 - 3 day hunts.

And why not, they are present in the same counties and areas and with muntjac having no closed season they pair up well with Chinese Water Deer, which are open from 1 November to the 31 March.

For those that are not familiar with these two deer species, Muntjac (Cervus muntjak) are a small deer standing some 40 cms at the shoulder and weighing some 12 - 15 kgs. Bucks have hooked antlers born on long pedicels and sharp protruding canines or tusks. Reeve’s muntjac, the subspecies found in the UK, are native to South East China and parts of Asia. The first muntjac in the UK were bought to Woburn Park in Bedfordshire in the late 19th Century and it is said that some escaped into the surrounding woods whilst others say they were intentionally released into the woodlands. Either way today muntjac are prolific throughout the hedges and woodlands of South Eastern England. Females usually drop one fawn and can immediately on giving birth come back into oestrus, so that she can basically be continuously pregnant and produce 3 fawns every 2 years. Prolific!

Chinese Water Deer (Hydropotes inermis) is also a small deer, standing taller than the muntjac and weighing slightly more. They are native to China and Korea - the one being the Chinese Water Deer and the other the Korean Water Deer. They have a distinct and prominent pair of tusks - downward pointing canines, which interestingly flex backwards in their sockets. They were introduced into the UK in the 1870s, originally to London Zoo and then relocated to Woburn Abbey park and from their it went the same way as their muntjac friends with escapees populating southern England!

Whilst Chinese Water Deer are listed as VU (Vulnerable) in the IUCN Conservation Lists this does not apply to the UK population which is sub listed as LC (Least Concern), as is the muntjac.

Wanting to do this hunt, clearly a popular early season hunt this year on AR, I surfed around, made some enquiries, made a few phone calls and came across Alex in Berkshire. Alex has been guiding clients on deer for some 12 years or so, in addition to his work as a deer manager, culling and managing herds for landowners. Alex asked how I found him as he avoids social media and does not advertise. I told him I had done my homework.

A phone call and a few Whatsapp messages and dates were fixed and I was “booked” for a couple of trophy heads at the end of February. No long contracts and agreements. A solid reputation and a phone call or two.

“Do you want a deposit?”

“No, you are good. See you soon.”

Super. That is the way it should be.

A close friend, Sia, then asked if he could join the party for a couple of cull heads. Alex was ok with that and so we were two.

I booked a hotel for us in Newbury by email and return tickets for ‘Le Shuttel’ (the Channel Tunnel), planning to drive over and back - some 6 to 7 hours each way from where we are in Germany. We would use Alex’s rifle and just take our own binocs and thermals. All good and simple.

Instead of my Land Rover for travel, this time it was Sia’s Jeep Wrangler - something very different - and we set off early the last Thursday in February through Germany, The Netherlands, Belgium and into France arriving at the Tunnel in Calais around 10 a.m.. There was just enough time to purchase a coffee and some Duty Free wine and Scotch - the only good thing to come out of Brexit imo - and then we drove onto the train for the short 40 min crossing to Folkestone and England.








Now Alex had called a couple of days earlier saying that if were could arrive around 2 p.m. to 3 p.m. he could take us straight out on some great ‘ground’ for Chinese Water Deer north of London on the Thursday, this however was not an option for Friday or Saturday. He has plenty of area for CWD, but this he said was a special area and we would see why.

We arrived at the pinned location shortly after 2 p.m. after an easy drive up from the coast and were spotting CWD on the fields with our binocs from the car as we waited for Alex. He arrived shortly after and following brief introductions and handshakes and a test dry fire of his Blaser R8 (shooting hand loaded .243 rounds) with a Pulsar Thermal sight, we were off stalking Chinese Water Deer.





Within minutes we spotted a pair of young bucks and a doe and then another couple of deer bedded down in some beans. All young according to our guide. Alex used a Swaro spotting scope to get a good look at the deer and their teeth as we walked and stalked and within an hour he made out an old, rut scarred buck, feeding alone against a hedge row.

“This one,” he announced, “we should try and take.

The three of us walked Indian file across the fields towards the feeding deer, freezing every time the buck lifted its head and fast walking closer every time he went back to feeding. With Public Footpaths criss crossing the countryside deer are used to walkers and ramblers but we were cautious nevertheless.

At about 120 meters Alex mounted the rifle on the sticks, I stepped into the stock and sighting onto the buck put in the shot. Hit, the buck ran some 20 to 30 meters in a semi circle and then dropped. The shot was a bit forward - wind drift - opening up the deer’s sternum and we despatched the buck quickly with a twist of the knife blade between his ribs.





An old buck, with scabs and scars and no hair on his neck from fighting in the recent rut and a great trophy to take. I was thrilled and after pictures and a quick gralloch by Alex, we laid the buck in some tall reeds next to a stream to pick up later.








And then it was time for Sia’s buck. Alex had seen one or two good bucks with broken teeth on the ground we were stalking and wanted to find one of these as a cull buck for Sia. And that is exactly what we did. Over the next hour plus, up until last light, we walked and stalked and spied numerous deer and then in the last 30 minutes of shooting light Alex spotted ‘the broken tusked buck’. A cautious and slow stalk / crawl followed and Sia was then able to line up on the deer, kneeling down from the edge of a maize cover strip. The shot that followed was good and after a short dash, the buck dropped and Sia had his Chinese Water 'cull" Buck in the bag!








Photos, a gralloch and within 4 hours of meeting Alex, we had a medal buck and a great cull buck in the back of the Hilux next to Sky, Alex’s Bavarian blood hound (and one of the prettiest Bavarians I have ever seen)! What a way to start and end the first day of stalking!

We drove an hour to Newbury and checked into our hotel and managed a late ‘Fish ‘n Chips’ dinner just before the kitchens closed and then after a pint and a celebratory duty free scotch, we called in early for the 05.00 start the following morning.








Alex picked us up exactly on time and after a short drive and a stop for coffees at a Shell Station, we turned onto the driveway of a magnificent English estate where we would be stalking muntjac amongst the estate gardens. A more beautiful setting of woodland gardens you could not imagine - hundred year old rhododendrons, a lake with swans and ducks surrounded by willow trees and tall grasses and snow drops and daffodils every where you looked. And as expected - muntjac! Just beautiful!

Using thermals, we picked up muntjac in the park almost straight away, bright white spots against the black backdrop in and under the bushes, but nothing suitable and we moved on to another wood and then another. Shortly after, Alex spied a superb muntjac and with me on the sticks Alex barked it and the deer froze and stepping into the rifle butt to take the shot, a twig snapped under my foot and the munti was gone in a flash! Shit happens. We moved on and looked for more deer.

We probably saw a dozen bucks and does throughout the morning but nothing suitable and Alex called it a morning. It was back to the hotel, a late full English breakfast, an hours rest and then a walk about town before Alex collected us at 2.00 p.m. for the afternoon session.

He knew of a big buck, holding in a plantation on another piece of ground that he manages and that is where we went and - exactly as planned - we found the buck feeding in between the rows of trees. A short stalk in, rifle on the sticks, a bark and, putting the thermal’s red dot onto the buck’s shoulder, I squeezed the shot off. A hit, but a low hit, and the buck bounded a few meters to the right and stopped, literally to lick his wounds. A second shot, a short dash and the buck dropped but needed a finishing shot to the shoulder. Not my finest hunting moment with 3 shots on a munti and my head sank lower, when Alex, looking at the buck’s carcass, loudly announced “Well, that’s dog meat!” All in good humor and we were all able to laugh at his ribbing commentary on my shooting.








Despite his commentary I was thrilled with a very good representative muntjac buck!

We then made a short drive to some fields where Alex knew an old, old buck was holding that would be a great cull buck for Sia to take. He had some beans out as bait next to the hedge and a number of muntjac were actively feeding at the bait site the days before.

We set up and waited, whilst Alex gralloched my ‘dog meat’ carcass - we did take the fillets and one haunch off of the deer for the table so it was not such a disaster - and a pair of young deer came out to feed along with a dozen pheasants. Shortly after and at last light, we spotted the old buck and Sia dropped him with a great shot to the chest. And what a magnificent old buck he was, big in body but with totally worn and receded antlers and a broken canine and worn out molars. A superb buck to take and imo one of top trophies of the trip!





That evening we enjoyed a curry and a couple of Cobra beers, chatting and reminiscing about the great day behind us. Every village in the UK has an Indian restaurant or ‘curry house’ as they are commonly referred to and this particular one was great.

Saturday morning, we went out with Gordon, Alex’s 75 year old business partner, who, from years of high bird pheasant shooting, was pretty deaf, so we had to raise our voices when talking with him whilst stalking. We had a wonderful morning stalking with Gordon and his lab, Bentley, filled with stories and laughter and Sia managed to take a great ‘cull’ buck with a broken off antler and a broken tusk on his left jaw, which we squeaked into an easy shooting range.



































We laughed when Gordon asked me my age and when I told him I was turning 60, he replied that “It is all down hill from there you know and there is nothing to look forward to, believe you me!” We laughed a number of times repeating that jewel of wisdom over the afternoon!

That afternoon, Alex took us out again for a couple of cull muntjac and with Sia and I dropping two does with one shot each, which Alex gralloched and took the legs and heads of in the space of a couple of minutes, our dubbed ‘Chinese Take Away’ hunt in Berkshire came to and end with us having taken 2 solid CWD and 5 muntjac between us.











Saturday evening to round off the weekends sport, we had a great traditional English meal washed down with a couple of pints of ale in the Five Bells pub in Wickham.











And then on Sunday, after settling up with Alex at his house and sorting out the trophies, we headed south to the Channel Tunnel and the six hour drive back to Germany.





Alex will be sending my skulls and capes to the taxidermy he uses to have shoulder mounts done.

A truly superb long weekends sport with a great friend, Sia, and guided by great guides in the persons of Alex and Gordon, excellent equipment, with high numbers of deer and quality trophy heads, some great pubs and not a drop of rain the four days we were there! Simply excellent!

On settling my account, I asked Alex if he would have me back next year for a repeat on Chinese Water Deer and muntjac, to which he replied without hesitation in the affirmative!

That’s how good this trip was!

Thanks to Alex and Gordon for guiding us and to all AR readers for coming along on this report!








__________________


And as a PS this was some of the best "dog meat" I have had in a long time! Alex gave us a couple of filets and a haunch for Wiener schnitzel and bacon wrapped filet back home in Germany!






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Excellent report! Sure looked like you had lots of fun!

Definitely agree regarding Alex, hunted a few years ago with him. First class gentleman!

Charlie - Thanks for the great report!

Charlie
Glad you enjoyed your trip.
Good times for sure
That first CWD you shot is a dandy. Nice and thick teeth

An outstanding report and pics. One of the best in a long time!

Congratulations on your Chinese WD and Munty Charlie. It looks like you had a great time.

Great trip Charlie, well done on some fine bucks! I really enjoyed hunting the UK, easy in and out of Heathrow and fun hunting along the hedges and shelter belts on the farms and estates. Sorry we didn't meet up but there is always next time! Thinking a few days of roe and a couple shooting wood pigeon would be good sport.

This is definitely on my bucket list. Also, that Aultmore 12 yr is a truly fantastic whisky

Excellent report. Really enjoyed reading it.