Shooting memories: Our October 2010 trip to Thrumster

Tore Danielsen
Mar 5, 2018
4 min read

One of our most memorable experiences in the field of shooting, was our 2010 trip to Caithness, which has been described as “The land beyond the Highlands”. On the purple, brown and green moors of Thrumster Estate, I shot my first red grouse. A memory that will last for å lifetime.

The trip made in the first week of October of 2010 was in fact my third visit to Scotland as a shooting man. I contrast to my trips in 2007 and 2008, I was a married man at this point in life, and my wife, Marianne, was accompanying me. She was also pregnant on the trip, so our son was also present, though only as a foetus in his mother’s womb. Beforehand, my beautiful wife had got the adequate apparel for her first trip to Scotland; dressed in purple Hunter wellies and an exclusive wool jacket for Musto, she really looked the part!

A trip to the Northern highlands

The Northern Highlands is the area in the UK which is least populated. Apparently, fewer than 250 000 people reside in this northern, and to some extent remote part of the UK. In the region of Caithness, there is a small town named Wick, and a few miles west of the little town you find Thrumster Estate. Thrumster House, once a highly fashionable building, still serves its purpose as a great provider of accommodation for visitors in the area. The hospitality and food of this place was magnificent, with Islay McLeod as a caring hostess. Our plan was to go rough shooting for two days and to stay three nights at Thrumster House.

Rough shooting

When you go rough shooting, in contrast to driven shooting, you walk a lot and use your legs quite substantially during the day. For driven shooting, you are assigned a peg where you stand still whilst dogs and drivers attempt to push and flush the game towards you. But when rough shooting, you are always on the move, helped along by dogs like setters and springers, which finds the birds and flushes them in their distinctive ways; The setters on command, and the springers, instinctively. Normally, when you are rough shooting, you can expect to bag 8 to 10 birds a day, different species, according to how the day proceeds. Compared to driven shooting, rough shooting is often a good bargain. It can often be arranged at a price of around 200£ or less per gun per day. A driven day in Scotland or England may cost you three, four or even five times as much. But then you will also have the opportunity of shooting more birds – a lot more birds! Our rough shooting started with shooting over Springer Spaniels for pheasants, partridges and rabbits on the fields right next to Thrumster House. I first shot a rabbit, then a so-called “red-leg” or French partridge Then I missed a pheasant hen which flushed almost between my two feet. But the chase was on, and exciting it was! Both days ended with thrilling evening duck-flights over ponds, where we shot a substantial number of teal, mallard and wigeon. Wigeon, being such a rare and attractive species of duck back home in Norway, was really an exciting experience, for me finally to be able to bag.

Flushed by Thor–shot by Tore!

The second day on “the ragga moor” was especially memorable to me. After having shoot a lot of grey partridges in the fringes of the lowland, we went up to the purple hills of the moor, to the highest areas belonging to the Estate. One of the other participants on this day was a sturdy Scotsman named Alan. He had brought along his own Springer Spaniel for the shoot, a beautiful dog named Thor. The dog, full of energy and zeal, worked the moor eagerly, and suddenly a red grouse flushed in front of him! Instinctively, the gun hit my shoulder and I pulled the trigger. “Flushed by Thor–Shot by Tore!” Alan screamed a few seconds later. I had just shot my first red grouse and I was overwhelmed with joy. Alan was equally happy. His dog had done a tremendous job locating and flushing the bird, and the Viking from Norway beside him had shot his first grouse. I really appreciated Alans courtesy in this situation, it was one of those moments that you will never forget, one of those moments that will stay with you for ever. The gamekeeper at Thrumster Estate came over and congratulated me with my first grouse, and being true to the shooting traditions, he dipped his finger in blood from the grouse and smeared it on my cheeks and forehead. I was not allowed to wash it off until the day had ended.

At the end of the day; Fireside relaxation and Old Pulteney

Both shooting days ended with delicious dinners and desserts, which our hostess, Islay McLeod, skilfully prepared for all of us. Both game courses and pork-pies were presented, and I can assure you that none of us starved during our visit. The mighty, old, rugged, stony fireplace in the centre of the hall on the first floor was the natural place to relax after dinner. Watching the flames, I was offered a glass of single malt whiskey from the local distillery in Wick. The single malt was named Old Pulteney, which contained a smooth and elegant smoky taste. Surely, I am not a heavy drinker, but I must admit that this one was a treat. Resting in front of a Scottish fireplace after a successful day in the field, must be amongst the closest you can get to heaven on this earth. It was pure bliss. There is no doubt that shooting in Scotland provides memories to last for a lifetime; I really cannot wait to return to this wonderful country for some more rough shooting!