The Field

The days of caper shoots

For many of my contemporaries in the late ’60s and ’70s, an invitation to stay with Harry Calvert and his parents, Major Eddy and Mrs Calvert, at Fasnakyle, their 20,000-acre deer forest at the east end of Glen Affric, was a first introduction to the glories of a Highland estate. There were 10 pools on the River Glass, stags in the rut, walked-up grouse, ptarmigan on the high ground and, reputedly, a few capercaillie in the old Scot’s pine woodland behind the lodge. The Calverts were immensely kind and generous hosts and between them and Major Eddy’s stalker, Ian Shewan, they went to endless trouble to share their great depth of knowledge with the young.

As a Borderer, I had never seen a live caper and one afternoon, when we were down early off the hill and the rest of the party had gone to fish the Glass, Shewan offered to take Harry and I up into the pine woods and try to drive a cock caper he had been watching for some days over us. Even after the passage of 50 years, I vividly remember climbing up through the old self-seeded trees, with shafts of early October afternoon sunlight

You’re reading a preview, subscribe to read more.

More from The Field

The Field7 min read
Spotting The Trout Of A Lifetime
AMID THE perennial noise about failing salmon numbers, untreated sewage, and river stocking, one group of gamefish seems to have gone unnoticed: our big, wild, native brown trout; glorious leopards of fish weighing three pounds at least but preferabl
The Field3 min read
All Change On The First Of May
Dear Freddie, THE BEGINNING of this month marks the start of the new hunting year and, although no physical hunting takes place until autumn, it is also the date that Masters are appointed or reappointed by the hunt committee and new kennel staff – h
The Field1 min read
The Game Fair Advance Ticket Offer
Readers of The Field can take advantage of an exclusive advance ticket offer for The Game Fair at Blenheim Palace on 26-28 July: £29 per ticket, including exclusive premium forward parking. ▸ Simply use the promotional code FIELD66 at the checkout on

Related Books & Audiobooks