My Secare Survival Knife has just arrived from the talented custom knife maker Stuart Mitchell.

It's a stunning knife and an amazing piece of craftsmanship.

The blade is made from SF100 Steel (Surgical Steel). The handle is made from G10 and the sheath Kydex.

I am really pleased with it and can't wait to try it.

All of Stuarts knives are handmade to order.

He consulted several survival experts for the Secare design, including I believe Bear Grylls.

Absolutely stunning!

http://www.stuartmitchellknives.com/phone/index.html

The Forest of Dean has a wealth of history. It's been inhabited by humans since Mesolithic times. Archaeological evidence shows that it was used during the Bronze and Iron Age. It was used by the Romans and was the second largest Royal Hunting Forest (Crown Forest). The largest being the New Forest. So it has a long history of being used as a hunting ground and it's harvest used to feed humans. There is also evidence of it being used as an ancient sea port.

There are now large herds of Fallow Deer Present. I've personally seen all morphological types, Common, Menil, Melanistic and White Fallow Deer. With no natural predators the numbers of fallow deer have to managed annually.

Wild Boar became extinct around 300 years ago in the UK. The Forest of Dean population is the largest of the breeding populations that now exist in England. The original population established in woodlands near Ross-on-Wye after escaping from a wild boar farm in the area during the 1990’s. However, in 2004 a group of around 60-farm reared wild boar were dumped in an illegal release near the village of Staunton on the western edge of the Forest above the Wye Valley. By 2009 it was clear that the two populations had merged. The numbers are an estimated 800+ Wild Boar in the forest. The signs of the routing boar is clear to see, over much of the forest. The Boar also therefore require management. Much of the venison and boar meat goes into the human food chain.

There are also Muntjac and Roe Deer in the forest. I believe now a herd of Red Deer, although I haven't seen them to date.

It's a truly beautiful and wild place.

There are no natural predictors to either deer or boar. It is estimated that around 20% of the deer in the UK need to be culled each year the the UK to prevent deer numbers escalating to unsustainable levels and to prevent significant woodland and crop damage. If the deer were not managed, the result would be a loss of woodland regeneration and a loss of woodland flora. Recently some experts suggest that 50% of the deer in the UK should be culled, in order to stop the significant rise in deer numbers, that has occured over recent years. Each year there are around 70,000 RTAs on our roads involving deer, 500 hospitalisations and around 10-20 human fatalities. If deer are not managed, these figures could rise dramatically.

The aim is always to manage the deer & boar to suistainsble numbers and not to eliminate them. This is important to ensure a healthy population and a balanced ecosystem.

Ingredients:

Red Deer Liver - coarsely ground. I used a blender.

An equal amount of coarsely ground shoulder of pork. The butcher ground the shoulder pork up for me.

Local home cured and smoked streaky bacon. This was cured and smoked by my local butcher.

One small onion. Pan fried in butter until translucent.

A couple of cloves of garlic finely chopped.

Chopped Sage and Tyme.

Sea Salt and coarsely ground black pepper.

A handful of breadcrumbs. This is important to keep the pate moist.

A small glug of good red wine, I used Rioja or port.

Mix the incredients in a large bowl thoroughly by hand.

Line a pate dish or loaf tin with the streaky bacon. Layer the bacon over the top of the pate.

Cook in a Bain Marie (a dish with some water in it) for 1.5 hours in the oven on a medium heat.

It's ready. Cool and serve.

The Red Deer and Muntjac loins were marinated in olive oil, salt and pepper. Left to room temperature before cooking. Browned in pan, then about 8min in oven..

The haunch of muntjac was cooked in the slow cooker with Blackberries, vegetable stock, red wine and creme de cassis.

The loins were served with pretty much same, but the sauce on the loins much more reduced into a jus. They were served on a bed of sautéed leeks.

I have just kindly been given a beautiful freshly caught Devon Sea Trout.

What a great start to the 2013 season. With some due diligence and a bit of patience I was rewarded with this excellent young buck.
As a hobby stalker who has a limited population to manage I'm always careful at the start of the season. Yes part of me is keen to get out as the opening of the season tends to coincide with Spring getting into full swing and I can start to look forward to summer with evenings out after work absorbing the countryside at its best whilst trying to successfully outwit a buck or two. However rushing out and shooting the first Buck you see is a recipe for disaster. If he is a mature buck you will not be allowing him the opportunity to past his genes on at the rut, removing him will also allow younger bucks into his territory who are the worst culprits for fraying and if he's of trophy consideration its more than likely he's still got some velvet remaining on his antlers which will limit any scoring.
Regardless of his age it was still a very memorable stalk I had the easterly winds against me plus a boggy paddock to navigate to get into range, so when the opportunity finally presented itself for a safe shot I was ecstatic. Even now after shooting numerous deer I still get a little twinge of the 'buck fever' which only reminds me why I remain so passionate about this sport.
But as all will tell you taking the shot is only one part of the story with the best still to come, the reward of fresh venison which now resides in my freezer.

Wednesday evening and out stalking for the fifth time this year. I'm training to be a competent deerstalker and I was lucky enough to be in the right place at the right time with my mentor a very experienced and qualified deer manager.
 The evening was drawing in but the light was very good and conditions ideal for watching the woods and all it's inhabitants. We had been quietly observing for several hours, seeing buzzards mating and plenty of rabbits and magpies, when in the corner of the second field the hind quarters of a deer appeared. We watched for several minutes as the buck grazed into the wind. It was moving slowly away from our position and not presenting at a good angle for a clean shot. We assessed the condition and size and agreed that if the shot became viable I would take it. After several more minutes, that felt like an age, the shot was on. On my first buck this made me concentrate very hard so as to do the best I could for this buck if I were to take the shot. When we were comfortable I took the shot and we watched and waited. In just a few brief seconds we confirmed a clean kill. Then I started to feel very responsible for the buck and the care of it as I started to learn more about field preperation.
It is difficult to explain the feeling of attachment and responsibility but it is all very important to gain an insight into how this deer interacted with its environment. He was around 7 years old with malformed antlers. This could have been from birth or an injury when young. Several other features could also have contributed to its malformation. This buck was towards the end of his feeding life and teeth showed signs of wear.
I know that during the stalk and after I did as much as I could to learn and gain valuable experience in managing deer and this was truly a privilege to be a part of.
This was my first Roe buck and as a 7 point malformed it's one I will always remember.

A young buck Muntjac shot within the confines of Bristol City (on request of the land owner). Munjac are very clever little deer. A real challenge. They can move through the undergrowth like a fox. Muntjac are not native. They become sexually mature at 8 months and can give birth every 7 months. They taste the best in my opinion. The next 2 posts are of me marinating a leg of this deer and cooking it on the BBQ.