2010-Hunting Season
Again in June/July 2010 as a family we retreated to the Karoo for our annual winter vacation.
Personally my hunting season started on a low as a week before my planned falconry vacation my labby died under an operation and a week later my English pointer was knocked by a truck.
This loss had a devastating effect on my falconry as I enjoy game hawking and the loss of your pointing dog eliminates your hunting oppertunity. Besides the immediate loss getting a new dog up an going again takes time and a few seasons before being considered a true hunting companion.
Beside the loss we were blessed with beautiful sunrises and calmness of mind and soul. This is my time where again I have an appointment with my Creator spending time in his garden. This year, for the firts time I took along my young Harris along.
Traditionally the Karoo is a semi arid desert environment, but this year it had so much unexpected rain, and were all rivers flowing, dipersing quarry over a wide area.
Due to not having a dog I mainly focussed on hunting gunea fowl and the odd partridge I could flush, not having a dog.
With the hybrid I had good success, and enjoyed good flights. Thermals were few and due to the odd weather for this time of the year, the wind was continiously blowing. Coming from Cape Town my hybrid had no problem spreading its sails.
However I earlier this year bought myself a female Harris Hawk- my first Harris.
I had no prior knowledge on Harris Hawks except what I had read. Orginally my approach to train this bird was that of a short wing.
Quickly I realised that these hawks are super clever and enjoy being handeled. I completed all my training before entering in Cape Town and kept the entering part for the Karoo.
I was pleasantly surprsed how “easy” these hawks handle, and to be honest due the multiple slips you can do, put another form of enjoyment into my falconry.
Due to the wide range of quarry available I desided fort to enter the hawk on gunea fowl, as in Cape Town this would be predominant prey, where I am located.
Initially when taking guneas the Harris attackedthe body of the game bird. Gunea fowl have the ability when taken on the body by a raptor to loosen the feathers. Continiously the Harrs attacked the gunea only to end up with talons full of feathers. Quicky she realised to take the quarry by the head and neck. The time between entering and succesfully taking guneas was remarkable quick.
Being on a learning curve I decided to diversify the quarry as quick as possible. Again within a short space of time she started taking ground squirels. The one in the picture was a male. Instinctively she took it by the head after having a bit of a nip from the “meerkat”
The fun part was when my wife partcipated and enjoyed the good nature of the Harris. Its intelligence and adaptability is superb making it loveable caracter and making falconry a family event without the fuss and truly enjoyable.
Taking everthing into account, having no electricity, being dependant on solar and gas, makes enjoyable simple living, appreciating good company and wine. Its these small and simple things that brings peace to the soul.
Every year during our annual vacation we teach and expose our children to the processing of the food we eat and how its prepared. We should respect our food we consume to apprciate it.
All good things also need to come to an end. When the sun sets on a vacation, we live on the memories till the next vacation and hunt.
