Fieldsports Journal Magazine Fieldsports Magazine DecemberJanuary 201516 Vorige editie

It is no wonder that country sportsmen and women relish the midwinter months – the cold, short days a sure sign of busier weeks in sporting diaries. The sounds, the smells, the sights... Hounds in full cry, geese on the wing, gunbus chatter, dogs panting, breakfast from a lowered tailgate, steaming coffees, the scent of burnt gunpowder. Winter is here, and with it comes the December/January issue of Fieldsports – 164 pages of unadulterated country sports bliss – the publication for the serious sportsman.

For the game Shot, Christmas has arrived early. This issue's shoot profiles come from opposite ends of the spectrum as our editor recounts his first experience of wild fen pheasants, but also travels to Devon to see if the revered Molland Shoot lives up to all the fanfare.

Simon Ward shares his 20 top tips for pheasant shooting, Will Pocklington takes a closer look at the art of double gunning and Rupert Godfrey considers how pheasant shooting has changed over the years. Meanwhile, Robert Tennant recounts a memorable sporting foray deep in the Scottish wilderness, Alastair Philips explains the advantages of investing in a bespoke shotgun, and Lord James Percy transports his audience to a future in which shooting is no more.

And there is a glut of reading for the fly fisherman, too. David Wolsoncroft-Dodds goes in pursuit of blue sharks off the Welsh Coast and Matt Harris is left in awe of Norway's Golden River, the Gaula.

Foodies need look no further. From a feast of ideas for alternative elevenses nibbles, to a Guest Chef who embodies everything that harvesting nature's bounty entails, with recipes and wine recommendations to boot. You will not be left hungry.

The path to the interview room has been well-worn recently by talented, passionate and prominent people. Sir Ian Botham chats to our editor, Matt Kidd learns more about extraordinary gun engraver Malcolm Appleby MBE, and we meet this year's Really Wild Faces of Fieldsports. Plus much more!