Options for red stag

Yeah that is what I am after. The price on that is reasonable. I am looking at Romania, but I would certainly like to hunt them in Scotland. I have no interest in any high fence stuff. I am much more interested in the experience than I am just putting a bullet in something.

Scotland is high fence, but then again so is all of Europe. The question is how big the fence and how unmolested the game. Someone will speak up and mention the name of the guy that does the Scottish hunts on and adjacent to Balmoral. That's where you want to be for a spiritual experience. Take the experience away and its just some bastardized farm-raised animal that has been deposited all over the world to be killed for pleasure or meat.
 
Scotland is high fence, but then again so is all of Europe. The question is how big the fence and how unmolested the game. Someone will speak up and mention the name of the guy.
I thought that Romania was free range. So basically anywhere you go hunt them, there is a fence, to some degree or another?
 
I thought that Romania was free range. So basically anywhere you go hunt them, there is a fence, to some degree or another?

It's all estates my friend. Just how big. Romania has big fences too.

Shop the experience. If its 1000 acres +, you're on the right track. But then what is more authentic than a Scottish Red Stag where you eat it for dinner for 5 nights while touring castles each day after the hunt?
 
It's all estates my friend. Just how big. Romania has big fences too.

Shop the experience. If its 1000 acres +, you're on the right track. But then what is more authentic than a Scottish Red Stag where you eat it for dinner for 5 nights while touring castles each day after the hunt?
Yep, I will have to agree, that may be the way to go. Probably be pretty easy to sell the wife on that one.
 
Yep, I will have to agree, that may be the way to go. Probably be pretty easy to sell the wife on that one.

And I know you asked for Red Stag, but if your budget doesn't allow, they also had roe deer. We looked into hunting the Queen's estate for Roe deer x4 with 5 lodgers and it was $12-14k. Maximum experience for your dollars.
 
Scotland is high fence, but then again so is all of Europe. The question is how big the fence and how unmolested the game. Someone will speak up and mention the name of the guy that does the Scottish hunts on and adjacent to Balmoral. That's where you want to be for a spiritual experience. Take the experience away and its just some bastardized farm-raised animal that has been deposited all over the world to be killed for pleasure or meat.

Where I’ve hunted Scotland it was 20 miles to the next road and the only fences were dry stone walls. I don’t doubt that there may be high fence areas, but they are nowhere near where I’ve hunted.
 
Red stag in Ireland is free range…

Just low stone fences and hedge rows…

Lots of castles.. and plenty of good whiskeys and beer to consume at night as well…

Just sayin… :)
 
Scotland is high fence, but then again so is all of Europe. The question is how big the fence and how unmolested the game. Someone will speak up and mention the name of the guy that does the Scottish hunts on and adjacent to Balmoral. That's where you want to be for a spiritual experience. Take the experience away and its just some bastardized farm-raised animal that has been deposited all over the world to be killed for pleasure or meat.
How much have you hunted in Europe? That is a very inaccurate statement about all of Europe being high fenced. For red stag there will be more opportunities to hunt free range than behind a fence. For roe deer, all free range because they don’t do well fenced. Poland has no high fences. Czech Republic is estates, Romania is not. Spain is mainly hunting estates for stags. Southern France is unfenced. Hungary and Bulgaria both have huge amounts of unfenced hunting land. Very curious how you came to that generalization about all Europe fenced? Maybe I’d agree if looking for a mouflon, but not red stags.
 
So basically anywhere you go hunt them, there is a fence, to some degree or another?
No, I have no idea how he came to that conclusion. Poland doesn’t even have high fences in the country for hunting.
 
Red stag in Ireland is free range…

Just low stone fences and hedge rows…

Lots of castles.. and plenty of good whiskeys and beer to consume at night as well…

Just sayin… :)

Agreed, not a fence in sight where I’ve hunted in the Wicklow Mountains.
 
. . . is high fence, but then again so is all of Europe. The question is how big the fence and how unmolested the game.
Here is result of quick google search too. Still very curious how you came to this conclusion.
“hunting in fenced enclosures is prohibited by Polish hunting legislation”
 
I did not really think about Scotland. Argentina is definitely on my list and I want to shoot dove and ducks down there anyway. I might be able to work out some kind of combo with that. Scotland is so very much on my lost and it would be nice to get to hunt while I anywhere. Never been to Romania but I want to see that as well. I'm gonna have to do some serious studying on this, I was not expecting this many really viable options.
Spain, Scotland, Ireland, France, Romania and most any other European country has Red Stag. They’re probably the most economical option.

NZ is definitely on my bucket list. There are a lot of High Fence places, albeit some are extremely large. I want to hunt NZ more so I can hunt each continent.

Argentina is a good option and probably between NZ and Europe price wise. I’ve got a buddy who just won a dove hunt there at a DU banquet and is trying to get me to go. I might see if they’ll let me add a few days for Red Stag or combo it with another hunt there or just wait on a Stag in NZ.
 
Scotland is high fence, but then again so is all of Europe. The question is how big the fence and how unmolested the game. Someone will speak up and mention the name of the guy that does the Scottish hunts on and adjacent to Balmoral. That's where you want to be for a spiritual experience. Take the experience away and its just some bastardized farm-raised animal that has been deposited all over the world to be killed for pleasure or meat.
I have hunted or as we say here “stalked” extensively in Scotland after Reds and there are no high fences on the open hill! Maybe the odd stock fence on the lower parts of the hill but as far as deer are concerned they do not exist.

Where deer fences exist these are predominantly to keep the deer out of forestry blocks.

There are wilder free roaming deer in Scotland than in say South Africa!

If you want a true stalking experience, head for the Highlands where the ground is too steep for mechanical extraction and ponies are used. If you are a stag, you want to time your visit as close to the end of their season as possible (20th October) so catch them in the rut and are roaring.

Try this estate https://atholl-estates.co.uk/ but there are numerous estates that can provide a memorable experience.
 
No, I have no idea how he came to that conclusion. Poland doesn’t even have high fences in the country for hunting.

You missed my meaning. Europe is relatively speaking loaded with big fences. (E.g. Scotland had a fence put around it by emperor Hadrian 2000 years ago?)

I stated to the OP that he should be looking for fair chase hunts in places that offer an experience, rather than selling the animal. Otherwise, the more you pay, the bigger the animal, the taller the fence. (e.g. Spanish estates can be 300 acres of record book stag but I don't think he wanted an Estate hunt where you pay by the gram of horn and they cultivate stag behind fences)
 
You missed my meaning. Europe is relatively speaking loaded with big fences. (E.g. Scotland had a fence put around it by emperor Hadrian 2000 years ago?)

I stated to the OP that he should be looking for fair chase hunts in places that offer an experience, rather than selling the animal. Otherwise, the more you pay, the bigger the animal, the taller the fence. (e.g. Spanish estates can be 300 acres of record book stag but I don't think he wanted an Estate hunt where you pay by the gram of horn and they cultivate stag behind fences)
I don’t think I missed your meaning at all. It was bad advice and shouldn’t have been written, especially for someone who reads this thread in the future. You had an opportunity to clarify when the OP specifically asked about a country being free range and you said “no all estates look for 1000+ acres”. Charging by the weight class does not equal fencing particularly in central and Eastern Europe. It’s just how animals are charged and very much protects the genetics. You tell your guide i’m looking for a stag in the x weight class and it’s expected to be within 15% of that weight.
 
Scotland is high fence, but then again so is all of Europe. The question is how big the fence and how unmolested the game. Someone will speak up and mention the name of the guy that does the Scottish hunts on and adjacent to Balmoral. That's where you want to be for a spiritual experience. Take the experience away and its just some bastardized farm-raised animal that has been deposited all over the world to be killed for pleasure or meat.
Scotland is high fence? I think not... And when you say the rest of Europe too... where do you get this info from? As someone who has hunted all over UK and Europe I can promise you that is not true. Can you do high fence? Yes. Is it the norm? No.
 
Scotland is high fence, but then again so is all of Europe. The question is how big the fence and how unmolested the game. Someone will speak up and mention the name of the guy that does the Scottish hunts on and adjacent to Balmoral. That's where you want to be for a spiritual experience. Take the experience away and its just some bastardized farm-raised animal that has been deposited all over the world to be killed for pleasure or meat.

I don’t agree with that statement @rookhawk, I’ve been hunting deer and stags 5 or 6 times in Schotland, always at the same place and these are not fenced in, in any way.

The Scottish stags are much smaller than their European brethren, but that has mostly to do with the lack of easy nutrition than anything else. The highlands are quite barren after all.

In continental Europe, you can find free range stags to hunt, but the more you see lots of pictures of throphy heads, talk about CIC points and medal class, the bigger the chance is it will indeed be in a (very large) park.

This one was mine from 2016 or something, a very good one for the highlands, but nothing in comparison with continental stags.

Image1666887375.223957.jpg


And yes scotch in the evening, bagpipes on arrival and departure, burning peat in the fireplace. There is something very magical about hunting the Scottish highlands. And ponies too ;)

Image1666887493.734552.jpg
 
I should definitely go to Scotland. In broad terms, the west of Scotland (Argyle, Wester Ross) is challenging walking and you should make the effort to get fit beforehand. The eastern coast (Sutherland) tends to be flatter and more boggy, as well as more built-up. I had a great deal of fun on Mull, one of the islands, as a young man. The scenery, looking out over the sea from the hills, is spectacular. Island deer are heavier than mainland deer.

Ponies ('garrons' in the language) are a pain in the arse. By all means, if you are coming over for a week, take an estate with them: but they are severely limiting in terms of where you can go, which is effectively 1/2 a mile from where they are 'dropped off'. Argocats are a much more sensible option.

I am afraid that I don't understand Rookhawk's opinion about 'high fences'. The whole point about red deer is that they are legally res nullius, a completely wild animal, belonging to whoever's ground they happen to be on at that time. Stags are also great wanderers: the Red Deer Commission tagged one back in the '90s and found that it had marched 70 miles across Scotland (measured as a straight line).

Stalking is hard work, especially if not fit. Bank on at least one day off due to bad weather, R&R, or whatever. Inquire before booking about the possibility of rough shooting/ fishing. Some estates have feral goats, which can be smelly fun (the liver can be eaten, barbecued - the rest leave for the game dealer). The stag season runs from 1 July - 20 October, hinds from 21 October - 15 February: the later you are for the stags, the more likely you are to be in time for the rut, when they roar and fight.

One final point: for the last eight years, I have taken stalking on a different estate each year. I have never come across so many dishonest people in booking, and I have, on two occasions, held money back because I did not get what I was promised. I recommend Loch Maree, who were expensive but completely honest: I took Carnmore lodge, which was living like Scott of the Antarctic for a week: they use garrons and the land is fookin' (as the Scots say) steep. Avoid Hendry.

If you want an enormous trophy, you can go to Mr. Houston on Ardnamurchan who is said to feed his stags on potatoes. It is not, apparently, a particularly sporting experience.

Many years ago, I met Cyril Adams, who had done an awful lot of sporting shooting and hunting, and he told me that, in his opinion, Highland deer stalking was the best sport in the world, and how under-appreciated it was by the British, who had it on their doorstep. I think that I probably agree with him!
 
You missed my meaning. Europe is relatively speaking loaded with big fences. (E.g. Scotland had a fence put around it by emperor Hadrian 2000 years ago?)

I stated to the OP that he should be looking for fair chase hunts in places that offer an experience, rather than selling the animal. Otherwise, the more you pay, the bigger the animal, the taller the fence. (e.g. Spanish estates can be 300 acres of record book stag but I don't think he wanted an Estate hunt where you pay by the gram of horn and they cultivate stag behind fences)

Not according to the law, the minimun area needed for "large game" hunting in Spain is 500 hectares, or 1.235 acres.
 

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autofire wrote on LIMPOPO NORTH SAFARIS's profile.
Do you have any cull hunts available? 7 days, daily rate plus per animal price?

#plainsgame #hunting #africahunting ##LimpopoNorthSafaris ##africa
Grz63 wrote on roklok's profile.
Hi Roklok
I read your post on Caprivi. Congratulations.
I plan to hunt there for buff in 2026 oct.
How was the land, very dry ? But à lot of buffs ?
Thank you / merci
Philippe
 
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