It is the end of the hunting season. Winter days are combined with a few scattered spring warmer ones. I am driving towards Zaragoza, which is one of the coldest cities in Spain. It sits below the Pyrenees and even if it gets really hot in summer, winters get icy […]
Read MoreArticles by: Joaquin De Lapatza
I love hunting in the remotest areas of Spain
I guess it feels somehow wilder to be far apart from civilization. Today I am going to share with you one the most emotional hunting experiences I have lived through. Let’s set the scene: The action takes place in a small village located in an area which is called “the […]
Read MoreStalking Ibex in Spain – Part 1
In Spain, we have got 3 different ways of game hunting. Firstly, driven hunts which can be either large hunts with 30 or 40 hunters, the so-called „monterías“ or smaller hunts with less than 15 hunters, the so-called „batidas“. Secondly, there is trail hunting where you track and follow the […]
Read MoreFallow deer in Spain – A tough test for the equipment
Fallow deer are not as common as red deer in Spain, however, they can be found in rich populations in certain areas in Spain. I had decided to go after a representative one in the Madrid northern mountain range. This area of central Spain can be quite shocking for new […]
Read More“Brothers in Hunt” – A Spaniard hunting in Germany
I recently had the opportunity to join a traditional German driven hunt on the Leica Hunting state, where all traditions and regulations were strictly and proudly followed. I noticed several differences from the very start of the day; however, the spirit and the feelings were fully alike. A silent gathering […]
Read MoreMonteria in the cold season
November is my favourite hunting month. The sleeves draw a magical landscape: intense yellows, squeaky oranges, ocher, dark greens and white sparks from the morning dew. As the nights are quite cold, the game tends to look for refugee at the milder bottom of the valleys. It’s the autumn’s apogee, […]
Read MoreA dog story
I never lose the tension the night before each and every Monteria. Monterias start several days before the hunting day. Getting to know the area, looking for signs of previous hunts in the area, even looking at satellite pictures of the area to learn about the vegetation, trying to understand […]
Read MoreMy Monteria
This October has been particularly cold, windy and wet compared to the previous five years. Although the general hunting season starts in early October, high temperatures are not optimal for the Spanish driven hunt, the Monteria. This year I decided to wait till November for the start of my hunting season. Monterias […]
Read MoreAn appointment with my intimate adversary
Spanish crops and mountain ranges are becoming somehow overpopulated by wild boar. Over the past few years, and most likely due to favorable conditions, this animal population has increased probably by a triple factor. This overpopulation has resulted in an increase in off-season hunting actions such as night stalk. I am […]
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