Deerstalkers, hunters go through a definite transition in the life long pursuit of their chosen quarry. I can recall as a much younger man waiting on deliveries of the latest, greatest, must have accessory for stalking. Spending hours pouring over the shooting press in search of anything to give me the edge or to enhance and improve my stalking. Very quickly, one by one, these once revered additions were either gifted to others or archived into the back of the cupboard. This was the beginning of my own hunting transition.
After many years in the field pursuing your quarry you come to realise that, not unlike the misplaced foam or sauce on a meal in your favourite restaurant, sometimes the unnecessary accoutrements can just get in the way of the main event! Just as the relentless obsession over the biggest buck in the field fades to admiration and appreciation the realisation that just being there, just doing it is the main event. The shot, the kit and the inevitable celebration of success where applicable are the accoutrements.
I think as stalkers or hunters we have a natural appreciation for beauty and form. When you couple those qualities to to a functional, reliable and repeatable product that is a call few of us could resist answering. The creations that Stijn at Forge Hunt has produced have not only struck me as things of beauty but as a functional tool in the field. For almost 24 months I have tried and tested mine to their limits. Many deer, many leg joints, atlas joints and multiple grallochs a day. My faithful knives, now with their own patina, showing where despite my best efforts I strop more effectively one way than the other, timelessly, faultlessly and reliably join me on every adventure and every stalk. Only serving to further my belief that it’s not about the latest and greatest revolutionary kit. It’s about enhancing a wonderful pursuit with quiet, dignified and beautiful reliability.
David Levine
Forge Hunt prostaff stalker.
Oxfordshire, England.