As a member of a local birdwatchers club, we often like to tell stories about the birds we have seen, and how close we have gotten to them. No one believes my stories, but I guarantee that they are all true. I also have pictures to back that up too. I mean, I'm not going to say that I was close enough to touch a bird unless I have some proof, so a nice close up usually backs me up all the way. How do I get so close to the birds? Well first of all I watch for where they like to go to eat. Sometimes if I am doing birds that like to eat by ponds and rivers I will have to go there, other times I may need to be in a field, and yet other occasions call for me to wait in a tree - which is by far the hardest, and plus I'm getting a little too old for that.

How I've been able to get so close is through perfecting the art of the ghillie suit. Whether it's from one of mine that I made from a ghillie suit kit, or one that is a home made ghillie suit, they are all of my final creation and touches. I have probably had more questions about my ghillies suits than about all of my bird watching days combined into a number, because people find them fascinating. The ghillie suit is probably on of the best inventions for camouflage since the invention of? trees themselves. I find it both satisfying and enjoyable to know that something I made works so well.

When it comes to the ponds, I usually stick to my own home made ghillie suits, as I have made a few of them a bit more water resistant. With these I like to adorn and decorate, as you could say, them with some of the taller grasses and also the pond muck, to give it a smell that raises no alarm. I did try to make one ghillie suit that looked like a floating log, so I could go out into the water, but I have yet to solve the fact I sink like a lead weight, and also the fact that my camera isn't exactly water proof. So, sometimes I will just be right there on the shore in some of the tall grass, and blend in to where they don't see. If I was a duck hunter I would probably have more ducks than anyone else, as a few have actually gotten so close I could have just grabbed them.

The fields are a bit easier, but are also tricky. I like to do it when the grass is brown, as keeping the ghillie grass green and standing is an awful lot of work with a short shelf life of about an hour. However, the shots I can get are amazing and make the ghillie suits I made from kits worth it. I mostly use the ghillie suit kit to make the ghillie suits I use for the grassy areas, as they are able to hold on to the thinner grasses a bit better. As for trees; well let us just say I prefer a parachute.