Tabla de contenidos para Issue 109 en NZ Hunter

And again to those who made the extra effort to present orally to the select committee last month. That process really showed up the complete ignorance of not just the rabid indigenous-only ideologists, but also general well-meaning conservationists, to what the hunting sector is actually achieving out there in the hills, and the real and potentially huge gains for conservation we are making. They had no knowledge of what Herds of Special Interests actually mean to the area they are designated in. We heard over and over how hunters only shot the big stags, wanted more animals generally and did not want to control the hinds/females. Nothing could be further from the truth! The whole point of HOSIs is giving the hunting sector the ability to manage both the selected…

IT’S FAIR TO SAY THAT THEY’VE LOVED EVERY MINUTE OF THEIR TIME IN THE MOUNTAINS, BUT OUR MOLESWORTH TRIP THIS YEAR WAS THAT LITTLE BIT EXTRA SPECIAL. We were joined by my good mate Harley and his son Quinten (13), a local friend Josh, my cousin Blair who farms in Marlborough, and his good mate Graham. Due to particularly hot and dry conditions, DOC had understandably restricted vehicle access to our block, so we had the option to walk or bike. Looking at the map, we figured biking in with a couple of bike trailers was possible, with an easy river crossing on arrival. We travelled up from Christchurch early on the first day, and after a three-hour ride, we reached our destination and set up camp. We glassed from…

These wonderful animals belong here now . . . and that’s why I like to think of them as ‘Aoraki’ tahr. I headed into tahr country to commemorate the 100-year anniversary of the first bulls shot in May 1925. No animals were harmed on this hunt . . . so what made it such a great trip? Read on. Heading home from Te Anau to Nelson via the West Coast in May, a window of 4–5 days of good weather had opened up and I planned to reach an area adjacent to the original tahr release. After a hefty drive, I arrived at the start of a long valley track just before ‘dark o’clock” and fighting the ‘snug-bug’ of the warmth in the car, I forced myself into the cool…

I commented on the ethereal “Jesus light” effect, and Roy nodded: “Yeah, whenever that happens I feel like it’s Fiordland calling me back already.” Little did I know Fiordland was calling me back too. Twelve months later, I was returning to the Glaisnock area - not as a participant, but as a guide, leading my own group of six women, some of whom had never set foot off-track before. The 2025 Wāhine Wapiti trip was five times the size of the first: five groups, six women, plus one guide - each allocated their own valley in the Fiordland Wapiti area to explore for five nights. The only requirements? Get yourself to and from Te Anau, have a true sense of adventure and bring an open mind. I caught up with…

Better Hunting is a free online training platform built by the NZ Game Animal Council to help hunters improve their skills and knowledge, while helping them understand their obligations and responsibilities as hunters and firearms users. The courses and resources are intended to provide a pathway and support hunters who go on to do practical training, such as the NZDA HUNTS courses. The content is designed by New Zealand hunters, for New Zealand hunters. You can do the courses on your phone and even download them for offline viewing using the app. For new, inexperienced and casual hunters, the two main courses, Hunting Essentials and Firearm Essentials, cover foundational hunting and outdoor skills. There’s also an Introduction to Pig Hunting course. More experienced hunters will still find useful information throughout…

It was named for the way it can zap dogs of their energy, turning your best hunters into dogs that sit down and tremble on a short walk around the house. THE DISEASE The disease most commonly occurs within one to two days of dogs eating wild pork, or eating offal or bones from wild pigs, which can be fresh, cooked, or frozen. In addition to pig hunting dogs, pet dogs and working farm dogs can also be affected, but this is less common as they are not fed wild pork as often as hunting dogs. Research into Go Slow from 2015-2018 showed that it affects the part of the muscle cell responsible for producing energy, the mitochondria. This means that affected dogs often appear normal when they are resting…

They have built a reputation around making robust optics with very good optical quality at a very good price. We haven’t seen a lot of their products in New Zealand recently but they have been making inroads in the good quality and value for money segment of the market overseas for some time. Long standing hunting and fishing manufacturer/ supplier and importer Kilwell are the agents. Meopta make well priced lines with both 1 inch (Optika5) and 30mm (Optika6) tubes, and in both first and second focal planes. These are available with a range of turret and reticle options. Amanda at Kilwell sent us the MeoPro Optika6 2.5-15×44 SFP RD BDC3 for review. The 6 stands for 6×zoom range. This is a 30mm tube, second focal plane, side focus illuminated…

Here is a recipe for deep-fried comfort food as we move from winter into spring Croquettes are long, cylindrical or tube shapes of cooked meat or fish, with mashed potato, crumbed and deep-fried until crisp and golden. Sometimes the filling could be bound with a béchamel or white sauce, which is my preference. In French, “croquant” means crunchy or crisp, which describes the exterior once fried. Originally, croquettes were introduced to Spain from France. French croquettes use a potato base, while Spanish ones are made with a béchamel base. The Dutch also have their version, called kroketten and bitterballen; as the names indicate, these are ball-shaped, roughly walnut-sized, made with the same filling, then breaded and fried. Croquettes or bitterballen are a popular savoury bar snack food, and great with…

FOR THE PREVIOUS FIVE MONTHS I HAD BEEN CONFINED TO A SMALL STUDIO APARTMENT IN PERTH’S CITY CENTRE, LIVING ALMOST ENTIRELY WITHIN A FIVE KILOMETRE RADIUS. IN THAT ENTIRE TIME, MY GARMIN WATCH NEVER REGISTERED AN ALTITUDE CHANGE OF MORE THAN ABOUT 20 METRES. Though I was living just off Riverside Drive, one of the most beautiful streets in Perth, lined with towering palms and with a view across the Swan River to south Perth, I dearly missed New Zealand. I missed the bush. I missed the mountains. I missed being at altitude and looking down on folded waves of misty ridgelines, with miles of country to glass. I missed hunting, butchering and eating wild game. From the day I landed in Perth five months ago, this trip to Marlborough…

But what exactly does the GAC do, and how does Corina’s role fit into the hunting community? I’ll admit, my own understanding was embarrassingly vague until I sat down for a chat with Corina. If you’ve been curious too, read on — this interview sheds light on who she is, and the crucial, behindthe-scenes work that GAC is doing to represent hunters, and safeguard the future of hunting in New Zealand. By the time this goes to print, Corina will have stepped into a new chapter too — serving as CEO of both the Game Animal Council and Fish & Game, a significant role that places her right at the heart of New Zealand’s hunting and angling future. How did the outdoors shape your childhood? I grew up in beautiful…

WHO ARE WE? The Heritage Red Deer Foundation is an incorporated society that was created by a group of passionate recreational hunters in 2022 to better manage and protect our iconic Red deer herds, predominantly the Rakaia and Otago herds. Put simply, we saw a gap amongst the various hunting organisations and Foundations where no one group was seeking management and trying to enhance these highly valued heritage Red deer herds, so rather than just complaining amongst ourselves about the many pressures they often face, we have set about trying to do something positive to help improve the quality of these special herds and the habitat they live in. WHAT ARE WE TRYING TO ACHIEVE? For the past three years we have explored setting up a form of management over…

Profiling the aweosme work hunters do around New Zealand Submit ideas to luke@nzhunter.co.nz It’s about a pig hunting dog and the adventures he goes on around their farm, along with his sheep dog friend. And of course there is a big boar involved as well. Added to this good storytelling is a great cause as well because Emma and family have been making donations from the sales of the book to Dunedin Hospital children’s ward. The backstory to the actual book began many years earlier when Emma first visited Bellamore Station with her future husband Ben. He took her hunting on the sheep and beef property which overlooks Lake Waitaki. ‘Punter’ comes onto the scene when he was given to Ben and Emma as a pup and future pig dog.…

The technology that has brought the most change is the development of Dyneema Composite Fabrics (DCF) which is widely used by the ultralight (UL) outdoor adventure industry mainly in the construction of tents and packs. Essentially this fabric is a composite of Dyneema fibers sandwiched between two layers of film, giving unprecedented strength to weight. This brings us to the growing community of international, boutique, and serious manufacturers producing ultralight gear and which now includes Kiwi Ultralight in Aotearoa, producing and distributing quilts/packs/shelters and now with the new release of a tent in Dyneema Composite Fabric. Enter the Moa which I offered to field test as I’ve long been an advocate for lighter weight options for hunters and have been writing pieces in this regard for close to 10 years…

Spring can be a fantastic time to find a big bull tahr. You’ll often find them mobbed up into bachelor groups, just like stags but on a bigger scale. Bulls will travel for dozens of kilometres to meet up, hang out, and roam as they look for food. Check out the map on page 11 from Garry Ottman in the Game and Forest days, that collared bull wandered 70 kilometres! Sometimes these groups can exceed 20 animals, but always keep in mind that it is likely every bull in that catchment, it’s not an over-population. Any herd management must be focussed on the females. | LEARNING These large groups will mean you have a great opportunity to observe bulls next to each other. To compare and contrast. It is a…

I decided to make the phone call to my good mate Bert, who had a farm a few hours north of home. I managed to get the green light from the boss and had four days up my sleeve to hopefully secure a nice Fallow buck worthy of the wall. The next morning I loaded up the truck and hit the road. I had checked the forecast the night before and despite a fairly average week of weather, I was chomping at the bit to find a buck. The trip took me a good three hours, and after a few stops along the way, I finally arrived early afternoon. After a brief catch up with Bert, we jumped in the side-by-side to head out for a nosy before dark. As…

We know that life can be tough at times, and when you add the unique challenges faced by firearms licence holders and rural folk, those pressures can feel even heavier. Our mission is simple but powerful: to promote mental health, break down stigma, and ensure people feel safe to reach out for help when they need it. WHO WE ARE Mental Hunts was founded by hunters, for hunters. We understand the culture, the language, and the values of our community because we’re part of it. Too often, mainstream mental health campaigns fail to connect with rural New Zealanders or those in the hunting and firearms community. That’s where we step in. We believe that heading into the hills, getting outside, and connecting with your mates is an essential part of…

Regardless, Blake and I eagerly loaded our gear and set out on our journey to some Whanganui public land, an area I had last hunted with my dad around thirteen years ago. Despite the cold, we were determined to explore familiar ground and create new memories in the bush. Little did we know that this expedition would test our resolve, lead to unexpected discoveries, and ultimately reward us with a successful hunt. With our destination set, we headed off at first light, donning extra layers to combat the biting cold. The initial goal was to reach a specific spot across a stream and over a range that I had identified on the topo maps. However, when we arrived at the “stream,” we were greeted with a disheartening sight. The stream…

Sharing your story through ReWild As many of you will know, over the last few months the hunting sector has been engaged in a process to amend the Game Animal Council Act 2013. The proposed changes were put forward to seek clarification of the law, to enable improved management of high value game animal herds in national parks. It was humbling to see so many hunters put forward submissions and present in person to the Environment Select Committee, which will ultimately advise Parliament on the changes to the GAC Act. A huge thanks to everyone who engaged in the process. What stood out for me, was the quality of submissions from hunters and how you presented yourselves, with professional and considered submissions. The deep connection between hunters, game animals and…

REMOTEHUTS.CO.NZ The Karamea is a big valley that runs for 73 kilometres and covers 1,200 square kilometres - 23% of Kahurangi National Park. There are ten huts in its upper reaches and various tributaries with tracks linking them to the Wangapeka and Little Wanganui valleys, and the Arthur Range, however none of these tracks continue below the Karamea Bend to Greys which is the end of the line if you’re coming up from the Coast side. Above Greys it’s untracked and there are 20 kilometres of rugged bush, bluffs, and river to traverse in order to reach Karamea Bend Hut where the upper networks begin. For obvious reasons this section of the valley is the almost exclusive domain of rafters and kayakers. Greys Hut is sited on a bush terrace…