Table of contents for Edition 67 in Australian Hunter

An unexpected invite came from a good mate of mine John after I mentioned to him that I was planning to door-knock for more hunting access on private properties. John invited me to come down for a weekend of hunting once I’d finished my own personal drive around search. Of course, I agreed. A man would be crazy to turn down a hunt and I’m certainly not mad enough to do that. We locked in the date, time, proposed location and meeting place not far from his house. My partner Emily and I had recently been blessed with a new-born son and my hunting vehicle did not really lend itself to the fresh family situation of fitting all three of us in the single cab LandCruiser. Even though Emily loves…

For a cartridge that began life more than 100 years ago, the 7x57 still refuses to fade away. Granted there has been the revived interest in older ‘classic’ cartridges that also include the 6.5x55, but there is something about the old 7mm that makes it hold its place. It tends to make you think a bit. All these flash new ultra Magnums mostly hung well with four-letter acronyms have not reached the level of popularity in this country many would have expected. Stand-by cartridges like the .308 and the .243 will probably continue to please most shooters, but why does a 100-plus-year-old round still retain a solid following? Seven mil enthusiasts will wax lyrically about how many elephants that dean of hunters, WDM Bell, shot with his 7x57. Although he…

If, like me, you have occasionally pondered a trip to New Zealand, then a couple of episodes of The Hunters Club will probably have you reaching for the phone and booking your flights. I first heard about the television show from filmmaker Nick Reygaert while he was in Darwin for the Australian leg of RISE Fly Fishing Film Festival, back in 2016. But it was not until recently that I had the opportunity to enjoy catching up on a few episodes. The Hunters Club is filmed and produced by David Shaw, narrated by Andre Alipate and was made available to Australian audiences through Vimeo in March 2018. When I finally got around to watching it I began with episode five of Series Three, but more about that later. Having now…

Some years ago, while preparing for a hunting trip to Canada, I began evaluating various calibres suitable to hunt North American game. To date I had been using a .270 Winchester to great effect but the barrel needed replacing or I required a new rifle. A visit to my local gunshop soon sorted my dilemma out. They had traded an almost new left-hand Savage Weather Warrior in .338 Winchester Mag. At the range, my new acquisition was not fussy about what I fed it, shooting factory or handloads as well as each other. Once in Canada the .338 Win Mag proved to be a good choice, as I took a white-tailed deer, a mule deer, a cinnamon coloured black bear and a bison bull. On my return to Australia the…

The years pass too fast and the clock can’t be stopped. However, age can deliver experience that teaches essential lessons about hunting. For me, it also allowed the acquisition of valuable qualities such as patience and divergent thinking. These qualities came in handy while caretaking a property in western Queensland for a month with two mates. The word ‘drought’ is often shunned by landowners because of its negative connotations. During the time we were there, the word was being used openly in the media. In the absence of follow-up rain, any benefit from the flooding rains of the previous spring had been lost under the intense summer heat. While the land was in drought, the channels and river had pools of water spread across the property. These were the leftovers…

Over the years I have had many missed opportunities for a shot at targets when hunting in scattered forest or grasslands. Without any trees or other terrain to rest my rifle on, I have been unwilling to take risky, unsupported long shots. With deer, I never minded much and figured I would find some more over in the next gully. But with wild dogs, it is a different story. Wild dogs present far fewer shot openings. It takes a lot of effort, some skill and a dash of luck to even see wild dogs, so every chance to shoot is treasured. I have had good success from using the longer-legged bipods fixed to the rifle fore-end, but for more than half of any year, the grass is too deep even…

With such a smorgasbord of game available to us, whether as trophy, meat, pest control or all three, we should be making the most of this natural resource, taking enough for our needs and leaving the rest for another time. In that way we also maintain a sustainable game environment, not just for us but for the next generation of hunters. However, all that effort to bring back the goods can be in vain unless the meat is properly protected and enjoyed in camp or at home. But first, some general comments to derive a better appreciation of game meat and its use. The taste of game meat depends on the size and age of the animal or bird bagged and how it’s prepared and cooked. Young game is generally…

For the avid hunter wanting affordable but quality laser range-finding binoculars the choice used to be pretty sparse, to say the least. While laser range-finding monoculars are highly popular and extremely affordable these days, their binocular equivalent consists of some very ordinary units and then the premium makes from Europe. Top offerings from Europe’s big three optics manufacturers mean taking out a small mortgage, with these laser range-finding binoculars starting out at $3500 and heading north! Thankfully the Research and Development teams at Steiner Optik decided the time was right to enter the fold and designed their own array of laser range-finding binoculars which are not only technically brilliant, but within budgetary reach of the average, avid hunter. Enter the Steiner Optik LRF 1700 series. The Steiner Optik LRF 1700…

More often than not the billabongs that abound in our area are bone dry, havens for vermin such as rabbits and foxes. Numerous drives are conducted through the heavy ground cover that seems to flourish in these spots. Foxes are usually the main targets and dogs are required to flush them from these thickets, which are an absolute nightmare if you try to work your way through them on your own. During the dry spells, red gum saplings spring up in profusion, making your passage extremely difficult. By the time the adjacent river floods and fills the billabongs with water and that other noxious vermin, the European carp, the saplings have grown to around 5m in height and are thicker than ever. While the carp are happy with the conditions,…

The information contained in this article is up-to-date at the time of writing but is general in nature and should not be considered legal advice. The SSAA is continuously working to improve legislation for our members so be sure to review any possible law changes on an ongoing basis. It’s the responsibility of all licensed firearm owners to comply with the laws in their state or territory as well as those states or territories they are visiting Going bush for a hunt is something most hunters regularly look forward to. However, there can be uncertainty regarding obligations when carrying firearms on hunting trips and removed from home safe storage facilities. All licensed shooters are familiar with the requirement to keep firearms safely stored and to prevent them falling into the…

It’s a cool but sunny Sunday morning when Fiona and I meet Shauna and Adrian Pickin at a property in one of the semi-rural outer suburbs of Hobart. This is an estate well known to the Pickins and one of many that they regularly visit on their ferreting outings. After greeting the owners, we walk through the paddock until we find a warren that looks active. Shauna sets a big white box down on the ground and two little grey-pink noses poke through the air holes as the ferrets sniff out their new surroundings. The Pickins bill themselves as natural vertebrate pest controllers. They advertise their services as rabbit exterminators, but they also approach the owners of properties that they can see are riddled with rabbit warrens. Most people are…

Over the course of 40 years, initially as a keen fisherman and later as a hunter, knives have been a tool that I have relied on in both hobbies. From cutting up bait, scaling and gutting fish, filleting and the butchery of game animals for the table, a sharp knife is one that’s always worth its weight in gold. We all know the old adage: ‘only a blunt knife will cut you.’ So restoring the edge to a blunt knife is a chore we, as hunters and fisher-folk, are familiar with. Having said that, I am guilty of having used every imaginable knife-sharpening utensil and gadget known to man. From Japanese water-stones, hand-held sharpeners, diamond and ceramic sharpening plates and hones, the list is very long indeed. While all methods…

It was time to check out another hunting spot that I had ventured into a few times previously without any success. Early one morning in the fog I had moved to within 50 yards of five does, before they had become fidgety and slowly moved off. They were followed by an old big-bodied thick black-antlered double-four, who had stopped long enough for me to see and count his points. Then he followed the does as I was slowed up by the fog. Lucky for him! I was hoping that my luck would be better this year because of the knowledge that I had gained from previous hunts there. Three well-used wallow holes on the track on the way in was where I intended to set up my trail camera. Because…

Cats evolved for the specific task of killing live prey. While having a soft spot for the domestic feline, I also shoot every feral cat I see, even if it means spoiling the hunt for game I’m really after. To hunt cats successfully, the more we know about them, the better. Cats are hypercarnivores, demanding more protein than other mammals. Dogs survive on four per cent protein but cats need 12 per cent by weight of protein (and kittens 18 per cent), explaining the deep instinctive urge to hunt. They have caused the extinction of native species and contributed to the decline of ground-dwelling birds and mammals. On islands, control is feasible. Elsewhere, management is difficult due to the lack of effective and humane broad-scale control techniques and the presence…

The Buck Model 110 Folding Hunter is a knife I cherish more than I should. I purchased my first one from a gun store in Townsville in 1994 with money I had earned from my after-school job. It was nothing special, just a stock standard model with brass bolsters, Dymondwood scales and regular clip point. But it started a love affair with the brand which continues to this day. That particular 110 has cleaned and scaled countless bass and barramundi, skinned more hares and foxes than I could possibly count and field-dressed probably more than 50 red, fallow and chital deer alone. It was by my side during my Army service and has been my companion on hunting and fishing trips from the Kimberley, across Queensland and down into Victoria.…