Australian Long Range Shooter Magazine  The Boyz from N.S.W. take on the mighty New Zealand Alps in search of some long range hunting action and the elusive Tahr.                                               For information and advertising Contact  sales@austargets.com

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New Zealand Tahr Hunt
By  "Jaws" 

Well we are back after 1 of the best weeks of hunting i have had in a while. The planning for this trip started some 8 months ago between me and another mate with the plan to hit the West coast for some tahr and chamios, but ended up being 4 of us on the east coast chasing tahr. With 1 week to go we were ready with choppas booked and all the paper work complete to get our guns in and out of the country. A quick trip to a property i hunt close by to sydney ,check the zero on our rifles and for me to test a few dialled shots at range alls good. WRONG. We get a phone call from NZ to say that the west coast weather is up to shit and that we should have a plan B as it dose not look like improving any time soon. So i get in contact with a few people i know but huts in the other valley i was told to try are well and truly full not to mention nearly all the huts in the south island as the rut is in full swing. Now i have the shits and try a few more avenues to get somewhere for me and 3 mates to hunt. After a few more trys i come up with a hut avail but not till tue so we will be in the tents and bivvys until then not a problem as the weather looks good in the east so we are back on. After arriving in Christchurch we get upgraded to a new Prado thanks Budget and proceed to the nearest hunting store and pick up the mountain radio to use for the week in the mountains. Quick look, purchase and Drool over the shit we cant have here and off to get supplies for the week.

The next morning we meet the pilot he loads us up and fly us into the head water of the river just up from the hut we will stay in on tuesday. 2 trips for the little Hughes 500.  After landing we set up a quick base camp and proceeded to spot bulls on the hills around , things were looking up (literately).  One of the Bulls spotted above camp. With the morning still young and all 4 of us keen as mustard to find some bulls at a height that was attainable we set off with 2 boys heading up the head to glass and me and Ray heading up in altitude to see what we could see.

 

After climbing for a short time i spotted a Bull about 500m above on a rocky bench feeding his way up and thought that he was worth a try as long as he didn't go to far up. We tried to stay out of sight of the Bull but with only tussock and scree to hide you and the Bull with a distinct height advantage it was hard so i decided to try the old depth perception trick. (Animals see left to right movement very easily but forward and back can be hard for them to pick up and helps close gaps). I knew he could see us so we stood tall and moved straight at him , this did not phase him at all and he continued to sidle across and now down. As he disappeared from sight i told Ray we would try and go side ways now and get around behind and above him so we started to sidle quickly to the left. As we approached the rise into the next basin i looked across to see 2 young Bulls running flat out across the tussock and quickly got on the bigger 1. Now at about 200m they both stopped and turned to face us so i sent a 200gr accubond over to say hello with the sound of a hit coming back as the young Bull disappeared over the side into a water fall only to regain his feet and join his mate running around the side of the falls. After a change in position and a couple more rounds he was down and we had our first bull for the trip and more importantly meat! :boogie:

Back at camp the other 2 boys recounted how they had watched the shots from were they were glassing. The next day we went back into the same basin chasing some of the bigger Bulls we had seen the day before and soon spotted a real good Bull high on a rocky peak about 800m away. We decided that we would move to a closer and better firing position and wait to see what happened hoping that the Bull would come down to were we could get a shot at him. After about an hr and with about 2 hrs worth of light left we decided to have a crack at the big Bull from about 480m away . I had the only gun that could be dialled for the shot so i was to fire followed by my mate AJ if i missed (well that was the plan). I counted down to fire on 3 so AJ could be ready but he thought i said fire on 3 and he did just that and i flinched massive at his gun going off pulling my shot high and the bull took off un harmed. All on video mind you. We thought that was the end of the hunting fo the day but later that night Matty took an elusive snow leopard back at camp.

 

he next day Matty and Ray were a little worse for wear with Matty coughing up a lung with a cold and Ray swelling up an old injury so they decided to take it easy as we moved from the base camp down to the Hut. Aj and i decided that we were going up to have a closer look at a bull up the back of a nearby basin and though late in the day we climbed quickly to a point where we could see atlas 4 bulls within 600m of us. We came up with a plan to close the gap on to of the lower Bulls that were across from us and this involved going back out of sight around the base of a small hill and then coming around closer to them and on their level. All went well and we covered the ground quickly to get into position but as we neared the point we were going to try and shoot from we spotted a good Bull with 15 nannies crossing the scree across from us . Aj made sure this time the instructions were clear and i dialled the Bull at 8.25moa for the 510m shot. At the shot i saw the bullet land just in front of the Bull and he took off back the way he had come at a great rate of knots, this time i gave him the correct lead for wind and let him have 2.5 mil dots on the horizontal crosshair and fired , well he folded up in full stride with the bullet hitting him through the back of the shoulder and resting under the skin on the opposite side after breaking his offside shoulder blade to say i was happy was an understatement :boogie: :boogie:. We got a bit closer and I gave Aj the hold for a nannie and he dropped 1 of them for a skin but she slid down a shoot into a cravas never to be seen again. We made our way over to my second bull and spotted another 3 above us at 300 m i told Aj to get onto the big 1 and after a couple of shots he fell to the ground but in a spot we could not even hope to recover him from.

Next morning back at the hut and i was sorting out my cape off my Bull with the 2 sick boys feeling good and ready to go. As we were glassing the face behind camp 2 nannies stuck there head over and the boys decided to go up and see if there was a Bull with them. Ray and Matty climbed up and could not find the 2 nannies we had seen from the hut so proceeded across a sharp and narrow rock spine to get to a better posy. After glassing for some time they spotted some nannies and Matty decided to shoot 1 for a skin and some more meat. Matty rolled the nannie and she fell were she was ensuring a long climb to retrieve her. Ray thought he caught a glimpse of a Bull in amongst the nannies and got into position with only part of the animal visible and as the Bull came to bare he fired and the Bull fell down onto the scree were they stood as he turned to Matty to tell him he had downed the Bull Matty proclaimed that he had done the same.

On approaching the Bull they found there was 2 neat holes about 100mm apart and as Ray went to move him the bull took off 600m down the scree shoot at a great rate of knots. This was the best Bull of the trip measuring just over 12 inchs.  Ray decided that if Matty wanted to mount it that he could keep the Tahr. Next day was full of Fog for the morning and we could only grab the odd glimpse of the tops through the haze and mist so we decided to work on the capes some more and just relax. after having a feed of tar for lunch and generally just sitting around i walked out of the hut and looked down river to see a lot of dots down low on the scree where they had not been before .  A quick look through the Liecas revealed about 20+ nannies feeding across the scree to a nice green patch. We quickly got our stuff together and ran down river to get directly below them on the opposite side of the river in amongst the matagary and manuka. Once in position behind a handy rock i handed my 300WSM to young Aj ranged the group at 480m. Dialling the gun for a 450m shot due to the steep up angle i turned the elevation turret to 7moa and told him to pick out a nannie clear of the mob, once on a nannie Ray dialled 1 with his 300WM and as they both stood side on to us the boys fired on 3 to see 2 nannies drop and roll down the scree. Telling Aj to get out and give me my gun back i picked out the guard nannie at the top of the mob and dropped her throwing them into disarray.

Ray asked Matty who was videoing if he wanted a turn and he grabbed my gun whilst i grabbed the camera to video, at the shot Matty dropped his nannie in her tracks and we called a cease fire on the mob with 4 nice fluffy skins on the hill. Well we were sitting there pretty proud of ourselves when at the top of the scree shoot a Bull and 3 nannies appeared, at first i thought not much of it but he just stood there so i put the geovids on him and called the shot for 688m checking my cheat sheet and with a cosine of .92 i dialled my gun for a 625m shot and told Aj to get on him. With a steady rest and the camera rolling Aj sent the first round up and the Bull lept 6 ft in the air as we all called "hit". The bull moved across to our left and when he stopped i ranged and adjusted the scope again going up 2 clicks Aj fired again and the bull dropped (now this is the part in the vid where i got a bit excited and proclaimed he was down and was congratulating Aj when the boys said he's up and staggering left and in a bad way.

With only 3 more rounds on me i adjusted the scope again and Aj fired but the bullet flew over his shoulder at this point i told ray to get on him and if this was a miss to have a shot i dialled down 2 clicks Aj fired and the Bull rolled down the hill stone dead, all this took place in about 2min.  Matty and Ray went up for the nannies and Aj and i went up to get his Bull. Once reaching the Bull we discovered 3 hits from the 4 shots as we had expected with all 3 within 200mm of each other in the shoulder and both legs broken, tough bloody animals. We recovered 2 of the 3 proji's with 1 going straight through.  I quickly caped out the animal as it was getting dark and we came down the scree in the mist to find the boys skinning 1 nannie and mine sitting there. Ray then explained that in the fading light they could not see Aj's and that after Ray had rolled his down the hill it ended up in the river and was now somewhere down stream :rofl: .  I skinned my nannie and we crossed the freezing river again returning to the hut by 8.30pm. Aj recovered his nannie the next day.

 Full skin cape out.

Next day we were in the hut taking care of skins and watching a few bulls up high when a helicopter cam down the valley, as we were all out the front we waved and he went down past us about 500m hooked around flew back to the hut and landed about 40 ft from us.  What happened next was quite unusual as a guy jumps out in a suit with a bunch of flowers and comes over to me. Me; "Gday mate thanks you shouldn't have" Guy; " Hi i am the concierge/celebrant from 5 star resort on south island and i have a bridal party in the choppa that want some photos do you mind" Me ; " Nah mate do you want us to clean up a bit and do my hair" Guy; "Just laughs" Next the videographer and photographer get out with bride and groom and the pilot comes over to me. Me: "Gday couldn't give me a lift up there could ya?" Pilot; " yeh mate get ya stuff and get in their paying for it" I jump in grab a head set and the pilot fly me up to the high bench i was going to walk up to. After a quick chat as we come into land i arrange for him to fly us in next yr at a great price and he gives me the thumbs up as he leaves me high in the tussock. Bloody legend.

Now in the tops on my own and the Bull i wanted to look at making his way across the scree i decided he was to small and radioed the boys that i was going to climb out of the basin i was in and into the basin were i had missed the big Bull on the second day. After crossing the snow covered basin i approached the bottom of the climb into the next basin and started to climb the frozen soil , snow and scree. I was about 3/4 of the way up and underneath the large rocky shelf that held the big bull when i looked up to see him watching me over the top of the cliff above with his head and shoulders showing.  Quickly i chambered a round and had a range at 125m when i was trying to get into a position to shoot but was constantly sliding backwards down the hill when i released my hand hold. I kicked myself 2 foot holds in the snow and got a bit more steady but the bull had gone so i tried another trick and called out for him, well bugger me he sticks his head over the cliff again and I line him up only to start slipping down the hill again. At this point i figure just try and slide and shoot and at the shot I collected the rocks just in front of his chest and he was gone.

Getting my shit back together i climbed the last bit and finally crest the snow shoot into the next basin and slowly made my way around to where we had seen some good bulls previous. I slowly made my way around the rocky out crops base constantly glassing and finally spotted a good bull at 250m i was in a real rush at first to get into position but in the end told myself he aint going nowhere so got a good rest lined him up and tipped him off the cliff. They Fall hard

Back at camp the boys had cleaned up all their skins so we set them out and got a group photo.

All in all 5 Bulls 4 caped and 3 nannie skins.

We ate as much Tahr meat as we could whilst there and are now awaiting the 6 months to get our trophies back.

I would like to thank my mates for the great time I had and the chopper pilot for the free ride.

Copy write Norman Nelson    2011