Two Thumb Valley in the Macaulay



The coloured lines show where we went over the 3 days

Thursday afternoon I picked up my mate Brandon threw his gear in the back of the hilux and off to the north we headed. Swinging east around Lake Dunstan then on over the Lindis to Tekapo. The hilux is not quick on the highway neither of us minded that as we both enjoy the scenery. Mt Cook stood above the Tasman Glacier away to our left as we continued on to Headcases place in Tekapo for an evening with him before flying in Friday morning.
Early the next morning 25-30 tahr hunters assembled at the Green Shed on the left bank of the Macaulay River. We waited our turn as the Tekapo Helicopters 500’s carried our culling parties up in to our cull blocks.
Each party consisted of three hunters. We were tasked with reducing tahr numbers in areas DoC had identified where the local tahr population concentrations had exceeded the intervention levels in the tahr control plan. I and the other tahr hunters on the cull had each given 4 days of our time and paid our own costs of this hunt to work in co-operation with the department of conservation. This is conservation volunteer work. The tahr numbers present according to the department had exceeded intervention levels. The hunts purpose is simple; cull the breeding females and juveniles only. No bulls are allowed to be taken on these culls in order to make sure hunters maximize their time on the hill hunting nannies.
We were joined at the helipad by John from Christchurch and we soon boarded our 500 to be flown to Two Thumb Stream. At 1200 meters alt climbing hard the 500 overflew some tahr. I was excited by the sight as six bulls bolted from under the helicopter their big golden manes flowing as they scrambled for the sanctuary of the bluffs. These bulls had been loafing low and in the tussock ravenously feeding to regain strength after a hard winter. It would have been so easy to land get out and shoot them. It is always a big lift seeing game so soon, the 500 continued up the valley. Bulls come low at this time of year but nannies stay high in the bluffs.
We landed at a barely level site at 1500 meters alt and set about trying to secure a sheltered position for the tents. Friday night and Saturday morning were predicted to be very windy and this valley was terribly exposed to the south west winds I knew were coming.
After setting up the tents we began glassing for tahr, they were elusive and it was not till 4:30 we located 7 nannies the only mob we were to see that day.
After making a few estimates on location and where they would feed to we set out over the snow to approach the mob form below and the next gut over from them, the wind was from down valley but blowing steady uphill I hoped it would hold true till we were close to them.
Closing through the bluffs we made good time and were set up to shoot.


I got a few photos while waiting for Brandon and John to get into position.

We started shooting and the nannies very quickly scattered not before we dropped 4 of them.


We took meat where we could get it and then climbed back down through the bluffs in the twilight to camp.


A quick meal and we all headed off to our sleeping bags then the wind started. None of us got any sleep as 120 km per hour winds battered our camp. At one stage I felt myself being lifted in the tent, and then the rain set in. I had pitched the Olympus tent to face down valley but a trick feature was pushing the wind into the side of the tent. That tent held beautifully that night I only had a couple of teaspoons of water in the tent. I had to thank Macpac for the bombproof construction of the tent and snow stakes I used on the weather side to anchor the tent. The next day things began to clear around 11 am and we peered out. I watched large rocks falling through the rock and snow chutes above us and we all decided we would let things settle before climbing up through them. About 3 pm Brandon and I headed out up through the bluffs we were unable to spot any tahr at all despite climbing to 2000 meters alt. The weather had shifted to freezing southerly it was getting very cold. After freezing and sitting around we began to slide down through the scree slopes at 8:00 to drop below the mist enveloping us. I emerged from a narrow chute behind Brandon and looked over to my right there was a nanny in the rocks 180 meters away. Quickly I unslung the sako and dropped her with a neck shot another nanny peered over the edge to see what was wrong with her mate and I put another core-lokt through her neck as well. We climbed up to the two nannies and another emerged from the next bluff 280 meters away I tumbled her with another shoulder shot. As we dressed out the meat two more emerged above us in the mist, with bloody hands I set up and dropped two more tahr about 240-260 meters above us.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UZi5OUR-0y0
It was along slow descent to camp with the meat that evening.


Next morning we started early we were going to climb Mt Compton at 2308 meters altitude and look into Mesopotamia for a change of scenery. As we climbed we were escorted by a noisy clan of kea they had been feeding on our kills from the previous two days and were so fat they could barely fly.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ptvIEOK_vV0

They really did provide the highlight of the day keeping us company and checking our rifles the keas seem to like chewing MAB target barrels as a preference over Walther target barrels.

Just below the summit I left my sako behind to scramble to the summit and as luck would have it I ran into a nanny asleep on the summit she whistled and bounced down the rock face into Mesopotamia then off down a snow field. We saw plenty of tahr in Mesopotamia but very few on our side Brandon spotted and shot a juvenile on the heavily corniced ridge his suppressed sako 7mm Rem mag was very useful as tahr were far and few between up here.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qOvgK5yQ2Gc
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4bipyO8ZLS0

We spotted 2 more and worked our way around to a decent shooting position at around 280 to 300m meters away and above them. Brandon dropped the first and I dropped the second. That was to be all we shot that day we saw a total of 17-18 animals for the 3 days and culled 12 of them. Once off the hill we set up again in camp and chilled for the evening literally before being picked up on Monday morning.
I can recommend the Leica Geovid 10x42’s Binos they make long shots easy. Brandon and I both routinely shoot out to 500 meters to take advantage of the 7mm Rem mags long range capability. I am also sold on the Macpac Olympus, that tent was not designed to take wind from the side but still held magnificently. I would also recommend the long snow stakes I took as extra anchors in alpine country. I don't go far without miendl boots, I prefer makalu pros a semi rigid boot that can accept a crampon. An ice axe is essential for security when moving on this mixed terrain
To those of you that don't know it, this time of year; sept to december is the time to get a bull feeding low. It also has high winds and nor westers which bring rock fall and avalanches with them

It has been a long time between hunts and so good to be back in the hills after a year.

Very cool report....

Maps,video,and photos;puts you there!

Glad to see your out there at it.....


Dan

Good to have you on here Weathered

thats an excellent report Weathered.

Beautiful country there. Thanks for the report.

Very cool Weathered, spot anything interesting?

Weathered...Great report, pics and video... Sure appears that your back up to 100%...much to the detriment of the tahr...

Z

This gets my vote for best report of the year - what a great hunt!

I noticed when I played the video back how I was a little puffed even though I was feeling fine. It was my first time up at altitude after 6 weeks working at sea level in Trinidad for BP petroleum.

I believe in the maxim train hard, hunt easy.

This is not hunting but there is some good chamois country in some of the photos. this on my back doorstep I can see my house from this peak. I have got my breath back now

Take an early friday off work sometime.

I can recommend it

the snow conditions were meant to be great so I left the cell phone at home and went out for a climb

Single and Double Cone above a frozen Lake
Alta. This area is a great alpine playground with climbs as easy or as hard as you want to make them, our route took us up the left hand peak which is steeper than it looks; mostly climbing on 40 to 45 degree mixed terrain snow, rock and a little ice

Snow/Ice Shute we took to the top of Single cone, about 2 to three pitchs some with natural protection and some with bolts



Yahoo ! starting to lead out a longish pitch with mixed snow and ice. In some places the ice was very close to the surface.


The View from the top




A quick rap down the same way we came up

[
Then plugging across the snow fields



What a great day and so lucky in New Zealand to have the mountains right there

I am off into Westland next week for 7 days hunting chamois

WOW. So beautiful! I am coming to NZ in Feb. for 5 months to study at the University of Otago, I can't wait to get into the mountains. Where was that peak? Do you have all your own climbing gear? I want to try that. Thanks for sharing.

Alex

Yes I have a decent rack of climbing gear and would be pleased to show you a few crags. This is Single Cone and Double Cone in the Hector Range above Queenstown.
What are you studying at Otago are you a geo ?
I live 3 hours drive from Dunedin but have several mates at Otago

Climbing is not quite hunting but fun all the same.

Descending the South East ridge of Mt Tutuko.

quote:

Originally posted by Weathered:
Yes I have a decent rack of climbing gear and would be pleased to show you a few crags. This is Single Cone and Double Cone in the Hector Range above Queenstown.
What are you studying at Otago are you a geo ?
I live 3 hours drive from Dunedin but have several mates at Otago

Sorry for being slow to respond, finals time for me. As far as what I am studying, not positive yet haven't really thought about it. I figure, if I am going to be in the most beautiful country in the world, its would be a waste of time to be in front of books the whole time...

I'd love to go climbing there, that is an incredible view. Climbing,skydiving, hiking, hunting, trout fishing and at least one trip out to sea is on the list. Anything else I should do?

If your here with time then Milford sound along with the rest of Fiordland is a must see, and take the rifle