I am planning a self-guided hunt for Tahr and Chamois out of Christchurch, South Island.

My main target would be Tahr and Chamois.

Looking for some excellent helicopter pilots that know some great hunting drop off areas. The areas for Tahr and Chamois do not have to be together if trophy quality would improve -but I would need helicopter rides to both areas.

I will be going with 1-2 friends and will backpack and camp from drop-off point. Will stay about 7-10 days.

Further, looking for a place that has lots of feral goats (trophy quality less important than quantity)somewhere within a few hours drive outside of Christchurch. I would want to have several shooting opportunities.

Please PM me with details or e-mail me at writeluismontreal@hotmail.com

Big Thanks.

I have not used helicopters for my south island hunts but i can email you a list of helicopter pilots from a New Zealand hunting magazine if that would be helpful.

Yes, that would be very helpful.

Thanks in advance!
CL

Anyone else?

Thanks

You could ask on this forum New Zealand hunting forum http://www.fishnhunt.co.nz/issues/issues.cgi Some of the guys post here too. James Scott is a pilot based at Hasst +6437510853 i have heard good thing about him.Does the goat shooting have to be in the south island??

Thanks for the leads. I'm connected to a few leads on pilots and other research materials.

I would now stay 10-12 days hunting.

Feral goat hunting could be in the north, or anywhere where there are good populations of feral goats Are there more goats on the north island? I think that this would be great fun to have multiple stalks and challenging shots.

I'll P.M. you.

Cheers,
CL

James Scott is a very good operator and can drop you into some areas that hold both Tahr and Chamios.

Beware though- the west coast is far rougher than the east coast and the weather is worse too.

There are plenty of goats in the south island, our last weekend we shot 98 without any difficulty (2 hunters).

A better place to base would be at Fox glacier on the west coast for tahr and chamois.
Less flying time to the better areas.
Rugged country and you need good gear.
one of the guides I know recently returned to camp to find their tents blown away!!
When the weather is like that there is no hope of a pick up either.
the weather can change radically very quickly.
Almost as many choppers on the west coast as tehre are barns/ farms!

I wouldnt recommend the westcoast if you are new to hunting in NZ and hunting by yourself

I might not hunt by myself, but will try to match up with a local hunter(s), guide, or else bring a friend. I do have an idea what I'm in for- I've hunted through a few mountain snowstorms and have a few other extreme hunting adventures under my belt. The idea is to be prepared for the worst, and hopefully have some decent weather in the mix.

Thanks mates!

Theres no snakes, wolves or bears in NZ so thats a bonus I guess

I wouldnt recommend a self-guided solo alpine hunt in the Southern Alps in the winter.

With our marine climate the weather can change from brilliant sunshine to white-out in a matter of several hours , and then you are in real trouble.

Get yourself a guide who nows the area , and defer to their knowledge.Anyone can go into the mountains but not everyone cann get themselves out .

Do a google search on south island hunting guides , there are plenty to choose from , and make your first trip a safe and memorable one . Then , if you want , come back and do it alone next time - at least you will have some experience and know what you are getting in to .

try jamie scott at fox glacier..real good pilot
i use him when i go over and hunt the chamios
pick your choppe pilot with CARE!!!
DANIEL

CL,

M 98's last point is more important than one might think at first glance.

My father flew choppers in Vietnam, and has instructed from then to the present day. If there is one thing that he is very careful about, it is doing everything in his power to ensure there are no "surprises." And when there are surprises, he's tried to think about them ahead of time.

My point is this: he's seen more than one experienced chopper pilot make a simple mistake that could have otherwise been avoided.

Add to that the weather and the altitude, and little mistakes become big ones.

Not to preach--just choose your pilot carefully, and ask a lot of questions.

Good luck!

friar

Friarmeier
Just out of curiosity, what sort of questions would you ask to ensure that you had found yourself a decent pilot? I happen to be a chopper pilot based in New Zealand, and I'm wondering what a prospective punter with possibly no aviation experience would do to make sure he was in with the right crowd.
CanadianLefty - I'm based in the north island, so don't know James Scott personally, but have heard good reports. I'm sure you can do worse

Canuk lefty
I have flown with James Scott a few times and he is an excellent pilot and knows "his" area. I would use him again in a heart beat. Make sure you have an excellent 4 season tent, gortex everything, spotting scope, excellent binos and a rifle that can hit a clay target at 500 yrds. And definitely hire a mountain radio. Do not hunt the Southern Alps of New Zealand by yourself, unless you live in the Rockies as a pro mountain man. It is not uncommon for people to die up there.

Tom, sorry I haven't responded sooner...don't make it down to this forum often.

I suppose I would ask how many hours the pilot has, and what circumstances the majority of those hours fall under. I would also ask what ratings the pilot holds, and check those over & against whatever the New Zealand version of the FAA is.

I would also ask what sort of conditions would prevent a pilot from flying...I wouldn't be interested in going for a ride with someone who thinks he (or she) has seen it all.

And I would make damn sure the person looked me in the eye the whole time.

Those seem like reasonable questions...off the top of my head.


friar

Dear Tom (and all),

I apologize for being a bit terse in my prior post...having read it again now.

Good luck & best wishes,

friar

James Scott is used by most of the guides for the west coast area.
Two hunters make hunting this area safer.
Of particular note is the fog that comes in from the ocean and the DAMP cold conditions.
These damp New Zealand conditions make it worse than the very cold conditions of Mongolia.

T



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