Well, here goes. My 1st hunt report on AR.

I recently booked a 5 day hunt with Chris McCarthy’s outfit to go after roaring reds under fair chase free range conditions for the week before Easter. The station we were on was huge and the deer truly wild and free range. Chris is a first rate guide offering Reds, Chammy & Thar. Check him out on: http://www.hawea-hunting.co.nz/

I arrived at Chris’s place near Wanaka Saturday arvo and we started chatting about hunting & conservation and I knew this was going to be great hunt from the 1st meeting. We headed to the station well before sunrise on Sunday morning, just in time to get a cuppa with the owner before sunrise.
We parked on the flats looking up at the amazing scenery and pulled the spotting scope out to start glassing the hills for the reds we’ve been hearing since we arrived. They were roaring their heads off and I was wearing a smile a mile wide in anticipation of the next few days.


By mid morning on day 1 we had looked over 5 different stags and decided to head back for a break and hatch a plan for the rest of the day. The stags were heading back up the hills to bed down and there was no way we were going to catch up with them in any case.
Day 2 the weather started packing up, but since neither of us was made of sugar we headed out into the hills after glassing for the morning session. Heading up Narrow spur we spotted a very nice 12 pointer bedded high on the opposite face, range finder reading 750m and with a massive crosswind no one was even thinking of trying anything fancy. For now he was safe and we had to be happy with just watching. We would have to try and catch him the next morning while he was lower down.


Day 3, up well before sunrise glassing for the 12pointer from Monday, and Yes!!! There he is, 500m up and we have a fair chance at getting to him – if the wind holds and my fitness measures up. We raced up the hill, trying to outflank the wind but by the time we clear the ridge he is gone and widening the gap. Heading higher we realise that a new plan is called for. With the wind blowing up the face there is no way we would get near enough for a shot.

So we backed down and packed for an overnighter and headed to an old bivvy high up. This would allow us to sneak down on the stags, with the wind in our faces and the stags heading up towards us. Nothing could be simpler. Yea right!
We did spot quite a few stags on the way up and had some fun roaring in a few stags.


Spending the night high up was great and we listened to the roaring reds and pelting rain until well into the night. Around midnight the temperature dropped and the rain stopped. Flicking on the flashlight revealed why. It was snowing!!! Donning all our gear we headed off well before sunrise to get into position.
The change in the weather did not work in our favour as the wind was now blowing down the hill. Sneaking down the hill in the snow after slogging up the previous day (and up and down on the 2 days before that) is not something that’s high on my list of fun things to do. But that’s what we did.
We setup about 200m into the snowline and started glassing the face. 3 nice stags were spotted on our level, so no issues with the wind. 2 lower down soon smelled us and heading for the bush. We spotted a nice stag with 10+ hinds in tow heading up the face and decided he was worth going after.
This meant climbing back up the hill after him, trying to avoid the rest of the deer on our level. This effort met with reasonable success and we had a few close calls.


We got close on a few occasions as he was herding his hinds up and around the face, back towards safety and the bush line. Just as they reached the bush edge he stopped and I could get a decent look at him through the scope. Chris said he is not a great head, good mass but he is uneven and past his prime. My lungs were screaming and the crosshair was steady on his shoulder. It was now or never. I don’t think my legs would do another trip back up.
“I’m taking the shot” I whispered to Chris as the deer were getting nervous at our prone figures lying in the snow. The stag dropped at the shot. Skidding down the face he came to rest about 100m above us. I reloaded and prepared to give him another if he dared moved. The stag never knew what hit him.
I don’t know where I found the strength but I made it to the stag at the same time as Chris and was ecstatic to finally have a decent stag on the ground. We carefully moved him for some pics:






We had some fun getting him down off the hill; apparently dead stags don’t have brakes when going down a frozen hillside. At least we wouldn’t have to carry him all the way down. See the skidmarks at the top of the hill 



After caping him I carried the head and cape, with Chris carrying the rest of our gear.



We made it back for a hot cuppa and a quick shower before hitting the road back to Christchurch


Cheers
H

Great hunt, great stag...great report!! Well done guys!!

Hi HendrikNZ,

big congratulations and thanks for the report.

Very nice stag! And thanks for your friendly offer on the other topic about my trip to your beautyful country. Will contact you as soon as

possible... but so much work and a family member went to hospital today. So it will take some days to answer you adequately.

Cheers

Very nice Hendrik.

nice haevy old bastard eh,good onya!

fantastick writeup and great pictures

Congrats on a fine hunt.
That creek is great fly fishing water.

Got the mount back from the Taxidermist today.

Hendrik,
it's becuase posts like yours that this is the best hunting site !!

I can't imagine a better hunt or a better trophy.

Congratulations !!!

BTW, Here is mine from this year,wide and long but not very thick.

I am also waiting to bring the head from Argentina, also skill mount...as ALLWAYS !!

Watch the storm above me



Thanks for sharing

L

Hello Hendrik,

Nice trophy and better hunt! That places are very simmilar to our northwestern Patagonia. Beautiful!

Thank you

PH

Well done. Loved the photos.

Hey look, there in the back ground on the other side of lake Hawea, that's me!
Top bloke that Chris, well done mate.