Thread: Hunting spots done a complete 360 on us

Rusky is on to it, the deer numbers in there are moderate at worst. I usually see huge amounts of sign in there. The reason it’s so hard to get on to them is that the view range is so limited in any direction that by the time you locate one it is already on its way. I reckon for every deer I spook in there that I physically lay eyes on, there’d be half a dozen I hear/smell but never see. The closest I’ve seen one is about 4m, and the furthest would be 15-20 max.

In my experience the deer in there “migrate” seasonally too, some spots of mine I’ll get on to a deer every time in winter/early spring, but are dead in summer with only small patches of sign from resident animals. Other spots vice versa.

A lot of people pass it by on their way to the Pureoras and Kaimanawas, a lot of people hunt it without luck, and a lot of people hunt it once or twice and say “never again”. Persist in there, pick an access point and learn the area well, and keep a diary so that’s you can pick up patterns in seasonal movements etc.