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You can't eat antlers, but you can hang them on the wall.
For the last two weeks since my Easter roar hunting trip with my son https://www.nzhuntingandshooting.co....ntlers-103569/
, I've been getting questions from my son as to why I never shoot a deer with antlers when he hunts with me. I've tried to explain it isn't that easy, but with the start of the school holidays approaching we hatched a plan to head back down to Fiordland National Park and try hunting the plateau where we saw a stag last time.
No day off School for Mitch this time, but we still made good time getting down there after he ran home after school. We pitched the tent in the dark and while Mitch sorted the inside of the tent I double checked the hunting packs so we we would be good to go first thing on Saturday morning.
The 5am alarm wasn't too much of a shock to the system and we were off before daybreak heading down the road with headtorches on. As with most places hunting on public land can be busy and we noted a ute parked where we planned to hunt. Not long after the headtorches could be turned off we bumped into the hunter coming back down the track and I had chat with him so we would both know where we were to hunt during the day. As out hunting plans didn't clash, there was no drama and we left to get across the flats and up to the plateau. While no one wants to come across another hunter, I used the experience to show Mitch that you can never tell if there is another person in the bush, and that there is no harm in being friendly and having a chat (it is everyone's land after all).
The recent rain made things a bit damp underfoot but once on the plateau and out of the swamp/crown fern we started to our hunting in earnest. A couple roars were heard in the first hour or so, but nothing was going strong and around 9am I let Mitch choose which way we would hunt. Do we hunt left towards where we saw a stag last time or hunt to the right into bush not yet explored? Mitch chose the new unexplored bush area to the right.
We zig-zagged through the bush keeping what breeze there was in our face as best we could. A few times we ended up in areas we had not intended to hunt, due to the flat bush we were hunting in. Yet another good teaching moment, as to how easy it can be to get off track.
Intermittent roaring from us, followed by hunting towards the odd faint roar, and frequent snack stops took up to about halfway along the plateau with nothing to show for our efforts. Getting close to a opening in the bush I say to Mitch that if there is a deer around, sometimes they hang in and around the thicker vegetation at the outer edges and feed in the open areas at night. We take a few more steps (our walking is a little bit quieter with the previous four days of practice over Easter) and I take my time to take in what I see.
I can hear a noise, but its beside me. Mitch has lost focus a bit and is lightly tapping my rifle stock with a small twig in a moment of boredom. Trying hard not to get distracted I focus on the bush to my left and think I hear a snap of a twig. Then I hear my rifle stock getting tapped again (I guess it's hard to stay 100% focused when nothing much is happening). I say to Mitch to try and stay focussed as I think something is close by. I hear another twig snap. Something is definitely in the area. I don't roar, but I hold my nose and let out a very nasally 'Neeear' call. A twig snaps.... I call again with a 'Neeear'. I let Mitch know something is close by and may be coming in, and to stay focused. I turn to my left to see a stag walking left to right about 30 metres away, he then angles towards me. He is unaware where we are, and he may walk in closerm but I don't want to risk him winding us. Rifle shouldered and front right shoulder targeted. The Kimber Montana 308 breaks the silence of the bush and off he runs to the right behind some vegetation. I can hear vegetation breaking as he runs but lose sight of him, then it all goes silent.
The shot felt good, but I realise we will have tracking to do. Mitch did as I asked and let me process what happened once again. Mitch wants to head straight to where we last saw the deer, and it's tempting, but I slow it down and out comes a roll of toilet paper. Mitch is a bit confused, but I say to Mitch we need to mark where I shot from, and there the deer was standing so we have out points on reference marked before be start our search.
Like over Easter I'm feeling the pressure of finding a deer in the bush with the expectations of a 10 year old who is excited to see the stag weighing on me. We carefully approach where it was when I shot it and mark that area with toilet paper. I scan the ground for sign, scuff marks, hair or blood. Nothing. We have a direction to follow and I get Mitch to scan the area with me, we make our way about 30 metres and with relief I see a light yellowish rump and tail of a deer lying in an opening of the bush. Found it! A careful approach, was made, but unlike the last deer this guy wasn't getting up.
Not thumper of a stag by any means, but a nice even little 6 point stag lay before us. It was not all dark and stinky, so I'm guessing it was yet to figure out what this whole roar thing was all about.
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Shot hit where I aimed.
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Pictures taken, an as tradition dictates, a celebratory Chockito bar was eaten as a reward for shooting a stag. The butchery session went smoothly and besides the right shoulder all cuts and legs were taken. With it only being noon, we had time to let everything cool down before heading in the direction of the closest waking track
Mitch was adamant he was going to carry the head the whole way home so after some re-arranging of the packs off we set.
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We made good time and made it back to camp around 5pm, even with a bit of time spend looking at some koura in a creek and a few minutes investigating a deer that crashed off to the side of the track as we descended the plateau.
The recent rains meant some of the track out was slightly damper underfoot than normal, but Mitch didn't seem to mind.
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Camp was a welcome sight, and while I hung the meat and the cooked dinner, Mitch got the tent sorted again. Over a meal of fried stag heart, bacon and cheese sandwiches, we reflected on the day we had. It could just as easily been a fruitless day given the lack of roars heard, but we were both stoked to be back at camp with the spoils of our efforts. A check of the GPS showed we walked about 10km for the day.
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Want to go out for another hunt tomorrow morning? 'Nah', says Mitch 'I want a sleep in tomorrow with you in the tent'. A sleep in it is then! You wouldn't catch Mitch in bed at 7:15pm normally, but today with a belly full of food and tired legs we were both happy to be lying down playing cards until sleep overtook us.
Pack up was a breeze, and even with a stop at the Mossburn playground we were home by 1pm on Sunday afternoon. There was enough time left in the day to dry out our gear and boil up the skull.
Mitch was happy to finally be present when I shot a stag and has plans to hang the skull and antlers on his bedroom wall. One day soon enough the roles will be reversed and it will be him pulling the trigger!
