Thread: Nelson lakes fourum hunt 7 8 9 Nov 2014

Originally Posted by veitnamcam

Well for me it was an early start fri to find all my shit and pack it,for some reason I always leave this till the last possible moment
Stingray arrived and out to Mikees to pick him and his boat up, un eventful drive up then met the guys and up to the hut.
Shit roughly sorted and Munsey and Antsman were keen to fly camp somewhere the first night but didn't want to go tops as a bit early and recent snow.
I suggested up the Durvil to Morgans hut as the Sabine is a part of a pretty popular loop for trampers and Morgans is just far enough that most spot lighters cant be arsed walking up there...... well I put them a bit crook, unbeknown to me the track had had a hiding from the wind which ment some crossings in the gorgey section which were probably "Interesting"

The rest of us headed off and captian Mikee dropped me at my chosen gully,I have hunted this one a few times and know it pretty well and how to avoid most of the tight shitty stuff and patches of wind fall.
Stalking my way up in the heat of the afternoon I cursed my polarfleece pants and I leaked profusely but despite that I was feeling good and fit, the wind swirled and eddied as it always does at this level and I started to see fresher and fresher pig sign. Soon the un mistakable stench of pig was sent my way but with the wind swinging threw 150degrees I couldnt pin point where it should be.A strip of swampy stunted growth in front of me had to be it so I stalked forward in full ninja mode for about 20y and got another nose full of scent but never saw or heard it sneak off.
I worked my way threw every spot I had seen or shot a deer over the years but fresh sign was non existent,they have to be higher up....
Getting on for some clearings(read swamps)higher up the wind steadied itself as I got out of the lee of a main ridge as it does and I worked around keeping to the open bush to hunt back towards them into the wind.

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I have seen- shot a few in the bush around here but never seen anything in the clearings themselves.Though I am mostly up here in winter and the clearings are cut up with prints from them playing/drying out after wet/cold weather.

I cut across the most down wind end of a clearing to check for sign.

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There was none surprisingly, while it certainly isn't a dairy farmers paddock the first fresh pick was pushing up and I know this is irresistible to a bush deer.
Continuing around in the bush in ninja mode into the wind I cut back in to have a look at the first bit of the main clearing, nothing no fresh sign and back to the bush where I found some fresh prints heading to the clearing, cutting back in with not high hopes I did my best to be quiet threw the stunted beech on the skirts. Then as I poked my head out was a little surprised to see the arse end of a deer out in the open but blocked from full view by a bush.
I took another very slow step, Very slow to get my boot out of the slop without a huge suction sound like a keen bloke eating a fresh kina and now I could see a yearling hind in full view out in the open broadside on feeding.
A younger me would have just swung up and smacked it in the shoulder then and there but instead I started getting my camera out of my pocket, I still wanted the meat but I wanted to photograph them first.
I keep my waterproof camera in a ziplock bag to protect the screen and lens from scratches and this made some noise as I got it out, the one I had full view of heard this and looked straight at me on full alert ears and nose twitching, barely hidden behind a sparse stunted tree I froze but held my arm out to the side without taking my eyes of her and took some nice photos of the tree
The breeze didn't betray me and eventually she put her head down and started to feed again
I took another painfully slow step to the side to avoid the suction noise out of the bog and knelt in the slop with a spindly bush as a rest, I felt good not amped at all calm and collected.
Two deer one definitely a yearling and the other ones arse looked about the same fed before me. Kneeling in the swamp I had a serviceable rest as I watched them I weighed my options.
"If I shoot this one in the neck I might get a shot at the other one then I can carry the clean shot out whole and the shoulder shot I will just take hind quarters and back steaks"
"Na that will make me late for pick up....no hang on I have a radio I will get within range and be able to tell Mikee I will be late"
So plan in my head with a clear shot of everything but the neck I waited for her to feed forward a step lined up on the atlas joint and squeezed off.
I was bloody shocked it didn't drop on the spot but spun and ran instead, the round I was instinctively chambering while the rifle recoiled had to be pointed at the rapidly disappearing first target instead of the other one that ran straight past me at 15 od yards.

I was literally stunned mullet....How the hell did I miss that?

Maybe some smart cunt wound my scope a turn out while I wasn't around, removed bolt and bore sighted,nup looks good .

The aftermath...contains some coarse language.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yBG-gzEOaNg

More later.

Well I had scared anything in the immediate area off so I charged off to gain some more alt but heading back to the pick up point in a roundabout fashion. As I climbed some fresh sign started to show and I slowed right down again but nothing was seen.
Now I was going to be early for pick up, when I thought I was in range I tried Mikee on the radio just in case he was out early too. To my surprise he was and was getting eaten by sandflies at the pick up point I laughed and explained that one should get the hell away from shore as quick as possible then sit in the middle of the lake drinking beer away from the sandflys when waiting to pick up hunters, Gave him a brief run down of my tale of woe, unloaded and bolted straight down to the two 440ml cans I had left in a creek near the boat,they barely touched the sides.
Mikee had a barstard of a time with wind fall so either my directions were not very good or he didn't follow them very well

Back at the hut first we lit the fire to heat the stew for tea, within minutes it was boiling hard on the outside and still frozen in the middle! Stingrays kiln dryed pine burnt so hot and fast that even shut right down it was still flat out so I went and found a big wet half rotten bit of wood and chucked it in to calm her down.
A couple of guys turned up in a wee boat and were going to camp in the river flats and be out in the morning I let them know 2 of our party would be coming down this evening and another two the next day,and another wee boat with two turned up who wanted to hunt the flats and I politely suggested they would be better off at the Sabine.
Stew warming we headed of to watch the flats near the mouth till dusk, no excitement there but some evidence of of activity.
Just after dark we were all back at the hut for a feed and debrief and those of us who hadn't previously met got to know each other a little over a few beers.

Sat morning 4,45am "find it and kill it" someone yelled into the darkness,no not a rat or possum but my bloody alarm on my phone I had forgotten to disable,sorry guys.

Everyone seemed fairly keen to get out there doing it this morning except me,I had had a shit sleep but got my gear together and headed off with Mikee.



We roughly retraced my steps from yesterday, It was even hotter today and I couldn't stop yawning so we had lots of smoko breaks but I don't think Mikee minded too much.
We sat and had lunch on the edge of where I saw the deer yesterday in the only dry bit and I may or may not have had a wee nap in the shade for a bit
Nothing was seen or smelt but on one of many smoko breaks I saw an interesting bird land near the top of a tree on the edge of some wind fall,it looked just like a Kea but wasn't green but colourd more like a falcon, later I learnt it was a Kaka the first I have seen.





Back at base first again we had a pre tea of stew on toast and had a couple of quiets as the others turned up in dribs and drabs, Tikka had got lead in the air but unfortunately had missed also. Stingray and Gadgetman were amped but tired getting real close but a fickle wind was their undoing and when Antsman and Munsey turned up they were shattered, Ants had secured a rotoroa trophy tho of two matched casts and Munsey had seen a few but to dark for a shot.
Stingray Ants and Mikee fed us like kings with bacon buttiess,scollops,and orange roughy fillets.
Around 10 a boat arrived and they all snuck off without saying gidday then were gone again in the middle of the night.
Spotlights seen at Sabine again.
Hunts and otherthings were recalled till fairly late and before I knew it the sun was rising, Stinger cooked us a mean breakfast and we talked,by about 9 I figured it didn't look like anyone was going for a hunt so I did the only decent thing to do and opened a beer.

Was a great trip thanks everyone for coming.Its the bush and the company that makes the trip.

I cant wait to get back up there.