Thread: Gear for 2 weeks in Kawekas

Bit hard to gauge your experience from the above comments but 2 weeks is a decent stint in the bush.

As above, take plenty of tin food for your hut time as it is quick to heat and will last. If you take raw produce such as meat and veg, remember to eat them first. A chillie bin is a good option for the hut. Pasta meals, noodles & Back Country meals are lighter and better for fly camping adventures. Bread only lasts so long so consider crackers, OSM (one square meals), scrogen, muslie bars etc for lunches.

3 main cooker type options - White spirit types like MSR Whisperlite; gas canister type like Kovea style & fast boil type like Jetboil. White spirit type put out more heat above bush line in colder winter alpine conditions, fuel lasts well, but are more difficult to ignite. If you go this way, make sure you get a stove with a simmer option. Normal gas type cookers are simple to operate, pretty light weight and work well but gas canisters are more expensive and you need to take them out when empty. Jetboil type are similar to normal gas cookers but heat water very quickly. Not really suited to simmer type meals and more suited to meals which require hot water only.

Packs - plenty of options and makes available - There are the tramping ranges like Macpac, One Planet etc which probably the majority of hunter have, but these days there are more hunting brand packs in use like Eberlestock, Markhor, Stoney Creek etc. Size (litres) depends on the amount of gear you will be lugging. You can always squeeze a big pack down with compression straps but you cant make a small pack bigger! That said, the more room you have in a pack the more crap you can put in it, though the older you get, the less you lug! There are guys out there that can get away with a 45-50 litre pack for a 3 day hunting trip. Others need a 70-85 litre pack for the same trip. Meat is heavy so choose a pack with decent waste belts and padding. Poor quality packs generally don't last especially once you start filling them with 20 kgs of meat! Consider boning out your meat before you put it in your pack if you have a ways to go back to the hut...bones are heavy!

Raincoats/jackets - All the major NZ brands have an assortment of waterproof jackets available and they generally do what they are meant to do! Your choice will depend on your budget and style of hunting. There are a number of US brands available these days which are gaining popularity with Kiwi hunters. They tend to be shorter in length than the Kiwi brands so over trousers may be a requirement if you go this way. Be wary with over trousers and limit where you wear them, as bush lawyer/leather wood and over trousers don't mix! I have seen a brand new pair of expensive over trouser ruined on their first trip Tahr hunting in South Westland...it made the owner almost cry!

Greg Duley from NZ Hunter Magazine put out a number of articles a year or two back with food considerations and the gear he takes on over night and expedition trips. If you subscribe to the mag, go and have a good read. If not, email Greg or Fiona and ask them if they have any back issues left with the required articles. I got a back issue from them this week for a misplaced issue - had it in 3 days!

As suggested above, read the 'Equipment' section on this forum as there's a lot of good advice there!

Lastly don't forget binoculars, sunscreen, lip balm and a few candles for the hut. 'Replace' electrolyte powder would also be a good option at that time of the year.

The above comments are based on my experience and not everybody will agree with them. I have tried to make more general comments as opposed to specific brand/model types as everybody has their individual preferences which work for their type of hunting. Best of luck!