Hunting news - update Feb 2010
It’s that time of year again - when we think about buying more rifles, motorbikes, jeeps, hunting clothing or any of the bare necessities of life that hunting and fishing stores thankfully provide!
I have just been down to the hunt camp at Te Awaiti, albeit briefly, and things are looking really good for the coming season. Unusually for the area, there has been considerable rainfall throughout the summer and the farmers are reveling in the long grass as are the deer that have had a great summer to grow their velvet.
When I arrived at the camp there where three deer beside the hut…that really got the dog's attention! I saw a lot of stags in good velvet and the great growing season has also meant that we have not had any sheep eating my deer's grass in the areas that are usually grazed during the dry summers. The Fallow population is building with some nice stags which may be of interest to some of you.
For those of you that have not been to Te Await for a while you will notice some changes, as the site now resembles a small village and apparently there is more building to be done in March. Once again, Nic Nation will be returning to the camp to spoil us with her cooking and hospitality. These days we also have internet at the camp via satellite, so for those of you that need a daily fix it works well.
In spite of all the upgrades the low pricing structure has not changed for the season and as usual we will be doing some meat/cull hunts later in the season.
In late October I had some back surgery which has been a success and
part of the ongoing process is fine tuning, as finely tuned athletes
do! I have only to fix my ankles, knees, hips, shoulders, give up
smoking and drinking and I'll have the job done!! However one of the
last hunts of the 2009 season was with Dave, an 82 year old from Oregon and
I managed to keep up so not all is lost. It was quite an achievement to bag a
good stag in the wild at that age let alone travel halfway across the
world to do it.
Also, I have spent some time looking at another coastal property at Akitio, out on the coast from Dannevirke. The area consists of 10,000 acres of much easier terrain and nearly all bush edge type hunting, glassing and stalking. I am keen to do some hunts there this year after the roar for a few weeks and will keep you all posted when this is likely to be.
As usual I look forward to seeing you at the camp for what must be about my 20th year!
Cheers
Chris Jolly