Thread: Chamios in the Avoca

Hi all,

I am planning a trip for the upper Avoca and was wondering if there was good chamios numbers up there?
Any info would be greatly appreciated.

Cheers

If you mean the Avoca river by Coleridge then: Not in the main valley, just an odd one. Might be more in the uppermost heads above the top ford. The valley is quite different above the top ford- it is in the Northwest rain shadow compared to dry lower valley. There is a lot of hunting pressure in there.

If you mean Avoca homestead at Broken river, there are quite a few but they are mostly small bastards

There used to be reasonable numbers in the Avoca River many years ago when I hunted in there, mostly on the southern side of the valley. You could spot them from the river flats but we never bothered with them as we were always after deer (Centre Creek, Amphitheatre Creek, etc. on the northern side). I haven't been in there for years but they can't have all gone.

Gundoc is likely referring to the 70's and early 80's when chamois were culled by Hughes 500 for scientific study work at the Glenthorne Harper base now known as the Retreat on the Harper/Avoca Valley confluence? It was bit of a slaughter really - thousands of chamois shot by heli shooters. The scientific results buried in some Canterbury Uni achives? To what value the research who knows? Anyway still the odd good buck shot in the Avoca Valley but deer more likely your encounter nowadays.

Moa Hunter - Yes referring to the Avoca by lake Coleridge. That sounds interesting, cheers

gundoc - Cheers, will keep an eye out on the southern side

Hunteast - Interesting stuff, they weren’t shooting them for "Deer recovery?"

Not the chamois - just for autopsies only looking for diseases such pneumonia which affected young chamois with a high mortality rate. Research back then found the chamois small in size but good horn length. Reference a book titled High Country Secrets - The Harper Avoca Story by Steuart Laing 2017 which was printed in very limited numbers so no doubt very hard to obtain?

I shot my first Cham above Glenthorne in the 1980's, but on trips back to the Avoca post lockdown have seen bugger all. Not really the right country for them up to Basins hut as they prefer scrubby creek heads with water splashing over the rocks and bits of toitoi etc to the open barren tops on the north side. I think that sheep grazing in the valley and the diseases from sheep is what has stopped them recovering on the south side ?

Originally Posted by Hunteast

Not the chamois - just for autopsies only looking for diseases such pneumonia which affected young chamois with a high mortality rate. Research back then found the chamois small in size but good horn length. Reference a book titled High Country Secrets - The Harper Avoca Story by Steuart Laing 2017 which was printed in very limited numbers so no doubt very hard to obtain?

Never heard of that before , load of nonsense by the sounds of it and a waste of fine Chamois

Originally Posted by Hunteast

Not the chamois - just for autopsies only looking for diseases such pneumonia which affected young chamois with a high mortality rate. Research back then found the chamois small in size but good horn length. Reference a book titled High Country Secrets - The Harper Avoca Story by Steuart Laing 2017 which was printed in very limited numbers so no doubt very hard to obtain?

Actually I would be interested in reading that and what they found if anyone had a copy .

https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/pdf/....1986.10422660


Well scientist will dispute your answer Lucky? A simple search with google explains it all.

No where near as many chamois in there as there was 20-30 years ago. The odd one in the creek heads, or some of the more damp little corners. Head of the valley where you have the choice to go left or right, is probably the best spot, but still low numbers. Be wary of the true left on the north branch that heads over to the Waimak area, bit steep and very slippery in places.

Originally Posted by Hunteast

https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/pdf/....1986.10422660


Well scientist will dispute your answer Lucky? A simple search with google explains it all.

That link was a very interesting read. Thank you for posting it. I knew that Chams migrated / moved across valleys and catchments to summer and winter areas but I honestly had no idea that the migrations could be so far - 60 km. We never stop learning

Looking at the Avoca for a possible stag hunt in the next few weeks. What are numbers like up there? Previous post on this forum mentioned Amphitheatre Creek and Centre creek. Anyone have experience on hunting these portions vs the Hanging Valley Creek at the top of the catchment? Any info is mint, cheers