Thread: Rookie mistakes!

Originally Posted by Daggers_187

My biggest piece of advice would be to learn to shoot and be comfortable shooting the rifle that you intend to hunt with.
Shooting your 22 at rabbits every weekend is all well and good for developing basic marksman skills - but when it comes to shooting a deer with a centrefire, you're going to have issues if you develop a bad flinch or a tendency to anticipate recoil.

I have a mate of mine who hunts with a Sako A7 in .270win - took him out for a Goat shoot and he seemed almost hesitant to shoot it at anything. Like he was scared of the rifle.

My dad's ancient shotgun is a .303 (couldn't tell you the model though!) and I remember the kick on that thing as a youngin' banging me up spotlighting hares... I'd like to think I could handle it better nowadays

Hehe, .303 shotgun

my rookie mistake this week was checking that my safety was in the correct position on my ar15 and thinking yip thats right(it wasnt) then counting down to do a simultanious shot with a hunting mate on a mob of pigs in a paddoc

3-2-1 he fires(and misses for fucks sake) i pull the trigger but nothing happens
pigs all run off into the scrub

fuck.

I take pursuit and shoot one on the run from a hill top

ended up fine but the 130 pound boar that i had my crosshairs on its forhead was traded for a 50 pound boar

Originally Posted by sako75

coming from someone who drinks Steinlager

I am partial to a steinie or three...you can tell a real beer when you need a bottle opener to rip the scab off...steinies are one of the beers that will survive a rough road trip or fly in without spitting and fizzing over everything...screw caps were made because the non smokers didn't have a bottle opener [ciggie lighter]

Originally Posted by Spook

I am partial to a steinie or three...you can tell a real beer when you need a bottle opener to rip the scab off...steinies are one of the beers that will survive a rough road trip or fly in without spitting and fizzing over everything...screw caps were made because the non smokers didn't have a bottle opener [ciggie lighter]

No because too many people don't know how to use a bottle opener I think the most fun I had opening a beer with a ciggy lighter was a bottle of my grandfathers homebrew the cap went six feet in the air with a heck of a bang and was left holding the neck of the bottle, but we did eventually get one open without it blowing up and it was a bloody tasty drop of beer but you were on your arse very quickly with it too grandad got cremated with that recipe in his pocket so no one could get their dirty mits on his brew recipe

I have never had the luxury of an expensive sleeping bag. What I have done for many years is to have two average one's, but then I have always flown or driven to a hut or campsite...extra bulk but little weight. Sleep in one and spread the other over top. I have been in many a hut where someone cranks the fire up and all the fancy sleeping bags cook the occupants only for them to freeze a few hours latter. I never take a gun bag to the bush, I always wrap my rifle in a blanket for transport...does the same job protecting it but that extra blanket makes the difference on a cold night...the pile of gun bags in the corner of the hut don't keep no one warm.

my rookie mistake this week was checking that my safety was in the correct position on my ar15 and thinking yip thats right(it wasnt) then counting down to do a simultanious shot with a hunting mate on a mob of pigs in a paddoc

3-2-1 he fires(and misses for fucks sake) i pull the trigger but nothing happens
pigs all run off into the scrub

Fuk Spook i like the 'cut of your gib' matey......I will have to bring a bottle of Scotlands finest (or Irelands) to your place in the 'deer free' lands of the mighty Kaimais.......

IF you are like me, and only an average sort of shot, then I really recommend closing the distance on a shot if the animal has not detected you and it's possible to get in closer. It just narrows that margin of error that a longer shot can exacerbate. Also, it's easier to follow up if you blow the first by being that bit closer.

Originally Posted by Aly

I thought since being a newbie to hunting I would live to hear some "wise" ol' stories from anyone and everyone, or advice, about any mistakes rookies out there often make?
Would be nice to learn from the mistakes of others to make sure I don't follow suit

Share your rookie mistakes from when you started out, or any from anyone you took out with ya - or any general tips!

One thing I've learned from just tramping is that when you're out there - a big, black trash bag can really save someone!
This coming from a trip a bunch of mates and I made up to Nina Hut in the Lewis. Pretty easy track to the hunters hut - but we went on a weekend in torrential rain and in a storm (fully equipped for the weather!) last winter, as we were a party of 9 and expected to have the hut to ourselves with the bad forecast for our little "hut party". Got there and the 10 bunk hut ended up with 22 people in this storm, as a bunch of rookie tourists showed up!
Heck, you should have seen the state of them - dressed in trousers and all that as if they were taking a stroll along the Abel Tasman.
One lady didn't even have a raincoat - or any jacket of any sort, so on top of graciously giving up our bunks to them and putting up with their complaints and refusal to share space within the hut (acting like they were more justified to be there with all the comforts as they were more "inexperienced"), we also had a fashion her a make-shift jacket from black trash bags so she could continue their crazy trip, not back out, but actually stubbornly further into the valley.

Not much, but knowing how easy it is to get caught out there, I never take the basics for outdoor kit for granted! Or you know... just wear the weather-appropriate gear in the first place....

Stay Cool... but that's not always easy.

First day on the job with the Forest Service and hoping even then to score the only vacancy as the bonus Hunter for the following season. Two of us both rookie's climbed up out of the Kawhatau River and on to the Hikurangi Tops. We were heading for Mckinnon Hut and the route would take us over the highest point in the Ruahine's. by afternoon were up in the beautiful red tussock basins near the top of the range when we spied a couple of deer down in one of the lowe basins. Sliding down into the basin on our bellies we closed the range for a fairly easy kill. The shot was mine because I spotted them first. I took my time and Derek had his cross hairs lined up on that big old hind as well.

At my shot the hind reeled away obviously wounded followed by a hail of fire until she went down. Nobody was prouder than I as I ran my hands over her admiringly then I took her tails ears and back steaks. Then we remembered there had been two deer and the other one could not have made it out of the basin without us seeing surely. I was a beautiful sunny early autumn afternoon with unlimited visibility so it was a mystery as to where it had got to.

So as we slowly zig zaged our way up the steep slope through the tussock to where our packs were, I nearly fell over a dead yearling. I touched it and it was very warm so obviously it was us that had shot it alright. Rolling it over I found a large hole in its head where a bullet had exited.

Looking round the basin and back to where we had fired from we figured that the dead yearling was close to where I had fired the first shot at the hind. The small entry wound and large exit meant that the bullet had passed through the yearlings head before hitting the hind. This meant that the whole time we were looking at the hind through our scopes both of us had failed to see the yearling standing in full view in front of her.

This is the sort of tunnel vision that I believe is partly or at times fully responsible for hunting accidents. I guess we were both so excited and our brains were processing information so quickly that whole chunks of the information was being left out. Our brains were showing us a big fat hind that was just dying to be shot and leaving out the bit that there was another deer in full view in front of the target.

No one was prouder than I whilst carefully threading the two sets of tails and ears on my belt. If I was a dog with two tails they would have both been wagging furiously.

Originally Posted by Graeme Sturgeon

Stay Cool... but that's not always easy.

First day on the job with the Forest Service and hoping even then to score the only vacancy as the bonus Hunter for the following season. Two of us both rookie's climbed up out of the Kawhatau River and on to the Hikurangi Tops. We were heading for Mckinnon Hut and the route would take us over the highest point in the Ruahine's. by afternoon were up in the beautiful red tussock basins near the top of the range when we spied a couple of deer down in one of the lowe basins. Sliding down into the basin on our bellies we closed the range for a fairly easy kill. The shot was mine because I spotted them first. I took my time and Derek had his cross hairs lined up on that big old hind as well....

Great story! Cheers for sharing that, that was a great read

Originally Posted by hunter308

No because too many people don't know how to use a bottle opener I think the most fun I had opening a beer with a ciggy lighter was a bottle of my grandfathers homebrew the cap went six feet in the air with a heck of a bang and was left holding the neck of the bottle, but we did eventually get one open without it blowing up and it was a bloody tasty drop of beer but you were on your arse very quickly with it too grandad got cremated with that recipe in his pocket so no one could get their dirty mits on his brew recipe

Aahh so that's where my recipe came from, dodgy buggers in that bus!

Originally Posted by GravelBen

Lesson 1... bunny shooting is less fun when you leave your magazine at home.

Yep, rifles make rubbish javelins

Wait till you read his books. recommended, they are available for free on the Forum libary

Originally Posted by Aly

Great story! Cheers for sharing that, that was a great read

opps meant to add that Scribe (Graeme)also has two books available for free on the forum library