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S.I Tahr Trip - First bull!
Flew into Christchurch the other week and met up with a mate at a hut in the Mt Cook Region. Was bloody cold! Went for a walk on the first day and couldn't avoid getting the boots wet. Overnight they froze rock hard! And I was fortunate enough to be in a hut! Had to bash the boots with a iron bar to get all the ice off.. Don't get me started on my wet socks haha. -6degrees was the average each morning.. Cold for a North Islander!
We went for a walk the next day and it turned out mint, hardly a cloud in the sky. Breathtaking to be surrounded by snowcapped glistening mountains, I was in awe. I was sitting back in a certain spot late that afternoon and noticed about 600m away a black ball of fur... it was moving! Got out my range finding binos and locked eyes with a stunning majestic bull tahr with an amazing cape. Instantly my heart started racing! He was down low, real low. About 80m above a river.. It was on! Fortunately I had all my gear with me, I was set for a mission.
After a while of crossing rivers and crawling up banks on my hands and knees we were in position about 170m from his last location.. Nowhere to be seen. Hmm. Next minute I notice 1 nanny.. no 3.. at least 10 tahr! Coming through and grazing.. We were desperately trying to locate the bull I had originally seen on his own. But he seemed to be gone...
A short while later 4 hinds appear and are grazing with the tahr, madness, it's like a scene out of lion king! My mate is on my Leica range finders and we both identify a bull.. he seems decent but definitely not the magestic beauty I had originally seen. All the while I'm desperately trying to set up in rem mag in the tall grass with my bipod, an absolutely mission and these tahr are slowly migrating away.. pressure. I managed to get a good setup and have this young bull in my sights... BOOM! I hear an almighty THWACK! and the bull leaps into the air! He's down. Stoked... Fresh tahr backstraps for dinner and a well deserved whiskey that evening. Measured him up, about 10.2", regardless I'm over the moon shooting my first bull and a story that I'll never forget!
I am now itching to go find that bigger boy...
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