Thread: Seeking Advice and Companionship for New Zealand Hunting Adventure

First question.... why would you travel all the way across the world just to hunt the North Island?

Originally Posted by Ryan_Songhurst

First question.... why would you travel all the way across the world just to hunt the North Island?

Might want Sika, Sambar, Rusa

Originally Posted by Gibo

Might want Sika, Sambar, Rusa

Good point Gibo and German folk are partial to a good beer so they may well have heard of Waikato. Steffens as mentioned above you should visit www.doc.govt.nz where you can learn about permits for public land hunting and also huts. Be careful to inquire about huts in Te Uruwera though as recently many were deliberately destroyed.

Thank you for the warm welcome here in the forum. The diverse feedback and information, such as the valuable insights on rifles and photos, are truly appreciated. The mention of the destroyed huts in Te Urewera and the late timing for this year in March-April is noted. Perhaps, I should rephrase my question: With your experience, how would you approach this trip if you were in our shoes?

Additionally, we are open to the idea of hunting in a completely different area of New Zealand on public land. We have the freedom to choose. Ideally, we would like to hunt for red stag and other wildlife. The meat harvested would be gladly passed on for use. This approach would align better with our concept of meaningful and responsible hunting, as we are not just looking to hunt for the sake of killing.

I'd like to introduce Carsten (the tall guy with grey hair :-) ) and myself with a few pictures. The joint hunting photo is actually a few years old, taken during a trip to Turkey. Here are some mixed impressions, including recent ones from last weekend when my son and I harvested a deer together in our hunting grounds near Baden-Baden, close to our home. Personally, I love hunting with my dog, a somewhat older lady of the 'Small Munsterlander' breed. We enjoy both flushing out game and tracking wounded animals.

Originally Posted by BlackforestHunter

Thank you for the warm welcome here in the forum. The diverse feedback and information, such as the valuable insights on rifles and photos, are truly appreciated. The mention of the destroyed huts in Te Urewera and the late timing for this year in March-April is noted. Perhaps, I should rephrase my question: With your experience, how would you approach this trip if you were in our shoes?

I think you first need to decide if you are going to hunt with a guide or not. If you are doing it all yourself then you need to sort out these logistics:
Check with your airline that they permit firearms.
Get a visitors firearm permit.
Search DOC (who administer public land) website and find a few hunting spots (suggest middle to lower South Island).
Get a DOC hunting permit.

Also while I haven't been to Germany, I suspect that hunting is very different here. You'll need to find a hunting area that matches your fitness and confident in the mountains. You should consider contacting a helicopter company and asking them about hunting spots they recommend. Helicopters are a fairly common why to access the backcountry here.

If you want to call me and discuss your trip send me a PM and I'll share my contact details. I have hunted overseas a few times.