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West Coast Weekend - 3 DEER DOWN
Trying to be more active with posting hunting stories, so jumping straight into it on lunch break after a weekend on the West Coast.
I have had the weekend just gone penciled in with the girlfriend to go out for another hike/hunt. She's not an outdoors person, but joins 1-2 times a year and is a good sport about it so I try to make it a positive experience for her.
We had a East Coast hut planned, but the weather meant for once the West Coast was looking better, and we love our roadie chats!
Saturday saw us drive from Christchurch and then make our way up a West Coast valley, along a track in much worse condition and grading that described online. The girlfriend was clearly over it, but didn't complain and we made it to the hut around 6pm. Along the way we bumped into another couple G & B. G knew the area well and gave me some really good advice before they headed off further up valley. Thank you mate, I hope you got B's first Chamois!
That evening I set off to look for an animal. 400m from the hut I bumped a deer on the DOC track. I wasn't too miffed cause I didn't want to be walking down that track in the mindset of shooting anything anyway. Another 1km down the valley I looked across to slip I had marked earlier, and sure enough a yearling was out feeding. I set up and made a unrushed 305m shot. Which is about the normal distance I shoot at. I then had to cross a river up to my waist, and climb the slip. On reaching the spot, all I could find after much searching was a single large drop of lung blood. the dog followed the direction of travel into a gorge there was no way I was going into, so after awhile called off the search. A bit disappointed but glad I'd made a good lethal shot, and happy to not risk my life for a recovery.
Since I'd crossed the river I walked up that side across grass flats. It was about 9.30pm at this point, and I was dead tired. So going faster and more carelessly than I should I bumped another deer, who then ran off barking up the valley. With the light almost gone I made my way back across the river and to bed.
The next morning we had a slow start and headed back down valley towards home. There was a big grass flat 4km from the hut that G had said was the best hunting in the valley (thank you again mate), I wasn't hopeful and had the rifle strapped away. At 10am we almost stumbled right into the grass flat, chatting away loudly. I suddenly realised where we were and stopped 5m in the bush line and made my way forward slowly stopping a few times to glass. Not expecting to see them I spotted two spikers feeding in the open, 130m away!
I lowered my profile, and motioned the girlfriend to crawl to me, and gave her the bino's to look. I then asked her to sit put with the dog. I made my way up the bush edge, getting to a good tree 50m from the deer. The wind was blowing right at them, but they didn't seem bothered at all. I took the first who dropped on the spot, and the second stood there giving me a good shot as well, so I took it! It ran 20m and fell dead as well.
I was chuffed! After a lost deer and missed chances I was super lucky to be given this chance as well. Setting the girlfriend up in some shade with a book and can of coke I set to work taking the backstraps and backlegs off the deer. With the recent forum thread on lead in meat, my reading into it and a pending blood test I decided to play it safe and didn't take front legs/anything close to the shot. That said the four back legs and four back straps were 28.5kg and I couldn't have carried much more with a 44.5kg total load weight!
It was my first time carrying out a load in my new Stone Glacier Col 4800, X Curve Frame. It performed much better than all previous packs. I'll put up a separate gear post about this.
Three hours of hiking and three river crossings found us two very tired and back at the truck.
All in all a great weekend, time with my favourite person, a new valley explored, good strangers met, good conversations had, vension to eat, and new gear tested. Feeling very grateful to be living such a blessed life.
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