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Hey Team,
So I am heading out for a 2 day trip into the Kaimai's, planning to stay in a hut. I was wanting to ask if anyone has a list of gear to pack handy that I could use please ? just don't want to overlook something? as well as keep the pack as light as possible.
I was going to pack an extra days food in just in case.
Cheers for the help
M
My rough list for an overnighter
Clothes:
Jacket
Fleece or merino jersey
Puffer jacket (optional depending on area)
Baselayers top & bottom
Shorts
Gaiters
Boots
Socks
Beanie
Sleeping:
Sleeping bag
Sleeping mat
fly or tent
Equipment & other shit:
First aid kit
Epirb
Powerbank
Headlamp and spare batteries
Lighter x2 (seperate storage)
Firestarter
Map and compass
Permit
Plastic bags
Length of paracord
Hunting:
Rifle & bolt
Ammo
Meat bags
Knife & steel
Binos & rangefinder (optional)
Cooking:
Gas & stove
Bowl
Cutlery
Mug
Billy
Water bottle
Good idea to take a sleeping mat even if staying in a hut, can always sleep on the floor if the bunks are full. Fly/tent optional for same reason. Probably missed something too
Something to cook and eat perhaps. ? :>) Apart from that your list is very good_Quote:
Originally Posted by Jvaughan
Under hunting equipment don't forget magazine. Made that mistake once.
Greetings All,
The area that you can often save a bit of weight is food. People tend to take too much. For an overnight trip try to take stuff that does not need cooking. Muesli for breakfast. You can put this in a plastic bag with a plastic spoon. It can double as some spare food. Sandwiches for lunch with pack proof bread. Salami, cheese sardines or whatever for filling, no need for butter or spread. One of those dehydrated meals you can eat out of the packet for tea. I have often used my large stainless cup on my stove to heat water for drinks so the billy and the bowl could be left behind. Being an old Fudd I have no idea what the power bank is for. If you need it to charge your phone in 2 days you should be talking less and hunting more. After each trip try to identify the things you didn't need and drop them off your list if they appear often.
I heard a story about taking too much food that may have been true. Some trampers noticed that there was always an over supply of food and steadily reduced the amount they took down to nothing at all. Other trampers spotted this and adopted the practise. All went well until all of the non food carrying trampers went on a trip together. There were some awkward moments sitting around waiting for others to produce their food until the awful truth dawned on them. No-one had any. There were some hungry and bashful trampers that emerged from the bush at the end of the trip. True? I hope so.
Regards Grandpamac.
Put rocks in a pack to the weight you think the animal you shoot will weigh, then stuff whatever else will fit into that pack...ditch the rocks and you are good to go.
Also found out a couple of weeks ago that dehydrated food is very heavy if there is no water supply where you go. You would think in Tongariro there would be plenty of water but not the case, all streams completely dry.
I'm going to get some neoprene pouches made up I can put some frozen meat into in small portions along with pre cooked potatoes that I can fry up in a small pan. Make up a stew and portion it up and freeze it. I reckon it would stay frozen for a couple of days and then be ok for a day or two after that. No reason some bacon couldn't be put in for breakfast. Couple tins of Baked beans wouldn't go astray either.
The dehydrated stuff doesn't give you much energy either as there are actually very few calories in them.
Spend some time sussing out water availability and be ready to hump some in if you have to. I'm sure others with more experience might have some other ideas.
This came about after we were going to spend two nights in the bush but ran out of water on first night due to amount taken by dehydrated meals. We had to come out on second day. Also energy levels were stuffed as we weren't getting good nutrition from those meals. Proper food would have weighed less than the water and we would have had enough water for a second night in.
Yep I'm rethinking the entire food thing for overnighters.
What hut are you headed for?...chatting to a guy today that seen 5 (3 stags, 2 hinds) on the way into a hut...someone else took a six (nice animal) from above Thompson's a couple of days agoQuote:
Originally Posted by Milan501
I made my own dehy mince. Is bloody good. Just cook a bunch of mince af if you were making spag bol. Mince, onion, garlic, tomatoes, mushrooms and seasoning. Once cooked, dry it in the oven or a dehydrator.
In the bush just add boiling water. Add it to some instant mashed potato. Add a bit of biltong to the mix. Comes out mean.
On food, I find mixed nuts to be perfect. High in calories and relatively light for the amount of high quality fat it provides. Rice is also good, anything can be mixed into it to cook. In the end food isn't as important as water. I like those bottles with a filter in them (e.g. Katadyn befree) so i can filter water straight from a stream. A pair of extra socks is almost always appreciated. I don't bother with bowls and mugs, just bring my billy and the multi purpose lid. Just drink coffee from the lid.
Can remember exactly. I just had on 50 or so with the fan on. Didn't take that long.The last lot I did was in a dehydrator.Quote:
Originally Posted by Mohawk .308
Look up fishnhunt nimrod packing list. I use it and it's excellent for everything you need.
You would probably be fine with 1/2 doz of sardines, a block of cheese, and some tins of corned beef, oh and don't forget some onions.
Dry set of clothes, depending on weather. Nothing worse than sitting around in a hut in wet smelly shit. You never know your future partner could be bunking up next to you.��
I like to travel light i mean whats 1 night in the bush people tend to overthink & take far too much stuff , i wear my main clothes on at all times unless i get wet my spears are simply polly props top & bottom so i have dry clothes to hop into the sleeping bag , do carry a couple of spear socks , warm hat dont over complicate things battery banks are handy mate takes one to stewart island but for a overnighter or 2 ...dont think so id rather toss a couple of cans of beer in , for convince i take a couple of 2 person dehydrated meals encase i stay an extra night plus dont need plates only a fork & coffee cup i used to have a large coffee cup that doubled as a billy , muesli bars & mandarins , chocolate & those handy coffee latte sachets ...lots of them , iv got one of those multifule cookers so i dont bother with spear fule just a tank full is enough for a couple of days , always take my plb , mag of ammo & 5 spears and just my regular hunting kit , i like my 75L pack so when i set up camp i empty the contents in the tent or hut and its then the day bag.
Used to take some Imodium along. One trip a fellow hunter had gyppo guts which crippled him and we had to evacuate him as a matter of urgency.
Dried sausage (wors) and biltong is light and extremely satisfying. Need to ensure there is plentiful water as the salt dries one out big time.
Dehys don’t take up that much weight and water in the scheme of things, if you haven’t got enough water to cook a dehy then your probably not going to go to well hunting and camping from that spot regardless.
I make sure I have that in my kit too, I've vacuum packed the different drug strips and colour coded them in case I lose my "optics"Quote:
Originally Posted by Dago
I was planning to go in by the waterfall and make my way down to the Mangamuka Hut .
Awesome info , thanks guys , appreciate it
Do you mean Wairere falls? It would be far quicker going up the Te Tuhi track.
Is there a safe spot to park up there ? I am not familiar with the areaQuote:
Originally Posted by Chur Bay
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
It is like Queen street. Basically as busy as clements mill but with day hikers.Quote:
Originally Posted by Milan501
The council do have cameras in the car park and their's heaps of people around.
Te Tuhi road end should be all good. Far less busy than Wairere falls and much closer to mangamuka hut
Keep in mind that at this time of the year the cloud will probably be down along the Kaimai tops most mornings, if it is clear up top and you can look down on the Waikato side and it is fog bound down there that fog will lift usually mid to late morning and put you back into cloud like conditions for maybe a couple of hours...there are two cameras at Waharoa aerodrome, one films the area you are headed for...there is a weather station owned by local hang gliding club and assessable online...yr.no website can give you up to date forecast if you give 'kaimai tunnel' as reference point, that site also gives Waharoa aerodrome cameras...don't be put off by low cloud as the stags love it, you just have to bear with it.
Te tuhi rd end is safe. Wairere is an easy walk just get in early so you dont get stuck behind 1000 slow walking trampers. Lots of animals up wairere as well if you just set up a fly camp rather then walk all the way to mangamuka from there. Make sure your gps/ map and compass are working or things will get cunty quickly
Secateurs.
Had quite a bit of water but those meals just seemed to suck it up. Had easily enough for normal day hunting and some extra for coffee and cup a soup type of thing.
Compared to having a bit of steak and some potatoes and baked beans which gave more energy and not use any water.
Find dehy meals warm you up and fill a bit of a gap they are low in energy for what you are doing. With the weight carried with the water you carry far more calories in the other food.
Not a criticism just an observation from recent experience.
Just chew on a bit of supplejack, plenty of it to chose fromQuote:
Originally Posted by Kiwi Sapper
Yeah especially with an overnighter, just take some real food, leave the soggy cardboard(back country) for when space is tight on longer trips.Quote:
Originally Posted by Gordo
I once saw a deer on the track into mangamuka so keep your eyes open. Also open for people- there will besome about.
Wear orange.
Take a quiet day bag. Also some survival and first aid gear. You will only need 5 roundsof ammo max. Small binos could bevworthwhile to identify stuff without using your scope but you wont be scanning big areas far away . Would be fine without binos!there. No need for rangefinder or gizmos.
Take 2 sorts of nav eg map plus gos ir smartphone withtopo 50 series and small powerbank. Also take 2 torches so you can change batts in the dark.
Its all bush up there so you need a raincoat but not full storm gear. No spare shoes. Plenty of water all over there too and the huts near a creek but have a waterbottle. There was a big water bucket there. Firewoid is difficult to find there. Take a candle or inner yube rubber to light the fire but youll need a stove to cook on. Dont take the immodium.
It wont becthat cold so hunting in linjohns will be ok but you wil get wet. 2 pairs of light polypro gloves will be enough.
Take a pillowcase. :)
Thanks for all the info guys,
I have a good trip and need up walking +- 35kms in total. Going up Wairere falls track was not a good idea, I was shattered after going up, and coming down.
I managed to call a stag in pretty close but could not get a shot on him, bush was just way too thick. also had a call ring out while I was at the hut on the first arvo, but got winded and the animal took off as well.
I reckon I need to learn some bush stalking skills from a local, I am close to putting an animal on the ground, but I am just lacking that last 10% that is required. the bush is thick and noisy, and I found maybe 3 places that were nice and open.
I guess the fact that 12 school-aged girls turned up as well doing The Duke of Edinburgh’s (DofE) Award, and made a huge noise, I slept there that night and was gone before they woke up the next morning and hunted my way back to the car.
Keen to try some open hil top shooting ( clearing to clearing ) now
Keep at it. Next time go up The Te Tuhi track. You will save a few hours walk. Rather than stay in huts. Bush hunting is hard but persevere. Eventually you will have success.
Summer time cashmores clearing is good. There was a post on here about it a while ago. I would email doc offices about spots with higher Numbers of deer. They're very helpful