Thread: Urgent Message For All Lake Lyndon Target Shooters

The Lake Lyndon issue has been brewing for quite some time. And it doesn't help that some 4WDer's, some bike riders, and some shooters give all of us a bad name. Unfortunately your hunting permit is for hunting, target practice etc is not covered in the legislation for hunting permits, so yes DoC are within their rights to stop you target shooting.......unfortunately. DoC has had discussions with the ChCh NZDA and both were in agreement that it was unacceptable. Why the hell both of them didn't put their heads together and agree there is a need, and create an area, I dont know. I see it as yet another opportunity for DoC to further their anti hunting agenda. As for ChCh NZDA, they need to push for a designated long range area for everybody, it is definitely needed in the area.

I spent 3 weeks in Colorado last year, and went to the local range on a couple of occasions. The local council, Fish and Wildlife, Safari Club, and several local shooting groups identified a need for an area where people could sight in their firearms, have a play, etc. They got together and utilised a piece of public land and built a 100 metre rifle range with 4 or 5 concrete benches, a pistol range with target frames from 15-100 metres, and a clay bird range with 4 clay bird throwers. It allows people to sight in their firearms in a semi controlled environment with proper targets etc and keeps most of them from driving down the river bed, or on to public land to do it. It is self policing, the rubbish was cleaned up. There are a group of older guys that volunteer to turn up on occasions to provide guidance and renew the targets etc. I never saw it abused, and there was over 40 people turned up to use it in the few hours I was there. Toilets were on sight. Paper targets were free, staple guns were provided. All they asked was a donation for the upkeep, and I saw probably 20 people put 20-30 bucks each for their group in the honesty box.

Yes, I know it wasn't long range. But the point is the local community identified a need to make it safer for everybody, and worked together to satisfy that need. A lot of us dont want to go to the local full bore range, the perception is they are a bunch of old cronies, and you are limited to certain days, and they dont like your rifle cos its black, or its a semi, or its a 223, or you want to shoot steel etc. But a lot of us just like a few hours out plinking, maybe steel, maybe at long range.

If DoC are hell bent on fencing off an area so we cant go there, then theres no buy in from whatever group you belong to, be it 4WD, or bike, or shooting, and the fences will eventually get trashed anyways. And there is no legislation to allow DoC to stop you taking a vehicle on public land, except in a National Park, so long as you dont cause wilful damage. They restrict you from public land simply by bluff.

There are millions of hectares of public land out there, nearly all of it % wise that is unavailable to 4WD's or motorbikes or shooters simply because of topography. Is it not ok to ask that a tiny bit of it, maybe 500-1000 hectares close to a big urban area is set aside so that shooters can shoot safely, fenced off, signposted? And I'd bet you would find that it would be self policing. Trampers can tramp bloody near anywhere, let them miss out on a small piece of our land just so we can all work together safely.

It needs DoC to take some initiative to get the ball rolling, it needs the likes of the DA and Safari Club and any other interested group to all come together. And it needs to be utilised by responsible people so that we can keep out the bad bastards - is it too much to ask?