New Zeland 2016 hunt
Hogs
Planning for 2016 Red Stag and Tahr hunting in New Zealand, any good outfitter recommendation for archers?
Fair chase or estate hunting?
Wildside Hunting - great place - fantastic people - and awesome hunting!
As Jake said think first if you want estate or free range. If free range for stag plan on at least 5 days from my research.
Another thing is Tahr hides will not be in prime until maybe later May june and july and the peak of the roar is give or take around mid to late March. I went March 17 and they were roaring prety good to say the least.
I would consider these too to see which is more important to you.
Just my two cents
I just booked a hunt for March of 2015 at the SCI Convention in Vegas. It was fairly exhausting process after talking to over 20 NZ outfitters out of 30 - 40 that were there. We are going to rifle hunt. Wife be shooting a stag. I will shoot a tahr, but may add on a stag.
What I got out of it:
Stag hunting will be prime in mid march. The vast majority of outfitters are hunting estate stags. You are not going to see anywhere near the amount of game on public land or the size animals - obviously. Many of the estates are big properties so it can still be a hunt. If you refuse to hunt estate, you can still find an outfitter to hunt public land.
In March, tahr hides will not be prime, but should be "ok" for a shoulder mount. Many outfitters hunt private land (non-fenced) for tahr. Way more animals on private land and it can be done without the helicopter, especially early in the year. Tahr bulls will still be in bachelor groups in March and living on the lower slopes.
Chamois will be butt ugly at that time of year.
If you do decide to combo for tahr and stag, I would cross off any outfitters on the north island. Tahr are only on the south island, so you would have to screw with extra travel in between. Just an added hassle.
Another option, is complete do it yourself. Nothing stopping a non-resident alien doing that. Just $25NZD for a rifle permit and I don't think there is any for a bow. If you got time and time to plan, it would be a cool adventure. You will need to work out other logistics for getting stuff back to US.
Milo
Who did you book with ? Good point about the north and south island too for the combo I forgot to mentin that.
I think AZDOGMAN goes almost every year DIY. I love NZ but not nearly enough hunting experience to tackle those mountains for Tahr/Chamois without a guide.
I have hunted with Shane Johnston of 4 Seasons Safaris twice (once for tahr, the other for red stag). Hunted the stag on a huge estate called Stravon on the South Island. Very good. I would go back. PM me if you'd like more details. Since they are not a sponsor, I won't go into details here. New Zealand is a wonderful place, the food was good, the people very friendly and I speak the language! Best of luck wherever you go.
Toby,
I recently posted a thread about a NZ bowhunt. If you want to do a search, it was titled "Cabin fever..how about a 2013 NZ hunt" or something like that.....but it was for stag/arapawa ram.....not chamois or tahr. Since your wife is going, the thread might be especially helpful if you plan on doing any sightseeing afterwards....
I WILL be going for DIY chamois and tahr within the next 3-4 years as soon as work schedule allows for an extended trip like that (want to go for two full weeks).
Leithen Valley...great with bowhunters
Ck out Shane Quinn with Alpine Outfitters-- I brought my wife and so did BPM-- they toured while we hunted-- We had a great time and so did wth wivies--
Give me a Pr Reply - I used to live in NZ, and arowed 7 different Species . South Pacific Bowhunter is s good magaizne for NZ and Aussie.( I placed Numerous Article in it) " Above the Clounds" -Tahr )
I booked Shane Johnston, but I think there are a lot of good outfitters down there. Almost all good people and it was a hard decision. My preference was for a smaller operation and personal service - hunt and non-hunt.
I honestly didn't get any warm and fuzzy's from talking to Shane Quinn. Don't really remember why - I'd have to pull up my notes on my ipad, but I'm sure they do quite well.
The main purpose of my trip is my wife wants to do it for our 25 anniversary. We are going to spend at least 3 weeks in NZ and the hunt is really an add-on to a bigger trip. I do intend to scout and learn what I can about DIY opportunities while we are there - perhaps come back in a few years.
thanks Medicineman, any of the 2 alternatives will work for me. I just want to heard some experiences / recommendations from former hunters in NZ. I am taking my wife too, so taking care of non hunting team members is also quite important.
The outfitters I talked with were all very accommodating to non-hunting companions.
Well, mostly speaking the language is good, but they do drive backwards there.
Be careful with the outfitters who specialize in fenced hunts but also offer "fair chase". I know a couple guys who personally booked a fair chase stag hunt with one of these, who had good references for the fenced part.
Long story short, they hunted a week and saw only a couple stags, had no opportunities outside the pen, so they took the outfitter's reduced-price deal to shoot one inside the gates. They said it was a bad deal, totally anticlimactic, not much of a challenge at all.
When they heard my free-range stories from Australia during the same week, they were bummed.
I'm going for tahr and stag end of April fair chase with nz safaris. You could also look into the SCI for an auction hunt. I bought my tahr hunt on an SCI auction last year and this year a tahr hunt went dirt cheap at the banquet and I almost bought it again. I will post after I get back in May.
I harvested Tahr,chamois, and a Awapwa ram with Gerald Telford. It was a good hunt and I will be back.
Check out Lake Hawea Safaris. Free range specialist and has experienced bowhunters as guides. Not an easy hunt from my experience, but certainly an adventure.
I also would highly recommend Gerald Telford Fishing and Hunting Services, Wanaka on the South Island. I hunted with him for red deer. They are a family operation and Gerald is a bowhunter. Sue Telford is a pilot and can arrange any number of non-hunting activities. My wife had as much fun as I did with the activities. Check their website or PM me. Factor in some tourist time in NZ. It is great.
Thanks a lot to all. so far and based in a lot of inputs, i had close my research in Kiwi safaris, Shane Quinn and Gerald Telford. This will be once in a life trip, so I need an outfitters that can provide a very high opportunities for both stag and thar
Out of your list, I really liked Telford - based solely on meeting all of them in Vegas. I almost booked with him. FWIW.
Time had arrive and next month i will be flying to New Zealand for a Thar / Red Stag hunt with Kiwi safaris. Hope everything goes well and i can get both animals with my bow.
All the best for your hunt Toby.
New Zealand in April is an awesome time for the hunter. I'll also be trying for a roaring stag and tahr by bow in south westland.
We have a video on Youtube of our 2014 trip. Don't know how to do links. It's Bowhunting New Zealand Thar 2014 by Kawabunga. Gives you a taste of the weather we encountered. Still was a great DIY trip. My son AZDOGMAN is headed over for the roar this year. Good luck and have fun. NZ is a great place to visit.
I love hunting with
compound bow. You can go to Kiwi safaris to hunt. I hunt on this land one time. It's nice land for hunting.
Good luck on your hunt! I hope to get there for the Roar someday myself.
Good luck on your hunt! I hope to get there for the Roar someday myself.
Private reply me ..I lived there and have arrowed many ( Tahr, 3 stag, elk , boar and much more)
