Michael Gibson – Gearing up for the NZ Tahr ballot Hunt

With the conclusion of the red and fallow deer rut in Australia my attention has turned to tuning my gear for the upcoming tahr rut and luckily enough we drew a block in a good period so fingers crossed the weather gods are on our side this year. There will be 4 of us heading in for the ballot period and their will be a wealth of experience this year so my ears will be wide open. Last year I was whited out for the best part of 7 days with a low pressure system that wouldnt let go, so I have been hungry for the next hunt ever since. 

In preparation for this trip I have done plenty of physical training to make sure that Im as leg fit as possible to make the most of our period.  I have been using the Hunters Element layering system for some time now and have settled on the following clothing configuration. I will be heading over with the Prime Winter Layer as my base and layering with the Hardmans Tee and Ascend furnace layer using the XTR PacStealth Trousers and XTR Extreme Hunter Jacket as my shell layer.  I will be using the Gaspo Alpi boots and Hunters Element gaitors with Prime Winter leggings and Prime Summer shorts.  I will be using the Peak pack for the extra space when heading up for a fly camp. 

Other significant gear that I will be taking for this trip is a MSR Hubba Hubba HP with gear shed attachment for base camp and Black Diamond bipod Bivy for a fly camp. I will be using a Mountain Hardwear Banchee down sleeping bag with water resistant shell.

I will be using a Kimber montana in 300wsm with Swarovski Z6i with ballistic turret 1.75-10x, I have zeroed this rifle to 250m and have set the turret to adjust out to 450m in case a long shot is required. 

This trip has been long anticipated after last year and Im looking forward to spending time hunting with a good mate in a remote block getting plenty of footage and pictures of that breath taking NZ wilderness. Fingers crossed the weather gods play nice for this trip (if that exists on the west coast).