I'm not quite (delayed flight, SeaTac hotel, jetlag, insomnia) back from a 3 week trip to New Zealand which featured some DIY hunting for tahr and chamois. The hunting was hugely enjoyable and successful, far beyond what I had dared hope for. Photos and words will be forthcoming once I get all the way home and sort things out. I got some very useful advice from folks here and wanted to state what I learned for the future use of others.
All big game is non-native in New Zealand and thus, with some notable exceptions, you can hunt what you like, where you like, whenever you like. Exceptions seem to be for crowded areas and particularly popular species in popular areas. The NZ DOC (Department of Conservation) rolls out the red carpet with a ton of great info on their website. It is a great backbone for trip planning. It's also where you'll apply for and print off your free hunting permit. These permits are region specific and getting one takes about 90 seconds. Easiest hunting license around.
When you realize that there are (generally) no seasons, limits, or costs for hunting permits, you'll rightfully feel like a kid on Christmas Eve. This feeling will be greatly increased when you dig into maps and realize how rugged, diverse, and extensive the hunting opportunities are. Develop a good plan and for the cost of a plane ticket and in-country logistics you can go for it without many of the conventional burdens (lotteries, tag fees) associated with wilderness hunting.
There seems to be a low-level, semi-permanent conflict (difference of opinion might be a better phrase) amongst the Kiwi hunting community about conservation, or more specifically the different meanings of conservation. Most people seem to accept that the various big game species are in NZ to stay. Most people also seem to accept that it is in the interest of the integrity of the native ecosystems, all of which are already much diminished by non-native predation and depredation, for big game species to be kept at a manageable/lower level. At the same time, hunters want to see animals when they go hunting, and many hunters want to see trophy animals as well. How all these things can be balances appears to be something New Zealand is still working out. Frankly, for anyone interested in the intimate detailed of ecosystem management it's a fascinating issue, and I had a lot of really engaging conversations with all kinds of folks about various aspects. The South Island compares favorably to Montana or Wyoming in that a fairly significant portion of the population seems to hunt, fish, and get out regularly and thus be more aware of and engaged with these things.
All of that is to say that a visiting hunter will be put in the unusual position of lacking any formal guidelines on how many animals she/he can or ought to shoot, should fortune prove kind. Good manners behoove guests, so it's something everyone ought to think about before getting out in the field.
Possibly before the hunt is fully planned, a visiting hunter will need to buy airline tickets. We saved a lot of money buying way in advance. This can be the source of inadvertent trouble, as different airlines and countries have different regulations. Qantas, for example, allows you to check a firearm using the same guidelines any US carrier would (locked hard case, etc), but requires a special internal permit to check ammo. You can get this online very easily, but you need to do so at least a few hours before you check in. Air New Zealand requires a phone call at least the day before you fly with ammo and a firearms to notify them. Australia is another potential problem for the traveling hunter. The way I read the regulations, you need an Australian firearms permit even if you're just flying through the country and never clearing customs with your checked baggage. We went through Sydney both ways, are were lucky to get away without any Australian permit of any kind. In the future, I'll give Australia a pass unless things change. Not worth the extra bother, though Sydney has some great pubs. As is usual with such things, the process is rather Kafkaesque and whether you get a severe or lax treatment of the rules comes down to chance.
New Zealand requires a visitors firearms permit for you to bring a rifle into the country. This is actually very easy. The form can be filled out online, ideally a few weeks before you arrive, and will be waiting for you with the police at the airport when you arrive (along with your rifle). You just need to announce yourself to said police officer, present proof of your ability to legally own firearms in the US, 25 New Zealand dollars (get this in advance), and you are on your way. In Queenstown, this was a very quick and easy process. The only potential complication is that we don't necessarily have a specific firearms license in the US. A concealed carry permit would presumably be ideal here. I brought a 2014 Montana hunting license, 2015 Utah hunting license, and hunter education certificate, which together proved sufficient. The officer was not especially familiar with US firearms laws, but accepted my explanation that some degree of legal check was involved in obtaining a hunting license.
There is a space on the visitors firearms license application for the licensed NZ resident who will be keeping your firearm for you, including address and firearms license number. If you hire a guide the answer in obvious. We used the address of the Queenstown hotel we stayed in the first night, and left the license number space blank. We had also made arrangements, considerably in advance, to store my rifle while doing a backpacking trip and a multiday kayaking trip. In both cases we emailed local police departments asking for assistance. In one case they cheerfully agreed to store the rifle, and in another they referred us to the manager of a local sporting goods store, whom we called, and who cheerfully agreed to do the same. We had hard copies of both emails to present along with the hunting licenses, which seemed to make a favorable impression.
Having clean gear is quite important when coming in to the country. My shoes and tent stakes got a free bath from customs to make sure they had no non-native particles. I had washed both beforehand, just not well enough.
Once you have your firearm in country you're all set. I found hunting tahr and chamois to operate according to the same rules you would use to hunt bighorn sheep or another alpine species, though it was a bit odd doing so in the equivalent of late July. It also took the better part of a day to acclimate to the south-facing slopes being the greener, cooler ones, which was where we saw all the critters. Hike, glass, and be ready to make long shots and compensate for big angles. The first tahr I shot was by far the furthest shot I've ever taken on a game animal, as there truly was no practical way to get closer.
The cheapest way to get skulls, hide, and frozen meat home is in checked and carry-on luggage. Hunting was the first activity we did, so we didn't pursue freezing all the meat for transport home. In New Zealand there is no legal obligation to take more from a kill than you like. I actually regret this a bit, as the tahr was excellent and we ate it with gusto for consecutive meals. The chamois was less good. We did have two separate cabins booked along the trip, which gave me access to a yard and hose for boiling skulls on the camp stove and cleaning and salting hides. We brought a tahr hide back in checked baggage, and three skulls in carryon. This required a trip to a regional New Zealand DOC office (Christchurch) to obtain an export permit, which cost $40. We gave them details over the phone the day before, and signing, paying for, and picking up the permit took 10 minutes. As was the case pretty much everywhere, the folks at DOC were cheerful, interested, and helpful. You'll also need to fill out a US Customs form to bring this stuff back, and ideally call the port (airport) through which you'll be returning to give them a heads-up, which vastly expedites the customs process. Obviously, make sure the hides and skulls are very clean and professional looking. We called a few places in Christchurch about cleaning stuff for us, but the rates they quoted seemed obscenely high, so doing it ourselves seemed like an obvious investment.
It will be a while, but I can't wait to go back and hunt New Zealand again. The long and costly flight is the only disadvantage, and considering the cost of non-resident tags, a well-planning trip to New Zealand is probably not much more expensive than many hunts within North America, if not cheaper overall. Without question one of the best trips of my life.
All big game is non-native in New Zealand and thus, with some notable exceptions, you can hunt what you like, where you like, whenever you like. Exceptions seem to be for crowded areas and particularly popular species in popular areas. The NZ DOC (Department of Conservation) rolls out the red carpet with a ton of great info on their website. It is a great backbone for trip planning. It's also where you'll apply for and print off your free hunting permit. These permits are region specific and getting one takes about 90 seconds. Easiest hunting license around.
When you realize that there are (generally) no seasons, limits, or costs for hunting permits, you'll rightfully feel like a kid on Christmas Eve. This feeling will be greatly increased when you dig into maps and realize how rugged, diverse, and extensive the hunting opportunities are. Develop a good plan and for the cost of a plane ticket and in-country logistics you can go for it without many of the conventional burdens (lotteries, tag fees) associated with wilderness hunting.
There seems to be a low-level, semi-permanent conflict (difference of opinion might be a better phrase) amongst the Kiwi hunting community about conservation, or more specifically the different meanings of conservation. Most people seem to accept that the various big game species are in NZ to stay. Most people also seem to accept that it is in the interest of the integrity of the native ecosystems, all of which are already much diminished by non-native predation and depredation, for big game species to be kept at a manageable/lower level. At the same time, hunters want to see animals when they go hunting, and many hunters want to see trophy animals as well. How all these things can be balances appears to be something New Zealand is still working out. Frankly, for anyone interested in the intimate detailed of ecosystem management it's a fascinating issue, and I had a lot of really engaging conversations with all kinds of folks about various aspects. The South Island compares favorably to Montana or Wyoming in that a fairly significant portion of the population seems to hunt, fish, and get out regularly and thus be more aware of and engaged with these things.
All of that is to say that a visiting hunter will be put in the unusual position of lacking any formal guidelines on how many animals she/he can or ought to shoot, should fortune prove kind. Good manners behoove guests, so it's something everyone ought to think about before getting out in the field.
Possibly before the hunt is fully planned, a visiting hunter will need to buy airline tickets. We saved a lot of money buying way in advance. This can be the source of inadvertent trouble, as different airlines and countries have different regulations. Qantas, for example, allows you to check a firearm using the same guidelines any US carrier would (locked hard case, etc), but requires a special internal permit to check ammo. You can get this online very easily, but you need to do so at least a few hours before you check in. Air New Zealand requires a phone call at least the day before you fly with ammo and a firearms to notify them. Australia is another potential problem for the traveling hunter. The way I read the regulations, you need an Australian firearms permit even if you're just flying through the country and never clearing customs with your checked baggage. We went through Sydney both ways, are were lucky to get away without any Australian permit of any kind. In the future, I'll give Australia a pass unless things change. Not worth the extra bother, though Sydney has some great pubs. As is usual with such things, the process is rather Kafkaesque and whether you get a severe or lax treatment of the rules comes down to chance.
New Zealand requires a visitors firearms permit for you to bring a rifle into the country. This is actually very easy. The form can be filled out online, ideally a few weeks before you arrive, and will be waiting for you with the police at the airport when you arrive (along with your rifle). You just need to announce yourself to said police officer, present proof of your ability to legally own firearms in the US, 25 New Zealand dollars (get this in advance), and you are on your way. In Queenstown, this was a very quick and easy process. The only potential complication is that we don't necessarily have a specific firearms license in the US. A concealed carry permit would presumably be ideal here. I brought a 2014 Montana hunting license, 2015 Utah hunting license, and hunter education certificate, which together proved sufficient. The officer was not especially familiar with US firearms laws, but accepted my explanation that some degree of legal check was involved in obtaining a hunting license.
There is a space on the visitors firearms license application for the licensed NZ resident who will be keeping your firearm for you, including address and firearms license number. If you hire a guide the answer in obvious. We used the address of the Queenstown hotel we stayed in the first night, and left the license number space blank. We had also made arrangements, considerably in advance, to store my rifle while doing a backpacking trip and a multiday kayaking trip. In both cases we emailed local police departments asking for assistance. In one case they cheerfully agreed to store the rifle, and in another they referred us to the manager of a local sporting goods store, whom we called, and who cheerfully agreed to do the same. We had hard copies of both emails to present along with the hunting licenses, which seemed to make a favorable impression.
Having clean gear is quite important when coming in to the country. My shoes and tent stakes got a free bath from customs to make sure they had no non-native particles. I had washed both beforehand, just not well enough.
Once you have your firearm in country you're all set. I found hunting tahr and chamois to operate according to the same rules you would use to hunt bighorn sheep or another alpine species, though it was a bit odd doing so in the equivalent of late July. It also took the better part of a day to acclimate to the south-facing slopes being the greener, cooler ones, which was where we saw all the critters. Hike, glass, and be ready to make long shots and compensate for big angles. The first tahr I shot was by far the furthest shot I've ever taken on a game animal, as there truly was no practical way to get closer.
The cheapest way to get skulls, hide, and frozen meat home is in checked and carry-on luggage. Hunting was the first activity we did, so we didn't pursue freezing all the meat for transport home. In New Zealand there is no legal obligation to take more from a kill than you like. I actually regret this a bit, as the tahr was excellent and we ate it with gusto for consecutive meals. The chamois was less good. We did have two separate cabins booked along the trip, which gave me access to a yard and hose for boiling skulls on the camp stove and cleaning and salting hides. We brought a tahr hide back in checked baggage, and three skulls in carryon. This required a trip to a regional New Zealand DOC office (Christchurch) to obtain an export permit, which cost $40. We gave them details over the phone the day before, and signing, paying for, and picking up the permit took 10 minutes. As was the case pretty much everywhere, the folks at DOC were cheerful, interested, and helpful. You'll also need to fill out a US Customs form to bring this stuff back, and ideally call the port (airport) through which you'll be returning to give them a heads-up, which vastly expedites the customs process. Obviously, make sure the hides and skulls are very clean and professional looking. We called a few places in Christchurch about cleaning stuff for us, but the rates they quoted seemed obscenely high, so doing it ourselves seemed like an obvious investment.
It will be a while, but I can't wait to go back and hunt New Zealand again. The long and costly flight is the only disadvantage, and considering the cost of non-resident tags, a well-planning trip to New Zealand is probably not much more expensive than many hunts within North America, if not cheaper overall. Without question one of the best trips of my life.
