Just so Andy!
Ben you will know there’s many a broken leg in a herd of animals on the run especially when dictated by the horsepower in the form of 2 or more wheels
Ray! Sometimes a answer can only evoke more questions!
Tojos = Toyotas, mostly older short wheel bases cut down and lightened to assist stability. The bad boy of the bunch was a long wheel base that we had cut the chassis back from the rear end and pulled out the old straight six (which by the way was a replica of the chev engine, the design was given as part of the US assistance to re-establish Japans industry, I think they only recently altered it significantly from the first blue prints. Macarthur had some visionary subordinates, perhaps a hangover from the essential west point engineering establishment). And cut back the fire wall to accommodate a 350 chev directly to the bell housing, this had the effect of markedly lowering the centre of gravity and shifting the weight way back with about 15” between the radiator and the engine gave us the ability to put on the weight of the mechanical arm on the drivers side nose. Also it was pretty warm in there with the engine pipes at your feet. The weight transference also allowed us to maintain some ability to dip in an out of small salt arms and other wallows while the wheel base provide some cushioning of ride and handling, tho not much in full flight sometimes.. They were cut low so there would be less hindrance from tree branches and such but often times a green ants nest would come down on a driver from above when bashing the way through in pursuit. It always brings a smile to ya face when u see a fella jumping from a still moving vehicle while ripping his clothes off and swatting himself all over knowing that non lethal discomfort can be agonising but it’s happening to someone else. I made personalized seat from old kitchen chair that would crumple when needed. It was easier to replace the chair. All individual catching prior to that had been a fella sitting on a suicide chair with a slip loop on the end of a bamboo pole, which one would gingerly place the loop either side of the animals horns before the driver slowed or applied breaks with more intent if a salt arm or other cavity was looming, animals know where to go. Being the fella on the front seat had many a down side from bad to worse. (a salt arm is a tidal extent of a river that snakes a ways into the plains, they suddenly loom up at speed as they blend in with the rest of the plain and heat shimmer and more than once has someone dropped out of sight vehicle an all) Hey mate! There’s no parking here! Sometmes they could not be extricated.
Pet meating: the process where bye one would drop several beasts. Kal used a 338 to great effect, saw him drop 2 for one once. Once they r down they’d round and bleed them so as not to have congealed blood in the meat(it gets pretty warm) then go round and butcher as much meat as possible. A cradle was often used to expedite this process whereby a the beast can be rolled by one fella. The the skin is flayed along the belly and spread out as a mat for the meat or cuts of legs etc. The skin had worth too. This meat because it was field dressed was not for human consumption via a market.
Spine shooting; They banned the practice of a rider on horse back or otherwise entering a running mob and putting a shot in the spine to drop them but keep them alive. This way 5 or so could be dropped and the chase component was over. There was a limit to what a couple men could cut up and as mentioned the heat would often render the meat bad so animals downed in this manner produced a better product. I do not know of this type of production being continued anywhere in the 70’s
And crocks; I believe they also banned crock shooting in 71. In essence a crock grows a foot a year so although waterways in the wet can have them anywhere they tended to move back as the water recedes. Often tho there’d be some big lizard waddling its way from one water hole, billabong, wallow to another even into the middle of the dry. Regardless of what they now say they r now in plague proportions in every costal waterway I have been in this past years even in the 70’s after the ban was imposed there was never any question of there being a shortage of them. Ol crock shooters used to stink as we all did. Most travelled with a pack of dogs that would be sent across creeks etc. first this way an easier meal was had and safer passage achieved. When I saw one up his legs like hydraulics and run the first time I did not initially believe the zig zag theory. An ol timer then and x crock shooter, Fred Pocock an an ol mounted policeman Bill Jacobs (both long deceased) pointed out that they could beat a horse over short distance in a straight line some couple hundred yards, I have seen less.
Interestingly during my time between the alligators the ranger at Cannon Hill was a reptile expert, we sometimes went together for him to pursue crocks, lizards and snakes of all description, a real boffin who would rush in without a second thought. Although I got better firsthand experience than most one never quiet attained the intensity of interest, rather the interest of self preservation.
The black soil plains which is thick organic fibrous mud dries to a concrete consistency. When buff walk they leave a plate size imprint in the mud so as it dries there is a plain of clustered craters that can be very tricky to walk over. There was a real need to preserve the habitat from the ravages of buff in some instances but the kid glove approach to such a hardy and harsh annually changing environment seems a shameful overkill!
A Ringer; The Australian horseman involved in the honourable profession of cattle management in all its aspects, Some fine horseman can be found working this country although in many instances they have been relegated support roles and instead these days and use ATV’s. But with rising costs everywhere evident who knows they may make a comeback
Excuse that this is not to do with bow but I hope to show that it is possible especially now with so much better road access and better local knowledge. Although the initial Buff eradication program was dynamic there was an inevitable spread of buffalo south and west that was under way at the same time anyway. From all accounts tho the big herds are now small groupings but there are still some big buff about for those interested relative to whatever time constraints, water , fuel, food and local knowledge and distance permits. Unless one has business to transverse the specific areas stopping off and going walk about can be an exercise of some cost. Fortunate indeed those for whom lifestyle grants.
Stay safe over the holidays!
Topic: Buffs and scrubbers in NT (Read 3220 times)
