Sorry guys my wife and I just had a baby girl last week, so finding time to post is somewhat of a challenge.
As we sat up high glassing, we spotted a mob of tahr north west from us most were feeding on the other side of a deep creek, but there were a couple of nannies on our side. The only trouble was the lack of cover, we dropped some elevation and sidled out of view to another steep wall creek on the edge of the open expanse that the tahr were feeding on. The wind was good, blowing from them to us so we decided to wait for a while and see what would unfold.
After a while a young bull revealed himself, and ended up bedding in the sun on the sparsely tussock covered shale slope. with no way to cover the ground un seen we waited. We had lunch and enjoyed our time glassing the tahr, waiting for an opportunity to arise.
When the young bull and a few nannies fed off towards the far creek we decided although not ideal this would be our best chance. We climbed up and skirted the base of the cliffs closing the distance carefully while still being in view of the tahr on the other side of the
creek Clint graciously offered me the stalk and wouldn't have it any other way, so off I went with Clint following behind taking pictures.
During the stalk another mob of tahr had started feeding up the far side of the creek a lone bull was lower in the creek heading in the same direction, I thought to myself, if he stays low in the creek and if I can head him off and still be in range then I might have a
chance.
Photo by Clint.
Photo by Clint.
As I closed in on the bull trying to head him off was a bit of a race, I decided to go high around a cliff and see if I could gain some
ground. It wasn't very high and when I rounded the point there was a path down all be it a narrow path about 18" wide I was fixated
on the tahr and I cant recall looking down, I can remember my pack getting caught on the rock and thinking this isn't fun.
Topic: NZ 2016- '180 degrees'. tahr, trials and tribulations (Read 2210 times)
