Go get dinner: My first deer

Having joined the Brisbane Branch of the Australian Deer Association and Queensland Deer Mangement Group (QDMG) early in 2008 I had spent a number of Saturdays working at the Mt Stanley hunting blocks - 2 hours North of Brisbane - rolling fencing wire, repairing pens and digging holes to earn access points for the 2009 Roar.

So when it finally rolled around I attended the Roar ballot and was duly allotted a share of a block for 7 days to hunt ‘Stags’ (up to 4x4) for the grand total of 24 points or about 4 days work.

While 7 days hunting sounded fantastic, some adjustments had to be made to fit in with that horrible thing called work. So after a couple of calls and a bit of trading I had organised a 3 day hunt. This reorganising included partnering up with a more experienced hunter; a QDMG requirement for new members. In my case I would be hunting with Paul who was spending a full week up at the blocks.

Finishing work on Tuesday afternoon I rushed home, packed the car and took my far better half out for an early dinner - by way of saying goodbye for the next 3 days. After our meals, the last words from my partner were to be careful on the roads and ‘go get dinner’, a none too gentle reference to my boasting about how we’d have a freezer full of venison come April.

After a thankfully uneventful drive I arrived at the ‘Hut’, my accommodation for the next 3 days around 8:30pm and unloaded the car, got myself sorted and had a chat to Paul about all things deer before turning in. The next day we were up at 5am and bumping along to our jump off point a short time later in the Vitara.

Stopping at the base of a ridgeline that more or less travelled all the way to the southern boundary of the block we got ourselves ready and started off in the growing light.

Taking it easy and staying below the skyline we moved quietly in a southerly direction and soon began to see plenty of deer sign. While no roars were heard, droppings, rubs and hair caught in fencing were spotted in the first couple of hours.

In following days throughout the block we would see plenty of rubs on smaller leafed plants; however this first stalk would be the only time we would see large and high rubs on Bloodwoods.

These rubs were easily spotted in the early light and gave us confidence that deer were about.

However, one thing that certainly wasn’t in our favour was the wind; it was on our backs and seemed to be nailed there.

In trying to solve this problem we decided to walk a slow and wide loop to eventually better position ourselves, at least on the return leg.

Just before 8am we approached an intersecting ridge running East/West and decided it would make a good smoko stop. We would then follow it West and begin our loop, and hopefully get right with the wind!

Breaking for smoko we considered a couple of interesting gullies in front of us and talked about our next move. Then out of nowhere came a short roar. It was initially hard to pinpoint however a follow-up roar allowed us to estimate a likely position to our right. Then to really throw something into the mix it was answered by a long roar from the left!

Packing quickly we moved left, deciding that stag sounded closer. Also it would allow us to find favourable wind under good cover. After about an hour we found ourselves at a partially shaded saddle on an otherwise high ridge above a heavily vegetated dry creek.

Unfortunately the wind had become a problem again, now blowing across us, but we just had to live with it. With Paul slightly below and 20 metres behind - he was the first to spot a Hind, bedded in the shade. The Hind was accompanied by a calf and they both soon broke cover and moved across the creek. While I didn’t initially see them, I did catch a glimpse as they moved.

It was the closest I had been to wild Red Deer and as I watched the Hind and calf I saw a 3rd and 4th ‘Hind’ come into view. They were travelling almost directly in front of Paul and I was able to get a good view of the lead animal through the trees.

I had been slowly moving towards Paul in a crouch and was still about 10 metres away when I noticed his ‘excited’ hand signals. With 4 fingers up on both hands, I first thought he was indicating to go to Channel 8 on the radio; but it soon hit me, the trailing Hind was in fact a 4x4 Stag.

Now very close to Paul; I still couldn’t make out the Stag’s head due to the cover, however that all changed in an instant when with another step he came into full view. With words containing a lot more colour but with similar meaning to; if you don’t shoot in a big hurry I will - I got down into an almost prone position, 80-90 metres away and above the Stag. ‘Lighting’ him with the VX-III scope I saw his broadside chest was perfectly protected by a tree.

Waiting for the shot the stag then stepped forward and I fired. Though I can’t say that I saw it Paul said later that a good dirt and blood plum appeared with the hit, all I saw was the Stag firstly rock backwards, drop its head and then stumble forward.

With the report the Hind in front broke and a smaller second Stag momentarily appeared, before bolting down and crossing the creek.

With the words, good shot or there abouts from Paul I worked the bolt and jacked in another round. Again I heard Paul, this time with a cautious steady on and so I stopped and slowly rose.
As nothing was moving, I removed the chambered round, made the rifle safe and we slowly moved forward.

It took us some time to locate the Stag as it had crashed into a lantana covered washout. So with a fair bit of pulling, dragging and swearing we managed to get it to a position where we could admire its size and head, take plenty of pictures and begin dressing the meat. Though many would argue otherwise, to me it was a real trophy and I couldn’t believe my good fortune.

The .30-06 Federal Gold Medal 150gr Accubond ammo had driven through the ribs and into the chest on the Stag’s right hand side. The shot however did not produce a through and through as I found the remains of the projectile, possibly now a 3rd of its original mass just under the skin on the left.

A little time later I had the back straps, head and hind quarters ready to go so we began the slow process of hauling the meat out. It certainly wasn’t the highlight of the morning and I was glad when I was sitting in the car with the meat in the back. By around 12:30pm I had my first Stag hanging behind the Hut!

Over the next 3 days we would stalk on 4 more occasions and each time see Deer, though no better Stags.

As I had my Stag, and couldn’t fit another in my freezer, I was feeling relaxed and so used the following days to learn as much as I could in the field.

I also used the time to evaluate what I had read, heard and discussed about deer as well as consider how my kit held up.

My Tikka T3 is really a great rifle and I can’t fault it, though I have some reservations about the ammo - I felt it lost too much mass. My clothing was spot on for mild April weather, though following advice to wash the brightness out of my new camo caused me to inadvertently wash the ‘size’ right out of it as well, which Paul found very funny.

Two obvious improvements for me are optics and storage. It became obvious that in low light my reasonably priced binoculars simply didn’t cut it. Secondly my very comfortable, light and practical day pack was far too small for carrying meat.

So to sum up…first day, first hunt, 3 hours in - one Stag in the bag, one set of antlers for the wall; this deer business is easy!

Especially with an experienced hand leading the way, thanks Paul.