region #1 report - Safari Club International Northwest Chapter

The hunt was for 5 days of free-range Red Stag at Manuka Point
Lodge on the South Island of New Zealand. I had met the
owner, Don Patterson, a couple of years ago at SCI Reno. I decided
at the last moment to add on a Tahr hunt.
Day One: We were off on the Tahr hunt. I found myself hanging
on to the side of a rather steep mountain, scrambling uphill,
knowing the Tahr was not far off. After the stalk, I shot him at 125 yards. Out of
breath from climbing at 8-9000 foot elevation and never having even seen a Tahr
before made for an interesting situation. The shot was true and after a short run
he was down for the count.
Day Two: it was raining hard and the wind was up. Nice. Just like hunting at
home, except the woods there are much denser than any I have encountered,
even on the coast. Thick, nasty, wet, and steep. Fun! We got in among the
Stags and got them "roaring.” Don is an excellent caller. One was particularly
aggressive towards us and we went after him. Don told me the stag would be
coming through a small clearing on the opposite side of the creek. The "opening"
was about 5 feet wide and 75 yards away. Big as anything, that is what happened.
The shot was off, the Stag went about 20 yards and went down. Then he
was up! And gone! Oh no! We waited a long while, then I went across to where
he went down the first time, and was able to find him after a short search. An
eleven point Stag!
Day Three: Snow! And sunshine! After a good hike up the mountain, we could
see for miles in the same area where Lord of the Rings was filmed at. It was difficult
to keep my mind on the task at hand with all that around me. We saw many
Stags, but none better than the one I had.
Day Four: Don's son, William, guided me that morning. He had trained for years
with his father, but I was to be his first hunter. On the way back to the Lodge for
lunch, William stopped short and we were out of the truck after a Stag about 1/2
mile away. A good sneak put us within 200 yards. The Stag went right down on
the first shot, and I had a wonderful twelve point! William had just guided me to a
much larger Stag than his father had..... that made things interesting!
Don is at SCI Reno every year. You can find him on the web at
www.manukapoint.com. He has a game farm as well with some really nice Fallow
Deer, Elk, and Stags. The logistics were very easy and the hunting was tremendous.
And my wife Joanne had a great time there as well! Can't go wrong with
that.
Sue’s Fish by Mike Skinner
Beyond My Wildest Dreams
by Mike Rex
I wanted to come up with a unique Christmas gift for my
wife, Sue. As all of you know, coming up with a new
idea can be difficult. When I came across information I
had on Blackwater Fish Reproductions, I knew instantly
that I had found the perfect gift!
Sue and I had gone up to Chignik Alaska in 2005 to fish
for King salmon. It was Sue’s first experience of this
kind and she was lucky enough to have caught the first
fish, the most fish, and the biggest fish!
We took a great photo of Sue and her fish, as well as its
weight and measurements. From the information and
the photo, Luke Filmer of Blackwater Trading Company
was able to make an absolutely beautiful reproduction.
Luke is a true artist, as you can see from the photo. He
blends his love of art and angling to create one-of-a-kind
stunning fiberglass fish mounts and fish replicas in their
natural habitat. Luke and his wildlife art have been fea-