Instagram: @waterboyhuntersnz
Facebook: @waterboyhuntersnz
Tell us who you are and what you do:
I am a passionate Outdoorsman, Pighunter-Hunter-Diver-Fisherman. I’m a family man who teaches his 2 kids about the outdoors. I started Waterboyhunters to inspire young hunters with what is possible if you "get out there" and give it a go. Dreams a Reality
How did you get into hunting:
How I got into hunting was through tagging along with family and friends.
Tell us your best piece of gear and why you love it:
My best gear I'm using now is my inflatable jetboat; whether it’s pig hunting, deer spot lighting or just going floundering or pulling a biscuit at the lakes, it never fails to amaze me.
Any advice for people wanting to get into hunting:
The only advice I can give to any newbie hunter is to find someone who hunts, tag along and just be open to learn.
Tell us a story about your best hunt:
My best hunt for 2020 has got to be a pig hunt. Me and a mate taking the kids out and nailing 3 good pigs for the day, biggest being 183lb Boar. The day started off with a truck load filled with me and Matt and his 2 kids Kauri and Eden and my young fella lil Hemi. We had 3 young dogs on this trip, with my main bitch only 2 1/2 years old. We were hunting forestry, being a little late starting our hunt at 11am, cruising the roads with the dogs winding off the back off the truck. Suddenly we all saw our main dog Kate jump ever so casual off the box and head off into the young pines. 15 mins later we heard a strong bail echo through the valley as she had the boar stopped in his tracks. As each pup arrived on the scene, we all could hear the bail intensify as we pushed through the pines to get to the team of dogs. The look on the kids' faces were priceless as they were all grinning from ear to ear.
We arrived to find the dogs bailing a 110lb boar on the top side off a steep bank, below was a creek. We assessed the situation and Matt confidently took the shot to dispatch the pig while I waited with the kids to call the dogs off. LOL the boar dropped into the creek and sunk to the bottom and being the middle of winter, the creek was cold, deep and a brown colour which didn't make it fun to dive around in your undies looking for a pig while the kids are all laughing lol.
After that we had lunch, then just drove down the road about 200m and Kate put her nose to the wind again and jumped down this time with a spring in her step. The pups followed in hot pursuit as she hit the young pines heading to a large native block. 100m, 200m, 300m she pulled the pig, forcing it to head back towards the road. We drove up the road to find it had crossed with Kate right behind him. As we picked up the pups, who were tired by then after a 2.5km chase, we watched on the gps gear that Kate had stopped the boar and she was bailing. As we drove around into a big valley we could her bailing up a storm, the pups heard and were off. We managed to get the truck 180m above the dogs which was a fluke to get so close. We all approached carefully down the hill to find a big Boar not very happy he was caught. I waited uphill with the kids as Matt clean shot the Boar. He weighed in 183lb on the hook. Not long after that Kate took off again and caught an 80lb Boar. A very memorable hunt for me as the kids were fully involved in all the action for the day. The pigs on this hunt were processed and sent up to Auckland during the Covid 19 Lockdown to help Families in need.
