Deer hunting is an exciting pursuit and is a very well-respected and difficult discipline for shooters. Stalking, shooting and taking a buck is a right of passage and a prestige for men in many cultures. As a shooter of around 10 years experience, I am proud to have followed in the footsteps of many before me and will share my tale of deer hunting in Australia.

This hunting trip was by far the best I had ever been on. It was not just the result of the hunt, taking a beautiful 18 point Fallow Stag, it was the journey of tracking the animal, stalking it and taking it down. For those who have not hunted deer before, it was truly a privilege and, for me, the most exciting and elusive prey I have ever hunted. While pigs are also exciting, deer hunting was certainly an all-together different and fantastic experience. If you haven’t tried it and my “deer debut” is anything to go by, the adventurous are missing out and should consider getting into shooting.

A mate and I set out from Canberra to go on what was originally to be a goat hunt up in the NSW High Country. The drive up from Canberra through Williamsdale and Michelago showed how dry the Canberra region is. The drought and the infamous Canberra Bushfires of 2002 have had a profound effect on the environment and, of course, the hunting. So it was nice to go a little further a field and not spend the all too well known hours looking for life let alone game on local properties.

As we ventured further into the high-country toward Cooma, while still dry, the familiar and unique Australian alpine terrain become more and more prominent. Not being a morning person, I was happy to arrive on the property late morning to begin hunting. My mate who is a very experienced and accomplished hunter told me that an early bird is not the only one that gets the worm, especially when it comes to high-country goats and deer.

We started off by making sure we were up to speed on the specific rules we were to abide by while guests on the land – always a good practice. Things were all clear on the property rules and we were given some general direction. The caretaker was a really nice bloke and we had a chat about how things were going. I made the mistake of asking about the rainfall, thinking things would be better than in the ACT only to hear things couldn’t get much worse. Despite this, our spirits were high as my mate had seen plenty of goats and a quite a few deer on this property before – quietly confident.

I was un an unfamiliar place, hunting unfamiliar game using an unfamiliar rifle – while this did not bode well, this was the best of trips. I test fired my mate’s rifle to make sure it was zeroed and my shooting was also up to speed with the unfamiliar weapon. In the past I have had a few occasions that have proven it is better to ensure your kit is in order because when it comes to hunting, perception is not necessarily reality. But this trip would see no major difficulties in the preparations. The rifle set up was superb – a modified and shortened Sako with a Leupold 5x fixed magnification scope. The rifle was beautiful to fire with nice controlled recoil and a trigger that was soft but firm and even. The test shots were on the money and the rifle and I were a good combination. The custom hand loaded rounds that my mate had done up were perfect - light but not overly so. We were ready to go.

As we set off, I had a good feeling about the day and I would soon realise this was the most enjoyable hunting trip I had ever been on. The air was crisp and cool, despite the sunshine and it was typical Australian alpine terrain. Visibility and cover were good and there was a very light wind blowing – perfect hunting weather.

As we walked carefully, using tree cover we followed some recent goat and deer tracks. We used the cover to good effect and trekked with care as to not make excessive noise. The tracks continued and I was shown some of the significant differences between the goat and deer tracks, specifically the square, straight-down shape of the goat track versus the more angular and slightly swept-back deer tracks. We chatted infrequently with only whispers. While I was inexperienced The techniques of my experienced deer hunter mate were noted and I tried to follow his lead and learn as much as I could.

We entered reasonably thick woodland and paused to listen and apply some Eucalyptus oil mix to our skin to mask our smell. This, while intended for the goats, was what inadvertently assisted us in being undetected in taking the beautiful Hungarian Fallow Deer that I would shoot later in the day. While you are out bush it is amazing how we can even pick up on our own odours and chemical products we use in personal hygiene. With our smell masked by the strong eucalyptus mix, we pressed on. The goat tracks were freshest and I could smell their distinct smell – they were close.

We emerged from the edge of the woodland onto a clearing of tussocky grass. Movement, a flash of black, white and brown hide and the steady gesturing of my mate was all I needed as indications that we were upon them. We watched them for a few moments and the goats were already on the move – about 300 meters away. I spied a big black billy with some surprisingly good horns on him. What was most distinct through the binoculars was a strange black mop with reddish highlights – it was the goat version of Denis Rodman! That was one ugly black billy goat and he was now on my hit-list. I swore to myself that if he wasn’t already on someone’s wall by the time I got back to the property, he certainly will be a trophy on mine. I did in fact take that billy, but that is another tale.

The goats had heard us or were on the move anyway so we watched from afar with intent to track them once they were more settled. We waited for them to move as a group and then followed their tracks as best we could.

Being a property that is frequently hunted, these goats were wary of people and were gun shy. From clearing to clearing and copse to copse, we tracked and stalked them for about an hour and these flighty beasts would prove to be no fun. They had the wind up them and they wouldn’t settle. Being impatient at the best of times, I acted on the advice of my mate rather than instinct - he reassured me it was better to persist or move on rather than shoot wild, off-hand shots that could miss or wound an animal rather than do the job properly. This made sense and we had a break for lunch and much needed water. The exertion of the chase and the amount of ground we had covered had given us quite an appetite – we ate and relaxed for almost an hour before setting off again.

As we tracked, we lost the definitive goat trail as it was hard to differentiate the old tracks from new ones. We continued onward in “stealth” mode, stalking quietly up an old track into a meadow, surrounded by a low erosion ditch. There were rubbings on the peppermint gums nearby - I had this feeling we were onto something.

That is where I spied him. About 200 meters away, a nice fallow stag ate, surrounded by a harem of does. He was majestic, serene and pleased with himself. Having been the time of “the rut” this deer had spent himself swinging with the ladies – he was a little light on weight but all there in antlers and experience. We unlimbered our packs and silently prepared for this deer’s end game. I was so excited, I was shaking and had to remind myself to calm down and do this right.

Here I was, deer in my sights, heart pounding and my mate whispering for me to brace myself and not off-hand the shot. I breathed out, blinking hard as I braced against a dilapidated fence post and slowly, deliberately pulled the trigger. I could see that the bullet , or perhaps its sound, rocked the deer and he stumbled toward me in shock. That split-second seemed like an eternity. My mind raced, “He is going to run, he’ll be gone and I will have stuffed it.” Not so. I looked through the scope in disbelief – had I missed? I could see a blood spot on his chest. My mate whispered calmly, like a true professional. “Aim for his chest again.” His calm called me into action I worked the bolt, rested my finger on the trigger guard and breathed out. Like clockwork, I squeezed the trigger, evenly and shot. Again, this moment, what seemed an eternity could have been only the blink of an eye. The bullet flew true and the deer toppled, falling gracefully. Conquered.

I whooped and woo-hoo-ed and grinned like the proverbial Cheshire Cat! My mate and I gave each other a congratulatory slap on the shoulder and we approached as the deer’s harem escaped the area in full flight. We had victory enough today, there would be no other chase.

We went to the fallen animal and surveyed the body. What a nice deer to be my first stag! He was a Hungarian Fallow Deer with a set of antlers numbering 18 points and a spread 595mm. Unbelievably, the bullets had hit within millimeters of one another, making a singular but slightly irregular "egg-shaped" wound, too large to be from one bullet.

I butchered the animal on the spot under the tutelage and with the help of my good mate - he showed me where those prized venison back straps were located and we carved up a few roast joints and chops. All bar the back straps were tough but stewed beautifully. The back straps were fried with a salad and potato mash about a week later - damn that was good eating!

For sentimental reasons, I wanted this deer's hide to keep as a trophy as well as the antlers which are proudly on display in my den at home.

As the sun began to set and we set off for Canberra in the Jeep, I looked at the tree-line and saw the silhouette of large red deer. His twitching ear was the giveaway. He strode off casually and I kept a mental note to return to that spot in the future. I haven't been back yet, but I will return wiser and better at my craft. That deer had best watch out - I'm comin' for him.

As I said before, that hunting trip was one I will always remember, not only for having taken my first Fallow Deer Stag, it was the tracking, stalking and chasing. It was the journey and the destination - victory through adversity. That's what good hunting is all about. Every hunter has his day...

- David B, Editor, Champ Magazine

My mate's Jeep Wrangler covered in gear as we prepared for the day hunting. This was a great 4wd for the alpine territory and was good on the off road and undulating hills that could get quite steep.

Perfect hunting weather in the Australian Alps - it was a cool 4 Degrees Celsius, light wind and great light, albeit with a little glare.

What makes hunting great is the beautiful terrain you pass through as much as the thrill of the chase and the primal feeling of going back to our hunter-gatherer roots.