PUBLIC LAND ACCESS

If you haven't already, go and track down a copy and read his article as it lays the groundwork for this one. Public land access is a key issue and if hunters are to be part of the solution, we need to be able to get to these places easily and regularly.

There are plenty of examples of deer ‘islands’ around the country and the problem has become worse, rather than better. Access issues are perennial - I'm sure any readers could think of examples across the country – Raukumaras? Ruahines? Lake Sumner? I was speaking to Tim Gale from the GAC late last year and he said that since the 2015 Health and Safety at Work Act all recreation groups have noticed a significant reduction in public access. Just prior to publishing, NZDA CEO Gwyn Thurlow drew my attention to the loss of weekday access to the Blue Mountains Fallow herd.

When I asked Tim for the GAC's stance on public access he had this to say:

Hunters require good access to hunt and help manage our game animal herds. There are some well-known examples where hunting access has been restricted in recent