There are some hunters whose reputations precede them, whose keen eyes and experience have earned them a level of trust and respect among their peers. Snow is one such hunter. When he spoke of this bull tahr, his voice had a certain confidence. And so, when he gave his estimation, I knew it was not to be taken lightly..
I've known Snow for several years. We had first talked about tahr and tahr hunting at a Sika Show on his stand. Years later, I would sit beside him at the High Court in Wellington. He was chair of the Tahr Foundation when the foundation took legal action against the Department of Conservation regarding what we now call the Tahrmageddon saga; I was a month into my new job as Chief Executive Officer at NZDA. It was an exciting time to advocate for hunters and our tahr herd.
It was 2022 Wwen I got the call that led to this hunt. Our country, and all hunters, had spent two years in Covid lockdown suffering travel restrictions. During that period, Snow and I had talked many times. Still, we rarely discussed hunting trips because our conversations were usually focused on advocacy, politics, submissions, and what was happening with the tahr cull. But this time, on our call, he said, “Would you be interested in joining me for a hunting trip?”
Snow continued, “You mentioned wanting to get your father, Peter, a good bull. This might be the right time, as the hunting pressure on the herd is currently low.”
“However, I'm not sure how long
