I can hear the red stag roaring in the bush. They rub their antlers on the trees. Chamois like to hang out in the sunny bluffs up on the faces of the hills, and tahr live on snowy rocks up the peaks on the mountains.

I glass the area with my binoculars and wait to see the animals move before I identify the species. I like to watch them for a while and get into a good position – to make sure through the rangefinder they’re not too far away to shoot.

The deer often come out of the bush to eat broadleaf and sit in the sun.

My dad, George and I are hunting chamois today at our local spot. We’ve found a good flat camping spot to set up the tent at the top of the hill. We blow up the air mattresses and get our sleeping bags out. We cook some two-minute noodles for dinner and have a strawberry Real Meals smoothie.

The next day, we come across a trophy chamois. We leave it there to get bigger and then see some bigger ones. I identify the target and get ready for the shot. I dial the scope in, put the magazine in the gun and then load the gun. I slightly pull the trigger, and bang! I put a bullet through its heart. I unload the gun before we take the back legs, the back steaks and the eye fillets.

We make our way back to the car before heading back to Lake Hāwea.