Trapping this wild and beautiful country is actually a privilege. To stand on ground that few actually have ever tread makes you humble. My thoughts always go back to the reality of what we have and what we almost lost and this makes me determined to do all I can to protect it for all future generations of Australians, no matter colour or creed.

As a hunting guide, you often have to scout the trail ahead. Use the lessons learnt over the year now past, scan the terrain ahead, look for sign on the ground to judge what is actually happening, then pick the best path.
This is the same for trying to establish a fair, equitable, moral and safe system for hunting, management and control of a species like wild deer.

There looked to be a number of very cunning, trap-shy dogs cruising around the area that had been trapped by some of the local coal mine workers on their "days off". Although well intended, this practice leads to very educated, hardened killers right in the middle of the calving areas. Time for a well thought out strategy.

If you are one of the growing number of people who wish to see common sense and practical solutions return to our hopes for the future, then the time to act is now. Wild deer management is just one small but vital part of this sustainable use approach.

Do we want to see the historic herd of wild chital deer in North Queensland Australia, managed sustainably or slaughtered? Since this clip was made, terrible things have happened in North Queensland. Most hunters don't have a clue what has, is and will happen.

There were quite a few wild dogs in the area that had survived the best efforts of shooters with thermal gear, spotlights, sharp eyed landholders, weekend trappers and two of my own traplines. They were very cunning and trap shy, largely nocturnal and most probably responsible for the spate of calf kills in the area. Game on!!

We have been solid supporters and sponsors of the Quality Deer Management Association of America, now the National Deer Assoc, (NDA) for the best part of 30 years now. During that time, we have donated more than a dozen guided hunts to the organisation to promote sustainable management of wild deer in Australia. Here is one of those hunts for a trophy red stag with a great hunter from Marylands.

As I rolled along over the last few weeks on the trapline, I had plenty of time to throw the issues facing us around in my head. What we face here in Queensland is not insurmountable if we face reality, put our thoughts together, work as a team and come up with solutions. It is up to us.

So many of our viewers have asked for more basic info on how we do what we do. This clip is more about that side of a trapline, the basic techniques and procedures that are so important to success.

We hear and read the comments, - "we are doing landholders a service", "hunters would never sue a landholder", "the risk is so small", and even more crazy, "those deer belong to us, the people". The truth is, if landholders feel exposed legally, they will simply deny access and the choppers or professional pest controllers will come in. Hunting, true hunting, in its pure form, must be allowed to survive. How do we achieve this in Queensland?

Queenslands Heritage Herd of red deer grow trophy racks so similar to what can still be found in their native ranges of Scotland and England. Some only ever get to 10 points or less but they are still just as tough a challenge to hunt as any red stag in the world. Ash and Clark set out on the trail of an old, cagey "Forever Five".

It's not every day you get an opportunity to use a $23,000 AUD thermal scope to shoot some feral pigs for pest control. But here we are with the brand new InfiRay Rico RS75, 1280 HD resolution scope.

Big thanks to my mate for the invite out seeking assistance on this contract for pest control.

If you are interested in a thermal device in Australia, have a chat with Ben from Hunt the Night. He generally has the best prices anyway in Oz. If you use the below affiliate link it helps me a bunch. At no cost at all to you