Category: Both Barrels

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Both Barrels March 2023

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Welcome to our first Both Barrels of the 2023 hunting season.

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Both Barrels July 2022

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It’s late season. The mornings are cold, and it’s a lot harder to get out of bed than it was in May.

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Both Barrels June 2022

2022 June Both Barrels Hamiora Smith 1

He’s got sharp eyes, good ears and drives mum mad with his mallard drake whistle.

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Both Barrels May 2022

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Hunters shot slightly fewer birds and spent less time in the maimai on opening weekend of the game bird season in Otago this year.

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Both Barrels April 2022

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The 2022 game bird season gets off to a bang on Saturday, May 7.

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Both Barrels March 2022

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Both Barrels will start in earnest in April, giving all hunters access to some of the best minds in game bird hunting in New Zealand.

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Both Barrels July 2021

2021 July Both Barrels Buck

That’s a wrap for the mallard season in Otago, which ended on July 11.

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Both Barrels June 2021

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Duck and quail shooting is a family affair for the Bonneys of Allanton.

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Both Barrels May 2021

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Scouting 20 hours a week has been the key to success so far this duck season, Otago hunter Chris Bell says.

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Both Barrels April 2021

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Excitement is building in Otago for the opening of the 2021 game bird season on Saturday, May 1.

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Both Barrels March 2021

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With less than six weeks to go until the game bird season, we welcome our readers of Both Barrels for 2021, the place where we keep you up to date...

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Both Barrels July 2020

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I trust you have had an enjoyable 2020 game bird hunting season to date and treated yourself to a few feeds of wild duck, try this delicious recipe here

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Both Barrels June 2020

Gale family from Outram and Mosgiel

The May 23 opening brought smiles to hunters young and old who had to wait 55 weeks since the opening of 2019 due to the Covid – 19 virus outbreak...

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Both Barrels May 2020

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Yes, Opening Day is Finally Happening!

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Special Lockdown Edition Both Barrels April 2020

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Over the first two weeks of the lockdown, Fish & Game have been scenario planning around what form the game bird season might take.

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Otago Both Barrels July 2019

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The last weekend for mallard/grey and NZ shoveler duck hunting is the 27/28th of July.

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Otago Both Barrels June 2019

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By the time you read this, there will only be a few weeks or so left in the mallard and shoveler season.

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Otago Both Barrels May 2019

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Preseason predictions suggesting that duck numbers would be healthy for the start of the season were bang on.

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Otago Both Barrels April 2019

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By now most hunters will have tagged favourite hunting spots and scrubbed up their maimais for the season ahead.

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South Island Roundup - Both Barrels 2018

Ace game bird chef Phil Hazeldine presiding over a wild game feast.

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Both Barrels August 2018

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As the 2018 game bird season draws to a close, many hunters are reflecting on their success, saying it has been the best season they have experienced for a long time.

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Otago Both Barrels July 2018

Otago game bird hunters...don't despair with the end of the mallard season.

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Otago Both Barrels June 2018

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Winter has finally arrived in the south with cold temperatures and lots of snow on the hills.

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Otago Both Barrels May 2018

Tomos 1st opening duckshooting haul at Rustys 5 May 2018

The dry summer made an impact with less ducks around than last season but on the bright side harvested birds were in great condition.

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Otago Both Barrels April 2018

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Most of Otago experienced reasonable rainfall over spring and good mallard brood numbers were reported - then parts of the region dried off and descended quickly into drought conditions.

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Both Barrels August 2017

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The game bird season has ended... or has it?

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Both Barrels South Island Roundup

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The waterfowl 2017 season has been and gone. We hope you managed to get out on a few hunting adventures this year and filled the freezer with enough duck to...

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Both Barrels North Island Roundup

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Heath Worsfold’s truck with a nice pheasant and a happy pup named Sneak.

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Otago Both Barrels July 2017

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It’s incredible how three months can quickly slip by and the 2017 hunting season for mallard ducks has come to an end.

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Otago Both Barrels June 2017

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Winter has finally made an appearance: the days are shorter and temperatures have dropped considerably but the rain has stayed away.

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Otago Both Barrels May 2017

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The start to the season was influenced by calm conditions which affected hunting success across the region, but this didn’t deter hunters from getting out and enjoying the weekend.

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Otago Both Barrels April 2017

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While Opening Day results are often governed by the weather, the general outlook for the region looks great.

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Both Barrels Mar 2017

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Get set to hunt some game birds

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Southland Both Barrels May 2016

Opening day is probably the only day of the year when I wake up and I’m upset by a lack of wind!

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Auckland Waikato Both Barrels May 2016

The mallard, grey and shoveler seasons are now but a memory, and even parries and black swan are off limits with their seasons over.

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Otago Both Barrels May 2016

For what must be the 10th year in a row, Otago hunters woke to clear calm conditions for the Opening Day.

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Central South Island Both Barrels May 2016

Opening Weekend heralded fine and pleasant weather.

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North Canterbury Both Barrels May 2016

With the game bird season well underway and the hype of opening day now past, it's time to reflect on hunting successes firstly, then focus on the great game bird...

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West Coast Both Barrels May 2016

Large numbers of hunters turned out in the West Coast Region for Opening Weekend this year, both local hunters and many from other regions.

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Nelson Marlborough Both Barrels May 2016

Fish & Game had three ranging teams out in the field on Opening Day this year, concentrating on private land around Blenheim and Murchison.

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Wellington Both Barrels May 2016

The weather was largely to blame for what can only be described as a patchy Opening Weekend, with very calm conditions in the Wairarapa and resultingly few birds moving around.

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Taranaki Both Barrels May 2016

While the hunter phone survey results are yet to be analysed, initial indications are that hunters were happy with their opening weekend bags – in many areas more mallards were...

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Northland Both Barrels May 2016

Opening Weekend game bird hunting produced a “great variety” of results for hunters around the Northland Peninsula.

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Hawke's Bay Both Barrrels May 2016

Fish & Game rangers along with police officers checked 57 waterfowl hunters over Opening Weekend.

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Eastern Both Barrels May 2016

Hunters can now take advantage of being able to hunt the 20-odd Crown-owned wetlands around the region administered by Fish & Game.

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