The idea of an all-ADA, multi-branch hunting camp grew out of what was to have been a hunting camp for two ADA branches in South Australia. The first camp, in 2018, kicked off in the evening of July 21, with most people arriving early and undertaking reconnaissance of prospective hunting blocks in the state forest. A notable exception was Ben Nicolson who, travelling from Canberra, chose to take the Snowy Mountains Highway, and was confronted with a serious snowdrift around Kiandra; he still managed to plough and dig through the snow to arrive safely at Shelley in time for the introductory meeting.
At that first camp there was a large contingent from South Australia, including Pejman Hurmuzniya, Patrick Ross, Ben Ross and myself, as well as members from the eastern states, including the Hunter Valley, Sydney and ACT and Snowy Mountains Branches; about 16 registrants in total. I am indebted to Pejman and Ben for helping me run that first camp, where we collectively harvested three sambar and a few fallow deer. Fittingly, Pejman took the first sambar during camp one, a hind in the state forest on the eastern side of the Wabba wilderness, in an area only accessed via Nariel Valley. Putting the hunting aside, the most gratifying aspect of camp one was that so many people lauded the camp and promised to return, and indeed many have been true to their word.
The second National Hunting Camp, held in September/October 2019 and co-hosted by the newly formed Northern and Yorke Branch and the South East-Branch, both in SA, saw a modest increase in the number of hunters attending. For me personally, it was great to finally take my first sambar, a robust hind, just a few miles from Shelley and conveniently close to good access tracks. It was one of several deer taken during that camp, including another sambar, and as usual, a handful of fallow does. Another highlight of camp two was that Brodie Stasiak (Upper Goulbourn Branch) took his first deer of any species while stalking a fawn in state forest near Koetong. He had previously taken a sambar, but that was over hounds.
Then came the start of two years of COVID-19 lockdowns and border closures. Nonetheless, there was a COVID hiatus; a few months of freedom in early 2021 and camp three was run in March. It was a very big camp, with 46 registrations. Clearly many ADA members had been hanging out to go hunting. Despite chaos in NSW due to storms and floods in Sydney, 34 people still managed to arrive at camp. With so many hunters there was a terrific atmosphere, as hunters debriefed on their day’s adventures and freely exchanged advice. Twelve or more deer were taken. Amongst the multi-deer success stories was Andrew Moss (ACT Branch) who took a fallow doe on successive days from Block 2, and Trevor Leigh (South-East Branch, SA) and who downed two fallow bucks within a minute, on Block 17. Trevor kindly donated one of these heads for mounting on a shield for use as a perpetual trophy to acknowledge the person who takes the best fallow trophy at future camps. So far, his name is the only person on that trophy shield.
Brodie Stasiak made another appearance at camp three, revisiting hunting Block 18 and took yet another doe, only minutes after setting foot on the block. The next day he moved to Block 17 where Trevor had had success and took his first ever fallow buck, followed by his first sambar spiker while stalking. Meanwhile, brother-in-law Dave Martin (Upper Goulburn Branch) was busy on Block 18 and harvested two beautiful does, not more than six metres from where Brodie had taken his own, the day before. What Trevor, Brodie and Dave had discovered is a fallow deer ‘superhighway’ between Blocks 17, 18, Hunters’ Hill (Block 19) and the area around Avondale Gardens. In the evenings, herds of fallow deer, sometimes as many as a dozen, are seen to cross Avondale Road, only 4 or 5 km south of Shelley Forest Camp. The deer in this area have a distinctive pale fawn/menil pelt with a dark dorsal stripe and white spots over most of their torsos. They appear distinct from fallow deer in other parts of the district where ‘dark’ fallow deer are the norm.
Brodie and Dave trumped camp three by taking five deer between them, and returned home with Esky-loads of venison for their young families and friends. We thank Brodie for gifting Dave an ADA membership and accommodation at Shelley as a birthday present. Dave also thanks him!
After COVID-19 restrictions eased in early 2022, camp four was to commence on April 22. Alas, on that day, even as hunters were arriving in camp, I personally tested COVID-19 positive, and so too another person. Sadly, we had to turn away many of the 23 registrants. A small group who had already been at camp with me were allowed to remain, as I isolated with an entire bunkhouse to myself. Fortunately, there are three separate ablutions facilities at Shelley, so that allowed us to separate different groups of people and comply with all the legal requirements. Despite this fiasco, the working-bee immediately prior to the beginning of camp made great progress in welding together the frame of a dedicated deer-hanging facility, and we now have a strong-room with a deadlock, so people attending camp can store valuables such as taxidermied deer heads, computers and the like.
Despite this COVID setback, there was at least some hunting by a small core group. Des Buckhurst and Peter Mallis (Hunter Valley Branch) were amongst those in camp and, indeed, they have now attended five camps between them. Des is one of the original group of 16 from camp one. Both Des and Peter are very experienced hunters, and I am always thrilled when they register for camp. They never go home without venison, and while in camp are always more than willing to share their extensive experience with others. One person who has directly benefited from an evening talk they gave on camp four is Mark Fermor (Melbourne Branch). Before arriving at camp, Mark had done about 10 days of hunting, seen a few deer, yet never fired a shot. His first full day in the field began well before daylight, as he made his way to the south-east boundary of Block 7. Block 7 is a very special block. It not only has ubiquitous sambar and fallow deer, but also a small population of elusive red deer. A strong north-west wind was blowing and his strategy was to climb a hill, walking into the wind, as the sun rose. The plan was that he would then be well-positioned to sit, wait and watch. His logic was flawless, and soon after sunrise, as he got on to high ground in the lifting fog, he heard a twig break about 60 metres in front of him. He quickly dropped a sambar spiker with a single shot.
The most recent National Hunting Camp, camp five, was held over the usual 12-day/11-night duration and was attended by 19 keen hunters, representing six branches, from all the eastern states and South Australia. It was very fitting that Gerardo Chalvien and Karl Bernhard (Gympie Branch) were rewarded with a sambar and fallow deer respectively. These guys worked really hard in the field. Every day, they were in their hunting blocks by sunrise, and hardly ever returned before dark. The majority of their time in the bush was concentrated in adjacent Blocks 25 and 28, and by doing that, they maximised their chances of success. I hope Karl and Gerardo will return to Shelley before too long.
The ADA National Hunting Camp has now completed its fifth iteration and many people have been pushing me to write an article, so here it is. Over five years and five camps, the event has grown from a one-off, to a permanent fixture on the ADA calendar, and it is intended that the camp will continue to be held four times a year, catering for both novices and experienced hunters. It is great to see a diversity of ADA members mingling in the evenings, and this enriches the total camp experience.
Shelley Forest Camp, with its salubrious kitchen, well-appointed rec hall, and bunkrooms sufficient to sleep at least 36 persons, is simply the best possible venue for an all-ADA hunting camp. It’s remote, yet conveniently equidistant to Corryong and Tallangatta where fuel and basic supplies can be sourced, and only an hour to Wodonga via the Murray Valley Highway. I am indebted to Ben Nicolson who first conceived the idea of basing what was intended to be a one-off event at Shelley. The 42 blocks we use for hunting comprise in total about 550 square kilometres of public land, of which at least half is accessible by 2WD; most roads and vehicular tracks are typically well maintained. Deer are plentiful across the entire district, and fortunately the January 2020 bushfires only burned four of Shelley’s eastern-most blocks. Having said that, Block 2 in the vicinity of Berringama, east of Shelley, is one of those that was totally burned, yet by the March 2021 camp, only 15 months after the fire, the block was teeming with deer. Anecdotal reports post the fire suggest that sambar there have ‘glistening’ pelts and look noticeably well-nourished, presumably due to increased nutrients in the soil and lush regrowth. This is good news for trophy hunters and suggests that antler grown in the next couple of years will be better than good. Around Shelley, hunting is best undertaken within 500 metres of roads and tracks, so navigation should never be too challenging. There simply is no need for big expeditions deep into the forest. Excess ‘bushwalking with a rifle’ is a noisy enterprise, wasted hunting time, and means less time looking for deer and quietly stalking in easily accessible areas. Shelley’s smart hunters operate on relatively small blocks or the peripheries of larger blocks where retrieval of deer carcasses is practicable.
If you have been to one of the early Shelley camps, but not since, you will find some big changes to how the camp is run, and improvements to the facilities it has to offer. There are now two dedicated facilities for hanging deer, one which is indoors and screened from flies, and another that is suited to the hanging of deer in game bags with plenty of ventilation, but still shaded from the sun. Since camp four, registered hunters have the option of using the HuntStand phone app, for planning their hunts in advance of camp, and to share their field observations with others. Based on its uptake during camp five, HuntStand will revolutionise the way we share information, and will lead to better knowledge of hunting terrain, and hunting success.
To conclude this article, I want to reflect on the contributions of four people who make each and every National Hunting Camp a success. None of these people, whilst quartered at Shelley, have taken a deer, yet their contributions and dedication to the camp speaks volumes:
Bob Gough (Melbourne Branch), an ADA Life Member, and former ADA National President, has attended every National Hunting Camp, with the exception of camp one. Bob volunteers his precious time to join us at Shelley, and to share his knowledge gained from decades in the field. His commitment to hunter education is undoubtedly second-to-none, and his talks on the second and third evenings of camp are very special, and have become an integral part of the ‘Shelley experience’. Moreover, the advice he has given to many hunters has directly contributed to hunting success for several people, the first being my own sambar hunt during camp two, and the most recent being Gerardo Chalvien’s successful hunt during camp five.
Ian Skiller (Westernport Branch) is still to take a deer at Shelley, but that is only because he is so often assisting me in running the camp, and I greatly value his help in that regard, as well as his friendship and counsel. Undoubtedly his sambar trophy will come soon.
Vaughn Coulston (Gympie Branch) has attended a couple of camps and I thank him for spreading the good word in his local branch. Moreover, his effort during the camp four working-bee was simply extraordinary. He, with the help of others, worked morning after morning in camp, and only hunted in the afternoons. There aren’t too many folks who would drive 1600 km to work without pay, and then drive back again. I thank him most sincerely.
The final person to mention is someone who is not even an ADA member, and that is Lyn Coulston OAM; she is not related to Vaughn. Shelley Forest Camp is run by a small committee of passionate volunteers, and Lyn, a local resident, is the committee’s secretary, and doubles as the camp’s day-to-day on-site manager, more-or-less 365 days per year. Everyone who has ever attended a Shelley camp will have met her, and needs to be indebted to her, not only because of what she does, but that she does everything gratis. Without Lyn, and other local volunteers, Shelley Forest Camp and the ADA National Hunting Camp would not be.
For more information on the National Hunting Camp, please contact the organiser/huntmaster, Bernd Michaelsen (M 0419 832 995, E michaelsen@geologist.com)
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