Papers past

The Chronicle May 1990

Dangerous assignment

Living close to Lake Wairarapa at duck shooting season enables one to gain some appreciation of what it living in a place like Beruit must sound like.

As usual the blast of guns awoke us early on opening morning. My dear wife suggested that visit to the lake may prove to be an interesting assignment. Listening to the southerly wind moaning in the eaves and not being one to steal somebody else’s good idea I proposed that the conceiver of the suggestion leave the warm bed.

This offer was turned down on the grounds of danger “ by the sound of all the banging one could easily be shot down there” she replied.

So by 7.15am the expendable member of the Chronicle staff arrived at the front line. Thoroughly awakened by the chill wind.

A quick round of the mai mais showed a general satisfaction with the conditions, the strong southerly being appreciated. There was a lot of swan in evidence with most shooters having bagged at least one and several two.

Ducks, however, seemed few and far between.

Some shooters from Wellington were clearly disgruntled saying that the Acclimatisation Society had been publicising that ducks would be plentiful in the Wairarapa this year.

To the absolute layman two things made an impression. First was the low percentage of birds which actually succumbed to the guns. Flights seemed to be just out of range. All and sundry would blaze away at a group of birds which flew on as though they had armoured underbellies.

One shooter whose bag was still empty at 9.30 didn’t seem all that worried. “As long a I can come down here and make plenty of noise I’m happy” he said.

The second was that shooters have to be incredibly patient. Waiting is the name of the game. Then so often when a flock eventually heads their way it veers off at the very last moment. All very frustrating.