Melissa Bachman has been planning her New Zealand red stag hunt for two years. The planning paid off.
Hunting with Ample Hunting outfitters near Gisborne in early March, Bachman and her crew made their way to stag country. Along the way hunting Merriam’s gobblers and shooting their 3-D course, they set up for the spot-and-stalk hunt.
They spotted a massive bull, and then the hunt was on. Bachman got within 35 yards of the bedded stag, waited for it to stand. Unfortunately, it spooked, taking a couple bounds, but it was not enough for the stag to get away. Bachman’s shot was true.
“The stag ended up scoring 474 3/8 (SCI scoring system), which put me No. 1 in the world at the time for stag with a bow for a woman. It also landed me No. 6 in the world overall for an archery kill. However, the world record was broken again last week by another woman, so now I’m technically No. 2 and No. 7. Regardless, I held the record for a while and the fantastic animal will always be a blessing to remember,” writes Bachman on the North American Hunting Club blog, Hardcore Huntress with Melissa Bachman.
I think we’d be pretty happy with dropping a spot with this stag on the wall. –Brian McClintock
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