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Ayden Doumtsis

Where are you based?
Katherine, Northern Territory, Australia

What type of hunting do you do?
Bowhunting, Backpack Hunting, Australia and International Adventures

How did you get into hunting?
From the age of four I was taken on hunting adventures with my father Nick and twin brother James. From those pursuits a love for the outdoors grew. At 12 years old I was given my first bow, targeting rabbits, foxes, feral goats and pigs, then working up to deer and big game animals like wild scrub bulls (feral cattle) and asiatic water buffalo.

Where is your favourite location to hunt?
The Basalt Wall region of North Queensland, Australia

Tell us about your most memorable hunt
A hunt which spanned 2 months in the making. I had a surreal encounter with a mature chital deer stag and videoed him at thirty to forty odd meters. The whole encounter lasted approximately forty five minutes one evening until the sun eventually set. The footage was magnificent and to top it all off, the stag was rutting. Thrashing trees. Scraping the ground similarly to a fallow deer. Then he let out a series of vocalisations which I refer to as bellowing. To this day it is one of the most memorable things I’ve seen in the wild.

Following this encounter I watched back the footage and noticed quite quickly that I was looking at a truly remarkable deer. One that I estimated to be greater than thirty inches in length, with symmetry, large brow tines, inners and width. Overall he was quite literally the stag of my dreams. Every weekend following a busy schedule with university I would race out to the property. Hunt dusk to dawn and then race back to uni for a Monday start. I did this for two months as previously stated. Never laying eyes on the stag.

Just when I was beginning to lose hope, thinking that he may have cast his antlers, been eaten by dingoes, shot by another hunter or laid to waste by helicopter / aerial culls. I finally found him. 

The day was one to remember. I had snuck in and scoped out numerous mobs of chital deer hinds in their usual locations. There seemed to be a real rut feel to the day with up to ten seperate stags sighted which would have been mature animals in the high twenties age class. Still, none of them could compare to the stag which I had set my sights on. Hunting throughout the whole day, with fading light I waited off two hinds hoping a stag would join them from the thick tea tree. Just when I thought to turn around and head for the car I heard it.

As if an old friend was calling out to me, a series of chital stag bellows roared form approximately six hundred meters away. In my heart I knew it was him. I ran in his direction, halving the distance. With the naked eye I locked in on him and without even using the binoculars I knew it was him without a doubt. His antlers were enormous, so long and upright. I couldn’t believe my eyes. With fading light I managed to close the distance again, using the upright trees and vertical cover to close the gap to thirty meters. Putting the range finder away, I drew the bow as his head moved behind some timber and settled the pin.

I would be lying if I said I knew where the arrow hit, it zapped through him that quickly it took us both by shock. The stag jumped as if to flee, landed on the other side of a fallen log, took a single step and fell to the ground. He was dead. After two months of searching tirelessly for this magnificent creature our saga had run its course. Laying hands on the stag it became obvious that he the biggest chital stag that I had ever seen. His antlers ended up measuring over thirty two inches in length, with eight inch inners and fifteen inch brownies. Covered in scars, this old boy had likely been putting on the miles searching for hinds and fighting rival stags.

The feeling of being extremely specific and only having eyes for one animals, and an animal that was so unique has far surpassed many of my other memorable hunts. This was something else and a hunt that I will always remember. 

What are your top three "holy grail" items?
What would you never head out without?Binoculars Quality boots Wind puffer Lastly, rain gear - you just never know!

Why do you hunt?
I hunt because it’s difficult. Out of all the endeavours in my life Bowhunting would have to be one of the most challenging yet rewarding of them. Both physically and mentally there are so many hurdles to overcome when hunting. So when it ultimately comes together and you can take the target animals life humanely. With a well placed shot, then enjoy the meat, hide, antlers or so forth there’s something very rewarding about that.

James Doumtsis

Where are you based?
Armidale, NSW

What type of hunting do you do?
Bowhunter

How did you get into hunting?
I was lucky enough to be raised in a hunting house hold. From the ripe age of 4 dad started taking Ayden and I hunting, camping and fishing. At 11 we got our first bows and never looked back. Since then bow hunting has really shaped a large portion of my life. It's taken me to 4 continents, started multiple business and most of my friends are in the hunting our outdoor space. It's a lifestyle I wish more people had the privilege of being born into and hopefully I can inspire more people to get into it in my life.

Where is your favourite location to hunt?
Thats a hard one! Currently it has to be the USA - Montana

Tell us about your most memorable hunt
I've been lucky enough to experience so many incredible hunts. But the one that comes to mind is my most recent mission to Montana. It began months before, with a lot of consultation and luck I drew a once in a lifetime elk tag. That set into motion months of networking, research, e-scouting and most importantly training. Trying to predict and control every problem and mitigate it, leaving nothing to chance. Looking back all the preparation seemed to fly by and before I knew it we were beginning our journey to Montana.

What we endured and experienced is hard to describe in as many words. 4am starts every day, most days walking 15 km's or more with 10kg's at least on your back, most nights getting to bed after 10pm, it was grueling. We pushed ourselves to our physical and mental limit trying to find the biggest bull we could. We worked hard and hence had some fantastic opportunities and encounters but for one reason or another it never paid off.

After 20 days of scouting and hunting it all happened. We got into a rutting frenzy and was able to capitalise and take out the herd bull. What made it even more special was having my brother there by my side every step of the way filming the process. The physical and emotional roller coaster is hard to describe and hence I'm really looking forward to making the video of the hunt to share with everyone. It's going to take a very special hunt to top those 20 days we spend in the wild Montana wilderness.

What are your top three "holy grail" items?
Head torch knife first aid kit A lot can also be said for water as well depending on how long you intend to be out for.

Why do you hunt?
The age old question asked to any hunter, why do we do it..? The simple answer is, it's a very complex and multifaceted answer.

The long version is, I hunt for my protein. Except for chicken (which I haven't been able to figure out how to source from the wild) all the protein I eat, I've either hunted, or speared or caught.

There's a lot to be said for conservation and pest management where hunting helps to manage populations. Keeping herd numbers in check, having the correct balance between predator and prey and ultimately keep ecosystems in order.

But to be completely honest, at the core of it, it's who I am. Being a bowhunter, an outdoors man is my identity. I'm not a vet, I'm not an entrepreneur, I'm not a soy, decaf latte drinking city slicker, I'm a hunter. It's the first thing I think about in the morning and the last thing I think about before bed. I've dedicated a large portion of my life to bowhunting and the outdoors and it's given me so much back. I don't know what I'd do with my life without it. I just hope I can share my passion for hunting and the outdoors to as many people as possible.

Additionally, hopefully one day when I have kids, I can take them hunting and show them the incredibly diverse benefits of hunting and the great outdoors.