Postcards from the Backcountry: Hendrik’s Red Stag and Tahr Adventure

I wasn’t there. I was supposed to be, but life had other plans.

Instead, I spent the week glued to my phone as Hendrik — my buddy and one of the best hunters you've probably never heard about — sent photo after photo from deep in the backcountry of New Zealand. And not just any shots: we’re talking a massive red stag, a mature bull tahr, and even a chamois from the alpine.

Every image hit like a punch to the gut, in the best way. One of them showed the hide of a tahr laid out against the alpine rock — and there, resting beside it, was his Hendrik Pro Model knife. That blade looked right at home. Scarred, trusted, and sharp as ever — just like the guy who carries it.

New Zealand’s South Island is no joke. It’s the kind of place where the terrain is steep, the wind is wild, and the animals live far from easy. Hendrik’s hunt wasn’t a cushy guided affair — it was boots-on-the-ground, earn-every-step type of hunting. Red stags bugling through foggy timber. Tahr slipping between cliff faces. Chamois silhouetted on impossible ledges.

And while I was tied up stateside — working, juggling life, and missing out — Hendrik was doing what he does best: hunting with patience, grit, and instinct.

He kept sending photos. Stag down. Hide skinned. Knife in frame. Sun breaking over the ridgeline. It was like getting postcards from another world — a reminder that even if you’re not there, the wild still moves.

There’s a purity to New Zealand that’s hard to put into words. No seasons on some game. No tags. Just the land, the effort, and the will to go farther. Hendrik went — and delivered.

I’ll be back. Next time, hopefully alongside him. Until then, I’ll keep that photo of the tahr hide and the knife pinned to my wall — a quiet nudge to clear the calendar, sharpen the blade, and get after it.