National significant trickle down. This almost slipped by me. Nick Smith, that champion of the environment, has just announced the Government is going to throw a few more million at cleaning up 'a few' of our most polluted rivers. “This Fresh Start for Fresh Water Clean Up Fund is to encourage regional councils and communities to put plans together to clean up lakes and rivers that have become badly polluted,” Dr Smith said here . Will that be only democratically elected councils Nick? So instead of going after the polluters, this Government has come up with a cunning plan to encourage the local councils and communities to clean up after the dirty dairy farmers. Yes that's right; National's farmer mates get rich making a bloody mess of our lakes and rivers and the tax payer then forks out to clean it up. Just another Farm subsidy in my book.  But it gets worse: "The Government needs to be satisfied that a water body is nationally signi...

Ming Up at 5am, having arranged to meet Pete at 6.45 for a pig hunt, down on the floor for my Yoga, then a big breakfast. Nice morning for hunting, cool and clear, I let the girls off they where very excited, they know we are going hunting when they get woken this early. Down to the dingy at the slipway and away to meet Pete, 20 minutes later we arrive, I put all the tracking collars on the dogs, then meet up with Pete and his to dogs Goldie & Brin, today we where hunting with two sisters and there two brothers,  plus Puk the holder. It was first light when we set off, not much pig sign around, so we walked on around the usual traps, Ming not showing much interest, then she was away, heading up the hill, the creeks where so noisy we couldn't hear if she was barking, but by the look of her track on the tracker she was onto something, so I let her sister Lu go, we walked on quickly after them watching Lu catch and join Ming on the tracker, the remainin...

Rolled out of an empty bed, a few exercises, then a big breakfast, let the dogs off, then down to the boat shed, jumped in the dingy with the 3 dogs then off to a spot I had been wanting to have a look at for a while, cold morning with low cloud, it had been raining the night before so the bush was wet and I was starting to regret leaving my fleece behind, my thin cotton shirt was soaked in no time, we walked on, I keep the dogs close as plenty of deer sign around, we walked onto a little freshest pig sign, so I let Ming walk on and kept the other two close, was watching ming on the tracker about 100 meters away coming around below me, I heard something crash past, it sounded like a deer then Ming appeared so I called her in, as I don't want her chasing deer, on we went then Puk gave me the slip and she looked like she was on the deer scent, watching her coming back Ming and her sister gave me the slip, I tried to whistle them back but they had suddenly developed hearing problem...

A little cooler the last couple of days and as my Brighter future still hadn't arrived I thought I may as well go hunting as only fools and horses work remember. Up early let the Dogs off and away we go keeping the moles on the heal as they have been trying to catch the odd deer lately, it hasn't dawned on them that they never will, anyway got to a spot where I though a pig might be hanging out then I let Lu&Ming walk on keeping Puk my new bitch with me, Puk is a bit of a meat head and is having trouble staying away from the sharp end on the pigs but holds hard, anyway sitting on the ridge watching the dogs working on the tracker they where about 300 meters away now so I thought I had better get after them 5 minutes later I here barking, didn't sound like a deer bark, so I let Puk go and I off after her, I heard her arrive because then bailing reached a higher pitch, the dogs seemed to have a good bail going but no squealing, then silence, I was moving fast as I worry ...

I made the mistake of going hunting yesterday morning seems the dogs wanted to torture me and I have been feeding them well, the bloody mongrel bitches lead me on a merry chase, all the way to resolution bay vier the top ridge, sadists the three of them. The guests where arriving after lunch and  believe me I was feeling a little shagged when they arrived, a couple of tulip munchers and nice enough (thanks Guy&Liesbeth).  After dinner and a couple of wines I said, "how about I take you fishing in the morning", "we will at-least catch our lunch!" Well as you can see it wasn't a light lunch. Hey if any of you fishermen out there start bragging about the big one that got away around here, be warned I have pictures of mine BOYS, and sorry size does matter!

Very happy with the dogs they found and held this pig this morning, great way to start the New Year.