December and January is their summer. There won't be much to hunt. Everything will be in velvet but Tahr and Chamois. They will be in summer coats. Ducks, which is the only thing in NZ to have a season is closed. It won't open until April. How exactly does a person go to NZ........stay here for a good amount of time and NOT HUNT??? That's like going to the Playboy Mansion and not banging some hot chick. NZ has no Season for anything. No limits. You don't have to pack out the meat. It's a free forall on public land.

I don't go guided for cranes. Never have. I use a buddies decoys and ghuille suits or box blind. With access to 400,000+ acres of prime private land, I don't need an outfitter. I have certain guys I hunt with every year and the available spots are all full for Texas. They fill up a year plus in advance and most go back every year. My crane hunting is done by Mid Dec with the birds pushing south. January is for redfish/snook and pintails/redheads on the coast.........or awesome puddle duck hunting in the panhandle. Crane hunting for me is only 4-5 weeks at best.