The first thing most experienced hunters check when preparing for the roar is their rifle - but clothing, footwear, a GPS and personal locator beacon should also be high on the list of what to take.

A personal locator beacon, in my opinion is a must have, if you injure yourself or become ill or have a heart attack going after your trophy stag. In fact, a PLB will save your life - and believe it or not, not only your dog but your wife or partner will be happy to see you come home.

With the GPS, the two main brands to look at are the Garmin and Magellan. Garmin has the market in New Zealand, but Magellan, the sole product that the US armed forces are allowed to use, is worth a serious look.

Footwear is one of the most import things on a hunt, as there's nothing worse than being in the middle of the bush with sore and wet feet from an inappropriate boot choice.

Blaze - do not forget it, comes in all sorts including caps, vest, jackets etc. Modern hunting packs should have a blaze rain cover that you can pull out and pull over top of your pack. I prefer caps, as our heads normally don't stop moving and are easier to spot especially through movement.

Now to your rifle. Go to the range or a friend's farm to check to see if it is still shooting the same point of aim as the last time you used it.

I like to sight my rifles in on a rising bullet. What I mean by that is if you sight your rifle in dead on at 50 or 100 yards, after that point your bullet is going downhill, and it is a lot harder to figure out where the bullet is going when it is dropping.

So if you sight your rifle in 2.54cm (1.5 inches) to 6.35cm (2 ½ inches) high at 100 yards that means you're dead on at 200 yards, (depending on your calibre and load choice).

The advantage of shooting on a rising bullet is that you know exactly where it is going. So basically anywhere from 0 to 300 yards, you just aim straight at your target, taking all of the guesswork out what you're trying to do.

Things that can help with accuracy is a suppressor. I use one myself and have tried most brands out there. I prefer Hardy's over barrel suppressors. They are light - only 290gms, hang over is 80mm and can reduce recoil by up to 70 per cent. We now are able to have a seven-year-old shooting a .308 without being scared of recoil, as it is softer than a .223 being fired.