I've been pig hunting for 18 years, born and grown up in the small town of raglan. I’m now a solo mum to my beautiful daughter Lyla, who also loves hunting and being in the outdoors.
I've been inspired by and taught everything I know by my grandad Ray Crake. From the age of 4 my step dad Brendan started taking me out shooting pigs and doing possum lines. After catching the bug of being amongst the outdoors my grandad began taking me out with the dogs. I remember the first time I ever seen a pig he threw me on the top of a gorse bush and I cried! Grandad would pick me up every single weekend and holidays from then on and if we werent out pig hunting, we were out shooting goats, possums or fishing the Aotea harbour! As years progressed I became more and more addicted. We got our own dogs that were kept at grandads and he helped us train them while we were out hunting. Every hunt was full of kids, laughs, moans, cries and a heap of lollies and chocolate but most of all a million memories il never forget!
My grandad not long had surgery on his lungs and was diagnosed with cancer, so unfortunately taking the kids out and teaching them what he taught me isnt so easy anymore. To me hunting isnt about how big the animal is you get or how many you can catch, to me its all about family, friends and getting out amongst the outdoors creating memories, and putting food on the table for not only my family but for others less fortunate around us.
I enjoy taking kids out hunting with me and I do so with 95% of my hunts. I tend to take kids out who have troubled past or children who don’t have that someone to take them out, as I believe everyone should get the chance to experience what the outdoors has to offer . I believe being amongst the outdoors is great for your mental health, over the years iv learnt being outdoors has been my way to clear my head and allow myself to reset. My aim is to teach and pass on the knowledge I was lucky enough to be given by my grandad to the next generation which can hopefully then be passed on for more generations to come.
Check out Jesica's adventures by following:
Favourite Boot:
Jesica's favourite boot is the Lady III GTX