Elated family toasts hunter's return

By Kristin Edge and Peter de Graaf
A Ruakaka family's fears for the worst turned to elation last night as a hunter missing for four nights in the bush walked out of the Kaimanawa Ranges.
Andreas Thirling, 50, went missing in the rugged central North Island bush during a hunting trip last week.
But all along, his daughter, Karina, said she was confident her father would be home in time to celebrate her birthday. Karina turns 22 on Sunday.
"He has got very good survival skills. He's always loved the outdoors and to walk. He's pretty experienced."
Last night Karina, Mr Thirling's wife, Christine, his two hunting companions - who had returned to Ruakaka just hours before he walked out of the bush - were celebrating his survival.
The mood at the family's home was "ecstatic", said a friend, who did not want to be named.
"There is a great sense of relief ... There are lots of smiles, rosy cheeks and sparkles in the eyes," she said.
The family had always believed he was on the move and would walk out.
"He's a very determined person, and he used to be an endurance runner," she said.
Mr Thirling had been hunting deer in the Waipakihi Valley with two companions, but failed to return from a solo hunt on Thursday evening. One of his friends walked out to raise the alarm on Friday morning.
The next four days were anguish for his wife Christine and children Thomas and Karina, as they waited for news from the search teams scouring the ranges. Karina said her mother had been unable to sleep.
Then around 7pm yesterday the family received a call saying Mr Thirling had walked out of the bush, emerging on State Highway One 15km south of Turangi.
All he had with him for four nights was a few muesli bars, the clothes he was wearing, a gun, a compass and a GPS (global positioning system).
Police Search and Rescue boss Senior Constable Barry Shepherd said Mr Thirling was in "excellent" condition.
He had been picked up around 6.45pm by a passing driver, taken to Turangi police station and then Taupo Hospital.
He was tired and slightly dehydrated, but otherwise remarkably unscathed.
Mr Thirling was expected to remain in Taupo Hospital for observation overnight and return to Ruakaka today.
Mr Shepherd said Mr Thirling, a hunter for five years, had not been in the area before.
Volunteers from Taupo, Rotorua, Hamilton, Turangi, Whakatane and elsewhere in the Central North Island searched the ranges.
About 25 people were involved in a ground search on Saturday with numbers swelling yesterday to more than 40, when more were taken in by an RNZAF Iroquois helicopter.
The Taupo-based Lion Foundation Rescue Helicopter also conducted an aerial search.
Three dogs and their handlers joined the search operation yesterday and two kayakers paddled down the Waipakihi River.
The Thirling family emigrated from Germany to New Zealand 12 years ago.
Mr Thirling, a computer consultant, and his hunting companions had planned the trip for some time and were well equipped.
Karina's older brother, Thomas, is in the South Island.
Mr Shepherd said going into the bush alone was common practice for hunters.
However, Mr Thirling was more used to hunting in Northland where the terrain was flatter and more open than the Kaimanawa Ranges.