It is the first time in the club's 128-year history that a father and son have both served as huntsman, and the elder Wall is confident his successor will do an excellent job.
"He'll be good. They are lucky to have him," John Wall (52) said.
John Wall's late brother Ian whipped for a huntsman, and his brother David and sister Marlene also hunted as children, while niece Rebecca Heffernan now hunts with Waimate.
He got involved about 16 years ago when his children, Hamish (now 24) and Tania (22), were riding. Hamish was about 6 when he first started hunting.
It was the hounds mainly, and the thrill of the chase, that appealed to John Wall; sentiments that were echoed by his son.
"I do it for the love of the hounds, really, and for the horses," Hamish said.
The huntsman's duties include feeding and exercising the hounds, as well as providing the sport at hunts. The club has 15 couples (30 hounds).
Hamish recently attended the South Island Hound Show, which was held during the Eastern Southland Hunt's 75th-jubilee celebrations. He was thrilled when Waimate was awarded three firsts, three seconds and a third placing.
Hamish has had prior experience as huntsman, having stepped into the role during the club's 125th-anniversary celebrations in 2007 when his father was injured.
Those celebrations attracted hunting enthusiasts from throughout the country, yet the quietly spoken Hamish said he was not daunted by it.
With such a long history - Waimate is one of the oldest hunt clubs in the country - it was a privilege to be huntsman, he said.
Hamish is also a very keen and successful rodeo competitor, and hunting is fitted in during the winter months, during the rodeo off-season.
Waimate's joint master Joanna Dalton recalled the first time she hunted with Waimate, about 13 years ago, when Hamish was riding a little grey pony "having a ball and jumping everything".
He loved the hounds and his horses and had a very patient manner, she said, and she was excited about the future of the club.
"I think we are one of the luckiest hunts in the country, being able to breed our own huntsman," she said.
