African Safari.......The Hunt

[JimP]

I’ll not bore any of you with the details of the 42 or so hours to get there. Between 4 different flights and layovers in airports it was quite madding to say the least so here goes with the fun part.

We landed in Port Elizabeth to be met by 6 or so of the PH’s who would be hunting with us. After gathering up our firearms, luggage, and loading them into their trucks we were off to the lodge. Along the way a couple of hunters who were with me were amazed at the wild game standing alongside the roads and in the fields.

We arrived at the lodge and were assigned our PH’s who would be our guides for the trip. My PH was Cid. He took my rifle case and led me to my boma or home for the trip. He then led me into the breakfast/lunch building for a hearty lunch. Then after filling out a hunting license and getting my rifle and some ammo we headed down to the range to check out my rifles zero before starting the hunt. The range was set up so that you could shoot steel gongs at 100, 200, 300, and 500 yard ranges. There were already a few checking their rifles but Cid told me to take the sticks that he supplied and see if I could hit the 200 yard target. I loaded up and took a shot, the resounding gong sounded quite nice and Cid said that I had punched it in the center. I took one more shot with the same results, the baggage handlers had not caused any problems. I couldn’t believe a couple of the hunters moving their target to the 50 yard range and having to adjust their scopes, so you just never know.

So back to the truck and off we went to town to pick up my tracker and do a couple of hours of hunting before sundown. We spotted a few kudu and impala but nothing to brag about so it was to town to pick up Elvis who would be my tracker for the next 9 or so days. Then it was back to the lodge for some refreshments and dinner. I looked over the duch ovens that held our dinner and was amazed at what was there. I was still full after the lunch that was served so I was thinking of skipping dinner when the appetizers came around. I don’t know what was all in them but they were delicious and could have made a meal just out of them. I still decided not to eat dinner and then it was time to head to bed and a good night’s sleep since we were leaving at 6 am to head to Cid’s farm to do really start my hunt.

The next morning about a minute or two before my alarm went off I swore that I heard someone outside of my door tapping on the window, I turned on my light and looked at my alarm, I had a minute more to sleep and my internal clock must of went off or something. I got up dressed and headed to the breakfast room for a good hearty breakfast of pork chops biscuits and gravy with a healthy dose of OJ. Cid came in and asked if I was ready, he didn’t have to ask twice.

We arrived at Cid’s property and hit the dirt roads. He told me to load up and we were hunting. After bouncing around for a while we both spotted a nice kudu standing near the road at around 700 yards. He looked like a good one but I really couldn’t tell so we got out and began a short stalk. Cid in the front followed by me and then Elvis. We got the range down to 200 yards and he look very good and I decided to take a shot. I got down into position and placed the crosshairs behind his shoulder and pulled the trigger. At the shot he reared up on his hind legs and dove into the brush, both Cid and Elvis said that it was a good hit so as I and Cid headed over to where the kudu went into the brush Elvis headed back to get the truck. Once we reached the spot where the kudu had been hit there was no kudu but quite a bit of blood. From here Elvis took the lead followed by Cid and them me. We followed the blood for quite a ways. Up a hill and then down into a valley and then back to the south. After about a half mile Cid decided that he and I needed to get up high and let Elvis track him and perhaps push him into a open area. We got up to where we could see and Elvis started to head into the bush. We got glimpses of the kudu but not good enough for a shot. Cid then called one of his farm workers to come over and help out. He and I then headed to a new location which would be higher and with a better view. The second tracker and Elvis then started into the brush. They were pushing out quite a few other animals as they went and then finally I saw the kudu. He was limping badly on his right leg and moving from thick brush to thick brush, but with the trackers pushing him he was at least moving. Then he came into a clearing and I got a couple of shots off, one of which hit him. When the trackers got to him he was lying about 50 yards away from them. When we got there we started to get closer and at about 40 yards he stood up and gave me a very bad angle, so I side stepped to where I could at least get a shot at his front shoulder. I hit him with the shot and as he was still standing I took another shot which dropped him.

Overall we had pushed and tracked this kudu for over a mile after he had been hit. We then took some pictures and headed to the skinning shed. Once there and they had the skin off down to the shoulders we saw that the first bullet had been a good hit for 90% of the animals. It had taken out part of a lung and broke the right side shoulder. Just so that you know, these animals are tough.

Cid then invited me into his home where I met his wife Janet and we had some coffee and lunch as the skinners finish their jobs and ate their lunch, then we were off again. We went down past an old homestead that Cid said was his fathers. Then down the road further where we spotted some blue wildebeest standing above the road. We got out of the truck and with a very short stalk I had my wildebeest in my sights. A single shot and he was down.

I was just past noon and I already had two animals down. We had the trackers come to where we were at and helped load the wildebeest up into the truck and we were off again. This time Cid decided for us to walk down a road up on a ridge. He said that the warthogs become more active in the afternoons and that we were in a good area. After about a mile we spotted a small group of warthogs about 300 yards away. We got into some brush and worked our way closer. At around 150 yards we saw one old boar in the group. There was a fence post to use for a brace so I got my rifle on it and waited. As I had my crosshairs on the boar there was always another warthog behind him so I didn’t have a shot. Then he was all by himself and I pulled the trigger, a clean miss right over his back. They were off and running with no chance of a second shot. What do I have to do to get a warthog?

On our way back to the truck Cid spotted some impala just below us so another stalk began. At 100 yards he set up the sticks and I got onto them. The ram was chasing ewes and seamed to always have another impala behind him or not standing still. Finally he came to a stop with a clear shot and I squeezed the trigger, my third animal was down on the first day. This was going to be a fantastic hunt.

We got the impala back to the skinning shed and headed back out to see if we could find a warthog in a different location but all we were seeing were sows with little ones or very small boars. So it was back to the skinning shed to pick up the heads and head back to the main lodge for some refreshments and dinner. Once back to the lodge we found that the other hunters had mixed results. I was the top gunner for the day with 3 animals. There were quite a few toast made in my name and a very hardy dinner to get ready for the second day.

 

[Colorado Cowboy]

I’ll not bore any of you with the details of the 42 or so hours to get there. Between 4 different flights and layovers in airports it was quite madding to say the least so here goes with the fun part.

We landed in Port Elizabeth to be met by 6 or so of the PH’s who would be hunting with us. After gathering up our firearms, luggage, and loading them into their trucks we were off to the lodge. Along the way a couple of hunters who were with me were amazed at the wild game standing alongside the roads and in the fields.

We arrived at the lodge and were assigned our PH’s who would be our guides for the trip. My PH was Cid. He took my rifle case and led me to my boma or home for the trip. He then led me into the breakfast/lunch building for a hearty lunch. Then after filling out a hunting license and getting my rifle and some ammo we headed down to the range to check out my rifles zero before starting the hunt. The range was set up so that you could shoot steel gongs at 100, 200, 300, and 500 yard ranges. There were already a few checking their rifles but Cid told me to take the sticks that he supplied and see if I could hit the 200 yard target. I loaded up and took a shot, the resounding gong sounded quite nice and Cid said that I had punched it in the center. I took one more shot with the same results, the baggage handlers had not caused any problems. I couldn’t believe a couple of the hunters moving their target to the 50 yard range and having to adjust their scopes, so you just never know.

So back to the truck and off we went to town to pick up my tracker and do a couple of hours of hunting before sundown. We spotted a few kudu and impala but nothing to brag about so it was to town to pick up Elvis who would be my tracker for the next 9 or so days. Then it was back to the lodge for some refreshments and dinner. I looked over the duch ovens that held our dinner and was amazed at what was there. I was still full after the lunch that was served so I was thinking of skipping dinner when the appetizers came around. I don’t know what was all in them but they were delicious and could have made a meal just out of them. I still decided not to eat dinner and then it was time to head to bed and a good night’s sleep since we were leaving at 6 am to head to Cid’s farm to do really start my hunt.

The next morning about a minute or two before my alarm went off I swore that I heard someone outside of my door tapping on the window, I turned on my light and looked at my alarm, I had a minute more to sleep and my internal clock must of went off or something. I got up dressed and headed to the breakfast room for a good hearty breakfast of pork chops biscuits and gravy with a healthy dose of OJ. Cid came in and asked if I was ready, he didn’t have to ask twice.

We arrived at Cid’s property and hit the dirt roads. He told me to load up and we were hunting. After bouncing around for a while we both spotted a nice kudu standing near the road at around 700 yards. He looked like a good one but I really couldn’t tell so we got out and began a short stalk. Cid in the front followed by me and then Elvis. We got the range down to 200 yards and he look very good and I decided to take a shot. I got down into position and placed the crosshairs behind his shoulder and pulled the trigger. At the shot he reared up on his hind legs and dove into the brush, both Cid and Elvis said that it was a good hit so as I and Cid headed over to where the kudu went into the brush Elvis headed back to get the truck. Once we reached the spot where the kudu had been hit there was no kudu but quite a bit of blood. From here Elvis took the lead followed by Cid and them me. We followed the blood for quite a ways. Up a hill and then down into a valley and then back to the south. After about a half mile Cid decided that he and I needed to get up high and let Elvis track him and perhaps push him into a open area. We got up to where we could see and Elvis started to head into the bush. We got glimpses of the kudu but not good enough for a shot. Cid then called one of his farm workers to come over and help out. He and I then headed to a new location which would be higher and with a better view. The second tracker and Elvis then started into the brush. They were pushing out quite a few other animals as they went and then finally I saw the kudu. He was limping badly on his right leg and moving from thick brush to thick brush, but with the trackers pushing him he was at least moving. Then he came into a clearing and I got a couple of shots off, one of which hit him. When the trackers got to him he was lying about 50 yards away from them. When we got there we started to get closer and at about 40 yards he stood up and gave me a very bad angle, so I side stepped to where I could at least get a shot at his front shoulder. I hit him with the shot and as he was still standing I took another shot which dropped him.

Overall we had pushed and tracked this kudu for over a mile after he had been hit. We then took some pictures and headed to the skinning shed. Once there and they had the skin off down to the shoulders we saw that the first bullet had been a good hit for 90% of the animals. It had taken out part of a lung and broke the right side shoulder. Just so that you know, these animals are tough.

Cid then invited me into his home where I met his wife Janet and we had some coffee and lunch as the skinners finish their jobs and ate their lunch, then we were off again. We went down past an old homestead that Cid said was his fathers. Then down the road further where we spotted some blue wildebeest standing above the road. We got out of the truck and with a very short stalk I had my wildebeest in my sights. A single shot and he was down.

I was just past noon and I already had two animals down. We had the trackers come to where we were at and helped load the wildebeest up into the truck and we were off again. This time Cid decided for us to walk down a road up on a ridge. He said that the warthogs become more active in the afternoons and that we were in a good area. After about a mile we spotted a small group of warthogs about 300 yards away. We got into some brush and worked our way closer. At around 150 yards we saw one old boar in the group. There was a fence post to use for a brace so I got my rifle on it and waited. As I had my crosshairs on the boar there was always another warthog behind him so I didn’t have a shot. Then he was all by himself and I pulled the trigger, a clean miss right over his back. They were off and running with no chance of a second shot. What do I have to do to get a warthog?

On our way back to the truck Cid spotted some impala just below us so another stalk began. At 100 yards he set up the sticks and I got onto them. The ram was chasing ewes and seamed to always have another impala behind him or not standing still. Finally he came to a stop with a clear shot and I squeezed the trigger, my third animal was down on the first day. This was going to be a fantastic hunt.

We got the impala back to the skinning shed and headed back out to see if we could find a warthog in a different location but all we were seeing were sows with little ones or very small boars. So it was back to the skinning shed to pick up the heads and head back to the main lodge for some refreshments and dinner. Once back to the lodge we found that the other hunters had mixed results. I was the top gunner for the day with 3 animals. There were quite a few toast made in my name and a very hardy dinner to get ready for the second day.

As usual get story and pix. Look forward to the rest of your hunt. Congrats buddy, you did good!

 

[Winchester]

Great hunt ... well done !!

 

[dirtclod Az.]

Great stuff, keep bringing it!

 

[Bonecollector]

Great stories and pictures Jim. Looking forward to hearing and seeing the rest of your adventure.
BTW – had you had a Creedmoor a few of those earlier shots may have been improved upon.

 

[JimP]

Day 2

Day two arrived, for some strange reason I thought that I heard a tapping at my door again just before the alarm on my phone went off, I thought that my internal hunting clock was going off, long airplane rides will do strange things to your mind.

I dressed and headed into the breakfast house to be greeted with bacon, sausage, potato hash browns, eggs, and cereal. There was fresh squeezed OJ along with coffee, tea, and a few other drinks to be had. I settled down to a large glass of OJ, eggs, bacon, hash browns and toast. Cid came in and asked if I was ready to head out, it was 6 am, and since I was hunting I told him that it would just take a minute for me to gather my rifle, binoculars, and pack and that I’d meet him at his truck. We went over to the trackers barracks, picked up Elvis and were on our way to the north for a couple of hours to hunt a farm for gemsboks, and a couple of the mountain antelope that they had there.

It took us a while to figure out where this location was since Cid had never been there but once at the main house a truck pulled up with the owner who directed us to where his trackers were waiting. Once everyone was aboard we headed up into the hills. And here I thought that we were hunting African plains game and not Rocky Mountain Elk, boy was I wrong. We came around a corner and Cid spotted a group of mountain reed bucks up on the hill. He studied them for a couple of minutes and told me that there was a very good one in the group, I couldn’t even see the horns. I got out and since it was about a 45 degree uphill shot the sticks were no good. I found a tree limb that I could use as a rest and got onto them. Cid said that the last one was the male to which I replied the one looking away from us and he said yes. I place the cross hairs on the top of his back right above the shoulder. The range was near 450 yards, and I let a bullet fly. The buck was down and sliding down the hill.

The road went right above where they were located at so off we went up the hill. Once near the spot Cid drove off of the road and down the hill to a semi flat location. The two trackers were out and down the hill to retrieve my reed buck. After a few pictures we were off again. We crested the top of a ridge and spotted some black wildebeest behind us, then there was a fantastic bull just off to the side of us. He would a make a great trophy but I wasn’t after them. On up the ridge we drove and then there was a tap on top of the cab. The trackers had spotted some gemsbok down off the far side of the hill. We drove up to where we could park the truck out of sight and headed down the hill to where we could see them better. We were about 100 yards down the hill when Cid asked one of the trackers to head down the hill and to get behind them to see if he could push them out of the thick stuff and into the open for a shot. There are trees there that are similar to our mountain mahogany and the animals love to get under the canopy and out of the sun and wind. Did I mention that the wind was blowing with gust up to around 50mph?

Once the tracker was behind them they started to move. We figured the direction would lead them to the left of us and down a ways, so down the hill we went to a large tree that I could use as a rest. We were there for about 15 minutes when Cid spotted them at the bottom of the hill to our right. He got the sticks up and I got on them. Since both male and female gemsboks have horns I looked for a male that has much larger bases than a female does, I spotted him and then had to wait until he stopped. The shot was around 250 yards when I took it. The whole herd was now moving. I got back onto him but didn’t see any blood, and since there was only one male I decided to let another round go. He didn’t even flinch. Elvis, my tracker said that he thought that I had hit him with the first shot but wasn’t sure, neither was Cid or I.

We headed up the ridge about 400 yards while the tracker was still on their trail. I had a large outcropping of rock right below me and then I spotted the male gemsbok about 150 yards below us laying down. I got onto the rocks and let another round fly, Cid hollered that I shot over him. I lowered my sights and center punched him. I had my gemsbok.

We hiked down to him to meet up with both trackers. We got some pictures and looked up the hill, it was going to be quite a pack out for them. One got on his phone and soon help was on the way in the form of 2 more trackers/packers. Elvis cleaned the gemsbok right there and split him in half for the pack out. Cid and I then left them and headed up the hill. The hill was steeper than I had thought. Either that or my old age was catching up with me. It took me a lot longer to get to the top and by the time that I was there my lungs were burning. My problem is that I have asthma and that hike had aggravated it giving me a hacking cough that a 2 pack a day smoker would have been proud of, this cough would last the rest of the hunt and even now as I type this I still let go with a good cough every now and then. But back to hunting.

The 4 trackers had a tough time bringing him up the hill and Cid was getting aggravated. We finally spotted them coming up and went over to lend a hand getting the head and hind end up to the truck. We checked out a couple of other areas but were soon headed back to the lodge. We did have a slight argument with the amount of tip that we gave each tracker which was 100 Za which is a little bit more than $6.00 US. The top tracker wanted 300 Za and 100 to each of the others but he finally agreed and we were headed back to the lodge for cocktail hour and dinner.

 

[JimP]

Here is a little break from the hunting story and pictures.

This is my room. A king size bed with a heating pad on top of the mattress. I woke up one night and felt like I was cooking. The lady who turns on the outside and inside light in my room when it gets dark had set it at a low setting. I had to remember each night to turn it off or I'd fell like I was in a dutch oven

This is where we ate dinner. They would build a fire in the pit and then once they had enough coals they would bring out the dutch ovens to cook our meals. The table like thing that you see is where they cooked the meat over hot coals from the fire.

This also doubled as the only place that we could get on the internet.

Some giraffes that we ran into

Some sable

A lone zebra

Some sunrises and sunsets.

 

[Bonecollector]

Did you use your iPhone for pictures or take additional photography equipment?

 

[JimP]

The trophy shots were with my Samsung A42, it was easier to pack around than my full sized camera

The landscape ones and some of the live animals were with a Cannon Powershot SX50

 

[Finsandtines]

Amazing experience and photos. Thanks for sharing!

 

[JimP]

Day three was now here. I thought that I heard that tapping again so I got up and went over and opened up the door to find nobody there, was I going crazy?

We were staying local today so we didn’t head out until 7am. We drove some roads down below the lodge seeing a number of different animals. We glassed a number of areas and still didn’t find what we were looking for so we bounced back to the lodge for a great lunch. By this time I knew to take it easy on the meal since the dinners were so great. I had a light salad and a drink and I was fine after a custard for desert, I just couldn’t pass that up. That afternoon we headed to the north seeing impala, a few kudu, and a troop of baboons. I hadn’t decided what I wanted as my 3 elective animals but figured that a baboon skull would look nice next to the other skulls that I have. At around 6 we headed back to the lodge for a fantastic dinner of kudu steak, potatoes au Gratin, and some vegetables.

Cid had decided that we were going to go out all the next day and spend the night at his house and for me to pack what I needed. He asked me how I liked roast lamb and I just started to drool.

The next morning I was awake at 4:30 and was just lying there when I heard that tapping again. I looked up to see one of the kitchen ladies standing there with a flashlight. I wove to her and she wove back and was gone. Come to find out they provide a wakeup service for us but didn’t I didn’t hear anything about it, so I wasn’t going crazy.



We got to Cid’s and headed right over to his neighbors to look for warthogs. We parked the truck and took a short hike and found some on a neighbor’s property just past the fence. We hiked down along the edge of the fields and didn’t see anything except for animals on someone else’s property. We had gone about a mile when we headed up to the road which was about a half mile above us. Just as we got to the road all 3 of us saw him at the same time. A nice boar warthog at about 30 yards, Cid didn’t even have time to get the sticks set up. I had the rifle up to my shoulder and had the trigger pulled just that quickly. The warthog dropped straight down and was done. While Elvis went to work on it Cid and I started to walk back to the truck. When we got to a gate Cid said that he would retrieve the truck and for me to wait where I was at. When he got back I got into the truck and then he stopped again. The old farmer who owned the property came up to us and asked how we had done. He hated warthogs since they were constantly digging in his fields and he was constantly filling in the holes that were made by them. After talking for a while we headed down the road to Elvis and the warthog.

We dropped the warthog off at the skinning shed and then headed over to another property to see if we could find some blesbucks. As we went through a gate some took off at a dead run for the far side of a field. Cid told Elvis to take the truck to the far side on the road and then to push the blesbucks back towards us. We then started to hike down the hill while Elvis drove around to come in on them from behind. This plan worked to perfection, we were crouched down behind some brush watching them come straight towards us. At around 70 yards I got up onto the sticks and as soon as the one that we wanted stopped I pulled the trigger. Another two animal day so far.

Once we dropped off the blesbuck off at the property owners skinning shed we headed back over to Cid’s see if we could find a duiker which is a very small antelope. We sat over a water pond that they visited for about an hour when a warthog came out and started to feed. We watched him for about another hour or so when right under us out came a duiker. He ran right past the warthog and out into the middle of the field. Cid said that he was a good one and for me to take the shot. He didn’t need to say anymore. I pulled the trigger and the duiker was down on the ground. We hiked back to the truck and drove over to it and once there Cid thought that he had made a mistake and we had shot a female. When he went down he stuck both of his horns into the soft sandy soil, there was no mistake.

After this we decided to try and call in a jackal since it was on my list and I thought that it would make a great skin mount. We picked up an electronic caller and headed out. We hiked into a small draw and set up the caller. But after a couple of hours it was getting dark and no jackal. So it was to Cid’s house for a fantastic lamb roast with all the trimmings.

The next morning we were up early headed back to the property that I had shot my warthog on. There was a very long canyon that baboons liked and we planned on getting one there. We had Elvis and Cid’s farm hand who we dropped off at the bottom of the canyon. We then drove around to the top and took a short hike. After a couple of hours we saw Elvis coming up through the brush. There were no baboons in the area today so we headed back to the lodge.



We got to the lodge in the early afternoon so Cid decided that I needed to see if I could fill my cull blesbuck so we headed to the top of the mountain to the south of us. Once up on top we took a road to the west. It was quite open up on top and it reminded me a lot of the middle and western portion of the Monroe Mountain. The top was fairly flat and then it slopped off on both sides to trees. We spotted a number of blesbucks but they were so spooked that as soon as they saw the truck they were gone. We looked for a spot to set up on them for the rest of the afternoon but just couldn’t find an area that was any good. So it was back to the lodge for a great dinner and a hot shower.



The next morning found us headed to the east down in the canyons below the lodge. I had just a few animals left so it was getting harder to actually find one that was on my list. We bounced around for half a day without spotting anything to make a stalk on so we headed back to the lodge for lunch. Cid talked to a couple of other PH’s and they suggested that I go after my baboon in a spot that they had dumped a couple of trucks of oranges. So after a good lunch we were off down a road to the north to see if we could find them. As we came into a clearing we jumped a troop of around 30 of them, they were off and into the trees just as fast as they could. We took a side road to where we could take a hike up onto a hill and watch the pile of oranges. Well, we got up on top of the hill and spotted a lone baboon sitting in a clearing around 300 yards away. With no way to get any closer Cid put up the sticks and told me to take a shot. I got onto the sticks and pulled the trigger. The baboon dropped like a rock. We went back to the truck and around to the side where he was located at only to see that he was now gone. Elvis got onto his blood train and we quickly found him in a very bushy piece of brush. Elvis and Cid started around to the left and I stayed in the center, I then spotted the baboon headed to the right. I moved with him and when he cleared the brush he started up an 8 foot tall fence post. For some reason I felt like an armed guard at a prison of something. When he was about half way up I had the scope on him and pulled the trigger. At the shot he was pushed through a hole in the fence and onto the other side as dead as he could be. I had a baboon. It was now back to the lodge for dinner and a hot shower.

In the morning we followed another PH and his client down a road to the west, after a few miles we came to a fork in the road where he headed to the left and we went to the right. This road took us back up on top of the hill where we could chase the blesbucks around some more. We never got closer than 500 or more yards so it was back to the lodge for lunch. After lunch we headed up on top of the hill again looking for a bushbuck. These are small antelope with long slightly curved horns. We got up on top of the hill and turned to the east. Here there was a large grove of pines similar to ponderosa pines of our forest. We parked the truck and silently creped through them to the other side. On our way back we dropped down the hill a ways and came to a spot to sit and watch. I shortly spotted a female laying down. Her head looked a lot like a mule deer fawns. We watched this area until almost dark but didn’t find any others.

Time was getting close and I still had 3 animals to fill out my quota of 12. This morning we decided to see if we could find a ostrich as one of my elective animals. We headed down into a valley were there was suppose to be quite a few. After quite a ways we didn't see anything so we were headed back when Elvis spotted a group of young males. I headed over to the side of the hill and got on them but as they were moving there wasn't any shot. They headed to the north so off we went. We got over to a area where we could see the far side and here they came in single file. I picked the lead one and took a shot, he went down but wasn't dead. Like other animals whenever he would stop he was behind a bush or something else blocked a good shot. We hiked down the hill and finally got off another shot and he was down. He wasn't one of the mature males that have the fantastic plumage but we had him anyway.

 

[JimP]

We then headed down a road and spotted some impala about a half mile off of the road. We got out and headed towards them to see if I could get my female impala cull. At about 300 yards we couldn’t get any closer due to all the brush. We found one all by herself and I got onto the sticks and took a shot, I hit here but the shot was low blowing out both of her front legs. Then every time that she would stop it was either in a bush or she was facing directly at me. Finally she gave me a good broadside shot and it was over. I had one more animal on my list. That evening we headed back up to where the blesbucks were hanging out at. This time we parked the truck and hiked down the road. But even doing it this way once they spotted us they were gone. We then had Elvis go get the truck and drive to the far end of the hill to see if he could push them towards us, this didn’t work either. We spent quite a few hours trying to get into range for a shot but it never really happened. The one shot that I had was a long one with them standing up on a hill skyline and no backstop and I just didn’t feel comfortable in taking a shot.



The next morning we headed into a different area, as we were driving down the road a jackal ran across it right in front of us. Cid hit the brakes and we were out of the truck looking for him. He had ran off about 200 yards and was broadside to us on a small hill. I took a shot and it was right over his back. I then wondered just what a 225 grain bullet would have done to him, quite possibly it would have blown him into two pieces. We then headed down another road along another property. We would get out occasionally to do some glassing and we finally found some blesbucks on the far hillside. 400 yards was as close as we could get and still see them. I was up on the sticks and felt comfortable so I pulled the trigger on the one that Cid said was a female. They were off and running. I got a second shot off when they stopped but couldn’t tell if I had hit it or not, it was still standing. We headed down the ridge and I got off another shot, this one I knew had hit solid just from its reaction but it was still moving up and into some thick trees. We sent Elvis over to see if he could find her and perhaps push her out into the open. He got over to where she was hit from the last shot and said that there was blood all over and for us to follow. Once there I couldn’t believe the amount of blood on the ground and no animal. We went into the trees where Elvis lost the track. We looked for quite a while but couldn’t come up with anything. Cid then called another PH who had a tracking dog to come give us a hand. We then started to circle around the last area where we found blood. Cid then walked up on it laying unable to move. One finishing shot and my hunt was over. I had taken the 12 animals on my list. A kudu, gemsbok, wildebeest, impala, blesbuck, duiker, warthog, cull impala, cull blesbuck, and my three animals of choice. A mountain reedbuck, baboon, and an ostrich plus a female blesbuck that I put down for a farmer that was found injured.

Here are a few more pictures of my home for the stay.

And these off of my deck

The rifle that I used was a .340 Weatherby mag Mark V with a fiberglass stock loaded with hand loads of 225 grain Barnes TTSX bullets at 3000 fps. The scope was a Leopold Varied-X III 3.5-10x40. My rifle case was a cheap one. A Harbor Freight Apache rifle case which is a clone off of a Pelican. It held up to all of the baggage handlers abuse and came through it just fine. The rifle and scope has now been to Africa twice and the scope has held it’s zero through all the bumps bounces that can be expected for a trip such as this.

I flew out of Denver to Dallas with American Airlines, transferred to Qatar Airlines for the hop over to Doha, Qatar and then to Johannesburg, South Africa. There we transferred over to Airlink the only airline in South African licensed to carry firearms. We flew them to Port Elizabeth where we were picked up by our PH’s. The return trip was just opposite with the same airlines.

 

[Slugz]

Thanks Jim for the great story and pics!! If possible could you post a break down of costs to include getting mounts back?

 

[JimP]

Thanks Jim for the great story and pics!! If possible could you post a break down of costs to include getting mounts back?

It'll be December-February before I know what the shipping is going to be.

I'll get a breakdown as what it is up to now later today.

 

[Slugz]

It'll be December-February before I know what the shipping is going to be.

I'll get a breakdown as what it is up to now later today.

Thank you sir.

 

[JimP]

I had a few minutes so I went and took a quick look at what has been spent so far.

Safari $6400
Airfare & travel insurance $2483
The travel insurance was $900 but it would of brought my body back in a air ambulance if needed to my home hospital. The airfare is all over the place right now but the cheapest that I have seen is $1100 from Denver to Port Elizabeth.

Tips for staff $500 and PH $1000= $1500
this breaks down to $50 a day for the lodge staff and $100 a day for the PH

1/2 deposit for taxidermy in SA $2200
My taxidermist here in Colorado upped his prices plus he is 15 months out once he receives the capes and horns so I went with outfitters taxidermist with a 6 month turn around, so I should have my completed mounts early next year. I may save some money this way, I hope. I was just going to get one animal mounted but decided on 3 and 5 euros I believe.

Preapproved firearm permit $150
The travel agent that we used screwed us out of $150 for their work for our firearm permit. They basically looked at the form that I filled out and forwarded it to the company that we used in South Africa. I did all this myself back in 2015 and it isn't that hard to do. But I do recommend using a service to get the permits approved before you arrive. If going by yourself or a small group I also suggest the meet and greet which will add some to the permit cost.

Future.

Importer clearing cost $975
Shipping I'm guessing around $3500.

There are cheaper importers but the one that I am using is perhaps the best in the business but even the cheaper ones will run around $450+ for what they do.

Then there are the charges for extra bags $100 each way for American Airlines, $50 each way for Airlink in South Africa and a bunch of other service charges by the time that you get through. You can rent rifles for around $35 a day plus ammo from the outfitter if you don't want to take your own rifle.

I think that I'll be close to $20,000 when it is all done and finished.

 

[tim]

wow, pretty cool trip!

 

[mosquito]

Thats great jim . I think that will be my retirement gift to myself