Constructive information sought on CBL planning

[Tundra Tiger]

Greetings fellow AH members and site sponsors.

First, I would ask that you please respectfully consider what this post is – and what it is not.

I am wanting to put together a lion hunt for 2025. Yes, that kind of a lion hunt (CBL), because that is what my budget will allow. I would also like to possibly add crocodile to this hunt, as well as some species of PG.

I have already reached out to several AH members, as well as a few sponsors. I am posting this in an attempt to “cast a wider net”. Perhaps there are members who would be willing to share their thoughts and experiences with me via PM (or on this thread). Perhaps there are outfitters who provide what I am hoping to find, but that I haven’t spoken with yet.

If you have hunted CBL, I’d love to hear from you. What did you think of the experience? What did you like? What did you not like? What would you do different? Who did you use? Would you use the same outfitter again?

Outfitters… what do you have? I have spoken to a couple of outfitters on here that seem to offer what I’m looking for, but I have not yet made any decisions. I am not a tire-kicker. While there is a financial basis in deciding to go the CBL route, I am not looking for the best priced deal, but rather the best possible experience I can have within the realm of this type of a hunt, coupled with opportunities for other species.

If you have an issue with CBL hunting, and you want to denigrate it in a generic fashion, I would appreciate it if you would simply not respond.

This post isn’t meant as a HS debate team topic; I have a pretty good idea of how many of you feel about CBL hunts. Rather, it’s a hunt that I want to make happen, God willing and money provided, in 2025. It is an attempt to learn more, from those who have done it, and those who facilitate such hunts.

Thank you in advance.

 

[MATTANJA HUNTING SAFARIS]

@Tundra Tiger I dropped you a PM!

Cheers
Dieter

 

[Aaron N]

Enjoy planning your hunt, and I hope you end up going through with it. Don’t let anyone else tell you what’s right for yourself!

 

[Tundra Tiger]

Thanks Aaron; I'm plenty stubborn so I don't see any roadblocks at this point. Have a great weekend sir.

 

[CoElkHunter]

Another well thought out post from an educated man tapping the many experiences and opinions on the subject at hand from the MANY experts here on AH. Good luck on your quest @Tundra Tiger!

 

[Tundra Tiger]

I can't let my wife see your generous words; she might decide to argue the point, after she stopped laughing.

 

[CoElkHunter]

I can't let my wife see your generous words; she might decide to argue the point, after she stopped laughing.

Seriously though, that is probably the most thought out post I have ever seen here regarding this topic. Kudos!

 

[TSALA HUNTING SAFARIS]

Good Day Sir

Tsala Hunting Safaris can help put this together and will gladly give you more info.

Will send you a PM

Regards

Rouan

 

[Inline6]

@Tundra Tiger I have not hunted lion yet, that will be this summer. We are going with @JKO HUNTING SAFARIS we have hunted with them in the past. They do it right, worth having a conversation with them.

 

[THAT'S AFRICA SAFARI]

Good ay
I have sent you a PM
Regards

 

[UMLILO SAFARIS]

Hi Tundra Tiger, I sure hope a bunch of the members on here thats done CBL with me the past decade will be in touch with you, either on here or via pm. Thanks for the chat the other day. Best Wishes

 

[KEMP AFRICAN SAFARIS]

Kemp African safaris will send you a pm .

 

[DE KLERK SAFARIS]

Hello Tundra Tiger
We can certainly be of assistance to you.
We have one of the largest areas for lion hunts in South Africa.
Lodge is in the middle of hunting area so no long road trips every morning or evening.
Start hunting from the lodge.
No internal fences just one large open hunting area.
We give our clients a true wild experience tracking lions on foot.

I will get back to you later as we are busy with Dallas Safari Club convention right now and do not have a lot of time to type long e-mails.
Just get in contact with us via e-mail or come and see us at DSC or SCI convention in Nashville.

Sincerely
Hans de Klerk

 

[Green Chile]

Great post that gets right to it. PM to you.

 

[Mark Biggerstaff]

Great post and topic to find the right outfitter. Good luck in your search. I have done one and really enjoyed it. It was done right in my opinion. PM me if you have any questions.

 

[Juan Loco]

I am not very eloquent with the written word but will try to respond to your post.
I have hunted lion in enclosed areas three times. In each case the animals have been loose long enough to fend for themselves and revert to their natural demeanor. I have hunted in “wild” areas where lions have been encountered on a somewhat regular basis and have found these lions to be less “cheeky” as a general rule than the ones I hunted.
If you track your lion on foot, bump him a time or two, aggregate him till he’s tired of you following him, move in to 30 or 40 yards, then my friend you have done a lion hunt. He doesn’t know he’s fenced in a 50,000 acre pen (you ever walked a 50,000 acres area?); he’s just tired of an interloper invading his territory and he will make you leave. When you’re close enough to have his rumble, grumble vocalizaion raise the hair on your neck, then it’s show time!
Your first shot may blow his heart out, but just like a whitetail deer can find 100 yards after such a shot, so can he! You are 30 yards away….do the math.
So don’t listen to the nay sayers, go, enjoy and come back with a new respect for life. You only live once but if done right it’s enough.

 

[WAB]

Good luck in your quest TT!

 

[375Fox]

I am not very eloquent with the written word but will try to respond to your post.
I have hunted lion in enclosed areas three times. In each case the animals have been loose long enough to fend for themselves and revert to their natural demeanor. I have hunted in “wild” areas where lions have been encountered on a somewhat regular basis and have found these lions to be less “cheeky” as a general rule than the ones I hunted.
If you track your lion on foot, bump him a time or two, aggregate him till he’s tired of you following him, move in to 30 or 40 yards, then my friend you have done a lion hunt. He doesn’t know he’s fenced in a 50,000 acre pen (you ever walked a 50,000 acres area?); he’s just tired of an interloper invading his territory and he will make you leave. When you’re close enough to have his rumble, grumble vocalizaion raise the hair on your neck, then it’s show time!
Your first shot may blow his heart out, but just like a whitetail deer can find 100 yards after such a shot, so can he! You are 30 yards away….do the math.
So don’t listen to the nay sayers, go, enjoy and come back with a new respect for life. You only live once but if done right it’s enough.

I’m replying to your post but it’s intended for anyone else replying as well. I do have a lot of respect for Tundra Tiger and don’t want to derail his thread, but I find this particular hunting so offensive I find it difficult not to respond. My views are written many times in other threads. I can tolerate discussions on planning and what to look for. A comparison on wild vs CBL I’d encourage anyone to save for a different thread or reply directly by PM.

 

[Vintageguy]

I’ve watched several of these hunts and on African Sportsman the host, Stefan Fouche, upon finding a kill and drag marks made by the lion they were tracking, blurted out “this is f$&@ing awesome!” The adrenaline pump went up from there too. That from someone who hunts there all the time. I have to say there’s no doubt in my mind what level of exciting it must be.

 

[Hunter-Habib]

@Tundra Tiger
I have hunted captive bred lion once, but all the other times have been truly wild lion in Tanzania. Wild lion along with hippopotamus on land are my top two favorite members of the African Big Five to hunt. As a matter of fact, I plan on hunting my next wild lion in 2025.

Personally speaking, CBL hunting is just not for me and can never compare to hunting truly wild lion. Not in a million years. But (without boasting or trying to show off about my financial status) this is only because I can afford to hunt wild lion once every few years. A luxury which not every hunter can afford. For them, a properly regulated CBL hunt comes reasonably close to the real thing (although obviously not entirely).

But if somebody goes around saying that hunting CBL lions is completely risk-free and akin to shooting fish in a barrel… Well, then they have absolutely no business talking about lion hunting in the first place. Unfortunately, the old adage goes “The most ignorant voices are the loudest”.

With a proper outfitter, a CBL lion hunt can be a very exciting one. Feel free to drop me a line if you’d like to get in touch with my outfitter. I assure you that you will have a very regal time.

P.S: CBL lions do have certain behavioral differences than truly wild lion. But this not not make them much less dangerous.