Elkeater
AH veteran
I will start this with I have now completed exactly one safari. But I did it with my Family.
If your interested in my hunt report it’s here: https://www.africahunting.com/threa...uth-africa-sensational-hunting-safaris.83234/
Prior to this trip I saw a number of people asking on the forum about taking kids with them so I thought Id post my experience and thoughts on hunting Africa with kids.
This safari was a family affair from the start. And honestly we didn’t even initiate the idea. My brother and sister in law actually invited us along and my wife said yes before I could even think about it.
We went with Sensational Hunting Safaris in the Waterburg Mountain area of Limpopo and we had an awesome time.
Hunting with my kids has always been important to me. I started taking them with me on deer hunts and coyote hunts at some pretty young ages. They were each probably about 4-5 when they started going with. I also started them shooting at about the same age with a .22lr. I think it’s important to expose the kids to hunting early but I never intended nor do I force hunting on my kids. I always figured if I showed them what hunting is and they took an interest in it then great! If not that was ok too. Prior to our first safari both kids had developed a taste for hunting. My 10 year old daughter Hannah is pretty into it at this point. My 9 year old son Sam wasnt quite as into as his sister but that started changing in the last year or so and he’s getting into it more now.
Deciding to allow them to go and hunt:
Deciding on taking the kids wasn’t hard. We’ve traveled to other countries like grand cayman and Mexico so my kids weren’t totally new to travel. My wife wanted the whole family to go and with my daughter’s interest in hunting having her as one of the main hunters with her own package was a no brainer while my wife and son were initially going to be observers. By the time we went to Africa both kids had taken a couple big game animals here in the states so hunting wasn’t new to them. About 6 months ahead of our trip my son expressed interest in wanting to hunt as well. Specifically he wanted a warthog (which he did get a beautiful boar) and maybe an impala or blesbok. We made a quick call to the outfitter who was easily able to accommodate our request to allow Sam to take a couple of animals. We made the decision to allow the kids to hunt based upon their desire to hunt and not our desire to make them hunt. We simply opened the doors to allow them to experience Africa and let them decide to what extent they wanted to participate. The only other concern we had was food. Kids can be picky and mine aren’t any different but we’ve always been big on trying new foods in our house and I think my kids were old enough to deal with new foods because they both decided they were going to try everything at least once. In the end they loved almost everything. Even my daughter who is somewhat notorious for avoiding spices gladly helped herself to seconds of many dishes. It probably helps no one in my house avoids meat.
Preparing for the trip:
Like everyone else the kids had to prepare. We made them part of the process. We had them pick out their clothes, shoes, hats, etc. we of course provided guidance on what types of things to bring. This was actually really helpful because they knew exactly what they had available to them once we got there.
We are a pretty outdoor oriented family anyways so my kids know how to be outside so there were no issues there. We hike, rock climb, camp, paddleboard, fish, hunt, etc. Makes it easy to add on outdoor adventures.
Shooting. This was one area we spent a lot of time. Now my kids have been shooting for years but mostly off a bench or bipod. So knowing they would have to shoot off sticks I had them shoot off sticks. We probably went through 2,000 rounds of .22lr ammo in the 6 months leading up to our trip. I also had each shoot the 7-08 rem I have at least a few times each practice session. We didn’t shoot a lot of paper. I set up 5” steel plates at 100 yards and 3” plates at 50 yards and had them shoot those. All standing off the sticks. This really paid off because they made good shots and we never had to track a single animal they took.
Shot placement was critical. I bought a copy of “The perfect shot” and we spent a lot of time looking at the photos and reading about the animals before our trip. When the time came each kid knew where to put a bullet. Again time well spent resulting in clean kills and no lost animals.
Setting Expectations:
We set expectations with the kids before the trip. Yes they had their wish lists of animals but I made sure they understood it was hunting and made sure they managed their expectations for the trip. We also talked about trying new foods and being open to new ideas. They took everything in stride.
The PH is Crucial:
Our PH Petie Boon was awesome! I felt
Like he went out of his way to help the kids and once when maybe I was a little hard on my son he even politely offered a little fatherly advice to me. He has an adult son who is now a PH after all so he probably can offer some good parenting advice. We spent extra time setting up shots for the kids but he also pushed them a bit. For example my daughter was pretty adamant about not shooting over 100 yards. With a little coaching I think she actually made the three longest shots of anyone on the trip with a Blesbok at 197yards, a Zebra at exactly 200 and a Springbok at 210 yards. When my son struggled with a blesbok because they never stop moving and are always bunched up, Petie kept that in mind and when an opportunity on a lone Blue Wildebeest came up he suggested to me that we allow my son to take it instead of a blesbok. Sam shot the bull at 75 yards and made a perfect shot. My son wanted a warthog in the worst sort of way and Petie made it happen. That involved a long hot sit in the dust and sun, crossing paths with Cape buffalo, and my son getting so overwhelmed by all the warthogs and other things going on around him that he started to cry. Both myself and Petie took turns encouraging him and my son eventually pulled himself together and killed an excellent warthog. Petie gave my son a huge hug when the boar was down on the spot. I think we were both equally proud of Sam because that was a really hard hunt for him between the dirt, heat, his bloody nose, and maybe a little chaos in the warthogs running in every direction.
Managing my expectations and desires:
I had a three animal package and originally planned on shooting a Blue Wildebeest, Impala, and Warthog. I then planned to add on a kudu, bushbuck, and Zebra. I got lucky and shot a Kudu the first night and shot my Impala, and warthog the first morning. I let Sam shoot my Blue wildebeest, and didn’t pull the trigger again until the last day. I found so much enjoyment in letting my kids pull the trigger that I honestly didn’t really feel the need to hunt much myself. My daughter had killed the very first animal of the trip when she shot an impala the first afternoon. Sam shot his wildebeest the second afternoon. Hannah got her Zebra on the morning of day 3 and her steenbok the evening of day 3. Hannah got her springbok the morning of day 4 and Sam got his warthog at last light on day 4. Sam opted to be done with having taken two animals, Hannah added a Blesbok which was not originally on her list the last morning. I shot a big Nyala the last afternoon and a porcupine that night.
Things I would have done different:
Honestly not much. Maybe a little more time on the front end to rest. Travel to Africa is hard on adults. It’s harder on a kid. They did really well but they were really tired. Sam fell asleep in his hunting clothes and missed dinner the first night. I should have taken more pictures and videos of the kids.
The Bottom line:
I think you can take your kids on a Safari. It depends on the kid though. I felt comfortable taking mine I know people who wouldn’t feel comfortable taking their teenagers. My kids put in the work before the trip and made it apparent they wanted to go and took the trip seriously. If they hadn’t wanted to shoot and practice beforehand or pack their clothes or study shot placement I may have still felt fine in letting them go along but I sure wouldn’t have let them hunt. I also don’t think I would have taken them at a much younger age just because I don’t think much younger they’d really remember the trip. But that’s just my opinion too. My kids loved every minute of Africa. They already have their list of animals they want to take when we go back. You can bet I’ll be working overtime and feeding their new Africa habit.
If your interested in my hunt report it’s here: https://www.africahunting.com/threa...uth-africa-sensational-hunting-safaris.83234/
Prior to this trip I saw a number of people asking on the forum about taking kids with them so I thought Id post my experience and thoughts on hunting Africa with kids.
This safari was a family affair from the start. And honestly we didn’t even initiate the idea. My brother and sister in law actually invited us along and my wife said yes before I could even think about it.
We went with Sensational Hunting Safaris in the Waterburg Mountain area of Limpopo and we had an awesome time.
Hunting with my kids has always been important to me. I started taking them with me on deer hunts and coyote hunts at some pretty young ages. They were each probably about 4-5 when they started going with. I also started them shooting at about the same age with a .22lr. I think it’s important to expose the kids to hunting early but I never intended nor do I force hunting on my kids. I always figured if I showed them what hunting is and they took an interest in it then great! If not that was ok too. Prior to our first safari both kids had developed a taste for hunting. My 10 year old daughter Hannah is pretty into it at this point. My 9 year old son Sam wasnt quite as into as his sister but that started changing in the last year or so and he’s getting into it more now.
Deciding to allow them to go and hunt:
Deciding on taking the kids wasn’t hard. We’ve traveled to other countries like grand cayman and Mexico so my kids weren’t totally new to travel. My wife wanted the whole family to go and with my daughter’s interest in hunting having her as one of the main hunters with her own package was a no brainer while my wife and son were initially going to be observers. By the time we went to Africa both kids had taken a couple big game animals here in the states so hunting wasn’t new to them. About 6 months ahead of our trip my son expressed interest in wanting to hunt as well. Specifically he wanted a warthog (which he did get a beautiful boar) and maybe an impala or blesbok. We made a quick call to the outfitter who was easily able to accommodate our request to allow Sam to take a couple of animals. We made the decision to allow the kids to hunt based upon their desire to hunt and not our desire to make them hunt. We simply opened the doors to allow them to experience Africa and let them decide to what extent they wanted to participate. The only other concern we had was food. Kids can be picky and mine aren’t any different but we’ve always been big on trying new foods in our house and I think my kids were old enough to deal with new foods because they both decided they were going to try everything at least once. In the end they loved almost everything. Even my daughter who is somewhat notorious for avoiding spices gladly helped herself to seconds of many dishes. It probably helps no one in my house avoids meat.
Preparing for the trip:
Like everyone else the kids had to prepare. We made them part of the process. We had them pick out their clothes, shoes, hats, etc. we of course provided guidance on what types of things to bring. This was actually really helpful because they knew exactly what they had available to them once we got there.
We are a pretty outdoor oriented family anyways so my kids know how to be outside so there were no issues there. We hike, rock climb, camp, paddleboard, fish, hunt, etc. Makes it easy to add on outdoor adventures.
Shooting. This was one area we spent a lot of time. Now my kids have been shooting for years but mostly off a bench or bipod. So knowing they would have to shoot off sticks I had them shoot off sticks. We probably went through 2,000 rounds of .22lr ammo in the 6 months leading up to our trip. I also had each shoot the 7-08 rem I have at least a few times each practice session. We didn’t shoot a lot of paper. I set up 5” steel plates at 100 yards and 3” plates at 50 yards and had them shoot those. All standing off the sticks. This really paid off because they made good shots and we never had to track a single animal they took.
Shot placement was critical. I bought a copy of “The perfect shot” and we spent a lot of time looking at the photos and reading about the animals before our trip. When the time came each kid knew where to put a bullet. Again time well spent resulting in clean kills and no lost animals.
Setting Expectations:
We set expectations with the kids before the trip. Yes they had their wish lists of animals but I made sure they understood it was hunting and made sure they managed their expectations for the trip. We also talked about trying new foods and being open to new ideas. They took everything in stride.
The PH is Crucial:
Our PH Petie Boon was awesome! I felt
Like he went out of his way to help the kids and once when maybe I was a little hard on my son he even politely offered a little fatherly advice to me. He has an adult son who is now a PH after all so he probably can offer some good parenting advice. We spent extra time setting up shots for the kids but he also pushed them a bit. For example my daughter was pretty adamant about not shooting over 100 yards. With a little coaching I think she actually made the three longest shots of anyone on the trip with a Blesbok at 197yards, a Zebra at exactly 200 and a Springbok at 210 yards. When my son struggled with a blesbok because they never stop moving and are always bunched up, Petie kept that in mind and when an opportunity on a lone Blue Wildebeest came up he suggested to me that we allow my son to take it instead of a blesbok. Sam shot the bull at 75 yards and made a perfect shot. My son wanted a warthog in the worst sort of way and Petie made it happen. That involved a long hot sit in the dust and sun, crossing paths with Cape buffalo, and my son getting so overwhelmed by all the warthogs and other things going on around him that he started to cry. Both myself and Petie took turns encouraging him and my son eventually pulled himself together and killed an excellent warthog. Petie gave my son a huge hug when the boar was down on the spot. I think we were both equally proud of Sam because that was a really hard hunt for him between the dirt, heat, his bloody nose, and maybe a little chaos in the warthogs running in every direction.
Managing my expectations and desires:
I had a three animal package and originally planned on shooting a Blue Wildebeest, Impala, and Warthog. I then planned to add on a kudu, bushbuck, and Zebra. I got lucky and shot a Kudu the first night and shot my Impala, and warthog the first morning. I let Sam shoot my Blue wildebeest, and didn’t pull the trigger again until the last day. I found so much enjoyment in letting my kids pull the trigger that I honestly didn’t really feel the need to hunt much myself. My daughter had killed the very first animal of the trip when she shot an impala the first afternoon. Sam shot his wildebeest the second afternoon. Hannah got her Zebra on the morning of day 3 and her steenbok the evening of day 3. Hannah got her springbok the morning of day 4 and Sam got his warthog at last light on day 4. Sam opted to be done with having taken two animals, Hannah added a Blesbok which was not originally on her list the last morning. I shot a big Nyala the last afternoon and a porcupine that night.
Things I would have done different:
Honestly not much. Maybe a little more time on the front end to rest. Travel to Africa is hard on adults. It’s harder on a kid. They did really well but they were really tired. Sam fell asleep in his hunting clothes and missed dinner the first night. I should have taken more pictures and videos of the kids.
The Bottom line:
I think you can take your kids on a Safari. It depends on the kid though. I felt comfortable taking mine I know people who wouldn’t feel comfortable taking their teenagers. My kids put in the work before the trip and made it apparent they wanted to go and took the trip seriously. If they hadn’t wanted to shoot and practice beforehand or pack their clothes or study shot placement I may have still felt fine in letting them go along but I sure wouldn’t have let them hunt. I also don’t think I would have taken them at a much younger age just because I don’t think much younger they’d really remember the trip. But that’s just my opinion too. My kids loved every minute of Africa. They already have their list of animals they want to take when we go back. You can bet I’ll be working overtime and feeding their new Africa habit.
Very Good on the hunting report. Just missing a couple of things from being a Great hunting report:
