Are you prepared?

[DmacD]

This traveler may not even make it to his final destination, depending on who took care of the little details. I for one would not be able to sleep at night if I did not confirm that all details were taken care of and that I was as prepared as I could be. Who looked after his permits? Who vetted his choice of outfitter?
It guess it all depends on what is most important to the individual. I clean my truck at least once a month, more so if it needs it. My wife has not cleaned her car - ever. Who is right, who is wrong. (Hint, I am right!)

 

[mark-hunter]

@Ross Reamy
Thank you! Got it.

 

[CoElkHunter]

There was a thread a little while ago that said something to the effect that since the hunts are so expensive, the hunters will spend the time to be prepared for the Africa hunt.

I met someone today that answers this question. He's been talking about his Africa hunt for over a year and he gets on the airplane tomorrow. He has never shot off sticks before, so he decided he should check them out. So, he set up a set of sticks in his office this morning and put his gun on them and told me it is definately different from what he's used to. He was shopping for clothes to wear on the hunt. No plans for bringing the animals home, or taxidermy choice. Also, no idea as to the animals he wants to go after (which is probably good).

I don't have a lot of experience, but I have been there once. I also put forth the effort to practice and spent a couple of days with a person who has been a client and a PH so I would know what to expect. So, from my perspective - Guys (and Gals), don't put stuff like this off to the last minute, it is different and the sooner you prepare the better and more enjoyable your entire trip will be.

Your acquaintance should stick to golf. I’ve never been to Africa, but before and when I hunt in the mountains of Colorado, I’m ALWAYS prepared for the worst (weather)! My backpack NEVER leaves me, cause I don’t want to become a statistic. Probably not the same issues in Africa, but the planning and preparations and other issues are crucial to the success of a hunt.

 

[Mr. Zorg]

I see that African sticks, and preparation with them is always the subject.

I am a bit surprised, because I always use the sticks for hunting, when walk and stalk. Its routine.

So, I have to digress a bit, and ask: How majority of Americans shoot, hunt at their home grounds - without sticks?
What is usual, common American way?

I am an American, but have never been average or typical, so this is simply the way I shoot.

No sticks, and rests where my off hand has nothing to do like shooting from a bench is not my preference. I have a light frame and I've always used my left hand to snug the butt of a rifle into my shoulder, often with the aid of a sling. That allows my trigger hand to concentrate on a firm but not overly clenching grip and to not have to have my dominant arm muscles taut. I learned shooting from both my father and the National Rifle Association (NRA) youth program during the 1970's. At that time there were 4 standard shooting positions and you had to use all 4 in youth training progression: prone, sitting, kneeling, and standing. Hoever my local instructor has shown me that shooting from all 4 of these standard positions is no longer part of the NRA Basic Rifle course (I guess that might be covered in more advanced rifle training now but I honestly don't know). I've never used a bipod or sticks when shooting game, and I've only used a bipod once for shooting paper, but I acknowledge up front that I'm a bit of a fossil at this point. I have some concerns regarding hunting in Africa if I'll be required to use shooting sticks without first being given an opportunity to demonstrate my abilities using techniques I've used for a long time.

When I was a young man hunting with my father we rarely sat in blinds, spot & stalk was our method without knowing there was a formal term for what we did. We hunted with open sights on military surplus rifles; his was a .303 SMLE and my rifle was a 6.5X52mm Carcano. My father used Remington Core-Lokt ammo but all we could ever find for my Carcano in those years was military surplus FMJ ammo. I don't exactly know the reason why, but on top of that we could only find 3 to 5 cartridges per box that woild chamber properly in my Carcano rifle. Most rounds didn't allow the rifle bolt to even begin to close (how could this be a soldier's weapon I always wondered?). My rifle shot well using the cartridges we were able to properly chamber. So I would be hunting with a clip with 3 to 5 cartridges of FMJ. I specialized in skull & neck CNS shots, and that's still my preference at ranges of 100 yards or less, using a scope now as my vision isn't anywhere near as sharp as it was back then. However I no longer use FMJ ammo when hunting.

There just seems to be several elements involved with safari hunting in Africa that make me question if it's really something I would enjoy. My body no longer puts up with spot & stalk with a slung rifle although I've been advised by one outfitter that others could serve as gun bearer(s) to accommodate this (I can walk just fine including through thorny South Texas scrub), yet I see a lot of stuff written about having a 3 to 5 second window to get a shot off at a game animal on African safaris.

The more I participate here, the more I'll be able to learn if taking an African safari (just plains game for me, with maybe a buffalo after gaining experience) would really be a good experience for me. I like to think so but I'd also like to be realistic. If all I wanted to do is bag "exotic" plains game animals I could do that without boarding an aircraft here in Texas, and I could bring the meat home with me here which is a consideration as I enjoy true low & slow barbecued meats. My largest smoker is a 24"diameter combination horizontal & vertical unit, plus 2 smaller patio size smokers (one horizontal, one vertical). But it just doesn't seem the same vs hunting African animals on African soil for me.

 

[mark-hunter]

There just seems to be several elements involved with safari hunting in Africa that make me question if it's really something I would enjoy. My body no longer puts up with spot & stalk with a slung rifle although I've been advised by one outfitter that others could serve as gun bearer(s) to accommodate this, yet I see a lot of stuff written about having a 3 to 5 second window to get a shot off at a game animal on African safaris.

From what I have seen:
In average PG safari, you will go by 4wd, to area of hunt. In most of cases the game will be seen, or observed from vehicle.
Then approach will be made on foot.
Walking in this way can be anything from 15 minutes up to 4 hours. Or a day, with lunch break.
But average stalk is less then two hours, or easy walk.

In the car, there are cooler boxes with water and soft drinks.

Optionally, there are hides and high stands over waterholes. There you can sit, and wait.
Tracker as gun bearer can be utilized, or PH. There are no formalized duties to that kind of detail. Situation on the ground is "fluid".
For example I was helping pulling the animals to the car, on occasion tracker or PH kept the rifle for me, etc. Basicallly, tracker, PH, client - work as a team.

Regarding the sticks: sticks are great tool. But if you are used to make shots without them (harder way), dont worry.
Training with sticks is just polishing of already acquired skills. Just get a bit used to it at home range when training.

Of course there are harder terrains, and ever tougher ways to hunt on safari, but when making an inquiry make sure you clear all your concerns with outfitter.
Obviously, something like bongo hunts during rain season in tropical forest, or mountain safaris, are different category (so we read here), but that is not what we talk about.

 

[BigSteve57]

Offhand standing, sitting or prone, bipods, tripods, makeshift rests on rocks, crotch of a tree, up against a tree. Varmint hunting, portable shooting benches and where legal, some sort of setup on a vehicle. Have not seen any preference for two legged sticks in the U.S.

Yep. Prior to our trip to Africa my wife and I never hunted big game (deer) with any sort of rest. The only time I used a rest was for hunting varmints (groundhogs, chipmunks, rats) and for those I used a very old set of Forster tripods. Those are wonderful.

I also tried a plastic "shooter's walking stick" but that thing is a disaster. The walking stick was often hard to use as the plastic would not penetrate hard or rocky ground. I did carry it a few times when hunting deer in the winter - same problem with frozen ground. The base is pointed so it will not even work as a monopod. I don't think I ever actually used it. I have two that have sat in the garage for about 25 years. I'd advise anyone to save their money and skip it.

Forster tripods - no longer made:

MTM Shooters Walking Stick - the picture makes it look easy to use & convenient. It is not.

 

[BobT]

I see that African sticks, and preparation with them is always the subject.

I am a bit surprised, because I always use the sticks for hunting, when walk and stalk. Its routine.

So, I have to digress a bit, and ask: How majority of Americans shoot, hunt at their home grounds - without sticks?
What is usual, common American way?

I have used sticks for many years and if possible I have always used a rest of some sort. I also seriously practice off hand shooting and am pretty confident with my abilities . If I had not been confident with my offhand shooting I would not have killed either of the 2 baboons I shot in Tanzania last year as they were both taken with quick offhand shots. I fired hundreds of rounds of full power .375 H&H in preparation for my safari, 95% of them were off sticks and it really paid off.

 

[CoElkHunter]

I see that African sticks, and preparation with them is always the subject.

I am a bit surprised, because I always use the sticks for hunting, when walk and stalk. Its routine.

So, I have to digress a bit, and ask: How majority of Americans shoot, hunt at their home grounds - without sticks?
What is usual, common American way?

When I hunt elk (wapiti) in the Colorado U.S.A. Mountains, sticks wouldn’t work, because one never knows where/when they’ll show up. You have about TWO seconds to shoot where I hunt in the thicker forest. I’ve shot four either sitting or kneeling. The others using my backpack as a rest and two offhand. These shots were all within 100 yards and ALL on public land. If one were to try setting up sticks, the elk would see this and be GONE! I’ve really been amazed seeing African hunting videos here on AH and elsewhere, where one has time to set up the sticks AND the target animals are not running away at full speed? Just a different type and style of hunting and different game species and probably a lack of hunting pressure?