Eland

[Rell]

"Lol. You need to get out a little more in the rest of Southern Africa. "

That would be fun!
However, I have seen enough of the dry barren land in Texas, New Mexico, Kansas, SE Colorado, Kansas, the desert southwest, etc that I have no interest in travelling halfway around the world to see more of the same. Been down under, New Zealand and a few other places and as elsewhere there are places that are better to be than others. I despise deserts and land becoming deserts.
To each his own, I reckon.

Try southern Cameroon, rain forest, for Bongo and Sititunga. You hunt it in the wet season. You’ll love it.

 

[crs]

Rell Asked if Limcroma is high fenced.
As best as I can remember, It was not.

I was there early on when Hannes first began business and the lodging was under construction. I saw one high fence which I think separated his property from some of his brothers. There was no fencing along the rivers. Since they had previously run cattle, there was some cow fencing and they still raised a few head in one pasture. There was definitely cow fencing along the road that passed the main entrance, because Sterling, my hunting buddy had to go through a multi strand barbed wire fence to retrieve his wart hog. At the time, it appeared to me there was only the Limpopo river to keep a person from crossing into Botswana. Interestingly, the photos I took there of Botswana looked like a big empty overgrazed Texas pasture. The Limcroma property looked natural and not like a ranch at all.
We also hunted and shot many species of birds on another property near the Crocodile Inn where we stayed a night. The crocodile tail steaks were as good or better than Alligator tail steaks.

 

[WAB]

"Lol. You need to get out a little more in the rest of Southern Africa. "

That would be fun!
However, I have seen enough of the dry barren land in Texas, New Mexico, Kansas, SE Colorado, Kansas, the desert southwest, etc that I have no interest in travelling halfway around the world to see more of the same. Been down under, New Zealand and a few other places and as elsewhere there are places that are better to be than others. I despise deserts and land becoming deserts.
To each his own, I reckon.

Your characterization of Africa is totally inaccurate. Sure there’s desert, there’s also savanna, bushveld, mopani forest, highlands, etc.. I think that’s the point Joe was trying to make. And that dry bush scrub will hide an eland bull like you wouldn’t believe. There’s a lot more cover than you see in the open areas where folks typically pose their trophies.

 

[crs]

Thanks Rell, but we have Bongo and many other African species in Texas. In fact , when the winter weather slacks a bit my son and I will be doing a bit of exotic hunting here. We even have wart hogs now and the game department seems to not like that.

 

[Jaegger]

Rell,
Thank you for the explanation.
Interesting that bulls were not widely dispersed at Limcroma. But then why would they be, with plenty of water, cover, and food?

Time of year dictates the foliage appearance of the bushveld & particularly for Savannah type regions preferred by Eland. Can you outwit/outplay an Eland by time of year!? Huh, maybe over the March/April Rut & glassing for herds.

I‘ve targeted Eland on three (3) hunts & tracked them thru flats, thick scrub & hill country … formidable Climbers & Jumpers for their size. I could not pattern their waterhole activities during hotter months & during shooting light + Eland coloration melts away in dry/brown foliage months.

Challenging neat hunt experience … Happy Trails.

 

[Limcroma Safaris]

Limcroma is all SA style high fence; But it has trees with leaves... Apparently that makes all the difference

Hello Sir! Have you hunted with us before, or are you making an assumption?

Limcroma Safaris has just about 250,000 acres of hunting properties that are owned by the Els Family or managed exclusively by Hannes Els for our guests to hunt. Of that 250K acres, we have many thousands of acres that are managed as "bow only" and many more thousands of acres that are "rifle only" properties. Our high fence bow properties range anywhere from 5 to 12K acres, and our rifle properties range from 10-35K acres contiguously..

We also have an enormous amount of hunting property that is uniquely situated at the confluence the Limpopo, Crocodile, and Marico rivers, hence our name "Lim-Cro-Ma".. We have miles of International river border which is not fenced and completely free range, as well as many miles of low fence that separated the family properties. There are only a small handful of outfitters in South Africa that have this amount of diverse property for our guests to hunt, and we are quite proud of the fact that we are one of them.

If you have indeed hunted with us, I'm sure you can attest to the description above. If not, I invite you to come hunt with us for what I can guarantee to be one of the most challenging, rewarding, and as fair chase of a hunting experience as you will find in South Africa.

 

[crs]

Well said.

 

[WAB]

It sounds like you have very high quality properties!

 

[Ridge Runner]

My fitst Cape Eland. East Cape, South Africa. Used a 375 H&H, 300 grain Hornady DGX.

 

[Bob Nelson 35Whelen]

I’m with @WAB on this. Taking the NP (unbonded) to Africa to hunt a heavy boned animal like Eland is not the best idea. Highly recommend the Swift A-Frame, Barnes TSX, Norma Oryx or Federal TBBC.

@BeeMaa
Or a good heavy 250gr Woodleigh if you can find some.
Bob

 

[fourfive8]

For that relatively hot 340, in addition to the TSXs, TBBCS or A-Frames, I could also highly recommend the 250 gr North Fork bonded soft point. (made in Sweden and currently available through Reloading Intl). To my knowledge, the soft point North Fork and TBBC are the only bullets available in the US similar in design to the proven and popular Rhino soft point made in RSA.

In this age of catch-as-catch-can components and ammo, leave no stone unturned and sometimes be prepared to pay a premium for availability of the best.

Settling may be a false economy. And anyone who chooses not reload, might be forced to settle.

 

[buck wild]

Hello Sir! Have you hunted with us before, or are you making an assumption?

Limcroma Safaris has just about 250,000 acres of hunting properties that are owned by the Els Family or managed exclusively by Hannes Els for our guests to hunt. Of that 250K acres, we have many thousands of acres that are managed as "bow only" and many more thousands of acres that are "rifle only" properties. Our high fence bow properties range anywhere from 5 to 12K acres, and our rifle properties range from 10-35K acres contiguously..

We also have an enormous amount of hunting property that is uniquely situated at the confluence the Limpopo, Crocodile, and Marico rivers, hence our name "Lim-Cro-Ma".. We have miles of International river border which is not fenced and completely free range, as well as many miles of low fence that separated the family properties. There are only a small handful of outfitters in South Africa that have this amount of diverse property for our guests to hunt, and we are quite proud of the fact that we are one of them.

If you have indeed hunted with us, I'm sure you can attest to the description above. If not, I invite you to come hunt with us for what I can guarantee to be one of the most challenging, rewarding, and as fair chase of a hunting experience as you will find in South Africa.

That's a good response Dan, but not sure the question was answered since the poster you quoted inferred Limcroma was all fenced and it would appear you have taken issue with that inference as the Limcroma US Rep. So...of the 250K acres Limcroma operates, how much is fenced vs not? No need for an exact amount. A rough estimate would suffice. BTW I have hunted fenced properties and have no issue with it but your response didn't really address the inference you took issue with originally.

Lots if places along the Limpopo River are low fenced as you mentioned but in my experience those are the areas that are not easily fenced because of the river flooding during the rainy season so to keep from the fences being destroyed they are set back from the river 100-600 meters. It usually results in hundreds of miles of a strip of low fenced property. If that's the case, not great eland habitat but maybe I'm wrong. I've only hunted these strips three times (disclaimer never with Limcroma) and never saw an eland I don't think. Bushbuck, kudu and warthogs were mostly what I saw.

Thanks for being an AH Supporter BTW

 

[firehuntfish]

That's a good response Dan, but not sure the question was answered since the poster you quoted inferred Limcroma was all fenced and it would appear you have taken issue with that inference as the Limcroma US Rep. So...of the 250K acres Limcroma operates, how much is fenced vs not? No need for an exact amount. A rough estimate would suffice. BTW I have hunted fenced properties and have no issue with it but your response didn't really address the inference you took issue with originally.

@buck wild, It wasn't me who replied.. I believe Hannes Els, the owner of Limcroma Safaris did. In reading his response, I would assume he took the inference just as I did in that occasionally some members here feel the compulsion to suggest that ALL RSA-based outfitters are put & take, and that a true fair-chase hunting experience cannot be had in RSA. In speaking for myself, I do take issue with that inference simply because its not true.

In regard to how much of Limcroma's hunting properties in total are high fenced, I honestly don't know but I can certainly ask and get an exact figure if you need to know. What sets us apart is not that we don't utilize the high fence as a management tool for our game and properties. We would never deny that and why would we? What sets us apart is the amount of property, the sizes of the individual contiguous concessions, our management plan, and the diversity of terrain we have to offer our hunters. Huge, contiguous, properties that are not sub-divided where most of the species are allowed to propagate naturally offer a completely different hunting experience than smaller, divided and sub-divided properties which cannot maintain the same management practices. That, among many other things, is the biggest difference we can offer...

Lots if places along the Limpopo River are low fenced as you mentioned but in my experience those are the areas that are not easily fenced because of the river flooding during the rainy season so to keep from the fences being destroyed they are set back from the river 100-600 meters. It usually results in hundreds of miles of a strip of low fenced property. If that's the case, not great eland habitat but maybe I'm wrong. I've only hunted these strips three times (disclaimer never with Limcroma) and never saw an eland I don't think. Bushbuck, kudu and warthogs were mostly what I saw.

You are correct in that most, if not all riverfront properties are impossible to fence at all due to the massive swings in the seasonal water levels. Another component that cannot be managed by fence is the international river border we share with Botswana for roughly 7 miles. At low water years and especially around the late season of August through October, the rivers dry up to standing pools in many places. All sorts of game can and do walk across the river to come and feed in our Ag fields. This is especially evident of the many hippos and elephants that migrate across the rivers from Botswana every season trampling our fences, and destroying our crops. It's pretty tough to wrangle elephants & hippos especially when your side of the river has the better food and habitat.

You are also correct that these river bottoms, as game rich as they are, usually do not provide the best habitat to hunt eland. Although this thread started as a discussion about hunting eland, it got a bit off track (as threads on here often do) when the inaccurate inference was made that ALL RSA hunting is high fence and therefore all RSA outfitters are the same. I believe Hannes felt compelled to reply not about eland hunting per se, but about the generalizations and inaccurate inference in regard to hunting in RSA, high fence, low fence, or no fence, and to point out that all RSA outfitters do not necessarily have the same experiences to offer their guests. Also, that some very challenging and rewarding fair-chase hunting can be had in RSA when the right set of circumstances are in place.

Thanks for being an AH Supporter BTW

On behalf of the Els Family and the entire Limcroma Family, it has and will continue to be our sincere pleasure to be a supporter of AH.com for the last 8 years and many more to come!

 

[Wiley64]

does anybody make a trip just for Eland? like a pre dangerous game safari?

 

[WAB]

does anybody make a trip just for Eland? like a pre dangerous game safari?

I did a trip to Bots and only hunted eland. My wife and son took other animals. It took four days of tracking to come up with that bull.

I have done two safaris where I only fired two shots, one at a target and the other at the intended quarry. One was for eland, the other for buffalo. I am perfectly fine with that. I want to hunt hard and wear out boot leather. To me those safaris were far preferable to driving about and filling the cruiser with targets of opportunity.

 

[buck wild]

@firehuntfish Thanks for the honest feedback. I was just looking for a rough estimate of low vs hi that LC hunts. As an example 70% hi, 30 % low etc. but maybe for another thread

 

[Jaegger]

I’ve organized eight (8) PG Trips & vast majority of the Hunters define #1 & #2 Trophy on their hit-list that requires special attention from the Guide or PH while in the bush.

Eventually allot of other quality trophies ‘get in the way‘ of that Master Plan buy you always must start w/ a focused master plan …

I could see myself going to the Waterberg region of Namibia & dedicating allot of hunt days to just Eland … you must have the guts to bypass many worthy shooters for that opportunity @ an ancient Monarch.

Happy Trails.

 

[Jaegger]

… X2 w/ WAB comments above on focus to a particular trophy where commitment & KM on the soles for that trophy makes for a memorable hunt vs. #’s in the salt!

I did that on a property w/ Holy Grail 30”+ caliber Waterbuck … I ignored everything in the bush BUT on day #6 I took an outstanding Warthog cuz I’m a sucker for big pigs! Day #8 I took my near Holy Grail Waterbuck Bull @ 29 1/2”.

You must also have a patient Guide … passing on 28”+ Waterbuck many days over makes you wanna punch yourself in the face!

 

[Rell]

I’ve done just eland trips and shot four or five. I’ve done just buckbish trips and shot a dozen of those. I want to immerse myself in a style of hunt and enjoy it.