First safari

[Captwright]

So I won a safari to South Africa for a management hunt within 24 months. I can upgrade to trophy which I most likely will. Any pointers on what to expect? Definitely going for a trophy Kudu and maybe a Blue Wildebeest. I for sure want to bring home a baboon or two. Any firearm recommendations would be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance.

 

[Mark A Ouellette]

Stand by for a thousand suggestions!

From me,
1. Get a list of all the costs. The PH donated the hunt you won but now needs to get some cash flow.
2. Does he transport you to his camp for free?
3. Decide on your budget
4. What animals to bring home. This can be expensive. Maybe only trophy size mounts
5. Accommodations? Tents and bucket showers or comfortable living.
6. Quality of food? Military chow hall or nice restaurant taste?

and so on...

There will be at least 994 more suggestions coming...

 

[Mark A Ouellette]

7. Take the most powerful rifle that you can shoot very well! Someone once advised me that if a two hundred or more shot may be the best one available, make sure you can shoot your mega-magnum from a prone position. Ask your PH now about the maximum distances. That may of course depend on the amount of vegetation which differs with time of year.

8. Get shooting sticks and practice shooting off them. There are plenty of threads on this forum on the best ways to shoot off them.

 

[Mark A Ouellette]

I won a safari to South Africa for a management hunt

I think a management hunt is very much a cull hunt. That's a great way to have wonderful African experiences! I went on a cull hunt at Tally Ho Safaris last October on my way to an elephant hunt. What a blast the cull hunt was!

Stalking a older, female, or broken horn animal in the bush is very much the same as stalking a trophy animal. If a female is in a herd rather than by itself as a male may be, the stalk will be harder. Too many eyes and ears!

Think it through concerning the additional cost of a trophy animal vs hunting 3 or 4 more cull animals. The choice is yours!

 

[JimP]

I'll defer on the most powerful rifle that you can shoot.

A 270 will suffice for most plains game including kudu, but I wouldn't go any smaller.

As was mentioned, find out just what is included in your hunt before going. They can nickle and dime you to death if it isn't all inclusive.

 

[Mekaniks]

Welcome to AH. Tell us more about the package you won. Who is the outfitter? What animals are included?

 

[TXhunter65]

Definitely get a list of all additional costs. My first trip was an auction I won at DU and everything is more expensive on donated hunts as mentioned above. All trophy fees will be increased especially kudu because that's what everyone wants to shoot. Agree with take the largest caliber you feel very comfortable shooting but you don't need a canon. A lot of PH's don't like muzzle breaks...but then again who does when you're not shooting the rifle. I killed my Kudu with a 7mm-08, he was quartered towards me, went about 60 yards. Also depending on the outfitter and available fire arms you might think about leaving your rifle and home and using theirs, but you'll need to ask about that price as well.

 

[Mark A Ouellette]

The best advice I can give is to spend an hour a day reading old threads on this site. You may find 10 different opinions on a subject of which none are wrong. Try to learn what will work best for you! The answers are here. Of course talk to and email your PH. Get the PH answers in writing, in case they may forget... It happens since they have a lot of clients during the year.

 

[R.M.C.]

Welcome to the forum and congrats on the win!! You're in the right place to plan a safari

 

[Buffalo1]

Did you win a hunt or the bid for a hunt? Major cost difference.

What are the details of what will be included on this hunt?

 

[Tanks]

Whatever you'd use to shoot Elk would be sufficient. The odds of you shooting prone are slim to none in an African hunt. I would practice shooting from shooting sticks though.

As others have said the devil is in the details. Most of the donated hunts are designed for upcharges to make up for the donation and end up costing more than just booking the hunt from a reputable outfitter.

 

[Berettaco]

Congrats on winning a safari - cull hunt will be fun for sure. As @Mark A Ouellette mentioned, search through this site and you’ll find a ton of info and maybe help make some decisions. Don’t get too hung up on which rifle to take. If you have a deer/elk rifle in the safe, take that - just use a premium bullet. If you plan on dangerous game then that’s an entirely different thread (tons of previous threads on that too).
emailing your PH is the best idea, get info and prices in writing and go from there.
My first trip I took a 30-06 with Barnes TTSX 180 - worked great. This next trip I’m taking my 270 and 404J as I’m shooting some PG and 2 buffs.
planning is half the fun.

 

[Philip Glass]

So I won a safari to South Africa for a management hunt within 24 months. I can upgrade to trophy which I most likely will. Any pointers on what to expect? Definitely going for a trophy Kudu and maybe a Blue Wildebeest. I for sure want to bring home a baboon or two. Any firearm recommendations would be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance.

On a donated safari my advice is to tell the outfitter what extra animals you would like. This will make your hunt go better. I always recommend something along the line of 7mm Mag or .300 Win because you just never know what the conditions of the hunt will be like and you want to be prepared for anything.
check out my safari planning videos in the safari planning section or YouTube.
Happy safari planning!
Philip

 

[Rare Breed]

So I won a safari to South Africa for a management hunt within 24 months. I can upgrade to trophy which I most likely will. Any pointers on what to expect? Definitely going for a trophy Kudu and maybe a Blue Wildebeest. I for sure want to bring home a baboon or two. Any firearm recommendations would be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance.

Personally I think a black wildebeests is a better trophy than a blue one

 

[fourfive8]

Another "won" hunt. Hmmm. Well kudu and blue wildebeest are good goals. Since baboons are considered vermin in many camps/areas you are basically paying a fee for the privilege of helping them thin the numbers. I have no idea why you consider them a priority- they are a primate after all. As far as cull/management shooting... the idea is shooting select animals and not ruining too much meat and not losing any to crippling loss.

I would get a good list of game on quota and trophy fees and go after what the area offers. Take what Africa gives- so to speak and not use a preconceived idea of real "trophies". You can easily get carried away shooting too many full fee but so-so trophy fee animals for shipping/mounting. The cost of that hunt can easily skyrocket if not paying attention. I guarantee, a 26" impala is a far better trophy than a 48" southern greater kudu!! A heavy 25" red hartebeest is far better than a thin horned young wildebeest bull.... and so on. Good luck, take the time to enjoy the time there- there's a lot more to Africa than pulling the trigger.

 

[JimP]

Personally I think a black wildebeests is a better trophy than a blue one

I totally agree. After seeing how crazy that the black wildebeests act I had to have one instead of a blue one. Plus you can have their tail made into a fly swatter

 

[375Fox]

Without knowing more about the outfitter, I’d recommend keeping this hunt to a minimum and use it as a learning experience to plan your second hunt. There is a wide range in quality of outfitters and quality of hunting areas. Keep your costs low and you’ll know what you want to plan your second hunt and properly spend your money. If you enjoy hunting with the outfitter shoot a kudu and wildebeest but export it on the next hunt for save on shipping and clearing costs.

 

[MarkB]

The only person who can answer your question on "what to expect" is you. I strongly suggest doing as many on this site have stated. Research, research and ask EVERY question you have. Get those and HOW to ask from this site also. Communication is key to success. Good luck, think as if you are in the first class of a 3 yr diploma education.

Good luck and have fun with your task.

MB

 

[Captwright]

Thank y’all for the replies in a short time. I will try and reply back to everyone at once. I will definitely up to a trophy something. I will definitely be purchasing a bigger rifle here in the next few months. The outfitter is Shi-Awela safaris out of South Africa. I did bid on the trip but feel I got a decent deal of $1800 on it.

 

[Hunt anything]

Definitely get a list of all additional costs. My first trip was an auction I won at DU and everything is more expensive on donated hunts as mentioned above. All trophy fees will be increased especially kudu because that's what everyone wants to shoot. Agree with take the largest caliber you feel very comfortable shooting but you don't need a canon. A lot of PH's don't like muzzle breaks...but then again who does when you're not shooting the rifle. I killed my Kudu with a 7mm-08, he was quartered towards me, went about 60 yards. Also depending on the outfitter and available fire arms you might think about leaving your rifle and home and using theirs, but you'll need to ask about that price as well.

I haven’t had trophy fees increase on donated hunts in fact it was just the opposite, my outfitters have always gone the extra mile working on my budget. One even gave me a free trophy if I agreed to shoot a little higher dollar animal.