In memoriam - Professional Hunter Greg Michelson killed by Buffalo

[JP50]

A tragic set of events, and condolences to all concerned, as all will be blaming themselves and hindsight is a wonderful thing.

Would anyone know what percentage of buffalo shot need to be tracked and a follow up shot required?

 

[mark-hunter]

Many commenting haven’t had to stand tall, several of whom have limited to no African DG experience.

My last hunt was buffalo hunt in dangerous game country. (report to follow soon)

This was my most difficult shot to make ever. Not because it was actually difficult, but because of adrenaline and responsibility that comes behind the trigger.

If the first shot is poor, a hunter has possibility to loose the animal for ever, and get his money evaporated. (Financial concern)
He will come home and tell friends and family he failed, wounded animal lost, etc. (social concerns and strains, for some)
Or loose the animal in the bush, and face the charge later, which brings entire hunting team in danger. (safety and ethical concern)

Psychological stress is high on client/hunter, for the consequences of that first shot. At least it was for me, and it was not comparable to any plains game hunt I made earlier.

For many hunters, DG hunt is hunt of a life time, which they have been hoping for for years.
Preparing for years.
Planning for years.
And for some, maybe the one and only DG hunt in a lifetime.
One chance in a lifetime to get only, focused on that first shot.

All those years of planning and hoping come down to these ten days in the bush.

Then it gets to pressure of time.
Time is limited. 10 days, 9 days, 5 days, 4 days, 3 days, last day, the last sunset....

Many things come into calculation.
To fire the first shot, just before sun set? Have tracking in night, or postpone tracking till morning while animal is walking to another country? (decision by PH)

For the shot in the morning when all day is there for eventual tracking, is not the same as shot in the evening, when the stakes are much higher.

Then we have shot at DG on a first day of hunt.
Or shot at DG on a last day of hunt.

And then consider a high value shot, on a last day of hunt, maybe in the evening when client can easily make compromise on less then 100% certainty, just to get a chance for so hard wanted DG animal?

Years of planning, maybe years of savings, and next chance if no shot is taken to be maybe never again?
And last day of hunting closing so fast?
Many hunters will be tempted to take shot on last day of hunt, which they would not take on a first day.

Heavy recoil rifles, and clients with training, or maybe without training, add to this picture.

I think that in general, considering all above and high stakes at table, there is higher percentage of bad shots in DG hunting, then when compared to plains game hunt. Big DG animals are also tougher then PG and more resilient to the poor shot
I really dont know of percentage of good and bad shots in practice, but experienced PH could confirm or deny this.

That shot, therefore is clients commitment and responsibility, under the permanent pressure of possible failure.

PH, he has his own share of responsibility and stress..
And he has all kinds of clients, with all kinds of skills, and all types of character
Bring the client to position to shoot.
And when wounding happens with reliable client, or non reliable client, he has to go in the bush to sort out the things.

 

[Altitude sickness]

Unfortunately for the Professional Hunters, Trackers, Game Scouts. If hunting with a new client. They have no idea how the hunter will perform at zero hour.

Its too bad a Hunter does not go through the same level of vetting a PH does. To hunt DG. Of course this isn’t practical. But not impossible.

When I was climbing at extreme altitudes. Several outfits and or teams I climbed with required me to submit a resume’ of experience. And to get a physical and mental examination. Then submit the results before being excepted. Then after arriving we were all tested for skill level and proficiency.

But I’ve seen the opposite while climbing in Nepal. People that had no right to be on the mountain other than the means to pay their way.

I’ve thought many times that PH’s and guides unfortunately have to put their lives in peoples hands that they don’t know.

 

[HankBuck]

I tend to agree, however, we don’t know the circumstances. A PH I hunted with had one of Condoleza Rice’s security detail on a hunt in Zambia after she calmed things down in Kenya. The guy was having trouble keeping up on a buffalo. The PH looks back and the dude is stone dead. Heart attack in the bush! My point is that we don’t know what the hunter or observer were struggling with so we should probably show some grace until all the facts are known.

@WAB - you succinctly made a very good point - We should “show some grace”. I am surprised at how many are writing posts like-they-were-There and pontificating about how things should have been handled..like “The Real House Wives of Safari”