I wanted to check in again with another update about the trophy shipment. At this point there is a huge hang-up in the States by the USDA regarding trophy importation: as of July 1st they implemented a new rule requiring more stringent procedures for clearing imports and it's creating a massive hardship for hunters like me. I don't understand all the changes, but suddenly I can't use Anchorage as my port of entry, and my customs broker here can't help me without herself flying to an approved facility in another state. I need to contract with some other broker who can physically go to one of the few designated ports of entry where my shipment would land and personally take a cordless screw gun to go open the crate up so the bureaucrats on site can inspect it and then allow the top to be put back on... They refuse to open crates themselves. And they're only willing to inspect 30 crates a day, so if it's not my lucky day then there are storage fees (of up to $200/day). Then, I have to figure out how to have my leopard and buffalo eventually DRIVEN home to Alaska, because all the domestic airlines refuse to transport any "Big 5" trophies inter-state. I can't afford to have all my taxidermy done at once, which is why I need delivery to my residence for storage, although the baboon trophies have to go directly from the port of entry to a taxidermist.
Did I mention it's a mess?
Marie Wannenburg at EMIAC (with offices in both Mozambique and South Africa) has been really terrific; professional, caring, attentive... everything I could ask for. And Juan Pace has been in touch also, offering encouragement and whatever assistance he can. But I'm feeling really jammed up here in the States. I'm looking at other brokers with an understanding that New York, Chicago, and Atlanta are the three places I should concentrate on finding someone local to facilitate the "clearance" or "inspection" or whatever the technical name for this is. I'm all for conservation and anti-smuggling efforts, and I'd really like to see that accomplished without these additional burdens of time and money being demanded of me and all the other good guys out there.
The shipment has been dipped, packed, and is ready for crating, but it's not leaving Africa until things are squared away Stateside. It's stressful, and it's not like the rest of my life decided to suddenly become hassle free, either. I'm taking a bit of breather, as EMIAC has graciously offered to hold my shipment for a while. There's a place in Anchorage trying to qualify as a USDA approved facility for import inspections, but who knows how long that's going to take. Sooner or later the inefficient and expensive policy in place now will be refined (or replaced), but how long do I want to wait?
I'd love to have these trophies in my possession, but until then all I have to do is close my eyes and I can see them again in my mind's eye, big as life. It's the adventure I prize most of all, and that's with me always.
(Not that a frickin full body leopard mount wouldn't be pretty damn cool, though...)
www.africahunting.com
