NAMIBIA: I'm Back From My First Safari

[JANEZ L]

Thanks for the report and congratulations.

 

[35bore]

Mtgoat, congrats on your safari. The Blue wildebeest is fantastic, as are the others.

 

[G Skinner]

MTGOAT
This was a really good read and great responses too . I too was in Namibia in 2011 and I wanna go back !
Glen

 

[BigSteve57]

MtGoat - much of what you wrote was a reflection of our first Safari. The part about waiting too long for one's first Safari struck a chord. Life's too short!!!
We enjoyed your write-up. Congratulations on a great hunt! Your outfitter sounds great too.

Also +1 on the rangefinder. I took one and it helped although the ranges were all under 250 yards. The rangefinder I took is the Gunwerks G7. It not only is a rangefinder but a ballistic calculator that takes altitude and temperature into consideration. I hope to use it on future hunts in Western USA where I hope to take game at up to 500 yards.

 

[BigSteve57]

Mtgoat posts: "That brings me to my next problem. When I first booked my hunt I decided that I wouldn't bring anything back because my trophy room is already comfortably full. Then I started to think that I would just doing European mounts and everything. As time passed, my wife encouraged my to plan on mounting the gemsbok (if I got one) 典hey have such a pretty face? Then, I started thinking that it would be nice to have a kudu in there as well. But I was still thinking just two shoulder mounts. However, now I am wondering about the wildebeest. If it's as special as I was told, perhaps I should get a shoulder mount for it. Well, I致e about 6 months to ponder the question"




If I may be so bold, I have a feeling that most of the married men on this site are wishing they could clone your wife or at least have some of her DNA on hand...
Congratulations on a fantastic hunt!! (Sorry, I don't know how to highlight the original post properly)
Jane

I'm married to a woman who is a shooter and hunter and I can tell you it can be difficult settling priorities when, say, I want to buy a new outfit and she wants to buy a new rifle. So guys, be careful what you wish for.

 

[Mtgoat]

MtGoat - much of what you wrote was a reflection of our first Safari. The part about waiting too long for one's first Safari struck a chord. Life's too short!!!

I'd like to introduce my older son to wonders of hunting in Africa, but he insists that he isn't interested. He loves to hunt but just wants to hunt elk and ducks. (And he'd like to take a moose some day.) He can't go next year since they plan on moving sometime next summer. Well, if there is a third trip, perhaps he'll change his mind by then.

My younger son never caught the hunting bug, but does enjoy the outdoors and photography. I'm thinking about offering him the opportunity to tag along on my next trip.

 

[sanderson0203]

Great report and excellent trophies. So, what did your wife end up doing while you were out hunting? I just ask because I would love to take mine along but suspect that she would either get bored or want to go on expensive side trips (or hit spas or whatever it is girls like to do that aren't hunting). Great pics though and crazy how tough your animals were. I was VERY blessed that all of mine went down in one shot after 70-80 yards at the most.

 

[Mtgoat]

So, what did your wife end up doing while you were out hunting?

Because I had failed to make detailed plans with the outfitter, she rode along with me most days. Of course, the two times that I saw aardvarks were the times when she had decided to stay in camp. My wife is much shorter than I and the PH. She found it more or less impossible to keep up with us when we took off after an animal that we had spotted. Therefore, when we were stalking, she sat in the truck. Surprisingly, she didn't mind that.

Once we were in camp and discovered that there weren't any real activities available for her, I asked them to arrange for her to spend time at Erindi (wildlife preserve). Unfortunately, they were fully booked. That would have been enjoyable for a couple of days.

My wife isn't much of a shopper, but one day she did go into Windhoek and wandered around for a few hours and bought some souvenirs (with a local man as an "escort" - aka guard). On the final afternoon, we went to animal rescue facility and got to see some big cats and wild dogs up close (but behind a fence).

I'm thinking seriously about returning next year. Last weekend, she told me that she doesn't think that she will go with me. Since I am inclined to try for buffalo or lion, that is probably a good idea.

 

[Don K]

Good read! Congratulations on the nice animals!