NTX
AH veteran
- Joined
- Jun 7, 2022
- Messages
- 147
- Reaction score
- 255
Many of you may relate to the way my African hunting story begins. What commenced as more of a "pipe-dream" quickly materialized into an actual plan to hunt Namibia in 2022. I convinced my wife that going to Africa with 3 months to plan was a good idea. She decided to come along, we had an incredible experience, and I'm happy to announce that we are still married in 2023, and that is where this story begins.
You can't go to Africa just once, so trip #2 was planned and we set off for Namibia once again on May 1, 2023. Our hunt was booked with Quality Hunting Safaris Namibia and would be conducted by owner and PH Brian Roodt, who has become a dear friend. In addition to hunting, Brian had several sight-seeing activities planned for us, which included several days of touring Etosha National Park. The main hunting property is a 46,000 hectare reserve that is situated just south of Etosha. We spent the first two days relaxing, and my wife got to spend some time with a veterinarian who works full-time on the reserve.
My hunting hit list was loosely established, and I mostly wanted to spend quality time in the bush. Brian delivered, and we had great hunts. I brought a Winchester m70 in .300 WSM fed by hand loaded 130 gr CEB FB brass Raptors at 3600 FPS. (I will review these separately with necropsy photos as I know there is interest in the specifics).
The first afternoon we happened upon an old impala ram beyond his prime and decided he was a good one to take.
After a late lunch, we went back out to see if we could locate some Hartmann's zebra. While driving to another spot, I saw a group of Burchell's zebra that had a nice stallion standing in a clearing as we passed. I made it about a quarter mile down the road and decided the Hartmann's would have to wait. Brian laughed, but grabbed the sticks and we were off to see if we could find them again. The quarter mile felt a lot further away on foot, but we located the stallion and I was able to seal the deal.
Shortly after taking the photo, Brian located two Oryx bulls walking in the grass close by. I heard Brian exclaim "shoot that bull!" as the trailing bull turned back and looked at us. A quick shot off the sticks and I had another animal in the salt.
Having exceeded the carrying capacity of our trusty bakkie, Brian went to grab a few charcoal workers from a nearby camp to assist. My wife and I spent a few precious minutes admiring the sunset and giving thanks for the opportunity to be where we were standing.
Brian returned with reinforcements and we loaded my trophy. I jumped in the back with 6 workers, who all volunteered to help in exchange for first dibs at the organs and stomach lining. As we were bouncing down the dirt road, a bright orange full moon began to rise and the stars were in full display. I couldn't communicate with the guys riding with me, but we all took in the moment as the cool air began to set in. I thought to myself "this is why I'm here", measuring the day's success by the profound experience and not the 3 animals I had in the salt.
Day 2 of hunting was dedicated to finding a blue wildebeest bull. Brian informed me that he had an "old-warrior" with a broken horn frequenting an area of the property and asked if I was interested in pursuing him. I was sold at "old-warrior". As luck would have it, we managed to find our quarry after a few hours and we quietly slipped in for a 150 meter shot as he left a muddy water hole. One shot from the trusty .300 and he was ours.
I spent the next 24 hours attempting to find one specific monster warthog that had been seen regularly at an afternoon waterhole. As a Texan and avid hog hunter, I couldn't resist the opportunity. Unfortunately Mr. Tusks got the better of me and I stubbornly decided that he was the only hog I'd settle for, so we decided to move on and focus on involving my wife in some of the hunting as she had expressed interest in getting behind the gun.
Day 4 was spent stalking waterholes and travel routes, taking in the scenery along the way. We made an unfortunate discovery as a 2-year old Hartmann's zebra mare passed in front of us, hobbling with a poacher's snare around her back leg. The leg was nearly severed and Brian said she had no chance to survive. There was only one thing to do and that was put her out of her misery to prevent a gruesome death. It was a somber reminder of the daily battle some of these PH's face.
We moved on and had several busted stalks trying to get in close to Oryx for my wife get a good shot. We eventually located a good meat bull, but he was standing head on at 164 meters and there was no closing the gap. Wanting to further test my CEB Raptors, Brian asked me to take the shot in the chest. I obliged and the bullet performed well, dropping the bull in his tracks.
My wife appeared content with our trek through the bush, and we spent the next hour looking for targets of opportunity, hoping to find her a blesbok or springbok on the way back. They also did not cooperate, and I did not want to force a long shot as my wife had no real experience shooting from sticks. As the day was waning, a group of Burchell's zebra were feeding in an opening and Brian pointed out a stallion in the back. He asked my wife if she wanted to shoot a zebra. She nervously agreed, and we set her up on the sticks. She asked me if they were close, as she did not want to flub a shot on a tough animal. I assured her they were close enough for her to shoot (120 meters) as zebra look as big as Lincoln continentals at that range. She made a good shot just above the chevron and she had her first African animal down. Elated, she told me that a zebra was actually the animal she wanted the most. It was a priceless moment for me as I laughed to myself.
We decided to wrap up our hunting endeavors and get ready for Etosha. Brian knows the park very well, and had an special trip planned out for us. We spent the next few days touring the waterholes and watching the animals interact. I could almost hear David Attenborough narrating. I could fill several posts with the photos we took, but I'll stick to a few of my favorite moments. Etosha is an incredible place, and is worth the trip alone. We spent several nights watching black rhinos, elephants, and giraffes interact at the camp waterholes. We were fortunate enough to see lions on 4 separate occasions, as well as spotted and brown hyena.
I'd highly recommend giving Brian a call if you are considering Namibia. He will go above and beyond to make your trip special, and he has many hunting, touring, and fishing opportunities.
You can't go to Africa just once, so trip #2 was planned and we set off for Namibia once again on May 1, 2023. Our hunt was booked with Quality Hunting Safaris Namibia and would be conducted by owner and PH Brian Roodt, who has become a dear friend. In addition to hunting, Brian had several sight-seeing activities planned for us, which included several days of touring Etosha National Park. The main hunting property is a 46,000 hectare reserve that is situated just south of Etosha. We spent the first two days relaxing, and my wife got to spend some time with a veterinarian who works full-time on the reserve.
My hunting hit list was loosely established, and I mostly wanted to spend quality time in the bush. Brian delivered, and we had great hunts. I brought a Winchester m70 in .300 WSM fed by hand loaded 130 gr CEB FB brass Raptors at 3600 FPS. (I will review these separately with necropsy photos as I know there is interest in the specifics).
The first afternoon we happened upon an old impala ram beyond his prime and decided he was a good one to take.
After a late lunch, we went back out to see if we could locate some Hartmann's zebra. While driving to another spot, I saw a group of Burchell's zebra that had a nice stallion standing in a clearing as we passed. I made it about a quarter mile down the road and decided the Hartmann's would have to wait. Brian laughed, but grabbed the sticks and we were off to see if we could find them again. The quarter mile felt a lot further away on foot, but we located the stallion and I was able to seal the deal.
Shortly after taking the photo, Brian located two Oryx bulls walking in the grass close by. I heard Brian exclaim "shoot that bull!" as the trailing bull turned back and looked at us. A quick shot off the sticks and I had another animal in the salt.
Having exceeded the carrying capacity of our trusty bakkie, Brian went to grab a few charcoal workers from a nearby camp to assist. My wife and I spent a few precious minutes admiring the sunset and giving thanks for the opportunity to be where we were standing.
Brian returned with reinforcements and we loaded my trophy. I jumped in the back with 6 workers, who all volunteered to help in exchange for first dibs at the organs and stomach lining. As we were bouncing down the dirt road, a bright orange full moon began to rise and the stars were in full display. I couldn't communicate with the guys riding with me, but we all took in the moment as the cool air began to set in. I thought to myself "this is why I'm here", measuring the day's success by the profound experience and not the 3 animals I had in the salt.
Day 2 of hunting was dedicated to finding a blue wildebeest bull. Brian informed me that he had an "old-warrior" with a broken horn frequenting an area of the property and asked if I was interested in pursuing him. I was sold at "old-warrior". As luck would have it, we managed to find our quarry after a few hours and we quietly slipped in for a 150 meter shot as he left a muddy water hole. One shot from the trusty .300 and he was ours.
I spent the next 24 hours attempting to find one specific monster warthog that had been seen regularly at an afternoon waterhole. As a Texan and avid hog hunter, I couldn't resist the opportunity. Unfortunately Mr. Tusks got the better of me and I stubbornly decided that he was the only hog I'd settle for, so we decided to move on and focus on involving my wife in some of the hunting as she had expressed interest in getting behind the gun.
Day 4 was spent stalking waterholes and travel routes, taking in the scenery along the way. We made an unfortunate discovery as a 2-year old Hartmann's zebra mare passed in front of us, hobbling with a poacher's snare around her back leg. The leg was nearly severed and Brian said she had no chance to survive. There was only one thing to do and that was put her out of her misery to prevent a gruesome death. It was a somber reminder of the daily battle some of these PH's face.
We moved on and had several busted stalks trying to get in close to Oryx for my wife get a good shot. We eventually located a good meat bull, but he was standing head on at 164 meters and there was no closing the gap. Wanting to further test my CEB Raptors, Brian asked me to take the shot in the chest. I obliged and the bullet performed well, dropping the bull in his tracks.
My wife appeared content with our trek through the bush, and we spent the next hour looking for targets of opportunity, hoping to find her a blesbok or springbok on the way back. They also did not cooperate, and I did not want to force a long shot as my wife had no real experience shooting from sticks. As the day was waning, a group of Burchell's zebra were feeding in an opening and Brian pointed out a stallion in the back. He asked my wife if she wanted to shoot a zebra. She nervously agreed, and we set her up on the sticks. She asked me if they were close, as she did not want to flub a shot on a tough animal. I assured her they were close enough for her to shoot (120 meters) as zebra look as big as Lincoln continentals at that range. She made a good shot just above the chevron and she had her first African animal down. Elated, she told me that a zebra was actually the animal she wanted the most. It was a priceless moment for me as I laughed to myself.
We decided to wrap up our hunting endeavors and get ready for Etosha. Brian knows the park very well, and had an special trip planned out for us. We spent the next few days touring the waterholes and watching the animals interact. I could almost hear David Attenborough narrating. I could fill several posts with the photos we took, but I'll stick to a few of my favorite moments. Etosha is an incredible place, and is worth the trip alone. We spent several nights watching black rhinos, elephants, and giraffes interact at the camp waterholes. We were fortunate enough to see lions on 4 separate occasions, as well as spotted and brown hyena.
I'd highly recommend giving Brian a call if you are considering Namibia. He will go above and beyond to make your trip special, and he has many hunting, touring, and fishing opportunities.