SOUTH AFRICA: Re-enter Africa - Hunting Free State & Limpopo Waterberg District June 2025

[JG26Irish_2]

Africa - It's siren call beacons, "Come, come and test yourself once more Old Man." It calls with the haunting echo of the Turtle Dove, the memories of the bright sunshine, the wild Bushveld and the amazing beasts roaming free. I just returned from my 2nd African Safari and over the course of the next few days plan to share a series of posts chronicling that most amazing and profound experience for those who want to see and hear of it. However, if images of hunting, guns, shooting or dead animals are offensive to you, I respect your personal feelings and choices. Simply read no further.

I think about Africa every day. I have since my first Safari. My story began in June of 2023, two years ago. A friend named Todd was telling me about his first trip to South Africa that had only ended a few weeks earlier. He told me he and some others were going back in two years and asked if I wanted to go? I hesitated for about two heartbeats and replied, "Yes". Then I had the unnerving realization that now I had to tell my wife Jane who was sitting on a picnic table around the corner. Rather than wait, I strolled out and bit the bullet and told her that I had just agreed to go on Safari in Africa in 2025. She was surprisingly supportive, (she is a keeper). Those few moments set me on a path that leads to where we are today. Documenting my 2nd African Safari which just concluded one month ago on June 15th, 2025. This is my hunt report but please allow me to set the foundation of the story.

My first hunt was to Limpopo in July 2024. I had been prepping for almost a year, losing weight, getting fit, walking, shooting and gathering guns, gear, clothing. In April of 2024, I told my wife, "I am ready to go to Africa now. I am not sure I want to wait another whole year." Once more, she was completely supportive as long as I did not try to convince her to also go. That 1st Safari was magical and could not have been more perfect. This second safari started with one set back after another. You see, besides me, there were supposed to be four other KY hunters going together this year. One by one, they dropped out for a variety of reasons. Having been to Africa already once, there was no way in Hell I was going to cancel as long as I was physically and financially able. Damn the torpedoes and the Tse Tse Flies, full speed ahead.

I had booked my hunt once more with Rumano De Beer at RDB Safaris in Limpopo. But, the plan was to hunt 2-3 days in Free State first to go after Springbok and Black Wildebeest among others, then relocate to Limpopo for the lion's share of my list. Speaking of the list. Below is the full bag list that I had agreed upon:

• Cape Buffalo
• Kudu
• Zebra
• Blesbok
• Black Wildebeest
• Springbok
• Warthog
• Baboon

Those last two being mostly only targets of opportunity and not necessarily something we would go out searching for. After last year's safari, I made a personal pledge that for each subsequent safari, I would need to acquire, prep and take with me two new hunting rifles, my logic being that those from the previous hunts were now priceless family heirlooms to be protected and cherished. Therefore, I set out to acquire and set up two new rifles. One for both long range PG in the Free State as well as closer bushveld hunting in Limpopo and the second a DG rifle suitable for Cape Buffalo. I soon had my hot little hands on a lovely old classic Husqvarna Swedish Mauser in 30-06 which is one of the most inherently accurate hunting rifles I had ever encountered. It shot sub-MOA with about any factory ammo at 100y and on one occasion I had printed a three shot group at 400y and measured 2.25". I thought I had my PG rifle sorted. Not so fast nimrod, you say. Fate had other ideas. While perusing a fall firearms online auction last year, I bid on and won two amazing Fierce Firearms CT Edge, carbon fiber & Titanium rifles in both 7mm Mag and 7mm/08. I was the only bidder and they went way below retail even for used rifles. When they arrived, they were both NIB and had never been fired outside of the factory 1/2MOA test tgt. Upon scoping and testing these were for real 1/2MOA capable rifles and I planned to take the 7mm Mag. Perfect for Free State's wide open plains and long ass shots. I even took it on a KY Whitetail hunt scoring my best ever 12pr buck with a single 125y shot. I thought I had it nailed.

But, once more the tables turned. The more I played with the little 7mm/08, the better I liked it. 5" shorter, 1/2lb lighter, just as accurate and almost as powerful. Short, light, handy. Perfect for Limpopo where most of my hunting would be and good enough for Free State, I rationalized. A compromise but nonetheless and great choice. The day I left for Africa in 2024, I had bid on a new DG rifle and had won it again at a bargain price. It was a CRF P14 Enfield in 375HH. So, my two gun battery was now finally set.

Please allow me to introduce the rifles for 2025

1.) My dangerous game rifle is an old vintage ER Shaw custom P14 Enfield in 375HH. Lovely, high grade walnut stock, Shaw bbl, I topped it with a Kahles K16i 1-6x optic with illuminated reticle. This rifle is stunningly accurate and with its long bbl it chrono's almost 2600fps from 300g Barnes TSX factory loads. That is 85fps faster than box speeds. It hits hard and expands to 3/4" at buffalo shooting distances. It is also a sub MOA rifle at 100y and gets better with distance. Even with only the 6x optic I can smack 6" steel plates at 200y off of sticks. I do not plan to shoot game past that distance with it but it is capable of accurate impacts out to 400y from a bench. I planned to use this rifle for Cape Buffalo and maybe Kudu or Zebra on this trip. Many would call it marginal for DG but with the advent of modern bullets the 375HH is an overachiever in my book. I could have brought a 458WM but, chose not to.

ER Shaw P14 375HH Dangerous Game Rifle​

2.) My PG rifle as shared previously ended up being the little short, light, handy FF CT Edge in 7mm/08. I figured if the 7mm Mauser, and the 275 Rigby could do the job in Africa, then my little 7mm/08 was at least as good. My 308 had done great last year with five recorded one-shot kills and the 7/08 was just a faster version of that fine old cartridge. At least that was what I told myself. I topped it with an Arken EP8, FFP 1-8x LPVO. Despite being only a $300 scope, it performed as well if not better than the high dollar Kahles on my other rifle and the total package punched well above its weight class when loaded with the Barnes TSX 140g copper ammo and the Hornady 139g CX ammo. I also took along a box of Federal 140g Fusion tipped ammo and Swift 150g Sciroccos.. More on that later. Faster and flatter than the 308, this rig was good out to 400y but I hoped to keep my shots all inside of 300y on game. I was hitting 4" steel at 400y with every shot from a bench and hitting the 6" round steel plates on every shot off sticks at 200y.

Fierce Firearms CT Edge 7mm/08 w/ Arken EP8 1-8x looking long across the open Free State plains​

Armed with this battery of fine weaponry, I was ready to climb aboard the Delta Flt out of Atlanta to Joburg. 16hrs of Hell in order to spend time in Paradise. Life is full of Yin and Yang.

Rumano collected me at the airport at the appointed time and we made the trek down to Free State. We were to be the guest of Roger Berger at Limsumi Safaris for the next few days. My plan had been to hunt for a couple of days to get over my jet lag before tackling the Cape Buffalo but Rumano informed me on the way down to Roger's place that we were going to go after the buffalo on day 1. Ohhh Kaaay - Git Some. My guardian angel's butt puckered and she might had peed just a little. The reason for this shift in tactics was logical. Roger had a concession with a healthy herd of buffalo with several shootable bulls in it and he was a very seasoned DG hunter with Buff, Lion, Ele, etc to his resume. Since Rumano needed a 2nd backup shooter and his young Padawan PH back home was not yet DG certified, it just made sense to bag the buff while Roger was on hand to assist. Roger had told Rumano that the concession were would hunt was going to be easy and the Buffalo were all standing around like cattle every time he had hunted there. He figured we could back a buffalo and be back in time for lunch on day 1. Ohhh how the mightly plans of mice and men can go astray. Or as my Grandfather once told me while sitting in a bar, "Son, if you want to make God laugh, then make a plan."

When we arrived in Free State, I found that the accommodations at Rogers place lacked heat despite it being winter with lows approaching 32 deg F and the hot water in my room was only luke warm. Mother Cornelious what a start. After travelling for two days, I was taking a shower even if it was in ice water. This was a 10 day hunt and we were off to the races. We bedded down after the obligatory sundowner or two with visions of Wildebeest dancing in our heads.

Free State Sunset

 

[JG26Irish_2]

Safari Day 1 - to quote Molly, "Came in like a Wrecking Ball". The alarm sounded and I was up on the floor wondering where am I? Soon I was dressed and the coffee kicked in and I was ready to rock and roll. We would be going in Search of M'Bogo (Cape Buffalo). My list of critters for Free State include Cape Buffalo, the "Black Death", as well as Black Wildebeest and Springbok.

Some say that the Cape Buffalo is the most dangerous of the African Big Five Dangerous Game animals. Why? Well, the Buffalo is used to being attacked by predators and his hardwired response is to run if possible but if attacked he will charge his foe. He never performs a mock charge like the Lion or Elephant often will. His hearing, eyesight and sense of smell are all good. When facing a predator, being a pride of lions or a human hunter, his typical response is for the herd to wall up with the cows and calves in the rear and the bulls all in a row facing the threat. Buffalo are hard to kill and easy to piss-off. Their thick hide is about as tough as any animal on the planet. I am informed on day one that we are going to go after the buffalo 1st. Okay... I had hoped to have a day to recover from jet lag before doing the dangerous game hunt but so be it. I hope my guardian angel is not as jet lagged as I am, lol.

First thing first, we went to the range to check zero on my rifles. The 375 was right on at 100y. My PH was quick to try out the 7mm when offered the chance on day one. At 100y we were both hitting a 6" steel plate but the rifle seemed to be shooting just a little high. That was about 1" higher than expected but since we were at a much higher altitude, not much of a surprise. My zero was at 200y. We figured it was OK. Note: We did not shoot on paper. All Roger had was some old round steel tgts but without any paint on them all I could really tell was I was hitting or not hitting the 6" plates. I found out later that this lack of detailed precision was a mistake.

Off we went in search of M'Bogo. It turns out that our concession for buffalo was much more densely covered than a typical Free State hunt. There was lots of trees and bush and a 10 acre thorn thicket that was so dense that you could barely walk thru it, and could not see a buffalo until you were within about 20y of them. That is hairy stuff for this old fart. We hunted hard day one and saw Waterbuck, Impala, Lechwe, Fallow Deer, Wild Pigs, but no buffalo. Had long shots on two Warthogs but no shots fired and no game taken. My PH caught a young wild pig by the tail! We were all expecting the momma sow to come boiling out of the brush to eat him but he got away safe, lol. Day 1 was pretty uneventful and gave me time to get over my travel and re-awaken my predator instincts. It takes a few days to do this and by day 3, I was more in tune with the bush. South African style hunting is more relaxed than what I am used to. We ride around most of the time in Bad Ass, Toyota Land Cruiser 4x4's equipped with hunting bars with seats in the back. When a target is found we usually dismount and stalk on foot. Sometimes, as with Warthogs which are fast, we must simply shoot when we can. We hunted until dark and returned to the lodge for a welcome dinner. More to follow on day 2.

Sighting the 7mm at the Range​

375HH in its Element​

Wild Pigs Everywhere​

Yours truly trying to get my sea legs​

Roughing it in Africa​

Dinner Day 1 Steak, Beans, Sausage, Salad - Low Carb​

 

[JG26Irish_2]

Safari Day 2 - Hunting Cape Buffalo in Free State Province. Does this rifle make my ass look big? Not exactly the most flattering photo. Look beyond the big butt and my PH Rumano into the start of the 10acre thorn thicket ahead. It is nearly impenetrable and visibility is so restricted that you are 20y from any Buffalo before you can see them. So, close that you can smell them first. OMG - this is some hairy stuff. My Guardian Angel was not happy with this hunting situation. She was last seen donning body armor and loading her double rifle. At the time, I would have liked to have a Double myself. Ahh the Stupid S#!t we do all in the name of fun. And sometimes we even survive to tell about it, lol.

Walking into the Valley of the Shadow of Death
Sign should read - Warning Cape Buffalo Beyond this Point!​

But, prior to all that excitement we were driving the concession early and spotted a big tusker warthog at about 231y. I took a broadside shot from solid rest with my 7mm/08 using a 140g Barnes TSX and hear the "Whop" of the bullet impact and the pig ran into the thorns. We searched for more than an hour but there was no blood trail and so many tracks that trailing it thru the thick thorns was impossible. This was also the home of the herd of Cape Buffalo and nobody was very enthusiastic about spending too much time in there. In the end, I was told it was a miss but I remain convinced that we simply lost it. Back to the main quarry.

Please allow me to explain. We hunted all morning on day two and had yet to even see a buffalo. This was getting frustrating. And to top that, day 2 dawned cold and overcast. Rare for Africa even in the winter. It was -2 C that morning and I had on all of my clothing, lol. Not as cold as hunting Whitetails in WV but, then I left my long johns in KY. By 10 o'clock the sun was peeking out and getting warmer. By noon we had searched everywhere except the big thorn thicket where we lost the hog and all indications pointed to that being the home of the buffalo. Did I mention that buffalo do not like to be bothered?

We sent three of the native trackers on a walk to try to at least spot them. After about an hour, they radioed that they were in the thorns and the herd was on the move. We positioned on what we hoped would be an intercept course. After about 20min, I heard trees breaking and turned. The term, "They ran thru like a herd of buffalo" comes to mind.

The herd broke out of the bush at a dead run but were 200y behind us. We were completely out of position. We turned but the sun was in our eyes and the herd was moving fast. We tracked them to the far side of a small lake where they appeared to hole up. We circled to the other side but when we spotted them, they broke and ran once more. In short order, we heard from the trackers that the herd had made a bee-line back into the thorn thicket.

Without a better plan, we attempted to repeat the same thing. Trackers waded into the thorns and we positioned on the North side hoping for a shot. Those trackers are brave fellows. After about 30min, the lead tracker named Geoffry radioed that he had spotted the herd but they were not going to budge and being unarmed, his bravery only goes so far. I can't say I blame him. So, what to do? It was getting late in the afternoon and we were getting tired of the cat & mouse game. The PH suggested that we go in after them. Okay?... We dismount from the Land Cruiser and I chamber a round into my 375HH. One of my buddy's statements echos in my head, "Take the 458WM for Buffalo." I was loaded with 300g Barnes TSX. One of the best overall loads for buffalo but for up close, in your face hunting of dangerous game, no gun is big enough in my view. Using my practiced Rhodesian carry method, I crawl literally into the thorn thicket. Heart in my throat but working hard to remain cool and focused and to keep up with my younger PH. Roger, our #2 PH carried his short bbl 458WM behind me as backup and that was some comfort if things went truly sideways.

The holes in the thorns were as tall as a Cape Buffalo's back forcing us to kneel and duck walk at times, all the while remaining alert. This goes on for about 30min until we approach were Geoffry was kneeling and pointing into the thorns. See the buffalo! and points ahead of us. I kneel and look thru my scope and saw - Nothing! Rumano looks thru his binos and also has trouble spotting them. Then he says, "There! at 40y" I look and see a gray stump. In this case the herd had silently slipped away, and for once, I was not disappointed. Shooting a buff in that tight quarters location was going to be dicey. We pulled out and regrouped at the truck.

Day 2 ended still with nothing in the salt. I was tired, dusty and hungry. Fortunately, the dinner that Chef Abram made for us including Kudu tenderloin on a wood fire made me feel better. Tomorrow is another day.

 

[JG26Irish_2]

Safari Day3 - The morning dawned bright, sunny and cool. We decided to switch up our tactics. My hunt here in the Free State Province was supposed to be only 3 days long and so far, we had come up empty handed. Roger Berger the local outfitter took us to a new concession in search of Springbok and Black Wildebeest. When we arrived it was clearly different. Flat open grassland. Much like Kansas. This was the Free State that I had been told about. Herds of animals roamed off in the distance over a mile away. Now with no cover, the trick was to get close enough for a realistic shot. I was hunting with my 7mm/08 from Fierce Firearms. A Carbon Fiber/Titanium rifle made on a clone of the Sako 85 action. Able to shoot 1/2moa at 100y with the right load. I was using the 140g Barnes TSX which is the right load. I had practiced with it out to 400y and was able to hit 4" plates at that range but really wanted to keep my shots on game to about 300y if possible. This would be a challenge. The rifle was a compromise over other more capable options. I could have brought a 30-06 Swedish Mauser or another CT Edge in 7mm Mag. Either was better suited for Free States wide open, long range shooting but I was also planning to hunt the bushveld of Limpopo and the little light weight, short and handy 7mm/08 was perfect for Limpopo. Since RSA only allows hunters to bring two rifles into the country at a time, I chose the little rifle. A compromise to be sure.

We all piled into Roger's Land Cruiser and rolled out onto the open Savannah. The herds parted like the Red Sea as we approached and were keeping their distance. After a while we had cut two big Wildebeest Bulls from a herd and worked to close the distance. But, before we could do so, a small herd of Springbok crossed our path. This is the national animal of South Africa. This herd had the common Springbok as well as the black, white and copper variants in it. All are lovely little antelope, smaller than a Whitetail deer. They bounce off the ground on all fours and sail across the grasslands at amazing speeds. But, after a short pursuit, we had a nice old ram in our sights. Range was 242y. My shot connected and the big ram dropped in his tracks. That is unusual. Turned out my shot hit well high from my intended point of aim and hit him in the spine. But the TSX did its job and he was dead. Exit wound being about the same size as a tennis ball. This was my first use of this ammo and it worked well outside of the high POI.

After photos and a short celebration, we went in search of the Wildebeest again. They were much harder to approach and never seemed to stop running. Almost primitive in appearance the Black Wildebeest is smaller than its Blue Wildebeest cousin. Also faster and more wary. We hunted hard for almost an hour and finally, got close enough for a longish shot from the truck across a small lake. I took aim with my 1-8x Arken scope dialed to 8x and asked Rumano to range the distance. He called it at 314y. I knew my rifle dropped 8" at 300y and one more inch for each 10y beyond. I also knew it had just shot 6" high at 242y on the Springbok. Therefore, I held the 8" for 300y and fired. The little rifle barked and I heard the Thwack from the bullet's impact and the WB dropped. Then bounced up and dropped again. I said, let me put in another shot. But, before I could do so, Roger who was driving, got excited and drove forward across the headwaters of the small lake and into a marsh where the LandCruiser sank to the axles in the mud!

We were in a low spot so, all I could see was the top of the Wildebeest's head. Stuck fast in the mud, we sent the young PH in training named Ian to fetch his Ford Ranger 4x4 to pull us out. when he arrived, his truck could not budge the big Toyota and nearly also got stuck. So, he drove Rumano to get his Land Cruiser. It is a big V8 turbo diesel with 35" M/T tires and with all the diffs locked he proceeds to break the 4000lb rated tow strap. Twice! Then with a proper recovery shackle attached, we pulled Roger out of the muck without further drama.

Approaching the WB we found it down but not completely out. A 2nd shot finished it. On close examination, it seems my shot hit several inches low from my intended point of aim. The only visible wound being a broken right rear ankle. But WB's can run all day on three legs. They are very hairy and when I shot it was a frontal shot and I think the bullet hit low in the brisket before exiting and hitting the ankle. This is speculation as I did not get to witness the skinning process and do not know for sure. If correct, my bullet hit about 6" lower than intended. In my view this was a marksmanship failure but like Rumano was quick to add, the animal is now in the salt and that was the desired intent.

But, the Safari hunting is for me only the excuse to visit this magical place and to spend time with its wonderful people and to share in the natural beauty of Africa. Hunting is only a bonus and I care little if I shoot or kill anything. I do not particularly enjoy killing God's creatures but love upholding the traditions of the hunt and walking symbolically in the shoes of hunters long past gone such as Robert Ruark, or Denis Finch Hatton, and Selous, if only in a small way.

Looking back now, while waiting to get pulled from the mud, I had laser ranged the WB several times but since the terrain was very flat with a slight rise past the lake, and covered in tall grass, I found it difficult to get a consistent reading. I saw numbers from 270y to 450y. The point of impact of my shot was more consistent with a 400y shot and I think the reason was that the animal was much further away than we thought. But that is a total speculation. I just know my rifle is more accurate than that.

With the WB in the bag, we loaded up to go to yet another concession in search of M'Bogo, the wily Cape Buffalo which until now had eluded us. More on that later.

Lovely Springbok taken with 7mm/08 at 242y - On shot

Sitting in the Mud - The Wildebeest is near the far Tree Line in the Upper Right Corner of this image

Nice Old Bull - Black Wildebeest taken with 7mm/08 at 314y or more?

Two Bad Ass 4x4's

​

 

[JG26Irish_2]

Safari Day3 Cont. - The Cape Buffalo is said to be the most dangerous of all the African Big Five Dangerous Game animals. Why? it evolved being hunted by lions and leopards as well as man and learned that the best defense is a good offense. Unlike the lion who will slink away, or the Elephant who will smell danger and run away, the Buffalo when faced with a threat will often attack first and think later. He is hardwired to be mean and aggressive and Cape Buffalo account for more humans, hunters or native killed or injured every year than the other four in the big five combined. This could be in part because there are more of them or that more are hunted each year but the statistics remain.

Today, I am on a path that was set two years ago, when a friend of mine invited me to hunt in Africa. I wanted to hunt Cape Buffalo despite having never hunted anything more dangerous than a Russian wild boar in TN. To prep for this hunt, I went on a health and fitness effort, losing over 40lbs, and improving my worn out knees so I could walk for miles when necessary. I also learned to shoot the large caliber magnum rifles needed for such a hunt from shotting sticks, all while out of breath from a long hike. Finally, in order to better prepare, I went on a practice safari in 2024 to learn the animals and the terrain and to get better at my craft. I spent years working and thinking about Africa every single day. Today, I was hunting Cape Buffalo in Africa, on foot as planned and it was a daunting task, one which I was never quite sure if I was ready for. "It is a Test, Old Man"

We arrived at the new concession which was reported to have a small herd of Buffalo with at least two shootable bulls in it. It was mostly open grassland but also consisted of about 1/3rd cover in heavy trees on the North end. We drove around for a while spotting some lovely Sable before finally bouncing out the Buffalo from their hiding place in the large grove of trees. They ran out into the open but never stopped and soon circled around back into the East end of the trees about a mile away. So, armed with that knowledge, we dismounted and stalked into the tree line on foot to hunt for them. It would be a lie if I said I was not a little un-nerved by the thought of facing a 2000lb bull armed only with my little 375HH caliber rifle. The advice of a friend did echo in my head when he said, "Take my 458 Win Mag for the buffalo - it is bigger." At that precise moment, I am not sure any rifle would have been big enough to make me totally comfortable. But, this was a personal test that only I could take and pass or fail. Off we went.

After walking long enough to get the old fat client thoroughly winded, we heard trees breaking off to our left and the herd of bovines boiled out like hornets but instead of coming at us, they ran to my right to the far side of a small lake. Stopping we glassed them from about 125y. I was on the sticks and had the biggest of them in my sights and told Rumano, I have him, should I shoot? He said wait. A few seconds later they all ran once more and the moment was lost. This cat and mouse game continued for over an hour until finally, they stopped out in the open at a range of about 120y. This is long for shooting buffalo but well within range of my rifle. I recalled my last practice session before leaving KY for Africa where, I shot this same rifle off of sticks at 200y onto a 8" x 8" steel plate tgt and hit every shot, placing them all within a 6" group. The vitals of a Cape Buffalo are at least that size.

I took careful aim and verified with Rumano that I was targeting the correct bull. Pressing the trigger on this ER Swaw custom P14 Enfield and the rifle made its lethal bark. The big bull bowed up, stumbled and ran to my right. Shoot again, anywhere said Rumano, my PH. I racked the bolt and fired at the center of mass and hit it behind the ribs hitting the liver and lodging in the paunch on the opposite side. Racking the bolt again the bull had stopped and was looking at us with his head down. I aimed for his shoulder blades above the head but hit a few inches to the left and lower. He ran a short distance and stopped presenting another broadside shot. He was clearly wobbly at this point. My 4th shot hit a few inches above my 1st in the shoulder and the big bull rolled to the ground. It was all over in less time than it takes to read this paragraph.

Prior to hunting this animal, my PH and I had a critical conversation. What to do if charged by a buffalo? The PH and a 2nd PH are required as backup shooters when a amateur hunter pursues any dangerous game. I told Rumano, that I would seek to place my first shot well and would continue to shoot as long as the buff was on his feet. But once shot, he could go one of four ways: Left, right, away or charging toward us. I told him that if he ran one of the first three ways, to leave the shooting to me. But, that if he ran toward us, that I did not want to endanger him, or the others let alone myself anymore than we had already done and that anyone with a firearm should be shooting at that point. But, statistically, only about 1 in 10 will charge and often because something went wrong. In our case, nothing went wrong and our buffalo was on the ground! After a prudent wait, we cautiously approached from the rear end of the buffalo and took a knee to fire one more "Insurance Shot" into the bull's back. It was not necessary. He was finished.

High fives, hugs and slaps on the back ensued and then we enjoyed a celebratory bottle of Castle together. The work of loading a 1950lb animal into a truck began and that is no small task. Ian the young PH working on his DG certification told us of a fellow he had hunted with who would winch the buffalo into his truck by lashing the winchline around the buffalo's scrotum. What??? Roger and Rumano decided to test that theory. They pulled so hard that it bent the tailgate on the truck! I said it was Karma for abuse of a corpse.

How Low Can You Go?​

My Buffalo measured 40" which is not a world record but a very respectable bull. Hunting buffalo is NOT easy. We worked hard for three days and were lucky to get one good chance at a good bull. I was glad for the success and thankful to have passed this test. I was done in Free State and would travel to Limpopo the next morning for more hunting. All that was left was to be inducted into the RDB Safaris Cape Buffalo Dangerous Game hunting society and to survive the Buffalo party that night (this turned out to be more lethal than the buffalo hunt).

This is how you look after getting shot with a 375HH and having your balls stretched about 2ft​

My 375HH after being used as God intended​

RDB Cameo Shot​

Yours Truly Rockin the RDB Swag and my old well worn Tag Zimbabwe vest​

 

[JG26Irish_2]

Safari Day4 - Revenge of the Buffalo. In the interest of full disclosure, I am sharing the Good, the Bad and the Ugly. Today was a travel day. We would make the five hour trek North from Free State to the Limpopo Province. But, I was hurting. Buffalo hunting is dangerous and I was injured while hunting buffalo. No, I was not trampled by the big bull, but injured nonetheless. I have concocted a number of creative lies about how I was injured. One goes like this: I was hunting for a bottle of Buffalo Trace and found it. But, it charged and I was forced to kill it but was injured in the process. Fortunately, my two intrepid PH's Roger and Rumano were there to assist me in this endeavor. They were in part also to blame. I am not particularly proud of this but the damage was done. While I would recover, it was several days before I felt like myself.

The post hunt celebrations did get somewhat out of hand and while no Buffalo Trace was involved, it was ugly on the morning of Day 4. Other libations from KY and Scotland were involved in large quantity. The previous night, following the buffalo hunt was a huge celebration with toasts and awards. I was given a trophy commemorating my induction into the RDB Buffalo Hunting Club and we had a big dinner. The trophy is quite detailed and intricate, complete with miniature bolt action rifle, leather sling and 3-D Buffalo skull. I normally know when to say when but that night, I was guilty of overindulgence. I know better but, am guilty as charged and was paying for it that morning.

Breakfast was difficult. We loaded up the Land Cruiser and stopped by Roger's home to the skinning house to pick up my trophies which would be transported to Limpopo for taxidermy. Mercifully, I slept a good part of the morning while travelling and about noon, we stopped at a gas station to use the restroom and to get a meat pie for lunch. Since my rifles were in the back of the truck we took turns watching the truck. I was standing in the parking lot dressed in my lucky South African hunting shorts, boots, RDB Safaris vest and hat. While there another PH who was taking a van load of clients back to the airport following a week of bird hunting saw me and mistook me for the PH and walked over greeting me in Afrikaans. I returned the greeting in my best Afrikaans telling him good morning and then explaining that I was the client. Perhaps the slightly hungover look was what did it? I dunno. We laughed and then he asked about my hunt and saw the buffalo skull in the back and got very excited.

He then called his clients over to admire my buffalo. That was fun, even if I still felt a bit green behind the gills. The remainder of the trip North was smooth and it was nice to see some of Africa in daylight as all my previous cross country travels had been at night. Johannesburg is a very large modern city. This can be a surprise to some. The highways and infrastructure are consistent with any modern nation.

We arrived at the Sekopo Private Game Ranch by about 3:30pm and I settled into my Chalet which was to be my home for the remainder of my trip and unpacked. By dinner time, I felt much better but would remain on the water wagon for most of the rest of the Safari.

Award Presentation for Buffalo

Buffalo Hunting Award

Cape Buffalo Skull​

 

[PARA45]

Love the Buffalo award.

 

[Nyati]

Great hunt, congrats !

 

[JG26Irish_2]

Safari Day5 - Limpopo. African safaris are usually scheduled thru the months of June-August which is their winter. But their winter weather is about as glorious as one can imagine. Lows in the 30's, highs in the 70's, sunny almost every day and low humidity. You begin with a list of desired animals to hunt. Some require special permits and others require a provincial hunting license. You can add or swap animals on your list by mutual agreement with the outfitter. I have done both in the past. There is an old saying that goes, "When does a Kudu hunt morph into a Warthog hunt? When a warthog appears."

My list for this Safari contained eight animals. So, far we had bagged three in the Free State. The list still contains: Kudu, zebra, blesbuck, warthog, and baboon. We were on day 5 of a 10 day hunt. Being in a new location and still having some doubts about my rifles, I asked the PH to take us to the range first to double check accuracy. To my dismay, I found both of my rifles were shooting about 6" high at 100y. This was unacceptable and adjustments were made. I also switched the 7mm/08 to use 139g Hornady CX ammo which grouped about 1" at 200y. It was not the best ammo I brought but I still had a full box of 20 minus the three fired at the range. The 375 was to be loaded with 300g Swift A-frame reloads for use on Kudu. I had brought some 250g TBBC ammo but only had five of those loads and they simply shot too high and it would have taken half the ammo to re-zero the rifle. Lesson Learned: Choose one load that works well in your rifle and bring only that load to Africa. I did that last year and it worked great. This year, I had four loads for the 7mm and three for the 375 and it just made things too complicated. I was hoping to learn about bullet effectiveness but there are too many variables from one animal to the next and I will not make that mistake twice.

The Sekopo private game reserve is like a 5 star resort when compared to our lodging in Free State. Much nicer and I was glad to be back there. Since the big Land Cruiser was in need of a make over to mount the hunting bars following our travels and to repair the bent roller on the tail gate, we hunted out of the Lyn McCutchen Buffalo Special today. It is a older green Toyota Land Cruiser that is more like the cars used for photo safari with many seats. It is the one that was attacked by the buffalo two years ago and nearly totaled. We rolled out to see what the bush would give us this day. Limpopo is bushveld and hilly, with lots of tree cover. But, RDB's reserve also had a couple of very large open grassland savannahs where many of the herd animals liked to gather. Blue Wildebeest, Blesbok, Eland, Impala, Warthogs were all out in abundance.

As we rolled onto the open savannah, I spotted a small herd of Zebra which are on my list. But Rumano wanted to hunt the Blesbok instead. He said we would hunt zebra on a different concession. So, ignoring the zebra, we moved for a shot on a nice big Blesbok ram. Rumano called the range at 278y. The wind was blowing hard to the right but steady. I took aim with the CT Edge 7mm/08 with the scope zoomed to 8x. Aiming center mass 1/2 way up the shoulder to allow for bullet drop of 0.5mil (5"), I took the shot - IMPACT! The Blesbok was down. But, he was now back up again and moving to my left. It took three more shots to finish him, plus I missed once. Despite taking the care to re-zero the rifles, my marksmanship on this trip was below par for me. Not pretty. Still, we were getting the job done. The Hornady CX ammo is a full copper monolithic X bullet much like the Barnes ammo I used earlier. Yet, when the skinners processed the ram back at the barn, the only bullet they found in it was the remains of a lead core rifle bullet of about 6mm to 30cal in size. That was a curious thing. It only cast more doubts in my ammo. Or had it survived a previous hunt by someone else? Questions without answers. The Blesbok was nice and we took photos and had it loaded up by 10am. More to follow. This day was just beginning.

Limpopo Blesbok

Blesbok w/ Waterberg Range in the background

7mm/08 at the Ready

Herds of Beasties Everywhere

RDB Central Lodge Compound
​

 

[JG26Irish_2]

Safari Day5 - Continued. Following the successful early hunt on the Blesbok, we returned to our search for Zebra, Kudu, etc. We drove round the area in the Land Cruiser and did spot a few smaller Warthogs in the process. I took a few photos of the scenery and animals and we saw Giraffe, Sable, Impala and the afore mentioned Warthogs. We were about to return to the lodge for lunch when Rumano spotted a larger male Warthog running ahead of us at about 70-80y. With Warthogs, by the time you can assess the target they are gone. All I knew was that I could see the tusks sticking out on each side of its head. I raised my 7mm rifle, clicked off the safety, aimed and took a fast, offhand running shot. The hog was quartering hard away from me. As, I pulled the trigger, I was reminded of the running shot that I missed last year and aimed just a little bit closer and sent the shot. Bang-Flop. Done. The 139g Hornady CX bullet did its job with devastating precision. The entry wound was in the left flank and it disemboweled him, the bullet then continued forward into the boiler room. Result - Dead Hog Down.

Warthog was one of the animals I have wanted the most. They may be the ugliest animal in Africa. Yes-We have a Warthog was my message back to Jane that afternoon. We returned to the lodge and lunch, a nap and the rest of the afternoon off. After several days of hard hunting, I was ready for a break.

Warthog Down

Hornady 139g CX entry wound - Knocked the sausages out of him

More RDB Compound Scenery

​

 

[JG26Irish_2]

Safari Day6 - The next three days would be spent hunting Zebra and Kudu as well as potentially, Baboon. We ended up going to a new concession in Limpopo that was located roughly 15mi North as the crow flies high up in the Waterberg Mountains. This game reserve was known as Vista Vista. Situated high upon a mountain escarpment the average altitude was about 6500ft above sea level which is about 3000ft higher than Rumano's lodge. As hunting concessions go, this place was larger than most at over 11,000 hectares and more rugged than any I have experienced in the past. Rocky, steep, dangerous cliffs and narrow trails.

Vista Vista was named oh so well. The natural scenery and overlooks were stunning. Simply the most magnificent I have ever seen in Africa or most other places in the world. The hunting was hard but I would not have missed it for the world. Vista Vista is not a hunting outfitter. They run a game farm, tourist venue and wedding destination but do not organize hunts. Rumano is one of the few outfitters who is allowed to hunt this location. The site manager was an older guy (like me) by the name of Awie. This is pronounce "Ahh-Vee", almost sounds like Harvey from Boston. He did not speak much English but I have improved enough of my Afrikaans to be able to communicate with him adequately.

Awie knows his farm well and chose to guide us on the first morning and he took us to about every nook and cranny on the place. The roads, if you can call them roads were nothing more than narrow, dusty 2-track jeep trails up and down the various mountains and valleys of the concession. During the first 30min of the first day, we rounded a bend and I saw a large tan animal strolling down the road about 250y away. It had a hump on its back but I could not see horns with my naked eye at that range. I asked Rumano, "What is that? A f##-ing camel?" He glanced thru his binos and whispered, "It is a big Kudu Bull, get your rifle!" Having just started, my rifle was hanging in the gun rack unloaded. It had 4 rds in the magazine but empty chamber. I quickly, removed it from the gunrack and worked the bolt to chamber a round of 375HH. Aiming, all I had was a Texas Heart shot. Not very sporting.

I asked Rumano, "Do you want me to take a shot?" He advised me to wait for it to turn. We tried to get closer, but only closed about 30y before it stopped. Still presenting only its rearend. I was reluctant to shoot the first Kudu bull I saw. There is an old African saying that goes, "Never turn down the animal on the first day, that you would gladly shoot on the last day." It this case, the bull began walking slowly into the bush and never really gave us a viable shot. We hunted for hours all over this patch of ground and never saw it again. Opportunity missed. Rumano, told me that when an opportunity like that is presented we need to take it quickly before it is gone. Now, you tell me, lol.

Later, we drove thru an area where the trees, vines and vegetation forms a green canopy, completely covering the trail for about 50y and winding along a rocky cliff. When we emerged from the green jungle tunnel, it was as if we had been transported back in time to a prehistoric age. I almost expected to encounter dinosaurs walking the earth. The stones in this part of Vista Vista looked like they have not been touched in millions of years. Ancient rock, broken and dark with weathering.

And the views... OMG - it was magnificent! Off to our right in the distance you could see the 1000ft rock cliff with the little trail we had just traversed on the opposite side of the valley. Then there was a waterfall also on the opposite side where the little Mokamole river we had crossed poured down in multiple cascades into the valley below. We could hear the baboons barking in the trees and across the valley they hung like big black fruits in the trees. But, we were hunting Kudu and not wanting to disturb the peace shooting a them.

We trailed along for miles but found only one little stunted Giraffe. Then along the rim of a massive rock cliff, there was a road. The farm was so massive that it had a map on a large board to aid in orientation location about halfway thru and all of the major trails were named and marked with small rustic wooden signs. I saw one named Bobbyjean Valley and asked "Who is Bobby Jean?" Rumano explained to me that "Boobiyawn" how it is pronounced is Africaans for Baboon. Ahh so. But, at the top of the ridge the name of the road we were about to decend onto was "Dangerous Road". And beside of the road sign was a legal disclaimer, stating that travelers who used that road did so at their own risk that injury or death was possible. Even on safari the lawyers have their influence.

We got out and looked down what was a rocky goat path that would make a mountain goat cry. It was just a trail down a sheer rock cliff and had I been driving, I would not have went down this, no way, no how. But, Rumano took the wheel and put Ruan, his young Padwan PH in the back with me and shifted the big bakkie into Low Range. Over the cliff we went. Yee Haw!

We slide the first few yards down the steep cliff road but then the big 35" M/T tires dug into the loose rock and began to grip. As we slowly made our way down, I finally stopped holding my breath. About half way down, Ruan got excited as he had spotted a small herd of Kudu cows. But no bull was with them. The rut had ended about three weeks prior to my arrival. We got out and approached the cows after reaching the bottom of the valley below but again, no bull was sighted. Driving around the valley, we did encounter a larger herd of Cape Buffalo. They seemed to sense that we were not hunting them and simply stood their ground with all of the bulls in the front and the cows and calves in the back of the herd. I got some good close up pics but in the dense foliage, it is still hard to make them out.

There was a small lake in the deep valley and a little fishing shelter. We roamed around the valley but found no other game. Finally, Awie guided us out along a different road out of the valley and back toward his lodge. We dropped him off and had a late picnic lunch at one of his chalets before going back into the farm. From this point on Awie left us on our own to hunt his farm.
This farm had many Wildebeest, Blesbok, Impala, Ostrich, and Warthogs present. We never spotted any Zebra. I considered shooting another Warthog. My ammo for the 375 was running short. I had left 4-300g Swift A-frames, 4-250g TBBC, and 3-300g TSX loads. I decided to hunt Kudu with the A-frame reloads (a fateful decision). We hunted until 4:30pm and then made the 30min drive back to Sekopo where darkness had overtaken us. The likely plan was to return the next day.
While as hunting goes this was a more or less boring day, still I would not have missed it for the world. The scenery was just stunning.

Vista Vista

Butte at Vista Vista

Cliff Road

Waterfall

Hidden Valley

​

 

[JG26Irish_2]

Safari Day7 - Returned early to Vista Vista concession to continue our Kudu hunt. Awie let us hunt on our own today. The day dawned cold, windy but sunny. We hunted hard for hours, checking many places we have not yet seen. I spotted 5 kudu cows and a big male baboon at a small lake on the Watervaal - Swimpole river. No bulls but it was exciting to finally get to see a troop of baboons up close. They were loudly vocalizing with sounds that were a cross between screams and deep barks.
I got my crosshairs onto a large male Baboon sitting on a rock at the top of a tall cliff across the valley from us at 187y. This was an easy shot for my 7mm/08 which is zeroed at 200y. I took aim and slipped off the safety of the rifle. Quietly talking to my PH, he explained that I could shoot it but recovery of the body would be impossible due to the extreme terrain and no roads leading to the top of that ridge. I whispered that this was why we had Ruan, the young PH with us, lol. But, my bloodlust only goes so far. I whispered "Gotcha!" to myself and switched the rifle's safety back on. No shots fired. I told my best buddy that I would have shot it but looking thru the scope the Baboon looked too much like him and it was playing with himself and I just could not interrupt him, lol.

We left this deep valley and travelled to the far side of the farm to a high plateau. The scenery was stunning but the hunting was poor. Not much game was seen but we did find Kudu spoor in several spots. The roads were rugged and the highly capable 4x4 Land Cruiser struggled at times. Around noon, we stopped beside of a small natural alpine lake for lunch. It was crystal clear and appeared to be free of Crocs. The temps had warmed to a very pleasant 71 deg F. We ate our bush lunch beside this lake at about 6000ft elev. Ruan decided to explore and after a few minutes we realized that we had not heard from him in a while and got up to look for him. He was just returning from the head waters of the lake where he had stepped into quicksand and nearly sank in the morass before we missed him. He was covered in mud but otherwise no harm was done. I thought things like that only happened in the movies.

Later while skirting the top of a huge cliff, an entire troop of baboons came boiling out of the bush in front of us. Big ones, small ones and all in between. It was chaos for a few seconds as they ran across the trail. About 2pm, I told Rumano that this had ceased to be fun. I was tired and beat to death from the bouncing around in the truck. No Zebra had been seen all day as we returned to the big Savannah. Here we spotted a big tusker Warthog at about 240y. I almost took a shot but he ran first. Saw a large male Baboon for about 2 seconds running but no shot. Also spotted a big Aardvark (ant eater) - "Very Cool". Many Osriches were running about. We left the farm about 4:45pm as it was almost dark.

30 min later, Rumano's phone rang as we travelled home. It was Awie's wife calling to report that a big Kudu Bull and 4-5 cows had just appeared near the lodge out in the open??? They know when we are gone. WTF? It was too late to return, so we made a plan to return at 1st light the next morning and hope that he was still nearby. The plan was to hunt the next morning only at Vista Vista before a relocation to another concession.

One interesting event had happened a few hours earlier. We were all tired and had driven past the same lake where the Kudu cows had been seen that morning. Ruan was driving and suddenly stopped and said he had seen a Kudu bull dead ahead at about 70y. Rumano looked with his binos and pointed to the spot and told me to take the shot! I was holding the 7mm/08 and aimed at the rearend of an animal. But it was spotted and Kudus have vertical stripes. It swished its tail and Rumano stopped me before we made a major foul-up. It was a small Giraffe. It is a perfect example of how the power of suggestion, fatigue and desire can cause a hunter to see what he wants to see in the bush. Fortunately, we were able to decern the mistake before doing something truly tragic.
We arrived at homebase tired, and hungry. Chef Charles treated us to one of the best meals of the trip. Kudu tenderloin, beet salad, honey butter corn and garlic bread. We waddled off to bed soon after. While no animals were taken this day, it was an eventful and memorable day with lots of new sights. So, for me a very successful day.

375HH - Swimpole Watervaal

Alpine Lake

Deep Valley - Glassing the Hills Beyond at 450y for Kudu

Vista Vista Savannah

Dinner at RDB - One of many First Class Meals by Chef Charles​

 

[JG26Irish_2]

Safari Day8 - The last two days were a grind. Hours on end of traversing rough ground in the 4x4 searching for Kudu and Zebra without success. But today was about to get exciting really fast. An old Chinese curse says, "May you live in interesting times." Today was interesting, maddening, and magnificent. We got up very early at 4:00am and was rolling into the Vista Vista farm before sunrise in hopes that we could locate the big bull Kudu and his harem this morning. After two full days of scouring the concession, I will admit that I was not all that optimistic.

We arrived at 7:20am and I said "Hi" to Awie in Afrikaans before he climbed into our truck to guide us. We focused on a grove of trees located on the south end of the farm between two large open grassland areas. This timberland was about 4/10ths of a mile long and about 1/4mi wide. It was cold and I had left my rifle in the rack rather than holding it. We had driven part of the perimeter of the grove in the Land Cruiser for about 30min when we came round a bend and spotted 4 cows with a big bull Kudu following behind. They were moving right to left at about 40y range. Kudus move a lot like North American Elk and are similar in size. The jumping capability of a Kudu is impressive. They can leap over a 12ft game fence in a single bound and as such are impossible to corral onto a single farm. They are known as the ghost of the bushveld since they move with such smooth silence and grace and when they become aware of a threat, instead of running fast like a deer, they simply melt into the forest and disappear. I quickly retrieved my 375HH rifle and worked the bolt to load a round into the chamber.

The bull was by this time about 50y away. I took careful aim and pulled the trigger. The rifle made a resounding "Click". Misfire! No! I quickly worked the bolt as the bull walked behind a small group of bushes. I recall saying, "My gun misfired!". Now, once again, taking aim, I fired and the gun went "Click" a 2nd time! What is happening! Now, the bull is moving again and about to disappear. I worked the bolt again and was losing my mind as I hurriedly took aim again and pulled the trigger. The roar of the big magnum loaded with a 300g Swift A-Frame bullet was completely silent. To be sure, it did fire on the 3rd try and I did hit the bull, but I heard nothing. The substantial recoil from the magnum big game rifle was also not felt. The bull ran into the forest and disappeared.

I reloaded the magazine with a hodge podge of ammo that I had left in my pack. On the bottom was one 250g Trophy Bonded Bearclaw, then a 300g TSX Barnes and on top of that were my last two A-Frame loads. Rumano, Ruan and I all followed the trail to where the bull had entered the forest 30-40y away and I quickly found a blood trail. We see it moving South thru the trees to the left. We follow to the opposite side of the grove where the blood trail stopped. The cows had turned left and advanced into a 1/2mi long grassland area leaving a path thru the long grass. South Africa had experienced more rain this past two months than they had seen in 22yrs and the growth of the grass and trees was 3x normal.

I can only think of stories I have read about "Don't go into the Long Grass". This admonition to hunters and adventurers alike because it was where the lions like to lie in wait of prey. I was not aware of any lions here but snakes are my greatest fear in Africa. They have a long list of very large, and very venomous snakes that will kill you if bitten. Cobra, Spitting Cobra, Gaboon Viper, Puff Adder, Black Mamba and Green Mamba to name only a few. While Rumano had assured me that it was winter there and most of the snakes were sleeping in their dens, it was not that cold and the thoughts of stepping on a 12ft aggressive black mamba was terrifying. With these happy thoughts on my mind, I followed Rumano into the long grass in search of our Kudu. He was looking forward and I was looking down. I figured, he would wake the snakes and I would step on them?

Looking across the wide open plain, I could not see any Kudus and walking in the chest high grass was like walking thru knee deep snow and it sapped my energy like gasoline on a housefire. In short order, Rumano who was a former pro athlete had progressed 100y ahead of his old, slow, fat client. I could not see what he was following and after a while, I lost heart and stopped. Then over the next 30min, I circled back toward the truck and drank some water. I found Ruan and Awie who had followed another trail to the left back into the trees without any success. We all returned to the point where the last blood was found. Kudu tracks were everywhere. I thought out loud, "Which way could it go? Left? Straight? or Right?" I took the left trail and followed it into the trees. Awie took another to the left along the edge of the trees and Ruan took a third to the left and we all followed them into the forest. Rumano was still out in the grass about 1/4mi away. After about one hour, we regrouped and Awie left to go get some of his native trackers but they were far away on the opposite end of the farm. It would be a while. We rested and split up once more to follow other trails. Since I last saw them moving left, I was convinced that they had continued in that direction. Rumano decided to go right and followed a trail along the edge of the trees. It turned out that the cows went left and the bull did go to the right. But, it did not go all that far.

About 40min passed and I had just returned to a beehive where the blood trail had ended and was quietly talking to Ruan when I heard the pop of a pistol shot off to the right in Rumano's direction. I told Ruan that I was headed that way to investigate. I saw Rumano about 200y away and he motioned for me to come quickly. I do not move that fast and was already exhausted from prior efforts. But, I made haste and arrived in a couple of minutes. Rumano had found the bull and fired a shot with his 9mm pistol at 30ft but missed it. He pointed in the direction it had traveled and we began a stalk on foot. We traveled into the dense bush about 60y when the Kudu stood and walked a short distance. Clearly hurt, it stood perfectly broadside at about 50y. I aimed the 375, clicked off the safety and fired. The gun once again went "Click". What the Hell? I cycled the bolt, aimed and pulled the trigger again and once again "Click" misfire. These were both the A-Frame reloads. Something was wrong with this ammo. I cycled the bolt a 2nd time and aimed at the bull's shoulder and fired! The Barnes TSX load fired as it should and hit the Kudu a bit high in the shoulder but dropped him like a sack of taters. I had only one shot left - the 250g Federal ammo and not wanting to use my last round, we approached where we used Rumano's Glock to finish the beast. I saved the last shot in my rifle for if we were attacked by Zulu warriors on the way back out of the bush, lol.
The big, old Kudu bull was down! He measured 48" on the left horn and 49" on the right. His tips were ivory white and worn from use and age. He is not likely a world record but a respectable animal with heavy bases and deep spirals. It had taken two shots with the 375HH and one with the 9mm. I made a quiet thank you to God for not letting the misfires occur the previous week in Free State while hunting dangerous game. I was troubled by the misfires but for this safari, I was finished with this rifle and would deal with the issues later when I got home. The first shot which was rushed and under extreme pressure was low, broke the left front leg and hit in the brisket. The 2nd also rushed hit high in the shoulder and broke the spine. Not great marksmanship but effective nonetheless. A good day and we celebrated with a couple of cold Afrikaan beers. Awie and the trackers arrived about 30min later. Just in time to help carry this big bull out of the bush. It was too thick and rocky to drive to.

Rumano left to meet the trackers and I remained with the Kudu in the bush. While he was away, I performed the last rites on the bull. This is a European tradition known as the "Letzer Bissen" or in English the "Last Bite". A sprig of greenery is placed in the mouth of the animal and another in the bullet hole that killed him and a 3rd in the hat of the successful hunter. I thanked the big bull for spreading his genes into the herd for the future of his species and for providing us with a good chase and promised him a place of honor in our memories and home for all of our days. We took photos to commemorate the event and then transported him to the truck and back to Sekopo for brunch of eggs, bacon, sausages, mushrooms, pancakes and OJ. We took the remainder of the day off to rest and recoup and reconvened for dinner about 6pm with venison tenderloins, impala sausages, minced Kudu with cheese in a nest of mashed potatoes which was like a shepherds pie, also pumpkin fritters with caramel sauce and green salad. We skipped desert, lol.

Here's Your Sign - Similar signage was all over this concession

Taking the Bull by the Horns

Big Bull Down

375HH ER Shaw Custom

Awie going to find his trackers

Well earned Brunch back at RDB

​

 

[JG26Irish_2]

Safari Day9-10 Zebra Hunt. While we had hunted Zebra all week, they were never our primary quarry. Day9 - We left this morning at 9am following a breakfast of egg, chili and beans. Went to a new concession about 10-15mi Southwest of RDB. The owner Roland is an old college friend of Rumano's whose primary business is management of his commercial farm. But, he also maintains a 10,000 acre game reserve for hunting. So, we roll out in search of Zebra. We had not travelled more than a mile when we were surprised by a large herd of Zebra at 400y. I could have made a shot but it was longer than desired and they soon bolted and ran.

Roland had decided to tag along and offer advice and where to intercept the Circus Horses. He directed us along a circuitous route to where a mountain trail passes near the jeep trail. He had us sit tight and soon we could hear the clip clop of their hooves on the stoney trail. But they were moving fast and were in thick cover. The only shots would have been blind thru cover on a moving target. Not exactly my MO. We moved again to the top of a mountain pass and dismounted from the Bakkie to stalk on foot. We set up an ambush where Roland expected the zebra to cross over into the next valley. We waited for a long time but the wind had shifted and they either winded us or took a different path. We hunted the remainder of the day 4x4ing over trails that would make mountain goats cry. Saw a nice Kudu bull and my first glimpse of a Klipspringer. Several herds of Blue Wildebeest and Giraffe.

Returned for a late lunch at Sekopo and then hunted Zebra and lots of Warthogs at Rumanos main reserve. I had decided that if a big tusker presented himself, I would take him. The problem with warthogs is that they move fast and by the time I could judge one, he would be running away again. I saw several but took no shots.

Day10 - Ruan took me out early for Zebra at the RDB reserve. I have hunted it enough that I could navigate it on my own without too much effort. John the lead native tracker was our driver. Spotted Zebra twice early while driving in to the big Savannah but no open shots. Found some more later in the mountains on the south side of the reserve. Spotted them about three different times and once, I had a big stallion in my sights. I was so close to taking a shot that I had slipped off the safety and whispered to Ruan to cover his ears. The 7mm/08 at 200y was an easy shot and just as I was about to fire, Ruan whispered, "Don't shoot!". Another Zebra had walked behind my target and had I fired, it likely would have killed one and wounded the other. He said to wait until it moved but when they did finally move, they both turned away from us and headed back up the mountain into thick bush. No Zebra! Over the course of the last few days we spotted Leopard spoor in multiple locations. Rumano has at least one Leopard operating on his farm and on the Vista Vista farm we saw tracks from what was almost certainly a very large male.

We saw Kudu, Impala, Giraffe, Wildebeest, Golden Wildebeest, Ostrich, Eland and Blesbok. Following lunch, Rumano took me back out and we hunted until dark but were never able to spot the Zebra again. We did see Sable bulls, Royal Wildebeest, and a variety of plains game in herds on the open Savannah. It is a sight I will never tire of. We sat high atop the tallest mountain on his reserve at sunset and enjoyed a final last sunset in the bush together toasting the successes and failures of the past 10days hunting with a cold South Afrikan Castle bier.

The next morning, I met for breakfast with a party of hunters from California who were taking my place the next week. Mike, the father, his son Brodie, a high school swimming athlete, and Mike's nephew Kyle. All good guys and all excited to experience Africa. Following breakfast, I got to sign the RDB Buffalo Society painting as only the 2nd successful Cape Buffalo hunter of the 2025 season and then tagged along with Mike and his crew to go to the target range and for a game drive on the property. It was a great way to wind up the hunt prior to the drive back to Johannesburg to the airport and the big bird home to the USA.

I loved my time in Africa but make no mistake, it is always good to return to the good old USA! Even with all of our problems, it is still the best country on Earth! I want to express my many thanks to Rumano De Beer and RDB Safaris for making my trip back to Africa both memorable and enjoyable. I think about you all and about Africa - Every Day!

Giraffe at RDB​

Hung Lip Mtn - Limpopo Waterberg District​

CT Edge in all it Glory​

Smartassed Hunter - Peacocking​

RDB Buffalo - Dangerous Game Club​

 

[cpr0312]

Congrats and thanks for sharing!

 

[DieJager]

Thanks for taking us along. Wmh!

 

[375Fox]

Sounds like you had a fun trip. I’ve taken 250 and 300 gr 375 H&H ammo before for certain reasons, but I knew the difference of where they shot before trip. Did you shoot the swifts, TBBC, and Barnes before your trip to see the difference? This was just a difference in 300 gr factory ammo to show how difficult it is to mix and match different ammo. Note both the highest and lowest bullet are federal TBBCs just from different ammo lines. I’ve generally found a 6” difference between 250 gr and 300 gr bullets.