Since I was a kid...

[Jlaughl747]

So my grandfather was a Flying Tiger, he was not a pilot he was a Flight Surgeon, and growing up I would spend my summers at their house for three months non-stop. The thing about that is there was a never-ending series of visitors who were fighter pilots in the Tigers many of them decorated aces. And every one of them, I mean every single one would go on months-long safaris in Africa.

I was constantly regaled with their adventures, incredible hunts, and danger, and found myself wanting to hear the safari stories more than I wanted to listen to the aerial combat ones. Don't get me wrong I hunted, hell my father was a guide for Jimmy Reel at the Eagle Lake Hunt Club and my senior year in High School I guided for Jimmy's daughter at the Garwood Hunt Club. I would gladly set rag spreads and 1K dekes over sitting in a elevated blind and waiting for some stupid deer to be dumb enough to wander into range.

Ultimately that was what drew me to the safari stories, it was not passive you had to find, stalk, and kill the beast yourself. Active in every sense, you made your own luck and failure was a cloth of your own making.

All my life I have held these stories close and hoped one day to make the journey myself and experience some small part of those stories personally.

And so I find myself here, not quite in the place to make said trip and sadly letting go of one part of that dream but who knows I may yet find myself on the savannah before I leave this existence.

Thanks,

 

[Mekaniks]

Welcome to AH the addiction starts here

 

[93marlin]

Welcome to AH...there's a terrific bunch of knowledgeable men & women here!

 

[JHT]

Best intro I’ve seen. Your closing paragraph intrigues me. I think you’ll get there. Welcome

 

[Red Leg]

I am a generation older than you - my father, rather than grandfather, flew in the China-Burma Theater in B-25's. Like you, I grew up hunting wildfowl though in South Louisiana, but was bit hard with dreams of Africa. I was fifty-six before having the means to begin making those dreams true.

If I can make a suggestion. There is nothing wrong with hunting from a lodge in South Africa. In fact, it is the best choice for many. But if you have truly dreamed of Africa, save a bit more and make that first Safari in Zim or Mozambique or the Caprivi with a tent over your head in a camp that is a little less permanent.

 

[Flipper Dude]

Pocket the funds from your CZ you’re selling, set aside a couple of hundred bucks every month or so, drive that truck an extra 80-100K miles past when you usually trade, buy some good ‘06 loads, and find your butt in Africa hunting plains game. It’s easily done.

 

[Arctic97]

Welcome to AH, I hope you make it over for a hunt of your own. This forum will definitely add fuel to your desires' fire.

 

[MontanaPat]

Welcome to AH, hope you are able to make that trip to Africa sooner than you think

 

[318AE]

Welcome! You’ve certainly joined the “gateway drug” site for African hunting.

Other than perhaps some public draw hunts in the Western US, RSA is probably the best day for day, animal by animal, dollar for dollar value in the hunting world. Take it for what it is - it can be a great time. Some areas in Kwa-Zulu Natal and the west feel “wilder“ to me than other areas and are still very accessible.

As Red Leg mentioned, Zim and Moz bring another level of adventure, at another price, closer to the experience you heard about as a child. While there are deals to be had, I feel like the Caprivi has become expensive, often single animal affairs. This was a perspective first shared with me by a Namibian PH. For the money of some of those hunts, there are options in Tanzania too.

 

[Jlaughl747]

I am a generation older than you - my father, rather than grandfather, flew in the China-Burma Theater in B-25's. Like you, I grew up hunting wildfowl though in South Louisiana, but was bit hard with dreams of Africa. I was fifty-six before having the means to begin making those dreams true.

If I can make a suggestion. There is nothing wrong with hunting from a lodge in South Africa. In fact, it is the best choice for many. But if you have truly dreamed of Africa, save a bit more and make that first Safari in Zim or Mozambique or the Caprivi with a tent over your head in a camp that is a little less permanent.

If I had a dollar for every "Hump" story I've heard growing up I could.have gone to Africa a dozen times.

My grandfather did that route six times and hated it every single time.

I could not imagine being a pilot having to do it multiple times a month. You dad had brass balls and knew no fear!

There was a China Burna pilots association was he a member?

In 1978 I went to both a CB and Flying Tiger reunion with my grandparents, maybe I met your dad!

 

[Ridge Runner]

So my grandfather was a Flying Tiger, he was not a pilot he was a Flight Surgeon, and growing up I would spend my summers at their house for three months non-stop. The thing about that is there was a never-ending series of visitors who were fighter pilots in the Tigers many of them decorated aces. And every one of them, I mean every single one would go on months-long safaris in Africa.

I was constantly regaled with their adventures, incredible hunts, and danger, and found myself wanting to hear the safari stories more than I wanted to listen to the aerial combat ones. Don't get me wrong I hunted, hell my father was a guide for Jimmy Reel at the Eagle Lake Hunt Club and my senior year in High School I guided for Jimmy's daughter at the Garwood Hunt Club. I would gladly set rag spreads and 1K dekes over sitting in a elevated blind and waiting for some stupid deer to be dumb enough to wander into range.

Ultimately that was what drew me to the safari stories, it was not passive you had to find, stalk, and kill the beast yourself. Active in every sense, you made your own luck and failure was a cloth of your own making.

All my life I have held these stories close and hoped one day to make the journey myself and experience some small part of those stories personally.

And so I find myself here, not quite in the place to make said trip and sadly letting go of one part of that dream but who knows I may yet find myself on the savannah before I leave this existence.

Thanks,

It's never to late to take a trip to experience Africa, as long as you are in reasonable health to travel, and above ground.

 

[Red Leg]

If I had a dollar for every "Hump" story I've heard growing up I could.have gone to Africa a dozen times.

My grandfather did that route six times and hated it every single time.

I could not imagine being a pilot having to do it multiple times a month. You dad had brass balls and knew no fear!

There was a China Burna pilots association was he a member?

In 1978 I went to both a CB and Flying Tiger reunion with my grandparents, maybe I met your dad!

The B-25 was a medium bomber, so it was not used to fly the Hump. He flew 74 missions over Burma, largely in support of the British, and was shot down twice. He earned a DFC. All of those pilots, crew, and support personnel were real men who knew the meaning of duty and country.