South Africa, Eastern Cape Hunt with Game-4-Africa Safaris.

[DieJager]

Love it, beautiful animals, good humour, great cigars, a great report so far! Waidmannsheil!

 

[PARA45]

I hate it that you couldn't make it TT, but I understood the reasons.

 

[degoins]

The following pictures are for @degoins. Here you go sir, I hope this brings good feelings to you knowing this rifle is being used in Africa. I'll always be thankful for the opportunity you gave me to purchase this beautiful rifle. I hope one day we will meet in person, and I could buy you a beer.

View attachment 695078
View attachment 695079

It gives me GREAT feelings friend!! Thanks for sharing! I hope the same thing.

 

[Sika98k]

Congratulations on your first buffalo. Why your first ? Sadly buffalo hunting is addictive. Nice selection of cigars also.

 

[PARA45]

Congratulations on your first buffalo. Why your first ? Sadly buffalo hunting is addictive. Nice selection of cigars also.

Thank you! Long story, but the short version had to do with my thinking that Safaris were for the rich, then I discovered that it was not the case and I've been working at it little by little. This is my 4th safari and my 3rd time to South Africa since 2012. I have a lot of catching up.

 

[375 Ruger Fan]

Thank you! Long story, but the short version had to do with my thinking that Safaris were for the rich, then I discovered that it was not the case and I've been working at it little by little. This is my 4th safari and my 3rd time to South Africa since 2012. I have a lot of catching up.

Well done Oscar!

@GAME 4 AFRICA SAFARIS does offer great value on excellent hunting.

 

[PARA45]

The trackers worked on my Buffalo and cut him up in three pieces. Those poor guys were struggling to stand straight with the weight of each piece from the Buffalo. It took several hours to get him out of there; the Buffalo was out of the area inbound to the skinning shed. By this time, it was close to noon, and we headed back to the lodge for a well-deserved lunch.

Now that the Buffalo was in the salt, it was time for my friend Gary to hunt, he had been an observer all this time, and it was my turn to be one. We hunted hard all afternoon and had several stalks in which the Kudus gave us the slip and moved away. It was an exciting afternoon, nevertheless.

As the day was ending, God rewarded us with some of his magical sunsets. All I could do was to stand there and watch God's creation and reflect on how lucky we were to be hunting in South Africa. What an amazing hunt so far, and to be on top of this mountain enjoying this sunset was the icing on the cake.

Dinner that night was Impala tenderloins with Warthog sausages (looked like hot dogs). Dinner was as usual amazing, and when you are at G4A, there is always dessert, and Brittany makes sure you get your sweet fix every night. Since I've been home, I've asked my wife if we had any dessert, so I went to the store and bought some ice cream for after dinner dessert.

Since the Buffalo was in the salt, we got the big cigars to celebrate, nothing better than a Padron 1964 Aniversario. Proper cigar to the honor the wonderful Buffalo I had taken in the morning. It was an amazing end to yet another wonderful day, and the wonderful feelings I had to have shared this amazing hunt with a great friend. We sat in front of the fireplace, enjoying our cigars, reflecting on life and how blessed we are, and talked about the beauty of the Buffalo I had taken. In my humble opinion, moments like these is what makes a hunt unforgettable, and special, when it's shared with friends and family.

 

[PARA45]

19 Jul 2025.

It was Gary's turn to hunt, and I became an observer. It was only fair since he had been following me for the last two days. Earlier we had decided that we would both hunt together with one PH, and enjoy each other hunts. I'll have to say that this was a great way to hunt, and we both enjoyed it tremendously.

We drove up to Mountain Top, and we hunted Kudu there for Gary. It was nice to leave my rifle behind and tag along without the extra weight. BTW, Gary has joined the forum, and I'll leave it up to him to post a report and pictures of the animals taken. He ended taking a beautiful Kudu bull on Mountain Top. For those who have been there, you know how difficult the terrain is, for those who have not, it is one of the toughest hunts in the property, the terrain is difficult, steep, and thick. Lots of lose rocks, and it puts some serious stress on your knees, and ankles. There you will make some long (200-300 yds) shots. The lodge is at about 2000 ft above sea level, and Mountain Top is about 3500 ft above sea level. Some may say that's nothing, but for us that are at sea level or a bit above, it's a lot. My lungs and knees were begging for forgiveness.

We had a wonderful lunch at Mountain Top and sat there once again enjoying God's creation and enjoying the wonderful company. The staff had prepared sandwiches with eggs and mayo, and I'll have to say that I had never had them, and I enjoyed them so much, I ended up eating two. We had plenty of time to spare, and of course I suggested we enjoy a cigar, and Gary and I sat there enjoying a wonderful cigar. The weather was perfect, not hot, not cold, just perfect.

BTW, Don is very sneaky with his phone, and he'll snap pictures of you when you least expected.



We finished our cigars, packed the Land Cruiser and off we went to look for a Kudu for me. We drove maybe 10 minutes, and the usual tap on the roof top, and Don tells us we are going for a walk, and I knew what that meant. LOL! We walked a bit; we saw a few Kudu bulls on the other mountains but were too far to even consider a stalk (I was glad they were). We kept walking and glassing, and X took off while Don was behind the spotting scope looking for Kudu. About 20 min or so later, X came back and told us that the Kudu were moving to an area the Kudu likes to visit in the afternoon that has water and food. We moved on and started our downhill stalk. We got to within 250-300 yds from where they were and stopped to assess how we would move without being spotted. There were a lot of eyes on the bottom, but none knew we were there. The wind was perfect, and we were well camouflage. There was a monster Warthog (huge tusks) that Gary wanted to take, and we were thinking how to do it. Don was trying to figure out how to set us up side-by-side and shoot at the same time. We are there trying to be as motionless as possible, but an old Kudu cow was not buying it and didn't like what she was seeing. When she had enough of our presence, she sounded the alarm, and every animal scattered and ran for their life.

Defeated by the cow, we continue our downhill walk, and up another hill following the road. X was probably 20-30 ft in front of Don, and I was a few fts behind Don. After walking probably 3/4 of a mile or so, X all of sudden froze and squatted down and motion Don to move up to where he was. Binoculars came up, and Don motioned for me to move up front quickly but quietly. A Kudu bull was at the bottom of this road, and he didn't know we were there. Up came the sticks, and I was quickly behind them. The bull was facing us head down eating at 111 yds, and in a downhill shot, his chest was not clear for a shot, so Don whispered to wait for the Kudu to turn. Seconds/minutes went by which seem like an eternity, and then the bull finally turn enough to show his shoulder. The Kudu was quartering toward me, looking to my left. As usual, Don said "take him when you are ready". I squeeze the trigger, came back from the recoil, and Don is as usual excited and exclaimed that Kudu was down. High fives and hugs and my Kudu Bull was down.

We start our walk following the road we were on and figure it would be the easiest way down to reach the Kudu. Well, no, X decides to cut a road down this mountain and here we go again going downhill. I slipped and fell on my rear end, and thankfully there were no thorny brushes where I landed. Since we were not staking, we all had a good laugh about it. They all laughed on how I protected my rifle and not myself. LOL!

We reached my Kudu, and it was a beautiful bull, with a very dark neck. He was a real old boy, so old he was probably half the size of Gary's Kudu. He was definitely on a decline and the rut probably did not help his health. I was very happy to have taken yet another old warrior.

The crew packed the second Kudu in the Land Cruiser, and off we went. In these terrains is when you appreciate how tough these Land Cruisers are. There were some areas in which Don had to engage the 4x4 to get through. Rough terrain is quite an understatement.

Dinner that night was Gemsbuck and Mountain Rebuck back straps.

And of course our cigar of choice was another Padron 1964 Aniversario. BTW, the pictures may look the same, but this was our usual place to sit and enjoy the evening.

 

[PARA45]

20 Jun 2025

Today was going to about Gary, and we were hunting Reedsdale, which is adjacent to Mountain Top, but this is more of Savannah type of terrain, with pockets of wood at the bottom of the draws. The conditions were not ideal at all; we had winds I'm guessing 20-30 MPH with gusts in the 40s. Gary managed to take two beautiful animals, and I'll let him share his experience with you guys.

After the morning hunt, we found a place where we could hunker down and get away from the wind and enjoy another field lunch following yet with another wonderful cigar.

Here are some pictures of the day.

Dinner this evening was Eland back straps. I'll have to say that Eland is as close as beef with a better taste, and between Kudu, and I trolly don't know which one is better. I think I like them both equally.

Our cigar of the evening of course was another Padron 1964 Aniversario. BTW, the Aniversarios were the after dinner cigars, and the others were for during the hunt, or in the afternoon type of cigars. For the Cigars smokers in the group these were the cigars we had: Drew State Undercrown, Montecristo 1935 Anniversary Diamond Edition, Montecristo 1935 Anniversary, My Father Le Bejou 1922, Punch Fu Man Chu, and of course an array of different sizes of Padron 1964 Aniversarios.

 

[PARA45]

With the Waterbuck (was not in the initial plan), Buffalo and Kudu in the salt, I only had one more animal to take on my package, and it was an Impala.

21 Jun 2025.

Gary still needed one more animal to complete his package, so it was his hunt in the morning. Gary chased Nyala all morning, and I'll let him tell his story if he wishes. As we afternoon and sun light was starting to fade away, and we are making our way back to the lodge. Earlier I had mentioned to Don that I wanted to hunt another Kudu bull if the opportunity arises, but didn't want to interfere with Gary's hunt. As we are driving back to the lodge, the usual tap and there is a bull on the far ridge of this mountain. We dismount, and Don tells me it's a good-looking bull and mature. We get behind the spotting scope and I could see some nice curls on him. I wanted a wide bull, but this one was beautiful too.

We start our stalk and moving rather quickly since we were losing daylight fast. Don asks if I felt comfortable shooting at the bull at 260 yds, and I gave him nod of confidence. We moved a bit more to close in the gap, and the sticks go up. The bull unfortunately is moving away from me, and I do not have a clear shot, and we can't move any further. Don tells me he is at 300 yds and still moving. Then the bull stops, and Don tells me the is at 312 yds away, and it is quartering away from me. I'm rock solid on the sticks, the air is crisp, and no wind whatsoever. I placed the dot of my Trijicon scope level with the hump of his back and aimed at what I considered his last ribs. I take the shot, and I hear the distinct smack from the bullet, and Don jumps of joy and tells me that I smoked him and that he was down. I was busy trying to get back on target and reloading to noticed everything that Don and Gary had witnessed. Bull staggered maybe 10-15 ft and piled up.

High fives all around, and I have my second Kudu bull in the salt. I was super excited to put my hand on this big boy. So, we get back on the Land Cruiser, to cut down the distance and get to the other side of this hill.

We get there quickly, and I jumped off the Land Cruiser and I tried to keep up with X who was moving rather quickly to get to the Kudu. Got to him, and I was super excited with this magnificent animal. BTW, Kudu for me is like hunting White Tail deer here in GA. I will always hunt a Kudu every time I visit Africa. I now have two nice Kudu bulls in the salt.

My dear friend Rocky ensuring the Kudu didn't go anywhere.

We drove back to lodge, and we were all very happy with the end result, and I was proud of the shot. BTW, this Kudu was shot with my 375 H&H, and Barnes 300 Grs TXS bullets. We got to the lodge, and Wik had a pleasant surprise for me.

Wik was with another client at the North Camp, and he had not seen me since I shot the Buffalo. So, right after dinner, Wik gave Don this box, and Don presented me with the Dagga Boy Knife they present to hunters who kill a Buffalo bull. I was honored and humbled by Wik's beautiful gesture. Little things like this that shows the appreciation of the owner towards the hunters. Something I will always remember and hold dear to my heart. Of course, we took the standard 1/2 million pictures to ensure one of them was good.

Don had me removed my glasses from my hat for the picture.

 

[Tundra Tiger]

First, I am jealous of the knife: I want one.

Second: "I will always hunt a Kudu every time I visit Africa." Bingo my friend; you and me both.

 

[Tbitty]

Here we go.

14 Jun 2025. As any trip, there is always a drive to the airport, and of course the anxiety and the buildup of the what ifs. A good friend offered to drive us, and we decided to be at the Atlanta airport with plenty of time, so we thought 4-5 hour would be enough. We arrived at the International Terminal, and it seemed busier than usual. My friend was flying first-class, so I was able to sneak in with him on the first-class line and get priority treatment. Well, everything was going fine until the gentleman behind the counter asks for assistance. Apparently, he had never checked in ammo and rifles before, and this was a first for him. Oh boy, let's see how this goes. Someone shows up and starts instructing him how to proceed and pointing on the screen and what not. Then the usual questions are asked, are your weapons unloaded, how much ammo, are they locked, etc. Then, out of the blue the lady helping, instructs me to open my suitcase and show her the ammo (this suitcase is busting at the seams, and my ammo in neatly packed in the middle, ugh). What? Ok, I open my suitcase, and show her the case with the lock, oh no, she wants me to open it. I'm shaking my head in disbelieve, and I open the case, and she doesn't say a word. I politely ask the lady if she was satisfied and if I could lock up my case. She looks at me and nods yes. Oh boy, if this is how my trip is starting, I can only imagine the rest. Took the rifles to TSA, and they were pleasant and professional, and had no issues. Clear from the heavy stuff, we cleared TSA quickly, and we were now in the airport secure area.

We went to the Delta One Lounge and waited for my friend Delta Capt to show up. We enjoyed some snacks, and my friend showed up (didn't know they are not allowed in the lounge anymore), so we met outside, and had a great visit. Boarded the Delta flight, and the flight was long, but uneventful, food was, well you know airplane food and nothing more to say. The Delta crew were excellent, and I didn't know that my friend had told them where I was sitting, and the Flight Attendants took extra care of me.

View attachment 695001

Arrived in Joburg the next day, and since we had paid for the VIP and Rifle Permits, a nice lady was outside the bridge with a sign and our name. Passport control was a breeze, and she took us to collect our bags. On the way out, I spotted Gilbert from Africa-Sky with his contagious smile, he had a sign with our names, and we quickly proceeded to SAPS for the rifle permits. My rifle came up and, opened the case, and the SAPS lady began checking the serial numbers. Oh, oh, what's going, Gilbert and her are going back and forth. I step in, and Gilbert tells me that she doesn't see a number 3, that she sees a B. I try to explain to her through Gilbert that USCBP checked the rifles and that it is a 3. Oh no, it's a B, and then something happens, and she tells Gilbert to have it fixed when I get back to the US. I'm cleared. But I wondered if this was going to become an issue with the next several flights. We shall see. We had to wait a bit for another flight other hunters, but once we were all cleared, we headed quickly to the parking garage and to Africa-Sky. Ate a wonderful dinner at Africa-Sky.

View attachment 694999

Breakfast was good as well, and by 8 AM, we were on our way to the airport for our Airlink flight to the Eastern Cape. Had no issues checking and paying the extra fee for the rifles and ammo. All cleared, we said goodbye to Gilbert and proceeded to their security checks. Boarded our flight, and waiting to take off, when the captain makes an announcement that the flight is delayed 30 min. No big deal, we do not have a connecting flight to take, so, its all good. I'm sitting on the window side of the aircraft, and there is another airlink aircraft next to us. That flight departs, and there are some gun cases and ammo cases on the tarmac. I'm looking and one of them looks like mine Pelican tan case. Nah, it can't be. I get the attention of the flight attendant, and she assures me that my rifles are on board. Not satisfied, I keep an eye on them, and then some ground crews lift the case, and I can see the writing on the side, and I recognize the case as my Pelican case. I get the attention of the flight attendant once again, she gets on the phone with the crew and who knows who else, and they open the belly of the aircraft and load our rifles. That was close.

We arrived at the East London Airport, with no issues, Don our PH is there waiting for us. We collect our belongings, and we are off to our 1:45 drive to the lodge. We get there, we settled in our Chalets, and Don asks if we would like to check our rifles today or tomorrow. I'm like, let's do it today, so we can hunt early. He agrees, and off to the range we go. The 300 H&H was about 3" high and bit to the right, made some adjustments, and the rifle was good at 2" at 100 yds. My 375 H&H was 3 inches high as well, 4 clicks down, and I was good to go.

Don decided to take us for a small drive around the property so my friend Gary could see what the property looks like. 10-15 min into the drive we see a huge Waterbuck at appx 500 yds away, and Don tells me it's a big animal and if I wanted to put a stalk on him. He then realized that he didn't have his shooting sticks, and I politely pass. Well, the image of that Waterbuck was haunting me, and at dinner time, I told Don that if we had time, I'll like to look for him.

Dinner was Springbuck Back Straps, with potatoes.

View attachment 695000

Just arrived in camp this evening myself. Don & Wik had wonderful things to say about you and your hunt already (knowing that we'd shared the AH forum connection). Getting to bed so we can get after it in the morning - will enjoy reading your writeup during the down time.

 

[Firebird]

Hope to have time to go to mtn top in about three weeks and try for another bushbuck after buffalo of course!
You should always hunt kudu there and impala as well. . . And I am glad you shot that waterbuck-that’s one of my all time favorites!

 

[CEO]

Cape buffalo are my absolute favorite animal, but I can't get over that waterbuck.

 

[Sika98k]

First, I am jealous of the knife: I want one.

Second: "I will always hunt a Kudu every time I visit Africa." Bingo my friend; you and me both.

Well, there’s only one way to get one ! We shall await your hunt report from the Eastern Cape in the future.

@PARA45 , what’s the serial number of your knife ?

 

[Hyde Hunter]

that East Cape terrain can really make you work and sore, great write up and animals

 

[PARA45]

Well, there’s only one way to get one ! We shall await your hunt report from the Eastern Cape in the future.

@PARA45 , what’s the serial number of your knife ?

Seems like mine doesn't have a serial number, or I can't find it.

 

[PARA45]

that East Cape terrain can really make you work and sore, great write up and animals

Especially for us from flat land. Luckily, I had purchased some knee sleeves (I have bad knees, from the military and playing sports), and boy did they saved my life. They provided the necessary support when going downhill; best $20 I spent on this trip. Ok, maybe not.

 

[Hunt anything]

Congratulations, Oscar
Your report brought back great memories, chasing Wik up and down those hills, stuffing myself with that delicious warthog sausage and all of the rest!
I also really like the shape of both kudu! Unlike most I prefer the more narrow bulls. To go with your scabby old buff.

Thanks for bringing back the memories so vividly! Also glad to see old Rocky still hanging in there.
David

 

[PARA45]

Just arrived in camp this evening myself. Don & Wik had wonderful things to say about you and your hunt already (knowing that we'd shared the AH forum connection). Getting to bed so we can get after it in the morning - will enjoy reading your writeup during the down time.

Outstanding, and wishing you a wonderful hunt! Who are you hunting with, and what are you going to hunt? I know you will not be disappointed.