SOUTH AFRICA: First Trip: South Africa - Somerby Safaris

[ChasingHemingway]

Loving your story and feeling the excitement of being in Africa for the first time! I have a feeling this won’t be your last

 

[Trout Tracker]

Day 7

Today was quite a windy day, and we tried various tactics to close in on some animals, even trying some techniques that reminded me of deer hunting. Starting off, we each got a Springbok, but the little buggers were tough to get close to. It was a fun hunt, and the more I hunted this property, the more I was glad that I had my .280. At least for me, it performed well, and I gained confidence in the rifle each day. The more time we spent with our PH, the more I felt like he was testing us. Testing our commitment to put in long days, walk on long treks and keep up, take some long shots (as least for us) and walk us through some nasty thorn thickets to see if we could maneuver around. Maybe he wasn’t, and this was normal for him. I don’t know if there is a way to ever know.

My Springbok was about 200 yards, and Tom’s was 250, and both dropped in their tracks. I wasn’t prepared for what happened as they died. The honey sweet smelling gland in the middle of the back, the way the hide opened up and how spectacular it looked for that brief moment. God always seems to have some pleasant surprises if we keep our eyes and minds open. My wife will love how soft the hide is.

As it was still morning and quite early, we continued to drive around to see what we’d see next before bringing these two animals to the skinning shed. Out in the middle of absolute nothingness but grass, we spotted (well Benji and Andre did) a group of Zebra. Andre stopped the truck and began to glass the group and look over the animals for a Stallion. For the past few days, I would anxiously point out numerous Zebra to Andre, but he’d quickly dismiss them as Mare’s, or young Stallions or a Stallion that was all beat up. He must have talked to my wife, as she wanted a “pretty rug”.
Apparently, there was such a specimen in this group. We unloaded from the vehicle and walked laterally in the grass to gain a better angle. When Andre set up the sticks, he must have noticed the concerned look in my eyes, because he made some comment like “What? My grandmother can make that shot! It’s only 350.” Well, with my man-card in question, I did my best to settle in when Andre instructed me to shoot it in a black strip so the taxidermist could repair it! My heartbeat was causing my crosshairs to bounce considerably, and I took a few deep breaths to settle down and took the shot! When I did, the harem departed, and the Stallion jumped as a heart shot deer would. He bucked and pogoed around for a few yards and fell over dead. Looking through my scope, I could see the red stain on his shoulder and so pleased that I had made this shot, as it was by far the longest shot I’ve ever made. I practiced in the gravel pits back home up to 300, but never this far. I can’t take all the credit because Andre did coach me on where to hold, and it worked perfect. Another lesson…always trust you guide!

Upon approaching the Zebra, I was so happy to have concluded my original list of animals, and to have had such wonderful experiences in doing so. I noticed that I missed the black stripes...but I didn't miss the heart! I'm glad there were 5 of us to load him up, as he was quite heavy. It was about noon, and Andre wanted to get these animals in the salt so we didn't have any hair slippage, which was fine with us, so we headed to the skinning shed and dropped off Benji to work his magic and we went back to the field for our afternoon hunt.

One of the animals on the "new list" was a Red Hartebeest, and we had been seeing several groups, but all of them would drift and hang out in the middle of the Pans that were dry. There was no way to approach them, so we decided to try deer hunting tactics! We drove to one of the Pans that has some trees and brush along the edge and checked the wind...and we put a plan in place. We drove over a ridge and hid the vehicle and walked back to the cover we found and settled in for the evening sit. To help up with our shooting, we brought our backpacks to rest our guns on because we knew we had to be lying prone to shoot this far.

We didn’t have to wait very long before a small group of Black Wildebeest came out, and then some Gemsbok and Eland. The Pan was filling up, and then along came a group of Hartebeest. It appeared the plan was working, and Andre ranged the animals at 320 yards. Apparently, another “chip shot for grandma”! Tom was up first, and Andre coached him in on monster of an animal. At the shot, his bull ran a few yards and piled up. The two other herds left the Pan, but the Hartebeest remained, not knowing what happened. Quickly, Tom and I changed places and Andre coached me in on another old male. After this morning’s shot on a Zebra, I wasn’t as hesitant, and laying on the ground I was much more stable. At the shot, I watch him buckle and take one step. Holy smokes! I can’t believe we just scored two more animals.

Loading the animals in the back of the truck, the sun has set, and we’ve again used the full day. Arriving at the lodge, Anton has prepared Gemsbok fillets, tongue, tripe and veges. Why not…I’ve never tried tripe before, and I must admit it was much better than I had imagined. The Gemsbok was probably the best meat I’ve ever eaten, and we both hope to have more in the coming days. I wonder what tomorrow will bring! We both feel blessed, and every evening before we eat our meal, Andre says the blessing, and tonight I pray an extra prayer. I'm thankful and very content. I want to bottle up this feeling and let some of it out on some of those tougher days ahead.

 

[Trout Tracker]

Day 8

Because of our success last night, we thought we’d try the same tactic on Black Wildebeest. The wind was on a mission, and it wasn’t hard to figure out what side to sit on in this Pan. This morning, I felt like a Lion hiding in the grass.

Again, it worked, and we each got a bull. Albeit a long time apart. Mine wasn’t as elegant as I had hoped…we watched several herds move through, and after about 50 different animals worked through, a bull that was old and hard bossed came through. The wind was blowing about 400 MPH, and the group was 300 yards away. I placed my crosshairs on his back and about mid body when I shot, believing the wind would drift the bullet into the vitals. Almost…I had hit the right height, but behind his diaphragm. A follow up shot did the trick. 

I’m glad we had some leftover grilled meat for lunch. I believe that I could be a happy man, eating Gemsbok fillets every day. With only Blesbok left on our “special list”, I suspect that will be our target tomorrow. As an aside, both Tom and I have asked Benji to keep any bullets he may find, and so far, we’ve collected two. All the rest passed on through. I’ve been quite impressed with the exit holes and had we not seen the animals fall, tracking the blood trail would have proven very easy, as it looked like red paint on the ground.

Day 9

Today, we go to a different part of the property, supposedly a location that hasn’t been hunted in a very long time. The Game Scout bragged about hunting the “Pantry”! It would be our easiest hunt to date. Our PH hadn’t hunted this spot, and wasn’t familiar with this area, but we hoped for the best. Driving to this particular spot, we saw lots of game animals, and something that I honestly never expected to see other than Florida!

Continuing our drive, we saw huge herds of animals, but they were super spooky. So much for this pantry! We did see several larger groups of Blesbok, but they didn’t stick around long. We tried multiple stalks, but we’d bump an unseen animal, and when it spooked, the Blesbok would take off to parts unknown. Hmmm, how else can we skin this cat? Andre decided to gain some elevation and just watch the animals to see how they moved and where they wanted to be. That was fine for us, as we took pictures and it also allowed me time to catch up on my journaling! After a few hours, Andre had a plan to turn around our Pantry shoot! He observed some terrain in the distance that had some brush that the animals gave a wide berth to, and since the wind was right, we decided to give that a try. We backed into the thorny acacia trees out of sight and set up the shooting sticks and began our wait. 45 minutes later a group of about 50 animals began to walk around this hill and in our direction. Since I shot last, at the Wildebeest last evening, it was Tom’s turn at bat. The lead animal was the largest, and Andre had Tom all ready for the shot as the bull took a few steps away from the group. Bang…dead Blesbok. The group made a scramble and I quickly switched spots with Tom. The herd was making a mad dash for safety, when our PH’s old and deaf Jack Russel slipped out of his hands and charged the herd while barking. I have no idea what the dog thought, nor did I know why the group stopped? Andre was not happy with the dog, but an opportunity presented itself, as another mature male stepped out and I took the shot. The herd scattered for good now and our made the comment about “see…wasn’t that easy?”

Wow. That worked out better than I thought and just like that we were done hunting. We dropped Benji off with the two animals and we headed back to camp for lunch and to discuss options for tomorrow. All week long we have been seeing Francolin, Guinea Fowl, Dove, Pigeon, Geese…a bird hunters paradise, and Tom and I talk about bringing a shotgun on our next trip. Over dinner, Andre asks us what we’d like to do tomorrow, as we have a ½ day drive back to Ndlovo, but we still have the other half day to do something. He suggests that we can either visit some curio shops or grab a shotgun and hunt dove. We chose the dove hunt! We inquire about the limit of birds we can shoot, and Andre gives us a sly look and tells us that there is no such thing. Now I know we have found paradise.

 

[Trout Tracker]

Day 10-Last hunting day

After another beautiful sunrise with coffee in hand, we pack the truck to the gills with hides, horns, guns, gear and luggage. I felt like the Clampetts! Andre informed us that he and the owner Drom had arranged for us to have a dove hunt close to Johannesburg and that our guide would meet us there with shotguns, shells and some bird boys. All week long Tom and I were trying to absorb all the sights, sounds and smells of Africa. The first evening we hunted, Tom made the comment that we need to bring my dad along on the next trip. I agreed, and I know my dad would love it here, the only problem was HOW? Driving to our bird hunt, I realize one more gift Africa has given me. Africa has given me a huge DREAM! A friend of our family has a famous quote, which is: “If the dream is big enough, the facts don’t count!” How true. I’ve witnessed it my entire life, and now both Tom and I have this burning dream to come back. We don’t need anyone to tell us that it’ll be difficult and that we’ll need to make some tough decisions to save up enough to do this all over again. I realize that I’ll have to make some concessions to do so, but I also realize that the price is worth the prize.

Arriving at our destination, we are greeted by the guide, and he provides Tom and I each a shotgun, a case of shells and tells us to have fun. He expects the birds to start flying in an hour or so. Both Tom and I have dove hunted in Texas numerous times, and we are both proficient with a shotgun and I’m excited to see exactly how many birds we will see and how well we’ll shoot with a case of shells. As Tom and I pick some likely routes that we expect birds to travel, we hear Andre telling us to get ready as he sees some birds. About 2 hours into the hunt, we are out of ammo, but not out of smiles. Our tally was 164 birds out of 500 shells…and it was as amazing as it sounds.

Heading to Ndlovo for our last dinner in Africa is surreal. All of us are talking about a return trip, and Andre agrees to be our PH again. We discuss some rough ideas and agree to plan a “trap” for my dad. I know he’ll be resistant, but I NEED him here. He NEEDS to be here. Africa is calling me, and I hear her voice in my heart. In all, I’ve never experienced such a relaxing and fulfilling trip in my life. I found a place where I actually could leave work behind. No cell phone. No internet. No email. Peaceful and relaxing. I need more of this.

Day 11. Departure day.

We meet Drom in the morning and he agrees to meet me in Oklahoma after this year's DSC, and I agree to take him and his crew on a pig hunt on some of our clients' land while he’s here in the States. I also inform him of the plan to bring my dad in 2 years. He smiles, gives me a hug and promises to help make that happen. As I reflect on the hunt, I believe that the friendship between Tom and I has grown stronger. I also believe that we’ve both built a friendship with Andre, and I'm also pleased that we all got along so well together. The trip was better than expected and I’m already looking forward to our return. Thank you, God, for allowing me this opportunity. I am a blessed man.


Daniel