Ozishooter
AH member
- Joined
- Nov 17, 2016
- Messages
- 27
- Reaction score
- 33
- Location
- Cape york Queensland Australia
- Media
- 18
- Hunted
- New Zealand,South Africa
I hunted 1x1 with a long time hunting partner of 35years, Geoff, with him doing the same. Both our wives accompanied us for the trip and both found the trip to be a great experience, thanks to Victor, Lindsay and all their staff.
Accommodations were very comfortable. The meals were exceptional, my wife and I enjoyed all the game meats and dishes that were on offer.
With access to a variety of hunting areas and landscapes, all the animals on my list, plus a few more, were successfully hunted. Arnold my PH was very well versed in spotting, accessing trophy potential and stalking to within a range that I felt comfortable with.
We flew from Johannesburg to Port Elizabeth after resting overnight at Johannesburg which revived us somewhat after a fourteen hour flight from Sydney. Arriving at about 10.30am, Victor and Lindsay were there to meet us. After a scenic 1.5 hour drive we arrived at the lodge and were greeted by the rest of the staff. After quickly freshening up, we headed to the main dining area for some lunch. After this, Victor and Arnold suggested we go and test fire the rifles. I used a CZ 7x64 and Geoff used a Sako 270win.
Accompanied by the trackers, we then went for a drive to an area that Victor had seen some Kudu in prior to our arrival. We left the vehicle and headed up and around the hill looking for potential trophy Kudu. Arnold spotted a nice bull at 380 yds. This was a long shot for my first in Africa so I passed it up and Geoff was quick to take the opportunity to take his first African animal. He made the shot with the Kudu running a short distance down the backside of the hill. It needed one more shot to put it on the ground. After the photos we headed back to the lodge for dinner and drinks.
The next day found us heading out to find Impala. Victor and Geoff went one way and Arnold and I went the other. After spending some time glassing the area, we tried a couple of times to get within shooting distance, only to have the wind change. Finally we spotted a small group with a good male and proceeded to get into a shooting position. Arnold set up the sticks and I was ready to take my first African animal. Waiting for the Impala to move out of the bush seemed to take forever, but soon enough, he presented a shot at around 70yds and was taken with a single shot from the 7x64.
After loading the Impala into the vehicle, we headed back to camp and dropped both the Impala and Seea, the tracker/skinner, at the skinning shed. Geoff and Victor had also been successful obtaining an Impala.
Heading out after lunch, Arnold and I were off to look for Kudu. It was late afternoon when we spotted a nice bull at around 180yds. Setting up the sticks I took the shot. The bull jumped when hit and ran off to the left out of sight around a hill. Arnold asked me if I thought the shot was good, which I believed it was.
We headed to the spot where the Kudu was standing when the shot was taken. Finding blood on the ground, Seea took up the trail. We followed the trail for over a mile before losing it on top of the hill. We continued to crisscross the area until dark but were unable to find any sign of the Kudu or blood trail. We headed back to camp feeling a little down. Next morning we came back to the same area but found no sign of the Kudu. After lunch we headed to another area to look for a Kudu bull. It was late in the day when we found a suitable bull. However, I was able to take the shot at 80yds and I now had my trophy Kudu on the ground. As we were nearer to Arnold’s house than the main camp, we took the Kudu there to skin it out. Once completed, we headed back to the lodge for dinner and drinks.
The next morning Lindsay and my wife headed off on a three night road trip to Cape Town. The rest of us headed to another area to hunt a variety of game. Arriving at about 9.30am at the new area, I was greeted with something we never see at home in Cape York Australia, snow on the mountains.
After unpacking, Victor, Geoff and Mitchell headed off to complete some more of Geoff’s wish list, while Arnold, Seea and I started to look for the animals that I was after. Over the next four days I was able to take some great trophy animals, Gemsbok, Zebra, Eland, Waterbuck and Blesbok. Stalking the animals in this area allowed us to cover varying terrain from plains to mountain sides. The time spent in this area was one of the many highlights from my first trip to Africa.
By the morning of the fouth day I had harvested all the animals I wanted from this area, so I spent the morning with Victor and Geoff as he hunted for Klipspringer. Around mid-morning, after many miles hiking in the hills, he was successful. We then packed up and drove back to the main lodge.
The next day we went looking for Warthog. The area had many pigs but the large ones were hard to find due to the recent drought.
Just before dark, Arnold and I saw one that he said was only an average size pig. Having not seen any bigger, I said “Let’s get it done” and lined up the 7x64. I hit the Warthog in the shoulder and he ran 50m up a bank, did a back flip and landed on the ground dead.
Next morning we went looking for Common Springbok. Finding them was the easy part. After a few failed stalks, Arnold and I were watching a group moving along a ridge line. Arnold directed the tracker to try and cut them off, but the Springbok were quick to see the movement and took off over the hill. However, one Springbok decided to double back. This was a mistake on his part, as Arnold quickly came up with a plan to intercept him.
Getting in position for the shot, the Springbok came past at a slow run. A short whistle from Arnold had him stop long enough for an 80m shot to the shoulder drop him where he stood. Photos taken, we headed back to the lodge for lunch.
That afternoon we headed out to look for Common Duiker in the same area where I had shot my Kudu. Arnold had a ground blind set up which I was keen to hunt from, as I had never previously hunted from a blind. A number of different animals visited the blind over the two hours we were sitting and waiting. Finally a Duiker came in, Arnold sized it up and I took the shot.
The next morning we headed out to find some Bushbuck. We all travelled to an area where Victor previously had had good results. Arriving at about 9.30am we sat up on top of a hill overlooking some open hill sides with wooded areas running around the edges. The wind was blowing hard and cold as we sat glassing the area. Not seeing anything on this side of the hill, we moved to glass the other side of the hill to look down into the other valley. With still no sign of Bushbuck Arnold and I left Seea with a radio and moved back to the original glassing spot. After about half an hour, a call on the radio from Seea telling us that he had spotted a Bushbuck feeding out into the open, had us quickly returning to Seea’s position.
The Bushbuck was a shooter, so we came up with a plan on stalking to within range. Heading down the tree line to stay out of sight, we had only gone 100m when we saw another Bushbuck appear from the tree line. He was also a shooter. The question now became, which one? I believe we took the right choice and got within shooting distance of the second Bushbuck. Had he been spooked trying to get to the first Bushbuck, we may have ended up with none, so I lined up and put a round from the 7x64 into the Bushbuck’s shoulder.
Geoff and Victor, on hearing the shot and calling on the radio, came over to meet up with us as they were hunting on a different part of the property. Geoff had shot a good Bushbuck and a good Warthog. We headed to the skinning shed and let the skinners do their thing while we headed back to the main lodge.
The next morning Arnold and I headed out to look for the last animal that I was looking for, a Black Springbok. After many stalks we were able to get a shot at an old male. One shot high on the shoulder had him on the ground.
On the morning of departure, Paul, from Relive Africa Taxidermy, came to pick up all of our trophies and take them back to Port Elizabeth. We had visited Paul’s studio during our stay with Karoo Wild Safaris and were confident that Paul was the right man to handle and despatch our trophies.
Before heading to the airport, I was sure to secure a booking for our next trip to Africa with Victor.
Accommodations were very comfortable. The meals were exceptional, my wife and I enjoyed all the game meats and dishes that were on offer.
With access to a variety of hunting areas and landscapes, all the animals on my list, plus a few more, were successfully hunted. Arnold my PH was very well versed in spotting, accessing trophy potential and stalking to within a range that I felt comfortable with.
We flew from Johannesburg to Port Elizabeth after resting overnight at Johannesburg which revived us somewhat after a fourteen hour flight from Sydney. Arriving at about 10.30am, Victor and Lindsay were there to meet us. After a scenic 1.5 hour drive we arrived at the lodge and were greeted by the rest of the staff. After quickly freshening up, we headed to the main dining area for some lunch. After this, Victor and Arnold suggested we go and test fire the rifles. I used a CZ 7x64 and Geoff used a Sako 270win.
Accompanied by the trackers, we then went for a drive to an area that Victor had seen some Kudu in prior to our arrival. We left the vehicle and headed up and around the hill looking for potential trophy Kudu. Arnold spotted a nice bull at 380 yds. This was a long shot for my first in Africa so I passed it up and Geoff was quick to take the opportunity to take his first African animal. He made the shot with the Kudu running a short distance down the backside of the hill. It needed one more shot to put it on the ground. After the photos we headed back to the lodge for dinner and drinks.
The next day found us heading out to find Impala. Victor and Geoff went one way and Arnold and I went the other. After spending some time glassing the area, we tried a couple of times to get within shooting distance, only to have the wind change. Finally we spotted a small group with a good male and proceeded to get into a shooting position. Arnold set up the sticks and I was ready to take my first African animal. Waiting for the Impala to move out of the bush seemed to take forever, but soon enough, he presented a shot at around 70yds and was taken with a single shot from the 7x64.
After loading the Impala into the vehicle, we headed back to camp and dropped both the Impala and Seea, the tracker/skinner, at the skinning shed. Geoff and Victor had also been successful obtaining an Impala.
Heading out after lunch, Arnold and I were off to look for Kudu. It was late afternoon when we spotted a nice bull at around 180yds. Setting up the sticks I took the shot. The bull jumped when hit and ran off to the left out of sight around a hill. Arnold asked me if I thought the shot was good, which I believed it was.
We headed to the spot where the Kudu was standing when the shot was taken. Finding blood on the ground, Seea took up the trail. We followed the trail for over a mile before losing it on top of the hill. We continued to crisscross the area until dark but were unable to find any sign of the Kudu or blood trail. We headed back to camp feeling a little down. Next morning we came back to the same area but found no sign of the Kudu. After lunch we headed to another area to look for a Kudu bull. It was late in the day when we found a suitable bull. However, I was able to take the shot at 80yds and I now had my trophy Kudu on the ground. As we were nearer to Arnold’s house than the main camp, we took the Kudu there to skin it out. Once completed, we headed back to the lodge for dinner and drinks.
The next morning Lindsay and my wife headed off on a three night road trip to Cape Town. The rest of us headed to another area to hunt a variety of game. Arriving at about 9.30am at the new area, I was greeted with something we never see at home in Cape York Australia, snow on the mountains.
After unpacking, Victor, Geoff and Mitchell headed off to complete some more of Geoff’s wish list, while Arnold, Seea and I started to look for the animals that I was after. Over the next four days I was able to take some great trophy animals, Gemsbok, Zebra, Eland, Waterbuck and Blesbok. Stalking the animals in this area allowed us to cover varying terrain from plains to mountain sides. The time spent in this area was one of the many highlights from my first trip to Africa.
By the morning of the fouth day I had harvested all the animals I wanted from this area, so I spent the morning with Victor and Geoff as he hunted for Klipspringer. Around mid-morning, after many miles hiking in the hills, he was successful. We then packed up and drove back to the main lodge.
The next day we went looking for Warthog. The area had many pigs but the large ones were hard to find due to the recent drought.
Just before dark, Arnold and I saw one that he said was only an average size pig. Having not seen any bigger, I said “Let’s get it done” and lined up the 7x64. I hit the Warthog in the shoulder and he ran 50m up a bank, did a back flip and landed on the ground dead.
Next morning we went looking for Common Springbok. Finding them was the easy part. After a few failed stalks, Arnold and I were watching a group moving along a ridge line. Arnold directed the tracker to try and cut them off, but the Springbok were quick to see the movement and took off over the hill. However, one Springbok decided to double back. This was a mistake on his part, as Arnold quickly came up with a plan to intercept him.
Getting in position for the shot, the Springbok came past at a slow run. A short whistle from Arnold had him stop long enough for an 80m shot to the shoulder drop him where he stood. Photos taken, we headed back to the lodge for lunch.
That afternoon we headed out to look for Common Duiker in the same area where I had shot my Kudu. Arnold had a ground blind set up which I was keen to hunt from, as I had never previously hunted from a blind. A number of different animals visited the blind over the two hours we were sitting and waiting. Finally a Duiker came in, Arnold sized it up and I took the shot.
The next morning we headed out to find some Bushbuck. We all travelled to an area where Victor previously had had good results. Arriving at about 9.30am we sat up on top of a hill overlooking some open hill sides with wooded areas running around the edges. The wind was blowing hard and cold as we sat glassing the area. Not seeing anything on this side of the hill, we moved to glass the other side of the hill to look down into the other valley. With still no sign of Bushbuck Arnold and I left Seea with a radio and moved back to the original glassing spot. After about half an hour, a call on the radio from Seea telling us that he had spotted a Bushbuck feeding out into the open, had us quickly returning to Seea’s position.
The Bushbuck was a shooter, so we came up with a plan on stalking to within range. Heading down the tree line to stay out of sight, we had only gone 100m when we saw another Bushbuck appear from the tree line. He was also a shooter. The question now became, which one? I believe we took the right choice and got within shooting distance of the second Bushbuck. Had he been spooked trying to get to the first Bushbuck, we may have ended up with none, so I lined up and put a round from the 7x64 into the Bushbuck’s shoulder.
Geoff and Victor, on hearing the shot and calling on the radio, came over to meet up with us as they were hunting on a different part of the property. Geoff had shot a good Bushbuck and a good Warthog. We headed to the skinning shed and let the skinners do their thing while we headed back to the main lodge.
The next morning Arnold and I headed out to look for the last animal that I was looking for, a Black Springbok. After many stalks we were able to get a shot at an old male. One shot high on the shoulder had him on the ground.
On the morning of departure, Paul, from Relive Africa Taxidermy, came to pick up all of our trophies and take them back to Port Elizabeth. We had visited Paul’s studio during our stay with Karoo Wild Safaris and were confident that Paul was the right man to handle and despatch our trophies.
Before heading to the airport, I was sure to secure a booking for our next trip to Africa with Victor.
