SOUTH AFRICA: KMG Hunting Safaris & A Month In Africa!

[Tim Blackwell]

Day 5: Given the great success I'd had on Day 4, I decided it was time to hand the rifle to my daughter and we spent the day hunting for Layne's Impala. A long and frustrating day where the game well and truly won! We were crossing between two mobs about 4km (and several massive gully systems) apart, but every time we'd get there they'd dissapear or give us the slip, only for us to turn around and see the other mob happily feeding on the horizon.

Right as the sun set Marius found a great lone ram and we made a charge at him, but were beaten by the setting sun in our eyes.

We capped the night off by sitting in the bushpig hide with Mark till 8pm, only for a porcupine to come in and chew the wires to the motion activated light we needed, so game over!

Marius worked his backside off for us and felt it as much as I did. That's hunting. Laynie worked hard and kept up well in some steep country and is deadset keen to go again tomorrow morning

I also have two more animals I'd like to hunt myself, so with only two hunting days left the pressure is mounting.....we agreed to spend the first hour tomorrow looking for the bachelor mob of Impala rams that gave us the slip today. Failing that, we'd go hunt my Blesbok.

TBC...

 

[BenKK]

So is that live eland the one you got? I love getting a live photo first, really adds to the experience.

What an inspirational hunt!

 

[Tim Blackwell]

Day 6, Morning; Back out early on the trail of Impala with Layne. We found the original bachelor mob that had bettered us the day before and started a slow stalk. We got into range but they were edgy, milling around and barking, knowing something was up but not being able to smell or see us. This morning we had both the wind and the sun in our favour. After a couple of patient hours, being on the sticks a few times trying to get the ram we wanted in the right position, we finally had our ram step out broadside at 100m, just further than the 75m I'd had her practicing over the sticks at. I was talking to her the whole time and gave her a shoulder to support the rear of the rifle. She asked if the safety was off and I replied 'yes, take your time, focus on the crosshairs and squeeze the trigger when you are sure you're ready'. She squeezed. Harder. I looked as the impala scattered and the safety was still firmly on
I was completely gutted. We'd worked maybe 14 hours for this opportunity and I'd stuffed it up. This may be the best (or only) opportunity we get and I'd blown it for her. She'd been saving her pocket money for a year and I'd ruined it with a rookie error....

We decided to give it away and hunt some Blesbok. As we got to the truck and moved off, we only travelled about half a kilometre when I saw the colour of impala through the bush. My chance at redemption! Backing up, we headed out on foot, found the mob again and stalked in. For a fair while we were pinned behind a bush, but Marius played it perfectly. He identified the ram we were after through the thick bush and could just make out his movements. Finally we had the ram step clear of the bush at 100m broadside and Laynie was cool as a cucumber, making a great shot with Marius' .300, straight through the shoulder and heart for a quick one shot kill!!

Layne and Dad are both over the moon, very proud and she is just stoked with her first ever animal....not a bad way to kick it off. I still can't believe how well she did and it's one of the absolute highlights of my hunting career. Looking back, I'm actually glad it didn't come
easy, and I think all the blown stalks and dry-runs over the sticks helped in the end result. A beautiful ram, a one-shot kill, and she has asked me to shoulder mount it for her bedroom wall. Already she is talking about Kudu and Lechwe....

TBC...

 

[Tim Blackwell]

So is that live eland the one you got? I love getting a live photo first, really adds to the experience.

What an inspirational hunt!

Yes Ben, that's him. He didn't give us much of a look, while the younger bulls stood in the open. Thanks mate!

TB

 

[375 Ruger Fan]

Great report so far, wonderful hunt, awesome animals. And getting to do all this with family and friends makes it extra special. Thanks for taking us along for the ride.

 

[Mark R]

Tim, that picture of Layne looks even better on the big screen

 

[Dudders]

Nothing like seeing the smiles on the kids when they take their first animal especially when its a daughter.

 

[BenKK]

Intense impala hunt! Well done.

 

[Tim Blackwell]

Day 6, Afternoon: With only a day and a half hunting left, I still needed a Blesbok to round out my original list, and along the way I'd decided I'd like to add a Waterbuck too if I could - thanks largely to a mate Jason who'd hunted with Marius the week before us and taken a cracker (and seen another big, hooky wide one on the same property.) Nikki really wanted to do at least one stalk onto an animal with me, as she had done on both Oryx and Hartebeest in Namibia. So this afternoon we left the kids 'at home' and headed out with Marius looking for a Blesbok ram.

After driving around to downwind of a large gully system, we walked a long ridge, glassing as we went. Through the bush up ahead, a nice duiker ram fed and I 'almost' had a shot but it was just a bit too thick and he moved off. Back to the task at hand. Eventually we found a mob of about a dozen blesbok on the next hill. We watched as they moved in single file across the slope to an area they started feeding. We took the truck to the bottom and slowly started working our way uphill. We saw baboons and waterbuck, but the blesbok had cleared out. Marius thought I was a bit 'strange' not wanting to shoot the large male baboon
We moved further up the hill to glass and found they had moved to the other side of the gully, so the wind was now all wrong. Making a plan, we went right around the back of them and positioned ourselves downwind behind a bush, hoping that they would feed out onto the flat before us as the light faded.

The plan worked well, but unfortunately an unseen mob of 5 springbok fed out first so we had to be super wary. After a long wait, the blesbok slowly worked their way out of the thick stuff one-at-a-time, first a big white ram, and finally the common ram we were after. As I lifted the rifle onto the sticks, he saw us and suddenly looked up in our direction, startling the springbok. It was now or never!
Convinced they were all about to bolt, I rushed the shot and hit him low, requiring a follow up and a couple of finishing shots. Very happy with this animal, but disappointed in myself; the easiest shot of the trip, front-on at about 80 yards, and I'd stuffed it up. I certainly felt undeserving. But we had our ram and he was a very handsome animal.

It was another great double-header day after a tough day yesterday. But the highlight definitely belonged to my daughter and her first ever animal. She was happy to remind everyone that she was a better shot than her old man.

Sadly, there's only one day to go now, and we have planned to hunt the big waterbuck bull that Marius had seen on his last hunt with Jason. Marius made a few calls to tee it up, and I had 15 minutes to make my mind up, as their tracker was about to go home and he was willing to stay an extra day for me. It took me all of about two minutes to say "Let's do it."

My shooting will need to be better tomorrow on these tough animals!

TBC...

 

[BenKK]

That baboon would’ve diverted my attention for sure! But certainly a nice blesbok instead.

 

[Royal27]

Congrats to you, and especially to your daughter! What a way to take a first animal...

@KMG Hunting Safaris does it again!

 

[cpr0312]

And a congrats to the young lady on a job well done!

 

[Ridgewalker]

Layne, you are a star! Congratulations! On one of my granddaughter’s t shirts it says “Girls rule! There’s nothing we can’t do” and I believe you young ladies make great huntresses! You are proof Layne!

 

[adgunner]

Congrats on a fine hunt and thanks for sharing it with us. Currently on my sixth hunt with Marius for spotted Hyena and each hunt just gets better and better!

 

[Tim Blackwell]

Congrats on a fine hunt and thanks for sharing it with us. Currently on my sixth hunt with Marius for spotted Hyena and each hunt just gets better and better!

Cheers Adgunner, Marius told us about your upcoming hunt and has been keeping us posted. Sounds like quite a bit of action on the baits! I hope the Hyena play ball if you haven't bagged out already

 

[BRICKBURN]

Saved her own pocket money for her own trophy and worked that hard for it and pulled it off, even with the kind assistance provided!

Now that is a trophy picture!

 

[Tim Blackwell]

Thankyou Brickburn. She is still on cloud 9 and I'm very proud. Although I think it might cost me dearly in the future!

Believe it or not that photo is straight off Marius' phone. I said when he sent it to me that it's the best trophy photo I've seen. But I might be a tad biased

 

[Tim Blackwell]

Day 7: My last day of hunting with KMG sadly, but it turned our to be a huge day chasing Waterbuck bulls. Marius, tracker Lloyd and I headed off at dawn hoping to locate a big bull that Marius had seen last week with a fellow Aussie mate, Jason. We got to a high glassing point early and commenced the search, finding Nyala, Impala and Bontebok but not our bull. It was properly cold this morning, with heavy frosts in the shade. So we hoped the sun would pay dividends.

Heading a little further uphill we glassed again. A Waterbuck cow stepped out of the thick stuff at the top of the opposite face, and soon after followed a huge dark body....it was him! He only took a step into partial cover when down in the river below a bushbuck barked which was enough to send him straight back into the thick stuff. Man this guy was wary and we knew it would not be easy!

We walked a long loop down the hill, up and around the other side hoping he might appear there, walking on fresh leopard tracks which might explain the flighty animals. No dice. So we went all the way around the hill and came in over the top. As we closed in we noticed fresh buffalo tracks and then dung. Sure enough, just up ahead we spooked a large mob of buffalo that stampeded off. The rumbling sound complete with snapping trees needed to be heard to be believed. That was it for that hill, so we thought!!

Heading to the other side of the property we found a group of Waterbuck cows coming off some open pasture, tailed by a nice tall looking bull. But we could not close the gap in time and they disappeared into the thick stuff. We decided to head back to our original glassing point to have lunch on the hill and to see what the afternoon would bring. We luckily got there just in time for Marius to spot the big bull sneaking down hill behind some zebra, to bed down under a shady bush. He was in a really tough spot now, but at least we knew where he was!

Circling around the mountain once again we closed in on the opposite face, hoping we could get within range for a cross gully shot when he finally stood. Crawling from bush to bush, Marius did his best to keep tabs on the bull's location. Then, surprisingly he stood up and stared straight at us; from 300m downwind that wily old bull had us pinned! After what felt like an eternity he bedded again, and on hands and knees we crawled on, me seemingly picking up every cactus thorn on the East cape...

Eventually we reached the edge of the gully and got set up under a small thorn bush, me laying prone with the rifle over a small termite mound. Not ideal and certainly not comfortable with the cactus but it would have to do. We could just see the bull's horn tips across the gully, 220 yards away under his bush. Over the next couple of hours we watched and waited. Three times he stood and stared back at the spot he thought he saw us earlier, then bedded down again, never offering a shot. Crafty old bugger. Then finally he stood and took a few paces to our left, stopping right in a thorn tree, surveying his surrounds before feeding. For 20 long minutes he stood there, statue still. Again no ethical shot on offer.

Finally he stepped a few metres back to our right and I found him in the scope, wound up to 12x. Slightly quartering on. I waited for him to turn slightly more broadside then squeezed the trigger, rewarded by the thump of a good hit. The bull stood swaying, then fell. Marius had told me how tough these antelope were, and as the bull regained his feet, I could see what he meant! I lined him up again, standing over the sticks this time, and made a good heart shot. By the time we made our way down through the thick gully and up to him, we found him dead, a huge relief after a long, tough stalk and shot. We'd spotted him again just after 11am, and it was now almost 4pm. No walk in the park, that's for sure!

He is a tremendous old bull, extremely heavy with great hooky tips, and a massive neck and body. An outstanding trophy and fitting way to end my fabulous time at KMG Safaris

More to come...

https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=1708057615951266&set=pcb.621005161591455&type=3&ifg=1

 

[AZDAVE]

Thankyou Brickburn. She is still on cloud 9 and I'm very proud. Although I think it might cost me dearly in the future!

Believe it or not that photo is straight off Marius' phone. I said when he sent it to me that it's the best trophy photo I've seen. But I might be a tad biased

@blacks It may cost you in the future but you can't put a cost on being able to hunt with your family. Her smile says more than any word can describe! You have done well!

 

[kudukid]

Great hunt Blacks and what a spectacular finale. Love your waterbuck.