South Africa - Limpopo - Plains Game Practice Hunt - RDB Safaris

[JG26Irish_2]

"ENTER AFRICA" My first close encounter with Africa felt much like my first intimate encounter with a member of the opposite sex. Anticipation, excitement, a little bit of the fear of the unknown. It felt very good and following the event, I find myself dreaming of and wanting more. May sound like hyperbole but hear me now, it is not. This place and its people are MAGICAL. I arrived as a guest of RDB Safaris for a 8 day hunting trip in the wilds of the Limpopo province. By chance and the good counsel of friend and brother Todd Jones, I did not have to search for a professional and honorable outfitter. Rumano De Beer is that man. He has carved out a little slice of Paradise which is his hunting reserve. Everywhere we traveled people knew him and loved him. Quality is hard to hide. By the time I leave, we are close life long friends.

It is time to make these guys famous. From left to right: Robert De Coster, Jr, facility manager and young Professional Hunter. Just celebrated his 25th birthday recently. Rumano De Beer, founder of RDB Safaris, PH, owner, outfitter, Johannes - tracker/skinner, John - lead tracker skinner, driver, Glass - young tracker skinner, and David - tracker skinner. Charles - the Master Skinner/artist is not in the photo as his skill as skinner was being deployed elsewhere. He is billed as the best game skinner in all of South Africa. I believe it. I once asked Rumano what his long term goals were? "To be the most famous Big Game PH/Outfitter in all of Africa". Big goals for a young man. With successful concessions in Limpopo and Free State RSA as well as Botswana and Namibia and possibly in the not too distant future another one elsewhere in a very famous place known for African Big Game Safaris. I admire his drive, ambition and skills but most of all, I admire all of these men for being good and honorable men. A rare trait in the world today. Bravo Gentlemen! Bravo!

Hunt Summary Report
Country - Limpopo Province. South Africa
Dates - July 22 - August 2, 2024
Type of Hunt - Plains Game
Method of Hunting - Rifle
Outfitter - RDB Safaris
PH - Rumano DeBeer, Robert Decoster
Agent - N/A, self booked
Locations Hunted - Limpopo Province, RSA
Species Hunted - Nyala, Blue Wildebeest, Common Duiker, Bushbuck, Gemsbok, Impala, Warthog, Baboon
Trophy Quality - Took six (6) animals total. Two scored preliminary as SCI Gold Record trophies (Wildebeest & Bushbuck), one was just short of SCI record book quality by 2/8" (Nyala) and the Wildebeest was only short of a Rowland Ward record book trophy by 1/8"
Species Seen, Population and Quality of Game Observed - Saw many many species while hunting:

• Eland
• Kudu
• Cape Buffalo
• Blesbok
• Klipspringer
• Steinbok
• Golden Wildebeest
• Blue Wildebeest
• Royal Wildebeest
• Giraffe
• Sable
• Impala - Common, White, Black
• Water buck
• Zebra
• Reedbok
• Bushbok
• Nyala
• Warthog
• Jackal
• Civet Cat

Other species seen while not hunting on photo safari

• Rhino
• Lion
• Bush pig
• Plus most of those listed above

Lodging - Sekopo Private Game Reserve, each hunter enjoys a private Chalet
Food - 5 Star. Chef Charles fed us game with every meal plus usual domesticated meat such as chicken, beef, lamb. The food included many traditional African dishes at my request and was tailored to meet my specific dietary requests.
Activities - 8 days hunting which also included side trips to Nylstrom to meet with the taxidermist and to Big Five Game Preserve to do a afternoon photo safari
Travel Methods - Flew to Johannesburg via Atlanta on Delta. PH picked us up at the airport and handled all in country transportation to and from.

High Points - This was my first Safari and it was all magnificent. Limpopo is like a little slice of Paradise. RDB Safaris treated us like gold.
Low Points - The 16hr flight was brutal. Delta and TSA took forever to clear the rifles back into the USA forcing me to miss my connection by 3 minutes and thus spending an extra 4 hours in Atlanta. The Delta Atlanta staff was slow, and surly and treated everyone like crap.
Things to Improve - This was an educational trip to plan for a larger group trip for both DG and PG in 2025. Learned a lot about things not to take.
Overall Rating - 10+ I cannot say enough good things about RDB Safaris, Rumano the outfitter/PH and Robert the other PH. This trip could not have gone better.
Would Recommend to a Friend?

I plan to provide a longer and more detailed report of each days hunt in installments below. It will take a bit of time so please be patient.

Irish

 

[JG26Irish_2]

Day 1 at RDB Safaris in Limpopo Province, South Africa. This is the northern province in the high bushveld. This trip happened because of inspiration by Todd Jones and by Dr Mark Miller in Lex, who taught me how to improve my health. You guys and the dream of Africa and Safari saved my life. Thank you! I love KY, now I know what Paradise looks like.
Very rural and a little wild. I arrived after dark after a long flt to Johannesburg. Joburg is a big modern city and as nice as Beverly Hills in some ways. Limpopo is rural, wild. You have to take care of your self and in Africa “Everyting Bites”.
We meet up with the PH and is wife and staff for a night night Eland Fart cocktail. The lodge grounds are immaculate, exotic tropical plants, pool, private chalets for each hunter or couple, grass thatch roofs. Perfect.
Bed time with visions of exotic animals in my head.

 

[JG26Irish_2]

First day of Safari. First African sunrise. Aha Yes. I am due at the lodge at 8:30am. I was up dressed and ready by 6:30am. Anticipation? Lol.
Met up with my team. Rumano De Beer, PH, Robert De Coster, PH/Driver
Sight in check of rifles. A matched pair of FN Browning vintage safari rifles in 308 Winchester and 375HH mag. First one is fine but the big magnum had to be dialed down 4 clicks or 0.6 mils.
We mount up in the Toyota Land Cruiser and roll out. In the first 30min I saw more wild creatures than ever in my life. I think I stopped the truck a dozen times to take photos. By day 5 I was just cruising in the back of the truck like a veteran. But this day 3 after two days of travel was magical and I was a newbie tourist.

Some of the animals I saw in only the first hour included: Eland, Giraffe, Impala, Sable, Blesbok, blue and golden Wildebeest, and Nyala. Wow
Am sharing a few random pics

 

[JG26Irish_2]

Day 3, First day of hunting. We sighted rifles first. I had brought two with me. A matched pair of classic FN Brownings. The first is a Medallion Grade in 308 Winchester. It is topped with an equally vintage B&L BalVar scope at 2.5-8x. Two shots confirmed that it was right on the money with a zero at 200y. I chose to use Federal's 180g Fusion ammo since it shot best in my rifle at longer ranges of 200 & 300y and a recent test report showed it to expand reliably to 2.7x and still penetrate over 24" of ballistic gel. It turned out to be devastatingly effective on live game. Not bad for a lower cost bonded bullet. I had tried to use 180g Swift A-Frames in this rifle but they failed to stabilize out past 100y due to the older rifle having a slow twist bbl. This little rifle was a 1963 vintage and frankly is too pretty to be dragging thru the bush. In the end it performed well above my expectations.

The 2nd rifle is an FN Browning Safari Grade in 375HH magnum. It wears a Sawovski Z6i. I had scoped the bbl two weeks prior to the trip and found tons of copper fouling in the bbl near the muzzle. I spent a good bit of time cleaning this out of the rifle and my first rookie mistake was not taking it back to the range to check zero after such a significant change. First shot at the range was so high it was off the paper. It took six shots total to get it re-zeroed and I had to update my ballistic chart since I ended up zeroing it at exactly 100y where it had previously been zeroed at 150y. Originally, I had planned on using the 375 on most of the game on my list except for the smallest but in the end this was actually reversed and I only used the 375 on one very large Wildebeest. It worked great! Using Barnes 300g TSX bullets. This rifle is a 1969 vintage and is far more plain when compared to the ornate little 308. Both are very accurate classic hunting rifles. I have owned the 308 for many years but had never taken game with it since I usually hunted North America with an old Mauser Custom in 270. I acquired the 375HH last year after booking a 2025 hunt with the same outfitter to go with several friends for DG and PG. This trip was my solo practice hunt. A chance to get to know the outfitter, the PH's and the lay of the land, the animals, etc. I am glad I did this.

First actual hunt on Nyala. Classic spot n stalk. Used the smaller 308 w/ 180g Fed Fusion bonded bullets. This was a one shot and DRT. The animal went only 15y. Nyala are plains game that feed on trees and like to hide in dense bush. They are about the same size as our whitetail deer but with thick spiral horns. A member of the spiral horn slam like Eland and Kudu. It will live on in my memory and will always be my first African animal. Rumano, my PH stalked us in so close, I could have scratched it behind the ear. The shot was only 20y and all I could see was a 12" square patch of the right front shoulder. The shot was a bit uphill. There had been three when we first spotted them but only one was still in the thicket when we arrived. I used the sticks even though at this range it is hard to miss. Since the window for the shot was so narrow, we wanted to be precise. At the shot the beast jumped once and took two steps and piled up. We painted my face with blood and toasted our success with good cold African bier and then rolled back to the compound for Brunch!

More later.

 

[JG26Irish_2]

Day 3 continued. We came in to drop off the Nyala. Enjoyed a traditional brunch and went to my chalet for a siesta. I was sitting on the porch when I heard a commotion. A rumble of many tiny feet along with frantic squeaking. Suddenly a stampede of 10-12 small weasel like creatures came streaming around to corner across my boot in a head long stream jumping n squawking. I was shocked. All I could think of was the scene in Jurassic Park where herd of lil dinosaurs ate one of the characters. Plus what was chasing them. The last one stopped, standing on my boot. It squeaked at me and then followed his comrades out of sight. Was that cursing? Or a warning? I later learned that these were Banded Mongoose and they kill snakes. We will take good care of them.

 

[JG26Irish_2]

Afternoon of day 3 was spent hunting for Gemsbok but, that elusive beast was well, elusive. Still we saw tons of Giraffes

and a modest herd of Cape Buffalo

near dusk. They are huge animals. The alpha herd bull had an attitude but we managed to keep the peace.

A reminder to readers. Enjoy the posts but if you do not support hunting or get ill with the sight of dead animals, please just go back to your regular activities. Reading this is all voluntary.
Here are a few live animal pics. Enjoy

 

[JG26Irish_2]

Afternoon of day 3 we go back out about 2pm to search for the elusive Oryx (Gemsbok) but saw nothing but a few tracks. But, I saw more animals than the morning session. Giraffe from huge black bulls to a 2wk old calf. Tons of huge Eland some so close I could have petted them. Rumano asks if I want to add one to my list for 2025? I have Nyala and bushbuck on this years menu and Kudu for next yr. Adding Eland would compete the spiral slam. Hmmm, he is quite the salesman, lol. Toward evening we encounter many groups of Kudu including some magnificent bulls. They are shy, elusive, and very regal looking. The Cape Buffalo, “Mbogo” sinister, dark, and threatening. My PH called the alpha bull a “Cheeky Bastard”.
We searched unsuccessfully for the Oryx. Later back at the compound over a sundowner Berdene (Rumano’s wife) let me in on the secret, Never state out loud in the morning your intended quarry. If you do, the monkeys spy on you from the bushes, they tell the birds, who fly out ahead to tell the animals and spoil your hunt, lol.
We saw a huge herd of Impala and Wildebeest including the rare Golden Wildebeest and the more rare Royal Wildebeest, more WOW

BTW - There is a you tube video making the rounds of a Mbogo that attached Rumano's truck last year after being shot three times with a large bore magnum. It charged and soaked up a total of 7 or 8 shots at close range before it finally decided to die. It is a testament to why we must grant a healthy respect to how dangerous those things can be. Another video from a friend who shot one two weeks before I arrived show that after two quick, well placed shots the Buffalo went only 15 yards and died. Shot with the same ammo and same caliber. A reminder of why the placement of the 1st shot is so important but also a reminder of just how unpredictable DG hunting can be.

 

[JG26Irish_2]

Africa was a hunting trip. Remember, if you do not like hunting, this series of posts is not for you. Hunting involves rifles. South Africa allows each visiting hunter to bring in only two rifles. So, choose wisely young grasshopper. Featured here is one of the two that travelled to Africa with me: 1963 vintage FN Browning in 308 Winchester. It is a lovely Mauser style action and is the Medalian Grade. The dainty pencil bbl provides light weight in the bush and yet is very accurate.
The Bausch & Lomb 2.5-8x BalVar optic is equally vintage. It is old and clunky but fits the rifle to a tee. At the time of its manufacture it was one of the most costly scopes ever produced and one could buy three of the premium FN rifles for the price of this scope. I am not bragging, I got it for $60 on E-bay last year. The Kuharsky Bros mount enables it to be transferred from rifle to rifle and maintain zero perfectly on each rifle. The glass was made from a rare deposit of Quartz sand in Pittsburgh that produced lenses of exceptional clarity. Most of that glass was used to make large long range spy cameras for the SR71 and U2 spy planes in the 50's and 60's. But occasionally a big lens was found with a flaw in it and then B&L cut them up to make BalVar rifle scopes. They have no fragile ARC coatings to damage in the field and they do not require refocusing when adjusting the magnification. This makes them very functional hunting scopes. Simple, rugged and prefect for my first Safari. I am a former USA National Champion rifle marksman and I know good optics when I see them. This one is great.

I had some doubts about this set up for Africa but took the chance and used it. It did not disappoint. I took five animals on this trip with this rifle alone and every one was a 1 shot and DRT ranging from 15y to 200y. I did miss two but that was on me. First a sneaking Bushbuck in the dark in high grass at ~180y and 2nd a huge running Warthog at ~30y that pulled a sudden fast change of direction (more on that later, lol). Still to say I was pleased with this rifles performance on the trip was a huge understatement. I have owned it for years but had only hunted once with it and had never taken any game with it since here in the USA we do not have that many hunting opportunities. It is a veteran now and a prized possession. Coming away, I think that a week hunting big game in Africa is equal to 10yrs or more of big game hunting experience in the USA. Plus it is a real bargain costing equal to or less than a single guided Western Elk or Moose hunt.

 

[Nyati]

Excellent so far

 

[JG26Irish_2]

Time to share more of my African hunting adventure. Day 4 - Afternoon, this was my 2nd day of hunting. We had lunch at the lodge dinning on Kudu Pot Pie, with roasted potato wedges and green salad. This was the best meal to date. I asked for the recipe as I like to cook. Meat, gravy, "Sixgun" seasoning and peas all topped with a puff pastry.

We then loaded up to go to a new concession about 5 miles away. It is a commercial farming operation belonging to a friend named Adrian. He also has a game reserve on his farm. They grow blueberries, hot peppers, corn, peaches, alfalfa, etc. The Bushbucks and smaller Duikers and Steinboks have gone nocturnal so they can eat up all of Adrian's crops. On the weekend he allows us to hunt since his staff will be gone. I meet Adrian and like him immediately. He gives us permission to hunt Zebras with the proviso that we only take a male. A reasonable request even though it is very hard to id the sex of a zebra from a distance and they are not likely to allow you to get close to them. Zebra and Wildebeest are often seen together. Their senses complement one another and they band together for mutual protection from predators. We toured the farm to scout for bushbuck in the daylight as we will be night hunting for them later and then we went to the reserve and quickly spotted a herd of Zebra. A stalk of about 1/4mi was begun.

We emerged from the bush and RDB set up the shooting sticks instructing me to get ready but await his instructions which to shoot. I was packing my FN Browning Safari Grade in 375HH magnum. This 1969 vintage rifle has a Swarovski Z6i optic and is loaded with Barnes 300g TSX ammo. All eyes of the Zebra were on us and nervous. They have a way of knowing when you are hunting them or not. The one on the left is an obvious pregnant mare.

The PH was taking a long time (I understand) to id a Stallion. I asked about the one on the far right which looked to me like a male but then they all fled for 100y along with the nearby herd of Blue Wildebeest - Busted! We called Robert on the radio to bring up the Land Cruiser (Caprivi Edition).
When Robert arrived Rumano was on the cell phone talking in Africaans. I speak the language a little but could not follow the conversation. I told young Robert that I was just about to shoot when RDB farted and scared them off (joking). He laughed at my joke,.. sort of. Rumano the PH comes over and pointed at a solitary Blue Wildebeest bull still nearby staring at us. He said, "We can follow the Zebra (which are now about 400y away) or,... You have Wildebeest on your menu for next year. (I had already booked a hunting trip in 2025 even before this trip was booked.) That Wildebeest is a Proper Bull - Do you want to trade a Zebra for a Wildebeest now and hunt Zebra next year? and take a near record bull now?"

Not being too dumb, I said "I am game". By then the big bull had retreated to the herd about 1/2mi away. We skirted a swampy area as we made our stalk. It was all down hill and very old fart friendly. We got to within 180y per RDB estimate but he ranged it to be sure. I was on the sticks and the Alpha Bull stood alone facing us head on. He was a magnificent and courageous beast. Head on is not my favorite shot angle for such tough animals. He whispered advice on shot placement as the bull shifted now quartering right slightly. It was getting close to sundown as I zoomed the scope to 6x with the red dot on and placed the dot just left of center mass. This is my practice for Cape Buffalo next year. I was far more steady on the sticks this time than I ever had been during the weeks of range practice at home.

Again, I checked aim and pressed the trigger. Boom! the big gun roared and a flash of flame erupted from the muzzle. A second later I hear the "Kugleschlag" (the report of a bullet striking game) from the big 300g Barnes as it hits home - Impact!

The bull wheeled away left but stumbled as he ran. "I hit him" I said to Rumano and he said good hit. I reload and grab the spent brass. I knew this was a good shot but WB are tough. The bull was disappearing over a small rise when RDB said, "He is down!"

We approached the bull which was down but still lolling his head and from about 50y at my PH's suggestion, I put a 2nd shot into the neck. The 1st shot killed him, but the 2nd anchored him. When we were at 10y I put one more into the chest just to help convince him of his change of life status as Wildebeest are simply tenacious. Kufa (dead). We posed for the picture attached before dark and loaded this 600lb beast into the truck. The next day the skinners gave me two of the three slugs to keep. The first shot passed thru the right lung and damaged a lot of the plumbing above the heart. It may have clipped the other lung but then passed over 3ft lodging in the animals large gut which is packed with grass. The neck shot was a pass thru and the last and final shot at close range passed thru the chest and lodged in the opposite shoulder and was found under the skin. The 300g Barnes TSX bullets did all that I could have asked for. For sure this was a one shot kill but we fired two more to make it quick out of respect for the animal.

I later learned that the preliminary measurements on this bull were 28 - 2/8". This was only 2/8" short of a Rowland Ward World Record for Blue Wildebeest. It is almost certain to score as a SCI Gold class World Record Bull once dried and properly evaluated. WOW!

In only two days I transform from a noob hunter from KY to a World Record Trophy Safari big game hunter. That was unexpected but amazing.

A bit of reflection is in order. I do not particularly like killing animals and told my PH in the beginning that I care little if I killed anything on this trip but that I wanted to learn and experience Africa. The shot that takes the life of the creature is the somewhat sad period to the end of the paragraph at the end of the story. Everything that I do for fun involves some form of extreme mental or physical effort or both, some form of competition or challenge, be it racing or fishing or chess or hunting, I like to test myself and that was why I made this trip. I care little about taking life and take no pleasure in it.

P.S. Most hunting photos are posed in a manner to make the animal look larger. Like holding the fish out in front. The pic of this Wildebeest is different. I was kneeling behind the animal so close that I had my hand resting on its flank. I could not have been closer without sitting on its back. It is simply massive. Many Thanks to RDB Safaris for making this successful hunt possible.

 

[JG26Irish_2]

African Night Hunt - "Tale of the Ghost Pepper Buck"
I have been posting tales of my trip to Africa. It was simply because I had such a great time and wish someone had told me what a special place it is sooner. To be sure, I am just getting started. This episode is the night hunt on day four of the trip which was only my 2nd day of hunting. It was a long one as we hunted all day and then well into the night.

Driving around spotlighting animals is very foreign to me. It is mostly illegal in the USA. Apparently, it is OK in South Africa as long as it is on private lands. The Duikers, Steinboks, Reedbok, and Bushbucks have all gone nocturnal in this region so they can raid the local farmers crops with impunity. We were hunting both Bushbuck and Duiker. I found it to be interesting since I got to see lots of the nocturnal creatures. I saw Steinbok which looks and moves like a big Jack Rabbit but has horns and is one of the Tiny 10 antelope. Also Reedbok which are larger of the smaller deer (oxymoron?). We also saw wild cats. One was called a Civet Cat. It was small and looked like a cross between a raccoon and a weasel. We also spotted what looked to be large yellow feral tabby cats.
We hunted hard but really found nothing worthy of taking. It was getting cold and late when we were about to leave we passed by an Alfalfa field next to a Peach orchard. RDB was working the lights and Robert was at the wheel of the big V8 turbo diesel Land Cruiser. Rumano pointed to my left and said Duiker! (I thought). Moving from right to left was a pair of eyes. That was all I saw. It was about 150y maybe more. He said take him! I was aiming at the eyes so, I moved the point of aim back about 6" and down about 4" and fired. Boom! big muzzle flash and the eyes were gone. Rumano thought I hit it, but I did not hear and impact and even said, I was not sure of the shot. A moving shot in the dark? Sounds like a recipe for failure.

He dismounted and jumped the fence and headed to where he thought it was. A few moments later, Adrian drove up to say "Hi". He is the owner of this place. We chatted for a minute but Rumano was having trouble with his flashlight. Alone in the dark in Africa without a light. What could go wrong? We decided to drive over to assist in the search. Long story short, after about an hour of searching we found nothing. We returned the next day and searched for another hour or more in daylight before declaring this a clean miss. The next morning, I learned that it was a Bushbuck which is much larger than a Duiker and has a very long neck. This partly explains the miss. I should have aimed further back and much lower. I suspect that I shot a good 8" above his shoulders. It was now day 5 Saturday, or my 3rd day of hunting. We returned to the compound for brunch and a siesta before heading back to Adrian's farm.

There, we hunted the reeds near the river for Bushbuck and found a small male. We did a stalk mainly so I could see one in daylight and get a better feel how they like to sneak thru the bush. They are a lovely little creature about the size of a North American Pronghorn. This was now day 5 and my 3rd day of hunting. While out this day we spotted Zebra and Wildebeest who were both unconcerned with us since we were no longer hunting them. Sort of like when you see a squirrel while deer hunting. We had brought along John the lead native tracker/driver to drive this time so the two PH's could have one run the lights and the other do the glassing this night. Nothing much had happened during the day and now that it was getting dark, we began the 2nd night hunt.
We found a few more Steinboks but nothing to shoot at. We decided to make a stalk in the dark on the Alfalfa field. On foot in the dark without lights. I could not see a thing. I followed my guides by the sound of their boots in the darkness. Robert had the sticks, RDB the Q-beam light and yours truly was packing the 308. This was the darkest dark, I have never seen (it was dark get it?). Did I say it was Dark? BTW the stars at night in Africa are breathtaking! Southern Cross, Milky Way, oh my. I could not see where I was going so, I was looking up at the stars. After about a 1/4mi, my eyes began to adjust to the darkness and with the starlight for help I began to see! It was almost like the scene from Avatar when they are walking in the dark and everything comes alive, but without all the pretty colors. We somehow found the field and Rumano whispered. I am going to set you up on the sticks and then spotlight the field. Be ready. He lit up the field to the right. Then to the left. Nothing.

Then the PH's saw what they thought was a Steinbok female. I looked thru my scope. They said it is too small to shoot. I raised up off the scope but then asked them to light him up again so I could at least see what the little bugger looked like. I zoomed the scope to 8x and was looking at him when RDB says he is a Duiker, a nice ram, "Shoot it!". What? huh? I asked, "You want me to take him?" - Yes! All of a sudden, I got all wobbly on the sticks and my sight picture faltered - maybe the long walk? a little buck fever? (not usually and issue with me). I dunno, but it took me a long time to zero in for a good shot on the smallish target at about 70y. RDB says, "Are you gonna shoot it or not?" I whisper "Yesss!" Boom, muzzle flash and the 180g bonded dropped him DRT. Exit wound was massive and messy. I will spare you the carnage.

It was an absolute Stud Duiker! Like saying it was a giant midget. With horns over 4-1/4" long. I was pleased with this and we wallowed around in the dirt to get a proper photo. Well done Lads!
It was getting late and we decided to return to this particular Hot Pepper patch. It was about 10ac of Ghost Peppers and the little Bushbucks loved to eat them. I had joked that the meat would be "Pre-Spiced". We were on the back side of the field when we spotted movement to my left. A Bushbuck! A big one! Rumano said shoot! take him! shoot shoot shoot! Shhhh! I whisper.

During this time, I was attempting to line up another moving shot in the dark but this was a truck shot and with three husky males all moving around it was bouncing too much. It was walking fast from left to right but would soon enter the reeds at the edge of the field and be gone. After a few seconds that seemed like hours, I fired. The Bushbuck dropped in its tracks DRT.

It was a large (for the species) buck with grey hair and lots of character. Based on preliminary measurements it will also be an SCI world record ram. Measuring 14-6/8". Rumano reported that it was the largest ram his team had seen all year. Nice!

Officially, and for camp fire hunting story time I shot the buck in the spine on purpose so the crew would not have to track him into those reeds in the dark. He was pre-spiced having developed a taste for Ghost Peppers. I had to do this because he was about to enter the reed swamp known to be the home of a large pride of lions. Only the quick thinking and expert shooting of "Herr Client" saved the day. That's my story and my crew will back me up.

You can see from the photos that by the end of this 3rd day of hunting, my butt was dragging. If these hunts were all easy, I do not think we would appreciate them very much. Some, were easy, but the next story is of a very challenging hunt.

 

[JG26Irish_2]

RDB Safaris made my African dream a reality. Thank you Rumano, Berdene, Robert and all the staff at your operation.

RDB Safaris Posts:
Grateful is a understatement of how we feel.
We are blessed to meet such great people over time.
Mr Kent Flanery Flanery, it was so good to have you with us, and we are looking forward to your next hunt.
And yet again... well done on all your amazing animals!
Our dates for 2025 are getting filled real fast.
If you would like to book the experience of a lifetime, get in touch with us on

Rumano De Beer +27 83 443 1902
rumano@rdbsafaris.co.za
Berdéne De Beer +27 83 251 9533
berdene@rdbsafaris.co.za
HO:ZA/LP/115395
PH:ZA/LP/113431

 

[JG26Irish_2]

Day 6 - Day 4 of hunting 7.28.24 - Gemsbok!
At the end of the long 3rd day of hunting, I gave the team Sunday morning off to rest and be with family. Plus the old grumpy client needed the rest. Three days of riding the mechanical bull (Land Cruiser) and some residual jet lag had taken its toll. My plan was to sleep in and do brunch about 10:30am and then we would resume the search for an elusive Gemsbok (pronounced Jim's Buck). But, my internal clock decided to finally sync up with local time and I woke ready to go at 6:00am. It did not help that I had experienced a horrific, vivid and in full color dream that woke me early.
I do not usually have dreams that I can remember but when I do, they are often wild, scary, in color and sometimes prophetic. I was in the loft of a barn and encountered a pretty blonde, blue-eyed, topless lady. Beside of her in pieces was a vintage motorcycle belonging to me. I asked why she had it and she called for her husband/boy friend who as luck would have it was a South American drug cartel boss who had stolen the bike to sell for parts. He was not the friendly type. I protested the theft and while his English was not so good, he took offense. After some testy words, Mr. Cartel decided that the best course of action was to kill the Gringo!

He pulled a pistol and pointed it in my general direction. I asked if he was going to shoot me simply for objecting and he came closer to me and stuck the gun into my gut and in broken English said, he was not going to shoot me, he was going to "keel" me. My mind was racing and I knew he was not joking and was about to pull the trigger, I was just about to attempt to deflect the gun and hit him, knowing full well, that I was likely to die at that very moment,...

Then I was blessed with waking, gasping and being relieved to be alive all at once. Fun dream. Hopefully, not prophetic, lol.

Being now fully awake and not wanting to go back to sleep, I sat up writing in my hunt journal from which, I am now writing this report. About 8:45am, I was dressed and ready to go. So much for morning off. The hunt this morning was for Gemsbok. We had been searching for a prime example of this beast since I had arrived. It had ghosted us except for one trail cam pic and a few tracks on the SE corner of the reserve on the 1st day. Yesterday we had spotted it as we left to go back to Adrian's farm way over on the SW side of the reserve. They are clearly mobile beasties. Rumano told me that they never stop moving. Today, we got serious.

We rolled out and travelled toward the South from the compound past a large herd of Blesbok out in the middle of one of the large grass Savana areas. We topped a rocky ridge passing a herd of Impala and...

Funny how a Gemsbok hunt turns into a Warthog hunt in an instant. I was scanning North when my PH hissed, "Stop, Stop, Stop!". Pointing South, he whispers, "Warthog!" "Huge Tusker". I turn right but all I saw was a 1/2 second flash of grey as he bounded over the rocky ridge. Rumano climbs down and says, "Let's go for a walk". "Great!" I think, as my twisted right ankle has not yet recovered from stumbling around in the dark the night before. I had injured it about two weeks before the trip and it was hurting off and on depending upon my activity levels. I dismount and make certain a round is chambered in the 308 and make the rifle safe.

This is as good a time as any to talk about gun safety. In preparation for this trip, I had read, studied and watched hunting videos about Africa and noticed that many hunters there liked to carry their rifle African Style with the right hand holding the barrel which is pointed forward and the rifle balanced on the right shoulder in a level attitude. This seems fine for the guy at the front of the line which is usually the PH. But, the guys behind doing this are pointing a loaded rifle at the backs of everyone in front of them. I am a trained range safety officer and I was taught to never sweep the muzzle of any weapon at another human no matter if loaded or not. I refused to use that carry method. American style is with the rifle slung on the strong hand side, usually the right shoulder with the muzzle up. This is safe and OK for transport to/from the truck but is slow to bring to bear when hunting. Port arms with the rifle clutched in both hands muzzle at about 45 degrees is OK but tiresome for long distance. Mainly to be used when game is in sight and a shot is imminent. Also, one can cradle the rifle in the crook of the left arm for easy carry with the muzzle pointed at a 45 deg away to the left. Again, only good for short distance. I had learned and practiced the Rhodesian Carry for this trip. Here you sling the rifle upside down with the muzzle pointed at the ground and the rifle slung over the left shoulder. This is safe, and when you need to shoot, the left hand grabs the forearm of the rifle and brings it up to the horizontal and the right hand grips the pistol grip and pulls it into the right shoulder pocket. It can be accomplished in one smooth, fast easy and SAFE movement in the span of about one second with a bit of practice. That became my go-to method of carry except when we were on a hot trail and an active stalk. It served me well. The guys using the African carry all look cool but they are being fools with their gun safety. Some say no sling for dangerous game because it might snag on your body or the brush around you. I say, if you learn how to do it right, you can and should use a sling.

Properly ready, I am good to go. Warthog was the #1 animal that I wanted to bag but the years of drought and the fact that every predator likes to eat warthog means that they were hard to find and harder to hunt. I had seen some sows with piglets but no big tuskers. Rumano is fit and in his 30's a former professional South African National Rugby player. When I was in my 30's I was fit too. But, now his 67 yr old client struggles to keep up over the rocky moon scape we were traversing. I followed, huffing and puffing down the ridge. The red dust and ancient rocks looked like the surface of Mars and this being the warmest day of the hunt, it also looked like prime snake territory.
I am not a fearful man. If I was, I would have never left home to go on this trip. But, I am not one to ignore risks either. My biggest fear of Africa was not Lion, Leopard or Cape Buffalo. It was venomous snakes! I had read about the Black Mamba, the Green tree Mamba, the Spitting Cobra and the Gaboon Vipers. Rumano had assured me that this was their Winter and most snakes were currently in hibernation. Still, on a warm day, I would think they would come out to sun themselves and hunt for a snack. Now, I am stumbling across the rocks spending more time looking down than out ahead, lol.

We walked to the bottom of the ridge and reaching the southern border of the property, turned West. Rumano climbs the ridge West and I flank him to the south on a parallel path. I figure my chances are better if I am not behind him, so we proceed line abreast about 40y apart. I pick my way along the rocks when from under my right boot comes out with a loud flutter, one of SA's grouse like birds. I nearly $h!t myself! as it flew away. As my Mom would have said, "If it had been a snake, it would have bit you"

Stay focused Flanery, I think to myself. My guardian Angel sitting on my right shoulder, is still looking down watching for snakes wondering why we are here? I have been working to keep Rumano in sight for safety purposes but he just disappeared behind a large grove of small acacia trees. I know where he is but cannot quite see him off to my right. Three yards further and from down the hill to my left, I hear a commotion from under a small grove of thick bush. Our runs a proper, 9"+ tusker Warthog quartering to my right. He is zig zagging thru the rocks at about 1/2 speed. It is a perfect 30y chance at my favorite African animal. Up comes the little Browning as I slip off the safety and take careful aim at the running hog. The vintage BalVar scope is at 2.5x as I track his bobbing and weaving course. I lead the shoulder only 2" thinking a neck shot to be almost as good. I squeeze the trigger as my brain is telling my finger to shoot, the muzzle is tracking right. I knew Rumano was in a safe position.

Just as I squeezed the trigger the warthog pulled a Donald Trump move and turned his head and zagged left. It was too late for me to adjust and I saw the bullet in slow motion strike the rocky soil about 8" to his right and kick up a big cloud of dust. The WH now kicked in the afterburners and while I reloaded quickly, he was gone. RDB shouts, "What did you shoot?", I replied, "The WH, but I missed", RDB answers, "How do you know you missed?", Because he is not dead, I say. Still kicking myself for missing this one. We merge and talk, as he then drops down to the south border of the reserve and we track West keeping about 50y apart. I sense that he has now come to trust my hunting skills a bit despite the missed shot. We stay in sight and scour the slope hoping for another chance. But, It was not to be. RDB outpaces me as I am getting gassed in the heat and my right ankle is hurting bad and now the right knee is also starting to complain.

RDB motions for me to come down to his position and I slowly limp my way down. He has marched on to the West about 100y ahead by the time I reach the border path. I was panting and hurting and out of gas. I stop to rest a moment and spot a small watering hole down the hill. I saw dozens of Baboon tracks along this path. Mostly small but a few large males in the bunch. Rumano approaches, and tells me that he had spotted the Warthog running in highgear. I figure he did not stop until he reached Botswana, lol. I later apologize to him for shooting without his Ok, but he said not to worry about it.

I pride myself in my skill as a marksman even when my hunting skills may be lacking and kick myself for missing this opportunity. But, if it was all easy, we would not appreciate the triumphs nearly so much. That's hunting. This is getting long. I am going to stop and will pick up the story again next time. The two Zebras were spotted a little later while we once again take up the hunt for the elusive Gemsbok.