SOUTH AFRICA: TRI-Fold Safari

[AZDAVE]

We load back up and off we went. About a ½ hour before sunset a lone Steinbuck

was spotted. My wife and I are starting to see which of the tiny 10 we can add to the common diker I took in 2013. up go the sticks and she made a very nice 150 m shot and he jumps straight up in the air and makes it about 45 yards. Off goes Nitro and he is standing right there when we get through the thick bush. Pictures taken and smiles around the fire to hear everyone's adventures of the day with their first hunting day in Africa behind them. All in All a great first day. More to follow as I get time to write more.

 

[BenKK]

Huge adventure! Looking forward to reading more!

 

[AZDAVE]

Day 2

On our 2015 safari my wife hunted hard for 5 days trying to get a Black wildebeest, only to get busted by every animal and the wind. She got one shot right at dusk and the 3 ft now 2 ½ ft small tree deflected to bullet off towards Mozambique So that shot has haunted her for the last three years and her primary target this safari was a nice Black wildebeest. So we spotted a group and the stalk was on.

After several attempts the group was doing to run around like the clown they are know for. We sat for about 30 minutes to let them calm down and the 4 attempt at a stalk was successful she was on the sticks 5 separate times and almost shot a 100. One mice male stopped for a second to long and she made a nice 230 yard shot. He turned just as she shot but the shot spine'd him and a quick follow up and her nemesis was down! Talk about a happy lady. Had a nice lunch beside a pan with hippos' in it. She had seen several white blesbok while we were stalking her BW. So after lunch she asked Phillip to add it to her wish list. A nice male was spotted and she made what looked like a perfect high shoulder spine shot. He went straight down. High 5's were given and the tough little guy got up and sped off. There was no blood trail as he was bleeding internally. The trackers really earneddid an amazing job we stayed on the track for almost 2 miles. Phillip and Sonya went along the direction her was headed and I stuck with the trackers. 15 minutes later there was a shot and the radion said he was down. My wife said they spotted a small patch of white in the bush and were able to squeeze a shot through a small lane. Pictures and smiles show her relief.

 

[AZDAVE]

 

[AZDAVE]

Day 3

We planed a non-hunting day where we went with Cindy and Jim to Mapungubwe National Park. It is where the confluence of rivers come together that separate Botswana, ZIM and South Africa. We enjoyed the park saw elephant up close and a number of plains game. This was the first time that Cindy and Jim had seen elephants in the wild. We enjoyed a nice lunch at one of the picnic areas. The one thing that stuck out was how the Baboa trees had been stripped of their bark by the elephants. Had a nice easy drive back to the lodge and a great dinner. The chef is classically trained and all the meals were fantastic. Why I didn't gain 20 lbs is a mystery.



Tonight was Sonya's 1st try for bushpig. PH named Kudu was charged with taking care of us tonight. We left the lodge and headed to Kudu's friends potato farm. The farmer had been using sweet potatoes for bait to entice the pigs out of the deep bush. Sonya was setup with a nice 7x57 with night vision system that uses the scope already on the rifle. It has a sensor that fits the back of the scope and displays one a couple inch screen what you are aiming. Slick system. About a 15 minute drive from the house and off the bakkie we bail. A short walk up the path to check the two bait areas. There were pigs on both but the largest group also had a small group of eland camped out on the sweet potatoes. So a plan was made. We slowly stalked down the wood line until we were about70 yards away. The wind shifted and the eland went blasting through the trees and the pigs scattered. It took about 10 minutes and pigs started filtering back in. Kudu and the farmer concurred on which was the biggest and up went the sticks and bang with the big boar being DRT. The farmer asked Sonya to reload. She asked why as her pigs was clearly down. He wanted her to shoot another one to give to his workers so two minutes later back come the piggies and bang flop. All in all hunting pigs at night is a blast.

 

[AZDAVE]

Day 4



Today is Sonya's birthday and her wish list has her second most wanted kritter on tap to try and get. When we first talked to Phillip at SCI about the safari we were looking to book he asked her is she had ever shot a Croc? That conversation stayed with her and she asked me if I though she could make the shot when the pressure was on. So I made a simulated Croc head cutout and had her practice crawling up over a berm and shooting prone at the target from 50-100 yards. Several training sessions and she was ready to commit to hunting a croc.



We drove to an area down close to the river and started checking the small dams where the water stays when the river dries up. A nice croc was spotted sunning himself and a plan was made to get her in position. Doing a Army low crawl I pushed shooting bag was slowly into place making sure that the shot wouldn't hit the top of the berm. Sonya made it up right be hind me and put her rifle on the rest and prepared to shoot. Told her to shoot when she was ready, about 10 seconds later I wasn't sure if she heard him so I repeated what he said. Well she gave us the safe sign from softball that she would shoot when she was ready and we both got the look that only a woman can give. Two deep breaths and perfect spine shot on her croc. It wag the tail once and was done. Phillip had her put a shot through the heart. All her practice before we came over really paid off. So Mr Croc was set up for some pics and a tree was located for a second set of pics. What was interesting is that when you touched his head with the sticks the eye would open and move and the mouth would slowly open. Boy that 250 million year old dino DNA is very much still present. Her croc is 11ft with what looks 8-12 in missing from the tail where some other croc bit it off at some point in the past



Sonya had her birthday present big time. 2 bush pigs and a croc in less than 12 hours.. Her smile says it all.

 

[kudukid]

What a safari. I am in awe of your bushpig/s along with all of your trophies.

 

[cpr0312]

Congrats you two on more nice trophies!

 

[cagkt3]

Wow, congrats on what you've shared so far! Seems like it was a great trip

 

[AZDAVE]

Day 5

We head out early for a concession that is at the base of the mountain and up over into a large valley between to long mountain ridge lines.

Started over the morning in a marshy area looking for a good waterbuck. Spent about a hour and a half saw some young bull but no shooters. So we headed up of the first mountain ridgeline. Once we topped out a nice Klipspringer was spotted and it took off as he saw the bakkie. So we bail out and scramble down and across a small outcropping to see if we can get a shot before he makes gets out of sight. Harry was our PH for the day because he new this concession like the back of his hand. He sets up the sticks and since I am shooting my 9.3x62 he reminds me not to shoot the little guy on the shoulder. We wait for several minutes and he reappears about 175 yards away. One whistle for Harry and the Klippy stops for one last look at his pursuers and he drop on the spot at the shot. We get him setup for quick pictures and get him back down to the skinning shed to prevent slippage or the hair on his pretty coat.

 

[AZDAVE]

After dropping him off the ladies needed a comfort break so we detour to the lodge on the concession and as we head out to go back up the mountain. Harry spots a really nice Nyala is is on Cindy dream list so we swap shooter's and she is off and makes a great shot fulfilling a life long dream she has had since she was a young girl. Back to the skinning shed after pictures. Since it is getting close to lunch time we decide to have lunch and then head back up the mountain.

Nice easy drive up the mountain and a water buck is spotted above us so harry and I bail out and start climbing. We play now I can see you now I can't until he loses interest and decides to put 1 /2 mile and 1200 ft elevation between us really quick. Boy was he a nice bull. Back to the Bakkie and proceed up the valley. A monster warthog is spotted and Sonya's turn to bail out and it is off to the races, on the sticks several times but no shot presents itself. As we are headed up the valley a really nice blue wildebeest is spotted and Sonya whats the Black and blue combo. Harry gets her on the sticks and she makes a nice frontal shot, he makes about 50 yards and piles up. Her little Ruger 338 RCM is really working well. Get pictures done and the animal loaded in the truck and we head back to the valley to try for water buck before dark.

 

[AZDAVE]

As we top out the ridge we stop to glass and two big bulls are spotted in the marsh and Harry tells everyone to hold on as we a chasing daylight and the Ladies get a E-ticket ride down the mountain.

Stop at the bottom, the wind is in our favor and we start through a marshy bottom to get to the tree line before the open area we spotting them in from above. In the span of a couple minutes we spook a group of bushpigs, bushbuck, and almost step on a porcupine. I had grabbed both the VC 450/400 and the 9.3. Hoping to get close enough for the double. We make it to the tree line and are now very wet to the knees and have go bino's up and located the water buck. There are two bulls about 150yards out right in the middle of a small outcropping of tall bushes. One is perfectly symmetrical the other is bigger with a funky horn. Harry askes me what I think. My response was I can shoot a symmetrical bull on most any safari but the one with character I may only see once in my lifetime. He just smiles and tells me he has been trying to get someone interested in this guy for a couple years. Up go the sticks and I try to find a small window in the brush to shoot through. I made a shot that was deflest a little bit and hit him a little far back. Get a second shot into the left rear hip as he his sprinting out into the marsh headed for the tree line. We start the scramble to head him off before he gets into the thick stuff. The bakkie had moved while we were stalking so that my wife might be see the marsh area. Well the funky guy must have seen the truck as he swaps ends and is now running from my left to the right and a good shot into the lungs and he goes ass over tea kettle and piles up. The bakkie with the tracker and assistant PH make a long loop around the marsh and with about 5 minutes of light left we try to see if we can get close enough to winch him out without getting the bakkie stuck. We you have to love toyota land crusier low transfer low gear and good tires we got him loaded on top of the blue wildebeest. Move to a river bottom for some pictures.

We have a very slow drive back to the main lodge with 2 PH's, 3 hunters, 1 observer, 1 tracker, 1 blue wildebeest, 1 waterbuck, and skinned nyala and klippy in the bakkie. A nice drink and silent prayer of thanks around the fire tonight.

 

[cal pappas]

It must be GREAT to have a woman that hunts! Only one question, why does her rifle only have one barrel?
Cal

 

[Jeffrey Masters]

What an incredible hunt. You are blessed to share it with your wife!!! Congatulations on an a great trip.

 

[AZDAVE]

@cal pappas she said she would leave the doubles to me as she is happy with her rifles. She shoots that little 338 RCM light out. the interesting note is she had never hunted before our 2013 safari where the ladies talked her into trying. One impala later and she is hooked the last two safari's she shot more than me. I am getting ready to head out for dinner. Will try and get allot more written and posted this weekend. Thank you all for looking and sharing our great hunt with us.

 

[BenKK]

That waterbuck is wonderful!

 

[Ridgewalker]

Grand hunt! I really like that waterbuck! Congratulations on such a fine trip!

 

[AZDAVE]

Day 6

Today was SPA day for the ladies, they have been talking about if for a couple days.



Well on my list is either a spotted hyena or a giraffe. Phillip and I set off early to get to a farm that has a active hyena den and a old giraffe bull that is fighting with the neighbors giraffe's and just taking the young bulls to task. AKA bully. The den was empty when when got there so we switch gears and start looking for this old bull. In six hours of looking we see a large number of cows with youngsters and some young bulls. Finally spotted the old boy and bailed out of the bakkie and get on his track. Folowed for about a mile when the wind shifted and for some reason he seemed to know we were looking for him. He put to counties between us in the way a big giraffe can cover ground. Was a very fun morning but tonight I am planning on sitting for a Civet that has been hitting the bait regularly. A nice short nap is in order along with an early dinner.



Kudu has been doing the baiting and has a blind all setup and ready to go. We get about a ½ mile from the bait and walk in slowly. A check with the night vision shown nothing on the bait so we get very quitely into the blind and check the same setup Sonya used for the bush pigs. And it is for some reason flaking in and out. Ok plan B. The optic quality of the Vortex Razor scope on my 9.3 is very good. So the green light that is beside the bait is turned on and the wait begins. We had been sitting about a hour and a half when Kudu touches my my arm and says the civet is coming in slowly and carefully because the light is on. I first spot him in the lane leading to the bait about 40 yards out. He keeps crossing the small lane and getting closer to the bait. When he is about 55 yards out and 10 yards short of the bait he finally stops for a couple seconds and the 9.3 speaks. He dropped in his tracks. I can't believe that the very first time we sit for Civet that we are successful. I told my wife before we left the states that if we got a bush pig or any of the small cats we would be lucky and very blessed and we now had two in the bag. We go down and get him set up for pics. What a great day.

 

[AZDAVE]

Day 7



Up early and we head back in search of hyena or giraffe. Harry also comes out with his truck to help with the hunt. He went before us to check the hyena den and no joy. Now at this point I need to mention that me shooting a giraffe wasn't exactly on my wife's list. While watching show's on the sportsman channel at home she will be saying great shot or can't wait to hunt xyz animal but Giraffe or elephant she is saying no run run faster to the kritter...



On this hunt I have brought the 577 BPE double that I purchased from Cal Pappas earlier this year. I am using the load he said regulated with 650gr woodleighs. He was correct.



After about an hour we spot the bull in question, the wind is good and we close to about 65 yards, I could see his head and legs but the vitals were behind a small tree. Sat on the sticks for about 10 minutes till he lost interest in the camo lumps. He stepped into a nice shooting lane and phillip gave me the green light and hit him exactly where the shot placement guide said to on a broadside shot. Phillip hit him with a shot out of his VC 470 and my second barrel went into his lungs. He made it about 50 yards and piled up. The amount of work to get hime positioned for photos was amazing. A call was made to the game processor that was going to skin and process the meat and he showed up with a large trailer to load him in and get the skin to the taxidermist as son as possible. The one thing I didn't expect was that the guys working this farm that had been repairing the fences come up and gave me a hug and wanted me to do a major happy dance with them. A very good morning. The two PH's were taking bets on whether they would find me sleeping beside the fire pit. My better half wasn't happy but got over it on the way back to the lodge.

We made it back for a nice lunch in the bush with everyone meeting on a small hilltop with a beautiful view of the surrounding area.

 

[Lee M]

Outstanding reports. What a great experience with your wife and friends! What are you planning to do with the giraffe? Would make some nice furniture covering. Skull and carved bones would also be nice!