Why you should consider hunting dangerous game in South Africa

[Velo Dog]

I think there is a heck of a lot of truth to this. I also think it is about the country/area though, even if only in my mind.

And really, it all comes down to what YOU want, for YOUR hunt. As long as I'm happy with what I've chosen, who cares??? Unless Paul, i've read you wrong and you're actually overly concerned about what others think about how you do things!!! LOL!

Naah, I don't expect I'm any more concerned with what others think of my ways than any member here submitting his or her opinion / suggestions, based on their personal experiences would be.
If folks don't agree - big shrug from me .
Hopefully, nobody has interpreted what I posted about DG hunting in SA as implying the other countries offering same are not as good in some way.
From all I have read and heard tell, they all have good and bad hunting experiences available - LOL.

Again in my opinion, enjoying the best hunting experiences (DG or otherwise) is more about hiring the right outfit and the right PH than what country you settle on.

That being said, I totally understand why any Hunter would want to hunt in countries other than SA.
As I mentioned earlier, I have wanted to do the same, just to see some new geography if nothing else.
Likewise, having been dropped off by float plane in some of the wildest geography left on earth, many times here in remote Alaska, over the years, I totally understand wanting to be in the wild places as well - great minds think alike.

I believe that if we ever were to gather at the same camp fire that, we would find much to agree on and little to disagree on.

 

[WildRose]

I'm interested in any informed replies too, since I'm now weighing the option of a hunt in SA versus Zimbabwe or elsewhere. Someone is offering a supposedly wild buffalo hunt on a property adjacent to Krueger Park, and I'm wondering if the buffalo are half-tame or something.

Also, and although I may be wandering a bit off topic, I was told the sable in that country are raised by humans, inoculated, and are all accustomed to humans to at least some degree.

Game in most of the world today is somewhat accustomed to humans.

Game that is not in any way accustomed to humans has never learned to fear humans at all. To those animals we are more of a curiosity than anything.

As to the topic in general.. .

I'd heard the criticism of hunting in SA that essentially it's no different than hunting in a zoo, that the animals are tame etc.

I can assure you that there are places where there's some truth to it, particularly on the smaller game farms that cater to the eco tourism crowd. They want their game to be tame in such locations so people can convince themselves that they are "at one" with the XYZ species that they are hand feeding.

As a rule though this is not true particularly on the larger farms or as I'm used to calling them "Ranches". The electrified high fences are there to keep people out and to protect the game from poachers. Even on places where feed is put out it's really no different than here in the US where we feed cattle and the wild animals come out to pick up what they can.

We hunted for two days on one place in a pasture/camp that was a little over ,1,500 ac for two large impala bucks that had somehow gotten in there. They have been running wild in there for several years and no one has had a shot at them yet although they've been seen with some frequency.

As for the dangerous game one of the places we hunted had lions running loose and living as a pride in one of the larger "camps". Not only did those lions act very wild the plains game in there most certainly was wild, they live with the threat of wild predators every day.

The buffalo we encountered were most certainly not acting like tame cattle and pose a threat to every human they encounter.

Is hunting in the RSA the same as hunting in other countries? Certainly not but as long as you are clear with your outfitter or booking agent about the type of hunting you want to do, you are going to have a great experience hunting in South Africa.

The benefit to hunting in SA over other places is that you can be guaranteed you're going to have an opportunity to take animals of a given species if you are there looking for something in particular.

We saw leopards and signs of leopards as well as jackal, caracal, and other predators literally everywhere we hunted. We also saw first hand that the bush pig and warthog really couldn't care less about fences. It is almost impossible to put up a fence they can't get over, under, through, or around without spending incredible amounts of money.

South Africa offers you any kind of hunting experience you can name, so just be clear what your expectations are.

 

[Foxi]

Velo,
would you recommend a (sporty) hunter,who is flying over the half world, a Grizzly Hunt in Alaska in an area it is fenced,for instance 100.000 acres ?
Or would you advice him Brooks Range ,Peninsula or other free Areas ?
What would you do in your country ?
Foxi

 

[WildRose]

Velo,
would you recommend a (sporty) hunter,who is flying over the half world, a Grizzly Hunt in Alaska in an area it is fenced,for instance 100.000 acres ?
Or would you advice him Brooks Range ,Peninsula or other free Areas ?
What would you do in your country ?
Foxi

Velo can give you his answer but let me offer mine as well.

Grizzly hunting differs greatly all over Alaska and Canada. As far as I know you cannot find anywhere that grizzlies are raised on a high fenced hunting ranch/farm.

Let's say for a moment though such a place exists just for the sake of argument.

If the bears are being fed out of a trough daily and being hand fed out of trucks by wildlife viewing eco tourists you'd have a completely different animal than on a working ranch of that size where a bear may well go it's entire life without seeing a human.

Even in the vast areas of Alaska where there are no fences at all the bears may very well have frequent contact with hunters and especially fisherman. These bears that have regular contact with humans are desensitized to humans and human activity and are actually more dangerous than a bear that has never had contact with a human at all.

Being in the hunting business I've had clients of mine over the years discuss making a trip to Alaska and all of the outfitters I have recommended to them are going to be taking them into areas where bears do have contact with humans at least on occasion. The costs associated with trying to get into completely virgin hunting territory devoid of humans completely make those hunts almost completely unaffordable to all but an extremely small percentage of hunters.

Kodiak Island offers some of the wildest hunting in the world and there's not a bear on the Island that doesn't consider humans just another source of protein but they have probably all had some contact with humans during their lives if they've lived past the age of three as it is a premier hunting and fishing destination in N. America.

 

[RolandtheHeadless]

Wildrose, thank you for your reply. I should have said I didn't want to hunt animals that are habituated to humans, i.e., lost their fear of man.

 

[Foxi]

Grizzly hunting differs greatly all over Alaska and Canada. As far as I know you cannot find anywhere that grizzlies are raised on a high fenced hunting ranch/farm.
/QUOTE]

I gave only an example for hunting in the wild.
Im sure Velo knows what I want to say.

 

[RolandtheHeadless]

We have no such fences in Alaska. Outside Palmer, I did see some bison that were behind fences, and we have zoos, but there are no native animals behind fences.

A wild animal runs or sneaks away upon contact with a human. Game animals in almost all of Alaska are wild because they are hunted. With remote villages and mining camps for hubs, there is very little of Alaska that can't be reached with a plane on floats or tundra tires. If you go in the parks, though, the animals are habituated because they've been protected for many generations.

I'm used to hunting wild animals here, and that's what I want to hunt in Africa. Sorry if I've used the wrong terminology here or before.

 

[WildRose]

We have no such fences in Alaska. Outside Palmer, I did see some bison that were behind fences, and we have zoos, but there are no native animals behind fences.

A wild animal runs or sneaks away upon contact with a human. Game animals in almost all of Alaska are wild because they are hunted. With remote villages and mining camps for hubs, there is very little of Alaska that can't be reached with a plane on floats or tundra tires. If you go in the parks, though, the animals are habituated because they've been protected for many generations.

I'm used to hunting wild animals here, and that's what I want to hunt in Africa. Sorry if I've used the wrong terminology here or before.

Outside of the parks and the smaller game farms I don't think you'll have that problem in most of the RSA except on places that really cater to the "eco tourism" set and allow feeding and petting of the animals.

Even on places where you'll see the game coming in to feed where feed/salt etc are put out we saw them running at even the stealthy approach of a human if they detected us.

One place we hunted that allowed no big game hunting at all but did have lodging facilities and offered bird hunting the big game species seemed relatively tame in that you really had to invade their space in order for them to leave.

One of the smaller places I hunted which caters exclusively to bow hunters still had game that was not going to hang around at all if people were out and about and not in vehicles. We were there to hunt predators at the request of the landowner and it was a "buddy deal" where he asked us to come because the "professional" he'd hired to thin out the predators wasn't having any luck. He even went and got us a permit for a Brown Hyena that was really tearing up his impala and other game species but he failed to make an appearance during our stay.

Where people are allowed to shoot from the high racked vehicles the game was naturally least likely to tolerate any human presence at all.

 

[Spear Safaris]

Although I am based and do most of my hunting in RSA, I have to agree that areas like Tanzania can be affordable as well. I am taking 2 Buffalo hunters to a area in the Selous in about 5 days time. Their costs are $9900.00 for the 7 day hunt Buffalo included. The only excluded, is the charter to camp. And this is a good concession, not a open area, but a govt concession. I will post some pictures when back. I will however still not give up my RSA area though!.

 

[ChasingHemingway]

Roland yes there are pretty wild areas adjacent to kruger to hunt, we also have areas like these. Whom are you thinking of hunting with, some of the AH members might know the area. But these areas still have wild buffalo yes, and very good hunts!

@dtarin09 so nice to hear from you! Yes the pictures tell a nice story, we had fun together and you took a outstanding buffalo! Have you received your trophy yet?

Here you go - pedestal mount in the dining room. Who needs a dining table no one ever uses when you could have Black Death greet your guests!

 

[Velo Dog]

Velo,
would you recommend a (sporty) hunter,who is flying over the half world, a Grizzly Hunt in Alaska in an area it is fenced,for instance 100.000 acres ?
Or would you advice him Brooks Range ,Peninsula or other free Areas ?
What would you do in your country ?
Foxi

Hi Foxi,

As RolandtheHeadless, WildRose and probably others have already said, you will find no fenced hunting areas in Alaska.
In fact Alaska and northern Canada both, hold some of the last truly wild places left on earth.
There are mountains here that have not been named yet.
Seems far fetched but when you fly over it, you will see how many mountains there are here.

I highly recommend one particular Registered Big Game Guide ("PH") here in Alaska and it is your good luck that he specializes in grizzly.

Wayne Kubat
(Web Site) www.alaskaremote.com
(Phone Number) 907-376-9568

Wayne can better answer your questions about where to hunt grizzly in Alaska.
However, lately there seems to be grizzly in most parts of the state, including sometimes within the City of Anchorage.
Please tell Wayne that Paul Ard from the Gun Shows recommended him to you.

If you book with Wayne, you will pass through Anchorage so, please PM me in advance if you will have time for me to meet you.
(I only live a few minutes drive to the airport.)

Good Luck,
Velo Dog.

 

[WildRose]

Here you go - pedestal mount in the dining room. Who needs a dining table no one ever uses when you could have Black Death greet your guests!

View attachment 48251

Excellent use of floor space I'd say!

 

[HeinrichH]

Here you go - pedestal mount in the dining room. Who needs a dining table no one ever uses when you could have Black Death greet your guests!

View attachment 48251

Trophy looks fantastic!!!!

 

[HeinrichH]

Please excuse my late response, as we where out hunting buffalo for few days.

I am going to try give opinion on all comments in one reply that touches base with everyone:

I do think the PH/Outfitter you choose to book with makes a big difference, make sure to book with a reputable outfit off course, and AH provides a great base to research reputable Outfitters. There are many great outfits in SA, as well as our other countries, whom operate in great areas, and can be trusted to book a hunt with. I myself deal with a lot of outfitters from SA, Zim, Tanzania and Namibia.

It is true that SA offers some great big game hunts, with great outfitters. The Lowveld (Kruger region), has some great wild areas, fenced reserves as well as unfenced, and when booked with a reputable outfit to hunt big game in these areas, you are sure to have a great hunt and value for money.

I do believe this is a great topic, which can be discussed in great length, which would be to the benefit of the hunter considering a big game hunt, as well as the outfitters that offer these hunts.

There is however some less attractive areas in the Kruger region which is not so great to hunt big game, but once again, booking with a good outfit, you would not end up in the wrong place.

As hunters we all have our own specific needs, wants or dreams when it comes to the hunt you plan on doing, and with that in mind, consider outfits that cater specifically for what you want, when planning it.

Also just to mention, as you all probably know, its a personal business, so after selecting a few possible outfits to work with, also keep in mind you will spend your whole safari with that PH/Outfitter, so book with a guy you can relate to, and get along with.

Hope I touched base on all the comments from above!?

 

[Velo Dog]

Hello THIS IS AFRICA SAFARIS,

From my Foreign Client's point of view, you are SPOT ON, all center hits.

Cheers,
Velo Dog
Anchorage.

 

[lwaters]

I would'nt have a problem hunting buffalo in RSA. Some of the fenced areas are so large you would'nt know it was fenced if nobody told you. Figureing in the extra flight and charters license fees, ammunition fees and cost getting your trophies home RSA looks like the best bargain. I think a guy could throw in a female lion and still be not much more than other countries

 

[HeinrichH]

I would'nt have a problem hunting buffalo in RSA. Some of the fenced areas are so large you would'nt know it was fenced if nobody told you. Figureing in the extra flight and charters license fees, ammunition fees and cost getting your trophies home RSA looks like the best bargain. I think a guy could throw in a female lion and still be not much more than other countries

That is very true. some areas are very big, and a fence/boundary would never be seen in some places. Still makes for some great hunting in some fenced areas.

 

[HeinrichH]

Here you go - pedestal mount in the dining room. Who needs a dining table no one ever uses when you could have Black Death greet your guests!

View attachment 48251

dtarin09, we are leaving this afternoon for 5 days to hunt buffalo in the same area you hunted your bull. Will put a picture on this thread if/when we get one.

 

[HeinrichH]

So this is what we are up to today, in unfenced big game area, SA

 

[WildRose]

Looks like fun! What part of the RSA are you in?