Outfitter: Roger Whittall Safaris
Area hunted: Humani Ranch August 21-30
PH : Butch Coaton this is or second hunt with Butch Coaton and I can’t say enough, from his professionalism, to making my wife a non hunter an essential part of the group to being one of the funnier people I know.
Guns and Ammo: Gibbs 450 NE CEB 480gr Solid 450gr Raptor. Win Mod 70 400H&H CEB 400gr Solid 370gr Raptor.
Animls hunted: Cape Buff, Eland, Wildebeest
Animals seen: 23 different mammals and 67 different of birds.
With the help of Steve Turner's Travel with guns my wife and I left on the 17th of August and traveled on Emirate Airlines from Boston to Harare. Because of a schedule change by Emirates we elected to stay two nights and a day in Dubai before traveling to Harare via Lusaka. Our travels and experience with Emirates was about as painless as one would want when traveling with guns and ammo. We flew on a B777 all legs, the main cabin seating is 3-4-3 except for the last 3 rows which are 2-4-2, we sat in the two seats in the back plenty of room and no one climbing over you.
Buffalo
This is my second Buffalo hunt with Butch and like my first he makes my job easy putting me in the right place for a clear shot. This particular hunt is what we all want when we travel to Africa for Buffalo. A couple of hours of following tracks, a little drama along the way and a successful ending. When we left the cruiser I had a 450gr Raptor in my right Barrel and a 480gr Solid in my left. After an hour or so of tracking in various terrain losing and regaining the tracks the trackers started to slow. One of the trackers stopped to listen and instead of Buffalo we encountered a large bodied Bull Elephant feeding along followed by a Cow Calf herd. When we encountered the Cow Calf herd I noticed Butch rolling a round from his magazine into his rifle's chamber, taking his cue I traded the Raptor in my right barrel for a second solid as we were backing away. It was when we were creating some distance from the Cow herd that the trackers spotted our Buffalo nearby behind some bushes, we turned our attention to them leaving my wife to keep a weather eye on the vanishing Eles. With our attention now drawn to the Buff I once again opened my Double and swapped the Solid in the right barrel for a Raptor leaving me with a “Soft and Solid” combination. The group of four Buffalo we were looking at split and the shooter Butch was glassing grazed up and over a small knoll showing a bit of a limp in his back left foot. We followed and closed the distance until we had only a small tree between us and 40 yards to the Bull. Using the tree for a brace I sent the Raptor from the right barrel his way, he bucked and as he started running across the clearing I swung through him and pressed the trigger hitting him again with the Solid from the left barrel, I dumped the empties (my Double is an extractor gun) and loaded two solids. The Bull only went about 50 yards and stopped under a tree. we walked up from behind and when we got within 20 yards Butch asked me what I had in my double I said two Solids, at my answer he smiled and said be ready then growled “Hey Bull” trying to get the Bull to turn but no luck. We backed off and circled forward approaching from a better shooting angle when the Bull decided to lay down and call it quits I dumped one more into him to finish the hunt.
Eland
We had seen him the night before when coming back from the days hunt. He was very big and very blue, ghosting through the Acacia along the river's bank feeding on the Albida pods that littered the ground. WE drove back at first light in the hopes that we might find his tracks from the night before, the one we found on the road was smoking. Thirty minutes later one of the trackers stopped and like a bird dog stiffened and stretched pointing towards a clearing. Leaving the trackers behind I followed Butch as we made the final approach towards the clearing. The sticks went up and when the Eland stepped into the clear I sent a 370gr Raptor his way, the Eland jumped and like the my Buffalo earlier ran across a small clearing, except this time I got stuck in the sticks and my swing stopped just as I pressed the trigger shooting behind. The Bull only went a very short distance maybe 25yards and stopped. We could see his top line above the bushes while one or two other Eland milled about. Butch unable to see any blood held me from shooting again until he was sure this was the same animal. As the others moved away this Bull slowly laid down, we approached from behind and I slipped a second Raptor into his turned neck.
Wow an Eland is a whole lot of meat this Bull was blue from stem to stern and Butch figured it was close to 2000 pounds when we winched it into his cruiser.
Wildebeest:
This hunt was not planned when I arrived At Humani I had all intentions of trying to shoot a Warthog, (I like having those ivories laying about the house). But the drought of last year took a toll on the locals and finding a good shooter was going to be tough. We decided go after a Wildebeest with the Double making it more of a challenging hunt. That morning we had made a few stalks both times being busted by either Impala or Giraffe, we had been driving for awhile when word came into the cab that three Bulls had been spotted. The cruiser was stopped behind a bush and Butch and I got out as the cruiser drove away. We circled back and around to get the wind in our favor and started to work our way towards where we had seen the Bulls last, the last yards on hands and knees or duck walking stopping behind the last bush between us and them. Butch was squatting and glassing the Bulls and explaining the layout, the Bull with the better horns had ambled off the older Bull was standing right to left and a younger bull was laying down in front of the bull standing his head and left horn between us and the standing Bulls shoulder. While all of this was going on I glanced to our left to see a group of Buffalo feeding towards us. They had got to about 30 yards when they started to curl away except for one old cow who was still feeding our way and starting to pay more attention to the shapes in front of her. Butch ask me at what distance I was comfortable shooting my Double. Most of my practice is done with 4′ and 8″ targets an 8″ target almost covered by the front bead at 50 yards I said maybe 75 yards and he said the standing Bull was an easy 100 was I still interested. My answer was I would let him know when I got on the sticks which he was sliding around the bush as we were speaking. I slid around the bush and got on the sticks and looked through the sights, A Wildebeest a 100 yards is a whole heck of a lot bigger than an 8″ plate I was able to see shoulder, definition and the tip of the horn from the Bull laying down that was just below my aiming point. I could also see that damn Buff Cow that was still feeding towards us. It seems that I had more than enough time to look through the sights take the safety off but the safety back on look at the Cow Buff and back at the Kongoni when Butch said to shoot. I will say that this was one of the sweetest shots I have ever taken, everything felt right, the sight picture, the trigger press, when the sear broke I sent a 450gr Raptor on it’s way. I saw the shot and it’s effect was dramatic the Bull hit the ground like someone pulled the rug out from under it, Butch commented that I must of shot high but I said no as we made our way forward. The Bull on the ground started to bellow and tried and get up I put one more right barrel into it. I have shot my share of animals and I would have to say that I have never seen so much blood on the ground and still pumping out of both sides when we got back to the skinning shed all of the plumbing from the Wildebeest heart had been destroyed in some manner or another.
This was probably one of the best vacations I have ever taken with my wife, as a hunting trip it was wonderfully successful thanks to the staff of Roger Whittall Safaris and Butch Coaton.
What did I learn, well hopefully we never stop learning but the biggest was to get off the damn sticks after the first shot, I learned that I really like hunting with Iron sights and my confidence with my 112 year old Double is very high. If and when I return and my eyes will still let me it will be my primary weapon and CEB bullets will accompany it.
Oh bye the way I turned 60 on this trip, I hate Birthdays and usually head the other way, much to the dismay of my friends this was my idea of heading the other way.
Area hunted: Humani Ranch August 21-30
PH : Butch Coaton this is or second hunt with Butch Coaton and I can’t say enough, from his professionalism, to making my wife a non hunter an essential part of the group to being one of the funnier people I know.
Guns and Ammo: Gibbs 450 NE CEB 480gr Solid 450gr Raptor. Win Mod 70 400H&H CEB 400gr Solid 370gr Raptor.
Animls hunted: Cape Buff, Eland, Wildebeest
Animals seen: 23 different mammals and 67 different of birds.
With the help of Steve Turner's Travel with guns my wife and I left on the 17th of August and traveled on Emirate Airlines from Boston to Harare. Because of a schedule change by Emirates we elected to stay two nights and a day in Dubai before traveling to Harare via Lusaka. Our travels and experience with Emirates was about as painless as one would want when traveling with guns and ammo. We flew on a B777 all legs, the main cabin seating is 3-4-3 except for the last 3 rows which are 2-4-2, we sat in the two seats in the back plenty of room and no one climbing over you.
Buffalo
This is my second Buffalo hunt with Butch and like my first he makes my job easy putting me in the right place for a clear shot. This particular hunt is what we all want when we travel to Africa for Buffalo. A couple of hours of following tracks, a little drama along the way and a successful ending. When we left the cruiser I had a 450gr Raptor in my right Barrel and a 480gr Solid in my left. After an hour or so of tracking in various terrain losing and regaining the tracks the trackers started to slow. One of the trackers stopped to listen and instead of Buffalo we encountered a large bodied Bull Elephant feeding along followed by a Cow Calf herd. When we encountered the Cow Calf herd I noticed Butch rolling a round from his magazine into his rifle's chamber, taking his cue I traded the Raptor in my right barrel for a second solid as we were backing away. It was when we were creating some distance from the Cow herd that the trackers spotted our Buffalo nearby behind some bushes, we turned our attention to them leaving my wife to keep a weather eye on the vanishing Eles. With our attention now drawn to the Buff I once again opened my Double and swapped the Solid in the right barrel for a Raptor leaving me with a “Soft and Solid” combination. The group of four Buffalo we were looking at split and the shooter Butch was glassing grazed up and over a small knoll showing a bit of a limp in his back left foot. We followed and closed the distance until we had only a small tree between us and 40 yards to the Bull. Using the tree for a brace I sent the Raptor from the right barrel his way, he bucked and as he started running across the clearing I swung through him and pressed the trigger hitting him again with the Solid from the left barrel, I dumped the empties (my Double is an extractor gun) and loaded two solids. The Bull only went about 50 yards and stopped under a tree. we walked up from behind and when we got within 20 yards Butch asked me what I had in my double I said two Solids, at my answer he smiled and said be ready then growled “Hey Bull” trying to get the Bull to turn but no luck. We backed off and circled forward approaching from a better shooting angle when the Bull decided to lay down and call it quits I dumped one more into him to finish the hunt.
Eland
We had seen him the night before when coming back from the days hunt. He was very big and very blue, ghosting through the Acacia along the river's bank feeding on the Albida pods that littered the ground. WE drove back at first light in the hopes that we might find his tracks from the night before, the one we found on the road was smoking. Thirty minutes later one of the trackers stopped and like a bird dog stiffened and stretched pointing towards a clearing. Leaving the trackers behind I followed Butch as we made the final approach towards the clearing. The sticks went up and when the Eland stepped into the clear I sent a 370gr Raptor his way, the Eland jumped and like the my Buffalo earlier ran across a small clearing, except this time I got stuck in the sticks and my swing stopped just as I pressed the trigger shooting behind. The Bull only went a very short distance maybe 25yards and stopped. We could see his top line above the bushes while one or two other Eland milled about. Butch unable to see any blood held me from shooting again until he was sure this was the same animal. As the others moved away this Bull slowly laid down, we approached from behind and I slipped a second Raptor into his turned neck.
Wow an Eland is a whole lot of meat this Bull was blue from stem to stern and Butch figured it was close to 2000 pounds when we winched it into his cruiser.
Wildebeest:
This hunt was not planned when I arrived At Humani I had all intentions of trying to shoot a Warthog, (I like having those ivories laying about the house). But the drought of last year took a toll on the locals and finding a good shooter was going to be tough. We decided go after a Wildebeest with the Double making it more of a challenging hunt. That morning we had made a few stalks both times being busted by either Impala or Giraffe, we had been driving for awhile when word came into the cab that three Bulls had been spotted. The cruiser was stopped behind a bush and Butch and I got out as the cruiser drove away. We circled back and around to get the wind in our favor and started to work our way towards where we had seen the Bulls last, the last yards on hands and knees or duck walking stopping behind the last bush between us and them. Butch was squatting and glassing the Bulls and explaining the layout, the Bull with the better horns had ambled off the older Bull was standing right to left and a younger bull was laying down in front of the bull standing his head and left horn between us and the standing Bulls shoulder. While all of this was going on I glanced to our left to see a group of Buffalo feeding towards us. They had got to about 30 yards when they started to curl away except for one old cow who was still feeding our way and starting to pay more attention to the shapes in front of her. Butch ask me at what distance I was comfortable shooting my Double. Most of my practice is done with 4′ and 8″ targets an 8″ target almost covered by the front bead at 50 yards I said maybe 75 yards and he said the standing Bull was an easy 100 was I still interested. My answer was I would let him know when I got on the sticks which he was sliding around the bush as we were speaking. I slid around the bush and got on the sticks and looked through the sights, A Wildebeest a 100 yards is a whole heck of a lot bigger than an 8″ plate I was able to see shoulder, definition and the tip of the horn from the Bull laying down that was just below my aiming point. I could also see that damn Buff Cow that was still feeding towards us. It seems that I had more than enough time to look through the sights take the safety off but the safety back on look at the Cow Buff and back at the Kongoni when Butch said to shoot. I will say that this was one of the sweetest shots I have ever taken, everything felt right, the sight picture, the trigger press, when the sear broke I sent a 450gr Raptor on it’s way. I saw the shot and it’s effect was dramatic the Bull hit the ground like someone pulled the rug out from under it, Butch commented that I must of shot high but I said no as we made our way forward. The Bull on the ground started to bellow and tried and get up I put one more right barrel into it. I have shot my share of animals and I would have to say that I have never seen so much blood on the ground and still pumping out of both sides when we got back to the skinning shed all of the plumbing from the Wildebeest heart had been destroyed in some manner or another.
This was probably one of the best vacations I have ever taken with my wife, as a hunting trip it was wonderfully successful thanks to the staff of Roger Whittall Safaris and Butch Coaton.
What did I learn, well hopefully we never stop learning but the biggest was to get off the damn sticks after the first shot, I learned that I really like hunting with Iron sights and my confidence with my 112 year old Double is very high. If and when I return and my eyes will still let me it will be my primary weapon and CEB bullets will accompany it.
Oh bye the way I turned 60 on this trip, I hate Birthdays and usually head the other way, much to the dismay of my friends this was my idea of heading the other way.
