ZIMBABWE: My 21 Day Safari With Charlton McCallum Safaris & A Pair Of Double Rifles

[Tanks]

When you say drop baits do you mean remove them? What is the reason to put the effort into this after you’ve taken your cat? I’ve never hunted leopard.

They don't want the Leopards keep feeding. The baits are dropped, if they did not have maggots then the trackers took the meat. Otherwise they became hyena meat (or whatever scavengers are around). We also had to go get the trail cameras which were mostly up in the tree close to the bait so it was not a wasted effort.

 

[WAB]

Very impressive performance Tanks. I use a Lott on buffalo. Not to your energy level, but it hits them like the hammer of Thor!

 

[JHT]

Very nice. Thank you. Love these reports.

 

[meigsbucks]

Nice old bull buff. I enjoyed your description of the chaos following your shot. Put a double in your hand, you’re deadly. I can’t wait for your pursuit of elephant.

 

[375 Ruger Fan]

Great hunt, excellent report. Fantastic leopard, congratulations!

 

[cadams8257]

Congrats on the hunts.

 

[LivingTheDream]

Awesome hunt!!! Congratulations and you are shooting lights out!!!

 

[Hunting Hitman]

“rat calibers”.
I totally agree 505 Gibbs for me!

 

[Firebird]

Envious of your wonderful adventure-thank you for taking the time and effort to post the details!

 

[Red Leg]

Rapier or broadsword - nothing wrong with a broadsword (and nothing a rapier couldn't do with just a bit more grace and style.)

 

[Petey J]

Such a fantastic report. Can’t wait for the rest.

Beautiful leopard. The scars are really a highlight in my mind. I might have had the skull metallized but leave a gap in the pieces. But, it’s your cat, and it’s a great one.

Love the old broken horn on the buff, too. The more I think and plan, the more something like that seems to move up. Find the great old, worn down one. Such a cool trophy.

And your style of writing is really putting us right there with you, without being long-winded. Keep up the great report.

 

[Nhoro]

Tanks that is a great leopard and a different buffalo- both beaten up with a few interesting scars !

 

[AZDAVE]

@Red Leg Well said is a classic way!! (Rapier or broadsword - nothing wrong with a broadsword (and nothing a rapier couldn't do with just a bit more grace and style.)

@Tanks Nice cat and like the broomed horn on your buff. The 9.3x74 and 500NE are just great rounds and like your choice of armament for your safari!

 

[Randy F]

Fantastic story! Congratulations on that big tom and a grand old bull!

 

[Tanks]

Day 11:

Up at usual time and breakfast. I reconfigure my shooting belt again to remove the cartridge holder with .500 softs, no longer needed. I put the 9.3 cartridge holder back on.

We head towards the fishing camp looking for Zebra etc. and don't see much of anything. However, we do see what human encroachment does to animal habitats.

All of this land was part of the forest just a few years ago and full of game, now nothing.

We have lunch at the fishing camp. After lunch we head out. See elephant tracks and follow them. Another group of four elephants, unfortunately all have tusks and nothing shootable. After we get back to the car we cruise around. We see nothing more.

Head back to camp. Shower, more wine with snacks and dinner. At dinner we discuss plans for tomorrow. We will go back to where we saw the "athletic elephants" as we like to call them. There will be a lot of hill climbing as we go ridge to ridge.

Time for bed after dinner. Maybe tomorrow...

Only 9,969 steps, 3.3 miles and 152 floors of incline.

To be continued...

 

[degoins]

Wow!!! what an epic hunt!!! Congrats on your fine trophies!!! Thanks for sharing your wonderful adventure with us.

 

[Tanks]

Day 12:

Up at 5AM, shower and breakfast. I carry the firearms to the truck. We head for the area of the hills close to where I shot the Leopard.

We park the truck and gear up. I have two solids in the .500 now. One of the trackers goes and cuts me a walking stick, I will need it with these steep hills going up and down.

We travel for a mile or so climbing to the top of the first ridge. Keith starts glassing.

He did see some movement. We have to go down this ridge, cross a ravine then go back up. On the way we see something interesting.

A poacher shelter, most likely to be used during the rainy season. There is a well used cutting log, multiple containers hanging from the ceiling. The parks ranger takes more pictures and Keith marks the GPS co-ordinates to pass on to the Parks department.

We do make it to the other ridge and see the elephants.

We spend 5.5 hours going ridge to ridge checking out a multitude of elephants nothing shootable. Head back to the car to get back to camp for lunch. I start doing jumping jacks saying let's work out, the guys laugh. This is what I look like after all that walking.

On the way to camp the guys see a Kudu bull. I grab the 9.3 and load up. We track it for a while and it disappears. However, from where we lost it we see about 40 elephants in the distance.

We decide to check them out after lunch when the wind would be in out favor. We get lunch and hang out for a little while.

We go to where the elephants were. Going ridge to ridge to get close enough to see tusks. Only one shootable cow. However, it is at the back of the herd and impossible to get to without spooking the others.

It is getting dark, we head back to camp for a well deserved shower and wine and dinner.

Hardest day so far.
28,968 steps, 9.7 miles, 89 floors of incline.

To be continued...

 

[Tanks]

Day 13:

Again up at 5AM, breakfast and pack the guns up. We will drive to a new area that we haven't been before.

As we are driving another tap on the truck, "Elephants". We gear up and head out. I can actually hear an elephant bellowing. We follow the sound making sure we are upwind.

Suddenly, about 50 yards away we see a young bull chasing two cows. Guess he wanted some love. None of them are shootable though.

Then in the distance we see about 30 elephants and make our way towards them.

We get on a ridge, elephants all around.

While on the ridge another bunch passes by.

We end up looking at each and every one of them, again none shootable. We head back to the truck.

I acquaint myself with what is known as "blade thorns".

We go to camp for lunch, and then head back out. Again a knock on the top of the truck, "Elephants". Once again we gear up and follow the tracks. A group of 15 elephants in the distance. We close up.

Unfortunately, nothing shootable. Time to head back to the camp. Shower, wine and dinner. Tomorrow the hunt goes on...

21,281 steps, 7.4 miles and 245 floors of incline.

To be continued...

 

[Tanks]

Day 14:

We getup and start breakfast. During breakfast I notice some visitors about 80 yards away. They are watching something.

Again, we pack the truck up and hit the road, notice a beautiful African sunrise.

We head towards the Pedza camp today looking for tracks. See nothing. Have lunch there and then drive for hours looking for tracks. A few times we get out and walk, but we do not see any elephants.

Head back to camp. The usual routine and during dinner Keith suggests we head for the hills again the next day. We had seen one shootable elephant there and maybe we can run across it under more favorable conditions. Head to bed.

Walking summary for the week.

 

[Tanks]

Day 15:

Get up and breakfast. During breakfast Keith said he had a conversation with Buzz. At this point, without exaggeration, we had surveyed 150+ elephants and only two shootable elephants which we could not get to. He said, Buzz had suggested we move to Dante East. It is about a 4.5 hour drive, and he asks me what I think. I concur.

I go and break down the rifles and pack everything. My and Keith's gear gets loaded on the truck along with the gear of the trackers. Kay, the hunting area manager will come grab the cook and the waiter and supplies and bring them later.

I tip the skinner for his work and the grounds person. We head to Pedza camp to top off the fuel tank on the trunk and then head to Dante East.

We arrive at Dante East and by this time it is lunch time. After lunch we borrow a guide as the last time Keith was in this area was 17 years ago and things have changed. A village was complaining about elephants, the game scout takes us there and we talk to people.

The tell us the general area saying they were by the spring. We head towards there. We park the truck about a mile from the river bed and walk across it. On the other side it is heavy jess sprinkled with open areas. We start following tracks and noise.

While tracking we encounter a bull (cattle not cape buffalo), he is giving us a dirty look. Luckily he does not charge.

Finally we see the elephants, overall there are about 15 of them. We keep moving with the wind and keep looking for tusks. Every one of them have tusks. We head back to the truck and head back to camp as it is getting dark now.

We make it to the camp. One good thing about this camp is that they have power driven by solar panels, very rarely they have to turn on the generator.

Shower, wine and dinner. The search for the tuskless goes on...

13,692 steps, 5 miles and 18 floors of incline (a lot flatter ground here).

To be continued...