My African Safari

2026-06-07T22:48:31.875-04:00

AFRICA 2025 DIARY

BY MARK AUSTIN

October 4, 2025. Just returned from Iceland where we had a wonderful time with the family. Autumn and I, Mark, Kyle and Kelsey, Eric and Virginia. Now packing for an African safari with Steve Watkins and Jeff Weisswasser.

Oct. 9, 2025 (Thursday)

Steve picked me up and we both drove to Jeff's where he had arranged for one of his employees to drive us to the airport. We checked our bags and our rifles. apparently I was lucky enough to get the guy that didn't know how to check in weapons for overseas travel and Steve and Jeff had to wait while they got it all sorted out. With that done, we were checked in for the first leg of our journey, which was Atlanta. We had a layover for a few hours and finally boarded around 9 PM...Where we sat on the tarmac for three hours before they deplaned us due to mechanical issues. We were already starting off on the wrong foot. Delta put up up in some flee bag hotel not to far from the airport where Steve began making phone calls to Delta to get us on the next flight to Johannesburg SA. Meanwhile, I made calls to our outfitter to let them know what was going on. Unfortunately, we couldn't get a flight to Joburg until the 15th. Our outfitter was kind enough to extend our safari for the days we missed and Steve booked the travel plans. We had Delta fly us back home where we waited several days to re-begin our journey. Autumn was surprised to see me walk in the door, but happy I was spending a few extra days with her anyways.

Oct. 15, 2026

Back to the airport. Took off for Atlanta where we got our connector to Joburg, and after nineteen hours in the sky, we landed the next day.

Oct. 16, 2026

We were met by some nice chaps from Rifle Permits Dot com and they cleared our weapons through customs and SAPS (South African Police Service) for us without any issues. It was well worth the $165 we spent on that. After that, a young man named Gian, from Matwetwe safari company met us at baggage claim and drove us the three to four hours to camp where we met the staff and were shown our quarters. The rooms were top notch and we had no issues with them being air conditioned, hot showers, private bathrooms, etc. By the time we made camp it was well after midnight and we were beat. we had an early morning ahead of us and were looking forward to getting some sleep, so off to bed we went.

Oct. 17, 2026

We were up at the crack of dawn and headed across the compound for a quick cup of coffee or two and some toast. Afterwards we met with our respective PH's and trackers, loaded up our gear and guns into the Hilux, and were off. Steve and I hunted together with PH Herman, pronounced, "Are-mon", and Jeff hunted with the owners son Harm in a different vehicle elsewhere.

Steve and I were sitting in the high seat and weren't ten minutes out of camp on our first day when the Toyota came to a halt on the red sand two- track we were traversing when our PH pointed out the only thing that terrified himself and the trackers alike. Spanning the entire two-track was a huge black mamba slithering along. I've hunted Africa before with my son Kyle, but we were in the northern Province at that time (and were now hunting the Limpopo Province) and the mambas were not in that area. At that time, out PH told us, and I quote, "We really don't have any dangerous snakes in this area, we only have the African cobra and the puff adder." I questioned this fellow as to what he though the word "dangerous" actually means.

Anyway, I digress. The huge black mamba slithered it way into the bush and we carried on, but it didn't take me long to realize that a charging cape buffalo had nothing on a black mamba for our seasoned PH and trackers. This was truly the only thing that really spooked them and I made a mental note to watch my step.

We put a few miles on our boots that morning and around 10:30 our PH suggested that we go back to camp and have a bite to eat, then head back out. since we had already been hunting for almost five hours, we had no qualms about that. What we didn't expect was a breakfast buffet that belonged in a five star hotel. Chef Leon had made a huge spread and we soon found out that this was the daily routine. Up at 5 AM, a quick cup of Joe and a slice or two of toast, hunt until ten or eleven, and then head back to camp for a wonderful breakfast / brunch. We would then hunt till dusk and head in for another amazing multi course dinner spread, which included dished that looked more like a work of art than food. I hated to ruin them they were so pretty. I didn't see anything I was looking for, or I should say, anything that my PH thought was worth shooting, which by the way I also quickly found out that my PH was a very fussy fellow and wouldn't let his hunters take any sub-par animals, insisting that we deserve trophy animals and not the run of the mill critters. Steve took a great waterbuck, which is something that he has wanted for years. It did give us a run for our money. As I recall, our PH had spotted this particular waterbuck and had been after him for several years, but every time they tried to put a stalk on it, it would vanish. Apparently this chap didn't get that big by being dumb. When we spotted it in the tall grass and drove around some boulders, we saw it run off in the distance and just like that, it was gone. Our PH was insistent that it was not gone, it was just hiding. I've never heard of anything like that before, but he still insisted we look for it. Our driver drove the Hilux slowly through the tall grass, hitting every warthog hole along the way, nearly tossing us out of the vehicle multiple times. After 45 minutes someone spotted it. I can't remember if it was our tracker of Herman, but he said, look under that tree. we strained our eyes and saw nothing. Then I saw it. A set of horned sticking up out of the long grass. They blended in so well, but Steve still couldn't see it. I pointed it out to him and said, watch, you can see the horns move as he looks around. He was actually laying down with his head up watching and waiting for us to leave. I'd never seen anything like it. Steve still couldn't see it even though it was only 30 yards away. Still in the high seats, we had our driver start the noisy diesel engine to see if the buck would stand. It didn't. we had him creep the Hilux a little closer. It still held fast. We were now only 20 yards away and this sly beast was positive he would once again get the best of another hunting party. Steve was looking intently through his scope, set on it's lowest power, and still not seeing what everyone else was looking at. This isn't uncommon. it happens to the best of us. Finally Herman gave a whistle or a shout and the animal jumped from it's bed. Steve followed through with his 30-06 and fired. The critter went down, and before Steve could rack in another cartridge, it was up and running again. He took a few more shots at the animal as it hightailed it out of Dodge. we followed in the Hilux and once again lost it. After another 30 minutes we jumped it and Steve put a final shot into a beautiful waterbuck. Out first animal of the safari was down. later that night after we returned to camp, we heard that Jeff had taken a real nice kudu and also hit a gemsbuck that still needed to be located. It was now dark and nobody wanted to leave that gemsbuck overnight to be eaten by hyena's or other scavengers. but Jeff's PH Harm had a trick up his sleeve and invited us to go out to locate Jeff's gemsbuck. when we arrived close to where Jeff had hit it, Harm stopped the truck and took out a small case. From there he removed a drone quadcopter that was equipped with an IR camera. He fired it up and sent it skyward, and quickly located a bedded gemsbuck, still alive. He hovered the drone over the animal while Jeff and Hendrik (the owner of the safari company) started off towards the flashing red and green lights of the drone. When Jeff was near the drone, Harm radioed than and told then which way to move, guiding them into shooting range. The gemsbuck was holding tight when Harm told them to stop as it was just 20 yards in front of them. Jeff still couldn't see it in the dark. Harm told him to be ready to shoot, and like out of a movie, he turned on a spotlight that was on the drone and lit up the area from above. Jeff saw the animal and put it down. we all shook hands and slapped each other on the backs while someone opened a cooler and passed out bottles of beer. It was a good first day.

Oct. 18, 2026

Up again at the crack of dawn after a good nights sleep. I had my now usual two cups of coffee and a couple slices of toast. In the early morning, our new best friend chef Leon isn't up yet, but he always makes sure there is plenty of bread, cereal, juice, milk, and coffee ready for us before he shuts down for the night. Afterwards, Steve and I grabbed our gear and and tossed it in the Hilux and headed out to a new area our PH wanted to check out. We rode inside the cab today as the drive was a little lengthy and the the mornings are generally cold and require a jacket of some type. We would switch to the high seats in back once we arrived at our destination. It usually didn't take long for it to warm up once the sun broke over the horizon and we were soon striping of jackets and shirts. I was down to a t-shirt by mid morning most days. The African sun can be brutal and a hat, preferably something with a wide brim, such as a boonie hat and sunglasses are a must. I recall one day looking over at my fair-skinned hunting partner Steve and seeing his nose and cheeks badly sunburned. He didn't even realize it until I took a picture with my phone and showed him. The owners wife gave him some super sun block when we went in for our big breakfast that day.

It was just after 6 AM when we spotted some giraffe starring at up like we were the strange looking creatures. Watching these huge animals run in what can only be described as "slow motion", yet covering a lot of ground at the same time was amazing. Some time around 10 AM we spotted a small herd of blue wildebeest and tried to get closer for a shot. They seemed a bit spooky and the closest we could get was around 300 yards. We stopped the truck and glassed them for awhile and finally decided there was a good animal in the bunch, so I slid my Remington 700 classic, in .264 win. Mag onto the sandbag our PH had thrown up onto the roof of the Hilux and steadied for the shot. I sent a 120 grain Barnes TTSX on it's way and heard the "thwunk" as the bullet hit it's mark, and all hell broke lose as the herd ran and intermingled with each other. My PH had luckily been watching closely and told me, "shoot the one up front!" Those animals were now over 400 yards away and running fast, so I gave him some lead and squeezed off a shot only to miss. We watched them go into some thick cover and decided to give them some time to settle down before going in after them. We did eventually locate my beast, who being wounded had separated from the herd. I put him down with a shot from under 100 yards. He turned out to be a real beauty and will be a nice addition to the trophy room. By the time we had him winched up into the back of the Hilux we were running a bit late for our daily luxury breakfast and it was suggested that we head in to camp. Chef Leon kept the giant dish of scrambled eggs, bacon, sausage, toast, and other pastries warm for us and the bowls of cut fresh cut fruit cold. And of course the coffee steaming hot.

After cleaning up and a short break, we loaded back into the Hilux and were off on another adventure. Although I already had one, I was in search of another nice impala for a Euro mount, and Steve was in search of a blesbok. Jeff would be joining us today as his PH was to attend his best friends wedding and would be out of town for a few days. Jeff is the oldest in our group and at 78 years young, he got around remarkably well, but we hunted hard and put a lot of miles on our boots and it was taking it's toll on our old friend. When our PH mentioned grabbing our gear and hiking to an area, Jeff mentioned jokingly that he thought a nap would be a better idea. And nap he did. He decided to stay back in the truck and rest with the tracker while Steve and I, with our PH Herman put more miles on our boots. For all that walking, we didn't get close to any game nor see anything that even interested us except for a couple of steenbok that wouldn't let us within a country mile of them. It was late afternoon when we were driving the old Hilux down a sandy two-track when we spotted a small group of impale jump across the road in front of us. It's absolutely amazing how far these animals can jump, easily clearing the entire road in one bound, their legs stretched out perfectly in line with the rest of their body, like a diver doing a perfect Olympic dive from the high board. One nice ram decided to stop in some bushes at trailside to see what were were. Everyone in the back of that truck was pointing to him, and I couldn't see him. Like Steve and his waterbuck, I was the only one that couldn't pick the animal out in the tall grass and brush. Finally Steve grabbed the barrel of my rifle and moved it in the direction of the animal, still standing there for what seemed an eternity and it magically came into focus in my Trijicon scope. I couldn't believe how well that animal blended into his surroundings simply by standing still. One shot from my .264 put him down at 70 yards. He was a beauty and will always be remembered, living on well past his lifetime in my trophy room.

By the way, none of the animals we took went to waste. We dined on the impala and other animals nightly and the rest of the meat goes to employees that work for the safari company, as well as being sent to market for others to eat as well.

We had finished loading the ram into the truck just after 3 O'clock and were crossing a large open veld when we spotted several blesbok.

There was a good one in the group and Steve grabbed his trusty 30-06 and made ready for a shot. Herman was glassing the group and told Steve to wait until he gave him the go ahead. This by the was is how hunting in Africa goes. You listen to your PH. If he tells you to shoot, you shoot. If he tells you not to shoot, you don't. You do what you're told, and going rogue is met with distain. It's for the safety of everyone involved as well as for the betterment of the game herds. The PH knows the land like the back of his hand and knows if it's safe or legal to shoot. If you want to stay on his good side, you best listen. I'll cover a bit more on that later.

We were able to get within about 200 yards of the blesbok and Herman gave Steve the go ahead to shoot the one he was told to take. Steve made a great shot and dropped the animal in his tracks.

The same day we spotted a group of wildebeest and Jeff decided to have a go for one. They were all very jumpy as wildebeest generally are. We followed that small herd for quite some time before Jeff was able to get a shot. Although he hit the animal, his shot was off. We all tracked that animal for hours. we even split up with Steve and I taking one area, and Jeff and Herman another. Steve and I were in some heavy mopane when we heard something shuffling through. The brush was thick and we couldn't see more than a few yards, but could hear the quiet footsteps of what we hoped was Jeff's wounded wildebeest. The footsteps seemed to be getting closer but we couldn't see what was making them. Just then Steve shot me a look that told me to "look up." Lo and behold, I looked up and saw a giant staring back down at me. A giraffe, as big as they are, with his perfect built in camouflage, had walked right up to within 10-15 yards on two seasoned hunters, without us knowing. He sauntered away and disappeared as quickly as he had arrived. Awhile after, we heard several shots and walked towards the area they had come from. Herman and Jeff had tracked down the wildebeest and put it down with several shots from Herman's .458 Win Mag, as well as Jeff's .280 Remington. He took a dandy of a wildebeest and was very happy with his trophy. We did so good that day we actually had to call for a second truck to get our animals back to camp where the skinners would take care of the game for us. By the way, speaking of skinners, these guys are professionals at what they do. For the most part, skinning game is all they do and they are the best. Just make sure you don't loan one of them your $200 knife unless you want it sharpened on a rock.

Back at camp, we hit the bar and had a few sundowners before chef Leon called us to the table. He had steak filets from one of the animals we harvested, roasted corn on the cob, and a potato dish set out for us. Of course he served appetizer's beforehand as well. We sat around reminiscing about the day while have a few nightcaps before wandering off to bed.

Oct. 19th, 2026

Another early day. We found ourselves hunting fairly close to camp which was a nice change of pace. We actually got to sleep in a half hour later due to the close proximity. The day was already starting out to be a hot one and we were on the hunt for zebra. Both Steve and I were looking to shoot a zebra, and even though we had both taken nice zebra's on previous safaris, and had the beautiful zebra rugs to show for it, a Zebra is one of those animals that you want to have both a rug, and a wall mount.

Once again, we spotted game from the truck but they were extremely spooky. We decided to park the truck and start walking. It was already hot and dusty. I was stripped down to a t-shirt by 7 AM. After walking miles and jumping a lot of zebra, we finally spotted a few mingling nervously about 125 yards away. We could see them moving in and out of the thick thorn trees, acacia trees if I recall. I had to get so ow to the ground for a shot, my PH Herman couldn't even set up the shooting sticks. Instead, he sat down in front of me and told me to rest my rifle on his shoulder while plugging his ears with his fingers. I did as told and took the shot and watched to zebra drop. Herman jumped up and congratulated me and said he had never seen a zebra drop in it's tracks before. Walking up to the animal, I placed a coup 'de gras into the beast, realizing that the animal only dropped in his tracks due to my poor shot that hit him in the spine. My excitement and heavy breathing combined with Herman's excitement and heavy breathing made for an unsteady rest and threw the shot upwards. But I'll take a little luck any day and was glad to have my zebra.

It was only 10 AM when we loaded in into the truck and drove it back to camp, where chef Leon had breakfast waiting once again.

We decided to hunt around the camp that day and hoped our luck would hold out. Jeff wanted a warthog and Herman had a few ideas of where we could find one. There was a raised blind overlooking a watering hole used for cattle. Many of the plains game also used the water hole and Herman had our tracker drop us off and told him to keep his radio on. To say it was hot is an understatement. It was already close to 100 degrees outside by noon, and sitting inside a plywood shack with a tin roof easily brought those temps closer to 120. Before we left, I changed into kaki shorts and a lightweight safari shirt, along with the gaiters I always wore over the tops of my boots to keep out sand, seeds, bugs, and anything else that has a way of getting into your boots.

Speaking of boots, we were advised to make sure we gave our boots a good whack on the floor each morning and turning them upside down, just in case something undesirable climbed into them during the night as often happens. The last thing you want is to put your boot on while a scorpion is taking a siesta inside.

We sat in that hot box for hours and saw what I personally thought was a good shooter warthog, but was told it was a female, and although it had great tusks, they don't like to shoot female hogs. Jeff never did get a shot at a warthog that day, but he did take a beautiful sable.

Oct. 20, 2026

Jeff's PH, Harm was back so it was Steve and I alone with Herman once again. We got up extra early today because Herman wanted to go further out into the bush to look for zebra that weren't so jumpy. We drove over an hour in the dark before arriving at our destination. We were seeing zebra almost immediately and it was a somewhat cloudy day, which seemed unusual for Africa to me. It was 6 AM and the sun hadn't broke the horizon yet. It was cold and we were walking the bush in search for Steve's zebra. We walked and walked, seeing a few fleeting glimpse of our elusive quarry, never getting close enough for a shot. We walked back to the Hilux and had the tracker take us down the road to another section that was more open. It was then that we spotted a group of zebra making their way across the veld. Temba, out tracker and driver stopped the truck. Herman quickly tossed a sandbag onto the roof of the truck and Steve grabbed his 30-06 from the built in rifle rack and threw it up onto the bags. The animals were at least 200 yards out and Steve let loose with a shot. I filmed the whole thing and told him it was a good shot. We watched as the group ran off at light speed as one of them veered off and started to fall behind. All of this happened in a matter of seconds and the animal dropped and never moved again. Temba drove the Hilux towards the fallen zebra, carful not to drive into one of the hundreds of warthog holes that are strewn about. Steve took a beautiful specimen and was posing for pictures by 7:20 AM. I'm sure it will look great in his trophy room.

About these warthog holes I keep referring to. Warthogs like to hang out in large burrows, often made by other animals such as aardvark's and such. And although they have been known to dig their own holes, I believe they are basically quite lazy and prefer to take over the burrows of others and "redecorate" the holes to suit their needs. They generally back into these hide outs to get out of the heat as well as for protection from predator's at night. The holes can be quite deep and are almost always hidden by tall grass, and dropping a front wheel into one is really a bone jarring experience, especially for those sitting in the high seats. We were stuck more than once when a front or rear wheel fell into a hole, tipping the truck sideways. While exploring one of the deeper holes, I decided to climb down into one while stating to all, "look how deep this hole is!" It was then that my PH told me that black mamba's and other snakes like to crawl down in those holes to stay warm. I think I may have set a record for the high jump getting out of that hole.

By 8:20 AM we were walking down a sandy road watching a giraffe who was busy watching us, when a single impala crossed in front of the giraffe. Herman threw up the shooting sticks and told Steve that it was a good one if he wanted it. Steve set his rifle in the crook of the sticks, waited for it to walk past the giraffe, took aim and fired. The impala jumped six feet in the air and disappeared into the bush. We walked over and found a bit of blood. Temba our tracker joined us and the search was on. Although I filmed the shot and it appeared to be good, we searched for hours for that impala without any luck. The blood trail went dry and he was gone. Herman decided that this animal would not be found by us. By predators' maybe, but not by us.

Around 3 O'clock in the afternoon we came upon a herd of cape buffalo and were careful not to get to close and risk upsetting them. Thirty minutes later we spotted a nice shooter warthog. This was one of the animals that I really wanted. My son Kyle and I had both taken warthogs in the northern province some years ago, but they were not a great representation of the species that I had wanted. I came to find out that different areas of the country mattered when looking for a hog with large tusks. Areas with hard ground tend to produce hogs with shorter tusks as they are constantly being worn down from their rooting. Likewise, areas with soft ground produce larger tusked animals. Herman told me that that was a great warthog and I may not see another one like it again. We lost that hog in the tall grass and Temba started to drive slowly through all of it. It was just then that Herman and Steve both spotted it, and once again, I was the only one that didn't see it. I remember than telling me, "It's hiding under that tree", when suddenly it jumped up and ran like hell. I swung my rifle and fired, tumbling the beast. Herman was ecstatic and more excited than I was. When we walked up to it he was still giddy. He must have seen the look on my face and told me, "We haven't taken a warthog this nice in at least three years!, Hendrick is going to scream when he see's this!" And sure enough, Hendrick did scream when he saw it, and congratulated me on a fine warthog.

We had another one of chef Leon's fabulous dinners, along with a few sundowners and were off to bed.

Oct. 21, 2026

Steve and I were up extra, extra early as we were to hunt black wildebeest with the owners son Harm today. Harm had told us that black wildebeest were not common in our area of the Limpopo province due to some kind of sickness or disease that affected only black wildebeest. We hunted another concession that belonged to someone he knew that was a two hour drive from camp with no luck. Harm made some calls and we were off heading another two hours further from our base camp. This place was actually a huge farm for cattle and sheep. Think of it as hunting whitetail deer on farm land in the states, only this farm was hundreds of square miles, and instead of deer had the black wildebeest we were looking for.

I'd like to mention that black wildebeest are much smaller than their cousins the blue wildebeest, probably around the size of a very large deer. The black wildebeest will weigh in roughly at the 250 pound range with some of the largest going another hundred or so pounds or more. Their horns vary from the blue wildebeest, in that they stick pretty much straight out from the forehead and swoop upwards, like devil horns, whereas the blue wildebeest, which can weigh upwards of 600 lbs, has horns that come out from the sides of their heads and then swoop up, kind of like a cape buffalo. In fact, they are often referred to as the poor mans cape buffalo.

As luck would have it, we spotted several large herds which seemed to sometimes intermingle into one giant herd, and then split up again. These animals were wild. They never stopped moving and would constantly bob their heads up and down wildly. I was told that they do this for several reasons. One is to assert herd dominance, and the other is to dislodge botfly larva from their nasal passages, which was obviously what was going on here as every single animal was doing it. They rarely stood still either. They were constantly running around in circles. It reminded me of those videos you would see of schools of fish or flocks of birds moving about in what looks like some type of circular pattern. Our PH simply said they were all crazy. If the animals were at rest and a single wildebeest started bucking and running, they all started in. We soon found that getting a shot at one of these creatures was not going to be easy, and with over a hundred sets of eyes on us, it wouldn't be a close shot either. There was simply no way to stalk these strange animals on foot, as when you got anywhere near close enough for a reasonable shot (and we're talking 300 yards or more) they would run off and if e were lucky, they may stop a half mile away. Most often, it was further. We spent most of the time following from a distance in a Land Cruiser, hoping to get close enough for a shot. Several times we had been within shooting distance and actually on the gun when suddenly, all hell would break loose and off they went. I finally had a chance and Harm used his Zeiss binoculars with built in range finder and told me, 328 yards, and to hold on the top of it's back. I was rock steady when I pulled the trigger and the animal jumped and ran, but was soon trailing the group. The herd stopped to rest and my wildebeest mingled among them. it was a long wait until I had another clear shot, but we could tell he was wounded, we just didn't know where. After another hour or so he couldn't keep up with the group and I eventually got the shot and put him down. Upon inspection, my first shot had hit him in the leg (elbow). Now it was Steve's turn to give it a go. Remarkably his shot went pretty much the same way when his time came, although he was shooting a 30-06 that has more of a sharper drop rate due to a heavier bullet and slower speed than my .264 Win Mag. Steve hit his animal in the exact same place I hit mine, right in the elbow. But, his animal was also closer, so that made up for the drop. Steve and I both discussed how we could be so far off and both came to the conclusion that Harms range finder was off. We asked him how long he had the unit and he told us that a client gave them to him. Then we asked him if he ever calibrated them, he looked surprised as if he didn't know they should be calibrated and was a little offended. We both went out to the range the camp had set up. It was a well built concrete table with sand bags and a Lead Sled. I shot first at 200 yards and my bullet was right on the money. Steve's as well. Then we moved out to 300 yards. My shots grouped well and landed exactly where I expected them to, which was about 4-5 inches low. Steve's shots went where he expected as well. From there it was easy to extrapolate where our shots would be at 400 and 500 yards. We truly believe those animals were out past 500 yards when the PH told us they were around 300. Also, his rangefinder was also in meters and he called of yards to us, which easily added another 25 or so yards as 325 meters is 355 yards. According to the ballistic charts for my cartridge, taking into consideration bullet weight and velocity, I would be 17" low at 400 yards, and just over 32" low at 500 yards. That would put me pretty much exactly where I hit. We are both positive Harms Zeiss rang finding binos are out of whack, and could possibly be the reason the client gave them to him.

we gutted the animals for the four hour trip home and thanked our host who was kind enough to let us hunt his farm. We pulled in well after dark and missed dinner.

Oct. 22, 2026

We started out our day after the usual coffee and toast and headed out to look for a steenbok for myself and a duiker for Steve. Herman had been told that there was a farm not to far away that had a lot of steenbok, and as he put it, was owned by a crazy lady. We picked up her farm hand and he rode in the back of the truck with us and guided us through the area. We basically followed the road that bordered the fence line and would jump these little antelope and hope for a shot. The steenbok would bed down and let you drive right by them, so there's no telling how many we didn't see, but we did jump a bunch. The farm hand had Tembo stop the truck and pointed to a bedded steenbok not 35 yards from us. Herman told me not to shoot him in the usual place (shoulder) because it would ruin the mount, but instead, gut shoot him as they are so small it would kill them pretty much instantly. I grabbed my rifle from the rack and wrapped the sling around my arm to steady the shot as fast as I could. the shot was perfect and I had my steenbok. I was glad that the farm hand was along for the ride and I gave him $20 USD for his help. Herman told me that the fellow didn't even know what it was I handed him. He obviously knew it was money, but as Herman explained, these people don't even know how to read and write. He asked Herman if he could exchange the USD for SA Rand and Herman calculated to amount and gave his it's equal in Rand. He told me they frown on giving them money because that $20 US was more than he made in a weeks time slaving on that farm, and they don't want the, to expect that kind of money every time someone hunts the farm. I honestly didn't care one bit and was glad to help the poor guy out because I now had all six of the animals I came to Africa for! I had my zebra, blue wildebeest, black wildebeest, warthog, impala, and steenbok.

Steve's tally was a zebra, black wildebeest, blesbuck, and waterbuck so far. He still wanted an impala and had a duiker included in his package that he has yet to see. We did end up spotting a nice impala and Steve dropped it with one shot. The funny thing is, Harm had taken out another group of two hunters that day and noticed a herd of impala running across the veld with one wounded animal running in the back, it's right front leg flopping in the wind, just hanging on by sinew and some skin. It was Steve's lost impala for several days ago. Harm put the animal down and brought it in for give to Steve. He may as well have it, because a lost animal is considered a taken animal and you must pay the fee for it.

Steve had one extra animal on his list that he'd been wanting for quite some time, a baboon. So we hopped into the Hilux and drove to a mountainous area where Herman said baboons like to hang out. We did see a few, but no shots were taken. Later on we has Jeff along looking for a warthog for him. We spotted one several hundred yards away and Herman grabbed his binoculars to glass the hog telling Jeff he will let him know if he can shoot or not. About two seconds later a shot rang out and Steve and I looked at each other with that WTF? look on our faces. Our ears were ringing and Herman was not happy at all with Jeff to say the least. Not only did Jeff break the cardinal rule of not shooting unless your PH says ok, but we now had to lose time searching for any signs of a hit when we could have been hunting. We lost an hour and didn't find anything.

Oct. 23, 2026

Steve went in search of his baboon with owner Hendrick. They brought along a pop-up blind, a couple of stools, and a Death Grip shooting platform. In case you don't know what that is, it's an aluminum tripod that has a rubberized vice like grip on top that clamps around the stock of your rifle. This way, you can leave your rifle pointed in the general direction of your expected shot and have a very steady shooting platform. Steve did see a baboon about 200 yards away on the road in an orange drove I believe. He took the shot and missed, and that was that as far as baboons go. There's always next time.

Meanwhile, Jeff had pretty much filled his bag with everything he wanted, including a jackal that he happened to see on the run and made a fantastic shot on. He had nine animals at this point and Herman took us out for a drive not far from camp. Jeff had said he was done hunting, yet he brought his rifle, lol. I on the other hand left my rifle in it's case back at camp and considered myself done with this safari. I told Jeff I had seen some beautiful golden wildebeest in the area and that one of them would make a nice mount next to the blue wildebeest he had already taken. He wasn't impressed with my sales pitch and said he had spent enough money. I laughed and whispered to Herman that I have a $20 dollar bill that say's Jeff will shoot a golden wildebeest and bet him I could talk Jeff into shooting. Herman laughed and knew Jeff was a trigger happy guy and played along. He told Jeff that a golden would be a great trophy. Jeff was slowly breaking down and said, "I would only consider taking one if it was exceptional." Herman told him he wouldn't let him shoot anything less than exceptional. And then like magic, there it was, 250 yards out in the veld, just waiting for Jeff. I grabbed my phone and started videoing, Jeff grabbed his rifle and set it up on the bags, and Herman gave him the go ahead. The shot was good and we all heard the whump of the bullet impact. The wildebeest ran across the open plain as Jeff slammed another round in the chamber and fired again, hitting it perfectly. As he was ramming another round home I told him not to bother, his golden wildebeest was going down. We watched the beast stop, waver a bit, and fall over. Of course the first words out of Jeff's mouth were, "Damn it Austin, you knew I was a weak person, you're killing me man, I should have never let you talk me into shooting this." We all had a good laugh as Jeff was now out another $3,000.

Jeff still wanted a nice warthog and I pulled Herman aside and begged him to let Jeff shoot a female on our last days. He agreed and took Jeff back to the same hot blind looking over a waterhole, but alas, no warthogs came in. While Jeff and Herman were hunting, Steve and I sat around the pool drinking cocktails, telling stories with the other two hunters in camp and I even took a dip in the pool. We all met for dinner and had a great time talking to the newcomers in camp about what they can expect. as usual, we had our nightcaps and went to bed.

Oct. 24, 2026

This would be our last day hunting and we spent most of it looking for a duiker for Steve. Hendrick, the owner told Herman that Steve could shoot a steenbok in place of the duiker included in his package. We actually ended up going out to the same farm I took my steenbok at, but at night. Apparently this is a more common way of hunting these elusive creatures as their eyes give them away while bedded in the long grass. We saw a lot and got close enough to one for Steve to take a shot. I had brought along my night scope with an IR light. I mounted it to a 2x2 via a picatinny rail and used it to film at night because it also took 4K video. Steve couldn't see anything but the glowing eyes of the little antelope and took the shot. Unfortunately, he hit it square in the face, killing it, but ripping off the entire bottom jaw. The taxidermy company said they will do their best with it. We all went back and had cocktails, told fish stories, and congratulated each other on a good hunt. We tipped our PH's, trackers, skinners, laundry ladies and maids, and said our goodbyes. Tomorrow we would be leaving for home.

In the morning I could tell everyone was sad to leave, but also glad to be going home and seeing our wives and loved ones. Gian drove us the 3-4 hours back to Joburg where Steve and I were already planning our next trip back. The flight home was uneventful and I think all of us got some well needed sleep on the way. It's basically a two day trip to get back home and I didn't walk in the door until late afternoon the next day, about 36 hours after leaving Africa.

By the way, just in case anyone reading this is wondering, Steve and I have already booked a dangerous game hunt for cape buffalo for September 2027. I picked up a .375 H&H and started working up hand loads for it almost as soon as I got back.

Our next adventure starts sixteen months from the time I am writing this. Jeff told me he will most likely not go back to Africa. I think he knows he will be close to 80 by then and his body can no longer take the abuse. In the meantime, I'm trying to talk my oldest son Mark into going along. He said he would consider it. I really hope he does go with us as it's been a long time since I've hunted with him. My son Kyle is now a father, and although I know he wants to go, he's also a great husband and doesn't want to leave his wife Kelsey alone with baby Kat for ten or more days. I'm doing my best trying to talk him into going as well. We'll see.

Climbing mountains in search of baboons.

One of chef Leon's famous appetizer's.

We can't forget about deserts !

For the life of me, I can't remember what this was, but it was awfully tasteful.

A night time pic of the fence that surrounds our compound.

It almost look like a fake picture. It's not.

This is where we had cocktails.

Our quarters.

2012-09-11T20:04:00.001-04:00

So You Have Your Trophies...Now What?

So far you've booked your own airline tickets, chosen your safari company wisely and successfully hunted the species you were after. Assuming that your skinners have caped out all of your trophy's and have salted the hides, they are at this point most likely rolled up and stored in a cool place. You now have nine or ten trophies (or more) sitting in your PH's meat house and you need to make some critical decisions, of which there is basically two. You can ship your hides home and have your taxidermy man do them, or, you can leave them in South Africa and have your trophy's mounted there and shipped back to the U.S.
I would like to discuss the pros & cons of each option and let the reader make his or her own decisions. Hopefully we can shed some light on this topic to make the decision a bit easier.
I would like to state right off the bat that there is no wrong choice, it is simply a preference.
Cost is a big factor when choosing a taxidermist, but I can tell you with little uncertainty that ALL taxidermists charge more to mount African game. There's no reason for this other than the fact that they can. The forms are comparable in price to any North American game forms of the same size. The eyes are the same, as is the cost to tan the hide. Keeping this in mind, I recommend that you talk to your local taxidermist before you leave for your safari. Ask for a current price list and discuss the animals that you have in mind. Some guys specialize in African game mounts, some have never done one, some will tell you that they can do anything. Ask to see their portfolio and look at the African mounts that they have done.
There is considerable cost to having your hides shipped to the U.S. First off, they must be "dipped & packed". This is a process in which the local taxidermist in Africa will have to get involved with. The hides must be fleshed out and then soaked (dipped) in an antibacterial solution. From there the hide is salted again and dried to a nearly 100% which gives the hide the consistency of shoe leather. All skulls and horns are boiled and decontaminated. No meat can be left on the bone. This is a lengthy process mostly due to the fact that the hides are not delivered to the dip & pack company until the safari season is completely over. Only then do most safari operators deliver all of their clients hides at once. A friend of mine had his lion dipped, packed and shipped home to the tune of about $1,200 USD (and that was just one hide) The hunters other option is to leave your trophies with a Taxidermist in Africa. Personal experience has shown me that a hunter can save a considerable amount of money by going this route. I talked to one guy that had a full mount giraffe done in SA. The entire mount cost less than the price his local taxidermist wanted to charge him for just the form!
You can literally save thousands of dollars by having the work done there, and as an added bonus you can sleep well knowing that African game is all they do over there. But...as always there is a catch. You still need to have a big crate shipped to the U.S. and I can also tell you that "it ain't cheep". Although you will be surprised how many animal mounts they can fit into a custom built crate, you will pay not only for shipping, but for customs clearance (a broker) and then more shipping to your house from the main port of entry. I chose the later and still saved thousands of dollars. As in the U.S, the taxidermist will be asking you how you would like your trophies mounted. Unless your living in a mansion, this is something you may want to take into consideration. African game mounts can take up a lot of wall space so make sure you actually have that space. Many hunters opt to have European skull mounts done. This saves money and space. Also consider simply tanning the hides. I had my zebra hide tanned (as in a zebra rug) rather than have a wall mount. The cost was only a few hundred dollars and I feel that this type of display really shows the true beauty of this marvelous animal. Of course not all animals lend themselves to this type of display, you will have to decide for yourself. One thing to keep in mind if doing a shoulder mount is which way the animal will be looking. There are many different forms your taxidermist can use. Typically most hunters opt for a left or right turn. This allows the mount to be hung in a corner which saves space, and still face towards the onlookers. Some game, such as warthogs are almost always mounted straight.

2012-07-06T21:19:00.001-04:00

I'm getting questions from a few people who would like to plan a safari of their own, so I decided to ad a section with tips and information in hopes of making someone else's trip a little easier.

Choosing a Safari Outfit

My recommendation is to do your homework! There is NO SHORTCUT for this part. SCI fundraiser banquets are a great place to start because you can actually meet with and talk to the people you will be hunting with. Making a list of questions in advance will help tremendously. Remember, outfitters attending an SCI function (or any outdoor show) are there for a reason, to promote their business. They may be busy trying to please many potential customers so be patient. The SCI Chapter that I belong to has what we call an "Outfitter Cocktail Party" the evening before the fundraiser. This is an excellent time for serious hunt buyers to do a little one-on-one with a potential PH in a smaller, quieter atmosphere.

Once you have settled on a safari company, you inevitably have to talk price. Be honest with your PH about what you can and cannot afford. Be reasonable about your expectations regarding trophy size. If you are looking for record book animals, be prepared to work a lot harder and pass up many shots at respectable animals. Most hunters, myself included are looking for a "good representation" of the species hunted. This is a very common term in the safari business these days and your PH will know exactly what your looking for.

With the animal business out of the way you will need to ask your PH what IS and IS NOT included in the price. This is where your list will come in. Most of this will be answered in the company's sales brochure, but some may not. Some things to keep in mind:

Is airport pick-up and drop-off included?
In most cases it will be.

How will your trophies be handled?
Most safari outfits will skin your animals at no extra charge, but you will have to decide if you will be having your trophy's mounted in Africa, or "Dipped & Packed" and then shipped home. Dipping & packing will in most cases be done by a local taxidermy company and will cost you a fair amount of money (most in shipping back to the US). Your PH should be able to give you a price list for this as every animal is priced according to size.

Are alcoholic beverages included?
Most outfits include drinks (in moderation), but it never hurts to ask.

Will your PH assist with getting your weapons into the country?
Some will and some wont. Some may refer you to a service that handles this or send you the proper forms to fill out and handle this yourself. I did my own and it wasn't as bad as many say it is. In fact, while on a shuttle bus to our "safe house" (more on that later) a fellow asked the group if anyone besides him hired a company. No one else did, and he noted that we all got through SAPS (South African Police Service) in the same amount of time. Bringing weapons into Africa isn't hard, it's just time consuming. My recommendation is to be prepared to wait. It's all part of the Africa experience and there's nothing you can do about it anyways.

Hidden charges...
Ask your PH if there is ANYTHING that you will need to pay for that isn't listed in his brochure. I found that Kimberley Airport also checks in your weapons when arriving just as was done in Johannesburg. With one exception. They charge $30.00 (U.S.) PER GUN. They do this BOTH WAYS. Kimberley is a small airport and as such, do not have police on site. Your PH will arrange for someone to be there just for you and this cost covers this service.
ANY weapon that comes into the country MUST leave the country with NO EXCEPTIONS.
This charge was not listed in any of my paperwork and they don't take credit cards.

Is sight-seeing or fishing included?
My PH did not charge for a local tour of the National Park, nor other museums or tours we took. In fact, he paid all of our entrance fees. Generally anything that was a day trip was no charge. Several days were needed for tiger fishing as it is a 4-5 hour drive and would be charged at the regular daily rate.

All of your plans are made...
Get it in writing. Get EVERYTHING in writing.
I can't stress this enough. Get a folder and start filing away ALL correspondence that you will print out between you and the safari company. This folder will contain everything up until the day you leave, and then will travel with you. As I stated early on in the blog, I recommend a 7-8 slot file folder with the following headings:

Passport copies
Gun & camera registration
Safari general
Firearms permits
Correspondence
Airline info

TRAVEL TIPS

It will be up to you to make airline reservations. You can hire this out and use a travel agency or you can do it yourself using one of the many websites available such as Orbitz, Travelocity, Priceline, etc. Be advised that you will pay more to use a travel agency regardless of what you may have heard from your buddy. I used Orbizt because they were the only one that came up with a round trip package to where I needed to go. I also sent my info to a travel agent that was recommended by a friend. When I received my price quote (four days later) it was the same EXACT itinerary that Orbitz came up with, except the travel agent had tacked on another $250.00 per ticket.

You can also go directly through the airlines and book your flights. This may be a better option as you will have more choices as to flights and lay-overs. Speaking of lay-overs, make sure you give yourself plenty of time between flights. I know that sitting around an airport can be a real drag, but so is missing a flight due to unforeseen circumstances. I would recommend a minimum of two hours between flights. We had an overnight in Joberg with an early morning (5:55 AM) flight to Kimberley. The ticket counters open at 4:30AM and we were in line by 4:15. Unfortunately the people working the ticket counter decided to sit around to chat and drink coffee until 4:45AM. By the time we got our tickets, were sent to a different counter to pay baggage fee's, cleared security and got to out gate, it was 5:30 and our flight had boarded (a buss that took everyone out on the tarmac at 5:25.) We were dumped from our flight and South African Air wanted us to buy two new tickets to Kimberley (at over $800 per ticket) The problem was resolved, but not until I agreed to pay a "penalty fee" of $485.00 USD.

The fiasco above is just one example of unforeseen problems that can arise. You can have the best laid plans, but you can't plan on a guy taking an extra 15 minutes for a coffee break.

A lot of people are concerned about taking cash to Africa and it is understandable. Some recommend a money belt, but be advised that I witnessed airport security making people remove their money belts (you still get to hold them) and walk through the x-ray machine.
I did bring some cash (not more than 1k) for tipping of guides, trackers, etc.
Surprisingly, I was able to pay for everything including the balance of my hunt with my Mastercard. This is the safest way in my opinion. Just make sure you let your credit card company know you will be traveling to Africa so they don't flag your account and shut it down. Travelers checks are another way to go, but are not as welcome as you may be lead to believe. Even the safari outfit frowned upon them but said it would be "ok" if I really wanted to use them to pay off my balance. When I asked them why they were so reluctant to take travelers checks I was told that it can take up to six months in some instances for them to finally see any actual money in their accounts. In the end, just as I was getting ready to pay my bill, I noticed my PH had his PayPal account up on the computer. This made life very simple for both of us because my credit card was linked directly to my PayPal account and I simply used his computer to do a direct deposit into his account.

Travel Safety

Safe travel to another country should be a high priority for everyone in your party.
Here are some tips that should be followed:

Don't drink the water!
Avoid wearing fancy jewelry.
Don't flash your money around in public.
Dress casually and comfortably, no high heels.
Don't leave the secure area when in airports (especially when in other countries)
ALWAYS carry your information folder with you at all times.
A small day-pack / backpack is better than a purse for the ladies and will hold everything including your information folder.

If you have an overnight lay-over in Africa, contact your PH and let him know. He will have a list of recommended "safe houses" and will in most cases make the arrangement's and reservations for you. A safe house is exactly what it sounds like. South Africa has a 40% unemployment rate and as in most places around the world, crime goes hand-in-hand with unemployment. To put in mildly, crime is bad in the big cities of Africa. A safe house is basically a B&B with the exception of being in a gated community with an armed guard standing watch. In addition to this, our B&B had a 10 foot wall around it topped with electrified razor wire. Once there, do not leave! Once out of the city and in the bush, crime is pretty much non-existent.

Packing for your safari

As you can tell, i'm big on making lists. A packing list in my opinion is a must and I suggest making it in the early planning stages of your hunt. You will find yourself going back to your list on many occasions and adding or deleting items. Making this list six months in advance is not to early. Pack light, all safari outfits offer a daily laundry service. Keeping this in mind, you should pack one set of cloths (pants & shirt) to travel in and two sets to hunt in. The same goes for undergarments. I did bring a few extra pairs of socks as I like to change them and let my boots air out while on our afternoon lunch break. Depending on the time of year you decide to go, it can get downright cold. Remember, South Africa is in the southern hemisphere and on the other side of the world, our summer is their winter and vise-versa. When I was there in June, we had temps go down to 28 degrees F at night which make for some chilly mornings. You will definitely want to pack a warm cap and jacket that has some type of wind blocking capabilities as you will be riding in the back of a safari vehicle in the high seats. I also recommend a pair of sunglasses (and even a comfortable pair of clear safety glasses) for use when in the truck. A bug or twig in your eye can ruin your hunt.
I recommend using a soft-side type of duffle that has wheels on one end for getting around the airports easily. These will also fit better in smaller planes and trucks. Get one that is sturdy and has heavy-duty zippers as it will take a lot of abuse with all of the flight changes you will be making. If traveling with a family member or friend, consider dividing your clothing between your pieces of luggage so if one persons baggage is lost, the other can survive until he is re-united with his bag.

Below is the check- list I made for my hunt:

AFRICA LIST PART ONE

HUNTING

PASSPORTS

.300 Win. Mag

.264 Win. Mag.

.300 ammo (40 rnds)

.264 ammo (40 rnds)

Compact binocs

Rangefinder

Compass

GPS

Bug Wipes?

Soft gun case
Knife

FOOD

Gorp (snack size bags)

Snickers (snack size, 1 bag)

OTHER

Batteries (123)

Books & Magazines (Kindle)

Iphone & charger

CLOTHING, HUNTING

BDU pants (2 pr) (woodland & ASAT)

Cargo pants (1 pr)

Belt

Safari shirts (2)

BDU shirt

Fleece shirt
T-shirts (3)

Travel vest

Gloves

Ball Cap (camo)

Warm cap

Hiking boots

Rocky boots

Camo jacket (my favorite)

Fleece Vest (camo)

Gore-tex jacket

Underwear (3 pr)

Socks (4 pr)

Under-Armor (2 pr)

Day Pack (use as carry-on)

Fanny-pack

LED flashlight - Poly-Tac

Soft gun case

Sunglasses

Reading glasses

Money & credit cards

MEDS & Toiletries

Antibiotics (z-pack from doc)
Imodium

Tums

Ibuprofen

Benadryl

Toothbrush/toothpaste

Floss/pics

Deodorant/no scent

Chapstick

Sunscreen

Sport shield

Band-aids

Neosporin

Hand lotion (Neutrogena)

Razor/shaving cream

There were a few items that I brought that I didn't use, such as my fanny pack a pair of low cut hiking boots and a Harris Bi-pod for my rifle (the brush is to high) But for the most part, I packed light and came in "under-weight". You may want to keep this in mind because you'll want to bring back some souvenirs from your trip and that bit of extra leeway will allow you to do it without worrying if your going to be hit with an $85.00 overweight charge. Remember...you can bring as much as you want, but you'll pay dearly for this in baggage fee's. Most airlines allow one free bag of 50 lbs. on international flights, one carry-on bag, and one personal item such as a lap-top, purse, etc. You will pay extra for that double gun case.

Traveling with weapons

Traveling to South Africa with weapons is not difficult, but there is a fair amount of paperwork that must be submitted. You will need to fill out the U.S. customs form 4457 (Certificate of Registration For Personal Effects Taken Abroad.) This is a very easy procedure. They will sign a customs form that includes the manufacture, model and serial number of each firearm (or bow.) The reason for this form is to show the US Customs people when you return to the USA that you owned the weapons prior to your departure and that you are bringing back these same weapons that you took out of the country. Be sure to have that form available on your return. Since the United States does not require your sporting rifles to be registered you must have this form to show the South African Police. This will suffice as proof of ownership for the required SAP Form 520 that will be discussed below. Also, one quick note. Make sure you ad any expensive camera equipment onto the Form 4457. You don't want to be forced to pay duty on equipment that you already own and as with the weapons, this proves you owned the items before you left the country.

Upon arrival in South Africa you must have filled out an SAP Form 520 for the South African Police in order to receive a temporary firearm import permit to be issued to you. This form is not required for archery equipment. The SAP Form 520 should be sent to you by your safari outfitter but in any case it will be easier to simply go on-line, Google SAP 520 and print them out yourself. I even found one that let me fill out the form on-line in a PDF and then printed it out. (I suggest looking for this at www.riflepermits.com) In any case, there will be areas on the form that will require your signature. This is to be done In Front of SAPS officials. Don't even think about using ANYTHING but a BLACK pen when filling out your SAPS 520 form. If you do not follow this simple instruction, the form will be handed back to you (all eight pages) and you will be made to re-do it all from the start. Registering your guns at SAPS is not difficult, but some folks are uncomfortable with this process. There are companies that will do this for you (for a fee of course) such as Riflepermits.com. These companies will have your permits pre-approved and cut down on your waiting in line time. Costs vary from $89.00 to $150.00 per form.
By the way, the registration service from the SAPS is a free service. There are signs on the walls stating this and ask that you do not give any money in order to help prevent corruption of the South African Police Service. If you are asked to pay, I was told to ask for a receipt. This will usually be followed by something like "The receipt book if full, you can go for free today", say thank you and walk away.

If Johannesburg is your last stop, you will take possession of your weapons after your permit has been issued and your good to go. However, if your catching another plane to go further into the bush like I did you will need to hand your weapons over to the police once again in a different area of the airport. These are the people that are responsible for getting your guns to the airplane. Now I leave this next step entirely up to you, but when the guy asked me "if I had any tips for him" I was more than happy to flip him a five dollar bill (which is equal to $40 rand) and asked him if he would take good care of my guns. He replied "yes sir...I will take good care of your guns, no problems." I brought handful of five's and greased everyone that helped me including the "self employed" guys that hang around the airport and offer to take you and your baggage to where you need to get. They were very helpful and well worth it. Just don't leave them alone with your guns or bags.

Miscellaneous

As I stated before, DON'T DRINK THE WATER! When I was in Joberg for our overnight lay-over I asked the nice lady that ran the B&B if it was safe to drink the water. Her response: "I wouldn't...I don't drink it". That's good enough for me. On our shopping trip before our ride into the bush my PH asked me if I wanted anything. I asked him to grab me 3-4 cases of bottled water. He told me that "our water is safe" and "it comes right out of the ground from our well" I politely told him I'll take a pass on that and offered to pay for the water (he wouldn't let me pay) I would HIGHLY recommend you to do the same. Your only going to be there 7-10 days and you don't want to spend it sitting on a toilet with a case of Montezuma's revenge! This also means taking care not to use the ice, eat raw vegies washed in water (such as lettuce), etc. As a rule of thumb, if it isn't carbonated or contain alcohol, don't drink it. As for the water bottles, make darn sure that you are the first one to open it.

I found that the best place to buy souvenirs (believe it or not) was the airport in Joberg. They know what tourists are looking for and will have tons of it in stock at reasonable prices. We found a fantastic two story store by the name of "Out of Africa" with great deals. They will bubble-wrap all of your goodies for travel and get you in-and-out fast.

Air travel can be enjoyable or downright miserable and being prepared both mentally and physically can help make your flight a pleasant one. There's no getting around that fact that you'll be doing a LOT of flying. The flight from Atlanta to Joburg is 16-1/2 hours. We had two connecting flights before we even got to Atlanta, and then another from Joburg to our final destination. By the time you have made your round trip, you will have logged almost 20,000 flying miles! And speaking of flying miles, don't forget to join the frequent fliers club. Deltas is called "Skymiles" and at 25k you will be eligible for a free ticket to anywhere in the continental US including Canada and Alaska. If like me, you are taking your child or significant other, make sure you sign them up for the Skymiles plan also, otherwise you will not get the miles (even though you paid for their ticket). The miles are easily transferable later on down the road, but as always, there's a catch. Delta charges you 1-cent per mile to transfer them. Transferring 20k miles will cost you $200.00.
Travel comfort is number one when flying for long hours. I highly recommend picking up a neck pillow. Don't get a cheep blow-up pillows either, spend a few bucks and go for the nice one. You'll be grateful you did.
Choose your seats wisely. On a 16-1/2 hour flight you'll want to get up to stretch and move around. That window seat may sound good at first, but there won't be anything to see on a trans-Atlantic flight anyways. Get an aisle seat so you can get up whenever you feel like it without bothering the person next to you.
Some people like flying, and some don't. I happen to be in the first category. But for some reason I am unable to sleep on a plane. If your the nervous type, don't like flying, or like me, just can't sleep, give your Doc a call and ask him what he can prescribe something for your flight. He will be more than happy to help. My Doc recommended a couple of Zanex and I slept like a baby for nine hours.
Dress for success. Wear comfortable, sensible clothing. I wore my cargo pants that had plenty of pockets for items such as passport, money, etc. The use of a travel vest isn't a bad idea either, it can hold a lot of your "stuff" (camera, phone, I-pod, passport, etc.) and can easily be taken off and put on the belt when going through security.

Bring a good pair of high quality hunting boots that have been broken in. This is not the time or place to be breaking in boots. Having to deal with sore, blistered feet can ruin a trip.

Wear sun block. The African sun is HOT!!! Get something with SPF 30 at the very least.

Don't go "over-gunned". You don't need a cannon for plains game. Anything from .270 to .300 Win. Mag. will be fine. I've known many hunters that have even used a .243 for all but the largest plains game. A gun that shoots well and that you can shoot well is the best possible combination.

Bring a back-up. A second rifle or bow is a good idea. It doesn't take but one slip and fall to destroy a scope (or knock it out of alignment.) I had to swap out rifles at the very end of our safari due to an inadvertent problem that I believe happened while climbing down a rocky ledge. I was grateful that I brought the second weapon and was able to finish the last few days of my safari without using a borrowed gun.

Be sure you let your PH know of any physical limitations before your safari. It will make life more enjoyable for everyone involved. Also, if you have any food allergies or are allergic to anything (including medications), let them know. A good outfit will send you paperwork asking all of these questions. Fill it out honestly because if something happens and your rushed to the nearest hospital (which won't be near) it can mean the difference between life and death.

If you have any food preferences let them know well in advance. Your safari outfit want's you to be happy and want's to pamper you. Let them! Remember, there's not a grocery store on every corner and at best, your outfit will send someone to get supplies once a week.

Shots or no shots... Depending on where your hunt is to take place, you may or may-not need shots. Most of South Africa is in a non malaria zone. If your going to travel to other countries such as Zimbabwe, Tanzania, etc, you should talk to your doctor (and do the research yourself). Aside from malaria, common sense dictates that you should be up to date on all your other shots such as tetanus, etc.

Prescription medications. If you must travel with meds, make sure they are in the original container with YOUR name on the script. You can bring along a travel container and fill it when you get there.

Most PH's recommend darker colored clothing as opposed to the typical light tan safari shirts and pants. I pants I used my ASAT camo BDU's almost exclusively and my son used US military BDU's in woodland camo pattern. These offer six pockets and make life a lot easier (I carried a water bottle in a cargo pocket at all times and I recommend you do the same no matter what you choose to wear.) As far as camo shirts/tops, I mostly wore a green or grey T-shirt covered by a khaki safari shirt which was usually covered by an olive drab safari vest. The vest carried everything I needed from a pair of compact binoculars, ammo, snacks, etc. and I wouldn't leave without it. On most days I found myself stripped down to just the T-shirt and vest.

Bring a good pack. Something light and comfortable. Most of the time this pack stayed in the safari vehicle, but you never know when you may need something. my pack contained the following:
A warm jacket
Warm hat
Rangefinder
Extra ammo
GPS & compass
Snacks
Water bottles (which I froze the night before)
Gloves (which I wore almost all the time, the thin Mechanix brand gloves are great)
A good high power compact flashlight (I like the Polly-Tac by Streamlight)
A good knife
Anything else you may need for the day

Practice. practice, practice! You WILL be shooting off of the famous African style shooting sticks. It would be in your best interest to purchase or make a set of these and practice shooting from them. There is without a doubt a learning curve with these and once you figure it out it seems to work just fine. One tip: If your using the "bi-pod" type sticks (just two legs) you'll want to lean them on as far of an angle towards you as possible (so you yourself act as the third led of a tri-pod) This makes for the most stable platform possible.
If using the tri-pod type (three legs), set it up as high as possible so your standing comfortably upright and place your hand over the top of your gun where it rests on the tri-pod sling.

I always carried a good knife with me wherever I went. You never know what can arise in the bush. On that note, I read somewhere to never lend your new skinning knife to the local skinner... unless you want it sharpened on a rock. I can attest to this personally.

Bring a good camera that you know how to use. Take pictures of everything!

Consider bringing bug repellent. We didn't encounter much in the way of mosquitoes and really had no need to use it, but depending on the time of year, how much rain they received and the area you'll be hunting,  it would be wise to include this item.

Tipping: The question of tipping your guides and staff seem to be the most asked and everyone will tell you that although tipping is not necessary, it is certainly appreciated. This to me sounds like a way of dodging the question at hand. My recommendation is to tip a minimum of 10% the cost of your safari package. I believe this to be more than fair. Also, always ask your PH before giving money to his staff. Many PH's like to split the tips up between the staff to how he see's fit. If he tells you it's ok to tip his local staff, by all means, go for it. Just don't give them travelers checks or US dollars. This may be fine for your PH (and he would probably rather have US dollars) but for the locals, it is difficult for them to cash travelers checks or convert US dollars to Rand. Therefore, tip them in the local currency.

2012-06-24T15:10:00.003-04:00

Random pics taken during our safari

(please click on pics to view full size)

Another warthog.

A view from a hilltop looking across a Savannah.

Some of the stuff we hunted in.

Sunset.

Moon rise.

Driving back in the evening. Temps in the high 30's make for one cold ride!

More zebra

A heard of impala running in the distance.

Eland keeping a watchful eye.

Zebra

The zebra like to hang around other animals. here they are with a group of eland.

Three cow eland running away.

This group of gemsbok were running along side of the rover.

While we were driving around looking for warthogs, we spotted this aardvark.

Me and Kyle with the big guys...

Another beautiful sunset in Africa.

This group of black wildebeest is keeping an eye on us.

We spotted a few monkeys in the trees. Our PH hates them and says "They're naughty"

He must have seen the look on my face and then told me that the monkeys are smart. They know if they throw a rock at the lodge window that it will break and then they can reach in and turn the door knob, enter and trash the place!

Another close up of a sable.

More ostrich pics.

If you look closly, you can see a group of cape buffalo in the distance.

2012-06-24T14:55:00.001-04:00

Day 10

Today we are going home. We are both sad to leave, but we are looking forward to seeing our family again. It has been an unbelievable journey that neither one of us will ever forget.

We saw a fascinating land that most will only dream of seeing...
We lived with the locals, dining on traditional African dishes...
We made new friends...
And we hunted hard, Harder than we ever thought we could.

My PH told me of an old African saying...

"Once you've had the dust of Africa on your boots...it can never be shaken off"

Truer words have never been spoken.

Boarding the plane in Kimberley to come home.

One last look as we leave Africa...

2012-06-15T18:54:00.001-04:00

Day 9

We woke up to a cold rainy morning. We decided to take it easy today and visit some of the more interesting sights of South Africa. On our agenda was a drive the Makola National Park which is only 20 minutes away. We also went to what is know as "The Big Hole" which was a little over an hours drive to the town of Kimberley. The Big Hole is the largest man made hole in the world. It was an open pit diamond mine started in the 1800's and closed sometime in the 1940's when WWII started.

At Mokala.

It was starting to rain real hard and i'm doing my best to stay dry and get this pic!

Kyle shot these pics of a river in the Mokala National Park.

The bird below is called a guinea fowl.

A group of baboons spotted us and headed for the hills.

This warthog may not have a huge body, but he definitely has a nice set of choppers!

This ostrich was just standing by the roadside on our way to the park.

A young kudu bull stops to take a look at us.

These kudu cows were keeping track of us from a high vantage point.

As we rounded a bend in the road the grey duiker was fascinated by our presence.

From the park, we headed towards the town of Kimberley. Kimberley was once the diamond capital of the world and the town was built around the mine.

This is a picture of what is known as the "Big Hole"

This is the largest hand dug hole on earth. it reaches a depth of 1,800 meters (much of it under water)

This pic helps the viewer to gain an idea of the actual size.

What you see in the background is the city of Kimberley. The city pretty much comes right to the edge of the hole.

2012-06-14T22:53:00.001-04:00

Day 8

As our PH put it, we had our cake, now all we needed was the icing and the cherry on top.
We had basically bagged all the animals we had come for and we still had a few days left. The pressure was off and as Jeff said, anything from here on out would be icing on the cake. After a nice breakfast washed down with several cups of good coffee, we hopped into the rover and headed for the hills.

This is my view from the back of the hunting rig.

We sit quite a bit higher than the driver.

Kyle sitting directly across from me, gun at the ready.

These zebra appeared out of thin air when spooked from the sound of the rover.

These creatures are eland. They are some of the largest animals in Africa. The trio pictured here are cows (and they are the size of real cows). The bulls are at least a third larger.

In Africa, you don't have to go far to find trouble, and sometimes trouble finds you. Case in point is pictured below. This is a cape buffalo and it is known to the natives as Mbogo. They are VERY large and have a VERY bad temper. They are known to big game hunters as "Black Death" or "Widowmaker" and one would be advised to give them a very wide berth. In Africa there is what is referred to as the "Big Five". These are the five most dangerous animals on the continent and consist of the elephant, black rino, cape buffalo, lion, and leopard. Several hundred people are killed by the cape buffalo every year and when wounded, they tend to head for heavy cover, circle back on their tracks and wait in ambush for the unlucky hunter that did not make a clean kill.

It was mid afternoon when we happened across a grey duiker while driving a two track road in the rover. The animal ran in and out of heavy cover and would show itself briefly for a moment at a time. I readied my rifle and as our driver slowly moved the truck forward I spotted him in the low hanging branches of an acacia tree. I took the shot and it felt good. I was sensing some doubt from my hunting partner and the rest of the hunting party. We all went for a 100 yard walk to check it out and our tracker instantly found blood and then within 20 yards,the duiker. A grey duiker (duiker comes from the Dutch word "diver" for the way the animals dive in-and-out of the bushes) is a small deer-like animal. This one is fully grown and i'm told will most likely make the record books.

Later in the day, after a fine lunch we head out for what will be our last day of hunting. We are still looking for a couple of really big warthogs, but know our chances are slowly fading away. As we drive through the bush we spot hogs! We shoot a few smaller hogs that are doing damage to the landscape and then out of the corner of my eye I spot a bruiser of a pig. It's choppers can clearly be seen at 200 yards. I swung my rifle and fired while kyle rolled video. The shot was good and the big hog went down! Within 30 minutes another large hog is spotted and this time the gun is handed to Kyle who quickly puts him down!

We have two giant wallhangers in the back of the rover within 30 minutes. The gods of the hunt are smiling upon us. We have just put the cherries on the cake.

This is video footage of one of the big warthogs pictured above. I used a 300 Win. Mag. and the distance was about 150-180 yards.

2012-06-14T22:22:00.000-04:00

Day 7

The temps are getting seriously cold after the sun sets. Nights are going down to the low 30's and even into the high 20's. This huge weather fluctuation makes it difficult to prepare for the days hunt as you never know how the day will turn out to be. There is no television or internet here, so weather reports are few and far between. The agenda for the day is blesbok. These creatures are very wary and tend to hang out in large groups out in the pan. The pan is a large low area with very little vegetation. It floods in the rainy season to a depth of a few inches on one end to maybe six inches at the deepest point. This is not the rainy season and it resembles a dry lake bed a mile in diameter. The animals stay towards the center for safety and have a commanding view of the entire area. Nothing can sneak up on them without being seen by hundreds of eyes.

The pic below shows what is referred to as the pan. the green area is the part that floods in the rainy season. Although it's hard to tell from the picture, this is well over a mile across.

Our plan is to get dropped off just over a slight roll in the landscape where we can just see the animals a 1/2 mile out. We sent our driver Solomon on a quest around to the other side of the pan. We watched as he approached withing a half mile of the heard and they started moving our way. At first in a mad stampede, then they slowed to a stop as soon as he stopped the rover. Our driver would move forward slowly 10-20 yards at a time and the group would move 100 yards. The blesbok were now strung out in a long line heading our way. Our PH's Jeff and Leon, as well as myself were watching through binoculars. Kyle was watching through the scope of a .300 Winchester Magnum. Jeff was keeping an eye on a particular stag and quietly talking to Kyle as to it's position in the long line of moving animals. When they were 180 yards out Jeff gave the go ahead to shoot. Kyle sighted in the the front shoulder of the animal and squeezed off a shot. The animal went 50 yards and dropped.

From left to right: PH Leon, PH Jeff, Kyle, Tracker Solomon.

When I asked our hosts why this place is called "Fort Richmond Safaris" they told me..."Because there's a real fort here." They explained that the fort was build by the English during the Boer war. It is actually more of an encampment than a fort. It was built on a hilltop for for greater visibility and defensive purposes. The walls are just high enough to be able to fire a rifle from and you can still see the ports for cannons. The fort held about 3000 troops and was named after the high ranking officer who had it built (i'm told). When we learned of this, we asked to see it right away. Kyle is a huge history buff and wouldn't miss out on a chance like this.

The pic below shows where a cannon once sat init's defensive position.

We could see our lodge below from the fort.

The stars REALLY come out at night here in the southern hemisphere. This is one of the darkest places on earth according to Kyle. I won't argue that, he's the astronomy major.

He took this picture just off our front porch. You can easily see the milky way, and it wasn't even dark yet!

This blog wouldn't be complete without a bunch of Kyle's pictures of the heavens...

All of these were taken with his Canon SLR.

Just after sunset. You can still see the suns light low on the horizon.

2012-06-14T16:53:00.002-04:00

Day 6

Day 6 found us up extra early, skipping the usual big breakfast and grabbing a cup of coffee and a rusk, which for the uninformed is a hard biscuit type of thing much like our biscotti but without any flavor or coating. They're quite good actually and the Africans traditionally dip them in their coffee or tea. We headed out to a different area about 45 minutes away with a new plan. We would drop our tracker Stephan off at the bottom of a high ridge, give him a pair of binoculars and a two way radio and have him start climbing to the top. We then headed off in the rover to another distant peak and would do the same. It wasn't long before the radio started to chatter with Stephan spotting a band of kudu. We also could see them moving about in the heavy cover below us. We watched as they meandered through the acacia trees and closed the distance to three hundred yards. Our PH was watching through his own binoculars and Kyle had his gun up on the shooting sticks while I watched from just behind him. A nice sized kudu presented a clear shot and Jeff our PH gave the order to shoot! But it was not to be... within a second they all ran away and I could see the frustration on our PH's face as he mumbled a few choice words. But before he could belt out another string of profanity, Kyle, who was still looking through his rifle scope whispered that he was watching a 2nd larger kudu step out from behind the same tree. Jeff was very excited and told him to take the shot if it felt right. Kyle dropped the hammer and within the blink of an eye the kudu was down for keeps!

Our tracker Stephan was also very happy as you can see!

By the time we took pictures and loaded the kudu in the rover it was close to noon. The trackers had gathered wood and made a fire and we grilled fresh sausage we had brought with us. Kyle was wiped out from all the excitement and quickly fell asleep in the bed of the rover while Jeff cooked our lunch.

After lunch we headed back to camp for a short break and a change of cloths. It was starting to warm up and we still had four hours left in the day and were now looking for springbok. Once again we found ourselves wearing out the soles of our boots, but lady luck was with us today! Our PH Leon spotted 3-4 springbok about 400 yards out. We tried to use the few existing trees and shrubs for cover as we moved forward in a crouched position.
We ran out of cover after the first 100 yards and the decision was made to let Kyle take a shot. There was some discussion between Kyle and Leon as to which animal to take. Leon guided Kyle to shoot the one that was moving into the open. At the shot, the springbok dropped instantly. It was turning out to be a very successful day for my son...

While in Africa, our entire lives are lived looking through a pair of binoculars. This is not an option, good optics are a must and quality glass more than makes up for the money you shelled out.

Kyle takes a break after a long hike up the mountain.

After sunset, there was some serious celebrating around the nightly campfire!

2012-06-13T22:51:00.002-04:00

Day 5

We were up early again this morning. The plan was to locate a kudu bull. The weather at daybreak was 30 degrees and windy. We drove out to a secluded spot and from there started climbing to high ground to glass for a good bull.

The going was rough and at times treacherous. One must constantly be aware of his footing as there are many large rocks hidden in the tall grass that can twist or even break an ankle.

This picture was taken just before we crested the ridge.

The view of the savanna below us was amazing.

We could see for miles!

Although we spotted several kudu, none were up to the standards we were looking for.
The wind was really kicking up and although the sun was up and the temps were rising to the mid to high 40's, it still made for a cold sit. I hunkered down in some rocks to get out of the wind and even put in ear plugs (yes, it was blowing that hard).

We finally gave up on the area and began our decent down the mountain. Our Tracker Stephan spotted two giant African porcupines and asked Kyle to shoot them because his family loves to eat them! Kyle took both of them and Stephan was happy as can be.

As the day wore on we moved into a different area. We ended up hiking nine miles total through the thorns and picker bushes today. Although we spotted several kudu during the day, it was unfortunately an epic fail.

We did however get a lot of pics...Below, Kyle and our two professional hunters are crossing through a watering hole for livestock.

Zebra are super wary animals and in my opinion, one of the hardest to hunt. These three knew something was going on and spotted us well before we saw them.

This strange rock stood out like a sore thumb. It was the only smooth thing sitting out amongst a harsh craggy environment on the savanna. It was smoothly polished and was very warm and comfortable to lay on.

Kyle took this long range pic of our tracker Stephan climbing down from one of the giant rock outcroppings that he likes to spot game from.

2012-06-12T22:10:00.000-04:00

Day 4

We climbed a large hill (I refer to them as mountains) and glassed a small heard of impala. We watched them for quite some time before my PH saw a good one and told me to take it. I wasn't comfortable using the shooting sticks and the range of 350 yards made it even more uncomfortable. The shot went high and the group ran a short distance and then began milling about just out of sight. My guide Leon spotted a medium sized warthog and I took a shot at 200 yards. I connected, but the tough little critter just kept going (but she was running towards me) When she was 75 yards out and broadside, I swung my rifle and gave her a two foot lead and squeezed the trigger. She dropped like a ton of bricks.

We came across this group of wildebeest and blesbok while heading back for lunch. We stopped so Kyle could snap off a bunch of pics.

The African sun is HOT! One would be wise to stay hydrated and wear a hat.

After a nice lunch we headed out once again. We hadn't gone far when we spotted a small group of impala that were spooked by something. They were running perpendicular to us and would cross in front of ua at 75 yards. My son Kyle already had his camera shooting photos at six frames per second when he captured this great pic.

The impala pictured above along with a second impala stopped about 150 yards out from us to look back at whatever had scared them. But by then it was to late for them. I had already jumped out of the truck and was on the sticks and zeroed in on them. I dropped him with one shot from my 264 Win mag.

Stephan driving up in the rover so we can load the impala.

This is video of the impala being taken.

We put a lot of miles on the soles of our boots this day. We spotted a nice kudu bull and took off on foot after him. The African sun was hot and we had walked for several hours never catching up or seeing the kudu again. We stopped for a short break and drank the remaining water we had with us. My PH had sent the tracker back for the truck 45 minutes earlier and told him to meet us at an specified point. The sun was getting low in the sky as I stopped to remove a rock from my boot. Just then our PH excitedly called me over to where he was standing on the crest of a small rocky outcropping. I franticly tried to get my boot laced and ran over to see four zebra staring us down at 200 yards. My PH already had the shooting sticks set up and as I setteled my crosshairs on the zebra he told me to take the large one on the left. Just as I was ready to drop the hammer they started to turn and run. I had just finished my swing through the lead zebra and pulled the trigger when I heard my PH say hold off. It was to late, the shot had been made. I was a bit worried I had botched the shot when I heard my son Kyle and Leon my PH say "great shot, you got him!"
The zebra went 80 yards and dropped, and Kyle got it on video!

Here's the video.

As we took photos and admired my zebra, we witnessed one of the most beautiful sunsets ever. It was a fitting end to a remarkable day. There would be some celebrating at the campfire tonight...

As we watched the sun set in the west, the moon was coming up in the east...

2012-06-12T21:59:00.000-04:00

Day 3

We were out early. It was a chilly morning but within an hour it had warmed up and I was striped down to a tee shirt. We were looking for kudu and went for high ground to glass.

Although we did see a lot of animals this day, we were not able to get close enough for a shot. We covered a lot of ground today. Whoever said hunting Africa was easy obviously didn't hunt for kudu!

At the end of the day, we had nothing to show for our efforts.

Below we spotted a group of kudu cows. They didn't hang around long after they saw us.

In the pic below, we spotted a heard of black wildebeest. These large animals are probably the easiest to get close to in my opinion.

The critters below are red hartebeest. They are very elusive and wary. There was a small heard of zebra tagging along with this bunch. The zebra like to hang out with other animals like the hartebeest which makes it that much harder to get close.

2012-06-12T21:45:00.001-04:00

Day 2

We were up at dawn and met our hosts at the main house for a large breakfast of eggs and bacon with plenty of hot coffee for all. Every breakfast was also served with yogurt, granola, toast, jams, and rusks.

The view off our front porch was amazing and we were basically hunting the minute we stepped off.

We jumped into this hunting rig, a Toyota Land Cruiser heavily modified for the tasks at hand, and we were off.

This is rough country. Everything here want's to poke you, stick you, or bite you! Including, but not limited to giant horse fly's, scorpions, and snakes. When I told my PH that I wasn't very fond of snakes, he told me "Don't worry, we don't have the bad snakes here...we only have African cobra's and puf adders" (those two are bad enough for me. A bite by either one and you'll need to be treated within four hours) The black mamba on the other hand resides a bit more north and west of our location. It is known as the seven step snake, because that's about as far as your getting if you are unfortunate enough to get bit by one.

All of the trees you see are acacia trees. They are covered with 2" thorns.

This is Aloe Vera growing wild off the side of the road. I had no idea that it could grow to such a size!

This is one of those little beauties I mentioned earlier. He had a web strung up between two acacia tree that were 10' apart. This picture doesn't do this creature any justice, but if you want a good size estimate, hold out your hand with your fingers spread as far apart as possible!

Although we have a vehicle, we walk a lot.

We walk many miles every day. In this land your feet will be put to the ultimate test and a good pair of boots will be worth their weight in gold!

Within an hour we already had two small warthogs down. Our guide asked us to shoot all hogs on sight as they do a tremendous amount of damage to the land. Kyle had taken a medium size female and then passed me the gun and started to roll video.

We hunted hard all day and just before sunset I took a nice gemsbok.

2012-06-12T21:35:00.001-04:00

Day 1

By the time we arrived in camp we were beat. I wanted to make sure my gun arrived in one piece and was still zeroed so we hit the range that they had set up. Both rifles were shooting perfect so we called it a night and spent the rest of the evening unpacking. Our PH Jeff made a camp fire at dark (sunset is 5:30 as this is their winter) and we sat around chatting and had a few sun-downer's.
Here is a few pics of our accommodations.

This little guys name is Caleb and he likes to visit us every night. He's very lovable and is constantly seeking attention from anyone that will give it to him.

Please remember to click on the pics to see them full screen

2012-06-11T21:12:00.002-04:00

We arrived safely at our destination. Id like to say that everything went as smooth as silk, but Mr. Murphy is always waiting to spring one on you when you least expect it. We overnighted in Joburg and were up by 3:30AM the next morning. We were in line at the airport ticket counter by 4:15 and they were to open at 4:30. That didn't happen. They sat around and chatted with each other and finally decided to open at 4:45. I checked my bags and was told to go to another counter to pay baggage fees, which I did. Next I was sent to SAPS (South African Police Service) to register my weapons. This takes time. After weapons check-in, we ran to security check and went through the screening. We arrived at our gate at 5:30 to see that it was closed (our flight was at 5:55) We run back to see whats going on and were told we were dumped from our flight because we were late! The lady behind the counter tells us we must buy new tickets at full price to Kimberley. At this point i'm ready to jump behind the counter and strangle someone. I argue that we were late because THEY didn't open on time! I told her i'm not paying and to get someone else I can talk to. I am now told that I can get another flight but must pay a penalty fee of $186 per ticket. My patience is running thin and I pay the fee just to get out of this place...

Flying into Kimberley SA.

2012-05-29T09:23:00.001-04:00

The truck is loaded and we'll be on our way to the airport shortly. Went through my pre-flight checklist at least a hundred times (yet I just know i'm forgetting something)

2012-05-25T22:20:00.002-04:00

Gear is packed and waiting to go...we are counting the hours till wheels up!

2012-05-16T22:53:00.002-04:00

After my last post regarding the test run on packing I made a check list (actually two of them). I found I had left out quite a bit. One list sits on my desk at all times and receives additions and updates on a regular basis (I even forgot shampoo!) It's getting down to the wire now. After months of asking my son to pack things in his bag (and watching it sit empty for month) I finally forced him to stop whatever he was doing and get to it! He is taking this WAY to lightly! I weighed my duffle and came up 15lbs. shy of my 50lb. weight limit (AWESOME!!! I get to bring more stuff)

2012-04-07T12:30:00.001-04:00

I did a trial run on my packing today. On the bottom is my aluminum double gun case. My rolling duffle will have all my clothing and gear, and the pack will have all my carry-on items such as camera, snacks, etc.
The packing thing is driving me crazy cuz I can only bring so much. I was once told how to pack by an old timer that frequented Africa quite often. He quite simply said "Lay out all of your gear on the floor in one pile, and all of your money in another pile, then throw away half of your gear and double your money"
This to me, is becoming more like the truth every day...

2012-03-29T22:20:00.000-04:00

I met with my PH last weekend at a Safari Club fundraiser. We discussed my hunt in great detail and I was able to get a ton of questions answered. I inquired about bringing my bow and was told I was more than welcome to bowhunt, but that would entail sitting in a blind 12 hours a day. The downside of this is that hunting a waterhole is kind of a take what you can get type of hunt. In other words, there is higher odds of bagging a trophy while covering more ground via truck and then on foot (spot and stalk). We also discussed my hunt list. My list at this time is:
2 kudu
2 warthog
1 zebra
1 impala
2 springbok
1 steenbuck

2012-03-10T14:33:00.003-05:00

I picked up this rolling duffel type bag at Costco. It seems pretty sturdy, has a ton of cool features and was reasonably priced. I may have enough room in here to fit my bow.

2012-03-08T20:17:00.001-05:00

I have generated a ton of paperwork while in the planning phase of the safari. I have kept meticulous records of all correspondence between my PH and myself regarding costs, expenses, what is and is-not included during our safari, etc. I believe all of this should travel with us as a "just in case" insurance policy. I ran over to the nearest office supply store and picked up a couple of seven slot binders. I made labels for the following slots:
1) Passport copies (I made double copies of mine & my sons passport, we both have copies of each other plus
our own)
2) Gun and camera registration (once again, double copies)
3) Safari General (all information pertaining to the safari including pricing, letter of invitation, clothing list, etc)
4) Firearms import permits (double)
5) Correspondence (copies of all E-mails between the PH and myself and also the safe house)
6) Airline info. (ticket booking verification, flight itinerary, sky-miles, ect.)

I can't stress enough how important it is to have copies of everything (especially each others information) in both hunters folders. In the event that one of your carry-on bags is lost or stolen, this will prove invaluable.

These two folders will fit nicely into a back pack or carry on.

You can see the well organized paperwork under the correct headings.

2012-03-04T21:59:00.005-05:00

Kyle and I went to the customs office at the Windsor tunnel yesterday to fill out the 4457 forms (to declare origin of firearms and camera equip). It went fairly smooth except for the one young jackass customs officer that had to act like a tough guy (no doubt to compensate for a small penis).
Also finished loading up the 40 rounds for the 264 Win mag. Below you can see the powder scale and trickler being used.

2012-02-26T16:04:00.003-05:00

Looks like free-floating the barrel did the trick. It was 26 degrees at the range this morning with no wind. The cold weather really helped cool my barrel and I was able to shoot much faster. I used my IR temp sensor to monitor the barrel temps throughout the shooting session. My best group came from a load of 44gr. of IMR-4064 topped with a Hornady 140gr. SST. I'm getting 1/2" groups at 100 yards! (see pic below)

I also couldn't resist bringing the newest toy to the party, my Smith & Wesson M&P-15.
It's now shooting 2-1/2" groups (or better) at 100 yds with a battle-sight!

2012-02-26T15:54:00.002-05:00

Heading out to the range!