African Hunting

Who has been and what are the pros and cons?
I have always wanted to hunt moose. But the price for one animal vs. several is hard to grasp.
Also, not interested in having anything mounted, maybe a hide or two tanned. Just looking for a once in a lifetime adventure. I somewhat look at trips to Africa, the price for what you get and experience compare to a U.S trip is no comparison. Plenty of trigger time and different species.
Looking for input on this and a name of an outfitter or two wouldn't hurt. Thanks, Sarge

You might want to PM James. He went on a pretty neat hunt in Africa, for 10 different species. He did some nice write ups that you may be able to find too.

Keith

I’ve been on one safari, totally worth it. So what would you like to know?

Got a buddy that killed a lion in the Kalahari desert. What interested me was the two guys who tracked it. He said they took off at almost a run and were barefooted. In the desert. I would just like to go hang out with people like that for a couple weeks. No telling what you could learn about tracking and who knows what else.

I had a great experience in Africa. I want to go again sometime...any time. Africa gets in your blood.

The big difference between hunting in Africa and hunting in N. America is the sheer numbers, and variety, of game animals you'll see. Every day I hunted I saw dozens of species of game animals. I shot a buffalo, sable, kudu, gemsbok, nyala, warthog, puku, impala, black wildebeest, and a brown duiker. I could have also shot, if my wallet had been thicker, an eland, ostrich, giraffe, zebra, blue wildebeest, leopard, waterbuck, bat-eared fox, and others. I hunted a week in South Africa and a week in Zambia, on the same trip.

You normally pay a trophy fee for each animal you shoot, plus a daily rate. The daily rate should include the services of a guide (known as a professional hunter in Africa) and an assistant who may act as a tracker and assistant guide. The trophy fees depend on which animal you shoot; my most expensive were the buffalo and sable. The trophy fees are split with the landowner; and the landowner get the meat, except for some choice cuts for the hunters' dinner.

I went with my wife, who didn't hunt. She paid one-half the daily rate as an observer, with room and board. Some days my wife went along on the hunt, and on others she took a tour with the PH's wife. She got to ride elephants, walk with cheetahs, and visit museums.

Meanwhile, I was hunting my butt off. I posted about my individual hunts previously. The posts should be in the archives.

Tomahawker has also hunted Africa.

If you want to go, save up and do it! You won't regret it.

Jim

Go to accuratereloading.com. . Everything you possibly imagine about hunting in Africa and all that goes with it.

My tracker in South Africa was a San bushman. I didn't wound any animals, so never got to see him work. (Not that my shooting was spectacular. I missed an impala cleanly on a downhill shot.)

Jim

I know Ive read about that my whole Life!
Amazing skills

But beware the political forum there--it's got some real, live liberal hunters.

Jim

In South Africa I hunted with Karoo Wild Safaris, run by Victor and Lindsay Watson. A first-rate operation at a reasonable cost.

http://www.karoowildsafaris.co.za

I had a good time in Zambia, but wouldn't recommend the outfitter for reasons having nothing to do with the hunting.

Jim

I went with Leopard Moon Safaris in South Africa, nothing short of a wicked time. Stayed in five star lodging and saw many many many animals on a lot of land, me and my father came home with 17 beautiful animals

Went to South Africa in 2012. Shot 1 each of Gemsbok, Blesbok, Impala, Waterbuck, Zebra, Kudu, Eland, Blue Wildebeest, Black Wildebeest, and Red Hartebeest. 8 days of hunting. My outfitter no longer exists. I would suggest you join Safari Club International (SCI) and go to some local meetings and banquets. You will meet some people with firsthand experience and get some good recommendations. Everybody loves to talk hunting. SCI also has hunting reports on various outfitters that are available to members. I would return to Africa in a heartbeat except I have developed some heart issues that just make it too risky.

I bought a 375 H&H 30 years ago to kill a Cape buffalo with. I still have the rifle and love it but I haven’t made it there yet.

We used liberals for leapord bait. It seemed to work perfectly.

I've been on 7 African safaris! It is addictive...

Make good choices......

You can hunt a ton of smaller plains game for what it would cost to shoot 1 or 2 "big" things.

I save up my airline miles and use them to fly over for next to nothing. Business or First Class.

Remember that taxidermy and shipping of trophies can be a MAJOR expense. Think about flat skins and Euro mounts; save a ton of money.

Research PH's carefully. Really check references. Just about every South African rancher is a PH/outfitter. Not all are fair and good!

Pete

I understand there is additional cost once you get to your U.S. port of entry to get your trophies through customs here.
Maybe Pete could elaborate on that.

This thread is getting me pumped, I'm heading to South Africa in May 2021, Limpopo Province, First time over there. My list of animals changes almost daily. So far its kudu , zebra, water buck , gemsbuck, blue wildebeest, and honey badger. Big 5 is way out of my price range I'll get them with the camera if I see them.

X2

Good luck.Post some pictures when you get back.

Bowhunted Africa 3 times. Pete in Frbnks hit the nail on the head. "Deals" can be good or bad. Book with a reputable outfitter. If you are bowhunting, book with a bowhunting outfitter. You have to kinda know what you want. Some places are huge (acreage wise) some are very small. A lot of places in South Africa are put and take. In other words, they must purchase their animals as they don't re-populate naturally on smaller properties. Most of South Africa is high fenced. Ask a lot of questions before booking. Bringing back trophies is a pain and is very expensive.............

Coming from overseas, your trophies (regardless of whether they are mounted in Africa or just "dipped and shipped" to a taxidermist in the states) must clear U.S. Customs and "health" inspections. It is not a terribly complicated process and you can do it yourself. But if you are not close to an airport with facilities to do those inspections, it can be a pain.

An alternative is to pay a Customs Broker to clear your shipment. It's not terribly expensive and the businesses that do it are experienced at dealing with the various government entities. I usually use a broker, just to make sure it is done thoroughly and correctly. This is especially important if anything you shot in Africa is a CITES species.

In fact, I normally contract with an American "importer" to handle the entire transportation process. It doesn't take much more than checking a wrong box on a form to end up with your whole shipment in "quarantine" somewhere!

Sadly, paperwork (and money) are what makes the world go 'round!

Pete

Danny, I spent over a month with the native people, living with them in the Congo and can tell you they are amazing trackers, hunters and killers. One of the guys that I was working with, watched one of them get a drink of water from a small water hole. He said the guy was like an deer, spooky, watching all the time, cup a drink with his hand and got out of there.

It's a long flight getting to Africa and there is trouble brewing in South Africa, so prepare. For a small fee, you can purchase a report of what's going on in the area you plan to travel in. It may be worth having a look. https://www.contingentgroup.com/