Re: South Africa hunt
[Re: JEckman]
#8059315
01/24/24 07:38 PM
01/24/24 07:38 PM
|
Joined: Dec 2006
Posts: 3,223 Midlands South Carolina
SGT. C
trapper
|
trapper
Joined: Dec 2006
Posts: 3,223
Midlands South Carolina
|
Practice and practice some more from shooting sticks, against trees, in crook of trees , etc. More ammo used now, less used on hunt and no regrets. I'm sure alot of time and money on the line. Enjoy your hunt. Sarge
Getting old is a fatal mistake
Always looking for reloading componets
I know a beaver or two, because I've seen a beaver or two
|
|
|
Re: South Africa hunt
[Re: corky]
#8059401
01/24/24 08:58 PM
01/24/24 08:58 PM
|
Joined: Feb 2022
Posts: 507 Arkansas
WhiteCliffs
trapper
|
trapper
Joined: Feb 2022
Posts: 507
Arkansas
|
lol at bribery. I was hit up at check in at the Johannesburg airport by a customs guy. I gave him 5 bucks and no more problems. Joberg is a crime ridden cesspool but the rest of the country is very interesting. Take a heavy shirt for early morning and to protect against thorns. Lots of things there to hurt you. Take antibiotics and your other medication in original containers. Good sunglasses are a necessity. Comfortable broken in walking boots that are lightweight. As stated practice with shooting sticks. Take lots of pictures and make notes. You will see more game the first day than in years here. Listen to your PH. Get a book on where to shoot your target animal, their vital organs can be located differently than you are used to. Have extra funds available to pay for unexpected targets of opportunity. You might see a world class leopard sunning itself. I passed on a bushbuck and nyala because they weren’t on my list and have regretted it ever since. Observe everything and have fun. You will love it. Yes - be prepared for targets of opportunity. Much cheaper to just pay extra trophy fee than another round trip airfare and daily rate.
|
|
|
Re: South Africa hunt
[Re: JEckman]
#8061371
01/27/24 01:11 AM
01/27/24 01:11 AM
|
Joined: Feb 2012
Posts: 2,600 Northwest, Alabama
Old Relic
trapper
|
trapper
Joined: Feb 2012
Posts: 2,600
Northwest, Alabama
|
I've been over there a couple times.
My advice is. Plan on shooting more than you planned on. You'll need $$$$ and probably someone back home to wire you even more money. Start taking a Pepto Bismol tablet every morning when you start your trip. Don't skip any days on the Pepto. The flight over and back is brutal. 17 to 21 hours depending where you're flying from, and probably on an Airbus(flying cattle car). They'll show you some European movies on the flight and feed you some kind of Euro food, like cold Mackerel sandwiches. Take something to snack on. Or better yet, take two of the mini whiskies and a sleeping pill and miss most of the flight. If you are taking your spouse along, and I recommend that you do, then plan to spend a couple days in Kruger Park. Five days in the park is even better. If you are planning on taking the Malaria pills, then take them early in the morning. They will cause you to have nightmares and you need all day to get them thru your system before you try to sleep. We also found that taking them with some peanut butter in the morning helped. Or, don't take the pills and just wait until you get Malaria and then take the shot. If you are traveling over around Kwa Zulu Natal and get yourself a dose of the local tick fever, then Tetracycline is the only thing that will save your life. You won't know that you've got the fever until you get home and American doctors will shoot you full of all kinds of drugs that will only postpone your death. Tetracycline is the one you want. You should check with your local CDC office to see what shots they recommend before traveling over. They'll probably recommend a Yellow Fever shot. Take the shot. Yellow fever is nothing to play with. The last thing is that a lot of the locals, and I do mean a lot, are HIV infected. A lot of them will have other infections too, like Tuberculosis. So, keep your horse in the barn and watch who's second hand air that you're breathing.
Also, if you get a chance at a night hunt, do it. Lots of critters moving around after dark that you won't see in the daylight.
Most of the animals you need to shoot much more forward than anything you'd shoot at in North America. A shoulder shot like you'd do on a deer here, may be too far back on a lot of those animals. Africans rules are that if you drew blood, then you bought it. Paying trophy fees on wounded animals is zero fun. Shoot them a little forward.
Another last thought is have most of your taxidermy work done there. Especially things like zebra skin rugs and stuff. You won't have to pay a dipping fee on anything that you have taxidermied in Africa. Raw skins shipped back for taxidermy here will set you back on the dipping fees. Those guys mount a lot of stuff and can access tanning chemicals that are better than the watered down American versions. You'll get better work, done cheaper there, than you can get at home.
Take some time to look at the stars at night. You'll be looking off of a side of the planet that you've never seen before and it's all different. Sitting and studying the Southern Cross was something like a Biblical experience for me.
You'll be planning your next trip back on your homebound flight. Once the Dark Continent gets into your blood, you'll never be the same again. Good luck on the hunt.
A Nation of Sheep - Breeds a Government of Wolves!
|
|
|
Re: South Africa hunt
[Re: JEckman]
#8061385
01/27/24 01:52 AM
01/27/24 01:52 AM
|
Joined: Dec 2006
Posts: 17,379 Coeur d' Alene, Idaho
James
"Minka"
|
"Minka"
Joined: Dec 2006
Posts: 17,379
Coeur d' Alene, Idaho
|
I hunted in S. Africa and Zambia in 2016, and it was the best vacation I ever had.
Fly Emirates Airlines if you can. Much better accommodations and service than domestic airlines.
You will see huntable game animals every day, and you never know which species. It's hard to resist if you see a trophy specimen besides those you plan to hunt. Be prepared to shoot and pay more than you planned.
At night I liked to sit at the campfire smoking a cigar and looking at the Southern Cross. The nights are cold, btw.
Practice shooting from sticks. That's how they shoot at game in Africa. I had trouble with it at first.
Jim
Forum Infidel since 2001
"And that troll bs is something triggered snowflakes say when they dont like what someone posts." - Boco
|
|
|
|
|