quote:

the hunt is 90% about tracking an animal and getting in a position to shoot it or turn it down.

quote:

Originally posted by Buzz Charlton:
I see an interesting topic from Charlie with whom I have immensely enjoyed hunting with in the past, asking about buffalo numbers which really got me thinking.

I may have a warped view on this due to hunting for 20 odd years as a ph but I am at the point where when you are seeing unlimited buff (or any other animal for that matter) the challenge of the hunt is gone and it becomes solely about which animal you will kill. No doubt with the numbers you will end up with a world class trophy if thats what you have decided however does this boil down to a great hunt?

For me the ideal hunting area should have good game numbers where by you have an opportunity every day to turn down one set of tracks and know that there will be another set to follow.

In my career I have only shot 1 trophy elephant bull where we saw it from the cruiser and did a stalk and shot it. It was my worst hunt hands down.

Personally as a PH ,who obviously is not doing the shooting and if I was to selfishly admit it the hunt is 90% about tracking an animal and getting in a position to shoot it or turn it down.

Talking of Charlie his buffalo hunt rates as one of my favourite buff hunts to date- 3 days we tracked the same old dugga boy with out seeing another buffalo. Leaving the track at sun down and picking up at first light! Getting him was for me what a buffalo hunt should be!

quote:

Originally posted by Todd Williams:

quote:

Originally posted by Buzz Charlton:
I see an interesting topic from Charlie with whom I have immensely enjoyed hunting with in the past, asking about buffalo numbers which really got me thinking.

I may have a warped view on this due to hunting for 20 odd years as a ph but I am at the point where when you are seeing unlimited buff (or any other animal for that matter) the challenge of the hunt is gone and it becomes solely about which animal you will kill. No doubt with the numbers you will end up with a world class trophy if thats what you have decided however does this boil down to a great hunt?

For me the ideal hunting area should have good game numbers where by you have an opportunity every day to turn down one set of tracks and know that there will be another set to follow.

In my career I have only shot 1 trophy elephant bull where we saw it from the cruiser and did a stalk and shot it. It was my worst hunt hands down.

Personally as a PH ,who obviously is not doing the shooting and if I was to selfishly admit it the hunt is 90% about tracking an animal and getting in a position to shoot it or turn it down.

Talking of Charlie his buffalo hunt rates as one of my favourite buff hunts to date- 3 days we tracked the same old dugga boy with out seeing another buffalo. Leaving the track at sun down and picking up at first light! Getting him was for me what a buffalo hunt should be!

^^^THIS^^^

This right here, is exactly why I continue going back with Buzz. It's also the reason my weapon of choice is not a scoped 375 but rather an open sighted big bore, preferably a double rifle.

I don't ever want to see a big buff while driving then just get off the truck and shoot it. I want to hunt. I want to participate in the tracking exercise. I want the hunt to last for days. I want there to be ups and downs. I want to be tired at the end of the day from long miles put in on the trail, looking forward to what tomorrow brings while sitting around the campfire making a plan to find them again in the morning.

That's my idea of a safari. YMMV however.

quote:

Originally posted by Aaron Neilson:
I like being an opportunist...just like all predators. Do it enough times, and I promise you'll earn plenty of em!

quote:

Originally posted by Biebs:
On Buff hunts, I'd rather pass on the herds. If you find the tracks of 1-3 lone bulls, you know that at the end of the stalk you'll have a trophy, because if he's lived long enough to become worn down and gray, and a herd outcast, he's a trophy in my book.

quote:

The old "there's only one true way to hunt a buffalo, my way" thread reappears! I am sure the "what dictates a trophy buffalo" thread will follow shortly. Then the "what one gun" thread and so on, ad nauseum...

quote:

Originally posted by reddy375:
I think what Buzz is trying to say is you appreciate a trophy much more if you hunt hard for it. I think it applies to any hunt not just buffalo. Which is why I always say 1 mountain trophy is worth 10 African plains game animals....!

I was with a client in the Bubye one time and he shot 50 odd animals, including lion, leopard, buff etc. but it was not much fun with the plains game I have to admit.

But one still hopes to hunt an area where you will have multiple chances at game during the course of your hunt.


Arjun Reddy
Hunters Networks LLC
30 Ivy Hill Road
Brewster, NY 10509
Tel: +1 845 259 3628

quote:

Originally posted by Charles_Helm:
When the hunting gods give you a gift you take it.

quote:

Originally posted by georgeld:
Although I've never hunted Africa.
I have covered the miles for elk.
Sometimes tag soup, now and then I got one.

Now that my legs are shot and it's a struggle
to walk 30 feet to the pisser several times a
day. I'd be tickled to step out of the truck
for an easy shot. The way it looks now, I'll
never get back to hunting again no matter
where or how easy it is.

Best wishes guys, enjoy it while you can, I sure
did.

George

quote:

Originally posted by bwanamrm:
The old "there's only one true way to hunt a buffalo, my way" thread reappears! I am sure the "what dictates a trophy buffalo" thread will follow shortly. Then the "what one gun" thread and so on, ad nauseum...

quote:

Originally posted by bwanajay:
I've been on safaris where you would see over a 1000 buff in a day and safaris where you might not even see a buff track in a day and loved every minute of it.

quote:

Originally posted by MJines:

quote:

Originally posted by bwanajay:
I've been on safaris where you would see over a 1000 buff in a day and safaris where you might not even see a buff track in a day and loved every minute of it.

quote:

Originally posted by Saeed:

quote:

Originally posted by MJines:

quote:

Originally posted by bwanajay:
I've been on safaris where you would see over a 1000 buff in a day and safaris where you might not even see a buff track in a day and loved every minute of it.

Isn’t this what hunting is all about!

You take it as it comes??

Without setting up your own conditions to suit your ego ??

quote:

Sometimes you have to know when to kill something.

quote:

Originally posted by Todd Williams:

quote:

Originally posted by Saeed:

quote:

Originally posted by MJines:

quote:

Originally posted by bwanajay:
I've been on safaris where you would see over a 1000 buff in a day and safaris where you might not even see a buff track in a day and loved every minute of it.

Isn’t this what hunting is all about!

You take it as it comes??

Without setting up your own conditions to suit your ego ??

I'm not sure what the ego comment is about. For me, ego's got nothing to do the way I like to hunt buffalo. I've said it before, for me, I just don't want the hunt to be over on the first day, so I restrict my method of hunt to an open sighted big bore, knowing a scoped 375 provides additional opportunities that I have to pass on with the DR.

Most of the time while on safari, I'm funded for 1 buffalo so if I pop one on the first day at 200 yards, I'm done except for plains game, of which I pretty much have all I want. I suppose I could then go fishing!!



That's exactly what happened on my first brown bear hunt in Russia in 2007. There are so many bears over there you can't swing a dead cat without hitting a bear. I shot my bear 2 hours after arriving in camp on the first day of a 7 day hunt. So yes, I got my bear. Successful ... from that stand point. But I spent the remainder of the week in camp, twiddling my thumbs, bored out of my mind, while the other guys went out hunting each day.

I'm certainly not against taking what the hunting gods offer, regardless of the day, but I do know which experiences have been more fulfilling and enjoyable to me. That bear hunt wasn't one of them as it was over too quickly, especially after the amount of travel it took to get there.

On the other hand, my 2011 leopard hunt with Buzz was finally successful on day 13 of a 14 day hunt, my 2013 elephant bull hunt was successful on day 11 of a 12 day hunt, and my 2012 lion hunt was successful on day 15 of an 18 day hunt. In 2008 with Buzz, I turned down a small but old buff bull on day 5 of a 10 day hunt, hoping for something a little better. It was the last shot opportunity I had on that hunt so I went home without a bull.
But we hunted 10 full days and I had a blast!! Last year with Buzz's outfit again, I had 2 buffalo available since my son had to cancel at the last minute. I took one on day 3 and the other on day 9 of a 10 day hunt. My memory of the hunt is more focused on the 9 day bull than the 3rd day bull, mainly because we put more effort and time into him.

If I can manage to afford more than one per safari in the future, that's certainly the way to go. But if it's one and done, I want to the hunt to last a bit. No ego involved at all.

quote:

Originally posted by fairgame:


I know what you are saying but when hunting Buff you should have far more hunting opportunities than one.

Hence there has to be a good buff population to get your money's worth.

quote:

Originally posted by Todd Williams:

quote:

Originally posted by fairgame:


I know what you are saying but when hunting Buff you should have far more hunting opportunities than one.

Hence there has to be a good buff population to get your money's worth.

I never said I only had one opportunity. Never said there wasn't a good population of buff.

I said I turned down a bull on day 5 and didn't get another opportunity on a buff bull before the hunt was over but that's only because I was hunting with an open sighted double rifle and we had other animals to pursue. I had plenty of opportunities to shoot a bull if I had decided to switch to my other rifle, a scoped 375. In my case, I was having too much fun participating in tracking, finding bulls, and trying to stalk into a position to get a good close range shot. We just kept getting busted by the wind or other animals in the group.

I could have knocked one over pretty much every day with the 375. So I went home without a buff bull that trip and was still very satisfied. I took a nice sable and tuskless on that hunt, as well as an old buff cow that they had been trying to get a shot at for some time and was the last one on quota for the year, the hunt being late October.