Right on, Odie.

If the PH is pointing out which animal to shoot in a herd, you'd better not be looking through your binoculars...

Even if you did identify the one he's talking about, now you have to drop them and get your scope on the same animal before it moves. Big mistake.

When my PH whispered those unforgettable words, "Rick. Get ready. He's in the tree.", I just naturally reached for my binoculars. He blocked them with his hand and pointed to my rifle. I got the message.

Rick.

Right on Rick...The shooter needs gun ready, scope on the herd, and ears open to what the guide or PH is telling him. That has nothing to do with binocs. The PH has that covered.

Wasn't Africa but I endured a lot of piss taking from my Swedish friends about taking my binos on a driven moose stand every time. Questions such as 'can't you see an animal the size of a moose?' etc.

On day 3 I spotted what I thought was a cow (no shooting of cows)coming towards me from some distance. I raised my binos and scrutinised the head. I could just make out a light patch on the head. As it got closer I could make out a tiny stub of antler. I shot it at 25yards. It was a very poor 2year old bull whose trophies were the size of the top joint of my thumb. At this point all my Swedish friends admitted that they would not have shot as they would have thought it a cow. Then they took the piss out of me for shooting such a magnificent trophy.

Having a pair of binos round your neck is not a handicap providing you use them appropriately. Not having them can be costly.

I have recently started using binos on a regular basis. And I have found them to be a great asset most of the time. I was raised only about 40 miles from Ray and never used a set the entire time growing up in Idaho. Looking back I dont feel that I was handicapped or less of a hunter for not having them. I know several old time hunters who can track a snake across a flat rock and fill their deer and elk tags every year who dont own a set. Binos are a great tool but they dont make up for lacking in good old fashioned woodscraft.

I now own 2 pairs of binos. My main pair is a set of Stieners that I truly love. They have been on almost every hunt with me over the last 10 years. The other is a set of $40 Wal Mart Tasco's that ride in my truck all the time. They get subjected to a lot of drops, bumps, and other evils that I dont care to put my Stieners through. Even after all the abuse they have received they are still functioning just fine. Pretty darn good results for $40.

I think M1 Tanker put a reality light on the subject and I agree whole heartedly....

I have several pair of high dollar binocs and I use them all the time, but I have not become dependant on anything but a rifle and even it can have iron sights and may even be a 30-30 or a 25-35, I just make the adjustment and have a good hunt..if not haveing a set of binocs lets a good one get away then so be it, its the lost ones I remember not the successes and too many successes ruin the whole pie, as perhaps we lose respect for the hunt and what it means. Killing is just part of the whole scenario...

Even today my favorite hunt is to go behind my house in the South Hills of Idaho with my grandson, him with his 6x45 (used to be mine) and me with my iron sighted 25-35 Win. 94 rifle, and jump shoot a buck at under a 100 yards or perhaps standing at no further than say 200 yards..I don't have anything but a rifle, 10 extra cartridges, and a pocket full of jerky for us...It just doesn't get any better than that, and he won't argue that with you either, he tells me its his favorite place on earth except when he is roping steers with his dad and its a tie he thinks, I can live with that....

I love these type of posts. Everyone that has ever heard of binoculars or that can spell binocular, and maybe some that can't, gets a shot at it.

I figure if someone feels they need them, they'll use them, and them that don't won't.

My Swar 10x32 EL's see their most usage watching birds in my backyard.

I confess that the pair I keep in my 4Runner get a good bit of use trying to see what is happening in traffic ahead (if it is stopped or slow-moving) and, even more, when in the city looking to see what the next intersection is. I can actually spot deer, etc. fairly well - no expert by any means - but those street signs are another matter altogether!

While it's true that the PH will identify the target animal, you still need your own set of binoculars. When stalking, you'll probably glass the animals long before trying to move up for a shot. It's helpful if you can look at the animals from a distance and have the PH explain which animal you're going to try to get close to for a shot.

I highly recommend that you buy a good set of Zeiss or Swarovski compacts. Put them on a lanyard around your neck and tuck them into your shirt or shirt pocket, out of the way. Do not get a gargantuan set of binocs, this is one case where bigger is not better. You'll be trying to find the first tree to hang them on after stalking for 2 miles through "wait a minute" bushes and crawling on your belly. A good quality compact is all you need (or want!).

I think that taking the subject of personal binoculars lightly is a huge mistake, and a stupendous logistical error. I put binoculars on when we head out in the morning and leave them on all day (except for lunch break), or until we return to camp. I use them constantly, and I'm astounded at how many times I've spotted game ahead of anyone else in the hunting party. In fact, some of the very best African trophies I've ever taken have been those I spotted first with the aid of binoculars. How someone can justify sitting on their dead butt and leaving the glassing to the PH or anyone else is mystifying to me, and greatly takes away from the hunting experience.

I had a PH one time say that, "You're only helping your own cause", referring to my constant use of binoculars. I guess that happens when you grow up hunting mule deer and elk on your own, as I did, and therefore learn to rely heavily on binoculars each and every hunting day, as well as for pre-season scouting.

One of the common themes against hunter-clients that I've heard from professional guides over the years is a tendancy to leave the lookin' and the glassin' to the guide, while the hunter stands around waitin' for 'Bwana PH' to point out the critter to shoot at, which is pretty wimpy way to hunt when you think about it. Guided hunts depend on everyone in the party acting as a team, and as far as I'm concerned, if a client won't glass, he's dropped the ball big-time and is NOT pulling his end of the saw. I have nothing but utter disrespect for that approach on the part of a client.

A client needs to get a set of binos that he can really see something with early and late (Capstick's mini-binoculars don't cut it in the real world), learn to use them, and then WORK at using them every day of the hunt.

You don't have to allow binoculars to get in the way of the shooting, either. Common sense says that when a shooter-type trophy animal is spotted, the client has set aside the binoculars, has the rifle up, and is waiting to proceed as directed by the guide. But until that time comes, there is absolutely no excuse for not glassing yourself. If you're too lazy or improvident to pack a good set of binos, you're too sorry a speciment to be out in the bush.........

AD

Allen,

I don't want to think of how much I would have missed out on during my first trip to Africa if I had not been constantly scanning for the particular animal we were hunting at the time. Plus, all the other wildlife I was able to see clearly...

As my PH put it: Once you get your "Africa Eyes" and are looking for a foot, ear, horn tip, tail, etc., you will understand. Many times we would spot a herd of Impala, Blesbok or Hartebeest and I can't imagine trying to pickup the particular animal I was to shoot without my binocs.

Your post was exactly what I was trying to convey when I started this thread. I have to take an active part in the hunt. Otherwise, I don't feel I am getting my money's worth or that I am contributing to my own success.