I could never afford it now, but I'm going to college and when I get done, it will allow me a budget that a trip to Africa will be a first priority. I daydream about hunting there with my own rifle and seeing these magnificent creatures and experiencing how great the 375 is. As of now, the only game I've taken is deer and am anxious to use my 375 for something bigger. I might have to try black bear or elk to broaden my experience first. It just gets me going reading about all your guys's experiences.
I love for you all to chime in and share experiences you've had to help feed my desire

go slow and do your research

Read the "Hunting Reports - Africa" forum right underneath this forum on the main list. It will feed the addiction until you can go yourself.

Several thoughts:

- Start Early. I kick myself that I did not make my first safari until I was in my early 40's. To have started in my 20's or 30's, wow that would have been cool.
- Avoid the Taxidermy Trap. Don't fall into the trap of thinking that you need to have everything done in shoulder mounts, etc. Do European mounts and take what you save and pour that into more hunts.
- Do Your Due Diligence. Before you drop your money, do your due diligence, talk to recent clients, go to DSC or SCI and meet the outfitter, do on-line research, etc.
- Leave the Tape Measure at Home. Don't become a "how will it score" hunter. Enjoy the experience of the hunt, the challenge of each animal, the taking of mature animals, etc. and forget about how many inches it is, how many pounds it weighs . . .
- Remember it is About Having Fun. Don't get so caught up in the moment that you forget that it is ultimately about having fun and enjoying yourself.

I have to agree with the above and will add the suggestion that you think critically about what you want out of the trip. That seems like a no brainer, but the only person I know of who saved up enough cash to hunt in Africa and has no desire to go back didn't do it. He wanted a bush camp and free ranging animals and bought a week at a fancy lodge with put and take animals. For the same money, he could have gotten what he wanted, but he didn't really think about it. Money wasted, dream dead.

All the best,
Dean

OK, I'll be the odd man out. Go now! Student loans are cheap.

I did three hunts in African and took three of the big five by the time I was 27. I have never made much money, but I did it on my own dime.

If I did not go when I did I might have never had the chance. Once you walk down the isle your life changes.

The time to be irresponsible is when you are young. Go now!

I'd say become a regular visitor here, learn to sift the wheat from the chaff and do regular research to keep in touch with what's happening in the world of African hunting. So that when you are ready to go, you have an informed opinion as to what's good and what's not so good.

Read as many books as you can on African hunting related subjects and this might be of help on that front: http://www.shakariconnection.com/bookshelf.html

You'll find a fair number of the books on the site are second hand and cost about a dollar each.

At the other end of the scale, the most expensive book costs US$225K!

Read!!!!!!!!!!! Books are cheap, but the knowledge and stories are priceless. Not to mention it feeds the habit!! Sculk around this forum. You'll learn a ton. School will go faster than you think (at least 8 years did for me), so look forward to your safari and plan. Planning a safari isn't quite as fun as going, but close! When you do go keep a daily journal!!!! Oh and did I mention READ!!!!!!!

Brett

If you are serious a/b hunting, remember this
Pussy always cost money. It is much cheaper to rent or lease, but VERY expensive to own!
If you rent or lease it, you will never have to argue a/b whether or not you are getting the new dining room set or going hunting. If you own it, your credit card will buy the furniture.

quote:

you will never have to argue a/b whether or not you are getting the new dining room set or going hunting.

But not in every case. I'm a lucky man whose wife just happens to love accompanying me on hunting safaris. We just returned from a leopard and buff hunt. Before that she accompanied me to New Zealand. She loves travel and seeing the world. Because of that, and having two incomes rather than one, I can go hunting more often than if I was single.

As for gohip2000's dilema:

Go, go, go. I went to Africa at 23, 25, 30, and 35. I also crammed two trips to NZ, England, Argentina, and various North American trips into the same time period. Looking back, my only regret is not going to Africa more often. I plan to work on that over the next 10 to 15 years, but I will never get back the 12 years in which I "only" made four trips to Africa.

Do your homework and know what you are getting into, but go, go, go. Figure out a way to make it work and go . . . . now.