isn't it awfully early for rain in the Selous? i thought they usually started in early Nov..must be global warming

Not sure about you guys but the Walter shampoo scene just doesn't have the same impact as:

now that's a good one!

Yes weird such heavy rain. My camp is some distance due west of Alan and I had a vehicle stuck all night on the main road leading out. A lorry got stuck and they had to bring in two bulldozers to unstick it and clear the road. Hope it lets up soon - very unseasonal.

Great old kudu hey!!

Nice to see a hunt report with many nice pictures.

Saeed

While it might not be good for the hunting- rain is always a blessing--


SSR

quote:

Originally posted by Canuck:

quote:

Originally posted by Bwana4711:
Hello. Looks like a fantastic trip! What blocks are these in the Selous?
Regards,
Bwana4711

LU5

Thank you.

quote:

Originally posted by Sean Russell:
While it might not be good for the hunting- rain is always a blessing

We started out of camp early in the morning. Less than 500 meters we got stuck in the mud. We thought this is going to be what we will have to go through if we went in the truck. So we decided to go back to camp, and head out on foot.

About a half hour later, we saw a herd of buffalo about 3 miles away from the top of a hill we were on.
The wind was good, so we thought we will try to intercept them.
We got ahead of them, and watched them pass by. The bush wasn't very clear, and the bull we wanted to shoot never got clear for us.

We made a long detour to get ahead of them again, withe the same results.

We repeated this several times. At one stage a cow came straight towards us to about 10 yards. Had a good look at us, and ran off to her mates.

Eventually we gave up, as it was an extremely difficult job to jut find the bull we wanted, let alone getting a shot at him in the herd.

We headed back to camp, and saw several elephantsb in the forest. And a hippo bull in a small pool got to a few yards from us.

Got back to camp by lunch time, after covering 18 Km.

Tony and hiss crew came nback, after they had shot a baboon, which Walter insisted was someone's cousin.

It was a very enjoyable morning, despite the fact that the buffalo won the day.

quote:

Originally posted by Saeed:


It was a very enjoyable morning, despite the fact that the buffalo won the day.

I like that a lot.

Stunning photos Saeed.

Playing tag with buffalo is a grand game.

We went out in the afternoon and kept getting stuck in the mud.

And so did Tony and his crew.

We checked our lion baits, and found one has been fed on.

The other one no one touched. But we found a buffalo cow dead not far from there.

We have no idea what had killed her.

It is pouring down right now. And the plan tomorrow is to go on another walking safari.

We might walk down the river, looking for a pool that has some crocs in it.

We plan to shoot a hippo and use him as bait there.

For those who like buffalo tail, we had it for dinner tonight.

It is not my favorite meal, so Rene kindly arranged a buffalo steak for me instead.

I can have buffalo steak every night and nothing would be better.

Great photos, as usual, Saeed! Many thanks.

I have found that oxtail soup is somewhat difficult and time consuming to prepare correctly. For my tastes, the fat and gristle must be skimmed and strained, or the broth will be ruined. Done right, I find oxtail soup to be delicious. Done poorly, it's pretty much awful.

In any case, congratulations to you and Bakes on your many hunting successes so far. I hope that the rains let up, so that you can get back on the roads.

I have had giraffe tail (oxtail soup) many times in Zimbabwe and it has always been delicious! I would suppose that buffalo tail (oxtail soup) would also be very tasty!

Had a fantastic hunt today. All on foot due to the rain. Stalked in and shot a nice wildebeest. The trackers then went back to get the tractor to recover the bull, hence that top picture

That picture of you guys riding in the bucket look like a catastrphe looking for a place to happen!

.

As Tony mentioned, we had a foot safari today too, as the ground is still very muddy.

Had some fun with hippos in the forest. Including a bull that was getting ready to charge. But, as we wanted one for croc bait, we preferred to shoot one in the water.

Passed one about 7 yards, while he was sleeping.

We shot a bull which had one eye missing, and left him for the crocs. Alan had seen a very big croc close to that area not long ago.

Also shot an impala for Walter to BBQ, and got back to camp about 2 in the afternoon.

Sorry about some of the photos not showing, we kept loosing our Internet connection.

I will try to rectify those.

Wow, Saeed, you are The Audubon of Africa.
Great pics of all sorts.
I especially liked the scanning electron micrograph of that chigger, or was that a macro of a big, red, fuzzy spider?
Gonna have to get out my bug book now.

Mighty bulky speed-loaders?
Is this an assistive device for the handicapped/"special-needs" double rifle shooter?
Or are they "aluminium knuckles" for friendly barroom brawling?

Saeed:
Another GREAT batch of fine pictures.
Looks like a mighty big country too. Long ways to anywhere else.
Much safer if the bucket isn't quite as high. BTDT many times.
Confirmed the size of bugs over there I've heard about. Colorful red spider, what's it called?

Thank you for sharing your hunt with us.
George

quote:

Originally posted by RIP:
I especially liked the scanning electron micrograph of that chigger, or was that a macro of a big, red, fuzzy spider?
Gonna have to get out my bug book now.

If you find them please post what they are! I saw them at the base of Loosimingoor in 2011 after heavy unseasonable rains. Turns out they are pretty aggressive predators! We found them latched on to grubs that they would find in the sand.

It is a Red Velvet Spider Mite or Red Velvet Mite

quote:

Originally posted by Mike70560:
It is a Red Velvet Spider Mite or Red Velvet Mite

Trombidium grandissimum "Giant Red Velvet Mite"

... The mites spend a majority of their time underground and only emerge after heavy rains to feed ...

... They actively feed on termites, aphids, spider mites, and beetle mites. They are also known to partake in cannibalism and feast on each other! ...

... Now, how can a little mite affect someone as big and powerful as a human? The oil secretions of the mite have been used for centuries in traditional Indian medicine to cure a number of different ailments. When the mites emerge for the short time during the rainy season, children and adults gather them up to sell. Some of the ailments the magical oil is though to cure are immunity related diseases, such as paralysis. Healers also use the oil to increase sexual desire, giving the Giant Red Velvet Mite another name, "Indian Viagra."

http://bioweb.uwlax.edu/bio203...ayl/interactions.htm

So this IS a "micrograph": Saeed shows off his photographic capabilities again.
With that kind of technology in camp, Walter's Star Trek Teleporter cannot be far from perfection.

Alot of... O' so SWEET shots
Incredible safari!
Congrats to your team Saeed...Fantastic and I'm enjoying every minute of it

Safari of a Lifetime!!!

quote:

Originally posted by RIP:
Wow, Saeed, you are The Audubon of Africa.
Great pics of all sorts.
I especially liked the scanning electron micrograph of that chigger, or was that a macro of a big, red, fuzzy spider?
Gonna have to get out my bug book now.

Mighty bulky speed-loaders?
Is this an assistive device for the handicapped/"special-needs" double rifle shooter?
Or are they "aluminium knuckles" for friendly barroom brawling?

Dylan swears by his speed loaders. I will say that he is very good with that .470. I have an ongoing challenge with him for a 6 shot speed competition - him and his Krieghoff and me with my 30 year old push feed .458. He claims the .470 ammo is too expensive to waste on a competition he would easily win...

quote:

Originally posted by AnotherAZWriter:

quote:

Originally posted by BaxterB:

quote:

Still need the "why" though!

"Nightforce presents Tanzanian Game Trails with your host, Saeed al Maktoum. This week we follow Saeed and his trusty sidekick Walter as they stalk a host of plains game in the Selous with proffesional hunters Alan and Roy Vincent."

Good grief let's hope not!

My guess is Saeed isn't writing off the trip on his taxes, either.

What taxes?

quote:

Originally posted by Mike70560:
It is a Red Velvet Spider Mite or Red Velvet Mite

AKA Christmas beetle...... very smart little chaps they are too!

We thought we could start using the truck again this morning. A thought which was soon put out of our minds! As we kept getting stuck every few yards.

We gave up and went on foot.

We climbed one of the hills here that over look quite a lot of country.
We saw a number if impala, warthogs, one very big kudu bull, wildebeest, and one large herd of buffalo.
It was the same herd we chased the other day and they managed to give us the slip.
We watched them feed all morning, as the wind was not favorable for a stalk from our position.
As they got into the forest, where we had hoped they will bed down for their midday siesta, we went back to camp to have lunch and come back in the afternoon.
At 3 we left camp again, and drove around them to get down wind.
On the way we saw a large kudu bull, and managed to shoot him.
We loaded him in our truck, and continued to our buffalo herd.
We followed them as they fed, and caught up with them quite late in the afternoon.
Managed to get to about 100 yards from them, as most were lying down in an open area. Sadly, they were slightly higher than we were. And the bull we wanted was lying down with his back to us, and several cows between us and him.

We waited for him to get up, and when he did he just disappeared amongst them.

We continued to follow them, but were unable to see him again.
Went back to camp, had a great impala roast for dinner.

Another great day that was enjoyed by all, and mbogo won again.

Tomorrow another member of the AR team is joining us for a few days.

Saeed,

How are you liking the 70D ?

Roland

Have not had a chance to use the 70D much.

Most of the photos you see have been taken by the Panasonic TZ40-Leica V-Lux40. With a few from the Panasonic FZ200.

quote:

Originally posted by Saeed:
Have not had a chance to use the 70D much.

Most of the photos you see have been taken by the Panasonic TZ40-Leica V-Lux40. With a few from the Panasonic FZ200.

Thanks and I might add the image quality has been exceptional from those cameras too

More adventures with our buffalo bull.

We left camp as usual, and went to where we thought the buffalo we had followed yesterday would be.

We found their tracks, and got onto them.

Several hours later, after going through several korongos, rivers, swamps etc. We surprised the rear end of the herd. They were about 7 yards from us when we jumped them without seeing them!

They took off like hell.

We continued to follow them, eventually catching them feeding.

We stayed with them for a while, when our luck finally appeared.

The bull we were after for three days was feeding right in front of us about 60 yards away.

There were some cows with him, and I waited until he was in the clear, and put a 300 grain Walterhog bullet into his chest.

He ran a few yards and dropped.

Suddenly, 2 lionesses appeared very close. They might have been stalking the herd too.

We skinned and cut up our bull. Took the back straps and fillets, and hung the rest of him in two places as bait.

He had one jaw broken, and the bullet went straight through his heart.


Went back to camp for lunch, and met my friend Don as he arrived this morning to join us for a few days.

We went out in the afternoon with Don, and Roy shot an impala.

I have plenty of photos to post, which I will do as soon as time permits.

The big bull had his jaw broken before your bullet went through his heart, I assume, or the Walterhog is a shockingly effective bullet.

With those big lion tracks you have been posting photos of, and some action on the many baits being hung, things promise to get more interesting soon.

Have you thought about using DRG as bait, staked out like a live goat? Is that allowed in Tanzania for lion baiting?

Saeed,

Each year, the photos get better. Excellent report as usual and greatly appreciated.

Best-
Locksley,R

quote:

Originally posted by RobinOLocksley:
Saeed,

Each year, the photos get better. Excellent report as usual and greatly appreciated.

Best-
Locksley,R

+1

Saeed,

I must say I'm enjoying the photos a great deal. There's so much to see on safari.

Mark

Hi Saeed and everybody!

Thanks for your live hunting reports, as usual quite amuzing and real like.

Unfortunately you missed some hunting hours due the rain, however I´m pretty sure you can make up for that lost time.

I don´t want to comment on the photos or the videos because they are excellent as always, so I´d like to say something about the hunting and the rifles; there is one rifle that was specially made to hunt with specific characteristics making it quite powerfull. Unfortunately it has never been used to hunt and of course I´m talking about Saeed´s 577 tyrannosaur rex.

I think you might find one person that can hunt with that rifle and finally have a wonderful camp contest with the staff.

Kisses for Rene and hugs to everybody.

Good luck on the hunting.

Nelson

Had another great day.

Left camp very early, and despite getting stuck in the mud several times - sometimes we had to wench ourselves out.

Roy shot a wildebeest, and I shot a very old hyaena.

Have been out for 14 hours. Had buffalo steak for dinner, and we are all very tired.

I will try to post some photos as soon as time permits.

Don is having a blast on his first safari.