Hi, all.

I am going to the Eastern Cape for some Kudu hunting a bit later in the year. I have never hunted the Eastern Cape, only Limpopo bushveld.

Any tips, stories and general info from guys who's hunted there recently for Kudu and Mountain Reedbuck would be much appreciated.

Thanks
Cornel

According to one of the writers for Man Magnum the Eastern Cape is mostly inhabited by drunks (making liquor from prickly pears) that lie through their teeth about kudu size.

Never been there but sounds like fun!

And don´t believe everything you read...

Never hunted there myself, but my brother was there a couple of years ago. Think the scenery is breathtaking and very varied. Rolling hills, open areas and thick bush. All-in-one.. They had some problems with ticks, and one of my brothers friends got bitten. He became pretty sick and ended up in hospital for a couple of days.. Just be careful and make inspections after every day in the field..

Hunted kudu in the eastern cape about 96' about 1 1/2 hr north of New London near the Fish River. Got a large kudu which measured 52-53 inches. They have to exaggerate as the kudu do not get to be the size of the southern kudu. Anything over 50 inches is excellent. SCI has a separate category for them.

Good Hunting.

Dak

I hunted in the eastern cape in '99 and '02. In '99 I hunted around the Addo Elephant Park and Patterson areas. IN '02 I was further inland, CLifton area. The kudu I hunted seemed to enjoy the buffalo brush and thorns. The bush was taller than I had anticpated, and basically swallowed up the kudu - well earned nickname "gray ghost"!

As for tips, don't look for the entire animal. If you are hunting bulls, look for the glint on the horn tips, otherwise the pink inside of ear or the white chevron work as the sun makes those stand out from the vegetation.

Good luck.

Mine came from there....I'm delighted with it...

I also saw mountain reedbuck as well as a lot of other species.

Take a good set of binoculars as you will use them a lot and practice with shooting sticks....get good at it as shots can be long and there's nothing to rest a gun on....it's all very thorny.

Terrain is hilly and in some areas the ground is strewn with softball sized rocks making walking difficult.

By all means take a half day minimum and go to the Addo park and take lots of film!!!!!

Here's wishing you love it as much as I did.....

I hunted near Grahamstown in '00. Really enjoyed the scenery and hilly terrain. Hunting kudu in prickly pear reminded me of whitetail at home. I took a 47" bull there and then traveled to Somerset East and hunted a large ranch owned by a famous cricket player. Again, beautiful scenery and lots of game. I shot a decent bull there but the trip was marred when one of my trackers was gored by a buffalo. Cut our trip short as you might imagine. Take a flat shooting rifle in the .300 class with premium bullets as shots can be on the long side when shooting from hill to hill. Have fun!

Hunted in the Eastern Cape in May of 04. Primarily around Alexandria but went to the Karoo for kudu. Great time. Earlier post was spot on...amazing how such a large animal melts into the surroundings. Keep in mind the Eastern Cape variety have a little smaller length of horns (don't expect 55-60"). Kudu also taste great. Good luck.

Thanks for you contributions, guys.

I only hunt for the meat. Lovely steaks and biltong. Would head to Mpumalanga if I wanted a huge trophy bull.

I book hunts in the Eastern Cape and Kudu are one of our specilties..I would say the average Eastern Cape Kudu of trophy quality is about 42 inches...We shoot a lot of them in the 48 inch class and more than a few beat 50 inches by an inch or so...We have shot a 57, 58 and one 60 inch over the last 5 years...

The Eastern Cape Kudu is a smaller animal in body size and horn size for the most part. However he has a better, longer, coat and is a beatiful animal.

I have several places I book for in the Port Elizabeth area, Bushveld Safari and for Swartkei Safari and both offer some very good quality Eastern Cape Kudu..

The Great Southern Kudu is native to the Northern areas of RSA and Kwa-Zulu/natal IMO and we shoot 53 to 60 inch Kudu in that area, and the bodies seem larger..

I do not know if the Eastern Cape Kudu are the same species or a subspecies, I suspect they are the same and natures conditions have more to do with it than anything else, but that can draw out an arguement among locals and biologist.