Okay, so I working on planning a trip to Africa for next summer and the more I look into it the more options I come across. Right now I'm interested in both Zimbabwe and South Africa. My trip will basically consists of only plains game. Is there one country that would be better than the other overall?

If plainsgame is what you will be hunting I would suggest SA, that said be sure to hunt in a large free range hunting area. Namibia is another good destination for plains game hunts. If Dangerous game is on the menu then Zimbabwe would be my suggestion.

Arjun Reddy
www.huntersnetworks.com
NEW YORK

Is this pretty much the general consensus, SA for plains game and somewhere else for DG?

I agree

I vote for Namibia

What animals are you interested in?
If your list includes say Bushbuck and say Nyala Namibia is out.

I agree with 1/2slam, your animal choice will partly determine your country and even area within a country. Just remember it WILL NOT be your only trip. So do not feel that you must shoot every animal while there.
As far as country, regardless of animal selection SA is very easy and comfortable. Namibia is also awesome. In Nambia you can hunt very large areas, I am talking close to a million acres. The game density will be much lower and there will far less species, but it is a big wilderness experience and there are no fences. I personally believe the fence thing is overrated. What is more important to me is that it is not a put and take operation. That is they are going to auction and buying animals and releasing them prior to your arrival or maybe just a couple times a year. If it is fenced and the animals are bred there then I am fine. Many here will disagree, but who cares, it is not their safari! I personally look for a farm and PH that believes in getting of the truck and walking. Some terrain will not allow that. I just hunted a farm in northwest SA, called Wilegekrans. Nice stalking for nyala on foot on nearly 25 miles of stream and riverine forest. We then took the truck to some high ground and parked it and went off in search of eland and zebra on foot. So ask those type o questions. SA ha some great hunting opportunities. I have hunted over 20 different farms and have had many different experiences, wilgekrans was one of the best I had. It is YOUR safari, so don't get all bent up about what others may say if they disagree with it.

Rich,

Not only your animal choices will dictate the country you hunt but the type of experience you want. In Zimbabwe and Mozambique you can hunt plains game at plains game rates in big wild areas that hold the Big 5 as well as good plains game. On ranch hunts in Namibia, RSA or Botswana you'll have a great hunt but just not that very wild experience.

PM me if you like to discuss some options in any of these countries.

Mark

For plains game only, I found Namibia to be fantastic. You can hunt vast communal conservancies or large ranches or, as I did, a combination of both.

Although since I managed to shoot a lion on my "plains game only" hunt, that may have influenced my judgment!

I agree with Mark H. Young. Just returned from plainsgame hunt in Zim (Bubye) and saw Big 5, incl. both species rhinos, along w/many neat critters like aardwolf, wild dog, bushbabies, civet, hyenas, etc. My prev. plainsgame hunt on large ranch in Namibia saw only animals listed on trophy list

Rich, if you're taking your wife and/or younger children, then RSA or Namibia provides "estate" hunts with all the creature comforts of home.

If you'd prefer a more "natural" safari experience, then Zim, Tanzania, or Mozambique would be the way to go...hunting in the same areas where you'd hunt Cape Buff, Lion, Hippo, etc.

There are exceptions in RSA and Namibia, like the Caprivi or some of the communal areas in RSA.

ZIM Conservancies offer many PG with a rather "true" wild experience and opportunity to see4 of big 5 DG and lodges are queit comfortable for family but little for family to do but accompany you on hunt.
Or you can pick your PG, find a place in RSA or NAM that offers them and go for it and worry about DG next....family will have best opportunity to sightsee in RSA.
As part of your research, determine what animals are in what countries....and what areas....got a friend who knew I hunted Africa ask me where to go....I asked what he wanted....answer was Kudu, Gemsbok, Nyala, .... Gerunuk and Bongo.....and a Lord Derby Eland....I asked him if he would like to include Polar Bear also...

Certainly, as others have said, where you should go depends on what species you want to hunt-- and whether you are content hunting behind a fence. I have done plainsgame hunts in RSA, Namibia and Zimbabwe, in that chronological order. While the RSA hunt was a decent experience, I would never go to the expense of an African hunt to hunt there again. I hunted free-range game in Namibia and loved it, but the best was by far Zimbabwe, which I did last year.
I hunted with Mokore Safaris in the Save Conservancy (there are many threads on this forum which can tell you about the Save, so I won't go into it here.) One of the things I liked best about my hunt with Mokore is that I was hunting for essentially free-range plainsgame in an area where the Big Five are present. With the exception of leopard-- of which I saw plenty sign-- I saw all of the Big Five on a ten-day plainsgame hunt. You can't go to RSA and see several black rhino, as I did. Nor will you have to detour around a herd of ele cows and calves while looking for eland sign, as I did on several occasions.

If you want to have a chance at an enormous variety if indigenous plainsgame, see lots of dangerous game, not run into other hunters and hunt with great folks, you simply could not do better than a hunt in the Save with Mokore.

(I still have not done a hunt report on my trip to Zimbabwe last year. I promise I will, but if anyone wants to see pictures I will have to e-mail them to someone to post here; I have never been able to figure out how to do it myself.)

I would not omit the Luangwa River Valley of Zambia from consideration. I hunted there in 2008 and 2010, and both times there were large numbers of buffalo, impala, zebra, puku, kudu, bushbuck, grysbok, klipspringer, hippo and crocs. For a first time hunt, the pros of Zambia vs. Zim are that you will see many more animals than will be visible to you in the jess; the con is that the facilities are relatively more primitive than you'll find in a typical Zimbabwe camp. Not roughing it, but much less luxury. As noted in a post above, a lot of your decision is going to be driven by the animals you hope to hunt.

I'm not looking for a fenced hunt. Is just about all of RSA hunt done inside of fences?

Animals on my list are:
Baboon
Blue Wildebeest
Bushpig
Eland
Gemsbok
Giraffe
Impala
Kudu
Red Hartebeest
Springbuck
Warthog
Zebra

This is not saying that I have to have a shot at each of the above, it is just a list of what I would be interested in shooting if the opportunity was present.

Yes Rich alot are..They are protecting there investment. I have hunted 2 times under a fence and will say if the hunt is conducted on a ample property then there is not a problem. I hunted with Spiral Horn safaris--in SA:

http://www.spiralhorn.co.za/

Good guy-- he hunts about 30,000 ac. Some was low-fenced cattle ranch some was high fenced: the smallest property we hunted was 2,500 hectares, witch is 5,500 ac. and I never felt crowded. Louis takes small groups 4 or less--and hunts different places at different times. I think on this type of hunt you should look more at how its conducted than high fenced or low fenced. Just my 2 cents.

I have hunted both Zim and RSA (in great areas) and I say Namibia 100%. Contrary to statements above, there are PG areas in Nam with elephant and leopard AND with amazing PG densities. For my money, shoot PG in Nam and then go to southern Zim for Buff/Nyala/Sable. Look to Damaraland and contact Greg Brownlee here on AR (I have no commercial interest one way or the other BTW). Good luck!

Rich,

Your choice of gemsbok and springbok narrows you choices to Namibia, RSA and Botswana.

Mark

When we Americans think of High Fence we think of 500acre enclosure not of
RSA where the smallest High Fence I have hunted in five trips is 7.000 acres....big difference!
Can the game escape? Took us 2 1/2 days to kill my first Gemsbok on that "small" High fenced farm....