In the planning stages of a trophy elephant hunt in Dande East with Alan Shearing as PH. Has anyone hunted elephant with Alan. It would be an early season march april hunt,

I shared camp with Alan in June. I would have no reservations hunting with him. My friend hunted with Alan and he shot two elephant, a tuskless and a self defense elephant. My friend said he would be content to hunt elephant with Alan for the rest of his hunting career.

Check out my hunt report on the Africa Hunt Report forum. Some pictures and commentary on Dande East. Lots of pans and elephant sign from early season. Some thick jesse too.

Like MJines, I met Alan in camp and would be happy to hunt with him. Sorry I cannot be more help.

Yukon Delta, who does not post much anymore, was the hunter in camp that was hunting with Alan. If you can touch base with you he can tell you more.

I have hunted with Alan and wouldn't hesitate to go again. If you want to see him in action then buy CM Safaris video Zambezi Extreme and pay attention to Chapter 25.

I have not hunted elephant with him, but have hunted buffalo. I found him to be a great PH and a fun person to hunt with.

gunny
I have hunted with Alan twice for various species and I have shared camp with him on two other occasions. Without doubt he is one of the best PHs and an alround great guy. What makes it even better in your case is that elephant hunting is his personal favourite.
I hunted Dande East last year and you can get some huge ele bulls coming in from Mozambique to raid crops early season. If you do a search on the hunt reports you will see that there was a close encounter with an estimated 70lber this seaason. The bush will be thick when you are planning to go so be prepared for the action to be up close and very personal.( Thats the way bull elephant hunting should be in my opinion.)
Have a great time and say hello to Al from me.
Regards
Rob

Alan was my PH for a tuskless in Makuti. He was great to hunt with and share a camp with for 2 weeks. Always positive and entertaining. Great sense of humor as well.

I am looking into doing the same hunt...

I am Mike's friend who hunted with Alan for 14 days this past June. We took a tuskless and a matriarch cow in self defense along with a 60.5 inch kudu.

Simply put, Alan has my highest recommendation. His depth, breadth of hunting is second to none. His energy, tenacity and passion for animals, people, topography is genuine and real. You will learn and experience much with him.

I will be hunting again with Alan and CMS March-April 2013...

PM me if you want to discuss via phone.

Best,
bill

Thanks guys, sounds like Alan is the real deal. This isn't my first rodeo but I like to gather as much information as possible before making a commitment.

alan is very good , you will not be dissapointed - lots of elephant experience - and a great guy too !

Alan was my PH on a buff hunt in Chirisa.I enjoyed hunting with Alan.He will always be by your side all the time whatever the situation.I perceived him as an honest individual who enjoys being out in the bush.Hunting with him is like having a nature expert with you who enjoys educating people about the fauna and flora he is very familiar with.You can be in camp with him at lunch and he will comment on the straw roofing structure of the canopy overhead and how well it was put together.I can go into other areas of his style in detail and compare him to Richard Tabor and I am sure some things might be preffered by some and not by others depending on what it is one is looking for.For example,if you are not in great shape you might want to choose Alan.

I hunted Ele with Alan a few years ago (2006), and greatly enjoyed the experience. I posted a hunt report at the time, so I'm sure it is still in the archives. Great person to spend time with, and very knowledgeable about ele. He is not overly chatty in the field, which I like, but a great guy around the fire in the evening. I would hunt with Alan again in a heartbeat.
Bill

I have hunted with Allan on several hunts--- I give him without any reservation the highest recommendations ----------period!

I can't believe there is a better PH than Alan. There may be a few as good but none better. You will never regret hunting with Alan.

Alan and I had a very close encounter with a cow ele in Chewore South in 2008. Myself, as well as others, have found ourselves privileged to have shared a camp with him. Now, if I can just get Rosy to let him come to to SCI...

Thanks guys. Hunt booked. Let the fun begin.

You are going to have a helluva good time.

Anyone else heard this???
I have been told if hunting Dande for Ele's to make sure it has been at least a week after a previuous hunter kille....the Ele sense and go back to MOZ.....????

I think that is nonsense. We saw elephant virtually everyday on our hunt, including days that were following days on which we shot the four elephant that we shot in 14 days.

Elephant do move into and out of areas based on water in pans, marula, etc. but that is more a seasonal thing than an event driven thing.

Myles told me that they leave time between hunts in the East Dande to let it settle down. They are 100% on trophy bulls I believe. That is also why they do the recovery themselves so there aren't hundreds of locals at a recovery.