Walter and Klaus were hunting together in Matetsi, Zimbabwe.

Both wanted zebra, so Roy asked them to shoot one for lion bait.

This went on for several days, while we were hunting buffalo.

Roy was getting annoyed, saying "those two Germans are no good at anything! So many zebra around and they cannot even get ONE!"

"Ok" I said "I will shoot one if we see any"

We were close to camp, and lunch time was approaching, so we decided to go back.

Suddeny we see some zebra run across the road.

We jumped out, and Roy said "the one on the left"

I fired, and they took off.

I said "That was a bit quick. I am not sure if I hit him"

Roy "Yes you did. I heard the bullet hit him"

"How can you hear anything with your fingers in your ears?"

"I id not have TIME to put my fingers in my ears! You did your usual trick, shooting too fast!"

"It cannot be too fast if I hit him"

"You yourself said you COULD have missed him"

"I did. But he got in the way of the bullet!"

Wonderful stories, enjoyed each one. Thanks, Brian

Walter brought a gorilla suit.

He put it on after dinner at Chete, and went to the kitchen.

All hell broke loose, as everyone ran in every direction.

One of the kitchen help spent the night up a tree!

Not funny at all but a bit unusual. Just got back from Ugalla in Tanzania. We were hanging a bait where there was a lot of leaf litter and we had a lot of people wandering around, cutting branches and ground cover to clear a shot at the cat on the ground. This had been going on for some time when I looked down and for some reason, saw about a 2" x 1" black spot with scales. Now that's interesting and cause for everyone to stop walking. Turns out we had a puff adder buried in the leaf litter and it is a miracle that no one stepped on him before he was removed from the area.

Back in 2019 I was hunting in Namibia on Jan du Plessis home ranch. When we heard dogs barking we caught two native poachers who had just killed a Warthog. Jan held them at gunpoint and called the National Police. They took a statement from Jan, put them in handcuffs and carted them away. One of the Police Officers said one of the poachers was just released from prison after serving a long sentence for murder!
Had the poachers decided to shoot it out, they would have died on the spot. Jan is a fantastic marksman and I shot a Highpower Rifle for the US Army Reserve Rifle Team for four years.

We caught a poacher this year. No drama.

quote:

Originally posted by lavaca:
We caught a poacher this year. No drama.

Poachers come in varying categories:

- Subsistence for home use. (Docile)
- Commercial meat or fish. (Can be belligerent)
- Commercial ivory though dwindling in recent times. (Stiff prison sentences can create a "nothing to lose" situation)

In the heyday of Ivory poaching, the well-armed gangs could prove dangerous and would engage without much ado.

Several years ago, I was on a plains game hunt with a buddy. He shot a Blesbok but could have made a much better shot. We followed up and found the Blesbok standing by a tree about 100 yds away. While the PH was setting up the sticks for a follow up shot another Blesbok came running up to the wounded one and gored him with his horns. The wounded one goes down and can't get up. We just walked up, and my buddy put a finishing shot in his neck. I guess there's no such thing as not kicking a guy when he's down in the eyes of a Blesbok.

Fulvio,

Ours was in the commercial meat category and he was just a whiner.

We were sighting in our rifles first day of the safari.

I was resting my rifle on a cushion on top of the bonnet.

There was a loud bang, and searing pain in my calf!

Everyone thought I had an accidental discharge.

But the pain in my leg said otherwise.

Walter had one of those firework bombs!

He threw it at my feet.

It went off, sending a quarter inch stone through my trouser leg, and about 1/4 inch into my calf!!

We went out hunting without any further.

After putting a bandage on the would.

I am lucky that I do not get infected easily.

But, me and Rene hatched a plan to get Walter worried.

For a couple of days I kept complaining about the pain and that an infection has set in.

The wound was almost healed.

One morning, before Walter appeared in the mess tent, Rene and me got going.

I got some toothpaste, mixed it with tomato ketchup, which made it look like blood and puss!

We could hear Walter coming, I was sitting on a chair, and Rene attending to my wound.

As Walter walked in, Rene started having a go at him.

Telling him for being so stupid with his prank.

That my wound is very badly infected - she has already put a bandage on, but a used one had the ketchup and toothpaste very clearly visible.

I kept telling him he will pay as soon as I get better.

We told him it was a joke at dinner time!

This was back in 2008 and the first time I had a female game scout. I suspect the game scout gig was a second job as she seemed pretty popular among the guys for no other apparent reason. She was scared of her issued rifle, a .458 Mauser. We followed a herd of around 200 animals into some thick riverine bush and sorted it. We were in close proximity to animals for a couple of hours and it was a bit stressful. There were no shootable bulls in the herd so we moved on and started walking back to the car. A single bull elephant was bumped and he trumpeted, threw grass and did the usual thing. The game scout got sick on both ends. It was comical. She really wasn't cut out for this job.

A couple of old stories from my late dad in the 1950s.

Dad was a Forest and wildlife officer in India. This was in Malabar in South India and it was evergreen jungle with plenty of elephant, tiger, gaur etc.

Story one.

The local population had many Muslims. A group of poachers decided to shoot a gaur calf for the tender veal. They shot the calf with a muzzle loader and rand to cut its throat for Halal. the idiots had no clue about wildlife. the cow charged them and killed on guy.

Story two.

Same region. There was a lot of Rose wood in the forest and it was very valuable timber even in those days. An organised gang of timber poachers was operating in the area with shotguns. They would open fire on any Forest department staff. The staff were terrified as none of them was trained in combat though they did carry an old 410 "musket". The guys came crying to my dad. Dad told them to stalk into the camp and shoot one guy. One Forest guard had the courage to do this and they shot one poacher from ambush. The gang disappeared never to return!

On our first African hunt in Tanzania, we got stuck with a game agent that was a real piece of shit. He was constantly looking for bribes. My friend shot at a warthog and missed, of course, the agent was looking for any blood so he could get a bribe to not report it. He spotted a red drop and was elated there was some blood, therefore a fee was required. He reached out to touch the blood, which then sprouted wings and flew off, it was a lady bug. The surprised look on the asshole's face was funny and priceless.

On that note, I shot a buffalo in the Selous which ran I to a big valley of headhigh grass. The game scout asked me for $500 to record that I had missed it. F... off! We went into the grass and got the bull and the game scouts tip was much reduced.

Folks,

This story was relayed to me by Arthur Taylor retired PH. Early in Arthur's career the tents were lighted with parfin lamps. One cold moring Arthur rolled out of bed, got dressed and started to put on his coat. When he put his hand down the sleave he found a big hary bird spider in the sleeve. In his haste to get the coat off he nocked over the parafin lamp and consequently burned down the tent!

Mark