I have only done PG hunting but are considering elephant or buffalo...

What are the differences....seems ele hunt is the most challenging....more intelligent species etc...

What are your experiences..?

If budget is not a consideration hunt elephant. The way things are going there might be a ban on elephant hunting or it will become so expensive it will be reserved for a select few.

Exactly what Peter said. I've done both and it's Elephant by a long shot. As for the $$, it you can afford a trophy elephant hunt go for it. I've always went on daylight non exportable bull elephant hunts. All the excitement of a trophy hunt for a lot less $$. Only problem is there aren't that many of those hunts available.

Elephant every time !!

Pondoro, here's a hell of a deal. $8,000 tuskless including trophy fee and ground transportation. I went on this exact hunt several years ago. You can't go wrong with this one.

http://forums.accuratereloadin...2100588/m/8211050791

A Buff and Tuskless is a great hunt.

A bull ele up close open sights does not get any better.

The smile says it all.

If costs are considerations, do like Don said and do a tuskless. Can be had for about the same/less than buff and you'll enjoy getting up close and sneaking in and out of the herds looking for her. My first DG safari was both buff and tuskless. Enjoyed the ele so much more! Tended to have more interactions with the ele looking for a herd with a tuskless. Experience was much more rewarding.

The future of elephant hunting is once again in jeopardy. The hunt is physically taxing, rewarding, and above all, thrilling.
I started by sharing a three tuskless hunt with a good friend to get some experience under my belt before hunting a bull. Well, that's not entirely accurate. My thoughts at the time were to hunt elephant without spending the money for a bull, just to get it out of my system. I'm going back for my second bull in a couple of months.
Go elephant hunting while you still can. It's not going to get cheaper, and you are not going to get younger.

For me it is hands down elephant. It was the most exciting and rewarding hunt I've been on.

Pondoro,

A true trophy elephant bull hunt is a unique experience and the prices reflect that. To me a buffalo hunt is not a lesser experience but it is a more common one and noteable less expensive.

Something to consider might be that you can shoot a non-trophy elephant for far less money than a regular buffalo hunt and for about the same money as a top end PG hunt.

Check out my offer for non-trophy ele and buff on The Outfitters Offered and Discounted Hunt forum.

Mark

The tuskless offer that Martin Pieters has is really an incredible deal too and a tuskless hunt is the most exciting/dangerous hunt there is in Africa today.

quote:

Originally posted by Pondoro:
I have only done PG hunting but are considering elephant or buffalo...

What are the differences....seems ele hunt is the most challenging....more intelligent species etc...

What are your experiences..?

Gentlemen, there needs to be a devil’s advocate in any discussion to some extent, to be a fair debate.

What I mean with this is, deciding between a Cape buffalo or elephant for the first of the big five, is a very important thing as to sequence. IMO, the elephant is the grand prize of the big five, and if taken first will dim the enjoyment for the hunter when he later takes a cape buffalo. Also in my opinion most who take their first elephant loose any desire to hunt anything else, so that taking any other member of the big five becomes anticlimactic.

On my first safari, the first animal I took was a very large bull hippo, and the second was a Cape buffalo. The reason I took that member of the big five first was because I knew that I could afford to hunt him on multiple safaris, and doubted I would ever be able to take a trophy bull elephant, or a rhino, but maybe take a lion and a leopard in combination with hunting another buffalo or two. Even if I could have afforded a trophy bull ele safari, I would not have for the first of the big five! I simply do not want to dull my knife on bones before cutting up all the meat! So! I say if you choose the ele, spend a little more and take a buffalo on the same safari, or do a buffalo and Leopard safari first, then do an exclusive safari for the elephant afterward. I think you will enjoy them all a lot more if done in order, climbing the big five ladder is best done one step at a time. That way you will get the best of each step!

What ever you decide, good luck with that decision.

Do what you can when you can--you may never make it back over there--

I went on my first safari in 2012, had been looking forward to it for as long as I can remember.

I took trophy bull elephant, buffalo, and lion out of the big 5 plus a really nice kudu--which Ruark didn't get on his first trip-- along with zebra wildebeest and impalla for bait.

i wouldn't change a thing and i disagree with Mac--one didn't lessen the impact of any of the others.

Remember--you may never go again---

quote:

". . . when a man has shot an elephant his life is full." ~John Alfred Jordan

The above quote appears on a couple of member's posts. Pretty much sums it up.

Gentlemen, thank you for your answers.....I will consider what to do...

First it is a cull hunt in Namibia in april, hopefully also kudu as a bonus..

Although I have never hunted ele(aside from one that killed a woman-that lasted for half a day),I cant give you an answer.What I will say is that my best hunt so far was my double buff hunt-it is the hunt that plays over again and again in my mind.My next hunt however will be a bull ele hunt in about a year from now.A buff hunt especially a double buff hunt can really be good too,IMO-especially in the right place at the right time with the right people.

quote:

Originally posted by Sean Russell:

i wouldn't change a thing and i disagree with Mac--one didn't lessen the impact of any of the others.

Remember--you may never go again---

Could that be because you took them all on the same safari?

Lets look at that from a different angle! If you had taken the ele only on that first safari do you think you would be as excited to book a buffalo safari later? I think it would be dulled because of your interested in another ele, much more than a buffalo, and that is why I suggest if you take an elephant, you should take a buffalo, and any other of the big five you can afford on that first big five safari.

There is nothing wrong with doing the big five in any order you choose, but IMO working up the ladder just seems a sweeter way to do it. Of course you are correct that you may never get back to African again.

I made the mistake of not taking a Leopard, and a lion on the same safari as my first buffalo, because the buffalo simply dulled my desire to take a dedicated safari for the cats. I couldn't afford the elephant in any case but in those days the cats were much cheaper than today, but elephant was as high as a cat's back.
.................................................................................Just another point of view!

I took lion first (with 3 buff and PG for bait) and bull ele/buff/tuskless second. I loved every minute as long as I was hunting something. Go for the ele, either tuskless or bull and you will enjoy yourself immensely. Then, hunt buff or croc or whatever and you will love it as much or more.

Dutch

There is no right or wrong answer with regards to ele or buff first. I've enjoyed both immensely. I find hunting buff out of herds to be similar to tuskless hunting, and the hunting of lone dugga boys to be similar to ele bulls. Really two completely different TYPES of hunts with both species, but both species offering similarities depending on the TYPE of hunt chosen. The former usually involving spotting a herd, then picking a suitable specimen from a group while the latter involves the traditional and fascinating practice of following tracks to your desired quarry, having faith in the abilities of your trackers to actually find him.

For me, the tracking exercise, both from the almost "magic" abilities demonstrated as well as knowing that you must stay on alert the entire time so as not to spook your quarry by stumbling on to them unexpectedly and waste the effort, is far more enjoyable and exciting. Mainly because most stalks do bust for some reason such as an unexpected wind shift, the animals turn with the wind, you do stumble onto the quarry, etc. Or, as is often the case, once you do work your way into position to observe your quarry, you discover that the tracks you've followed don't belong to the "quality" of animal you're seeking. So the best part of all now occurs ... you get to continue hunting and do it again and again and again!! Once you finally take the animal, the hunt is over.

That said, I have to give the nod in terms of a favorite toward elephant hunting. I enjoy buffalo from the standpoint that they are wary, skittish, and offer a superb challenge when choosing to hunt them up close in thick cover as they possess great senses all the way around. Eyes, ears, nose, and desire to runaway when encountering man. Elephant on the other hand, are a bit different. Eyesight is poor, hearing is ok, but a great sense of smell. It's much easier to get close to ele, but where they differ is in the fact that getting into their personal space often evokes a confrontation, rather than them simply bomb-shelling. Unwounded buff will rarely choose confrontation. For me, the knowledge that ele might very well take you to task if you get exposed in close proximity is what makes the difference. They are simply great beasts in every respect and it's truly awe inspiring to be near them in thick cover.

If money is the driving factor, I'd hunt dugga boys as I think it's a more fulfilling hunt than tuskless. If a buffalo hunt is likely to be for a herd bull, I'd choose tuskless as the animal is more exciting. If the money is available, I'd choose the ele bull every time. Have fun on whatever your choice may be!

Having hunted several of both, always with double rifles, I can say that I had rather hunt elephants than anything else...

By a wide margin.

I think Mac may be right, after taking an elephant, NOTHING else will even come close!

Elephant are the most awesome animal to hunt but not for everyone, this hunt is very demanding, both physically and mentally so keep this in mind. If you are physically able then do the elephant, the adrenaline will flow . Buffalo is the most popular mainly due to availability and affordability but also an excellent safari. The tuskless or non trophy/PAC elephant hunts are a lot of fun at a much more affordable price. Once hooked on the dream of ivory then nothing compares with an elephant bull hunt in the correct area. Another important factor is to hunt the elephant the correct way where you aren't hunting them at night or border hunting, elephant must be resident to the area and hunted the traditional way of following them up with trackers in thick bush.

Ele buff combo

I have done both, and god willing, will do both again.

I think they are different experiences.

I would not recommend elephant as a first hunt though.

First off, it is a way different experience hunting any dangerous game than hunting non dangerous animals. If you have not done DG before, you might not react the way you think, and then not make the shot on the first try.

With buffalo, you generally get the chance at more than one animal; cats and elephant its unlikely you will get repeated chances on trophies.

Elephant bulls, while you look at a lot of them, you call off on most rather quickly once you get a look, so the one is likely the one chance you will have, unless you want to "settle" for a lesser bull, and given the prices no one wants to do that.

Shooting tuskless is generally an exercise in taking a herd female. This is a relatively dangerous endeavor and I would not recommend it for the first DG hunt. After being there and shooting a couple elephant (one a wounded cow) I found that shooting female elephant is not something I really enjoy doing personally, so that probably colors my thinking and response some. From what I have seen, this is probably much more like a buff hunt as far as probabilities go.

I don't agree that you will "no longer settle" or "get spoiled" for other hunts. I enjoy them all and still go and sit in a deer stand in MN each fall despite my African hunts. If you are a hunter, you will still enjoy it.

Having said this, there is no wrong answer. There is only what you think...