Off for some safari practice towards the end of this week. One of the advantages of living in Oz is occasionally one gets an opportunity to do some "real" safari shooting practice. Not paper but skin, hair, fur, bone and muscle. Usually pigs or goats or even hopping kangaroos. A traditional way to practice before an African safari was the old feral pig hunting trip. In the days when piggies were plentiful the old .375's would get a few hundred pigs to notch on the stocks as practice.

But this time it will be a water buffalo cow cull. What a hoot! Hopefully between five and twenty of the beasts.

Planning to use my two doubles in .450 NE and 9.3x74R. But had better get out there and do some reloading as the ammo box is empty!

See you next week.

Looking forward to your report on the 9.3!

Shoot'um up, NitroX

Hog Killer

Have fun and definitely file a report with us on the culling activity!

Two days of hard shooting and some decent practice was had.

The tally:
14 buffalo plus some calves, 2 were young bulls, the rest cow buffalo;
1 donkey;
3 pigs;
2 brumbies (horses);
and a very nice scrub bull trophy.

Only used my 9.3x74R Tikka double as 100 rounds for it came close to 4.3 kgs and not much room for the .450 ammo.

From this rifle being "bloodless" to now accounting for a fair swag of game, I think it may make its way to Africa on my next trip. Combined with the .450 for something decently large.

Photos to be posted soon if you like.

Heck yeah, post those pictures!
Congrats on a great hunt.

Sounds like a really fun hunt!

quote:

Originally posted by NitroX:
Photos to be posted soon if you like.

Yes please.

What's the Tikka double? pictures please!
peter.

Nitro,

How did the 9.3 perform? What bullets did you use?

quote:

Photos to be posted soon if you like.

I'd like to see the pictures!

Just an appetizer.

This one was not from October but from August, a nice trophy water buffalo bull.

Great "practice" for the occaisional cape buffalo too with the .450 double.



On the same hunt, my friend Orion "practiced" with a beautiful 6.5x54 mm Mannlicher-Schoenauer. His first buffalo to that small calibre. Shots must be very carefully made at close range.



I am sure he would like to take this fine rifle to Africa one day.



Another bull falls to the tiny bullet.

Some bones from the two hunts, the trophy hunt and the cull hunt.



Absolutely excellent practice is hunting a large number of pigs. I thought we had done well with 45 as a combined total for the trip. But another party I met at dinner in Darwin in the Kymberleys shot around 270 pigs in a seven day trip.



Orion's tusk collection - only some were taken off the field.



Using shooting sticks on the floodplains. GREAT practice for African plains game. Rifle is a Whitworth M98 .375 H&H Magnum with 300 gr Woodleigh RNSP Weldcores. Sticks are Long Grass sticks from the USA. A gift from MikeH416Rigby. Thanks Mike!



Scanning for porkers. The previous day about 200 to 300 pigs in five herds were spotted in the neighbourhood where the vehicle is standing. We only shot two, as some of the floodplains is very deceptive and only a mat of grass, reeds and matter over deep water. We drove into one of these and got bogged. required a long recovery session but we got out on dark.



What it is all about.





Shotgunning practice too. Not francolin or doves but Aussie Grass Whistle Ducks.

It is great when safari practice is a safari in itself.



Also posted to put something fun at the moment on the African Hunting board, if you know what I mean!

Very cool.

I would certainly count that the equal of any African Safari.

I practiced on water buffalo before cape buffalo.

My first water buffalo: one chest shot with .460 Wby 500 gr factory SP at 2650 fps, still standing and required a .375 H&H neck shot to drop (300 gr Swift).

Second water buffalo: chest shot with .416 Rigby 350 gr Barnes X-Bullet at 2700 fps, still standing, required neck shot with same .416 Rigby load to drop.

Cape buffalo: dropped dead with one bullet through the heart breaking on-side shoulder: .416/380gr GSC FN Solid at 2508 fps


Bison: dropped dead with one .404 Jeffery bullet through chest breaking off side shoulder: .423/380gr North Fork Soft Point at 2525 fps.

I do believe I will be looking for the Australian Buffalo Safari myself. Need a scrub bull too.

Cape buffalo die quicker and easier than water buffalo in my experience.

Water buffalo can certainly be larger than cape buffalo.

Fresh Meat!

Organizing blind hunters safaris?

Thank you for the pictures. That is an excellent collection of tusks as well.

quote:

Originally posted by Edmond:
Organizing blind hunters safaris?

Very funny. Why not!

Some more for "Aussie Blindman Safaris"


A few ducks on the billabong bank.


A couple of ducks take flight.


The sky above.

Not bad when the daily bag limit is either eight or ten!




But you get another bag limit of these as well. Magpie Geese.

Great pics!

A scene from the Nile in Egypt? Perhaps reminiscent of Kenya?





Or even India, the Sundabans, maybe?


All these areas were 'related' once in the great super-continent of Gwondwanaland.

Happy pig.



Those nice Long Grass shooting sticks again.

And result .......



A "dugga" (mud) pig!



"Jeffrey Practice" - one for the .450 double. It proved adequate.

Next door where we didn't hunt. Next time.





EVERY water hole has a "saltie" (saltwater crocodile).



Where we hunted. The open flood plains. Fantastic cattle country. Under water during the "Wet'. 70% of this property is flooded during the 'Wet'.

fantastic! Has the wet season started yet?

Ex Australia semper aliquid novi ...

quote:

Originally posted by NitroX:

Next door where we didn't hunt. Next time.

Screw Africa! Now to arrange some opera and the beach, and a side trip to NT

The build up is on now with some local showers. I went out hunting today. The property we were on had got some rain and the pigs were hard to find and spread out (lots of green pick). Did manage two however.

Bakes

When usually does the Wet set in properly, ie the countryside becomes impassable, end of Nov? Beginning of Dec?

I have posted some of this on the Australian forum and also on NitroExpress.com, but as it was the ORIGINAL idea of this thread I should finish this one off. Sorry to anyone who has sen them already.

"Mad Cow" Cull - full story & photos - on NitroExpress.com

Mad Cow Cull - photos on Australian forum of AR

Some pics here:


Culled cow water buffalo


Death under a Blood Red Sun


You Bustards!


Mad Bull ...


... with wicked horns.

NitroX
Well done.

Your friends 6.5 wouldn't be shooting woodleighs 444 s.d. 6.5s perchance?

I think he was shooting 140 gr Barnes X's. He had some other bullets with as well.

NitroX, sir, you say you used your 9,3x74 for your hunt. I had the opportunity of buying a Shul and a Husky in that caliber but worried that it would not be up to the job on the big stuff to the size of the scrub bull. Is it adequate. I don't think I can afford a quality English double.

quote:

Originally posted by lb404:
NitroX, sir, you say you used your 9,3x74 for your hunt. I had the opportunity of buying a Shul and a Husky in that caliber but worried that it would not be up to the job on the big stuff to the size of the scrub bull. Is it adequate. I don't think I can afford a quality English double.

i asked NitroX a similar question and he responded in this thread.

Great pictures! Thanks for sharing! Those Long Grass shooting stick are nice!

quote:

Originally posted by lb404:
NitroX, sir, you say you used your 9,3x74 for your hunt. I had the opportunity of buying a Shul and a Husky in that caliber but worried that it would not be up to the job on the big stuff to the size of the scrub bull. Is it adequate. I don't think I can afford a quality English double.

I am thinking the next time I hunt water buffalo bulls I would like to try out the 9.3x74R on one. However it MAY be a self-guided Arnhemland hunt next time if a contact I have been given works out. As there may be no back up the .450 NE might be a better choice.

I am sure it (the 9.3mm) will kill them quite well in 95% of circumstances if a proper shot is made and the shoulder and leg bone is avoided. Its if one gets a "frisky" one that the .450 might be a better choice.

On the other hand I am more confident of doing a good brain shot with the 9.3mm.

If you book a hunt with an outfitter, discuss the choice of rifle and calibre you have in mind. I would believe as a 9.3x74R is not too far from a .375 H&H that most will be OK with your choice. If not they will tell you when booking.

As for scrub bull I shot a very large scrub bull on my cull hunt with the 9.3mm at about 170 metres. It did take several shots, but the first two were killing shots. Scrub bulls can be tough and from my limited experience and also from the accounts of others they are more likely to charge than either water buffalo or cape buffalo for that matter.

"Hunt Australia" and Matt Graham, and "Australian Buffalo Hunters" and Graham Williams are the two outfitters I have used for trophy buffalo hunts in Arnhemland and I have no hesitation in recommending either.


Scrub bull photos

The scrub bull alive photographed with a telephoto lens. We are waiting for it to move its 'target zone' from behind the tree. Water buffalo feeding in the grass in front.


A nice scrub bull!


The horns again. Wow!

From my August Arnhemland hunt.



Graham Williams (on the left) yelled out to Wal, an American client who tagged along on this hunt (he had filled his buff, scub bull bag and was looking for a boar - and actually as Orion and myself had booked 2x1 with Paul the other guide, very generously offered Graham to let me hunt with him and Orion with Paul each 1x1) "Get your .416 Rigby ready", as I think Graham did not like my choice of shot on the bull (acute angle from behind angling for the chest) and also as the bull had the advantage being high above me on the hill and came running down looking for me.

On the first shot (perhaps there was too much gut and muscle for a RNSP to penetrate to the chest) he turned so I immediately hit him in the chest with the second barrel. He then came running down the hill looking for me, but I was wisely behind a tree and reloaded - just one barrel as he was ideally positioned - and hit him well into the shoulder. He spun around spraying blood metres into the air from the first chest wound (second shot) and dropped. Quite spectaculer and some of it is on video.



Hey how close do you think this buff is?

Stalked just for photos and videoing.

quote:

Originally posted by Rusty:
Great pictures! Thanks for sharing! Those Long Grass shooting stick are nice!

Yes no doubt. They an be dismantled into two halves, making transport easier. Are as steady as any African ones I have used. And look very nice.

I'm hoping MikeH416Rigby will get to try these on a buffalo one day.

That's a lot of tasty meat lying on the ground!

Any charges?

What is the typical distance for shooting scrub bulls? How hard is it to sneak really close (15 yards or less)?

500grains,

The red scrub bull (August) was a huge beast and strong. The largest I saw in body.

The bigger horned black bull (October) was very old, skinny and bony.

Meat. Unfortunately we were about 8 hours drive from the nearest town and in 40 deg C heat the meat spoils. In any case a younger tender beast makes a nice cut.

Scrub cattle and buffalo are caught live using "bull catchers" and then used for export or human consumption. Two bull catchers squash the beast between them or one and a tree, or they use the mechanical arm. Sometimes they just knock the beast off its legs, jump out and tie up its legs (scrub cattle not big buff bulls).


"Bull catcher"

Charges?

The red bull after being shot twice with a .450 came running down the hill looking for me, but never caught sight of me as I was behind a tree reloading. The third shot broke bones and massive blood loss and he died then quickly.

A younger buffalo bull on my cull hunt started to get 'stroppy' swinging his head down and waving his horns around at maybe 30 metres. As we didn't want to shoot him, we turned around and ran away like a couple of 'scared school girls' . He didn't press his advantage and stomped around a bit and then walked away after the cows we had been following.

How easy is it to get close?

I shot mine at 70 metres and then say 45 metres and the second at a longer range of around 170 metres.

I found the scrub cattle quite alert. We had spooked some and followed them up for over 2 1/2 kilometres before they joined a few others which included the nice red bull. It was a long stalk as they also joined up with a herd of buffalo so we shadowed the lot. Lots of eyes to be avoid as well.

Alan Moon of Alan Moon Videos & Safaris does scrub bull and boar hunts in Far North Queensland and he likes to hunt them nice and close. He has a .470 and a .400/.350 doubles just in case. So I think they could well be approached to very close range. A scrub bull is more likely to charge than either an unwounded water buff or cape buff IMO. I will hunt them again.

Oustanding trip to say at least !!!

quote:

Originally posted by Afrikaander:
Oustanding trip to say at least !!!

Ditto!!