Any one have any experience with lion and leopard in the Gona re Zhou, Zimbabwe... hunting with Nixon? I know it's known for big Ele but not much about cats.
Quality and quanity

Thanks...Max

Max,
When I was hunting elephant there in 2009, we heard lions at night and saw both lion and leopard tracks.

I'm booked for a leopard this May and will let you know.

Max,
I hunted Buff/PG with Nixon at the end of October for 7 days, we saw lion tracks on 3 or 4 occasions as well as quite a few lion kills.

We saw one leopard just off the road near camp.

Good luck,

Patrick

Same story as the others.
Heard lions from camp early in morning most days. We saw lion tracks while buffalo hunting.
Actually saw two different leopards.

From what I understand, Nixon had no recent lion quota. That changed this year, now he has two.

We will try to punch one this February. I will post the results for sure. If anyone has previous experience, I would love to hear the details.

Along with 2 lion, SSG has 7 leopard, 14 ele, 40 buff. 14 days is not enough time!

On Aaron's new video they find a lion kill beside the park. He comments there were lion and lioness tracks at the kill.

Nothing against Nixon or any of the other guys in Zim that have decent reps. I am a bit concerned about the overall increase in quotas all over the place. It dosnt give me a warm fuzzy feeling. I would say that if your going to do it now is the time.

Thanks guys,
I was told he had 4 permits for lion with one left, on the Mwenezi River on the western boundry of the Gonarezhou National Park and that he is 80% on leopard and 100% on lion...so there are a few questions that need answers.
Mostly concerned with quality... good mature cats.
Thanks again...Max

Max,
Are you booking through Aaron Neilson?

No, not booking through Aaron

ask him to send photos of earlier lions taken 2011, 2010. What is the going rate for a lion hunt in Malapati ?

Was told the area can produce great Lion that drift between Gona Re Zhou and Kruger Parks.
I'm sure that means, like the big Ele It could be a "hit or miss" scenario.

Hi Mike

Not everyone has had increases Mike. Regarding the quotas- We have been drastically cut. All in all, the last 2 years we have lost nearly 20 buff 1 ele bull 3 leopards and 1 lion. We requested to be cut in the buff department as we were concerned about the buff numbers which have mainly been reduced due to ,not only hunting ,but to a greater degree the increase in lion numbers.

What we were unhappy with is the cuts in the ele bull ( we have the highest average in the Valley) 3 leopards (we have been well over 90% success in dande for as many years as I can remember) and a lion which we have way too many of. The reasons given for the lion was they have had to reduce to 60 lion tags country wide- however I know of people who were given lion tags in areas that do not even have resident lions! As for the leopard and and ele bull the reason we were given when we asked the main fellow was "he was on holiday!"

quote:

Originally posted by maxart:
No, not booking through Aaron

You might want to contact him.

+1

Hey Buzz, Good to here from you. I hope you took no offense at my remark. Your statement in fact supports what I was kind of trying to say. A lot of the quotas just didnt make sense to me. You guys as well as several others I know are trying very hard to maintain sustainable populations. Unfortunately I also see quotas handed out that make no sense at all and have no realistic basis in sustainability. As you have said some ares dont even have resident populations and were given quotas. IMO others were given too many based on what one can only speculate here, with no look to the future at all. Others, like yourselves, who actually need the quota to manage the population didnt get it. In the end, the lions will suffer, the buff and other animals will suffer, the locals and you guys will suffer. Oh there will be a few who will line their pockets in the short term. Unfortunnately tribal african mindset never seems to look to tomorrows needs only those of today. Bloody hell... there I go preaching to the choir again! Sorry all.

Nixon hasn't taken a lion in the last three years, at least, although several people have tried for them. There is no doubt there are lion from the park which move through, but Nixon isn't in the habit of hunting lions and doesn't really have the expertise. There is always the possibility of chancing upon a lion while there, but is not the same as focusing on a lion as the hunt objective.
Bill

Oh crap

quote:

Originally posted by llamapacker:
Nixon hasn't taken a lion in the last three years, at least, although several people have tried for them. There is no doubt there are lion from the park which move through, but Nixon isn't in the habit of hunting lions and doesn't really have the expertise. There is always the possibility of chancing upon a lion while there, but is not the same as focusing on a lion as the hunt objective.
Bill

well, there you have it from someone with experience hunting with Nixon. hey, Bill DID YOU EVER FIND YOUR TRAVELERS CHECKS OR LAPTOP??

Hi Mike

No offence taken at all and I am afraid that you have hit the nail on the head. I have a feeling that quotas are been given to areas not according to scientific evidence but rather poltical alliances. Sorry did not mean to hijck the tread. Cheers Buzz

quote:

Originally posted by ozhunter:
Was told the area can produce great Lion that drift between Gona Re Zhou and Kruger Parks.
I'm sure that means, like the big Ele It could be a "hit or miss" scenario.

Mostly miss...

quote:

Originally posted by safari-lawyer:
On Aaron's new video they find a lion kill beside the park. He comments there were lion and lioness tracks at the kill.

Will - That's correct! At least two females and one big male were at the kill site.

Bwana Bunduki - Did you too hunt lion in Malapati?

When I was hunting with Nixon we baited for lion since we had seen a few sets of tracks. One was a large lion that had been killing some village cattle.



When checking baits we noticed this track at the waterhole 50 yards from our untouched bait (I took this photo the day after we initially saw the track. The day before it was crisp and very pronounced with no water in the toe pads). There were a few vultures in the trees just up the creek bed. We walked another 50 yards where in a depression hidden by some rocks we found this buff cow which had been killed and eaten by the lion. Nixon and the guys checked the carcass and found some hairs about 12" long.


When I return I'll probably opt to put out some baits if there is available quota.

quote:

Originally posted by Aaron Neilson:

quote:

Originally posted by safari-lawyer:
On Aaron's new video they find a lion kill beside the park. He comments there were lion and lioness tracks at the kill.

Will - That's correct! At least two females and one big male were at the kill site.

Bwana Bunduki - Did you too hunt lion in Malapati?

You really do not want my comments on an open forum.

Max,

i am bordering Nixon. Nixon is a nice guy and i am certain should you hunt with him you will have a good time judging from reports on AR.

Lions yes there are lions there at certain times of the year.

Hurdles that you might encounter.

-the Limpopo River, if the river is full or has water in it - forget about Lion in the area. they stick to the Kruger side.

-Those lion are probably the most crafty lions that you will encounter, they have been living in those areas with people since the people have arrived.

Then is the lion population stable enough to take off a male lion? or 4 as per quota?

on my side, i sat down with KNP 3 years ago and we agreed to not shoot any lion for a few years to see if the lion population can improve as two lion males were killed on the KNP side from snares = very sad indeed. the only option left then would be maurauding males that move about and are those males feasable to hunt?

Reports on lion activity on my side include 18 cattle killed over a span of 2 years, plus a couple of close calls for us 2 legged version of lion diet. i have only seen one truly huntable male lion in 3 years in that area, the rest will get you slated on AR second to none, ask any lion hunter who has posted pics of a very proudly taken trophy all be it wrongly taken for whatever reason.


IMHO i would book a buffalo hunt of say 15 days when lion activity should be good and try for lion in that space of time with an option of upgrading the buffalo hunt to a lion hunt should you be successful.

So Aubs
What you are trying to say is that you are about as likely to get a lion with SSG as a land rover is to make it home from the bush?

Its up there in the same category as your likely hood of banging the queen. Or maybe Jolouburnes two brain cells colliding.

Then again, Aubs is about as reliable as a Land Rover, so I wouldnt trust him either

quote:

Originally posted by .458Aubs:
the Limpopo River, if the river is full or has water in it - forget about Lion in the area. they stick to the Kruger side.

Aubrey - How goes it my friend, hope all is well?

The above is likely correct, but would apply mostly to Nixon's Sengwe II area, correct? The same as it would with Sengwe I? Obviously if lions that could be present in that area, are coming from Kruger to the south, the Limpopo would certainly play a role in that. Thus, late season - when the river is down, might be your only opportunity in Sengwe II?

Resident lions are certainly possible in the Malapati Safari area, and certainly with a common border to the Ghonarzou (spelling) Park, lions coming in/out of the park, into Malapati is very possible. That's exactly what I saw, when I was there in Sept. 2011. Although I did not see the male, I did see the 2 females. When we approached the fresh zebra kill, we could clearly see the big male's tracks, but he had left before we came along. I'm sure he was not far away, but it was already 10am, the zebra was in the wide-open, and it was getting hot. Likely he had gone looking for a nice shady spot to sleep off his meal. Any lions that could be present in this part of Nixon's hunting concession are certainly not dependent on crossing the Limpopo, and are not likely coming from the Kruger, would be my guess?

quote:

IMHO i would book a buffalo hunt of say 15 days when lion activity should be good and try for lion in that space of time with an option of upgrading the buffalo hunt to a lion hunt should you be successful.

This would be a good option and then there is no pressure to take just any Lion.

If mane hair was 12 inches long then this would indicate that Cindy Garrison was there before you.

quote:

Originally posted by fairgame:If mane hair was 12 inches long then this would indicate that Cindy Garrison was there before you.

+1

I hunted that area . However it was a long time ago.

We heard lions often. I recall seeing a single lioness . We had baits hit. However , none were big males. I left without my lion after 21 days of trying.

I have been told that some of the surrounding communities have killed some lions in the last couple of years.

Are there any huntable lions there? Yes, but the Save this ain't.

Thanks Aubrey. sound advise . thanks to Aaron for his recomendation also, We've recieved a wealth of info here...I love this forum.

Max

Lion hunting is just that - Lion HUNTING , I dont think there is a place in Africa that gaurentee a trophy lion , but certainly there are better areas than others ( Sorry Aaron I know this is your territory and as allways allways recommend any hunter wanting to hunt Lion - do yourself a favour and call Aaron - he will short cut your quest for information by 25 years , because very few hunters have put in the time and effort he has ) but the one criteria that stands out about Lion hunting is that you pay for what you get - the better the chance at success or big trophy mane the more moola you are going to have to fork out , bargains lion hunts are propably extinct. So if its a lion hunting experience you want - then actualy going where the chances are lower is actualy a good bargain - you may luck out after the hard work , but if its the success of a trophy kill then be prepared to dip into your kids inheritance or remorgage your house.

quote:

If mane hair was 12 inches long then this would indicate that Cindy Garrison was there before you.

quote:

Originally posted by mboga biga bwana:

quote:

If mane hair was 12 inches long then this would indicate that Cindy Garrison was there before you.

Andrew - I have one time seen 12" mane hairs left on a bait! If you remeber the "Chamakube King" that eluded Richard and I for 2 weeks? He left mane hair at the bait numerous times, unlike anything I have ever seen before or since!

i have hunted that area a couple times with jumbo moore. i did take a monster PAC lion. it would normally not be my choice for cats. They come through the area in and out of the park. but it is a hit or miss situation. mostly miss. eles are something else there. they frequent the area but a bit of care must be observed as they are rather cheeky