Which country and outfitter would you choose for the best TROPHY buffalo hunt? Money not an issue. Regards, AIU

Masailand, Tanzania Luke Samaras Safaris. Mark Young might disagree with me. If so he has a strong argument. Bundu shoots big Buff too.

Go in December, that is when the the big Bulls are more plentiful. I have seen amazing results in December.

FYI, I have an opening 6-15 December this year with Luke due to a cancelation.

I agree with Wendell, another vote for Tanzania, Maasai land. Several good operators in that location. PVT is one I work with. A number of our members have hunted with Pierre.
David

What would be the cost of a 10 day hunt and what would the trophy fee be for a BIG buff?

Hunt cost is about $21,500 including all gov fees, transfer, dip and pack etc. Add trophy fees for two Buffalo at $2300 and $2400 for 1st and second Buff.

So, normal price $26k plus tips, airfare and trophy shipping.

A few photos from Luke's area.







A couple Buff shot last December.






A 48" Buff shot last December



IN addition to the big Buff, you also hae some big Grant's too!

They're telling the truth. If I was out for the best buff in the best area at the best time, me and the 416 would be celebrating Christmas in Masailand.

quote:

Masai land. Several good operators in that location. PVT is one I work with. A number of our members have hunted with Pierre.

Where in Masailand is PVT hunting ?!

AIU,

Do a search here on AR for Lobo and Lokisale if you want to see some amazing buffalo.

Mark

Wendell,

Some of those bulls are still soft between the horns

Nice, Wendell, Nice!!

quote:

Originally posted by mboga biga bwana:

quote:

Masai land. Several good operators in that location. PVT is one I work with. A number of our members have hunted with Pierre.

Where in Masailand is PVT hunting ?!

quote:

Originally posted by Saeed:
Wendell,

Some of those bulls are still soft between the horns

Oh no you di-ent!

You just had to go there didn't you Saeed!

I guess it wouldn't be a Buffalo thread with out it.

Since Wendell threw down the gauntlet........

A few buff from our Lobo and Lokisale concessions in Masailand


44' from a few days ago

Beauty!

Our average buffalo 43"

How about the drop on this one?

Ancient old bull. Almost no boss.

[IMG]
This 44" and the 48" below were both taken on the same 10 day safari in October. Who said October couldn't produce big buffalo in Masailand.


And possible the prettiest buffalo I've ever seen 48"

There is nothing like Masailand for big buffalo.

Mark

Nice pics Mark. Good to see my friend Bill Pritchard still getting it done. I'm guessing he's 85 by now and has done more since 70 than most do in a lifetime of hunting.

Will,

If I remember correctly he said his first safari was in 1947. His bag of lion, buff, ele etc is mind boggling.


Mark

mboga, PVT hunts north of Lake Manyara and the small village of Mto Wam Bu on the edge of the Ngorogoro escarpment in the north central sector of the country. Larger Buff are found there. Good hunting, David

As far as I am concerned , any Buff taken in thick cover from under 50 yds that has good bosses and is not a herd bull, is a "trophy" buff....and I don't have pinus envy as I have one over 40".

There is no question in my mind - outside of Tarangarie in Masailand in December. That means with Adam Clements or Luke Samaras.

I just heard this AM that Zambezi Hunters has taken today a 46.5" buffalo on the Hammond area of the Save. With the amount of big buffalo that are taken on the Save it would be difficult to not think that other than Masailand the best buffalo may be right in Zim and specifically on the Save.

Mark

That is true Mark. The Save produces some big Buffalo, but the consistency of big Buff coming from those two awesome safari operations in Masailand keeps it at the top.

Your right on Save. For the price, there is a chance to shoot big Buff there.

Hard to find a place anywhere else in Africa that would beat or equal these 3 areas (July/Aug and Nov/Dec)for consistency - Imagine the closed period between Jan/July.

Well, I have "pinus" envy if you have one over 40". Heck, my inseam is only 29". I wonder what kind of trousers I'd wear if I had one like you.

quote:

Originally posted by Tom In Tennessee:
As far as I am concerned , any Buff taken in thick cover from under 50 yds that has good bosses and is not a herd bull, is a "trophy" buff....and I don't have pinus envy as I have one over 40".

Tom,

40" huh. You must be a tokoloshe!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tikoloshe#Legend

quote:

Originally posted by shakari:
Tom,

40" huh. You must be a tokoloshe!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tikoloshe#Legend

Do tokoloshe farm small pine trees. Even in Texas a 40" Pine tree (Pinus sp.) is very small. I wondered what tokoloshe did for a living.

Wendell answer your emails and maybe I would buy one of those big buffs.

You might kill a big'un in the North of Uganda on the East border of Kidepo Valley National Park in the Karamoja.

quote:

Originally posted by JudgeG:
Well, I have "pinus" envy if you have one over 40". Heck, my inseam is only 29". I wonder what kind of trousers I'd wear if I had one like you.

Beautiful!!! Just beautiful!!!!!

Brett

Lane,

I hadn't considered wood and it could be one of us is barking up the wrong tree.

So maybe we should just leaf it alone before someone thinks we're taking the pith!

Yup,

With a big Pinus in your pants...it gives a whole new meaning to a Woodie!

Especially...if it is Pinus contortus!!!

quote:

Originally posted by ledvm:
Yup,

With a big Pinus in your pants...it gives a whole new meaning to a Woodie!

I just spat earl grey all over the keyboard!

quote:

Originally posted by El Juero:
Wendell answer your emails and maybe I would buy one of those big buffs.

???? I do not have any emails from anyone looking for a big Buff?

PM me here, maybe there is an email problem.

The Save definitely has some great Buff. I know of 3 plus 46" taken this year thru the area.

Some excellent operators in the the Save.

I would be happy to let you have a cost break down with a few of these operators. PM me if I can be of assistance

Isn't a pinus tree a tree with needle like leafs? If so, then having a pinus in your pants could be a prickly situation. ]

quote:

Originally posted by zimFrosty:
The Save definitely has some great Buff. I know of 3 plus 46" taken this year thru the area.

Some excellent operators in the the Save.

I would be happy to let you have a cost break down with a few of these operators. PM me if I can be of assistance

Wendell/Mark:

Save versus Lobo/Lokissale and Simanjiro G.C/Kitiangare

Seconds Out - First Round!

quote:

quote:
Originally posted by zimFrosty:
The Save definitely has some great Buff. I know of 3 plus 46" taken this year thru the area.

Some excellent operators in the the Save.

I would be happy to let you have a cost break down with a few of these operators. PM me if I can be of assistance


Wendell/Mark:

Save versus Lobo/Lokissale and Simanjiro G.C/Kitiangare

+1

And Save is High Fenced.

Guys,

Let's be clear. The Save offers some great buffalo hunting for southern Africa with a real chance at a big buffalo. I highly recommend a hunt there and in fact I book a lot of hunts on the Save each year. Having said that the Save or anywhere that I know about in southern Africa doesn't holds a candle to Masailand as far as really big buffalo are concerned.

If I went back to Masailand specifically to hunt buffalo I'd tell the PH that I wanted to look for a buffalo in the mid 40's. On the Save I'd tell the PH 40". In neither case would I be upset if we didn't find a buffalo of that size but I think these numbers would be realistic goals to strive for in either place.

As for the Save being fenced you need to get a perspective on what that means. The Save is 850,000 acres that contains 1,400 elephant and 2,300 buffalo plus thousands of plains game animals. One exterior fence is irrelevant on an area this immense in size.

The Save Valley Conservancy bears no resemblance to a high fenced electrified and heavily stocked put and take operation in RSA.

Actually I don't even think technically the Save is a fenced property as last I knew 16 km of the fence in the south is down.

Mark

agreed Mark
I can almost garantee that you could walk for several days without seeing hide nor hair of....a fence.

I also agree with Marks comment on the buff sizes etc....Save is a good option, however if money is no object them Masailand would certainly have the edge

A woody and earl grey thats a really ugly picture someone get Steve his bin you know he's old and starting to drool more these days

quote:

Originally posted by MARK H. YOUNG:
Will,

If I remember correctly he said his first safari was in 1947. His bag of lion, buff, ele etc is mind boggling.


Mark

It is too bad that more people have not had the pleasure of knowing Bill Pritchard. He is one of the all-time great gentlemen anyone will ever meet, and he flies pretty low under the radar compared to the vast majority of hunters. In an age when so many hunters seek notoriety, Bill still hunts for the adventure and the memories, and not much else. I'm very fortunate to call him a friend. I've known Bill for perhaps 20 years, and each duck season we make a point of visiting and sharing experiences our hunts. Of course, his are always on a scale far different than mine, and he annually takes trips that most of us can't enjoy enough times in our lives.

Bill began hunting in Africa in 1949, and has made around 70 safaris, as noted above. He began sheep hunting at age 70, and while I don't know how many sheep he's taken, I had the good fortune to visit him for lunch at his home last year and there were 14 rams mounted in the entry hall! Now, that's one prolific sheep hunter, never mind that he started at an age when most sheep hunters long ago gave up pursuing rams in the peaks. In his late 70's, he was making 2 sheep hunts a year, in addtion to an annual safari or two. His trophy room surprised me. It was actually a rather small study and did not have that many animals, which he explained in part by noting that they have some mounts located at their winter home. He also noted that he's never brought home the majority of animals he's taken on his many trips, choosing to leave the horns in Africa. His room consisted of mounts of the Big Five, though his rhino was a white instead of a black rhino; and a large collection of spiral horned antelope. He shared that the spiral horns are a passion of his (he's taken all 9) and that bushbuck might be his favorite animal to hunt, of any African game. A few things I'll never forget from my visit were all the photos of the hunts, as well as his recollection of hunting Black Rhino in the 1950s and 1960s (I don't think he has a single one mounted), and that he once sold a pair of 100 lb+ elephant tusks in Kenya back in the 50s to pay for his safari. Imagine anyone willingly parting with such a grand pair of tusks these days! About Black Rhino, he explained that they were so common in East Africa back in the 50s and 60s as to sometimes be a nuisance when hunting other game. Imagine that! He's done a lot of elephant hunting, and while I don't remember the last elephant he took, it was only a few years ago, and I believe he's still hunting them.

I didn't mean to highjack this thread, but to give a few details on one of the finest, and greatest, african hunters any of us would ever be priviledged to come across. He's a true sportsman, a gentleman, and someone whom I feel very priviledged to call a friend.