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"Unprovoked charges are common."
Are they? I would venture that while they do happen, they are quite rare.

quote:

Originally posted by Steve Richards:
"Unprovoked charges are common."
Are they? I would venture that while they do happen, they are quite rare.

I think that must be a misprint.

If it wasn't, it is totally untrue.

Unless you are an utterly stupid idiot who goes out of his way to set up his cameras to shoot a half dead buffalo to glorify your sorry, worthless self, and your name is The Mark Of A Fart!

Well I think Saeed has expressed his opinion quite clearly, but I must agree that an unprovoked charge is rare. It does happen, but generally when a bull is injured by poachers or lions. Bob Fontana was killed in Simanjiro by a buffalo that charged unprovoked.
Fontana was a close friend of one of my clients and I spoke to Paddy about what happened. It was unprovoked and not preventable, but a very rare event.

The number of times we got into situation where buffalo got very close to us were numerous.

On several occasions we were downwind, and a whole herd feeds towards us.

On one of these a bull got to the other side of the bush we were hiding behind, not more than 2 meters away when he realized we were there.

He took off faster than us!

We have approached wounded buffalo many times, in thick bush, and were able to get very close to them and finish them off before any trouble occurs.

I have personally me individuals who have been hurt by other other wounded animals.

Like impala, bushbuck, wildebeest.

Never met any one wounded by a buffalo.

Hunting IS a dangerous pursuit - normally from other things, not the buffalo you are hunting.

Unless, of course, you are some brainless nitwit trying to shoot a buffalo with a gun you are unable to hit anything with at stone throwing distance!

I've met a couple of PH's that have been properly tossed and injured by buffalo, but thankfully not gored. But in 2012, I hunted in a gari that was owned by a PH that had been seriously gored by a buffalo. It was the client's mistake in all of those instances.

I had a PH in the BVC, Martin Nel, who had been severely injured by a client's wounded buff in Tanzania. If I recall, he spent three weeks (it could have been 3 months rather than 3 weeks-I just don't recall-but it was a lengthy period of time) in hospital after being gored. After I shot my buff, he called his wife Loretta, and told her my buff was down and everyone was safe. He said that he had made that a requirement, and a promise to his wife, after every buffalo hunt.

AND I have never hunted them.

Yet I was charged by one unprovoked at the Amsterdam Zoo buff display Aug '72.

I was standing in front of the pen about 2-3 feet away taking pictures of them.
Guess that was enough to provoke one!

Ran the roll of film out and was standing there replacing it when I heard a thump and snot blew all over me and the camera.
I looked up and a bull was standing just inside the fence shaking his head at me.

Sure was glad that was a strong fence! He'd hit a post: about 3" wide, 6" I beam, posts about 2-3 feet apart with 2" pipe welded thru the centers not much over a foot spacing between the pipes. Unless the post was already bent out 6", that bull did it then. That part I can't say as I never noticed it before.

I had just looked up and hadn't processed what happened yet when a cute blonde local girl asked: "did the American get scared?" She and several others saw it happen, a few came to say something to me about it.

Anyway, IF not for the fence I'd of had my ass run over for sure and not known what happened.

George

quote:

Originally posted by lavaca:
I've met a couple of PH's that have been properly tossed and injured by buffalo, but thankfully not gored. But in 2012, I hunted in a gari that was owned by a PH that had been seriously gored by a buffalo. It was the client's mistake in all of those instances.

Yes it does happen.

But not as often as some would have us believe.

In fact, I am surprised that we have not had any mishaps, despite all the buffalo hunting we do.

And according to some, we do everything wrong.

We follow a buffalo immediately after it is shot, no waiting.

And we followed it wherever it goes.

I have finished some that were almost completely hidden, and only a few feet away.

If they had any inclination to charge, we would not have stood a chance.

But, I use a small caliber, a 375, and put the bullet where it is supposed to go, so generally by the time we get to the buffalo it has no fight left in him.

Compare that with bozos using 500 and bigger, backup by another bozo with en even bigger gun!

Miss.

Wound.

And have a half day chase1

Bloody funny really1

Some should stay home, write silly article others, silly, idiots believe.

And leave the hunting for us

It probably also depends on how cheeky the Buffalo are and how often they have been molested by hunters, poachers, lion etc. Back in the early 1990's I was exploring the Lower Zambezi National Park on the Zambian side in an old series 2 short wheel base Landrover. On the Jeke plain (now the site of the Jeke Airport) a buffalo bull spotted me from a good 500 plus metres away and started charging me. Fortunately the engine was running, and I was side on so I started moving away, and he kept on coming. I ended up drive pretty full speed avoiding antbear and warthog holes for a good couple of miles before he got fed up.

The late Don Heath, writing as Ganyana, wrote some very interesting articles and was intervied in videos about the dangers of dangerous game particularly in Zimbabwe.

The following is worth a watch

https://youtu.be/45LHAIds5n8

My tip would be to know your anatomy and keep that shot under the horizontal halfway line. Most woundings I have come across are because the bullet has gone high, typically in the long grass.

The recent unprovoked charges I know about have occurred when tracking up a herd and there has been the odd Buff wounded by Lion. Otherwise, a rare occurrence especially when you have a couple of keen-eyed trackers around you.

I have heard that the Buffalo of Masaai Land can be really bad-tempered and will often charge on sight.

On a number of occasions, I have shot buffalo that had been wounded previously by others.

Several times we have found bullets in the hump above the shoulder, and these bullets have been of several calibers like 375, 416, and 458.

We always thought these were pass through other animals, rather than direct hits.

quote:

Originally posted by Saeed:

quote:

Originally posted by lavaca:
I've met a couple of PH's that have been properly tossed and injured by buffalo, but thankfully not gored. But in 2012, I hunted in a gari that was owned by a PH that had been seriously gored by a buffalo. It was the client's mistake in all of those instances.

Yes it does happen.

But not as often as some would have us believe.

In fact, I am surprised that we have not had any mishaps, despite all the buffalo hunting we do.

And according to some, we do everything wrong.

We follow a buffalo immediately after it is shot, no waiting.

And we followed it wherever it goes.

I have finished some that were almost completely hidden, and only a few feet away.

If they had any inclination to charge, we would not have stood a chance.

But, I use a small caliber, a 375, and put the bullet where it is supposed to go, so generally by the time we get to the buffalo it has no fight left in him.

Compare that with bozos using 500 and bigger, backup by another bozo with en even bigger gun!

Miss.

Wound.

And have a half day chase1

Bloody funny really1

Some should stay home, write silly article others, silly, idiots believe.

And leave the hunting for us

I'm not offended that you called my article silly. Love writing and enjoy sharing my content and experiences on your site. With your knowledge I'd happily read anything you wrote on hunting buffalo...and I promise not to call you names afterwards.

quote:

Originally posted by Victor Watson:

quote:

Originally posted by Saeed:

quote:

Originally posted by lavaca:
I've met a couple of PH's that have been properly tossed and injured by buffalo, but thankfully not gored. But in 2012, I hunted in a gari that was owned by a PH that had been seriously gored by a buffalo. It was the client's mistake in all of those instances.

Yes it does happen.

But not as often as some would have us believe.

In fact, I am surprised that we have not had any mishaps, despite all the buffalo hunting we do.

And according to some, we do everything wrong.

We follow a buffalo immediately after it is shot, no waiting.

And we followed it wherever it goes.

I have finished some that were almost completely hidden, and only a few feet away.

If they had any inclination to charge, we would not have stood a chance.

But, I use a small caliber, a 375, and put the bullet where it is supposed to go, so generally by the time we get to the buffalo it has no fight left in him.

Compare that with bozos using 500 and bigger, backup by another bozo with en even bigger gun!

Miss.

Wound.

And have a half day chase1

Bloody funny really1

Some should stay home, write silly article others, silly, idiots believe.

And leave the hunting for us

I'm not offended that you called my article silly. Love writing and enjoy sharing my content and experiences on your site. With your knowledge I'd happily read anything you wrote on hunting buffalo...and I promise not to call you names afterwards.

Victor,

You were most certainly not the one I meant.

You wrote an informative article, and I agree with most of what you said apart from the charges bit.

Not in my experience.

The ones I meant are rank idiots, who write hunt reports here to expose their stupidity and the brainless idiots they worship!

Go to the Hunt Reports forum, you will what I mean!

No shame.

No class.

Nothing but self glorification!

And as the old saying goes, birds of a feather always flock together!

Thanks for clearing that up. We all have our personal experiences and tend to skew our opinion towards those events rather than the broader normal situation.

Unprovoked charges probably aren't common among buffalo but we should always believe that that's the case. My mentor, an experienced DG hunter, always told me you can hunt buffalo 50 times like you would hunt any other plains game but on that 51st time it may go pear-shaped and you had better be ready and prepared like you were hunting them for the first time. The point being that complacency and lack of fear is your greatest danger in any DG hunting situation. It certainly has been the case in many of the scenarios I know where hunters or ordinary people have been hurt or killed by buffalo.

Love this forum. I've hunted with a few of you and there's doesn't exist a more informed, well hunted audience in the world. The forum has it's low moments, but boring it never is...

The only unprovoked charges I have seen are on my trophy bill at the end of a hunt...

Jeff

The only unprovoked charge from a buffalo I have experienced was on Mt Kenya before the ban. A bull had been chasing tourists climbing the hill near the Park headquarters. We went to see the Park Warden to see if they would let us take him out. He said no, but told us to go for a drive up the track in the dark and we would see what he was like. We went a couple of hundred yards and a skinny bull charged the Landrover. He chased us back down the hill with his nose a few feet from the back of the truck.
I imagine he had good reason for his aggression.
Even freshly wounded buffalo usually run away but not always.
I hunted buffalo with Wayne Clarke in Tanzania in 2009. A couple of years later he was killed by a buff a client had wounded.
Bunny Allen told me about a buffalo that hospitalised him and I have met other PHs who had to retire due to buffalo injuries.
As Saeed pointed out, there a lot of wounded buffalo out there, particularly in areas subject to poaching. I shot a bull in Cameroon with a front chest full of home-made buckshot. Perhaps the poacher got home safely?
Oh dear, never mind! Who gives a damn anyway?

I don’t have Saeed’s experience but I’m in the same boat that I don’t think buffalo charge a lot unprovoked either.

They can and do do so, but it’s relatively rare.

The comment that any one time they can do so is what I try and live by. I don’t expect I will be charged, but I’m ready if I am (hopefully).

I’d say your risks are a lot higher driving or flying into camp than with the buffalo.

My drive to and from Bongo camp in Cameroon stands out as one of the scariest experiences in my life… including chopper trips in ROTC or stupid stuff drinking in my college days.

Sitting in my home office responding to this, looking at one of my bookshelves where I have a collection of recovered bullets, most of which are mine, but I have an elongated muzzleloader slug recovered from a buffalo's rumen, a muzzleloader round ball recovered from a buffalo's nasal canal, and a poisoned arrow tip recovered from a buffalo's shoulder. All were old wounds, completely healed over, at least from the outside, but the arrow tip was abscessed and really nasty. I'm sure those bulls would have been ill tempered if given the chance. I can only hope the poachers were their first victim.

quote:

Originally posted by Bwana Bunduki:
The only unprovoked charges I have seen are on my trophy bill at the end of a hunt...

Jeff

I have had one of those and wish I had my double at the time

I know a hunter that intentionally pestered a RSA Cape Buff bull to charge him so he could shoot it. He did kill it cleanly. He was hunting alone and without a PH.
He has done a couple more things that I consider risky and one of them on a Texas ranch got him bruised up pretty good - there were witnesses to that one and it made for an interesting dinner story.

The man is an excellent shot with rifle, pistol, muzzle loaders, and bow and arrow. I hope I am never so bored as to take risks like that.
I just remembered that earlier this year he took two Grizzly bear in central Alaska with his archery gear. IMHO, still taking chances.

quote:

Originally posted by crshelton:
I know a hunter that intentionally pestered a RSA Cape Buff bull to charge him so he could shoot it. He did kill it cleanly. He was hunting alone and without a PH.
He has done a couple more things that I consider risky and one of them on a Texas ranch got him bruised up pretty good - there were witnesses to that one and it made for an interesting dinner story.

The man is an excellent shot with rifle, pistol, muzzle loaders, and bow and arrow. I hope I am never so bored as to take risks like that.
I just remembered that earlier this year he took two Grizzly bear in central Alaska with his archery gear. IMHO, still taking chances.

Being stupid and provoking a charge, for the sole purpose of self glorification, is what some deranged idiots do.

There is absolutely no danger from a charge one expects, and ready for.
And these do not happen in a wide open space, with several cameras set up to show how brave you are.

Real charges happen in thickets, where one least expects them.

Have not seen any of that on the video shown by spineless wanna be Hollywood idiots!

You want a tip. DO NOT MISS.

Folks,

I'm not the highest volume African hunt agent but buffalo hunts seem to be the predominant safari that I book. In the years I've been doing this I don't recall a single unprovoked buffalo charge reported by one of my clients. Charges a few but not unprovoked.

Mark

This is the story I posted of the only buffalo charge I’ve experienced in 20+ safaris. It was a decade ago, but it can happen when you least expect it:

Perhaps the most famous quote about the fierceness of Cape buffalo is by Robert Ruark: They look at you as if you owe them money! Well, on September 3, 2009, a dagga boy bill collector decided to call the debt due. He damn well about perfected a body lien on me in the process.

On September 1st , I began a safari for leopard with the incomparable Lou Hallamore as my professional hunter. We were hunting the Deka Safari Area. By earlier agreement, Lou had put up a couple of baits before my arrival and early that first day of hunting, we went to check to see if any cats had found supper.

I was a bit confused when the guys in the back (Alfred and Clements are both brothers and trackers, and Alexander, the game scout) all excitedly signaled for Lou to stop the vehicle only a few minutes out of camp with loud whispers of “Dagga Boy! Dagga Boy!” As usual, Graham Hingston at HHK Safaris had worked out a great plan for my hunt, but we’d never even talked about buffalo, except maybe taking a cow for bait and camp meat.

As the Land Cruiser emptied, I quickly asked Lou why the excitement if male buffalo was not on my ticket. Lou raised up a piece of carpet on the dash put there to dampen noise of binoculars, etc., and pulled out a sheet of paper with my name on it and a list of game I could take. Sure enough, “Buffalo, Male” had a “1” inked in the appropriate square. Graham always does me right!

I was handed down my unscoped “heavy” rifle, a .458 Winchester Magnum built on a CZ military Mauser action. I had a 9.3x74 double, but it was regulated for 232 gr. Norma Vulcan ammo which is certainly not suited for buff (but perfect of a leopard, of course). Not really being prepared for buffalo, the only ammo for the bolt gun that I had was Federal DGS 500 grain solids (intended for a tuskless elephant cow if we saw one). I stuffed three down and one in the spout then hatted up and headed out.

Dang! Before I even got abreast of the front fender of the car, I could see the outline of the buffalo moving slowly in thick jess to my front. I raised my rifle and the bull stepped out into the clear and presented me with a broadside shot at 40 yards. He was magnificent!

Yes, but too magnificent to shoot by just riding up and taking a chip shot. A buffalo like that deserved more. That and including that I just wasn’t mentally prepared to hunt buffalo was enough for me to look over to Lou and shake my head indicating that I didn’t want to shoot.

Lou whispered, “He’s a fine, fine one “, but didn’t encourage a shot at all. The bull slowly squared his shoulders to us and then, after four or five seconds, in which you can bet your bippy I re-raised my rifle, he grunted a short note that could only mean that he thought that we were not really worth his consideration, dropped a derisive turd and loped away at an unhurried, but obviously painful canter.

I immediately had mixed emotions. I felt that I did the right thing in giving the old Nyati the respect due by not shooting so close to the car and with not a bit of sweat raised on my part. Then, how bad was his injury, I wondered? Would the wonderful, old buffalo suffer the ignoble death of being pulled down by hyenas?

I didn’t have to say a word to Lou in explanation. He understood. I then took a deep breath and with a nod to the direction of the animal’s path, “Game on?” Lou smiled, and with a slight chuckle, said, “Let’s go kill a buffalo.”

There are way too many elephants in Deka. Almost universally, all trees have been stripped of higher branches, causing most all vegetation to rise not much higher than six or seven feet. Mopane trees are particularly hard hit. Since they can’t grow up, they send out branches horizontally from the ground, making them more like bushes than trees. One can’t see under them, around them or through them. Often visibility is limited to just a few yards. Into that mess we proceeded with a joy peppered by a not too subtle fear, known only to those who “have been there and done that”. Damn, I love it!

For the next three hours, we followed the old man’s tracks. Finally, we spotted him again when we came down a hill and could see across the valley. From about 200 yards, we saw him top the crest, stop a second and lumber away. Yep. He had a limp, but he seemed to not be as badly hurt as originally thought. I snapped him a salute and we went back to the vehicle, the five of us bonded by the experience.

It was a great way to start the first day of safari. Lou understood that I came to hunt, and not just shoot. As for myself, I learned that this was “my safari”, not one pushed by a P.H. who favored “success” over a quality experience. As for the fellows in the back of the truck, Lou told me later that they approved of their client’s enthusiasm and ethic.

Before we saw the buffalo again, a great deal of good stuff happened that afternoon, the next day and the morning that followed it. I made good shots on some bait impala, killed a beautifully figured Zebra stallion at 200 meters with my little Merkel and took a grande dame of a tuskless cow elephant with the .458. We had a piss-in-your-britches thrill when a big male leopard made claim of the sunrise with throaty growls just a few yards from our blind.

The old dagga boy wasn’t forgotten, but, as we speculated over drinks when we warmed ourselves in the evenings before the fire, the general feeling was that the Nyati’s injury wasn’t really that bad.

I was in the unadulterated bliss of the perfect safari.

That speculation about killed my fat ass.

Early on the morning of the 3rd day, we arose and made our way to the site of the carcass of the elephant I shot the midday before. We had built a blind about 100 yards away on a hillside and at first light that morning, I took a hyena who waited until a lioness and her cubs vacated their breakfast (but more about all that in another post).

We put the hyena in the truck and motored back to a wonderful breakfast of bacon, eggs over-easy, toast and tea. I wasn’t even three full days into my safari and if I never saw another animal, I would have surely have gotten my money’s worth. At nine or so, we saddled up again and went to look at baits for signs of chui.

I don’t know why I put the .458 in the truck.
I already had my elephant and since the initial intercourse with the buffalo, we had seen little to no sign of any buff in the direction we were heading. Mr. Nyati was not one bit on my mind.

We happily bumped along the track out of camp headed for the road that bisects the concession and runs from the railroad into Hwange Park. The bait we wanted to check was in a tree on the north side of that road. At the intersection, we turned west towards the park and as soon as we crested the little bump up from where the camp road meets the Hwange road, the trackers started their finger snaps indicating game seen. Quite reasonably, there is a no hunting strip alongside the road. Lou reversed the Land Cruisers path back onto “legal” hunting grounds and we got out to survey the situation.

It didn’t take me long to learn that the dagga boy of the first day was spotted again and he was slowly walking away from us and into legal hunting grounds. Could life get any better? I shifted gears and loaded up the Win. Mag. again and flipped up the wing safety.

At my age, it doesn’t take much for me to stoop over as in my dotage, I guess I walk like that anyway. I’ll not speak for Lou’s age, but before me, Alfred, Clement and Lou preceded and Alexander followed with his rock-an-roll FN FAL rifle, all of us hunched as low down as our relative age would allow.

Then, I screwed the pooch.

After about 500 yards of slipping along, very professionally, I was squired into a position about 60 yards from the buffalo which was standing motionless in the shade of a rare, still-standing tree. I asked for confirmation, “Facing right? Broadside?” I got a nod of confirmation and raised my rifle. Lou said, “Shoot when you’re ready.” And I did.

Damn! As I began my trigger squeeze, as I was told later, but not recognized by me, the buff took a step and turned his body directly towards us. My old eyes didn’t see it and I shot. The buffalo immediately made a couple of troubled lurches into the jess and was gone.

I shoot pretty well. I knew that the bullet went where I intended it to go. Heck, the buffalo was obviously hit. Didn’t he run like his shoulder was buggered? Then reality set in. Heck, his left leg or shoulder was already hurt. Alfred, who speaks English quite well, convinced me that I had either shot down the buffalo’s left side, missing entirely, or had put a bullet in his paunch as he turned toward me. The former was not good, the latter was horrible.

Lou looked at me with no expression at all. He had watched me make a perfect side-brain on an elephant. I had shot three impala and a Zebra at long range, dead-right-there. I didn’t piss my pants when a female lion had seen me in the hyena blind and started a purposeful walk towards me. I had double tapped the hyena at 100 yards, the second shot made while the animal was flying…. and, now, at close range, I had just probably gut-shot close to a ton of buffalo that was already pissed. It happens sooner or later to us all, but I was pretty darn depressed with myself.

Before we even went to look for sign, Lou handed his .458 Win. Mag. to Alfred and sent Clement back to the Cruiser for his Wilkes .470 double. I didn’t need to be a rocket scientist to figure out what that meant.

No one would talk about what happened as we awaited Clement and the rifle. I had made a mistake that needed to be sorted out and there was no use in rubbing it in. I tried to replay the shot in my mind. My rifle was more than adequate with express sights and a slightly oversized NECG white front bead that I had added just this spring. I tried to will myself to believe that I missed the animal and reconstruct the sight picture upon firing. I thought about what happened again and again. I constructed a willful scenario that I was aiming at the crease of the shoulder and the bullet went there, but since the buffalo had already turned, the “crease” was actually empty space. Damn, I hoped I was right.

We went to the spot where the buffalo was standing (and now I hoped moving) when I fired. No hair, blood or gut matter. A small relief. We picked up the tracks and began to follow. Dang if the buffalo didn’t take the same game trail that he had taken three days before. Very carefully we followed down to the dry river and thank goodness, we found no spoor of a wound. My spirits were much better now.

After a mile or so, we had absolutely no indication of a hit. Both Alfred and Lou assured me that if the buffalo had been injured by my shot, that after a mile, there would be hair, some blood, some stomach matter…. something.

Game Scout and Lou conferred. Both agreed that “no harm, no foul” and no trophy fee would be charged. That relieved me some about the money, but the real relief was that I hadn’t wounded a buffalo to suffer or be someone else’s problem.

Since our trek had paralleled the park road, Lou sent Alfred to go get the truck and the rest of us would call off the hunt and proceed directly to the road which was only a few hundred yards away. Clement walked first, Lou next with me third and Game Scout following me.

Maybe forty yards after we made our right angle and began to walk up the slight incline the 400 yards or so to the road, we entered into really thick Mopane jess where a few taller trees had escaped the elephants' destruction. It was very tight quarters and we were following a narrow game trail in single file.

Ahead of me, I saw Clement and Lou as they progressed down the trail bend down to the left to get below some branches of a tree. I prepared to do the same. Game Scout was about five yards behind me. While we had been tracking the dagga boy, we came across a bit of wire and while we walked back to the road Game Scout was rolling it in his fingers and apparently mumbling bad words about poachers.

So, that is how I found myself when the poop hit the fan. Clement and Lou had their heads down and slightly turned away from straight ahead to avoid branches and thorns as they stooped under the lower foliage. Visibility to their front and right was severely limited. I was still upright, looking not ahead but where I was going, around the left side of the tree and what branches I’d have to avoid. Game Scout was really not in play. We’ve all been in the same situation a million times. It is unavoidable.

They don’t call it “dangerous game hunting” for nothing.

With absolutely not the slightest bit of warning, just seventeen yards in front of me, the bush exploded in sun-dappled violence and multiple shades of gray, black, dirty browns and dusty tans. I saw Clement, still bent at the waist, spin to his left and then scurry backwards on a supporting hand. Lou could see nothing as the tree blocked his view and he was turned to the left somewhat, himself. (He later said that he initially thought Clement had stepped on a snake.)

As for me, I had not the least doubt as to what was happening. A big grey-black hulk was at full-stride coming directly at my body. I remember nothing about how I was holding my rifle, flipping down the safety or raising my gun to my shoulder. It all just happened. I clearly remember stepping forward and to the right to clear the tree instead of getting behind it. Damn Marine in me, I guess? You know, Semper Fi and attack the ambush, don’t run from it.

Burned in my memory is that beautiful, over-sized white front bead appearing in the shallow “V” of the rear sight. Boss and horns covering the brain was my instant realization as the buffalo was swinging his head in what I can only guess was his practice hook before sinking a horn in my belly.

It was absolutely slow motion. I forced the bead down into the chest and fired. The buffalo was at 12 steps (which I wobbly walked later). The 500 grain Hornady DGS hit the heart and the buffalo staggered and turned slightly to my right with the impact. I'm not sure if I ever took my rifle from my shoulder to work the bolt, but I know that the second shot was almost instantaneous with the first and about 3” higher.

By now, the buffalo was closer than before, but would pass by me and towards Game Scout if he continued his new path. I fired again into his quartering-towards-me shoulder. I think he might have gotten powder burns. I had no thought of trying to brain him as what I was doing seemed to be working fine.

Upon impact of the third shot, a huge shutter coursed the bull from head to toe. Humped up now and turned some more, he passed Game Scout who, by now had his FN in battery and was raising it to shoot. As I worked the bolt of my Mauser for a forth shot, Lou, now not hindered by the tree and able to shoot since the buff had cleared me, fired his .470 into the buffalo’s right hip, shattering it and putting the Bill Collector on the ground.

From start to finish, I’ll bet that four seconds didn’t pass. I know that the buffalo never was more than 20 yards from us from charge to demise. Teddy Roosevelt called his leading the Rough Riders up Kettle and San Juan Hills as “My crowded hour”. Well, I damn well had my crowded little "moment" myself.

Of course, we all wanted to see if I had hit the buffalo earlier that morning. I had not. Obvious from the pictures, some idiot had snared the buffalo and the cable had become imbedded in his leg, just above his hoof. Apparently, constantly in pain and pissed at the world, when we got to twenty yards, he decided that enough was enough and he was going to get some satisfaction.

He nearly succeeded.

And I loved every single of the four seconds in which the debt was called due.

Great story Judge.

Saeed a question for you.

I have a copy of a video I found somewhere and saved, of what seems like an unprovoked unexpected buffalo charge. I am sure it is a video from one of your safaris of one of your friends or guests as he is carrying what looks very much like one of your 375/404's (has fluted barrel and patchy worn stock with Leupold scope).

The PH and the hunter are walking along approaching some bush when a buffalo comes charging through the bush and after the first two shots from the PH and the hunter while the buff is still in the bush the buff keeps coming out into the clear where both shoot again dropping the buff within a few meters of them. The PH has trouble ejecting the cases from his rifle and has to quickly remove them by hand. The hunter says to the PH when it is all over "awe good shot, good shot". Was this one of your friends or guests on your safari? A good video showing how quickly things happen when an unexpected charge occurs.

My granddaughter has watched this video from when she was about 3yo and loves it, especially the awe good shot, good shot and the antics of the trackers who were excitedly back slapping, shaking hands, and doing a little re-enactment of the shooting.

I am sure it is not ours.

Only time I remember of a buffalo charge was one wounded by one of my friends.

And the PH put an end to it.

No drama at all.

True professional, shot it to death, without giving it a choice of how to die!

Masailand buffalo have a reputation of providing unexpected and unwarranted charges which I believe has become a genetic factor.

Why? .... Because they live in an area known for scarcity of water at the best of times and having to share these limited water sources with Masai livestock which is herded during daylight hours thus making it impossible for them to get their fill.

Most of the game in these areas can therefore only access these watering spots during the night and have to bear the brunt of the ever present and prowling predators.

The poor buffalo therefore find themselves between a rock and a hard place and it is of no wonder that they have a permanent bug up their asses.

quote:

Originally posted by fulvio:
Masailand buffalo have a reputation of providing unexpected and unwarranted charges which I believe has become a genetic factor.

Why? .... Because they live in an area known for scarcity of water at the best of times and having to share these limited water sources with Masai livestock which is herded during daylight hours thus making it impossible for them to get their fill.

Most of the game in these areas can therefore only access these watering spots during the night and have to bear the brunt of the ever present and prowling predators.

The poor buffalo therefore find themselves between a rock and a hard place and it is of no wonder that they have a permanent bug up their asses.

NINJAS!

I have hunted Masailand several years, shot a lot of buffalo, and frankly, I did not notice any difference in their behavior at all.

Saeed- The only African hunts I get to go on are via your postings, which I enjoy each and every hunt. How many buffalo would you estimate that you have killed?

Never kept track I am afraid!

Shot 11 last year.

quote:

Originally posted by Saeed:
I am sure it is not ours.

Only time I remember of a buffalo charge was one wounded by one of my friends.

And the PH put an end to it.

No drama at all.

True professional, shot it to death, without giving it a choice of how to die!

This snapshot from the start of the video may jog your memory, after the buff was down the hunter was very keen on finding his first fired case as if he needed then all for you to reload. Rifle looks like yours but maybe nothing to do with your safaris. Very good no bullshit video nonetheless who ever starred in it.

Fulvio,

Clearly the buffalo in Masailand have to dodge humans much more than in the Selous or southern Tanzania and there is conflict. My limited experience is consistent with what you stated in that in certain places the buffalo come to water at night and then retreat into the mountains before daylight where you have to chase them.

The last bull I shot in Masailand had what was a poisoned arrowhead imbedded in his shoulder. It's rather small and appears to have been forged from a nail. Approximately 3" long with a barbed tip approximately 1/2" in diameter. Wish I knew how to send pictures.


The external wound was totally healed over, but the internal damage was simply nasty. I killed that bull at some distance, but I wouldn't blame him if was less than keen on peaceable human interaction.

quote:

Originally posted by eagle27:

quote:

Originally posted by Saeed:
I am sure it is not ours.

Only time I remember of a buffalo charge was one wounded by one of my friends.

And the PH put an end to it.

No drama at all.

True professional, shot it to death, without giving it a choice of how to die!

This snapshot from the start of the video may jog your memory, after the buff was down the hunter was very keen on finding his first fired case as if he needed then all for you to reload. Rifle looks like yours but maybe nothing to do with your safaris. Very good no bullshit video nonetheless who ever starred in it.

Yes.

This is the one I was talking about too.

That is my friend Nelson, and his PH is Dean.

Dean did not waste time dispatching the buffalo.

A true gentleman and a real professional hunter.

Hunted with him several times.

A great no bullshit sort of man.

quote:

and his PH is Dean.

Yes, Dean Kendall. Definitely one of the best.

Dean was pretty cool, calm and collected when having to pull the non ejected case out of his rifle by hand before feeding another round in and dispatching the buff. All this while the buff approaches on a full on running charge. Hope he got his Mauser fixed after that.
Nelson acquitted himself well too, stood his ground and got in two shots, not sure how effective they were though.

quote:

Originally posted by Use Enough Gun:

quote:

and his PH is Dean.

Yes, Dean Kendall. Definitely one of the best.

As a professional hunter should be, and we should all be proud of him.

In comparison, imagine a spineless, self serving, unprofessional idiot.

Who makes sure his client hides away, sets up several video cameras, and talk to the half dead buffalo "I KNOW you the Most DANGEROUS animal in the whole of Africa. You have a reputation of being called THE BLACK DEATH1 Well, you have met your match here. I am the world famous professional Mark Sullivan, known the world over as the Mark of Death. Now, decide how you would like to die! Right here I have this double rifle, it is a Six Hundred Nitro Express. The BIGGEST rifle in the world, and as I am the most FAMOUS professional hunter Africa has ever know, I am using no other than the biggest"

"BRRR! BRRR! FART!"

"What the hell was THAT?"

"It is your best friend, who loves Big Guns. He is scared shitless, and farting!!