Can anyone recommend a specific portable, battery operated fan than I can use in a chalet in Zim this Oct/Nov? How about a web site that sells them?

Scott, saw some in Walmart camping area they took 8 Dcell batteries...

Mike

Mike
I bought one of them for my wife to use in her pig blind in the Texas summer.

They are not worth the money, much less the trouble to take to Zim.

I have hunted Zim in Oct/Nov.

Did not seem hot to me.... But I am from Texas...

Where it does get AFRICA HOT.

SBT, check with your PH, your Chalet probably has a ceiling fan.

SBT

Here are some hints for sleeping in very hot weather.

Take a cool shower just before getting in bed.

Drink some COOL water just before bed. Very cold water will leave you thirsty.

Place a cool, wet cloth on your forehead.

Slightly wet your top sheet.

Or just COWBOY UP, and understand you do not hunt cape buff and elephants in the snow.

quote:

Or just COWBOY UP, and understand you do not hunt cape buff and elephants in the snow. rotflmo

Until we bring back the mammoth and auroch!

I could hunt the mammoth and auroch on snowmobile, no problem.

Would not be the first time I have hunted with a double rifle in the snow.

Very simple. Move where I am with just about every day breaking 100. get an outside job for a month before you leave for Zim. Go to Zim in November but make sure you take a jacket because you're gonna get cold

Zim in Nov is what we here in Tucson compare to what's called "winter" in these parts!!!

Mammoths with a DR?? Now that'd be fun!

quote:

Or just COWBOY UP, and understand you do not hunt cape buff and elephants in the snow.

That's language I understand!

quote:

Originally posted by SBT:

quote:

Or just COWBOY UP, and understand you do not hunt cape buff and elephants in the snow.

That's language I understand!

True story.

My Ph invited me to come back at the end of season, in Oct Nov, and bring my wife. Offered me a good deal on the hunt. He "warned me" that it would be hot.

So we are there, and one day early in the trip he apologises for the heat...

I say heat?? This ain't hot I am from Texas...

Really, I did not find it to be uncomfortable at all.

Want to talk about uncomfortable... Ask the PH what he thinks about hunting wild pigs in Texas, in Jan. in the snow and ice.

From my experience, Zim especially in the valley is like an oven!! It gets pretty nasty trying to sleep with the excessive humidity. My advice is to buy the fan instead of being 'hard'!

We hunted 5 consecutive years out of Chete in the middle of the summer.

Some nights were so obressively hot we could not sleep at all. We had to jump in the pool, then go back to bed soaking wet.

Some nights I would get my night binoculars and look at all the animals visiting our camp.

One sure way of beating this is......

Walk for miles and miles and miles during the heat of the day.

By night time I was barely able to ealk from the dinner table to my bed. And as soon as I was there I was gone!

W alter had a fan with a re-chargeable battery. Vey heavy, but he swore by it.

Of course it depends on where in Zim you are. Down in the valley it is one hot mother in late October, as late as I have been there. And they say it just gets worse in Nov and Dec. Too hot for me.

It is not that it is so hot during the day but it stays hot all night. Hmmmm ..... sweating all night in bed, as the hyenas are laughing and the hippos are grunting. Memorable.

How about West Nick at that time?

I have hunted in the Valley and also in Makuti, on the escarpment, in November.

It can be unpleasantly hot mid day, but it is what it is and there are advantages. If your on tracks as noon approaches you know that you are catching that elephant and he is laying up in the shade. If you need to find tracks you know where the water is concentrated and can run a route checking water. You can find a vantage point and glass under every shade tree...

I almost always slept under a blanket, or ended under one by morning. Nothing like five, six or seven hours of walking to put you to sleep.

One thing to keep in mind is that staying hydrated in Nov in the Valley, or even Makuti, is constant work. You need to drink before sleep and even in the middle of the night. Start the morning with a bottle and keep on it. Monitor the color of your urine to make sure it is pale and not deep yellow. This is when it pays to watch the tracker load water to ensure there will be enough.

JPK

JPK,

Tell me more about Makuti in late October and early November. I leave October 16 for two weeks in Makuti and then in Nyamuswa. I worry less about the heat in the day -- I live and run in Houston. I worry about being able to sleep at night.

A friend of ours took two of the walmart fans to the selous 2 yrs ago in late october. He let me use one and it was really great, if a little bulky and took quite a few batteries.(heavy) I was thankful and continue to believe it to be worth the trouble. JMO

Good luck!

Scott,

Do a google search for portable fans. Wal-Mart comes up with Porta Breeze and several models. I recommend you get something as we were just north of Malapati in early October and it was cooling down to 90-95 degrees after sunset. We had fans and could sleep nicely by stripping down to our birthday suits and lying on top of the covers.

Mark

quote:

Originally posted by MJines:
JPK,

Tell me more about Makuti in late October and early November. I leave October 16 for two weeks in Makuti and then in Nyamuswa. I worry less about the heat in the day -- I live and run in Houston. I worry about being able to sleep at night.

First off, I hope you have at least one trophy bull quota! While Makuti isn't know for big bulls, I believe that late season might produce an opportunity for a good bull.

I killed one that went ~39lbs, iirc, but he was the thrid biggest bull we saw. Another hunter killed the second largest and, iirc, he went 44lbs. The largest we saw was significantly bigger than the second largest.

There was an area we were not permitted to hunt where the second and largest bull were seen. Then the local warden allowed us to hunt in that area and for me and the other hunter to take one bull each from there. We'd seen the large one and kept looking for him, never to see him again. Against the PH's advice, I passed on the #2 bull in hopes of the #1 bull... OOPS! I had two on quota, the one I killed was in the unrestricted area. We kept at it but never saw the big boy again.

You know the terrain, so I'll stick with the weather. I was there later than you by about two or three weeks and had been hunting in Chewore South before heading to Makuti, so was a bit aclimitized. Hot, but not uncomfortable mid day on the north/west side of the road to Harare, the side Buzz's and Myles's camp is on. Near the "edge" the wind is coming up from the Valley floor and it is a very hot breeze, but pretty well limited to near the "edge" of the escarpment and tollerable, not uncomfortable.

More uncomfortable, with lots of testses, in the lower area south and west of town on the other side of the Harare-Chirundu road.

On the west side of the Kariba road, as you cross the ridge line a couple of miles south/west of towm, on the right heading south toward Kariba it became quickly but progressively hotter and more humid until it was uncomfortably hot. Here it was uncomfortable from maybe 10:00 or 11:00 until late afternoon.

One the east side of the Kariba road, it was similar but there was a more vegetation and it was just enough cooler to notice and appreciate. Still, as you head toward Kariba, it became more and more humid and hotter.

The valley before the last ridgeline before descending to Kariba was screaming hot, but we hunted it some. Tollerable, but not comfortable. Might have been more tollerable if we'd been on tracks, with some anticipation.

Much of the area toward Kariba on the west side of the road was burned bare, and I mean bare. The ground was a red color and the heat reflecting up was what made it uncomfortable. With some vegetation, I think it would have been more comfortable.

We had scattered light showers most afternoons. You could hear and see some really intense thunderstorms coming up from Kariba, but most petered out before reaching the Harare-Chirundu road. It was the left overs that produced the scattered showers near the road, only an infrequent down pour.

The place got greener and greener as we hunted.

Evenings were warm, but not hot. Hitting the hay was welcome, as always after a long day, and the days are longer at that time of year. Started with a sheet, ended up with a blanket too.

The rain brought out some bugs at night. I used a lot of "Raid" in my tent before hitting it. I understand that the tents have been improved.

Hope this helps. If you have any Q's, shoot me a PM.

JPK

EDIT: Make sure you bring a vented hat or you will think your grape is cooking in an unvented cap.

Also, bring a good spotting scope. The terrain and late season vegetation, along with the mid day heat, favor finding a cool, shady overlook and using top optics.

Scot,

Try here.
http://www.campmor.com/outdoor...=&searchKeywords=fan

Keith

JPK,

Thanks for the detailed report. Sounds like it should be bearable. No bull on quota in Makuti unless someone gets skunked or cancels. We are planning to hunt a bull in Nyamuswa. There is a 70 pound one tusker that we saw the night we shot my leopard in Nyamuswa that Buzz has seen for several years. It would be fun to chase him around.

Funny you mentioned the red earth. We chased a bull one day on the edge of the escarpment over that same terrain. You are right it seems to radiate the heat. Looks almost like you are in Oklahoma, but it is really hard pan soil.

Two years ago I took a spotting scope and left that as part of the tip. Pretty sure Buzz is still using it. I will leave the long distance spotting to him. Not planning to lug another spotting scope over.

Thanks everyone. Unless there are other suggestions, I think I'll buy one of the ones Keith referred me to: http://www.campmor.com/outdoor/gear/Product___65501

I appreciate it Keith!

quote:

Originally posted by MJines:
JPK,

Thanks for the detailed report. Sounds like it should be bearable. No bull on quota in Makuti unless someone gets skunked or cancels. We are planning to hunt a bull in Nyamuswa. There is a 70 pound one tusker that we saw the night we shot my leopard in Nyamuswa that Buzz has seen for several years. It would be fun to chase him around.

Funny you mentioned the red earth. We chased a bull one day on the edge of the escarpment over that same terrain. You are right it seems to radiate the heat. Looks almost like you are in Oklahoma, but it is really hard pan soil.

Two years ago I took a spotting scope and left that as part of the tip. Pretty sure Buzz is still using it. I will leave the long distance spotting to him. Not planning to lug another spotting scope over.

So long as Buzz has a spotting scope, all is good. But I'd make sure.

For a bull quota, you ought to check the other outfitter who shares Makuti. I picked up the second quota while I was in Makuti, at no cost unless we were successful.

We saw a huge number of bulls. Funny but most were along the Harare-Chirundu road, despite the hikes to vantage points throughout the concession. Some also toward Kariba, but none in the bare burned areas.

Good luck!

JPK

quote:

Originally posted by Adrian Parham:
A friend of ours took two of the walmart fans to the selous 2 yrs ago in late october. He let me use one and it was really great, if a little bulky and took quite a few batteries.(heavy) I was thankful and continue to believe it to be worth the trouble. JMO

Good luck!

8 D batteries has got to weigh about 2 lbs and if you need 3 sets(highly probable), that is a significant amount of weight including the fan. not worth it to me. hunted last year on the Zambezi flood plain 10-12 miles from the Indian Ocean- high humidity but no ocean breeze- in late Oct. plenty hot until about 11 PM., then comfortable the rest of the night. just stay out at the campfire drinking until later than usual and all will be OK- one way or another!!