My wife and I will be in Tanzania during the last few weeks of September and as you can imagine there is much to plan, especially regarding what to take.

One of the things I'm confused about is clothing. I understand that temperatures average 29C in the Selous region at this time. Is this accurate? What about humidity? What clothing is appropriate for hunting buffalo in this region? Shorts or long trousers? Same for shirt sleeves?

My instinct is to go for shorts and short sleeves, but I'm concerned about exposure to tsetse flies. If you've hunted there at about that time of year, what worked for you and why?

Long pants and long sleeve shirts in Khaki color only...The Tetsi fly is in abundance and will eat you alive in shorts and short sleeves..I wear jeans as they are thicker and a pair of 8" snow gaitors to keep them from crawling up your pants, that can really get exciting....Remember that green or dark colors attract tetsis...take lots of Johnsons Skintastic and apply it every couple of hours...You can always toss in a couple of pair of shorts and some short sleeve shirts, but I doubt that you will be wearing them much..PH's and locals are immune to tetsis or they are just dumb, not sure which..

Tetsi fly populations have a lot to do with the amount of burn you have early, but mostly they will be there to greet you...

He is talking about the amount of grass that has been burned off by the time you get there. The more grass that has been burned the fewer flies and the more game you will see.

Ray,

Which shade of Khaki do you recommend? The lighter "American" shade or the darker "British"?

The Khaki I've seen and used here at home seems to glow in the bright sun - looking almost white. Is that not a problem while hunting?

Les

Always go for the darker shade. I call it Olive or dark green. Light khaki is similar to wearing a white shirt

Spie, Sptember is going to be very hot in the Selous. Shorts and short sleeve might come in handy in camp in the evening so throw a couple in the bag. As others have posted, the area should have been burned properly in early July as there were not much rains this year and the burning will take place earlier; this can reduce the amount of tse tse especially if there are other parts which have not burned and that is where they will concentrate. I refer to these as "pockets". The good news is that that is where the game will be Game and tse tse go together like pizza and cheese

You will grow to love 'em!

I have a Tilley that I bought last Oct. I like it! If you register the hat when you buy it, then they will replace it at no charge should you tear it up or loose it.

At various times I've used the Tilley T3 (khaki), various "bucket" hats, and baseball caps.

The baseball caps can be better in thick bush because there is no side brim to catch on things but they also give no shade to your ears and neck.

The Tilley T3 has all the good qualities mentioned above except mine does not look as nice as other folks claim. Or maybe it's the person wearing it.....
It's size makes it difficult to pack unless you organize the entire suitcase around it or accept the "smashed" look that I have.

The bucket hats are a nice compromise between the two. If I were planning on hours in the blazing sun, I'd bring the Tilley. If not, I'd probably bring a GI "boonie" bucket hat in Olive.

This thread sounds like a bloody fashion show! and some who have been to Africa, but not to the Selous or Tanzania are handing out advise and what works in Zim or RSA may not be so hot in the Selous...A lot of Tanzania depends on exactly where you are as to how to deal with Tetsi flies. The Masai only has Mopani flies for instance.

One thing that is a given and that is Tetsis are drawn to dark colors like olive, dark brown, black etc..

As to the sun protection for goodness sakes it just like anywhere else...

My recomendation is regular cheap cotton Khaki shirts and pants that you can get at the Hardware store in any farm community or Levi type pants...Baseball caps and a good supply of Johnsons skintastic (amazingly its better than deet for the Tetsis BTW) some sun screen if you need it..A good pair of hiking boots that are well broke in and your set..but you won't look like a internet model, thats for sure..

Most look like a refugee from Cabellas when the show up at camp in Africa with high dollar clothing thats still crisp and stiff..But hey Ive worn out a Cabellas catalog or two myself...I suppose its part of the game we play..I have toned my purchases down considerably except for the olive Safari shirts that I was given by a poster on this very forum, which I thought was a nice jesture..

One more thing that I would make book on and that is your tracker in his orange/Red and floresent pink shirt, can probably get closer to a buff/Lion or whatever than you can with camoflage from head to toe, a gallon of Lion piss scent protection, and a gilley suit....