I can hardly believe it's nearly time, but in 7 days my wife and I will be en-route to Tanzania.

The next day we'll fly into Alan Vincent's camp in the Selous and from that point on will do our best to have a successful hunt and to soak up the beauty of wild Africa.

I'm taking 2 rifles. I hope to take a good Elephant, 2 Buffalo and a Hippo with my Holland & Holland Royal double rifle in .500NE. For the plainsgame and as a backup to the double I'm bringing my Heym .416 Rigby. The foam is cut in my Peli 1750 and they fit a treat.

I'm so excited. Can I say that again? I'M SO EXCITED!

Wish me luck guys

Safe travels and happy hunting Going to Selous with a H&H double gives me goose bumps Looking forward to the report with an enormous amount of pictures

have a safe trip

Have a great trip! Looking forward to reading your report!

Enjoy!!!

Good hunting... have to admit to being a tad jealous!

Wow! Sounds like an awesome trip. Hopefully followed by a detailed hunt report?
Best of luck.
JCHB

Have a great trip my friend. Wishing you all the best!

Mark,

Best of luck.

Mark

Best of luck...sound awesome...

You da man!!!

Man oh man, with those guns and that list of game, you should be sailing out of New York harbor. Talk about a classic adventure. Have a great time and good luck.

Good luck and be safe. Great area to hunt.

quote:

Originally posted by bwanamrm:
Good hunting... have to admit to being a tad jealous!

Uh huh.

Hey, good luck!

I'm sure you'll have a great time and I am REALLY Really jealous.

Best wishes for a great safari in the Selous. Beware of the Tsetse fly, for they are endemic in various parts of the Selous.

Best of luck on your safari.

You picked one of the best PH operating in Tanzania!

Go well.

Thank you all for the kind wishes.

The first-hand experiences of AR's forum members have been invaluable, in terms of destination and preparation.

However, the most important decision for me was choice of PH and thanks to Saeed and his DVDs it was very clear to me that Alan Vincent was a true professional. Meeting him at the SCI convention in Reno this January only served to confirm that fact.

I simply cannot contain my excitement right now. This is my first safari, and I promise you when I return I will share as much of it as possible via my hunt report.

Did I say I was excited?

wow, first safari. You are doing it in style.

Safe journey and lots of pics.


Dutch

Adventure awaits, savor every minute and have a great time!

Maximus:

Your screen name is appropriate. What an incredible first safari in the Selous. It doesn't sound like you are schlepping any "that ought to handle it" rifles on this monumentous trip. And, you are taking your wife. Incredible. It will be a memory for both of you for life. I'm green with envy.

Speaking of green, tell your wife she should not take any personal offense to small frogs in the shower. It's best if you just nudge them out of the way and give them a name. Mine's name was Fred.

Best of luck!

It's great that you and your wife are both going on this trip. And it's especially great that she must want to go. If she did not experience this with you, she could never truly understand or appreciate it. You could never adequately describe or explain it.

A safari, especially a 21 day safari in the Selous, is something to be savored and shared.

Again, best of luck!

quote:

Originally posted by lavaca:
......
Speaking of green, tell your wife she should not take any personal offense to small frogs in the shower. It's best if you just nudge them out of the way and give them a name. Mine's name was Fred.

Sounds like your last shower area was not 'en suite'.
However, let the toads remain as they do a good job sorting out bugs that come to the watering hole - rather keep a lookout for scorpions that also visit this spot for moisture.
I had an unpleasant introduction to one and had there been a resident toad I may not have been whacked.

Mark,

I can’t believe it is already that time my friend! Pat is writing Claire as I am typing this forum post. They have been chatting a lot lately. Pat is providing a “little” info for the trip. It is beginning to look like an outline for a thesis at this point in time. Wishing you both a safe and excitement filled adventure! If you need me to baby sit my Switzerland based car just let me know. :0)

Cheers,
Shawn

My wife has been on safari with me several times in Zimbabwe, and she loved every minute of it.

If I may suggest something to your wife, although I am sure both of you this already.

Tell her it is going to be in the wilds of Africa, where one comes across every conceivable wild creature in their daily ventures.

It is not difficult to avoid the really dangerous ones like snakes and scorpions.

But tse tse flies are going to be part of your daily lives. The best way to lessen their effect is to use repellent, and wear long sleeves and trousers.

Most of all, enjoy your time there, as it is going to be a life time memory.

There will be lots of ups and downs, especially in hunting.

Bear in kind this is a hunt for wild animals - they have no idea they have been included in the activity plans.

Funny enough, some of the most hilarious moments I remember are the ones that did not actually that did not work out as planned.

In just over two months we will be in that camp with Alan, and we cannot wait.

Saeed has given you good advice but let me add the suggestion of tucking the long trousers into highish boots so the tsetse flies can't fly up the trouser legs.

We have Permethrin for our clothes and Skin So Soft for our bodies. Long sleeves and long trousers although depending on conditions we have short versions of both.

Sounds like the Tsetse issue is quite something. I"ll see if I can bag me a gold medal

You couldn't have picked a more grand way to start out on your safari hunting career. Your trip reminds me of my own first safari, which was a 24 day hunt with Alan's father back in 1983. Alan was a young boy of 10 at that time, and he and his sister Diana were in camp with us the entire time. He has literally grown up in the safari industry, and 'the apple hasn't fallen far from the tree' in his case. He's an excellent PH, and he has a great area. You're in for the trip of a lifetime.

Be sure to take tons of photos, more than you think you should. Hopefully the lovely and gracious Simone (Alan's new wife) will be in camp, which would be great for your wife. Best of luck and safe travels.

Good luck and enjoy!

quote:

Originally posted by Saeed:
My wife has been on safari with me several times in Zimbabwe, and she loved every minute of it.

If I may suggest something to your wife, although I am sure both of you this already.

Tell her it is going to be in the wilds of Africa, where one comes across every conceivable wild creature in their daily ventures.

It is not difficult to avoid the really dangerous ones like snakes and scorpions.

But tse tse flies are going to be part of your daily lives. The best way to lessen their effect is to use repellent, and wear long sleeves and trousers.

Most of all, enjoy your time there, as it is going to be a life time memory.

There will be lots of ups and downs, especially in hunting.

Bear in kind this is a hunt for wild animals - they have no idea they have been included in the activity plans.

Funny enough, some of the most hilarious moments I remember are the ones that did not actually that did not work out as planned.

In just over two months we will be in that camp with Alan, and we cannot wait.

We can't wait either.

quote:

Originally posted by Saeed:
Best of luck on your safari.

You picked one of the best PH operating in Tanzania!

+1

Maximus- Best of luck on a great adventure! Last year about this same time, my wife and I made our first trek to Africa and (like you two) our destination was also the Selous. It sounds like you're well prepared and I'm sure you'll enjoy your safari as much as we did. As others have mentioned, seeing a bit of nature around your tent and bathing facilities isn't unusual. My wife thought the little frogs or toads in the bathroom were kinda cute, but she was terrified we'd find a snake in our tent. Nothing of the sort occurred and I'm sure those kinds of things are quite rare.

I'm not particularly fearful of snakes, but I did learn to pay attention where I stepped as there was a lot of leaf litter on the myombo forest floor, puff adders do blend in, and they aren't as inclined to get out of your way as cobras and mambas. Trust your trackers and PH to keep a close eye out for you, but also use common sense and watch where you step (we are after all responsible for our own safety).

In any case, I'm sure you'll have a great time and be sure to take plenty of pics. You'll treasure them always and your friends here at AR would love to see them with your report when you return! Best of luck for a successful hunt!

Best of luck for a wonderful safari. I am leaving for my 5th trip next week, but am taking a very good friend along on his first. The chance to see everything thru his eyes and listen to his descriptions and questions is a plus for me, all over again. Good hunting and enjoy the trip.

Thanks for the kind wishes guys

Well it feels like it's really happening now we have started packing. Guns are cleaned, lubricated and in the case

(Excuse the iPhone picture quality)

Cant go wrong with that battery..Good luck and have lovely trip!

Some fine rifles there Mark! A 500NE matched with a 416 Rigby! What more could a man ask for on Safari!! Vastly superior to the more common and mundane 470NE matched with a 375 H&H!

You're doing it in style my friend!!

Thanks Todd

The hardest thing so far has been keeping the ammo under the 5KG limit. This is what I have decided on.

40 x .416 350gr TSX
5 x .416 400gr Solids
25 x .500 570gr TSX
10 x .500 570gr DGS

All handloads except for the DGS.

That little lot weighs 4.905KG in ammunition packaging. I don't fancy pushing it any closer to the limit and in any case doing so would only give me another single .500 round.

Seems sufficient to me to kill a whole lot of animals. I don't think I could get so many rounds under the 5kg limit, bravo!