Just curious. Has anyone stumbled onto wounded buffalo, elephant, lion or leopard in the field that they had not previously shot. It seems that would be the most dangerous, unexpected, scenario; tracking/hunting a DG and walking into a wounded, mad MF by accident.

Kensco

Here is an excerpt from a story I wrote entitled 'Back in the Thick of it'.


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In retrospect, the incident with the buffalo cow seems as if it was a curtain raiser for the main event, which takes place a few days later and involves Ed and Rich. After checking their baits one morning, the leopard hunters decide to walk a stretch of the Mkanga River and look for a kudu or bushbuck. The chosen stretch of river gouges its way crudely through the rugged Muveya Hills, and it is known it to be a preferred 'dagga boy' haunt. The men walk off in single file, with Rich leading the way and Ed second in line. Bringing up the rear are the Parks game scout, Zambezi, and Rich's number two tracker, Oriah. Tawengwa, the number one tracker, has driven off in the cruiser to meet the hunters at a predetermined point downstream.
The walk has hardly begun when all hell breaks loose. The hunters come to a sharp bend in the river, passing by a jumbled collection of large boulders at the base of a sandstone cliff-bank. Rounding the water-worn boulders with rifle slung, Rich comes face to face with a buffalo bull, no more than five yards from him. Rich instinctively takes a couple of steps backwards, unslinging his rifle and ordering those behind to retreat. The buffalo glares at the men for two misleadingly protracted seconds, and then it comes boiling from behind the boulders, mayhem on its mind.
Backpedaling at pace, readying himself to shoot and keeping his eyes on the bull at the same time, Ed overbalances and falls over. Ed falls directly in the charging bull's path and it bears down on him, killing rage in its furious eyes and mind. Two rapid shots from Rich's .470 Krieghof slam into the enraged bull and it turns at the last second, pounding hooves missing Ed by inches. The bull surges across the sand and into the thick riverine beyond, receiving a raking from Zambezi's AK 47 as it goes.
The unprovoked attack leaves the hunters shaken. Facing any buffalo charge is a frightening experience, let alone a totally unexpected one. Of course, the question on everyone's lips is what caused the bull to charge. But the answer to that question can wait – the main concern is following up and killing the wounded bull, before it kills a human. The men consolidate, smoking a couple of cigarettes and pondering their predicament – they know what has to be done. After about fifteen minutes, Rich calls time and rifles are double-checked. With Ed at his shoulder, Rich leads the way into the jesse. The hunters move forward, step by painstaking step, eyes sweeping the surrounding bush and senses screaming at full throttle.
Oriah stays on the blood and hangs back, whilst Rich, Ed and Zambezi stalk ahead and scan the bush for irregularity – shadow where shadow shouldn’t be, a flicker of movement.... Though it seems an eternity, no more than ten minutes have passed, no more than forty yards covered, when Oriah snaps his fingers. The men freeze and turn to the young tracker, who is gesturing at a clump of underbrush off to the right. Rich turns back and the bull breaks, hooves pounding the earth and crashing through the ten yards of brush that separate it from the focus of its intent.
Rich unleashes both barrels into the bull once again, the first at about four yards and the second at exactly zero yards. The bull comes on and Rich spins from its flight path, already reloading. With Rich out of his line of fire, Ed is able to pull off one hasty shot, as he leaps to the side. The bull is beginning to feel the effects of the heavy caliber punishment and it staggers briefly, before blundering straight over Ed, heavy hooves hammering into his legs and torso. Out of control now, the bull careers into Zambezi and sends him flying, before its front legs give way completely and it nosedives into the ground. Floundering on its side and flailing for purchase, the bull flips over, regaining its feet and spinning around in search of another target. Ed is on his feet and reloaded, and he manages to bury another round in the bull before it is onto him again. Using his rifle as a block, Ed is bowled head over heals into the dust; the rifle hooked from his hands and sent cartwheeling into the air. Rich has been waiting for a clear line of fire and now he sees it. The .470 bellows and the bull sinks to its knees. Rich strides in closer and ends the affair with a single shot.

It is an absolute miracle that nobody is seriously injured. Although there are sure to be bruises aplenty, and possibly a couple of cracked ribs, both Ed and Zambezi are in one piece. Who ever hears of someone being run over by a buffalo and escaping unscathed? It just doesn’t happen. But it happened to Ed Peters and Zambezi the game scout, and Ed was bowled over not once, but twice! If Ed didn’t believe in guardian angels before the encounter with the bull, he surely believes in them now. Upon closer inspection, it is found that the reason for the bull's aggression is a ripped and festering scrotal wound. It is difficult to determine the cause of the wound, as the animal is otherwise unmarked.
Tim and Pete arrive on the scene about an hour later, after receiving a garbled radio message from a shell-shocked Oriah. Oriah reported that a buffalo had trampled Ed and Zambezi, and that they were seriously injured. Knowing only to well what happens to men who are trampled by buffalo, Tim and Pete were fearing the worst and drove the length of Chewore South over extremely rough roads at breakneck speed. They are astounded and extremely relieved to find their friends unhurt. Later that night, a great deal of talk takes place over a generous quantity of scotch. Before dawn the next morning, when only the faintest traces of pink smudge the eastern horizon, the hunters leave camp. Out on the hunt again. Back in the thick of it....

Good story there Dave, exciting stuff. We had an interesting one happen to us a few years back where we were in some very thick stuff on the Mozambique boarder when a dagga boy charged from about ten yards, my old man had braced him self with his .458 which took most of the punch, snapping it in three pieces. The bull then tried to hook him whilst he was on the ground, he held both tips of the horn whilst pushing backwards, the bosses took all the skin of his shins. What saved him was that there was another bull who had come in from the left which we had not seen or heard and because it was so thick the bull came out exactly were my oldman had been standinding, obviously the first bull was there. The second bull hit him in the ribs, which turned him, they both knocked horns and luckily turned and ran off, this all took place in about 4 seconds. The two bulls were later followed up and shot and both had snares on them from poaches. We have had a few more interesting ones happen because of snares or fighting wounds but thought this one may be of interest as there were two bulls.

We have shot at least 3 buffalo that had been wounded previously.

And one elephant had several AK47 bullets in him too.

We only found out this after we shot the animals in the normal course of hunting.

Shangaan

I remember your dad telling me about that particular incident. Freaking frightening is all I can say. It's bad enough following a wounded buffalo, but at least you know you are going to be revved at some point. Different story altogether when you're just walking down the river minding your own business and something comes boiling through the brush at you for no apparent reason. How fortunate that that second buff made an appearance. That intervention more than likely saved your dad's life. I must write that story one day.....

Cheers
Dave

The daggaboy I took in Tanzania last August had two musket ball encysted under the skin of his stomach ... they'd been there a while.

We did see blood trail from a buf that had probably been attacked by lion. Not sure we saw the animal.

Really would rather not run into one in the bush that had been recently injured ... hard enough to take when they're not already pissed off!

I haven't accidently bumped into any wounded DG but we did go out to hunt down a wounded buff bull that had emasculated a local 15 year old boy.

465H&H

Read the chapter in my book about Francois and unexpected wounded buffalo. He is lucky to be alive.

It happens from time to time it seems. Not really uncommon.

Most of the time its a snare, or a animal that has been wounded by another animal, such as Lion wounded buffalo or animals wounded from fighting..

I don't think we have ever bumped into a sportsman wounded animal, at least not that I recall.

I have found poacher bullets in animals and that could happen from time to time. Fortunatly most wounded animals are killed by preditors I suspect.

Sometimes a Buff might get away and you get him the next day or whats left of him after the Lions eat him. At least that is what Saeed tells me!

I had a bull charge from 20 yards last year while hunting on the Luangwa in Zambia. He stood up out of some five foot tall grass at the edge of a dried pan where we were walking. After deciding not to take him since it was early in the hunt we began backing away when he came for me. My PH, Ross Michelson, droped him with a well placed .458 Lott just under the chin while I followed with a shot to the top of the neck with my .375. He stopped just seven paces from me. He had a golf ball size hole in his rib cage where he had been wounded sometime before and we recovered a homemade musket slug of about 600 grains weight. He was obviously sick and in great pain and could have caused someone a real problem.