Which of the two areas would you prefer for a leopard / tuskless hunt and why?
Thanks!
Andy

Flip a coin as both are pretty good. The tuskless will be relatively easy to find in either area so it really boils down to Mr. Spots. Makuti is more hilly than Dande so you can sweat a bit more. CM Safaris hunts both places so you should check with them, but I believe they are near 100% success with leopard in both areas. I was in Makuti this past September and got two tuskless in eight days and spotted one big tom during daylight.

I think it will all be about the type hunt you want. Makuti for tuskless will be more spotting and stalking. You will glass a tuskless and go get it.

In Dande, it will be more of a classic tracking ele hunt. You aren't going to have a problem getting your tuskless either place.

I think you should expect to get a shot at a leopard either place. They have killed some toads in Makuti over the past few years.

Of course Buzz can give you a proper answer. I hunted Dande last year, and I do hope to hunt Makuti with him in the future.

Having been in Dande this past October, I agree with everything Tim and BigBore said in their responses. I suggest you correspond with Buzz Charlton or Myles McCallum and they will give you very straight-forward guidance on which area is best for the type of safari you want. I was very impressed with the level of effort Buzz undertook during our planning stage to ensure that we selected the right area for our personal expectations.

You can reach Buzz or Myles by email: buzzandmyles@cmsafaris.com or checkout their website: CM Safaris Website

I can promise you that you won't be disappointed with any safari that Charlton McCallum Safaris organizes for you. If interested, take a look at my recent hunt report on Dande (hot-linked below) to get an idea of how well our tuskless hunt went.

Good luck with wherever you decide!

quote:

Originally posted by Tim Herald:
I think it will all be about the type hunt you want. Makuti for tuskless will be more spotting and stalking. You will glass a tuskless and go get it.

In Dande, it will be more of a classic tracking ele hunt. You aren't going to have a problem getting your tuskless either place.

I think you should expect to get a shot at a leopard either place. They have killed some toads in Makuti over the past few years.

Tim is spot on.

PM sent.

Hi Andy,
I have hunted twice with CMSafaris and I agree with all guys wrote above. As for a big tom I would prefer Makuti because in DSA there are plenty of lions so there is a competition between lions and leopards.
Petr

Agree with the comments that Buzz and Myles will give you the straight skinny. I am going to hunt leopard in Makuti with them next year. They gave me the pros and cons for both Makuti and Dande.

quote:

Originally posted by rtep:
Hi Andy,
I have hunted twice with CMSafaris and I agree with all guys wrote above. As for a big tom I would prefer Makuti because in DSA there are plenty of lions so there is a competition between lions and leopards.
Petr

When I was in Makuti in 2003 there were lots of lions and leopards. We had a camp leopard that sawed us to sleep each night and we had a leopard hit one of my lion baits.

We saw solitary lions on a couple of occasions and bumped into a pride during their mid-day nap on the escarpment side of the concession. I shot a lion on a bait on the far side of the concession(towards Kariba).

I have never been to Dande, but one pro(and con) to Makuti are the blacktop roads that border it which, would make the checking of baits far less time consuming.

Hi Andreas,

Will e mail you this evening - Dirk is back in Zim so we can finalise this hunt now.

Regards

Andy

PM sent Muvhimi.

All the advice so far is spot on !
Only other thing to add is how easy or difficult do you want the physical side of the hunting?
Dande is flatter with thicker cover and more "up close and personal"
Makuti is much more hilly and you will need to be fit to get the best out of it. I was successful on leopard in both areas and you will have a great time which ever you choose.
If you are thinking of making a booking I would suggest you get in quick as both venues are popular because of their success rate.

Thanks for your replies so far guys!
Rgds,
andy