i am posting this for fairgame, as his connection is a bit slow tonight:

To hunt free ranging game in pristine habitats is a privilege. This is a simply story - it is not incredible or unbelievable but just an account of some good hunting in Zambia. Earlier we had shot great trophies including a very nice dark tan Lion but on this safari this is the hunt that I will remember.


I was happy for Frank for he had hunted Africa many times and it was Roan that had always eluded him. I was now content for it was I who convinced him to depart with some well earned cash and to venture into the Luangwa valley to wander the mopane corridors for this noble antelope.


Much earlier that day some twenty odd of these handsome animals were spotted from the car filtering through a belt of mopane, and we had glassed a good bull tailing the herd. Rifles and sticks in hand we abandoned the vehicle and stalked a distant depression where I hoped to intercept the herd. The Roan were breaching an adjacent ridge towards our proposed position. It was an unusually cool morning for the Luangwa and made for a most welcome start to the hunt. The woodland here was blackened from recent fire and a blue haze tainted the landscape. It could have been a battle scene in another time, in another place. The smoldering wood was an added bonus for us and using this screen we were blanketed from the approaching herd.


For those who do not know the mopane it can be a shrub or a tall tree up to 30 m, depending on soil conditions and water availability. It has a tall, narrow crown. The compound leaves are divided in two so that the leaflets resemble butterfly wings. It is a deciduous (sometimes semi-deciduous) tree decorated by autumn and spring colors. Sprays of small, green flowers appear in December and January.


In Zambia the mopane grows in hot, dry, low-lying areas of shallow alkaline soils which are not well drained. It also does well in alluvial soils such as here in the Luangwa valley flood plain. In Zambia and Zimbabwe the trees form impressive forests and are taller and create towering woodlands fittingly referred to aptly as cathedral mopane.


They say a PH only knows two trees - a bait tree and a shade tree. The mopane is neither. To save water, the leaflets fold together and present the smallest surface area toward the sun, thereby reducing exposure of the leaf surface. This also prevents much shade from being cast which can be a bitch when you need to get out of the sun. The mopane is often deciduous in winter, possibly another adaptation to drought, since winters are not very cold in the Luangwa, but they are dry. The brick reddish new leaf emerges in October in anticipation of the first rains. The look of the mopane is ever changing and it is always an interesting and very scenic habitat to hunt


The herd had now broken the crest of the ridge and stepped down into Frank’s sights. It was an easy shot and a simple one to call as our bull was the only animal standing broadside. I silently congratulated myself and remember thinking that the burn and the early morning light would make for some interesting photographs. Roan possess extraordinary sight and hearing, even the young calves could hear the firing pin snapping into an empty chamber. Bloody Blazers, By the time it took for me to expel another four letter word the bull as athletic as as any race horse thundered back up the ridge and was absorbed into the smoky haze. The short stalk was over and I knew from experience we were now in for along walk. Loading his rifle and making it safe we followed, the tracks easy to distinguish in the fresh dark ash. It was twenty minutes or so when we came up on them again rested up in some open country but were wary. We could do little but stand off a few hundred yards waiting for their move. It was getting warm. I decided to slowly push the herd hoping for more favorable conditions as the Roan melted in and out of the mopane corridor. It became a fast walk to keep along side them. This was new country for me and whilst hauntingly beautiful I knew from experience that it can be a harsh and often desolate place. It was now an hour since we had left the car behind and I had neglected to carry water as I had predicted the hunt would be short.


My previous observations have proven that Roan seek high grounds as a vantage point when disturbed and sure enough the herd now sought the elevated heights of the broken hill country that dominates the base of the escarpment. It was now necessary to leave their tracks and get in front of these animals before they again took up the advantage. With the temperature turned up high our walking was now fast and determined, it was critical that we arrived at the distant ridges first. Two hours now and double that to get back to the car, wherever that was. Now and again patches of the herd were glimpsed breaking through the now monotonous woodland and we were a poor second place in this race. My plan was not proving feasible so I changed it and picking the scant cover of the larger trees we jogged from one to another in a direct line to the unsuspecting animals stopping only to glass and identify the bull. We closed the distance and Frank looked weary but still focused and very much determined. He may not make it back to the car but I was no longer too concerned as we had gotten back into familiar country and I knew this land and of a couple of seeps that we could drink from if it became necessary. The tall trees shimmered and the Roan seemed to dance in the rising heat.


The bull was again tailing the herd and this was a big break for us and it was the bull who was first to hear the clatter of stones under our feet and he turned to meet Frank’s bullet. Accelerating forward towards the tall trees the Roan faltered and went down before the mopane. Frank’s quest for a trophy Roan had ended with the best of hunts. It was the cathedrals of mopane and the pure hard grit of Africa that he will remember.

Great trophy, and report. That's making me think even more seriously about Roan...

Congratulations,

Wonderful trophy and another story well told by Andrew.

I saw my first live roan in Zambia last month (report coming soon), and I was surprised by how beautiful they were. They had always seemed a bit clunky or out of proportion in photos, but that was not at all the case in person.

That's a beautiful trophy, and a great photo!

What a great trophy. My biggest regret in hunting is that I caved in to the request of my wife and partner's wife to conclude a 21 day safari in Zambia on day 18 and forgo any further roan hunting. It was 108 degrees in the hills and our wives were anxious to go to Victoria Falls. Father forgive me.

Scott isn't hind sight always 20/20.

Terrific roan. good shooting.

Mike

Great roan--Congrats

Beauty. I just love a roan.

Terrific story and photo - thanks for posting.

I may catch some flak for this comment but I consider a trophy Roan bull to be the pre-eminent plainsgame animal available these days. IMO, I would seek a Roan over LDE, Mt. Nyala, or Bongo and definitely over its close relative - the Sable. These are all magnificent trophies but, in my book, the Roan takes the cake.

Hopefully someday . . .

quote:

Originally posted by pinotguy:
Terrific story and photo - thanks for posting.

I may catch some flak for this comment but I consider a trophy Roan bull to be the pre-eminent plainsgame animal available these days. IMO, I would seek a Roan over LDE, Mt. Nyala, or Bongo and definitely over its close relative - the Sable. These are all magnificent trophies but, in my book, the Roan takes the cake.

Hopefully someday . . .

Second that.

Roan are really cool antelope and an apex trophy in my books.

Funny story... a good friend of mine was hunting in Botswana back in the 80's with Brian Marsh. They rounded a bend and Brian spotted an animal in the distance and pointed it out to Huston. "Huston you just don't see those animals around like you used to!" Huston pulled up his binoculars and glassed the animal in the distance. Huston looked at Brian and said "Well, I guess not". Brian asked him if he knew what it was. Huston replied. "yep, that's a tan donkey". Brian immediately threw up his binos and seemed somewhat embarassed... and muttered, "hell I thought it was a roan antelope bull!" They both have laughed about that instance over the years... and Brian has always been a good sport about the joke on himself!

Russell: +1

Well Done!!!

I really like the Roan antelope. Always wanted one and in 2004 I booked a 12 day safari to the savanna country of Cameroon specifically for that animal. Here's the one I got



He was a little over 30 inches on one horn and just a little under 30 inches on the other. The teeth were worn down to the gumline. He had an old healed bullet wound in the fleshy part of his lower right leg and healed scars from where a lion hooked him on his left flank. He holds the position of honor in my trophy room.

Great hunt, great roan, and a story very well told. That looks like wonderful roan country. Thank you!

Mac, your roan looks to be a good bit larger than the one fairgame's client shot.

quote:

Originally posted by laredo kid:
Mac, your roan looks to be a good bit larger than the one fairgame's client shot.

I thought the Southern Roan looked heavier than the Western? Mac's Roan at thirty plus inches and considering it's age makes for an exceptional trophy in my book.