Read enough about the Golden Years of safari and it's impossible not to hear about Nairobi, over and over again; from Government House to Muthaiga Club; the Norfolk and New Stanley, to the farms and towns on the outskirts. Just curious if anyone might posit a location for Nairobi, USA? A place that is currently central to a major hunting destination. Missoula? Denver? Somewhere in Texas? Dunno - thoughts?

Do you really think you can compare a current modern US city to Nairobi 75 years ago??

Of course not. It's not trying to be apples to apples. The question is what major city receives the greatest number of hunting visitors?

Wouldn't even pick a state that is equivalent to Kenya.

Funny question. I would say that nowhere in the year 1600 did anyplace in North America match Kenya 75 years ago.

I get it. A jumping off point. Off the top of my head I want to say some city in Alaska would be as close as you could get.

quote:

Originally posted by tomahawker:
I get it. A jumping off point. Off the top of my head I want to say some city in Alaska would be as close as you could get.

I would think so too. What made Nairobi, Nairobi? It was considered a gateway, jumping off point for adventure into largely uninhabited areas. Closest parallel I can think of in the US would be somewhere in Alaska.

Whitehorse, Yukon. Check out Jack O'Connor's pics from 1950-place hasn't changed much. Whitehorse is THE jumping off point for many hunting adventures.

Anchorage, Alaska.

quote:

Originally posted by Cardinal 2012:
Whitehorse, Yukon. Check out Jack O'Connor's pics from 1950-place hasn't changed much. Whitehorse is THE jumping off point for many hunting adventures.

quote:

Originally posted by DLS:
Anchorage, Alaska.

I would also say Anchorage Alaska has been, and will continue to be the jumping off place in the USA for wilderness hunting. Nairobi was the city everyone traveled to for the start off, and Anchorage Is the city everyone flies to today for Alaskan hunting and is the only true wilderness hunting left in the USA!

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If you're simply talking about a jumping off point to explore the USA and hunt for a foreign traveler, then when modern air travel is taken into account, it's probably Atlanta

Thanks for the comments that actually entertained the question. I was thinking anchorage as well, but what about continental US? Would think the outfitters here would have a sense of where traveling hunters want to go in the US. Does Alaska still trump any single continental location?

Yeah! Lake Hood in Anchorage is the busiest sea plane base in the world. The majority of non-resident hunters hunting AK have to at least change planes in Anchorage before going on to their final jumping of place. There are some flights direct from the lower 48 to SE, AK and perhaps to Fairbanks but Anchorage may be the Nairobi of the North.

Mark

I get it too. I'd say Whitehorse and Anchorage.

quote:

Originally posted by TWL:
I get it too. I'd say Whitehorse and Anchorage.

So Alaska it is!

Now to complicate: Contiguous US only. "More big game hunters travel to/through ________ (city) than any other in pursuit of game."

First, you have to discount the hub cities like Atlanta, Min/St.Paul, or even DFW, SLC, Denver, Phoenix, and LA. Lots of people travel through these cities but continue flying on to another destination.
If the criteria is where does air travel end as a starting place for onward hunting adventure in the lower 48, I think you have Denver right. Simply given the high number of non-resident tags issued in Colorado each year, there has to be more hunters traveling to Denver in the fall.

Other places like DFW have lots of hunters almost year round for everything from whitetail to hogs, and of course you have the major hunting show as well. My guess is this is spread out more throughout the year, but probably has higher total numbers of hunters than elsewhere.

But unlike Anchorage, DFW is such a large metropolitan area that hunter travel numbers have relatively low impact to the city.

Other guesses?

Bill

Bill,

Yup - you got the idea. I hear a lot about the non-resident tags, and it made me wonder if Denver topped the list.

Does Boise get close? Cheyenne? I don't even know where to start in figuring it out; I'm not up on the overall picture here. But, reading about how much hunting traffic went through Nairobi for so long made me wonder just where modern US hunters are traveling as an analog?

Thanks for the reply!

quote:

Originally posted by BaxterB:
Bill,

Yup - you got the idea. I hear a lot about the non-resident tags, and it made me wonder if Denver topped the list.

Does Boise get close? Cheyenne? I don't even know where to start in figuring it out; I'm not up on the overall picture here. But, reading about how much hunting traffic went through Nairobi for so long made me wonder just where modern US hunters are traveling as an analog?

Thanks for the reply!

There is no way in hell that any city, anywhere in the world, that can compare to Kenya in those days for getting on a safari.

We can only dream.

quote:

There is no way in hell that any city, anywhere in the world, that can compare to Kenya in those days for getting on a safari.

We can only dream.

Yup

quote:

Originally posted by Saeed:

quote:

Originally posted by BaxterB:
Bill,

Yup - you got the idea. I hear a lot about the non-resident tags, and it made me wonder if Denver topped the list.

Does Boise get close? Cheyenne? I don't even know where to start in figuring it out; I'm not up on the overall picture here. But, reading about how much hunting traffic went through Nairobi for so long made me wonder just where modern US hunters are traveling as an analog?

Thanks for the reply!

There is no way in hell that any city, anywhere in the world, that can compare to Kenya in those days for getting on a safari.

We can only dream.

The question is more subtle than that. I'm not asking for an equal, it's obviously not possible.

I only wish that I had been old, or young, or rich, or all of the above, enough, to embark on a safari from Nairobi.

The closest to it I have ever seen, or could hope to see, is Dar es Salaam.

That is the place.

For as long as it lasts.

For the USA, there is nothing even close. But it would have to be a far behind second, for Anchorage, AK.

Anchorage for sure.