Ten days and at least eight buff in the salt.

Go get 'em, Saeed!--with some help from Dwight (two for Dwight so far, at least), but none yet from Walter--programmed, calibrated or not.

Man, it would be nice to have a higher number in the pool about now . . .

Well, it is going to be a long year till July..

Mike

Is 22 taken yet? If not, that's my guess!

Saeed,
You have got my blood pumping, as you know, no one loves hunting Buffalo better than the two of us, and I assure you that I would be on the opposite side of the concession from you! I learned my lesson!!

Tell everyone hello and sure enough you have turned Dwight into nothing more than a cold blooded killer of Bovines, Jeeez Saeed!! he used to be such a mild mannered gentleman until you got hold of him...We shall hencefourth refer to him as Walter Jr., slayer of dragons, buffalo and all that walks, talks, and crawls in Africa...but Lord don't ask him for any ID...

Saeed,

What a wounderfull live report i wish i was back in TZ.Now i have to find a reason to go back.I can't wait for the rest of the photos and the Videos.I hope you and your friends enjoy yourselfs.

Hamdeni

Saeed,
Thank you very much for your live reports. Buffaloes of Tanzania might change their pattern of migration if you keep them shooting at this rate.

Well, I guess Walter "improved" the phone!

quote:

Originally posted by Don_G:
Well, I guess Walter "improved" the phone!

May be late nights in the leopard blind?

Ladies and Gentlemen,

We drove all over our cocession today, and did not see one buffalo!

We saw all sorts of animals, zebra, bushbuck, waterbuck, hartebeast, warthog, wildebeasts, but no buffalo.

Walter had a day in camp, which was a shame, as he wanted to shoot a waterbuck.

Dwight and Todd are still out, so hopefully they might have gotten something.

We saw our 4th snake so far today. It was killed by something not long before we found it, but was not eaten. We think whatever killed it, must have been disturbed and dropped it.

Yesterday we found one dead as we followed Walter's wounded buffalo. The buffalo stepped on it.

The othet two were life puff adders.

Tsetse flies are very active in certain areas, and at certain times. No mosquitos in camp, but we stopped to have lunch the other day near a hippo pool, and were scared away by the mosquitoes, so we had to move further out from the water.

Hyaenas visit us every night, and we chased one as it ran infront of our truck last night as we were coming back home.

The big male lion has fed again on one of our baits. We are putting some more food up for him, and hope he might oblige us with a visit.

We have so many photos to share with you, I will make albums and post them when I return home. Horst has been very busy taking photos of everything; from rocks to plants to butterflies to animals and people.

Anna-Marie stayed in camp today to cook another one of her very popular curries. She brings all the ingredients with her from Dubai, and all we have to provide is the meat!

Saeed

I guess the lion is playing "cat and mouse" with you. Hope you get him.

quote:

Yesterday we found one dead as we followed Walter's wounded buffalo.

There's a story we need to hear.

Hopefully you got it (the buffalo, I mean).

Good luck with the lion Saeed....seems the buffalo have finally got the message about the small guy with the big, black gun!

quote:

Yesterday we found one dead as we followed Walter's wounded buffalo. The buffalo stepped on it.

I just re-read the past postings and did not see this detail anywhere else. Just when I was thinking the thrill was going to be over I see we have an exciting post to look forward to when you return.
Thank you Saeed,
Frank

A day on safari

I thought those of you who have never been on an African hunt might be interested in knowing how a normal day goes on safari.

The lights come on at 5.30 in the morning, and a few minutes later we all meet in the dining-sitting hut. Hot water is served, and each of us
makes his own tea or coffee from the selection available. Toast, breakfast cereal and fresh fruits are laid for those who wish to eat.
And anyone who has requested any eggs or anything special is prapared ready for their breakfast. I generall have one cup of coffee, one cup of tea
and one piece of toast with butter, as I normally do not seem to have any appetite so early in the morning.

Today we left camp at about 6.45, looking for buffalo. About 20 minutes later, we came across the tracks of a herd of buffalo feeding. The wind was good,
so we took up theit tracks. They went into some trambled, wet grass. And following them through that made us all feel the early morning chill.
The meandered into a valley with water and rocks, and then went up a hillside which was covered in very thick bush. One cannot see more than about 10-15 feet!
This continued for about a half mile, then they went out into an open area for a couple of hundred yards. Then back into very high, wet grass. Another
few hundred yards further they went into another thick forest. The dung was very fresh, so we kept stopping every few yards to listen if we could hear them.

Well, they heard us before we heard them, and crashing away they went! We decided to leave them, and come back to follow them in the afternoon,
as it would have been impossible to get close to them in that thick forest.

We walked back to our truck, and drove around, trying to find something for Walter to shoot, as he said he "calibrated" for anything that moved!
We saw some waterbuck, hartbeast and one zebra, but Walter was not quick enough off the truck to try a shot.
When we reach a valley where we shot a waterbuck the other day. We wanted to walk down that valley and see if we could find tracks of any buffalo that might have
crossed over from the next concession. Walter came along, and after about half a mile he decided to go back to the truck with the game scout.
A few minutes after Walter left us, we saw a herd of buffalo about a mile away, and the wind was good too. As we tried to get closer, we saw a hartbeast bull
standing 200 yards away looking straight at us. We got worried he might run and scare the buffalo. We made a long detour, and avoided him. Soon after we saw a
herd of sable. Again, we had to make a long detour to avoid them.

As we got closer to the buffalo, which were feeding across an open area from us, we debated what to do. As they were quite far off, and I am not too keen
on long shot on buffalo. We finally managed to get to a tree at the edge of the clearing, and we started guessing the distance to the closest part of the herd.
Our estimate was around 200-220 yards. We kept an eye on them, trying to pick a bull to shoot. They kept feeding away from us. Eventually a bull we picked came clear, and
I fired a shot at him. The whole herd took off to the left, ran a few yards, stopped to look back. We knew our bull was hit, as we heard the bullet connect, and thought
the herd was looking at him as dropped. Suddenly they all took off towards the open area, and we saw our bull hobbling along with one leg broken!
I shot him again and he dropped. The rest of the herd turned to the left running. Another bull came clear and fired a shot at him. He dropped too.

After we have finished both bulls, and the dust settled, we went to check why did my shot go so low. We had a range finder in the truck, so as soon as that was
brought over, we measured the distance. Imagine our shock when the distance was measured at 344 yards!!

We cut up both buffalos in half and loaded them into the truck, and took them back to camp.

Soon Dight and Todd turned up too, and they had a buffalo as well.

We had lunch, and a little break. We went out in the afternoon to find something for Walter to shoot.
We found a large warthog, whuch Walter stalked, shot, and missed!

We drove along and found a couple of hartbeast bulls. Nelson shot one. We loaded him up and headed back to camp.
Dinner is going to be hartbeast roast, then a good night sleep, and another adventurous day on safari.

Another day, another buffalo (or two)!

Thanks again for the up-to-the minute reporting.

Hopefully tomorrow will be Walter's day.

Terrific. What I want to know is how does anyone sleep?
Waiting until 5:30 would be tortuous to start the day after buff.
Frank

There you go "Long Distance Sniping" again, 344 yds! I guess getting to 50 yds is out in that area.

Did I miss the part where Walter wounded a buffalo?

Well it's 5:30 and I am sittitng here in front of my direct line to Africa.
I had to make my own coffee and the only smell of a campfire is thefireplace from the neighbors house. I requested a big breakfast of eggs, bacon and toast but my wife only started laughing and I just notice she didn't put out any fresh clothing for me either.
My plans for the day include paying my insurance, going shopping getting the oil changed and meeting up with a client to deliver some photographs whe is waiting on. The most dangerous thing I will face is traffic but when you live in a town of 179 people the most dangerous place to be is the church parking lot on Pancake breakfast Sunday.
I expect I will be home in time to take a nap around three, read a little more about my future and continue making plans to do exactly what Saeed and his comrades are doing.
Frank

DB under august 29th post by Saeed...


Mike

Frank,

Sounds like the honeymoon is over...my wife laughed at your post thought it was great material...


Mike

I saw the post where he mentioned they were looking for the wounded buff but not any mention of when he actually shot it.

quote:

but my wife only started laughing

Frank,
At 5:30am you get laughter? I'm lucky if I get a groan. The new puppy is ready to go tho...
Keep shooting Saeed! I need 19 buffalo
Russ

I've enjoyed watching your trip progress, Saeed, while I've been at work, doing things around home, church, and at the gun club... and doing those things my wife prods me into. Your posts are a true breath of fresh air!!

But you haven't left MUCH for when you get back!!

Dan

Walter had another unsuccessful attempt at getting a buffalo this morning, so he is staying in camp for the rest of the day.

We also managed to take some very nice photos of lionesses feeding on one of our baits.

Yesterday morning we went and recovered Nelson's buffalo, and in the afternoon I shot a waterbuck on Walter's behalf! As he said he has discovered that he could shoot much better by proxy!?

He made a great BBQ of hartebeast last night, which everyone at the camp enjoyed.

We have so many photos, which will be posted once we are back home.

Saeed,

You've got to get Walter in gear. I need 14 buffalo for the contest.

Thanks again for the live reports. I really enjoy them and have been telling all my hunting buddies to log on and check them out.

quote:

...in the afternoon I shot a waterbuck on Walter's behalf! As he said he has discovered that he could shoot much better by proxy!?

Now that is not a big surprise...

Saeed, I certainly hope you know that at this moment you are shooting by proxy for everyone out here reading these posts. We are are all living with you there and stalking behind you and sharing bread with you, and drink and we feel the adrenaline rush as you squeeze the trigger.
Walter just happens to be a little coser to the action but we are all sharing in the joy.
Frank

The "calibration" has worked!

Walter shot a buffalo this morning at 30 yards!

More details to follow!

Congratulations Walter - well done!!! Was the buff deaf, blind, two-legged or did you try the joke with the Zebra-hide again?

Anyway, Waidmannsheil to Walter, I am anxiously awaiting the rest of the story!!!

Thanks for sharing your adventures with us,

elwood.

quote:

Originally posted by Saeed:
The "calibration" has worked!

Walter shot a buffalo this morning at 30 yards!

More details to follow!

I surely hope this event was captured on tape, with all side conversations, comments and flourishes! The day will be marked in AR history forever! Truly even a blind pig finds a nut every now'n'then.

Saeed, you should change your screen name to "Buffalo Sniper"!

quote:

Originally posted by Saeed:
The "calibration" has worked!

Walter shot a buffalo this morning at 30 yards!

More details to follow!

Saeed's calibration technique is to first have Roy shoot the buffalo. Stand it up after rigor mortis sets in, then have Walter take a shot.

Even then it probably took two.



Thanks for the live diary Saeed.

Don

Outstanding! It just proves that with a little patience everyone has a chance. Did Walter try to heft the Buff into the vehicle by himself like with the impala from last year?
I look forward to the photos and future reports.
I have to make a trip out of town for a little over a week so I hope I have lots to read about when I return.
Frank

quote:

I surely hope this event was captured on tape, with all side conversations, comments and flourishes! The day will be marked in AR history forever!

I'll second that comment. This may be the most requested video yet! Can't wait to see it!

Congrats Walter!

Cheers,
Chris

quote:

Originally posted by Saeed:
The "calibration" has worked!

Walter shot a buffalo this morning at 30 yards!

More details to follow!

But did he KILL IT?

Hog Killer

quote:

Originally posted by Saeed:
The "calibration" has worked!

Walter shot a buffalo this morning at 30 yards!

More details to follow!

Saeed, Frank's contest has made you into a mystery writer.

You are out-Conan Doyling Conan Doyle.

Do we have to wait for the video?! Enquiring minds want to know . . . !!!!!!

Here is Walter's story of his buffalo hunt. I will post photos later on.

"I am very disappointed to hear all the nasty comments from some of you. Sitting in your comfortable homes and offices, you have no idea
how hard it is to get anything right with all the obstacles Saeed and his friends put in my way!
But, despite all the conniving of Saeed, Roy and Alan, my persistance, intelligence, hunting accumen and accurate shooting in nthe face of danger,
I managed to kill the biggest, meanest, old daga boy I have ever had to face. It was was soooo close, I could not just see the white of his eye and smell his breath.
They made sure he was so close that he couls lick the shooting sticks! He was trying to eating them! He thought they were GRASS! I had to take a step backwards
to be able to put the muzzle at his neck and kill him!

I should have known something was wrong as soon as Saeed, the trackers and the game scout dropped 200 yards behind us! But, carrying the long tradition
of my ancestors, from both Chille and Germany, I killed that mean buffalo.

They had to make this hunt as difficult as possible. They made it last three long, hard days! All to make sure I fail! But, I did!

Every morning, for three consecutive days, they had me wake up at 5 o'clock in the morning, miss breakfast, no tea or coffee. Then they stopped the truck
so far away - making excuses that buffalos have early warning systems, as if they can hear a tse tse fly fart from 10 miles away! Then they made me walk
for miles before we got to where the buffalo have been the night before, not where they are! I then had to walk through swamps, elephant grass, burned mud, thorn
bush, kill 5 snakes and 11 scorpions - which I am sure Saeed left on my especially for me. After walking for 57 kilometers - I measured it, as I had my GPS, and they said it was only 2 miles!
They showed me something black in the bush. Roy was shouting SHOOT THE BUFFALO! The trouble was I could not see any buffalo. All I could see was 5 black blobs
in the bush. SHOOT THE ONE ON THE LEFT Saeed was screaming in my ear! I swung the rifle to the left. The dark blob on the left moved. I thoght that was our game scout,
being used as a decoy, as that blob looked exactly like him!

SHOOT THE SECOND FROM RIGHT! Roy said, pointing the rifle in that direction. I shot the second from the right smack in the middle. I knew I hit hit, as I heard the crack of his
neck breaking! Suddenly I found myself lying on the ground, as Saeed flattend me on the ground before taking his rifle from my hands. Nelson, who is supposed to be my friend,
forgot this fact, joined in the mad rush, as him, the two trackers and the game scout ran over me to keep up with Roy and Saeed as they took off after those black blobs crashing.
I kept lying on the ground, thinking that is going to be the safest place as Saeed would do get into his usual habbit of blasting away at anything than moves as soon as he
even thinks that there are buffalo within 2o miles of him!

Half an hour later, I picked myself off the ground, and tried to peer over the grass to see if it was safe yet to stand up. I saw all of them standing together around something.
I jumped up and ran over to them, to claim my buffalo before they go and feed it to the lions. When I got to them, I saw one tracker holding a small twig, and the other holding
a bloody blade of grass!

"You killed a stick and wounded the buffalo!" said Saeed!
"If we gave you 100 rounds and asked you to hit that stick you would not have been able to do it!" Added Roy, forgetting that it was HIM who put the shooting sticks where I shot, and if he moved them only two inches
I would not have hit that bloody stick! It was all Roy's fault, not mine. But, those two are blaming me for it, just as they usually do!

I had one day of rest, and on the third day they got me up at 5 in the morning again, to go shoot my buffalo.
We followed those old bulls in long grass, thick bush and so many corongos, some as deep as the Corongoro crater. After several hours, we saw them - no, they saw us, and ran off
before we could see them. I think this was another conspiracy between Roy and Saeed. They wanted me to get tired of walking, so Saeed can shoot my buffalo!

I had another day off, and on the second we went again looking for those old bulls. After tracking them for one whole hour, we surprised them as they slept in the grass! Even those bulls were getting
tired of being chased! One bull was so close, teh trackers and game scout ran off, and as he was looking at them in surprise, I shot him in the neck!

I finally had my buffalo, and I am VERY happy with it. It is better looking than anything anyone shot this year, and they are very jealous of it."

What a character!