What can you guys tell me about this outfit? As I've expressed before, I don't want to hunt a small high fenced farm, and theirs is the size where I kind of draw the line. Please tell me how your experiences were with them. Especially. did you ever feel like you were hunting in anything other than a fair chase environment.? What's really appealing to me here is there would be no extra travel leg to Windhoek, and maybe no overnight in J'berg. Thanks for the info.

JG Raider
Why dont you just come and hunt free range with me then.
We have open unfenced concessions that will fit your needs. Nyala, Kudu, Bushbuck, Springbuck, Impala, Eland, Bushpig, Caracal. What else do you have on your wish list.
Send me a list and we can give you what you want.

We have references in the US, UK and EU.
Chat soon
Ian

Ian Blakeway
The Box H Safaris Big Game Hounds & Specialist Hunting Outfitter
Cell: 083 414 2446
Fax: 086 662 1632
mail: hunt@bushpighunt.co.za
Web: www.huntingtheboxh.co.za

Full Time, Licensed Hunting Outfitters & Professional Hunters

quote:

Originally posted by Hunting the Box H:
JG Raider
Why dont you just come and hunt free range with me then.
We have open unfenced concessions that will fit your needs. Nyala, Kudu, Bushbuck, Springbuck, Impala, Eland, Bushpig, Caracal. What else do you have on your wish list.
Send me a list and we can give you what you want.

We have references in the US, UK and EU.
Chat soon
Ian

Ian Blakeway
The Box H Safaris Big Game Hounds & Specialist Hunting Outfitter
Cell: 083 414 2446
Fax: 086 662 1632
mail: hunt@bushpighunt.co.za
Web: www.huntingtheboxh.co.za

Full Time, Licensed Hunting Outfitters & Professional Hunters

Ian,

Can you please give us some details about your unfenced concessions?

The reason I am asking is that I have not heard of many unfenced concessions in South Africa before.

Hi Saeed
The areas are in Southern KZN. They form up about 30 000 hectares of valley bushveld and have been run as hunting areas for generations. The white farmers who moved into the areas with cattle around 1890 were more hunter than farmer and eaked a living out of this harsh bushveld. In time the small farms were bought up by their neighbours and ambitious game farmers started to run them as wildlife preserves. Due to the nature of the terrain and the wildness of the place fences actually serve no purpose, so the farmers did not head in the same direction that the more northern game farms did as the game stays on those farms due to the cover and food in the area as well as the lack of human presence.
The species you will find here are all of the bushveld species, mainly Bushbuck, Nyala, Bushpig, Warthog, Impala, Kudu.
The free range Eland I spoke of come our of the Ezemvelo run Drakensberg parks in the winter months for food on the lower reaches of the berg. The farms that border these reserves get excellent Eland coming down to them and it makes for great hunt. Its almost like waiting for a migration to come through I guess.

There are three main opperators who run hunting safaris in these areas. Crusader Safaris is probably the most well know of them as they only hunt unfenced properties. Unfortunately Crusader due to their excellent reputation are booked through 2015 already. Please do not confuse them with Cruiser Safaris, they are exactly the opposite of Crusader, but many still enjoy hunting with them.

There are many places in the country where you have marginal "agricultural farms" that are now supporting more and more game. We have a few places in the North West that support wild Kudu populations, there are more places than can be mentioned in the Eastern Cape that support wild untouched populations of Kudu, Bushbuck, Waterbuck, Eland etc.

One interesting thing that has take hold is the migration of game from Fenced reserves to adjoining farm land. The game goes where they can find habitat and there are fewer hunters out there hunt each year and generally less human activity as farms are bought up by neighbours etc. Where you had 6 farms and 6 families shooting game, you now have one family on the same land and very little shooting going on.

I believe that in the next 10 years game will spread back across SA to the point where it will be commonplace to have game mixed in with your livestock as was commonplace at the turn of the 19th century.

Please feel free to ask more questions

Ian

Ian, thanks for your very positive information. Cheers, Ben

My pleasure Ben. I plan to come over and hunt on your side of the world when the chance arises.
Call me a sucker but Steve Erwins shows on the Cape York got under my skin.

You wouldn't have a good contact up there to hunt Feral pigs with some hounds would you?

Ian, one question I have is......if other outfitters operate in the same areas as you do, what's to keep them/us from hunting the same areas at the same time? Sounds like Crusader has a full slate of hunters. I've heard of this happening before.

Hi JG

The hunting areas managed by each company tend to fall within a series of valley system, valleys are generally broken up by high plateaus cutting one system off from the next. Where two concessions back up to each other the guys know where the boundaries are much like would be the case with neighbors in Zim etc.
One thing to keep in mind here is that the operators in the area and concession owners are there for the long run and are not going to abuse the trust of their neighbors by stretching boundaries etc.

Once you see it you will get a better idea, but the system works well and the game thrives and interbreeds between areas. Our biggest problems lie with poaching due to the fact that there are tribal areas that are fairly close by.

G'day Ian,

As a matter of fact I know many local chaps who hunt pigs with dogs. Most do the lugging / knife thing with the larger pig dogs, but one does the baling / shooting thing with the smaller Jack Russell type of dog. I'll get onto the mission of getting some contact details for these lads. The pigs here (Top End, NT) are not as prolific as they are in Cape York, but we are blessed with good numbers for those prepared to do the hard yards to find them.

Kind regards,

Ben

Thanks Ben
Much appreciated.
Sounds like a lot of fun, I will bring my walking shoes for sure.
I ha seen some video clips of the guys with knives and spears etc. I am keen to see how they do it. A few guys locally have started using catch dogs, but with the more aggressive bushpigs we contend with it has been limited in its success.

Looking forward to chatting further
Ian

OK, back to the original question.....anybody here familiar with Koedoeberg that operates in Limpopo region?