I have guided a lot and love it when my clients bring me gifts, especially before the hunt starts tand that are not part of your tip. I am going to Africa in a few more weeks and I am trying to think of things to bring to give to the trackers and PH as gifts. What kinds of things do you guys bring and what kinds of things can they not easily get there that they would appreciate? I think doing the little things like this will also aid in your PH and tracker working harder for you and it works out best for everyone. I heard that hard candy is also a nice to have on your hunt. Any other things like this as well?
Thanks

Cigarettes are always appreciated. I went to Sportsmens Warehouse last year before going to Tanzania and spoke to the manager and they gave me a great deal on t-shirts and knives as well.

The PH I will be hunting with in July smokes a pipe, so I will be bringing him pipe tobacco. I took a can of almond rocca for his wife the last time I was there, she had never had any before. She dissapeared with the can and we didn't see her again until there was none left.

I also took some deflated soccer balls from the dollar store and a small plastic hand pump. The kids really liked that.

If you buy cigarettes get them over there because they are about 1/10 the cost. A lot of the trackers smoke some kind of cut tobacco they roll in newsprint. It smells like burning guano. You are doing yourself a favor by providing an alternative, and although I hate to buy them cigarettes it can’t be as bad for them as that stuff.

Anything with an Adidas logo was very popular. A few ball caps are easy to bring. We gave hard candy to the kids. They really enjoyed it. A couple deflated soccer balls is a great idea.

I usually ask beforehand if there is anything I could bring for the PH or his wife. When we left Africa we always gave the PH a lot of our medical supplies, batteries, ammunition, etc. Medical supplies were always appreciated.

It good to give to the trackers, skinners, PH, cooks etc, but don't forget about the possibility of taking something for the kids in the area. Pens, pencils, small writing tablets etc will be much appreciated and will make your heart sing much more than giving a gift to the PH. The next time I go there will be more for the kids and less for the others, thats for sure. Don't forget, cash is the most usable thing for the ones with a family to raise. Asking your PH or Safari operator what is needed in that particular area most...he will give you a better idea that most of us can. Have an excellent trip.

nube,

T-shirts, ball caps, knives have all been greatly appreciated in the past. One year I bought a dozen Victorinox paring knives. They sharpen easily and cut really well. The guys really liked those.

Now I'm just taking cash. Much more portable and gladly accepted.

Mark

depending on the outfit you're with sometimes they don't like giving the cash. the workers aren't that well paid by our standards, and your tip to them on occassion has caused them to think they're worth much more than they are, and they end up either quiting or getting fired. Check with you ph before doling out much cash. Bright colored clothing items are usually grabbed up quickly. Except for one hunt where the old tracker grabbed onto a red/orange hat and was going to go hunting with it the next morning. needless to say - he was threatened with great bodily harm (after which he went into hysterics laughing)

People most appreciate things that are difficult to come by and scarce where they live. For your trackers, skinners, and simply residents of the area, NOTHING compares to MONEY as a precious, hard-to-come-by, and universally useful commodity. In most places US Dollars, Euros, or the local currency (Zimbabwe excepted!) are useful and appreciated.

I took a lot of extra ammo with me and left it there as a gift (over and above the tip) for the PH.....but for the trackers and cook and others I left a sum of cash in the hands of the outfitter with the agreement that he would see to it that the trackers would have a Lamb for Christmas....

I also took some fine pocket knives and bright T-shirts as well.....

I fully agree that the trackers, skinnetr etc should be given gifts and not cash....it's their culture and I was politely warned about this!

quote:

Originally posted by vapodog:
I fully agree that the trackers, skinnetr etc should be given gifts and not cash....it's their culture and I was politely warned about this!

Yes, I've received the same "cultural" warning from outfitters whose interest is in keeping the help subservient and totally dependent on the boss for any cash income they receive.

Leaving behind any gift with a third party, whether cash or otherwise, is a very uncertain way to assure that the intended beneficiary of the gift actually benefits. If you want someone to have something, then give it directly to that person. If you want them to have cash, then that's between you and them, no one else.

Leave it to AR and particularly Lockerby to pick up on anything that was not explained in great detail. Seriously! He is right. DO NOT give cash directly to the crew during your safari. I'm sorry if anyone might have interpretted my post as implying that might be OK. If I feel the crew did a better than average job I'll increase the tip at the end a litte and let the PH decide who gets what.

Mark

Sunglasses go over well as do cigarettes and cigars plus baseball caps and bandanas. The sunglasses are light and take up little space in your luggage but were highly sought after. I also hand out duffle bags and shirts - (my wife is in promotional products sales).

just doing what i can with what i got

Nube,

I had made the same request prior to my first (and so far only Safari). I also did a search and found many suggestions prior to departing.

From the 2004/2005 research I found the most popular suggestion to be knives, shirts/t-shirts, american hard candy, and to take pictures of them with a polaroid.

I only took one knive and that was for the tracker and gave it too him after I took a Red Hartebeest that scored very well. (I think he only carried because the PH suggested it and will probably skip the knife next time.)

They fought over the hard candy I put out each morning trying to get their favorite, almost to the point of embarrassment on my part. I used my shrink wrap food processor and took 15 shirts without too much room taken in the luggage. The last day everyone was decked out in their "new" clothing, again I think to show appreciation as suggested by the PH. And as for the Polaroid photographs - sometimes we were even requested if we could take some more.

I would have rated hard candy or the Polaroids as #1 and/or #2 with the clothing #3.

Fred

I've just been doing some research on cost of large calibre brass and if you want to put a smile on your PHs face you might like to consider taking a box of cases for his particular calibre........ In the US, they're a third of the cost of Africa. Cases for my .404 are about $2 each in the US and $6 - $7 each here. Cases for my .500 cost me $7.50 - $8.50 each here....... By the time I've loaded a .404 round it costs me about $8 or $9 a round..... even more for the .500.

All these gift things are fin-an-dandy, But if you really want to be good take something for the PH's wife amd/or kids. This will set everything off on the right foot and all will go well. It has worked wonders on all my hunts.

I hunted with Vaughan Fulton in 2005. During the hunt a passed out hard tack candy and Slim Jims. On the last day I talked to Vaughan and got his guidance on who should get what gifts. He called in each staff and I personally said thanks and gave them individual gifts. These included t-shirts, leather gloves, flash lights, tobacco, ball caps, knit hats, knives, multitools, first aid kit, duct tape and most of my hunting clothing. These gifts were on top of the tip I gave Vaughan to distribute after I left. I think everyone appreciated the fact that I gave it to them myself and it was just for them. I plan to do the same thing on my next trip!
John

Most everything has been well covered but unless you discuss cash as tips with your PH, be advised it can cause more grief than good. Some staff would find it near impossible to convert USD into local currency. They might be beaten or killed by their own Police if caught with it in town, and I've yet to meet a tracker, skinner, porter or local staff that owned a car. How are they going to get into town. Trust that their "good friend" will return with their money at the correct exchange rate? Not likely. Most skinners own more knives than all of us together...think about it. Hard candy, clothes, especially brightly colored (their culture B'wana), tennis shoes, flashlights, batteries (for those flashlights you give them), medical supplies (they have families too), pencils/pens, PAPER, the Soccer ball & pump idea should be an all time classic, great post SDHall. Frisbee's or any kind of simple game that doesn't require reading the English lanuage. These items go a lot further and everyday they use them they remember you. Good hunting, David

One thing that no has mentioned yet, I all ways leave my hunting boots with the tracker.

Excellent suggestions in addition to those posted in the past here on AR. The hard candy thing is very popular. I took a 10# mixed bag of different candies and bubble gum a couple of years ago and almost had riots over the bag of candy. What was interesting was seeing the reactions on the faces of those trying certain kinds of candy or bubble gum for the first time!

I got an excellent respose from my PH's kids with a soccer ball and slingshots.

All these are excellent suggestions. Ammo for you PH is great, if you can, talk to him beforehand about bringing something he needs in lieu of a cash tip ( binoculars, rangefinder 12v rechargable flashlight, etc.) Gum is a big hit with the kids, all women love cosmetics, body creme, body wash with a lufa is a nice gift for your PH's wife, cool CD's for his kids, powdered Gatorade mix is a great hit, bottled water gets boring after a while.

Few things go over better than a couple of issues of Penthouse.

quote:

Originally posted by 500grains:
Few things go over better than a couple of issues of Penthouse.

Penthouse can get you into problems with the Law in most African countrys.

So far just one trip to RSA, but this is how it was handled By the outfitter Clive Perkins of Sportsmans Safaris.

We were four hunters in camp, thre Norwegians and one Canadian. After we had tipped our PH´s, we put a sum in USD in a pot, and Clive made a list of of names of the campstaff, skinners and trackers. Then he decided how much each should have based on seniority, and effort.
A bit surprising, the Cock, a big, smiling and and very helpfull lady, was on top of the list.
And truth is, she made exellent food

We all gatherd in the campfire area, and me as the oldest of the hunters ( again seniority) handed the money out to each of the crew after Clive called out their name.
I shaked their hand and thanked them for the good work they done and handed over the money.
Quite a seremony, but I felt that this was a fair way to deal with the tipping.

Besides that we left behind our boots for the trackers, knives for the skinners, flip flops for the ladys, and whatever candy, cheving gum and cigars we had left.
I also took with me two wrist watches I got as presents from my company on different occasions, and gave one to the PH and one to the tracker.

I can only regret that I didn´t leave the rest of my 375H&H ammo for Clive, he got a M70 in the same calibre...

Next year I will sertanly bring my cigarette quota, and some decent rolling paper so they dont have to smoke newspaper, as well as candy, t-shirts and baseball caps.

quote:

Originally posted by 500grains:
Few things go over better than a couple of issues of Penthouse.

A lot of PH's don't like handing explicit photos of white women to black staff......though the PH's love a good DVD

I reckon, Steve's suggestion of brass is a great one, I took my last guy a couple of packets of projectiles.....

But Cash is king................

Buy your cigarettes locally here in Africa as they're a hell of a lot cheaper here than the US, UK or Europe.

200 smokes in a SA supermarket cost about R140/$20/£10

200 smokes in a TZ supermarket cost about $7 or £3.50.

200 smokes in a UK supermarket cost around $100 or £50.

I buy or have given to me at least two dozen different caps throughout the year. Half or more of those, I never end up wearing. Of the ones I do wear some of them only get worn once. I always take all of my extra caps with them and hand them out to everyone. They really think that is great. I have more advertisments for local construction companies, law firms, sporting goods stores and golf courses running around southern Africa than you could imagine!

...good suggestions, all. Through the years, I've taken just about everything previously listed for gifts. (Not to be confused with tips, after the hunt!)

Last October in Zim, I jotted down the names of the 28 individuals of the work force in camp. Having this number in mind, I set about to take items which could be easily transported, viz weight/bulk.

After giving quite a bit of thought as to what would be appreciated, I came up with the following: US Military surplus: Wool socks, glove liners, Radar caps,& balaclavas. Note: These items were new surplus, and readily available.

I purchased enough to outfit the entire lot, and had a couple items left over.
Each, and everyone of the staff came and personally thanked me.

My decision to take the afore-mentioned items was based on one salient fact: Most safaris in Southern Africa are conducted in their winter months. Hence, wool clothing was the simple answer.

Now, for my next trip,all I have to do is figure out how to locate durable LIGHT WEIGHT rain gear???

Hamba gahle

WOW! I didn't think I was going to get a response like this with so much information. Thanks for all the good ideas. I like the ideas and will bring some of this stuff with me. Is there a favorite flavor for hard candy and gum or does it matter? One other question I had is that Iam hunting in the Limpopo area in South Africa and wonder if I should bring some of their currency with me and how much? I was thinking of just using U.S dollars but some of you brought up good points of why not to do that. (what is the common currency there as well?)
Thanks again for all the great info and I think this is some valuable info.
Phil

Cash is king.

When you live in poverty and at times during the year your children are hungry, trinkets don't cut it, they thank you and give you a smile and pawn that stuff as a rule,

They need cash, it buys food, feeds their children,and its easy for you to carry and a little of it goes along way in Africa. What we pay for a cheap watch, cap, would feed a family for a week or more.

Remember the road to hell is paved with good intentions.

That is not to say you can't leave some of the items you brought for the trip. I leave worn pants, tennis shoes, cap, whatever for the staff.

PH - Money and ammo, if he shoots what you do.
Staff - Money and cigarettes.

Hard candy for everybody was a hit, kids,trackers, etc. I went through 5lbs of hard flavored candy and cinnamon was the preferred flavor out of everything. I took 4 deflated soccor balls and a hand pump and gave to the local kids at the ranch.If there is a school close, the balls, pens. pencils etc. are a huge help. Cosmetic or costume jewelry I gave to the cook and camp staff women and girls. Picked it up at flea markets for almost nothing letting senority pick first then went down the line. Como fanny packs with water jugs I gave to the trackers and skinners. Sort of made them into their "possibilities" bag. I also gave my tracker, skinner and ph a utility tool that fits on your belt in a case. The type that has pliers, screw drivers, etc. on them and they were real popular. Killed me to see them take a good knife I gave them and watched them rub it on a rock to sharpen it. Took a bunch of tennis shoes that were hardly worn by kids of my friends and stocking caps. Pretty much left everything I took and came back with the clothes on my back. Left all surplus meds, first aid supplies etc. Everything is needed and appreciated there.
One interesting thing I would not of thought of but my friend took a polaroid camera and lots of film. He would take pictures of the locals and give it to them. Hunters take their pictures all the time but they never get a copy. After a few days they would come as a family all dressed up to get a family portrait made and they went wild over having the pictures.Even just a few kind words are appreciated by all. drwes

And of course cash through the ph for him and the staff at the hunt according to service. I was just previously talking about "gifts". drwes