I am thinking about a short plains game hunt next year. Probably north or northwest of Jo'berg toward the Botswana border.

I've hunted in the general area before. In early March of 2010 and early April 2011. Friends I work with have recommended going a little later - like in May.

When do most here consider the best months to hunt gemsbok, kudu, etc. in RSA bushveldt country?

June or July,with June as the best.

PM sent. I like August too.

in march or early april everything will still be green and thick, so you will have harder time seeing game, the redemption for that is the animals are calmer. Much hotter then than june-august. june-august the foliage will be gone or nearly so thus seeing animals is easier, but they are more spooky. take your pick - it's all great

August!

Kudu rut in May. Charl, would you recommend, if a big kudu was primary quarry, to hunt in August, or perhaps when they're thinking with their other brain?

Hunting the rut puts the kudu and other animals on the move... more visible.

Mike

quote:

Originally posted by DLS:
Kudu rut in May. Charl, would you recommend, if a big kudu was primary quarry, to hunt in August, or perhaps when they're thinking with their other brain?

Priority 1 is a nice Gemsbok. Kudu is definitely no. 2. After that I'd be more open - zebra, wildebeest, etc.

When is rutting season for Gemsbok?

I went to the RSA in March last year, but I don't mind it being warmer. This was just before the rut.
Got all the trophies I came after!

quote:

Originally posted by retreever:
Hunting the rut puts the kudu and other animals on the move... more visible.

Mike

+1

I went in June of last year for 17 days.

Brush was down so you coould see a ong way in the open areas but still green enough in the brushy areas to hie us on stalks and them if they wanted to realyl hide.

I hunted in the NWP as an FYI an dhad a great time.

Any idea of who you will hunt with?

quote:

Originally posted by DLS:
Kudu rut in May. Charl, would you recommend, if a big kudu was primary quarry, to hunt in August, or perhaps when they're thinking with their other brain?

Let me qualify this a bit more...Kudu in the rut is a good time. The rut is middle May to early June usually. Kudu do not rut vocally like Impala, but the big bulls join the cows and they fight with satellite bulls.

So yes, it is a very good time to hunt for Kudu bulls. The problem is however, although they have other things on their minds, and are all puffed up and in PRIME condition, they are with 10 or 12 pairs of other ears and eyes.

Another factor is the bush is still thick from the summer. The foliage is still up, but the grass and leaves on the ground is drying out....making for very very difficult stalks.

So, IMHO, August and early September is a much better time. Big Bulls loose about 30% of their body mass from June to middle August. They leave the cows and form small bachelor herds (typical two 3 year old bulls and 1/2 big boys) or walk alone. The leaves are down so the hunter can SEE the horns! From 1 September the wild pear blossoms and the Big Bulls love these small white flowers that adorn the mountain side.
In my areas we hunt as follow. WE drive to the top of the mountains and glaze the valleys and sides with spotting scopes and binoculars. If you know what to look for you, you can pick them up easily. We then use the spotting scope to judge the trophy quality. From here on it is not so difficult, just a bit of hard and frustrating work. Solly (my tracker) “holds” the bull with his binoculars and direct us in on the animals when they start moving by way of two way radio. This method is very effective.
Sometimes we drive to and from areas I would like to hunt and spot the bulls on the mountainside somewhere. WE simply then drive to a bush next to the road that shields us from the Kudu, and get off using it is our first cover, and then stalk them from there. Solly or Phillemon or other PH will then take the Land Cruiser on a big loop and then “hold” them from there so that I know where they move if they do…..
Because of the dry season the big bulls concentrate around areas that have enough leaves to carry them through (Kudu are 70% browsers). Water of course is also more scarce….
We are known for taking exceptional Kudu on an annual basis. Most hunters that want Kudu as their number one species are advised to book a min of 10 hunting days for this exceptional fantastic trophy! My favourite Kudu area is very mountainous and the properties very big. The kudu lives natural here, and are not fenced in. They come and go as they wish. My own property is not fenced with high fences, and we take 2-3 top bulls there every year!
Infinito Safaris took 16 trophy Kudu bulls in 2011. Most of these bulls were taken in August and September!
So, horses for course I think, but I know what works for us!
Good luck!

quote:

Originally posted by retreever:
Hunting the rut puts the kudu and other animals on the move... more visible.

Mike

Mike, with respect this is not so true of Kudu...they are much more visible and on the move in the late winter when the food and water gets scarce.

In the rut they move around a lot at night, but in day time they rest up....I have for instance just seen a Kudu bull mount a cow twice in all my years of hunting.

A couple of years ago we waited for 45 minutes for a bull. I could count 16 cows and calfs and new there should be a bull there. They all stayed in one spot. The bull then stepped out after 45 minutes. He was stading under a tree in thick shade in plain view 100 yards away. The hunter made a good shot and got his 54" trophy!

There is nothing nothing wrong with hunting in the rut, I just think the spring is better!

Love to hunt sept/october.....

So Charl,

I have 3 paid holidays in late September - 21st-23rd (guess what country I work in). So if my hunt fell around that it would save me 3 vacation days. In your opinion, is that too late or would that be a good time for gemsbok and kudu?

Spot on, that will work!

May- August is prime time. But the best time is when you are free.

So September is not a problem. Gemsbuck are herd animals and can be hunted anytime anywhere.

Kudu will be in little bachelor groups. So all the best bulls in the area will be bunched together for a good comparison.

quote:

Originally posted by Brazos Jack:
I am thinking about a short plains game hunt next year. Probably north or northwest of Jo'berg toward the Botswana border.

I've hunted in the general area before. In early March of 2010 and early April 2011. Friends I work with have recommended going a little later - like in May.

When do most here consider the best months to hunt gemsbok, kudu, etc. in RSA bushveldt country?

Can I presume you want to hunt on the free-range and not highfence?...if so Aug. is a very good time .

So JENS, wha tis the difference between High fence and free ranging? and how does is this difference affected by seasonal climate changes?

You see my main concession is 30,000 acres big and fenced out on the outside. Most species move freely over and under these fences in any case, but I'm curious....how, in your experienced opinion, are these animals on 30,000acres, NOT free roaming, and how does seasonal changes NOT affect their movement because of this fence?

Looking forward to your reply.

Regards,

I have no problem hunting a high fence concession, provided the concession is large enough to allow the animals to behave in a natural fashion, such as Charl describes.

Dear Mr. Charl

If you noticed Brazos jack ask: " Best time of the year to hunt pg in SA". By all means any season is good to hunt behind a high Fence.

Brazos Jack Qoute: When do most here consider the best months to hunt gemsbok, kudu, etc. in RSA bushveldt country?

The way I see it from this question is that all free ranging animals have a season where a huntinglaw apply and a best time where best chance to shoot one like in the beginning of the season because the ofseason has left long period undesturbed + maybe they migrate from area to area and by that way are more active etc.

IF Brazos Jack had asked instead:" What time is best to shoot hunt plainsgame behind a high Fence". I can see your point(s) in your reply which then makes sence for me.
Btw. 30.000 acre is a big area that does give animals chance to move around + the hunter too

Another question here: Can we always presume when talking hunting in SA it´s always a highfence activity?.

Every area is diffrent, in the northern cape one of my kudu hunting areas consists of a block of over 40 000acres of free range (low fenced) kalahari/broken orange river vegetation. Rut starts soon after first frost, ideally the best hunting time must be july. Bulls migrate into the area, the older generation always spoke of farms where bulls or cows were abundant. We definitely have an increase of bulls July to September.

Gemsbuck are one of our main trophies. We annually hunt between 20 - 30 bulls and our areas produce exceptional trophies. Gemsbuck are in my opinion one of the most challenging trophies to hunt. Unlike a kudu, where the challenge (in our area anyway) is to find it, here the challenge is to get close enough for a shot (under 200 yards and no pickup gunshipping). The gemsbuck are usually not alone and have exceptional eyesight. They are sharp! Therefore in my opinion the best time to hunt them would have to be September. They are starting to feel the nutrional pinch, both because quality and quantity is starting to drop and they spend more time foraging, making the oppurtunities to successfully approach easier. The gemsbuck is probably one of the most uniquely adapted animals in Africa. Properly hunted you will struggle to find a more challenging hunt and I will hunt them at every oppurtunity.

August.....no doubt!