I am off to hunt Buffalo & tuskless in the Deka area next week. Has anyone got any info/photos of this area please ?
thanks
Psafari

Here's a very old photo from Deka, back when Roy Vincent was a fairly young PH (and I was very young too).



You're going to have a fantastic time. Deka is a wonderful area for dangerous game, though somewhat limited in available species for plains game. Lots of buffalo, and LOTS of elephants. I wonder if there are many Black Rhinos there anymore? We saw a couple when I hunted there, but that was back in the early 1980s.

Thank you very much for your reply.
Would you have any info on the type of country etc. etc. any info is appeciated.

thanks
Psafari

If you go back and look at a hunt report that Judge G posted last year, you'll be able to get a more up to date idea, as he hunted there with Lou Hallamore and had a memorable safari.

Deka is split by a road that runs from Hwange town down to Sinamatella Camp in Hwange National Park. I would bet that you'll stay in the camp that is along this road, and on the banks of the Mbala River if memory serves me. The Mbala River is a sand river, so don't expect to see hippos and crocs, there ain't any!

Deka is a hilly to mountainous concession, wider on the west end, running to a very narrow strip of land on the eastern edge. If you get out toward the western edge, along the Deka River, there is a fair bit of water, but I seem to recall that quite a bit of the rest of the unit is fairly dry.

We saw tons of buffalo when I hunted there, and I was fortunate to take 2 very nice bulls with heavy bosses and spreads in the low 40s. If you hunt hard, you can find some very nice bulls in this area, though most will have spreads in the 36-40" range. I have heard that many of the mopane trees have been killed by elephants, and now there's a lot more mopane bush than trees.

If you want to do some research, check out the Inyantui River, Chockamella River and Chibungo Valley. I may be off a bit on the spelling of each, but I'm pretty sure I'm close. I particularly liked Chibungo Valley, as it was very wild country and we saw some fantastic animals in there.

Here is a recent report on a hunt that took place in Deka.

http://forums.accuratereloadin...6321043/m/2781086041

Fantastic quality kudu and sable (if you can get a license for one), as well as very good buffalo.

thank you very much !
Psafari

quote:

I wonder if there are many Black Rhinos there anymore? We saw a couple when I hunted there, but that was back in the early 1980s.

Heck...there were still rhino in Chewore in the early 80's...actually quite a few.

Zim is the difference between night and day from the early 1980's compared to 2010.

No disrespect intended just an observation. Enjoyed seeing that old pic of Roy.