This year I went with three other hunters and one observer. Every day was great fun and the group was a hoot. Our good friend Ray Atkinson arranged the hunt. Thanks Ray, that makes my 7th great trip out of 7 of your bookings.



Counterclockwise: Bob Steele, Bill Yung, Phil Pittman, Bland Pittman (and me taking the picture) at the Sea Cliff one evening.



As usual, the Sea Cliff was a relaxing antidote to the long butt numbing fight.




The fish market in Dar Es Salaam. These boats had their sails down. They brought in the fish they caught the previous night.



Then the fresh fish were auctioned off to these women.



We had yet another day of relaxation before heading to camp – this time on the beach at Zanzibar.



At camp, the third order of business (after moving in and a cold one) is to check the rifles. Here Wickus prepares to shoot the 470 while Pierr’e and the staff brace him so as not to lose him before the start of the hunt.



Mseguni Mountain – a landmark in this block.



Singere said they used a lot of paint when they made this bird.





The young airport elephant is still around. He was a little frisky this year. He pushed on a big tree to show us how strong he was - then charged the Land Rover.



Lunch break - we were early in the season, everything was green, water was everywhere and the buff were in the thick stuff. They were not moving out of it so we had to go in where they were.



Bill Yungs buff was a real trophy. The bosses were worn smooth and had a few chunks knocked out. Pierr’e said, â€If we had not killed him today he would have died tomorrow anyway.†Behind us you can see the kind of stuff we were in all 10 days.



The terrain was so bad we could not get the Land Rover to the buff. The trackers caped him out, stripped bark from trees to make a rope, bundled it up and packed it out. This bundle had to weigh 150 to 200 lbs. Bill and I could not lift it. The Masai carried it about 100 yds each then the incredibly strong Dominic put it on top his head and carried it non-stop a little over a mile back to the nearest point the truck could get to.



Here is Bill’s zebra – a long shot that was right on the money.



Bob Steeles buff with Wickus as the PH.



This is the other Tanzanian Death March survivor - Bland Pittmans buff taken with Wickus from the same herd and on the same day as Bob's.



Look beyond Hollywood’s new hat to the ground. That’s the distance I executed a half Cuban 8 to.

I had not only missed an impala at 130 yards but had also screwed up an easy shot on a big buff. He was looking straight at me from thick bush. All I could see was his nose and boss. I tried to shoot just below his nose but shot a few inches high and hit him in the horn. He scampered off unfazed but must have had a .470 headache.

I think in an attempt to get me out of the bad Ju Ju (where is chief Bula Bula when you need him?) Pierr’e challenged me to shoot the heads off 3 Guinea Fowl with one shot. They were just off the trail at about 35 yds.. I waited until they lined up as best as they were going to get and aimed at the middle head thinking that whether I was high or low I might hit at least one.

I was standing on the tool box, feet together and slightly crouched, slightly leaning back to line the birds up. When the .375 went off I must have subconsciously stepped back. Unfortunately, I was already on the edge of the truck and the step was into thin air. All I remember was seeing the sky and thinking it was like the initial stage of a loop. Luckily, I hit on my head.

The rifle went bouncing off to my right. Once they decided I wasn’t seriously hurt I was subjected to a good bit of laughter from the fellows on the truck in addition to the mock reenactments of Twiga. Worse yet, I found out I totally missed all three birds.

The only good thing that came out of this was that I found out the zero on the rifle was still right on (thanks John Ricks) after tumbling about 12 feet.



On the last day of the hunt we nearly had another shot. We located a big herd and the wind was right. Just as we closed up to the back of the herd the wind switched and we spent the next 4 hours chasing them. It was a fitting end to a really fun time. We had given it our best. It actually felt good to end up totally exhausted by a long walk.



Pierr’e and staff will do (almost) anything to make your hunt comfortable.

Great pictures and story.

Looks like you guys had a great time with Pierre.

Gerhard

Thanks Allen for the good words. What do you think about Argentina for a number 8 hunt and I might get Bill Morrison, and self to go along with you..They have some awesome Red Stag over there, and a lot of other interesting big game.

Thanks for the report Allen. Glad you had a good time. Your friends took some great animals.

Wonderful picts, Looks like a fun time, thanks.

Mau Mau this was mid July. Usually it is more dry and open at that time but this year it was still green.

Argentina sounds interesting Ray.

Nice buff.Did he fall with the CRACK of the shot?

It's not an FN, it's a H&K G3.

Allen

I think we met briefly at the landing strip. My wife and son and myself arrived and your group was leaving


Head trauma, yes it is a G3, the guy is a student from Dar doing his field study on anti-poaching patrol.

Allen great report and super photos...
Makes me long for my next time in the Selous on rhe Ruaha at camp Mseguni...

Mike

What did you ahve for dinner the night before the last picture was taken?

A great trip for all involved. I'm still laughting about the Guinea Fowl shot. Pierre sure can be fun! Thanks for the report.

John

Mike,
Ill bet that mountain picture brings back special memories for you. Pierr'e pointed out where you shot the elephant and the initials in the tree.

martinbns,

I think that due to my poor shooting this year I had to eat my shirt too many nights.

Great report Palmer.

Great report !!!
Is that the same ol' Phil Pittman I hunted with in Namibia some years back ?? Does he still carries his beatiful 375 H&H ???
Sent him my regards !!
L

Lorenzo,

I am sure it is - he hunts Namibia a lot. He is a teacher up in the Northwest Territories.

I will email him your regards. He did not have the 375 this trip but is a certified gun collector.

It's him!!
He and another AR member (Scruffy) have a camp for themselves near Kamanjab where they spent near a month each year.
Scruffy is right there at this moment.

Please post more pictures of your trip !!!
Those are great buffs
L

Palmer,
Man, your pictures were excellent especially those in Dar and Zanzibar! A great adventure to share with good friends! Congratulations on living life well.

That's a serious pack load to put on your neck.

Hey Palmer,what are the chances of shooting buff like that at PVT safaris?

shootaway,
Sorry I don't know the answer to that.

Very nice! Congratulations on the great hunt.