I haven't used Photobucket lately and will get these photos sorted out shortly.

Gert was a Namibian Professional Hunter who was killed by an elephant on June 17, 2024. The hunting party which included a client, Gert’s son and a couple of game scouts specifically went after one problem elephant. Details are lacking but Gert was killed and the game scouts managed to finish off the elephant. Brian Bernardo who posts here as Brain1 (I think) might have better knowledge of what transpired and can correct me If I got something wrong. Gert was 46 years old leaving a widow and several children.

Gert’s friends got together and organized a WhatsApp based auction to raise money for his family listing sixteen different donated items ranging from basic plains game and biltong hunts, buffalo, a lion hunt, some guesthouse / luxury villa stays, glamping excursions, a custom steel sign, and one diesel storage tank. I believe the final total raised was about $ 87K US. I received a WhatsApp invite to participate from God knows who. I have been hunting Africa for twenty-two years now and have been to Namibia on 8 to 9 occasions, so my name has been passed around.




I bid on and won a 5-day plains game hunt with Sandveld Safaris on their 55,000-acre property up in Northeast Namibia bordering 27 Kilometers of Bushmanland. It’s about a 5.5-hour drive from the airport. It was an all-inclusive offer that included an eland, oryx and kudu. I bought it for an absurdly low price. The hunt had to start in October though which suited my timing well. I added two days for tiger fishing on the Okavango River which is about a 3.5-hour drive from Sandveld. This ranch was owned and operated by the Cilliers family but was recently purchased by Gary Rooney a Kiwi who also owns and operates Rangitata Safaris in New Zealand. His Namibian PH partner is Jan-Daniel Maloney who along with his son Jan-Daniel Maloney (also a PH) and now his eight-month-old grandson Jan-Daniel Maloney (not a PH yet). They all have the same name…….it got confusing but apparently there is shortage of usable names in Namibia. In addition, the new Sandveld is in expansion mode and has recently acquired the hunting rights for two adjoining farms so they now have 87,500 continuous acres of free-range hunting with all the southern African plains game species you could possibly want. They get two leopard permits a year and they restrict their leopard hunting from the middle of May to the end of June. This is prime time for leopard with a very high success rate but after June it is a tough slog, so they just don’t bother. They are not the type of operators who will sell one leopard permit three times in the same year. Occasionally they will get Bushmanland elephants and lions coming in so there can be some special own use type permits available, but you have to be lucky and be there at the right time. They can also book all the other dangerous game hunts but just not on their property. They are also attempting to establish their own exclusive fishing camp on the Okavango River.

View of lodge at night coming in from the days hunt with mysterious ghost woman in doorway.



BW I shot at dusk and was lucky to recover.


This is what you should know.

First, Sandveld Safaris stepped up to the plate and gave help to one of their own under tragic circumstances and should be recognized and supported for their generosity.

Second, it is the Kalahari. Sandy and flat so slowly following eland with your Bushman trackers can still get a bit tiresome due to walking through the sand.

Third, they cater to bow hunters by having thirteen water holes with twelve strategically placed bow hunting blinds. This is the place to come to for monster eland. They have a huge population with excellent trophy genetics. I believe a dedicated bow hunter (cognitively disabled as they are) who is odd enough to want to sit silently in a sweaty blind the entire day alone with his simple twisted mind who has lots of patience (probably because there is nothing upstairs) can have an excellent chance of wounding a world record eland that will most likely have to be tracked and finished off with a rifle. You people are weird.

Fourth, the facilities, meals, beverages, vehicles, company and ambiance are all excellent. Jan-Daniel, his lovely wife Carina and their son all live on the property full time. Carina prepares all the meals, and she is a first-rate chef. They have their own garden and the salads were fantastic. The new owner is presently upgrading the camp although I thought it was pretty great as is. My chalet was quite spacious and came with a mini-split air conditioner for comfy sleeping as the Kalahari can get quite warm.

Fifth, Jan-Daniel is an excellent PH who knows the property well and has two authentic bushman trackers in Andreas and Hans with Lourens as their driver. Slowly tracking eland bulls through the sandy thick bush of the Kalahari is a challenging and exciting hunt. You will be completely at the mercy of your bushman trackers. The shots aren’t that long but trying to find a window to fire a kill shot on an eland through the bush is tough and you have to be quick.

Sixth, leave your rifle at home and spare yourself the hassle of traveling with firearms. They have an excellent selection of rifles. I used a Christensen 300 WM with a Zeiss scope with great effect. If you are a bow hunter, then do whatever you crazy bastards do.

Upon arrival I told Jan-Daniel I had no room for anymore trophy mounts, so I was all up for shooting older broken horned animals, taking photos and then hitting the bar. There would be no need for dip and pack and shipping to a taxidermist. He seemed genuinely relieved as I know it takes a lot of pressure off a PH to find top trophies and some clients (usually bow hunters) can be really grumpy and constipated in regard to animal quality. From then on, we had nothing but a relaxed good time.



Just one of the three non-trophy eland I shot.



I ended up shooting one very nice oryx, one blue wildebeest and three non-trophy elands. keep in mind all three of these elands would be considered fine trophies in most other concessions but here they were just average.







Had time for a braai on an island within the Okavango River.



The sixteen pound tiger fish I caught.



Jan-Daniel and Jan-Daniel. What a lucky little boy!

The real unexpected highlight of this trip was observing the bundling and tagging of a live 10’ crocodile that had been captured in a steel trap. Apparently, he had been feasting on the locals’ goats. I took video but don’t know how to post it here. Help? I had my iPhone right up against the snout of this snarling hissing lizard and it was quite intimidating. It made me think what kind of psycho would want to go swimming in the Okavango River. I offered to shoot him, but the Namibian Parks guy politely declined my generous offer.



Who cares about crocodiles. It's hot and I'm taking a little swim in the Okavango River.





Eland tenders. Meals were all fantastic.



Inside the lodge and view looking out to waterhole with Oryx drinking.



My hosts, Jan-Daniel, Jan-Daniel and Carina.


Guns Core
December 2024

Guns Core
I would like to formally invite you to come bow hunting with me in KZN!!!! We will have a great time as I can see from your report you just cant wait to creep around in the bush and fling some arrows!!!

Great report by the way and for a good cause.

JCHB

quote:

Originally posted by JCHB:
Guns Core
I would like to formally invite you to come bow hunting with me in KZN!!!! We will have a great time as I can see from your report you just cant wait to creep around in the bush and fling some arrows!!!

Great report by the way and for a good cause.

JCHB

You are evil tempting me into a new addiction. Sounds like fun.

Great report, Mike.

Kudos to Sandveld Safaris and to you.

Gert was a great guy and will be missed.