I will do the report as the hunter is writing it.
Cale and Julio from Texas hunted with me and here we go.

3 years ago I started planning my 1st trip to Africa. I research and spoke to several outfitters. I talked to friends that went. I went to the Dallas Safari Club show. I also checked out people advertising on here.

I found Ferdi Venter safaris advertising on here and gave him a call. (Fvh40 on here). After speaking with Ferdi and a reference of his I decided to book with him. I booked about 15 months ago and just got back on Tuesday.

In short it was an unbelievable hunt.

We had planned 7 days of hunting and purchased a base package with hopes of adding a couple of animals. The packaged included Kudu, impala, blesbuck, springbuck and either warthog or duiker. I was also looking at adding blue wildebeest and zebra.

I probably sent 200 emails over the 15 months before the hunt. Ferdi always answered me honestly and pretty quick. He was very helpful and patient with all of my questions and emails. This was my 1st trip and I had so many questions.

I am going to give a detailed write up over the next several days and will include plenty of pictures.
Ferdi picked us up in Port Elizabeth and helped us get our rifles from the police there in the airport. We had about a 3 hour drive from there to get to the hunting lodge. It went by quick because we were talking about our week to come the entire time. I felt like I knew Ferdi since I spoke to him through email so many times.

When we pulled up to the ranch the 1st animals we saw were two huge eland bulls. One had a dark black face and real heavy horns.

When we got to the house it was on top of a small hilltop that overlooked a green field. In the field there were waterbuck, warthogs, and nyala.

The house was a beautiful two story home that was full of mounts and decorated very nice. It had a a pool outside.(wasn't ready for swimming since it was winter) there was a very nice bar on the inside that we may or may not have spent some time at each evening. each of us had our own room with a comfortable bed and private bathrooms.

Shortly after arriving we zeroed our rifles. They had a good bench setup and 100 yard range. Each of us had to make minor adjustments and were ready to go.



That night it was difficult to sleep. I woke up without an alarm an hour before I had to. We had a few pieces of toast and coffee for breakfast and headed out.

The plan was to hunt for kudu primarily but also be opportunistic with other animals that are on my hit list.

The terrain where we hunted was mountainous and very thick. We had to use the height to our advantage. We started out high on one mountain side glassing for kudu. Shortly Elliot (our Tracker) spotted a huge kudu bull. We had some work to do to get within range though. He was 5-600 yards out when we spotted him. We were able to sneak lower on the hillside and get within 380 yards. The kudu were on to us and would not be hanging around too much longer. Ferdi setup the shooting sticks and told me to put my horizontal crosshairs on the bulls back.

(I am not used to shooting off sticks nor am I used to shooting past 250 yards. I will admit I did not practice enough to prepare myself for this.)

I fired and the shot was high. My nerves were going crazy and my lack of practice did not help. Ferdi had me chamber another round and he whistled to try and stop the bull. Now further away he stopped for just a second and I fired again. High again. I am so disappointed right now. In my mind I was over reacting thinking I was going to have a tough week if all my shots were that long.

It was now my friends turn since I missed and wasted my opportunity.
After the miss we moved to another part of the property. We came to a flat hill top that overlooked some nice open fields. As we snuck to the edge of the bluff to glass the PH spotted a nice impala ram about 150 yards out. We were several hundred feet above the ram on the bluff and he had no idea we were there. Even though this sounds easy but several things are coming into play right now. 1st morning nerves, shooting off sticks that we are not used to and the steep angle of the shot. (Yes I have a pile of excuses )

We set up for the shot and my friend missed high.

Now all kinds of things are going through our heads. We were obviously embarrassed. We were disappointed in ourselves and had doubts to weather we were even going to be able to take all of our animals. We knew at this point Ferdi must have been thinking he has a long week ahead of him.

The best thing we could do at this point is head in for brunch.

They would have us some great food waiting on us every time we came in after the morning hunt. The food would range from eggs, warthog sausage, potatoes, toast, pasta, venison in mushroom sauce, ect. Each brunch was 5-7 items to chose from and 90% of the food was great. We did have kudu liver one time (not so great) but they had roasted chicken as a second choice because they knew these Texans might not like the liver. Boy were they correct

After we ate we had a short rest and headed out again. The plan was to get to high points and see what we can find and scout for later hunts. We made several stops and seen plenty of animals. Just nothing within range. Around 3:30 we made our way to this tall bluff that overlooked an open field. There were 15-20 warthogs in the field. The ph and the tracker were looking for a good boar and luckily there was one. It took a while for him to offer us a broadside shot.

I was as nervous as ever. I felt so much pressure to make a good shot and get something in the salt.(as Ferdi would say). The shot was around 250 yards off sticks and from a high vantage point.

Finally the boar turned and stopped for a second. I leveled the crosshairs on high shoulder and concentrated the best i could. I was thinking don't miss, hold steady, squeeze the trigger, follow through, and DON'T MISS!!!!

BOOM!!!!! I bolt another round and see the pig running and the hear Ferdi shout great shot!!!!

The warthog stumbled just as he ran in to the brush. My adrenaline was through the roof. Plus everything was captured on video by my buddy!!!

We made our way down to the field and found good blood where the boar was shot. We did not find blood again until we entered the bush. The blood trail was an easy track at this point as I led the way. The pig did not make it more than 75 yards. The shot was great perfect dbl lung. Many high fives and pictures and my 1st African animal was down. (And a little pressure off my shoulders)



After this we moved quick to load the warthog and take it to the skinners. At this point we had about an hour of daylight left.

We drove to a different part of the property to another vantage point and as luck would have it two warthog were directly below us. I cannot tell you how high we were standing on loose rock and looking down this steep bluff to these warthogs.

The shot was less that 100 yards but straight down
My friend took a seated shot on a small set of shooting sticks. He made a great shot and the pig did not take a step!

I was videoing when he shot and I yelled so loud "great shot" I scared everyone and had then thinking something was wrong!!

Excellent! Love that hog!

Great pig! Lookin' forward to the rest of your story. What kind of rifle, bullet and scope?

quote:

I will do the report as the hunter is writing it.

Great pigs. Look forward to the rest.

quote:

We did have kudu liver one time (not so great) but they had roasted chicken as a second choice because they knew these Texans might not like the liver. Boy were they correct

Good grief, either there is something sadly wrong with Texans or someone did not know how to deal with the liver. Damn, that is king's food.

Nice pigs though.

Liver is a filter (to me). I know y'all dive in head first to get the liver, but I would rather have salad only than that.

I'm liking your story and pics. Anxious to hear more. Sounds like you guys had a blast. I'd eat liver if I was starving, but that's about it.

With the pressure off and our 1st kills in the salt we were able to relax that night and enjoy some great conversation. John (landowner) and his wife Amanda cooked us a great dinner.

The plan on the second morning was to go look for Kudu again. As we headed down one of the ranch roads our tracker( Elliot) asked Ferdi to stop. He saw something that he wanted to look at. He spotted a group of blue wildebeest. With this being high on my hitlist we got out of the truck and made a short stalk.

Just as we left the truck Ferdi explained to me just how tough this animal was and also about if I shoot high above the spine the bull will drop. Then get up and run off. So I was to bolt quickly and be ready for a follow up shot.

The wildebeest were positioned perfect for us. We were able to sneak down a road that lead to the field they were in feeding. As we peeked around the trees there was a nice bull in the group. We ranged the bull at 260 yards. Not a chip shot but a big target also.

Ferdi set up the shooting sticks and I eased into possition. He explained to me which one to shoot and I just had to wait a second for him to turn broadside. I aimed right on the shoulder and squeezed slowly. At the shot he reared up and the shot looked good. I did bolt and readied myself for a follow up. Ferdi told me to hold off. The wildebeest ran a short way and got wobbly and fell over.

I then got the shakes real bad. One of my top trophies was down just 15 min after we left the house!!!

Elliot radioed for help and John and a group of guys arrived quickly to help with pics and load the animal



Since it was so early we were going to look for Julio a kudu. We spent several hours glassing and moving looking for a good bull. We saw several bulls but nothing that was mature enough. As we were moving positions late in the morning we spotted another group of blue wildebeest.

Now it was Julio's turn to try and get a wildebeest bull. This time it was not as easy. Just as we set up the sticks and he was about to shoot the herd had enough of us and took off running. Elliot had an idea where they might go so we made a move and Elliot was right.

The wildebeest thought they were safe hiding in the bush and shade of the trees. It was getting hot real quick since it was almost noon at this point. We had to keep setting up and moving several times. The bull was surrounded by cows so it was very difficult to get an open shot. About an hour later the group started to move a little. We had to move further down to road quickly to get into position.

Finally an open shot at around 250 yards. Julio's shot was low in the shoulder but missed the vitals. The bull started running at an angle that was going to have him cross the road we were standing in. Julio turned and got ready for a shot and Ferdi set up also. (Ferdi had already discussed with us the day before and asked if we wanted him to help if a shot was bad. We told him yes)

Just as the bull was coming into the open Ferdi fired. His bullet struck a tree right in front of the bull. The bull did turn and ran straight away zig zagging down the road. Julio and Ferdi fired a couple of more shots but did not connect.

We made our way down the road and Elliot took up the track. We slowly snuck our way through the brush for several hundred yards. All of the sudden we saw the bull stand up out of his bed and Julio was able to shoot him again. He only ran 20 -30 yards and died.

It was not the way it was planned but Julio's second animal is down.



We did not get back to the house for lunch until around 2:00 and were starving.

After lunch we went again after kudu but would target anything that gives us an opportunity.

After several stops and glassing different areas we came across a big group of impala that had a nice ram with a bunch of females. The only problem was the closest we could get was 300 yards. I tried putting my horizontal crosshair along the back of the ram. I fired and missed.

We were on top of a tall cliff and the impala were down below. They did not know we were there and were confused at the shot. They actually ran straight to us and the ram stopped at 80 yards right below. I had to quickly move the sticks and made the easy shot. All of the impala ran into the brush and no ram ran out. I knew he was down.

We made our way down and after a shot track I found my trophy. He had good mass and the rings around his horns were real distinct. He was such a beautiful animal and the federal fusion ammo did a number on him.


After taking pics and heading towards camp Julio got lucky. A solo impala ram was standing in the brush. Ferdi confirmed he was a shooter and Julio got down out of the truck and made a good shot on the ram.

I made a big mistake on this one. I forgot to hit record!!! Oops!

Great trophies! Sounds like you had an outstanding time on your first trip. Thanks so much for sharing and I hope you have the opportunity to return to Africa soon!

Sounds like a great first trip. Thanks for sharing, it brings back many memories of my first trip to the Cape years back. You have been bitten, start planning your next trip!

Just a few notes.

This was not a walk up and shoot situation. The animals were very wild. We had to keep the wind to our advantage, stay lower than the cover, keep as quiet as possible with 4 people hunting. We used the mountains and the height to our advantage. We had dozens of blown stalks and made plenty of mistakes that I haven't even mentioned.

Ferdi and Elliot worked as a team. Many times Elliot would stay at a high vantage point as we did our stalk. They communicated with radios to help guide us to the right spot for a shot. When you are high on a hill side and you had to move down in the bush it was easy to lose track of we're the animals were in relation to you.

It also helped after the shot for Elliot to watch where the animal ran.

These two worked like a well oiled machine. We hunted everyday from daylight until dark with just an hour or so off during lunch time.

The staff of skinners, trackers, and the land owner were also great. When we had an animal down or wounded Elliot would radio John and they would rush over to help. They would pose the animal for pics. Then they would load the animal and take it to skin while we where able to keep hunting.

One fear I had was the skinners. I've heard so many bad stories about how the capes were butchered. I brought my skinning knife for that very reason. I never used it because I met the skinner and watched him work. He was top notch.

The food was great. We tried all kinds of different venison. John knew his meat because he also owns a great butcher shop. He also had commercial fishing. We ate fresh cod one night that was caught that morning.

This was a 1st class operation. I cannot say enough good about everyone.

We are only on day 2 of seven. More to come tomorrow

Day 3 and it was my turn again. We did a coin flip the 1st day to see who shoots 1st and I won. Julio really didn't mind at this point because every time I killed something so did he.

The plan again was to go look for kudu bulls. We went to a completely different part of the property this time. At the 1st place we glassed we spotted a bull that we wanted a closer look at. He was probably around a mile away at this point.

We could not drive any closer due to the terrain and on this property there is a concrete irrigation ditch that runs through right here. We had to make our way around that to get to the kudu. The walk was long and the last part we had to move very slow and keep a close eye on the group. Since the rut was going on the bull was surrounded by cows.

The ground we were walking on is mostly loose shale. If you have never paid attention like I didn't to the size of a kudu's ears you should. They have a set the size of two dinner plates. My Ph said they can hear us from miles away. I don't know if he was exaggerating but we never got near a kudu without them knowing we were there.

It seemed like they had a distance of about 5-600 yards they would sometimes allow us in. The term grey ghost is a perfect name for these majestic animals.

This time we were either lucky or good. (I don't know which) we snuck up to a small hill that had brush behind us so we were not skylighted. The bull as always was behind a group of trees and the cows were getting nervous. We ranged the trees at 250 yards so estimated the bull at 280. The cows started moving to our right and my opportunity was about to happen. The bull came out on a fast walk and moved past the 1st opening. When he approached the 2nd opening Ferdi whistled and the bull stopped and looked our way. I put the crosshairs 2/3 the way up on his shoulder thinking my bullet would drop 5-7 inches.

At the shot the bull rared up and ran straight ahead. He didn't make it far staggered and fell.

Now the shakes started. My heart was racing and it seamed tough to breath. My number one target was down!!!!

We made our way down to the bull and he was beautiful. He was striped great and had good color. His horns were narrow but they were heavy and long for a cape kudu.

Julio's turn!!

Pressure was now on Ferdi to get Julio a kudu bull. He has to keep the pattern going. Haha.

We made our move to where I shot my impala the day before. It was a great lookout point. We spotted 3 gemsbok but they were far away. Ferdi and Elliot came up with a plan and the plan was to hike to the gemsbuck.

I don't know how far it was but I do know it was about an hour of walking. We really enjoyed this walk. It was mostly down hill and in just about the only area of the property that was not so thick with brush.

Ferdi explained that the gemsbuck are particularly shy of vehicles and if we moved any closer in the truck they would be gone.

There were 3 gemsbuck that we were walking towards 2 were together and 1 alone. They were about a half a mile apart. We decided to go after the one that was alone since it was only one set of eyes. Julio was ok with shooting a male or female because they both had great horns.

Once we got close we found out the gemsbuck was in some very thick stuff and it was mainly flat. It took some maneuvering but we finally got into position. Julio picked out a small opening in the brush and fired. The gemsbuck ran around 100 yards and stopped. We had to move ahead again to get an open shot. Julio fired again.

The gemsbuck ran a short distance and fell.

It was a great female gemsbuck with some very long horns. Julio was very happy. This was one of his top targets.

When I set up this hunt I knew this property did not have blinds setup for bowhunting. I was going to mostly rifle hunt because I wanted to hunt with Julio. The plan was to do some spot and stalk bowhunting when I was ready.

With 4 animals down I told Ferdi I was ready to bowhunt. The plan for the afternoon was for us to split up and Julio was going to go with Ferdi looking for female impalas or cull warthogs. The landowner gave us 2 free female impala and 2 cull warthogs.

I was going to hunt with Wicus( pronounced Vicus) the land owners son. He was a licensed PH and Bowhunter. We were going after warthog, nyala, or basically anything that we could get within range.

We started out trying to stalk warthog. We had a problem with the wind swirling and we got busted a couple of times. After a couple hours it seemed like we got more of a steady wind and found about 20 warthogs feeding in a field. There was little cover except a small 2 foot terrain change that we tried to use. There was one tree that we were trying to get to.

We crawled around 100 yards to get into position. We were in a good hiding place behind the tree but needed the warthog to feed closer. The closest was about 80 yards away.

We stood there for 30-45 minutes and the pics were moving slowly to us. 3-4 more pigs came out to our left front. The rest were to our right. I wanted one at least 40 yards and I would shoot. The ones on the left were at 45 yards but there was one that was getting close on the right also. All the sudden the ones to our right moved quickly to 20 yards. Wicus had me draw. I was going to slowly step out when the pig was facing away. The pig would not turn. I had to let down.

The one at 20 yards eventually busted us and ran. We had no choice but to get aggressive.

Right as we started crawling a big boar started breeding a sow. He was about a hundred yards out and not paying attention to us in the least. We crawled for about 100 yards until we got to some brush. We were able to stand up at this point. The warthogs were all running in and out of the brush. The one breeding keep getting down off the sow and chasing others of. The pigs were running around everywhere and we were in the middle of it.

I wanted to shoot that boar off her back.

Just as we got into position and I was about to draw the boar and sow ran off. We moved forward. A young boar ran out and I drew. Wicus ranged him at 47 yards. I took aim and fired. Perfect quartering away shot. Arrow stuck in opposite shoulder and the boar went down.

Wicus couldn't believe the shot nor could I!!

We moved forward again and two big boar ran out and I drew. Wicus said 33 yards. I shot and my arrow buried in behind the shoulder. I saw the boar running up the hill with half my arrow sticking out of his side.

We tracked that pig for a long way with little blood. We left the tracker there since we only had about an hour of daylight left. Collin the other son of the landowner radioed and said he sees a big nyala bull. We took off in the landrover to get over there. As we got close we took off our shoes. We made the last 100 yards in socks.

We got in a position behind a tree where the bull was feeding our way. The only problem was an impala joined the nyala and was feeding ahead of him. Just as the bull got to 20 yards the impala busted us. I was at full draw and only needed the bull to take one more step.

It was a great night of bowhunting.

We never recovered that other warthog. They are tough animals.

Next morning we went to a different property about an hour away. We were after springbuck and blesbuck.

Julio wanted me to shoot 1st and we were after springbuck. We tried a couple of different tactics once we found some springbuck. They were plentiful where we went. There was zebra, red hartebeest, springbuck, and blesbuck that we saw 1st thing.

At 1st we tried spot and stalk but the herds would only let us get within 4-500 yards before they bolted. They reminded me so much of our pronghorn. Just smaller. I would guess 50-75 lbs. small target to say the least.

We finally had some good cover that we were able to sneak into and get closer. We spotted a older ram but he was broken. My Ph wanted to know if I wanted to shoot him. He explained to me that he was very old but I really didn't want one that 1/4 of his horn was broken off. We got lucky just a few minutes later and a good ram all by himself was crossing the field in front of us. When we spotted him he was around 250 yards. He was crossing at an angle that brought him closer about 180 yards. I aimed spot on and made a good shot. He ran almost to us and piled up about 50 yards away.




Now Julio's turn after we took pics and gutted mine.

We moved to a different area and found another herd. There were 3-4 shooters in this group. It took us 12-15 times to get within a reasonable distance of the herd. It was also difficult telling Julio which one was the shooter. Finally Julio took aim and missed like me.

We kept after this same herd. After several more attempts to get within 200 yards and communicate which one was the shooter. Ferdi said we will get it this time. He was right and we moved and the ram stopped and offered a shot. Julio shot and his shot was true. That little springbuck is tough. It ran over a 100 yards before it went down.



The blesbuck was a little easier. There was more cover and terrain changes. Also all the rams were bunched up together. After a half mile hike we got close with the use of the trees and wind in our favor. Julio was shooting 1st. The shot was 130 yards but I guess his nerves got to him because he shot low.

The blesbuck never knew we were there and ran over the hill. This worked in our favor. We were able to sneak to the top of the hill and the ram we were after was feeding away from us. We just had to wait for him to turn broadside. Julio was rattled from his miss but was able to put a great shot on this blesbuck and he was down quick.

Now my turn we drove to the other side of the property in search of a other herd. We were lucky again and found a group of rams quick. We got the wind in our favor and moved into position. These blesbuck must have not been hunted much. When we crested a hill they were within 200 yards. I was in the sticks and ready but the ram I was after was curious to what we were and actually moved closer. When he was at 180 yards he turned to run and offered me a broadside shot for just a second. I made it count. He ran about 30 yards before going down.

A great day. 4 animals down.

Day 4

I got a little out of order and missed an entire day of hunting. Oops. The day before we went after the springbuck and blesbuck we started out looking for a kudu bull for Julio.

We went to a high spot that looked over a large field below. Just as we crept to the edge of the hill there was kudu below with a very nice bull. We must have been a little careless because they heard us approach. It would have been a close shot if we would have been quieter. I may or may not have talked right as we got to the edge.


The herd started to leave and Ferdi set up the sticks quickly. The bull was last to go and moved through some thick trees at the edge of the field. Just as he entered an opening Ferdi whistled. The shot was long. Further than 300 yards. Julio put his horizontal cross hair at the top of the bulls back. He fired and hit the bull but the shot was low and not in the vitals. He tried another shot and missed while the bull was running.

We left Elliot there to keep an eye on the bull and we got on the truck and drove real fast to the bottom. There was no short cut since we were on a cliffs edge. When we got to the bottom we approached on foot. Elliot told us the bull bedded down and directed us to him. Just as we got close he stood up and started to run. Julio was able to put a good shot on him and put him down on the run. He was a beautiful bull with ivory tips on his horns.



Now as we loaded up after taking pictures something crazy happened.

Ferdi told me John and him talked and they wanted me to kill another Kudu. They said mine was a good bull but with the narrow horns it was not the representative bull they wanted me to take. He offered me a second bull at a HUGE discount and I couldn't refuse. I was floored and now very excited. It was so early in the morning we were going to look for one right now!!!!!

We made our way to our lookout point where I missed the big bull on day one.

I made sure I kept quite this time.. It did not take long for Elliot to find another big bull just below us.

( the most exciting thing was when no one was talking and you didn't know anyone spotted anything. Then all the sudden the shooting sticks get thrown open. That's when your heart starts racing!!!!!)

That is what happened here. Elliot opened the sticks and Ferdi rushed me to get ready. I still haven't spotted the bull. Ferdi helped me find the bull and at the same time the bull found us. He started moving quickly to our left and he paused one more time in an opening to look back at us. He was just over 200 yards out when I fired. He took off a short distance and ran into a stump. He did a flip and fell dead. He didn't go 30 yards.

It had been so tough to even find shooter bulls and we had 2 down in 30 min!! Talk about exciting!!!!

Great trip and report. Looks like you had a lot of fun. Congrats. Bruce

The smiles tell it all. The first safari and a lifetime of memories.

To all,

Mike

This is a little out of order. Going back to the springbuck and blesbuck hunt.

On the way back to the house Wicus called Ferdi and asked if we would be back before dark so he could take me back out after a nyala bull. He told him we would try.

We got to the house with about an hour or less daylight to go. Wicus had a nyala bull already spotted and he was feeding in a way that we could get in front of him. We took off and had Colin keep watch from above and guide us to him. We got to him just as he past our ambush spot. Literally 3 min late. So we snuck down a road in hopes of spotting him again. Just around one of the bends some nyala cows ran across. Wicus had me come to full draw in hopes the bull would follow them. He was right a nyala bull pops out at 30 yards. He didn't stay long and busted out of there. He told me to stay drawn he though the biggest bull would cross last and he did. He crept his way out in front of us. It was 30 yard shot but one branch was between me and him. I just needed him to take one more step and he took off.

Colin radioed us and said he was on his way because he has a different bull spotted. We were down to 20 min of light. Colin picked us up and flew up the road about a mile away. We jumped out and the stalk was on. We were right in the thick of the animals here because they were all waiting for darkness to come out to the field below to feed. We got close to another nyala bull and I was at full draw but a bush covered up his vitals. He didn't waste anytime getting out if there also.

We crept forward slowly to see if there was anything else in the area. Wicus asked me if I wanted to shoot an impala ram and i said yes. There were a group of rams that were feeding left to right and brought them to 31 yards. The biggest ram was last and we were losing light quickly. Two rams past then the big one was coming out. Wicus whistled for him to stop and I was already at full draw.

I shot and thought I saw my nocturnal go in behind his shoulder. We found my arrow and it was covered in blood. Wicus wanted to leave him overnight due to darkness. I was confident we would find him in the morning.
In the morning a group if us went in search for the impala. Long story short we tracked the impala for 400+ yards on very little blood and tracks. So we decided to leave one tracker there and he would continue to look for it while we continued hunting.

I made the decision to not bowhunt anymore this trip. I lost two animals and my confidence was down. I do not like losing animals period but when you pay for each one you lose it makes it worse.

I already discussed that on my next trip Ferdi has a spot that is setup for bow only and I will be spending a few days there. Spot and stalk was great but there are too many variables and I did not want to wound something else.

Wicus asked me what I wanted to hunt so I said either eland or waterbuck. Whichever we see 1st.

Wicus had an idea where an eland bull was since he saw it the night before when he was scouting for me. So we took off to a lookout point. The 1st place we stopped we saw the bull. He was actually within 200 yards but in super thick brush. You could only see the top of his back and horns.

The plan was to sneak in close. The wind was in our favor. We moved slowly and got to about 40 yards but the bull was behind some trees and brush. You still could barely see this huge animal. You could hear him eating he was so close.

We backed out and came in from the opposite direction. We could see the bull and only needed to get a little to our left for a shot. Then all off the sudden 3 eland which we had no idea was there busted out running. We were within 20 yards of them. After 45 min of maneuvering and watching this bull we did not see the other 3.

Wicus radioed his dad and his dad could see the eland running full speed across the property. We got into the land cruiser and drove to the same spot Julio shot his kudu to try and see them from this point but they already ran past. John could see the eland still and told Wicus where to go. It was a very fast bumpy ride in the truck to get down below the cliff.

We jumped out and took off towards a field edge. Once we got within 100 yards of the field we slowed down and walked quietly. At one point we thought we were going to get busted by warthogs. We thought the eland were going to come out into this field. There was a small opening in the trees and we peaked out in to the field. Here the eland come. We moved down the field edge a little more to the next opening. Quickly Wicus set up the sticks and told me which one was the biggest bull.

I steadied my aim. It was a big target but I did not want to hit his shoulder bone because the bullet would not penetrate. I'm shooting a .270. I aimed a little over a 1/3 of the way up and fired. He hunched up at the shot. The 4 eland took off running and ran behind some trees. Only 3 continued out of the trees. The bull was down!!!!


Right after we confirmed he was down Wicus told me that John wanted to take out the eland cow and wanted to know if I wanted to at a reduced rate. I asked how much and said yes.
We immediately tried to catch up with the cow. We walked quickly over the hill where we last saw the 3 eland go. They were moving fast away and we never really had a shot opportunity.

John came over and picked us up. He though he knew where they were going. After a short drive we saw the eland walking the opposite hillside. He stopped the truck quickly and threw down the shooting sticks. They told me it was the second one. I asked for range and they said there was no time. They told me to aim high shoulder. I took aim and shot. The cow reacted to the shot and Wicus said great shot. I was not real confident but John and Wicus were. Wicus ranged the spot the cow was standing and it was 320 yards.

We let the tracker out there to go find get and we went back to take pictures of the bull. We had to get the pictures before he got stiff. While we were taking the picture the tracker radioed us and said he found the cow but she is still alive. We took off to where the tracker told us to go. The cow was bedded down and I was able to shoot her in the neck to finish her off.

Two eland down in 30 min. The cow had longer horns than the bull but they were thinner.

I think the skinners are now mad at me.

Now we had a day and half of hunting left. We both had an unbelievable hunt so far. The plan was to get Julio a waterbuck.

The evening after I shot the Eland we headed out to a spot we have glasses from several times. Amanda the landowners wife actually spotted a waterbuck bull from the porch of the house. He was in a position where we could not get above him and we did not want to chance spot and stalk close because there were so many cows around.

Elliot our tracker stayed at the high point and helped guide us into position by radio. We were on the only small hill near the bull. The bull would have to move to us now. We stayed on that hill for an hour and half and the bull never moved. Darkness saved him that evening.

The next morning we went to the same area to look for that bull. We spotted 2 shooter bulls first thing but neither were in a spot we could get to him. The next 5 hours we played cat and mouse with the bulls. They would move then we would move. We made the decision to get more aggressive.

The largest of the two bulls were in a high spot feeding and we were going to try and approach it from below. When we got in place the brush was just too tall and thick to even see the bull. We needed to get to a high spot but there was nothing in the area for us. There was an old mud brick farm house that we though we might be able to get on the roof. We looked at the house and there was no support under the tin so that would not work. Just by dumb luck as we were looking around the house we spotted the bull in a small opening.

Julio was able to stand on top of an old brick firepit just to get enough elevation to shoot over the brush in front of us. When we were in position we had to wait for over 10 minutes that seemed like an hour for the bull to take just one step forward for an open shot. The bull finally did and Julio shot. He hit low in the shoulder and the bull was hurt bad.

An hour later we were able to track him down and Julio finished him off. He is a great waterbuck bull.



That evening we did try and get me a last minute zebra but we were not able to. They busted us and never stopped running.

This was a hunt if a lifetime but hopefully I will get to do it again. I will hunt with Ferdi when I do. We are already talking about what the hunt will be and when.

The next time I go the 1st 2-3 days will be on one of Ferdi's properties that is set up for bowhunting. I want to bowhunt out of blinds and over water. I did enjoy the spot and stalk archery hunting but there is just too many variables for me to be comfortable doing that.

I really did enjoy the rifle hunting also. The animals were very wild and tough to hunt so I will do some of that next time also. My trophy list will be different so I can try for different animals.

John, Amanda, Wicus and Colin made us feel at home. The food was great every day. Amanda's pumpkin fritters were amazing. I miss them right now.

Eland steaks was the best thing we ate with the kudu backstrap a close second.

All of the trackers, skinners, and any other worker was very nice and helpful. Everyone worked to serve us and made sure we were happy. Elliot our main tracker knew that property like no one else. He had been working that land for 23 years.

A lot of great trophies. Sounds like a fun hunt. Congratulations.

I just got around to reading this and enjoyed it quite a bit. Those distances you two had are considerably longer than ones I've had on my trips. Pulling off a 250 yard shot off sticks on a warthog is no mean feat! Several of your other shots on larger game were also at distances that would have made me hesitate, but you guys came thru once your jitters went away.

Did you both borrow rifles from Ferdi, or bring them? You mentioned you used a .270 WCF, what about Julio?

Very nice. I love it when you make a plan and it works. congrats

looks like you guys had a great time, and trophies of a lifetime too.

quote:

Did you both borrow rifles from Ferdi, or bring them? You mentioned you used a .270 WCF, what about Julio?

If I may answer your question.

Cale and Julio brought their own rifles with. cale used his 270 and julio used his 30-06,to the end of the hunt julio developed a slight flinch and i helped him with a 270 with a supressor

Great summary. Those are some long shots for SA. Hitting a little piggy at 250 and on sticks is some darn nice shooting. Congrats