Hunt Dates: November 1st -12th 2013.
Location: Royal Kafue, Zambia
PH: Andrew Baldry
Trackers: Michael and Kris
Skinner: Steven
Game Scout: Nelson
Key Camp staff: Manager Iran and Chef Ronald

Arriving in Lusaka on the 31st October brought with it all the emotions and excitement of once again being privileged enough to hunt in Africa. This was my 9th safari to the Dark Continent …but my first to Zambia.

It was on this very forum where I first made contact with Andrew and enquired about fulfilling my dream of hunting Sable and, what I consider to be one of Africa’s finest trophies, the Southern Roan.

Andrew met me at the airport and we soon had everything packed in his Toyota Landcruiser and commenced the 5 hour drive to the Royal Kafue concession. This piece of wilderness has resulted from Andrews personal relationships with the Kaindu community and his passion for wildlife conservation. The Joint Venture he has formed with the community and the mutual trust and respect that has grown in only two short years is clearly evident and shows the model is working.
Passing through Mbuwa on the way to Royal Kafue we hit some heavy rain. The season was definitely changing but the rain brought some welcome respite to the heat.
Over the next two weeks we would continue to get rain in the afternoons and evenings after a day of “buildup”.



Pulling into Andrews camp on the banks of the Kafue River at about 6pm I was greeted by smiling faces and a cold beer.




Dinner that night was a precursor for the rest of our safari. Sable back steaks with roasted vegetables. Ronald proved to be a great chef and whenever we arrived back after a long days hunting we looked forward to what culinary delight he had prepared for us. Sitting around the campfire, under a million stars, and talking with Andrew about the plan ….I was in heaven.
That night I was awoken at about 1am by the sound of an Elephant scratching itself on the tree that my chalet was built under. The sound of its stomach rumbling and the shrill noise it made when I started shuffling around got my heart beating! Looking out the shade cloth window from my bed the silhouetted shape of a big Ele in the moonlight a few meters from my window was a clear reminder of where in the world I was!

Mr Baldry.

Getting to the end of this report first…..this was a most incredible safari. Mr Baldry is a gentleman of rare quality and mettle. We hunted hard, sweated lots, ate well, had lots of laughs, shared some amazing emotions, saw some things that we will never forget, created lifetime memories…..and yes, took some incredible trophies. We are already planning our next adventure together. Bring it on.

Day 1;
Priority animals for this safari are Sable and Roan. Not necessarily in that order but we resolved to get these in the salt before getting distracted. Mid morning saw us glassing a herd of Sable with a beautiful bull. He looked HUGE to me but after looking at him for a long time, Andrew decided we should pass as he thought he was not old enough and “we can do better”. As I came off the sticks I wondered if the intense heat was affecting our sanity. Photo below. AB thought he was 43”.


The Bull we passed.

The afternoon saw us stalking a herd of Roan. Incredibly difficult to hunt these animals. Very wary with incredible senses…particularly eyesight. I was on the sticks and steady…but no Bull.
We had bumped a Reedbuck on the Roan stalk but paid no attention. It started to rain and we sheltered under a big tree.
Kris says to AB: “Bwana is that Reedbuck not big enough?”
By some twist of fate, he is now walking towards us. Andrew glasses him and promptly tells me to get out into the rain and shoot him.
Dinner is roasted warthog rump stuffed with breadcrumbs and other great tasting stuff.





Day 2;
Got onto a big herd of Roan just after dawn. After a great stalk lasting over 3 hours and covering about 5 miles we had glassed over 40 Roan. No Bull. Incredible hunting.

Late morning we picked up fresh Sable tracks and got on the ground. About 1 hour later we caught up with the herd of about 30 with a magnificent Black Bull in charge. A great stalk and a lot of glassing Andrew decided we should pass as he thought “we can do better”. As I came off the sticks I wondered if the intense heat was affecting our sanity. AB thought he was 42”.
On the back out we cut fresh Buffalo tracks and soon spotted the herd asleep in the shade. Stalked into 50 yards of what turned out to be a group of ~12 Dagga Boys. Some very nice bulls but one in particular was well over 40” with great drop in the horns. We had not received confirmation of my Buffalo license, and in any case Andrew had no quota left on Royal Kafue so we left them alone.
Dinner was Reedbuck tenderloin kebabs.

Dawn over the Kafue River floodplains.


We made Biltong in camp.

Day 3;
Travelled to the neighboring concession of Mushingashi to talk to resident PH, Adam Busky, about the possibility of hunting Buffalo, Puku and Crawshays Defassa Waterbuck. All good and Adam had the quota and license so after 16 cups of coffee we headed back to Royal Kafue with the plan to come back to Mushingashi later in our safari to hunt these animals.
On the drive back about 10am, I spotted a fresh dead Impala on an anthill. AB got out to investigate and when he was 5 yards from the impala a nice male Leopard jumped up. They both departed the scene in opposite directions to the sound of lots of laughing from me and the trackers.

Head Tracker Michael.

Afternoon saw us back on a herd of Roan. Despite our best efforts , after 2 hours of stalking , we just could not get a good look at the whole herd and they eventually got tired of us bothering them and left the scene.
On the way back to camp we saw a herd of ~50 Buffalo at last light. We did not bother them.
Dinner was Reedbuck Burgers with Chips and Salad.

Day 4;
Up at 4.30am and out before sunrise looking for Roan.
Came across a fresh Reedbuck kill by a pack of hunting dogs. Got some nice photo’s.
Spent whole day searching for Roan but no luck.


Day 5;
Another 4.30am start.
Saw a nice lone Sable Bull at dawn. Andrew decided we should pass as he thought he “we can do better”. As I came off the sticks I wondered if the intense heat was continuing to affect our sanity.
Looked for Roan all day and finally sighted a lone Bull right at sunset…..but he was running hard and all we could do was watch.
Dinner : roasted Reedbuck rump “olives”. Awesome.


Day 6;
Continued our Sable and Roan hunt.
Shot a nice Impala just before lunch and headed back to camp for lunch on what was a very hot day. Impala liver for lunch was to die for.
Mid afternoon saw us heading out again to a dambo where Andrew wanted to look for Roan. About 5pm we spotted a lone Sable Bull. One look through the binos and I knew he was big. AB did not take much convincing and we got on the ground. We stalked and bumped him twice before I got a shot in with my 330 Dakota. He jumped at the shot and I lost sight of him in the recoil. Andrew said he saw him stagger as he ran before also losing sight of him. Michael was smiling at me and said it was a good shot. We found him lying dead about 70 yards from where I shot him. OMG. We stood for about 5 seconds and stared at this incredible Sable. He was huge. Andrew and I put our hands on his horns and just stared in silence at his magnificence. It was a very emotional moment for both of us to see this magnificent Bull lying at our feet. We took photo’s and it was not until he was loaded and we were heading back to camp that I asked AB how long he thought he was. “about 47” !!! was the reply. I was dumbstruck. When we got back to camp and got to the skinning shed, Andrew got his tape. As I ran the tape to the end of his long horn it read 4 feet 2 and ½ inches. I told Andrew and we both looked at each other for about 3 seconds while we did the mental math. No way. 50.5 inches! The short horn was exactly 50”!. With 9.5+” bases, this Bull green scores 119.5+” and is easily in the Top 10 Common Sable Bulls in the Record Book.
Needless to say we celebrated hard that night. Never in my wildest dreams did I think I would take a Sable like this. What a testimony to the genetics and management practices that Andrew has in place at Royal Kafue. I am truly blessed and to hunt this Bull with a PH like Andrew is a rare privilege and something I will never forget.
The pictures need no comment.




Steven skinning out our Sable.

Day 7;
After a late start and with heavy heads we headed out. It was very hot and about 3 pm we saw a herd of Roan. We got on the ground and glassed. We saw a Bull and I got prone on a convenient anthill. I had lost sight of the Bull but Michael pointed him out to me in a herd of 20 animals ( incredible) and I shot him from 350yds with my 330. The 250gn Barnes TSX hit him hard but low in the shoulder and he ran from sight. When we got to where he was standing there was good blood …but no dead Roan. The tracking started and Michael and Kris did a great job in this task in difficult terrain and conditions. After about an hour of tracking, and with the sun rapidly setting, I was feeling very low and going through all the emotions of wounding and losing an animal…what would have been my first. Then we found fresh lion tracks in the Roan Bulls tracks. Not good. Soon after that we got a brief glimpse of the Bull slowly walking away. I once again got prone on an anthill and shot him from a long way away. At the shot he dropped! Michael was very excited and Andrew and I were equally so…but the relief in my heart and on Andrews face were plain to see. As we walked up to the Bull we realized that we had again taken a truly awesome trophy. The bull was huge…as big as a horse. Both his horns were broken off and broomed and had regrowth. His face was scarred as was his body. This old Bull was the trophy of a lifetime. Andrew and I embraced and savored what was a very special moment. We paid our respects to this great old warrior. This trophy has got to be one of the most challenging and rewarding in Africa. We had done many miles on foot and hunted hard. The hunting gods had smiled on us again for the second time in 24 hours.
Dinner of Sable steaks with a couple of bottles of nice red wine and lots of whisky after dinner around the fire drew the curtains on a day I will never forget.

Andrew and I with our magnificent old Bull.





Day 8;
After a late start we were quite happy to just drive around and drink water. We did see a very nice Lichtenstein’s Hartebeest at sunset. We slept well.

Day 9;
We came across a herd of Hartebeest at first light and after a great half hour stalk shot a very nice Bull with fantastic length and mass.
Man we were having a safari to remember.






That afternoon we decided to head to Mushingashi and try to get our Puku, Waterbuck and Buffalo that we had on licence.
Shot a very nice Puku at about 5.30pm on the Kafue River floodplains.




Dinner that night in the Mushingashi camp was Puku tenderloin. Had the pleasure of meeting and having dinner with Larry Rudolph and his lovely wife Bianca who were having a few days at Mushingashi.


Day 10;
Early morning saw us with Adam Busky looking for Buffalo. We found some sign and got on the track. Michael soon saw the Buffalo and after a final stalk that involved belly crawls and some delicate repositioning we were in position about 100 yards from the grazing herd. Andrew asked me what I was looking for …“the first hard bossed bull we see” was my reply. He smiled and nodded ….and we got busy glassing. 10 minutes later and a nice bull showed himself. No words were needed and 1 shot from my Jarrett in 416RM and the bull ran 80 yards and died. No death bellow and no follow up shots. The 400gn Swift A Frame is devastating. This was my 14th Cape Buffalo and while I remember every one, this one was special as the stalk and communication with Michael and Andrew was fantastic.



That afternoon we went looking for a Crawshays Defassa Waterbuck. Andrew knew an area that was quite thickly forested and was preferred habitat for these animals. With about 30 minutes of light left we spotted two bulls. The forest was dark and with what was almost a full canopy. One Bull looked good and I quickly told Andrew I wanted to try to take this Bull. We commenced our stalk. Michael has incredible stalking skills and the most amazing eyes in the bush. He could see the Waterbuck with his naked eye at 300m when I struggled with the bino’s. Right on dark and Andrew got me on the sticks and in a position to take a shot. The 416 barked and the Bull was down. What a day.
Dinner was Puku Backstrap…chicken fried! We celebrated hard with Adam, Larry and Bianca and had a great night with lots of laughs.

Day 11;
After a late start we headed back to Royal Kafue. I was keen to look for a Bushbuck and we did this in the late afternoon stalking a line of thickets. No mature Buck was sighted.


250gn TSX from my 330 Dakota recovered from Roan.

Day 12;
We were done. We had had an incredible safari and accomplished all we set out to do.
We decided to pack up and head back to Lusaka. Andrew graciously offered me to stay at his house that night and I had the opportunity to meet his gorgeous wife Julie and family. His 3 teenage boys are fine young men and I could see that they are a product of a stable and loving home environment. We went out for a lovely Indian meal and this capped off one of the most fulfilling and memorable safaris I have ever undertaken.

To Mr Baldry: thankyou my friend from the bottom of my heart. It was a real privilege to hunt and spend time with you in your piece of paradise. We will have many more adventures together….starting with Bushbuck and Sitatunga next year!!

I'm speechless.... Great report, but those trophies!


What is Baldry feeding them?

Great report. The pictures bring back fond memories.

I love the fact that Steven the skinner is wearing a Philadelphia Eagles hat!! Wonder where in the heck he got that.

Go Birds!!

Cheers
Jim

Fantastic!

Very well done, guys. I heard about this sable and was waiting to see some photos. Wow! Without a doubt, it will be the best sable taken in all of Africa this year. In fact, it's probably the best one since the 53" record shot by S&S a few years back. Nice old roan, too.

Also, it's great to see Ronald getting some work during the closure. He's a good guy and takes pride in his work.

Chaps,

In some of the Sable photos I look a bit worse for wear. This was partly due to the consumption of some very fine single malt Whiskey but mainly because of a nocturnal spider bite to the face and eyelid.

quote:

I look a bit worse for wear

Andrew, I am glad you explained that as you look like you are recovering from Malaria in the Roan and Sable shots.
The saying "I felt like death warmed up" came to mind.

Spiders are a pest at the best of times.
Great hunt, well done to you all.
Living the dream chaps, it does not get better than Royal Kafue.

Congratulations Steve and Andrew and all concerned... all I can say more is WOW. !!! That sable.... You tinny bastard Steve...

Love the wild dog photo too!!! very cool..

Great hunt! Congrats!

Outstanding ! Well done guys

quote:

Originally posted by fairgame:
Chaps,

In some of the Sable photos I look a bit worse for wear. This was partly due to the consumption of some very fine single malt Whiskey but mainly because of a nocturnal spider bite to the face and eyelid.

Yes, It was a nasty bite. The medicinal single malt worked well in preventing me catching anything contagious associated with this bite.

Those are some fantastic trophies!! Great photos, nice report. Very well done to all. Royal Kafue seems to be constantly producing quality animals.......good stuff Andrew

Fantastic Safari! Congrats Steve!!

Great trophies, great pictures and lots of great smiles. Congratulations on what looks like an outstanding hunt!

Outstanding Safari....Congratulations!

Great hunt. Great Trophies and a Great Host.

Jeff

unbelievable, congrats guys.

Congratulations! Those are some fantastic trophies!

Wonderful report!!

The smiles in those photos tell the story on their own.
Congratulations!!!!!!!

Incredible report Steve, well done on a truly magnificent safari! The old roan is just as much a trophy as that sable in my eyes!

Greg

Congrats well done

Great trophies, all of them. That Sable is a toad! Congratulations

Absolutely fantastic!!

Laurels all round for a hunter's equivalent of Victor Ludorum!

Incredible Sable! Congratulations!

Hugh

Ver-y-y-y-y-y-y-y-y nice! Even in the Kafue one could hunt a very long time and never see another 50 inch sable. Andrew has a great area that continues to improve each season. It's also wonderful to know that areas still exist that produce incredible trophies like this.

Mark

Great report. Thanks for sharing! Absolutely beautiful trophies.

quote:

Originally posted by Thierry Labat:
Those are some fantastic trophies!! Great photos, nice report. Very well done to all. Royal Kafue seems to be constantly producing quality animals.......good stuff Andrew

I was thinking of you and Will when that big Sable stepped out.

Cheers

Stunning sable, my favorite by far.

Great safari in a place I'm dying to hunt someday.

Congrats, really nice photos and report.

Awesome, great animals, beautiful country, and Camp. Congratulations to both of you, on a fantastic safari!!

Congratulations on an awesome Safari!! You and Andrew bagged what has to be one of the most spectacular plainsgame trophies this year.

No question you have some serious Sable, Andrew - I am jealous! Nice one Mate.

Cheers

quote:

Originally posted by MANDLAZIM:
Congratulations on an awesome Safari!! You and Andrew bagged what has to be one of the most spectacular plainsgame trophies this year.

No question you have some serious Sable, Andrew - I am jealous! Nice one Mate.

Cheers

Thanks mate. What with 100lb elephants and big hairy Lion from Zim the Southern Hemisphere has hunted very well this year.

My best to Nevin and his better half.

Awesome trophies. I've got to get back to Africa.

Outstanding trophies and report. When ( if ) I grow up I wanna be you!


.

It sounds like a fabulous hunt with some amazing trophies. Congratulations to all!

Sable is a SLAMMER! Great hunt!!!

What, Andrew couldn't pull a wooly mammoth out of his hat for you?

Congratulations on a fantastic safari! Great trophies and a great report.

That sable has incredible secondary growth at the base of the horns!

Thanks for sharing.

Unbelievable! Wow, absolutely fantastic trophies!

damn, Steve, you will be hard pressed to better this hunt going forward- absolutely outstanding results. Andrew, you are indeed producing miracle results.

What a great safari! Great animals and experiences, that sable is an absolute beast. Big congratulations on the hunt, and thanks for sharing.