I'm going to give this a try as my first hunt report.


Outfitter: Jamy Traut Safaris

Location: Waterberg Plateau followed by Panorama.

PH: Jamy Traut

Trackers: Harold and Pete

Travel Agent: Steve Turner @ Travel With Guns

Hunt Dates: 9/22/2020 thru 10/01/2020

Rifle: AHR 375 H&H hand loaded with 300 grain A-Frames at 2570 fps.

In the Salt: Cape Buffalo, Eland, Hartmann Zebra, Red Hartebeest, Springbok, Gemsbok, Blue Wildebeest, and Sable.

Species seen: All of the above plus; Rhino (Black and White), Giraffe, Roan, Brown Hyena, Steenbok, Grey Duiker, Kudu, Waterbuck, Tsessebe, Blesbok, Black Wildebeest, Impala, Warthog, Ostrich, Jackal, Bat-Eared Fox, and Baboon.

GETTING THERE:
This hunt was initially booked in the fall of 2018 and scheduled to occur July 2020, however was postponed due to COVID. When Namibia announced the opening of their Border as of Sept 1st, a plan was made to get my hunt in for this year. I contacted Steve Turner @ TWG and he did a great job getting me booked in to business class on Ethiopian Airlines from Dulles to Windhoek with connection through Addis Ababa. Flew Delta domestically and overnighted at the Dulles Marriott prior to my international flight. There was a slight hiccup with delayed flight from home, which messed up my connection to Dulles. After a minor panic attack, again I contacted Steve and he was able to re route me into Baltimore and he also arranged for a ride from Baltimore to the Dulles Marriot so I could make my morning flight. A NEG COVID PCR test was required 72 hours prior to boarding the international flight.

Flights went well. I needed to have my rifle checked in Addis, as has been described in other recent posts. The process is inefficient, but staff were pleasant and I made it onto my flight with no major problem.

Needed to fill out a health questionnaire and have temp screening upon arrival at airport in Windhoek. They wanted in country contact info and where you would be. The safari operators are responsible for getting their camps approved by the govt for housing international tourists. I did not have to get a COVID test after 5 days in country and only had to show a copy of my neg COVID test I had done here in the states prior to my trip.

After the usual NAMPOL paperwork, we were headed to Waterberg for Buff and Eland. The trip was uneventful and we arrived in camp right at dusk. I moved into my new home and got my gear sorted for the morning hunt. Then it was on to my favorite part, heading to the campfire for a nightcap.



WATERBERG:
The next morning we had a light breakfast and plenty of coffee before heading out. Felt good to be back in the Cruiser. This was my third trip to Africa, all for buffalo and plains game, but my first trip to Namibia.

It wasn’t long before there was a tap on the roof of the Cruiser. Two bulls were about 150 yds out and Jamy thought we should get a closer look. Wind was blowing pretty good, which helped mask the noise from the crunchy leaves on the ground this time of year. We were able to work in to about 30 yds of the two bulls as they slowly fed along. Jamy thought this would be a good dry run and got me up on the sticks. After a good look, Jamy says the lead bull is better and would probably go 42”. He thought we should pass on him, as we were less than hour into the hunt. Waterberg is known for having good bulls and I agreed. At the same time, my inside voice can’t believe I just passed on the nicest bull I’ve ever seen.



The rest of the day was spent cruising and checking waterholes. I think Jamy wanted to take it easy on me the first day to get acclimated. The elevation here is just above 5500ft and it can be difficult walking in the sand. Luckily, I had been working out with a trainer for the past several months.

Day 2 we checked waterholes and tracked Eland in the afternoon. Two bulls led us on a merry chase up into the rocky, sandstone hills. They busted us after about 4 miles. Ended up with a blister, which I thought was odd. Boots were broken in and I never have any problems with blisters. Think I was wearing a too thick sock. Thank goodness for moleskin and duct tape.



Got on a nice bull late morning of day 3. Nice old bull. After a huddle with Jamy, decided we should take him. 40 to 50 yds front on but in the shadows. I missed him low. Totally my fault. Just put the crosshair too low. First thing I’ve shot at with this gun that hasn’t died. We went back and checked zero to make sure nothing was off. Wasn’t the rifle, as it was dead on. Feeling pretty low at this point. Time to regroup and reset mentally.

We found my bull on day 4. Got up on him early in the morning in some scrub bush. No leaves but lots of branches. He was slowly feeding as we moved in on him. He was suspicious and would stop feeding and look our way frequently. We would just move slowly in single file and freeze when he looked up. A couple times we probably stood frozen for 10 minutes before he would go back to feeding. Finally we get to about 35 yds and no shooting lane through the branches. Standoff with him getting more suspicious and looking our way. Jamy asks if i can go to our right and go low to get a lane. I slowly move to the right and drop to a knee, using the leg of the shooting sticks as a makeshift rest. There was an open lane and I felt solid. I put the bullet thru the chest right where I wanted. The bull was hit hard and his front legs buckled. He didn’t go down but was moving very slowly. Put another AFrame thru the chest as he turned, followed by 2 solids. He didn’t make it more than 15 yds before going down for good. Very happy to get my bull.









Bullet from my buffalo.


We spent the next two days looking for Eland, with several close encounters. My goal was to find a good old blue bull with good ruff. Most of the bulls where too young or slipped away before we could get a good look. Second morning found us up on high ground glassing, when Jamy spotted 2 bulls slowly feeding about a thousand yards out. We quickly outlined an approach for a stalk to get a better look. The wind was good and we were soon within 140 yds of nice bull. Good horn but no ruff. Jamy said this one was a mature bull and as he was completely unaware of our presence, I decided we should take him. He was quartering away with his right side to me. Shot hit just behind the diaphragm and took part of the liver and both lungs before going through the off shoulder. Bullet was lodged just under the hide on the off shoulder. He made it about 20 yds.





With buffalo and eland in the bag, it was time to move on to Panorama. After a quick side trip to the taxidermist, we headed to Jamy’s home camp.

Random pics










Will finish off the remainder of the hunt in the next few days. Been burning the candle at both ends here for the past few weeks since getting home. Hoping the pics com through...

Thanks for posting - your hunt report is off to a great start. And the photos came through perfectly.

Great report. Anxious to read part (2).

Congrats on your nice trophies!

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Congratulations - nice buff an nice read. Thanks for posting.


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Well done and congratulations. Jamy is an excellent PH and the Waterberg is a very productive area as your trophies show.

Congrats on your hunt.

So far so good!

Excellent hunt and report thus far! I'm very happy to start seeing some post again.

I sure enjoy your hunt report. Great photos! Congratulations on the wonderful bull! Brian

It does my heart and soul good to see that you made it to Namibia to hunt this difficult year. Congratulations on a great hunt. Looking forward to Part 2!

PANORAMA:
We arrived in time on Monday for the afternoon hunt. Primary goals for the remainder of the hunt where Gemsbok, Red Hartebeest and Springbok and hopefully Mountain Zebra.

Within the first hour we had the good fortune to spot a small group of Mountain Zebra. They were actually out on the plain about 2 miles from the rocky hills they normally hang out in. Jamy says not common to see them out on the flat. We didn’t waste anytime and the stalk was on. We got to 250 yds with no way to get any closer. No wind to speak of and the stallion was broadside. Looked like he was sleeping. The only gun I brought for the hunt was my 375 H&H with 300 grain AFrames and I had shot this combo out to 300 yds. I was confident I could make the shot and got the green light from Jamy. High shoulder hit and the stallion dropped in his tracks. I felt very fortunate, Jamy had said earlier the Mountain Zebra could be a tough one to get with only 3 and 1/2 days left for the hunt. I guess they migrate in and out of the property and aren't always here. After taking pics, we decided to get him back to the skinning shed right away.







Still time to get out and see what we can find before dark. Spotted a herd of red hartebeest that turned out to be all bulls. There were 15-20 bulls and at least three pretty nice ones in the bunch. We tried unsuccessfully to get within range but they always seemed to stay at least 400 yds out. They were slowly moving to start and a little nervous. After two unsuccessful attempts they decided they had enough and galloped off. Where we were hunting there were sand dunes with flat areas in between. Some of these flats were as wide as a 1000 yds with others much more narrow. Scattered trees and scrub with what I would call shallow dry creek beds at home. The bulls moved off and over the next dune so we thought maybe we could circle around and cut them off. We were too late and they sped by about 300yds out with no shot opportunity.

At this point, I thought we had seen the last of them and we decided to see what else we could find. We had moved at least a mile but in the general direction the hartebeest had been going. Jamy says we should work into the wind along one of the sand dunes and see what we can find. We had the sun at our back and 30-45 minutes of hunting light left. It wasn’t long before Jamy spotted game. As luck would have it, the hartebeest bulls were about 800 yds out and working to our left. When they disappeared over a rise we double timed it, working closer to where Jamy expected them to be. As we approached closer we slowed down and started scanning. The bulls had stopped and were totally unaware of us. At 240 yds out, we were as close as we were gonna get. Some of the bulls were behind cover and we couldn’t see them all. Now I’m up on the sticks and I can get on 3 bulls. Which one? Well one bull is perfectly broadside. I put the crosshairs on him and ask Jamy if I should take this one. He says yes and down he goes. Another high shoulder hit and he drops like he was struck by lightening.

This one of my favorite pics of the whole trip. The hartebeest was much prettier in person than I thought he would be.






First 1/2 day at Panorama and I've shot two classic Namibian species. Pretty good day! Back to camp for supper and a nightcap.



Gonna have to continue this later. Not really trying to string this along. Will do my best to get the rest up over the weekend.

Thanks.

Nice buff and great zebra with those big rump stripes that marks a stallion.

Good hunt.

Regards, Tim

300 SAKO: Fantastic trophies all around. What was the spread of that awesome buff?

Great trophies! Keep it coming! Any Damaraland dik dik on this hunt for you?

Thanks everyone for the kind words. Had to go shoot pheasants today. Will try and get the rest up tonight.

Bud: 41.5" spread. Saw a few that were wider but couldn't get on them. Jamy estimated one at 44". Saw one the day after I shot mine that I really liked, had more drop and BIG bosses. Jamy thought about 40" for spread on that one. I tried to get another buff permit, as there was somebody on the fence about coming this year. Ultimately that person decided to come so no second buff for me. It worked out great though, because if I would have got the buff permit I would have missed out on the awesome plains game hunt. My first trip to Namibia and I really wanted to get some of the main species that Namibia is known for. Other than buff, everything else was a first for me.

Use Enough Gun: No Damaraland dik dik for me. Maybe next trip...

Three more days to hunt and primarily looking for gemsbok and springbok and maybe a warthog. This is my third trip to Africa and I still haven’t shot a warthog. Hoping to find a nice springbok ram off by himself. No small trick, as there were springbok everywhere. Seemed to always bump some while stalking other game. Gemsbok were wary and a few times they would start running when we were still 800-1000yds out.

Finally spotted a nice ram slowly feeding by himself. A group of ewes was close by and during the stalk one of the ewes spotted us. Fortunately they ran in the opposite direction and the ram didn’t seem to notice. We moved in to 140 yds and that was as close as we could get. He offered a quartering away shot and the bullet went in behind the diaphragm and out his off shoulder. Dead right there.





I shot this second ram for camp meat. 200 yds in a pretty stiff crosswind. Much better pic of the pronk compared to my first one.



Somebody locally wanted a blue wildebeest and Jamy asked if I would be interested in shooting it. Hadn't planned on shooting one this trip as I have a couple already, but I of course said yes. 60 yds facing us. They found the bullet next to his scrotum.

Love the mane and the dune in the background.


Saw quite a few gemsbok but generally a long way out and moving. Jamy and I had talked about gemsbok earlier. He wanted to know f I wanted as long of horn as possible which would likely be a cow or if I preferred a bull. I told him I would prefer a mature bull. We spent the rest of the day looking for a good gemsbok with no luck.

Later in the afternoon we spotted a small group of sable that had a pretty good bull. After talking with Jamy, I decided I would take a sable if the opportunity presented itself and it was a good bull. We made a stalk but they busted us and moved out. Oh well.

Two more days to hunt. Spotted a herd of gemsbok with a decent bull. They moved up into the rocky hills and gave us the slip. we tried to cut back around were Jamy expected them to come out. We found them again and set up an ambush as they looked to be coming our way. All of a sudden two gemsbok calves come racing by us. One of the cows looks our way and sees us. off they go.

I'm starting to think I'm jinxed on the gemsbok when Jamy spots a small group of bulls. They aren't too spooked initially and stand there long enough to get set up on the sticks. Things are happening fast and they are starting to get nervous. Which one? I set up on a bull that looks good to me. I describe which one I'm on and ask Jamy if he is good and should I shoot. He says yes and down he goes. 250 yds broadside with high shoulder shot. Dropped in his tracks. Bullet under the hide on the off shoulder.

Sun was in my eyes.




So now I have the main Namibian plains game I wanted for this trip. What to do for the rest of the day? I wanted a good warthog so that was the plan. I also mentioned sable 2 or 3 or 6 times to Jamy

Now we are getting towards evening with maybe an hour of hunting time left. No warthog and no sable. Driving down a two-track when our tracker, Pete, taps the roof of the cruiser and says he thought he saw a sable but not sure. Pretty brushy here with one of those dry watercourses. We pull up a ways and decide to sneak back and get a look. After a few hundred yards Jamy stops to glass and spots the sable. Nice bull and bigger than the one from yesterday. Unfortunately he had spotted movement and moved out with his group of cows. We had the wind in our favor and they weren't too spooked. We slowly moved up to some higher ground and spotted them about 500 yds out. Jamy thinks we can get on them from here so head out at a brisk pace to close the gap before we lose the light. Brush here is between waist and chest high with open patches so we can couch down and stay hidden as we approach. We got lucky and the group had stopped. At 200yds we spot the bull. Quatering on with his right shoulder towards us. Brush is high enough to partly cover his chest. I quickly get up on the sticks and put one on the point of his shoulder. Dropped in his tracks. I had to put a finisher in when we got up to him. Wow. It happened so fast and now its sinking in that I have my sable.





The last day was very windy and game was not moving. We tried unsuccessfully to get more camp meat. Very glad and fortunate we had gotten for game before the big wind.

Will post some random pics later.

Thanks

Some extra pictures.

Jackal tracks


Sociable weaver nest


Three trips and no warthog. Should of just waited here I guess.

I had a chance to look at the rest of the report tonight. It looks like it went extremely well. Congratulations on the fine trophies and congratulations on getting this done in 2020!
Thanks for posting the report and photos.

Hannay- I used your tutorial to post pictures. Thanks for putting that up.

Had a great first trip to Namibia and hope to get back and hunt with Jamy.

Thank you for a great report; there are some really fine animals there.
Wayne sure builds a good-looking rifle, doesn't he?

Great pics, thanks for the report, I love Namibia!

jjbull- Not only is it good looking, it shoots those A-Frames into small groups and really hammers stuff.

Hartmann's mountain zebras are special.

Big and marked on their rumps in their own and unique way.

Nice old stallion you got there.