HUNT DATE MAY 21 THRU JUNE 1, 2009 (12 DAYS)

SPECIES: ELEPHANT

MALAPATI SAFARI AREA (BORDERS GONA RE ZHOU) SOUTHEAST ZIM

THIS HUNT WAS BOOKED THROUGH BOBBY LOWE AKA "DUKXDOG". REALLY A LAST MINUTE DECISION AFTER SEEING AND TALKING TO BOBBY ABOUT HIS HUNT WITH SSG LAST FALL.

I ONLY WANTED TO HUNT ELEPHANT AND AFTER TALKING TO BOBBY, I FELT THERE WAS A REASONABLE CHANCE OF TAKING A MATURE OLDER BULL.

THE CAMP WAS VERY NICE. ON THE BANKS OF THE MWENEZI RIVER. THE CAMP STAFF WAS VERY FRIENDLY AND SERVICE WAS FINE.

THE HUNT: THIS IS A REAL ELEPHANT HUNT..ADD TO THAT, CONDITIONS WERE TOUGH BECAUSE OF SO MUCH RAIN..EVERYTHING WAS EXTREMELY THICK! THIS WASN'T A HUNT WHERE YOU DRIVE AND SEE GREAT NUMBERS OF ELEPHANT EVERYDAY. THE ELEPHANT IN THIS AREA CROSS FROM THE GONA RE ZHOU INTO THE SAFARI AREA AND BACK.

WE DROVE IN THE MORNINGS UNTIL WE CUT TRACKS AND THEN FOLLOWED ON FOOT. MOSTLY LONG HARD TRACKING. AS AN EXAMPLE, ONE MORNING WE COVERED 15K BY 8:30 AM.

I WAS LUCKY ENOUGH TO CATCH UP AND TAKE MY BULL ON THE 8TH DAY AT 4:30 PM.

NIXON HAS A GREAT TEAM OF TRACKERS: PETER AND DIXON, HEAD TRACKERS: SIMON, GIFT,AND STEVEN ASST TRACKERS WERE GREAT ALSO. THESE BOYS KNOW HOW AND WHAT IT TAKES BOTH PHYSICALLY AND MENTALLY TO TRACK DOWN BULL ELEPHANT.

I WAS LUCKY ENOUGH TO TAKE A GREAT BULL 61.6 LBS. RT TUSK AND 60.5 LBS LEFT TUSK. THE RT TUSK WAS 5'7" 18 1/2" DIA....LEFT TUSK WAS 5'4" 19 1/2" DIA. REALLY THICK BEAUTIFUL IVORY.

MANY THANKS TO BOBBY LOWE (DUKXDOG) FOR HIS HELP AND HONESTY WITH THIS HUNT.

FOR ANYONE HEADED THAT WAY, GET READY FOR A GREAT HUNT. I SAW LOTS OF PLAINSGAME AND BUFF. THIS IS A BEAUTIFUL SAFARI AREA. ONE MORE THING....BE IN SHAPE AND BE READY TO HUNT HARD. NIXON AND HIS TEAM WON'T EVER GIVE UP!

THANKS TO NIXON AND ALL THE CREW FOR A MEMORABLE HUNT!

PICTURES WILL BE POSTED LATER TODAY.

Wow, 61 lbs, is a great bull... look forward to the pix!

Here are some of the photos Butch sent me. It was a pleasure working with Butch to set up his hunt with Nixon. Excellent communications with him helped with all details for the hunt. He asked questions so he knew how things would be when he arrived in Zimbabwe. I was elated to hear he got such a fine elephant!

We still have a few open dates if there is anyone who wants to go in 2009 or contact me about setting up your hunt for 2010. I'll be happy to help you for your own Zimbabwe experience.

Butch

Thanks for posting your report. While SBT is chasing elephant I will be chasing buff and plains games. I am sure I will be contacting you later for information on your trip.

Looks like you had a great trip. You guys are really making me want to hunt ele..

Thanks again for the great report.

Hartley Kittle

Butch,

Sure looks like you had a rewarding hunt. Nice job on that ele.

It's very good to see a new resource on line as well, Duxdog ~ Nixon. That's info sharing/internet working at its best.

Congrats for the "unorthodox" booking, and the spectacular result.

Well done to all!

Butch Great elephant!!! Can't wait till September. Did you hunt anything else?

Hey Chris..This was a great hunt..didn't hunt anything else, just wanted to go for Ele all-out....I did see quite a bit of plainsgame and Buff..even though it was extremely thick...I certainly wouldn't hesitate on that type of hunt, especially later in the year..once it thins out..saw shootable Buff,Nyala,Waterbuck,Impala,Warthog,and Kudu..this is a beautiful safari area

Butch,
Thanks for the report. What a great time and hunt. I loveboth of those photos!

Butch,

Nice hunt, i have just acquired a hunting area south of Nixons so will be seeing a fair amount of Nixon,

Regards