Outfitter: Crusader Safaris

Web Site : http://www.crusadersafaris.com/

Hunt dates: May 15th through May 27th

Game hunted: Nyala, Bushbuck, Blue Duiker and birds

Air travel arrangements: Steve Turner
Total Travel Solutions, Inc

Email: steve@totaltravelsolutions.com

Phone: 866-427-7166


I had booked a hunt for forest elephant in Cameroon in mid June this year but because of some unforeseen commitments I realized that I could not get out of the country in June the prime time for elephant hunting in the forest area. So I decided to go on a short hunt to South Africa.

I had never wanted to hunt in South Africa for large antelopes because “all hunting in South Africa was behind high fence” until I found Chris one of the owners of Crusader Safaris at the SCI convention in Reno this year. After a long discussion I found out that all their hunting is free range and the only fences on any of their hunting areas are low cattle fences.

I had shot a free range Nyala in the lowveld in Zimbabwe in 1995 with HHK safaris (as it turns out the only one Graham’s hunters ever got). I wanted to get a better trophy and also have a full mount so with the Cameroon hunt off and the assurance that I would be hunting unfenced game I booked my ticket.

I flew into Port Elizabeth and hunted the blue duiker about 2-3 hours north in the costal forest on the Indian Ocean side and succeeded in shooting a representative trophy.









I then hunted grey wing francolins, geese, ducks and snipe around the area for two days before travelling to their concession in Natal for Nyala and bushbuck.













The camp in Natal is nice, the hunting area is 100,000 acres of indigenously forested hills. Hunting was done mostly early morning and evening. Andrew the second partner of Crusader Safaris was my PH and was a delight to hunt with.















Andrew had seen a very large Nyala early in the season so we decided to only pursue that animal and as luck would have on the third day it appeared in the same clearing where Andrew had seen him before and we were waiting for him, a 160 grain nosler from my 7 mm STW behind the right shoulder minutes before sunset got me the most magnificent Nyala I had ever seen.









The remaing days were spent in the pursuit of an outstanding bushbuck trophy and I shot a 16.5 inch bushbuck with 7 inch bases on May 25th.





All in all it was excellent, true free range hunting for world class trophies with a group of very hard working and honest young outfitters and I would highly recommend them.

The nyala and bushbuck are outstanding!!!

Congrats,

nice shootin Tex! beautiful trophies.

They are beautiful. Fantastic bases on that Bushbuck.

Outstanding trophies. Congratulations.

Outstanding! Very Very nice!

Nice trophies. Where in Natal did you hunt?

Very nice trophies...Congratulations !!!

Beautiful trophies. Thanks for sharing.

Aziz, Beautiful country. Awesome Nyala and bushbuck. Thanks for sharing with us.

Congrats Aziz, great photos and animals!

Very nice trophies, congratulations.

Well done Aziz, outstanding trophies. The bushbuck seemed to have the markings and the darker pelage of the Cape bushbuck. If so he is a monster. Any idea from your PH as to which subspecies it was? Natal is a bit north for the Cape...

Aziz, outstanding... The nyala is tremendous around 30 inches I believe. Great ivory tips. The cape bushbuck is a monster to say the least. The mass on his horns is outstanding.
Now a lesser kudu.

The best,

Mike

quote:

Originally posted by collector:
Very nice trophies...Congratulations !!!

+1

Outstanding Nyala and Bushbuck!! Congratulations on a fine trip!!

Good hunt, report and pictures. Your trophies are beautiful!

That sounds like a great hunt Aziz, you seem to go from one quality hunt to the next getting the most experience (and trophies!) out of each one. You obviously are a good judge of people and character, and I suspect that your personality, experience and good nature makes it easy for them to give you their best effort.

Well done once again!

Great hunt Aziz.. You took some fantastic trophies.

I just got back from a hunt where I hunted the same species. They were all alot fun to hunt.

Another great hunting safari and report! Congratulations, Aziz, and thanks for posting.

I love those spiral horned antelope. Great bushbuck and nyala.

Did you take your own shotgun? Looks like it might be a Browning.

Again, congrats!

great trophies, I am heading to SA next yeat just to bird hunt.
Congrads!!!

Beautiful animals Aziz!

Brett

Great photos, trophies, and report. Looks like lots of fun!

There are some very good hunts in South Africa. Thank you for showing us another one.

Very nice!

Nice report;

Andrew Pringle is a good guy; glad to see they are still after it.

Aziz,

You have mastered the art of hunting extraordinary trophies in unusual locales.

Well done!

BEAUTIFUL!!!

Fantastic trophies and great report!

Jason

Aziz Sb, congratulations on extraordinary trophies of both Nyala and bushbuck. Great photos as well thanks for sharing.

The Cameroon ele hunt I presume is going to be next year?

Beautiful tropies Aziz
thanks for sharing your report.

Congratulations Aziz, on another A-1 hunt!

Thank you everyone. DOJ I was an hour and half from Durban, in south central Natal.

Bwanamrm you are right it is a Cape Bushbuck.

Thank you Bill I wish I had half the qualities that you attributed to me.

Mike I am quite impressed by your assessment the Nyala was just shy of 30 inches.

Ahmed if things go as planned it will be Cameroon in 2011.

Best regards
Aziz

The Nyala sure makes a great looking trophy. Nice bushbuck also.

Aziz:

Out of curiousity, did your hunter/driver/guide tell you there was anything special about the acacia tree pictured in your report?

Hello Will

No they did not, I liked the tree and took the photo. It was just so African

Regards
Aziz

quote:

Originally posted by Aziz:
Hello Will

No they did not, I liked the tree and took the photo. It was just so African

Regards
Aziz

I wondered because I was in those parts 13 years ago and the PH identified a similar looking Acacia on a similar looking hillside and told us that it was a world's record for the largest canopy on an Acacia tree. Whether it was true or not, I don't know. We stopped, took the obligatory photos, and continued on the drive. I'll see if I can find the photo sometime.

Great Nyala and Bushbuck BTW. Bird hunting was a nice add on too.

Best,

Congratulations on another great hunt!

Beautiful trophies! The bushbuck is outstanding.
Congrats on a great hunt. Thanks for sharing.

Torbjorn

Congratulations and well done. Some absolutely outstanding trophies, including the fantastic nyala bull, bushbuck AND the blue duiker! By the way, what over and under shotgun were you using? I love the waterfowl and upland birds as well!