Namibia Safari

"The Elusive Last Day Leopard"

Participants: Robert E. Slusser and Rosario Roth
Professional Hunter: Helgaard Van der Vyver
Location: Okahandja, Namibia
(Two hours north of Windhoek in the Central Highlands)

Our trip began on May 23, 2003, with a flight from Philadelphia, PA to Atlanta, GA. We then flew South African Airways to Johannesburg, South Africa with a connecting flight to Windhoek, Namibia. Our flight over was marred with two problems. First, we missed our connecting flight to Windhoek due to delays in getting our gun permits in Johannesburg. Second, Rosario’s luggage never arrived in Windhoek and it took the airlines six days to deliver his luggage. Upon receipt, several items of value were missing but at least he had clothes to wear for hunting.

Our hunt took place at "Wildfarm Felseneck", which is owned by a German industrialist and managed by the Van der Vyver family. The private 20,000 acre farm is two hours north of Windhoek in the central highlands with the nearest town being Okahandja. The terrain is mostly rolling hills, rocky outcrops and heavy brush. Felseneck has only been hunted commercially for the past two years and we were the first Americans to hunt the property. Our main quarry was the elusive Leopard along with various plains game and some predators.

Each hunting day began with breakfast at 6 AM and departure for hunting at 7 AM. On most days we would return around noon for the traditional German style dinner which is consumed at mid day. The evening meal was usually something on the lighter side. The hunt encompassed glassing, spot and stalk, driving, still hunting from high blinds and hunts from ground blinds.

Day #1: on our first day hunt we made the customary trip to the rifle range to check the rifles for accuracy. For the hunt we used two rifles. A Winchester Model 70 in 375 H&H caliber and a Browning A-Bolt 300 Win Mag caliber. Barnes X bullets were used exclusively. While setting up at the range, a Warthog made the fatal mistake to venture out into the shooting area and I shot it at 230 yards to use for Leopard bait. While enroute to setting the baits for the Leopard we came across a exceptional large male Steenbok with 4-1/2" horns that Rosario was able to take with one shot. During our baiting process we found large Leopard tracks in a dried-up river bed that the leopard like to travel on. In total, we set three tree baits in areas that showed good sign. Later that day, Rosario managed to take a 52" Kudu.

Day #2: we left in the morning to check the three baits which showed no sign of any Leopard activity. We hunted most of the day for plains game and decided to sit on two ground blinds until dark for Leopard. Again, no Leopards came into the baits.

Day #3: we again checked the blinds early and one showed some signs that something was feeding on the bait. We decided to sit in a nearby high blind and watch the area in hopes that whatever was feeding on the bait would return. However, after several hours of waiting we decided to take a stalk through the heavy brush to locate some game. We observed several Impalas, Ostrich and Baboons during our stalk but nothing of interest materialized. We again sat on our Leopard blinds until dark without any success.

Day #4: we decided to hunt another location that was two hours southwest of our camp for the Mountain Zebra, Klipspringer, Kalahari Springbok, Red Hartebeest and Eland. We managed to take two gold medal Springbok’s. One measured 15-1/4" with 5-3/4" bases and the other was 16-3/4" with 6-3/4" bases.

Day #5: our objective today was to locate and stalk Red Hartebeest, Klipspringer and Eland. In driving around we located a small group of Mountain Zebra on a rocky mountain ridge with one good stallion. Rosario was able to place a 200 yard shot with the 375H&H that found its mark. We returned to camp for skinning due to the outside temperature and sensitivity of the Zebra hide. In the afternoon and evening hours we made several stalks on Eland, Klipspringer with no success.

Day #6: our last day at this hunt location we planned to hunt till noon time mostly for Red Hartebeest and Eland. We did encounter one lone male Hartebeest that Rosario stalked and made a one-shot kill. We did encounter several female Eland during a two walk through some hilly country. We drove back to Okahandja and decided to rebait our Leopard spots and sit the balance of the day in high blinds.

Day #7: we decided to check the Leopard baits at first light in hopes of catching a Leopard still on the bait. While en route to the bait sites, Rosario shot a nice Oryx (Gemsbok) with a good lung shot. To show how strong these African animals are, we tracked him for 2-1/2 hours in the morning and the resumed the tracking in the afternoon. It was not until the next day that we finally caught up and administered the final shot. Later in the day I shot a nice Black Face Impala while sitting in a high blind overlooking a water hole. My shot was at 200 yards with my trusty 300 Win Mag rifle.

Day #8: Part of the day was used in retrieving the Oryx shot the previous day and checking the Leopard bait sites. It was becoming evident that the Leopard were not hitting the tree baits and we decided to begin dragging the dirt roads with animal carcasses to establish scent trails in hopes the Leopard would pickup the scent and follow it. We also began placing full animal carcasses in dried-up river beds that showed fresh sign of Leopard tracks. A large Baboon was shot in the afternoon and used for bait.

Day #9: While leaving our camp area we encountered a large bull Kudu that crossed the main dirt road in front of our vehicle and appeared unafraid of our presence. The PH suspected he may have rabies and requested we shoot him for bait. I shot him with the 375H&H and removed the 52" horns for mounting. The body was transported to a small dried-up creek bed to use for Leopard bait. A ground blind was constructed approximately 75 yards away. Later in the day I got what I thought was a clear shot at a nice Oryx but found my 375H&H bullet hit a 1" tree branch. The deflected bullet struck the Oryx in the mouth area leaving some blood and two front teeth. We ended up trailing him till dark without any visible sign. Over the next four days we trailed him several times with only getting two brief sightings and no chance of a shot.

Day #10: By day ten your hopes start to sag a little and you start realizing that you may go home without a Leopard or even seeing one. Every day while driving around, we did a lot of glassing of the rocky mountain ledges for the elusive cat. According to our PH, several Leopards have been spotted laying on the rocky ledges during the morning hours. With four more days you think there is still hope. Later in the day, Rosario shot another Baboon. This time it was a huge male who came into a water hole. At 3 PM we decided to sit in the new Leopard blind we built that had my Kudu lying in the dried-up creek bed. We again sat until it was dark with no sign of any Leopard.

Day #11: We left camp at normal time with hopes of looking for my wounded Oryx and picking up Rosario’s Baboon so we could drag the roads with the carcass to leave a scent trail. We did encounter the wounded Oryx but was unable to get a shot at him before he vanished in the heavy brush. I did manage to shoot a mature male Jackal and Rosario shot a Duiker close to camp.

Day #12: In the morning hours we sat at two water holes hoping the wounded Oryx would come in for water. After several hours with the wind not in our favor we decided to drive around checking and glassing the mountain ridges for Leopard. We did come across the wounded Oryx again but was still unable to get a clean shot at him. We trailed him for several hours but lost his tracks.

Day #13: Down to two days remaining in the hunt. Today we decided to hike up into the mountains so we could glass the areas from a higher elevation. We setup a quick blind at a past site where Leopard was spotted and decided to try using a predator call to see if a leopard would show himself. At this point we were ready to try anything but again we did not see any Leopard. The afternoon hours had us checking the Leopard baits with no sign of being hit. We finished off the day sitting on a high blind watching a bait for any activity.

Day #14: Last hunt day was upon us and we still had no Leopard. In the morning hours we hunted a heavily brushy area for Eland without seeing any. We did come across some very fresh Leopard tracks and a bedding area in a dried-up creek bed but was unable to trail the tracks due to the heavy brush and rocky terrain. The balance of the day had us sitting in a high blind for a few hours and driving the roads in hopes of spotting some game and hopefully a Leopard. This day turned out like the rest. NO Leopard. Driving back to camp at night, I realized that I would return home without my Leopard I wanted so bad.

Day #15: This was our last day in camp and was selected as a non hunting day to get packed up, visit the local taxidermist and just relax. At breakfast, our PH suggested we take a drive around in the morning for a last attempt. At this point I felt it was useless but had nothing to lose. We loaded up the truck and left camp like we did the other fourteen days. Outside of camp, we followed the main dirt road for approximately one mile and before we turned off into the brush the truck stopped. Our PH jumped out and began glassing the rocky ledges that were 300 yards away and at a 60 degree incline. The PH started taking to the tracker in Africans and you could tell he was getting excited. What seem like forever, he finally turned to me and said, "there is a really big Leopard laying up on the rocks". I quickly grabbed my rifle while everyone was using binoculars to locate the Leopard. In the excitement I had my 4-12 power scope set on four power and was unable to spot the Leopard. Everyone was becoming more excited since I could not locate the Leopard. I finally cranked the scope up to 12 power and was finally able to locate him. It was obvious that the Leopard had spotted us as he was looking directly at us and could vanish within seconds. The PH said, "you better take your shot from hear as there is no chance of getting any closer". While I was steadying my Browning 300 Win Mag rifle for the shot I was calculating in my head the bullet trajectory on the 180 grain Barnes-X bullet. I was sighted in for 200 yards and decided to place the scope crosshairs even with the top of his back. At this range, I was shooting at a 4-6 inch target area since the leopard was lying flat on the rock which compressed his body. I slowly squeezed the trigger and the second the shell exploded I saw through the scope that the Leopard raised his front shoulders but his rear quarters were paralyzed. My first thoughts were that he’s hit in the spine and should be fatal. He managed to pull himself off the rock and disappeared between two large boulders. The PH and others said they could see the bullet impact him squarely in the shoulder and at the angle of the bullet, it must of hit him in the spine while exiting his body. Everyone was hollering and jumping with joy that we finally got the Leopard. When we all settled down we returned to camp to pickup a trusty shotgun and a tracking dog. We returned and began the climb up the mountain which was encased with large boulders at the top. It was difficult ascending the rocky terrain while watching for a potential unhappy Leopard who would rather attack then run at this point. While we slowly approached the area the native tracker went ahead and scale the last hundred yards so he could spot the leopard from higher ground. The native tracker call down to us in his native tongue and said the Leopard was lying dead at the base of the boulder. We finished our climb to view this elusive Leopard that we hunted for the previous fourteen days. My first glimpse of him I saw him lying between two large boulders with only half of his body exposed. He was huge. We slowly pulled him free and were able to get a full view of his entire body. He was a large old male Leopard with heavy front shoulders, thick neck and a massive head. All of his canine teeth except one were either missing, broken or wore down. Our next task was to get this heavy Leopard down the rocky mountain to the truck. It took three of us to hand carry him over the large rocks and down to the truck. We returned to camp to show off the Leopard and take the SCI measurements.

Live Weight - 153 pounds
Overall length - slightly over 7 feet
Skull measurement - 16-1/2"
Tail measured - 31"
Girth - 34-1/2"
Hind foot - 10"

A victory luncheon was arranged at a game lodge located 45 minutes from camp to celebrate our good fortune.

Had it not been for the persistence of my PH, I would of gone home without my trophy Leopard.

















[ 07-22-2003, 22:19: Message edited by: T.Carr ]

WOW! That is quite a story. Thank you. Any pictures?

Ski+3

Persistance pays off and proves the last day of hunting is just as good as the first! Congrats! Can we see pics?

rslus - Great hunt, great story and great Leopard. Way to go!

Bob,

Great story. Congratulations.

Regards,

Terry

Bob,

Great story and congratulations on a fine leopard.

A couple of questions: Was leopard your primary quarry when you booked your hunt? How did you choose your outfitter and did hunting leopard factor into that decision?

Thanks for sharing your story.

David

Congratulations on your leopard...a great shot and a great story-book ending.

Your story is certainly in line with everything I've heard about leopard hunting in Namibia......

(1) that it doesn't do much good to hang baits in trees because leopards don't normally drag their kills up in trees as they don't need to worry about hyaena or lion making off with their kill

(2) that leopard don't come to a bait in Namibia like elsewhere because they have have less trouble (and competition) as predators in making their own kills as again they are the only major predator in the area ..except other leopards of course

(3) if you are going to get a leopard it will need to be in the daytime as night hunting is prohibited.

I would be surpised if any PH in Namibia could consistently be half as sucessful as one in Zimbabwe just because of the differing conditions under which they are hunted.

Congratulations on a great hunt and a lifetime memory.

rslus,
Congratulations on a fine trophy! A leopard during the day is rare but on the day after the last day of the hunt is unbelievably fortunate.
Great story!

David W.

Ironically, I learned of the outfitter through two Canadian hunters who posted on the AR. They both hunted last year and got Leopard. The Leopard was my main objective on this safari. My hunting partner (1st time) was interested in plains game as well. Word of mouth is good advertisement.

Why would anyone want to shoot anything from the car? Thats not hunting.

There was no mention of SHOOTING from the vehicle. Get off your high horse. ESL?

Oh im, sorry you are right.. He was standin several feet away from the car. Thats true sportsmanship, what an adventure. Just imagine what would have happened if the AC in the car had quit. They might have straded to sweat..

But really, this car hunting business.. What do you get out of it? I really want to know.

marst060.........your ass is showing!

DB Bill, my Namibia leopard was "uneducated".
He broke all three of those rules!

RSLUS: Pay no attention to the village idiot. As you probably noticed, he just emerged from his cocoon into the forums.

It happens every summer - school is out, and the children amuse themselves with the computer when it's to hot to play outside.

Rick.

[ 07-23-2003, 17:42: Message edited by: rick3foxes ]

Thanks to all the nice comments on the thread, except Marst060.

Marst060, I am surprised that you were able to read this hunting report since some of the words were difficult to pronounce. I'd spend some more time with your spelling of simple words. I apologize for not using "CAT" in place of Leopard. Also, when you get to Africa (?) notice they do not use cars for safari hunting. They use trucks with open truck beds and the the air conditioners do not work that great.

Now, I feel better!

Bob,

Bill read my mind somewhat with his comments about leopard hunting in Namibia. I haven't hunted in Namibia, but I've hunted leopard three times in Zimbabwe, where I'm 2 for 3. My questions were related to the differences in your hunt vs. what I have experienced. For instance, an experienced Zim PH in a good cat area would probably put up more baits and would do a drag near every bait site. The drags would be refreshed daily. I have never sat in a blind over a bait that hasn't been hit, hoping that something would show up and I've never left a blind with good shooting light left to go looking for other game.

To your PH's credit, he knew there was a cat in the area and he was willing to try anything, including "free spooling" baits and sitting over untouched baits to get him. Like you said, without persistence, you wouldn't have gotten your leopard. Sounds like being lucky AND good, with a difficult shot cinched the deal.

Again, congratulations and thanks for sharing your story.

David

Oh.. I didnt know they use pickup trucks.. that is a world of diffrence. But I still want to know: Why would anyone want to use a car, any car, to hunt anything? Where is the fun in that? Why not just buy a cat and shot it in its cage?

[ 07-24-2003, 15:22: Message edited by: marst060 ]

I'm one of those Canadian hunters that Bob was talking about .... Quite the leopard !!! Wow !Helgaard was just starting the business last year ... Myself and a chap from British Columbia were his first hunters .. Another fellow from British Columbia came a few weeks after us .. So we had this great area ... untouched commercially .. Lots of leopard sign .. but they didn't seem to hit the bait more than once every three or four days .. But there was lots of tall grass .. lots of game .. so I don't suppose it was too difficult for the cats to kill their regular game .. All three of us shot a leopard with my amigo and I each killing ours on the 7th day .. And the daily rates were/are this year only 156 euros a day .. Which helps ... A friend of mine, against my sorry advice, booked with another outfitter in Namibia .. paid substantially more per day .. and got a wonderful hunt .. but his outfitter said that he had never gotten a client a leopard .. Be that as it may .. I've hunted leopards in South Africa, Zim, and Namibia.. Each spot/experience was great .. Much better than sitting behind a computer and insulting vehicles ... That is just silly and showing lack of intelligence/experience/good manners .. I can forgive the first two short comings a lot easier in others ..

I can see I have touched a sore spot here.. I hope that the "hunting" stories here does not reflect how the hunting in general is conducted in africa. That would just be sad.

Marst060:

When were you in Africa?

Send us some intelligent subject matter or save your stupid comments.

Sounds like you should join the "Bunny Huggers Club".

DB Bill,
You have made some interesting observations about leopard hunting in Namibia. With that in mind, do you have any suggestions on how one might overcome those obstacles?

SBT....there are a couple of options that I'm looking at right now because as much as I'd like to help out the hunting industry in Zim I've hung my ass out in the breeze enough for 3rd world countries during my time in the USAF.

1st....you can hunt in the Caprivi Strip which is a "Big Game" area...the daily rates are fairly high ($500/day & up)as are thr trophy fees but I understand the area is loaded with elephant, buffalo, lion and leopard. Kind of pricey for me.

2nd....there are ranches near Caprivi that frequently have problems with leopard and stock depravation...either get lucky while you are hunting plainsgame or do it "on call"....I've talked to Keith Atcheson about this and it may be the way I go. He has a PH who has acess to a great area for gemsbok in the Kahalari and a great area for really big kudu near the Strip. The areas are far apart but the trophy quality is superb....plus a chance for leopard if lucky.

3rd....hunting leopards with dogs has spread to Namibia and would be the method with highest percentage of sucess (usually 100% or very close)..this is more expensive than the other methods as you pay a fee for the dogs and handler over & above everything else. This also sounds very attractive to me as they don't put the dogs down unless tracks show a large male. My problem is my beat-up knees but damn it sounds like an exciting way to hunt leopards.

Good luck! I love to hunt leopard above all else in Africa.

Marst060,

I don't understand some peoples apparent abhorrence of using vehicles to get around Africa on hunts. I have not been there, but vow that I will go some day. I understand that it is a big damn country and I will use a truck to get around while I'm there. Even if you are not in top physical condition and can't hump 20 miles a day in 100 degree heat there is no reason that you should be barred from the hunt. Fine shooting is still required and getting good trophies is still not a given. I am 22 and in med school and work out 4 times a week, but I played four years of college football and my knees are quite frankly wrecked. So by the time I graduate, go through residency,and pay off my $150k of student loans I probably won't be getting around that well, and I'll be damned if this will keep me from Africa .

Anvil

Sorry for the rant my original comment that I forgot to include was Congratulations, great hunt, great story, great leopard.

All the best

[ 07-26-2003, 03:29: Message edited by: Anvil63 ]

rslus,
According to my copy of "African Hunter Shot Placement", your leopard would qualify for both the SCI and Rowland Ward record books. What were the actual length and width measurements?

SBT

The length was just over 7 feet and the girth measurement was 34 1/2".

Namibia has what they call the "Top 10" and this one would rank number 15.

Still awaiting official measurements.

Due to the large tracts of land in the BIG A, traveling by 4 wheeler is the only way to get anywhere since you can't walk it all. You may get sight of game or you may not. You just can't camp in an area and stalk like the States. It's all in the luck of the draw and basically targets of opportunity if you spot something else while looking for another species in particular. If you don't understand this simple principal, post yourself off this forum.

Africa is a little like Alaska in the aspect that although there are a lot of animals, there is also a lot of space between them. I have some reservations about actually shooting from a vehicle but for scounting and moving from area to area they aren't a luxury, they are a necessity.

I wonder how many sheep hunts in Alaska don't at least begin within a flight in a Super Cub.

And do you have a problem using a boat for fishing and if that's OK how about the use of a motor or would you require oars only?

How about.....??? You get the idea...what I'm trying to say is that there always someone who thinks his/her motives/methods are purer than yours....as they say...."bugger 'em!"

It really pisses me off when someone who hasn't even been there ( or probably anywhere else) starts in with this holier than thou shit. this man really had an easy hunt, hunted 14 days without seeing a leopard, then as luck would have it took an easy one. No hunter I've ever met passes up the easy one, sometimes it just happens, even after a long and disappointing hunt with no results. In Namibia, on a 15000 acre farm with no truck, it might be possible to kill a couple of trophies in a two wk hunt, it's big country. I'd like to take this great hunter out turn his ass out on a farm in Namibia, let him walk in circles for 14 days and see what the great hunter kills. Just another wannabe that doesn't know anything about Africa.

Damn,JStevens--He might get et by non-dangerous Hyena, Lions, or Leopard or any critter out there.

There is a big diffrence between using a truck to get from one spot to anoter and to hunt from the truck. Of course you have to use trucks to get around. But to use them as most describe their "hunts" in here... Sick.

Dangerous game.. Great white hunter. You should try hunting for real instead. you would be surprised how much fun it is to actually LEAVE the road before shooting.

I too would like to know what marst060's hunting experience is. The way I read the leopard hunt was that coming upon the leopard the way they did was unexpected and that was the reason the kill was made the way it was. Obviously if they were willing to go back and climb after the damn thing a sporting kill is what they all had in mind. I've never been to Africa, but I'll be damned if I was leaving a deer lease and saw a 12 point buck come out that I wouldn't do my damndest to ease out and bag it. People should really know more about what they're talking about before making such harsh, uninformed criticism of others.

What a gorgeous leopard! Thanks for the pictures and story. Congratulations on a great hunt.

Rslus, did you have the option of hunting Leopard using dogs?
peter.

Hi Peter:

No, they did not have dogs so it was not an option.

The leopards in this area did not hit any ground or tree baits in the two weeks we were there. From what I was told, the leopards taken last year were also shot during the day and not over baits. I guess without Hyena and Lions in the area, the Leopards have no worries on losing their kills.

Congratulations on a good hunt with a great ending. I like the "other" kudu in the picture above, the one with the wide spread. How big was it, if you know?

Congrats, thats a heck of a story!! And those pictures, are fantastic..sakofan..

rslus,Congrats on the fine job.You are a blessed man.I hope to go to Africa some day and do the same.Great pics also,thanks for sharing your story with us.YC

rslus,
Very nice leopard!!
And very good story, thanks for sharing it with us.

LG

rslus.
Congratulations on a fine trophy. Your description and pics really made it interesting for me.
On another note, I'm a college professor and have to deal with the "ignorant" on a regular basis. My satisfaction is that I can give any grade I like.