McLaren Safari Hunt 2009
Alex Adkins
In case you missed the original thread for this hunt, this report covers the free hunt package I won from McLaren Safaris earlier this year. This was my first hunt in Africa and I elected to take along my eight year old son, Mason, to share in the experience. I also elected to extend the basic free hunt to include more hunting at other locations and some touring at Kruger National Park as well.

If you prefer short hunt reports, you might as well pull the plug now because I am a bit long winded.


Hunt preps: Besides email communication with Andrew directly, one of my main resources for preparation was Shakari Steve and his wife Susan’s extensive website, Shakari Connection. I referred back to this site multiple times during my short 3 month prep and found the information there to be spot on for a first time hunter in Africa. I can’t overemphasize how helpful it is to have multiple categories of information condensed into a single, useable format by folks that have been doing this for a good while. I would guess that roughly 90% or more of the general information I needed to plan the safari was in or linked to the Shakari Connection website. There is no telling how many email questions were avoided by simply going to the Shakari Connection and reviewing their information. That being the case, I will skip over much of the more typical preps and simply state that every time I followed their advice, I was satisfied with the results while on safari. Andrew, of course, was able to give me all of the specific information I needed for hunting in and around Free State, so I came away from this hunt fairly satisfied with gear selection and whatnot, primarily due to Steve and Andrew’s advice.



Rifles:
#1 I took a left-handed Tikka T3 Lite Stainless in .308Win topped with a Zeiss Conquest 3-9x50 with a German #4 reticule, mounted in Talley fixed rings, for general plains game. It was stoked with Federal ‘s Trophy Bonded Tipped 165 grain load (P308TT2). This is the newer tipped version of the old Trophy Bonded Bear Claw and grouped reasonably well with the Tikka. I zeroed at 200 yards and carried 2 five round detachable mags and the factory three round mag. The detachable mags made carrying spare ammo simple and quick to reload with no loose ammo rolling around in my pockets.

#2 I took a left-handed Ruger Hawkeye African in .375 Ruger, topped with a Zeiss 1.8-5x38 scope in factory Ruger rings, to fill the slot as a big bore. I used the 270 grain spire point/recoil proof soft tip load from Hornady(#8231). I used Cabela’s 10 round leather ammo wallet with the Ruger logo to tote ammo for this rifle. This rifle was also zeroed at 200.
(Ironically, both rifle/load combinations had about the same ballistic trajectories: 2” high at 100 yards, dead on at 200, 6” drop at 300. That made things enormously easier on my brain housing group when switching between rifles.)
Both rifles were also equipped with Galco’s Safari Ching Sling. While expensive for a sling, I used it multiple times for offhand, kneeling, and prone shots without sticks and the slings worked perfectly to help steady the rifles. I believe I made 3 shots off of sticks during the hunt, and didn’t feel at all disadvantaged. The sling was also as comfortable as any that I have used for shoulder carry.


Other notable gear:

Binos: I used Steiner 12x40 Predators and was glad I did. I primarily hunt whitetail here in the US and rarely if ever use binos in the woods of North Carolina or even in Texas where I was raised (judging whitetail is fairly easy even at long range) . However, in my humble opinion, hunting without binos in SA is simply not an option for plains game. On multiple occasions, I watched game through my binos when they were near invisible to my naked eye and I consider myself to have fairly decent vision. I used the standard, unpadded, narrow strap and had no issues with it, even when I carried them all day. I also dropped them out of the cruiser at least twice that I can recall and they didn’t seem any worse for the wear. Again, in my opinion, a good set of quality binos that have at least as much magnification as your rifle scope, that are easy to carry and can take a beating ARE REQUIRED. The Steiner 12x40 Predators fit that bill.

Boots: I used a pair of Danner Jackals. These are not the typical Danner stitch down, lace-to-toe heavy leathers that I have used in the past. The Jackals are lightweight with no insulation and have a very soft, non aggressive sole. They are very quiet and comfortable but held up well and had enough ankle support for all day walking. They fit more like moccasins than boots and worked well for all the hunting we did.


Air Travel:
The trip out on Delta Flt #200 ex ATL to Jo’berg direct was about as pleasant as one could ask for. I can’t imagine that a coach class flight of that length could be much easier. The flight leaves around 9p and arrives around 5p local time the next day (accounting for the 6 hour time change). We tried to get some sleep after the late supper, then the sun came up about the time we hit the Namibian coast and Windhoek and we began our shortest day in Africa. By the time we hit OR Tambo, the sun had set and we were tired anyway from the travel and ready to hit the sack. Besides, my internal clock was still adjusted to the longer days of the North American summer so it felt later than it really was. Neither Mason nor I had any trouble with jet lag on the flight out and I am convinced that this was due to the timing of the flight itself.

We were met by .458aubs of Air Charters and Tourism. Aubrey is a straightforward, down to earth guy. He offered to kick in meet and great services as well as advance firearms permits for us as part of the prize package. Aubrey walked me through all the SAPS requirements by email and there were no issues. To be honest, without any previous experience hunting and traveling in SA, I really didn’t have an idea what “meet and greet” would be worth to me ahead of time. However, when you come off a 16 hour plane trip with an 8 year old in a foreign country and there is a man waiting for you to not only help move luggage, but roll you in and out of the SAPS firearms office quicker than greased lightning, then drop you at your accommodation without you ever having to do more than sign your name, well, that type of service is worth whatever you paid for it. I think I was the last guy from my flight in that SAPS office. It was packed when we got there and by the time I cracked a copy of African Outfitter magazine (in anticipation of a long wait), Aubrey had my rifle case from behind the counter and we were signing the SAPS book and rolling out. If I am not mistaken, we were the first guys out of the office. It could not have gone smoother. As far as I am concerned, that was our first trophy of the hunt. So, a big +1 thank you to Aubrey and Air Charter & Tourism for their contribution to the hunt package.


Aubrey dropped us at Brookwood Estate Trout Farmwhich was our home for the first week of the hunt. Andrew and Cecilia McLaren of McLaren Safariswere waiting on us and though Mason and I were still in a fog from the flight, they immediately made us feel right at home and after introductions we were sacked out in warm beds for the night. Brookwood is a small family-owned trout fishing farm. The bungalows are comfortable and ours was a 2BR/2BA arrangement with a common living area, overlooking the ponds. This portion of the hunt was set up as a cull hunt at a property nearby that simply needed some herd management on a few species. Strictly speaking, it’s not free range hunting by any stretch but it wasn’t advertised as such either. It was, however, a great opportunity to make sure rifles, clients, and PH and all in sync. It also gave me a good opportunity to view and hunt multiple species in a short amount of time. Here we took two impala rams, a springbuck ram, and a young kudu bull. The 165 grain Federals put the two impalas and the one springbuck down clean with no issues and no recovered bullets. The 270 grain Hornady .375 literally split the heart of the kudu in two (broadside) and was also a complete pass thru although some fragments were evident on the exit wound which was not all that big. For that matter, the exits on the impalas and springbuck where also fairly small but internal damage was significant. It looks like both bullets performed as designed: rapid expansion with good weight retention and penetration. Wound channels were the typical narrow/wide/narrow and obviously did just fine with good shot placement. If anything, I came away with more appreciation for good shot placement than bullet design which was boringly efficient.
While some experienced safari folks might scoff at a management hunt in Gauteng, for me and Mason, it was very relaxing to skip a long drive after a long flight and instead go directly into the field day one and start hunting. This was not put and take hunting by any means and the old eland bull that was also on the cull list had other ideas about the affair (we never got a clear shot). But, we also were able to close to 200 yards without much trouble on the others so Mason and I were able hunt successfully right away. Andrew and his wife Cecilia were great hosts and it was a good start to the hunt. Lots of hunting, lots of game, lots of walking and plenty of good company and good food. We also took time to do a little trout fishing one night (they were hitting on “White Death” flies like crazy) and made a quick run to a location in Limpopo to hunt warthog. There, we narrowly missed taking a nice bushbuck on a short stalk and bagged a female warthog which the landowner needed for the meat. Again the .308 made things look easy with a drt shot. I did see one good boar but he ducked out of sight before I could make the shot and never gave me another.


At the end of the first week, we headed to Luan’s for the braai in Mpumpalanga . Shakari Steve and his wife, Susan, and Rudi (375 fanatic) and his wife made it in to Luan’s as well. Luan has first class guest accommodations and treated us like visiting royalty. We toured Luan’s and got a good look at Bushbuck, Nyala, Kudu and Impala before the braai. Steve presented Mason with a Masai kisu knife which Mason has become fairly attached to, literally. Thanks again, Steve, you made his year. (He now introduces himself and the knife simultaneously- “Hi, I’m Mason and this is my Masai knife.” Thankfully, customs and TSA didn’t attempt to handle it or there may have been headlines.) Luan served up an excellent bushpig and springbuck braai, we all told about half of our best lies and a good time was had by all.


Afterwards, we took a short trip to Kruger as well. Every hunter probably has mixed emotions about Kruger. On the hand, it’s nice to see good game. On the other, it’s frustrating to park the rifles and realize that all of these trophies will die from four legged predators, two legged poachers or eventually starvation. I’m no ecologist but hectare after hectare of busted Mopani pretty much bear out the predictions of others. Eventually, the land will not be able to support that number of animals without some type of correction, either natural (a die off) or man made (the highly unlikely prospect of management through hunting). The real shame is not only the future abrupt loss of animals but the dollars from hunting that could have gone right back into the park’s future. If you are headed to SA for your first hunt (especially if it is PG only) and you don’t mind driving/looking versus walking/shooting, Kruger is probably a worthwhile stop if you are close by. Subtract any one of those criteria and you are likely to be bored.


For the last week, we went to Mervilla, Andrew’s home in Free State. This is classic Free State grassveld hunting. The accommodations at Mervilla are excellent and again, Andrew and Cecilia excel at hosting. We were immediately made to feel at home and the warm beds were welcomed after all the driving. Day 1 we bagged a nice 4 ½ inch steenbuck. We executed a short 3 stage stalk (walk, crouch, crawl) and dropped the steenbuck from around 200. The Federal .308 left a fairly large exit wound on a double lung broadside shot. I am guessing that the reduced mass of the steenbuck was enough to expand the bullet but the round left the body earlier than the impala or springbuck. Regardless, it was a drt shot and the steenbuck was unable to give me the weight retention of the bullet before he expired.
Over the next few days, we were also able to bag 3 blesbuck, a female springbuck, and a even worked in an afternoon of wingshooting. (Truth be known, I enjoy mixed bag wingshooting immensely and Andrew has that in spades around Mervilla. Next time, I will throw in the 12 gauge and plan for more of that.) Free State is flat and cover is sparse. Easy hunting? No. Fun? Yes. There are probably a lot of places where a “hunter” who wants a guaranteed kill can go in South Africa and have someone provide that type of service. Andrew is not one of those guys. His concessions in Free State are set up for fair chase and/or free range only. We executed multiple stalks and stands where some might have complained about the lack of success. Me? Any day in the field is better than a day in the office and I want to be challenged when I go hunting. If I wanted guaranteed kills, I would hunt at the zoo. Andrew makes it pretty clear that he will put you in the zip code of the animal but don’t bother waiting for the game to be served up for you at spitting distance without earning it. Andrew expects his clients to hunt, not just shoot and is not real big on shooting from the truck unless it is a cull or something. That is right up my alley so I enjoyed myself immensely.

I should also note that this was Mason’s first hunt with a rifle. The day he took a hyrax with Andrew’s suppressed Anschutz .22, Andrew and Cecilia hosted a candlelight dinner and toast in his honor, along with another knife. Again, some folks might blow that off and say “What’s the big deal?” But, remember, this is my future lifelong hunting partner. His introduction to not only hunting, but killing, is important. And so, when Dad was worn out from hunting and traveling himself and likely to forget such details, Andrew and Cecilia made sure the date was commemorated properly. To me, that goes well beyond a simple client/outfitter relationship. So, another big thank you to both of them for that.
We got a chance to head to another private reserve in search of black wildebeest. After taking my 3rd impala of the hunt, we located a good bull while running the impala to the skinning shed. We piled out of the cruiser and took high ground expecting to be able to make a plunging shot from there but no dice. We then made a lengthy downhill stalk to 400 yards but we simply ran out of cover. After waiting them out a bit only to have lechwe arrive and mix in with the wildebeest, we decided the best course of action was to bust them out and try again. So, we simply stood up and walked towards them. The wildebeest bolted and we were able to conduct a second walk and stalk after they fled to high ground. The .375 dropped the bull with authority from 215 yds with a single lung hit. This was probably my favorite animal of the hunt.
We located no less than 3 white springbok (an interesting color variation) among the herds while hunting but unfortunately I couldn’t close within (my) killing distance. That’s an obtuse way of saying I missed a couple times. Oh well. It had to happen at some point. Still, I’d rather miss than wound on a plains game hunt. But, Free State springbuck are not easy to get. For me, that made the hunt all the better. I left Mervilla already mentally running through my next hunt.


In this report, you probably have come to understand a little about what type of hunter I am and what type of PH Andrew is. Was everything perfect? No. But, I do not experience a problem free life here at home and do not expect it on vacation either. Vehicle troubles, animal inactivity, and other minor issues did occur but to me, that is just life. These things happen and I try to form opinions based on how people react to those situations and not necessarily the situation itself. In my view, Andrew and Cecilia made every effort to ensure that we had a safe, successful and enjoyable hunt. In fact, if that was their goal, they far exceeded it. One of Mason’s last comments to me before we left was “Dad, if you want to leave and just come back and get me sometime later, that would be fine.” There really isn’t a higher approval rating than not wanting to leave, is there?
The young kudu cull.

Kudu heart split in two.

Mason and Andrew during the cull hunt:

First Impala.

First Springbuck ram.




The black wildebeest.

Black wildebeest single lung penetration.

Note lung issue hanging out of exit wound.


More pics next post.

ChetNC

You sure picked the right company!

Good pics as well.

regards.

Mason's first kill.

Kruger.




Good

Better

Best

Only surviving photo from the braai.

Ok, one of two surviving photographs.

Mixed bag of wingshooting in Mervilla.

Blesbuck at Mervilla.

Springbuck ewe at Mervilla.

Thanks for the great report.
And thanks for taking Mason ,to help keep the tradition alive

Congrats on a great trip.
Great pictures of buffalo.

You are now officially hooked on "all things Africa". Your son will want to go back at age 12, so start saving now. Forget college - go hunting....

dogcat- You got that right. When Mason is 12, my second son will be 8 so 2013 is pretty much a gimme for another safari. The only question is how many other safaris can I fit in between now and then?

Also, I should again thank the Andrew and Cecilia McLaren and all the other sponsors to this hunt. Some did not want to be named but you know who you are. So, thank you all for a great, great hunt. Mason and I had a blast. Andrew, any confirmation on next year's contest?

ChetNC

Dad and Mason what a wonderful report and photos... What a memorable trip... To the AR members of RSA and any other members who made this possible, thank you for for your kindness and yes there is still alot of good people out there in the world...
But we all know good does not sell..
Andrew and wife, thank you for your generosity...

Regards to all,

Mike

Excellent report. Photo's were great. I am glad you got to go with Andrew and meet Cecilia. You could not have met two nicer people. I consider Andrew and Cecilia very good friends. You are one very lucky person.

Great report!

Where's the Steenbok? 4 1/2 inches is big, I'd love to see it.

Great report! Sounds like a blast. So incredible that things like this are possible here at AR. Well done to all involved.

Great report, Holy cow what a buff!

Congrats on a fantastic hunt with your son. A lifetime of memories for both you guys and a great way to share time with your son. Cheers!

Chet, it looks as though you and mason had a wonderful time! congratulations on on winning the contest and making the most of the opportunity. Having your young son there must have been the cherry on top! i can't wait until my daughter is old enough to accompany me. She rode my shoulders last weekend while changing my trail camera. she did well in the low light and scary woods, but walking through the horse pasture with the constant equine train spooked her. the horses are a large animal to a 2 year old!

Andrew and other contributors: your generosity in introducing perfect strangers to the safari experience is to be admired. though i did not win the contest, reading the report i got a feel of the type of people you are, and am now doubly interested in saving my pennies and dimes to experience it myself!

heath

What an amazing experience for a father and son the share!!!! Mason will cherish these memories for the rest of his life. Just think someday you can take your grandchildren!!!! Where next?

Brett

Thank you for the story and pictures! Cherish those memories.

Thanks for the report and for the pictures!!!!

Andrew, Luan, Steve, Rudi and Aubrey : A big to all of you also.

L

Congrats on a great hunt and wonderful adventure for the family!

My most sincere appreciation to Andrew for making this possible

Does it get any better than this ?
Just Fantastic !!!! Great Job everyone !

Congrats to you both! Andrew did an outstanding job in all respects. So when is Mason wanting to return?
Cheers,
David

quote:

Originally posted by L. David Keith:
So when is Mason wanting to return?
Cheers,
David

He wasn't really ready to leave so I assume that if he has his knife and hat with him, he is packed and ready to go.



Fjold - I am still looking for the steenbuck pic. It's somewhere around here...
ChetNC

Thanks for a good read. I suspect you could write a plumbing manual and make the best seller list!

I appreciate that you noted the important things about the hunt - and measured the memories instead of the horn lengths. I suspect that will pay off in spades as Mason matures.

David

I just noticed in the photo with Andrew and Mason. Andrew looks dressed for the PA Deer woods and Mason looks dressed for a DG safari.
Anybody else notice that ?

Ej, that brings up some interesting points. Care for a little camo convo?

Me, personally? I am ambivalent about sport camo for the most part. Some of them are ok as long as you sit still but many are just junk. Truly, I think the vast majority of commercial camo patterns out there are meant to be seen (by hunters) and, by nature, are designed to sell, not hide. Thus, ALMOST ALL COMMERCIAL PATTERNS HAVE WAY TOO MUCH BLACK in them (men, like bugs home in on dark objects). The patterns are also WAY too complicated with 3D nonsense. Thus, at a distances beyond 15 yards, most patterns blur into one dark blob.

In my opinion, there are only a few really good general purpose patterns out there for hunters.
1. Multicam
2. Hyde Definition
3. ASAT

The first two use almost no black. ASAT uses narrow black stripes against an extremely light background.

However, all of these patterns could easily pass for military patterns (Multicam is already being fielded by PMC's and some non .mil US forces like the DEA in A-stan). Based on Shakari Steve's recommendation HERE I passed on outfitting Mason and I in one of the above patterns. The camo we did bring was incidental to the gear we already had (hats and fleeces) but I really skipped camo in general just to avoid any issues. (However, camo would not have been an issue in the areas of SA we hunted.) SA was bone dry last month and simple muted colors worked quite well.

IN ADDITION, following Steve's advice on camo had one other unintended benefit (take notes Susan!): Since our clothing was suitable for touring as well as hunting, we were able to get dual use out of all our clothes. This meant less clothes to pack, less laundry issues and we never had to go to town in cami jammies, which would have sucked in my book. (Back in my day in the Marine Corp, cami's were verboten in town. I never got over that. Wearing cami's in town is like eating an old cracker you found stuffed in the cushions of the sofa - it will get you by but almost any alternative would be better.)

Truth be known, I may stick one set of multicam in my bag next trip to SA, just because......well, just because. But, it's just not a necessity or even a priority. In fact, if luggage weight were an issue, it'd be the first thing I dump.

Andrew told me his camo was basically to keep angry clients from blaming him for getting spotted on a stalk. We had him in jeans by the end of the hunt! This would be a good time to add that even though Andrew has me by a good 20 years, he can low crawl at least twice as fast as I can and half as loud. Once, I had to go back to a crouch to keep up with his low crawl! In my view, Ol' Andrew has not spoiled many stalks, no matter what he may have happened to be wearing!


But anyone who has been hunting any amount of time understands that it is shape, shine, silhouette, smell, sound and movement, movement, movement that gets game alerted. Color and pattern of color are much less of a factor to most prey animals.

More than you ever wanted to know on Chet's opinion of camo, huh?

Hey Alex,

Great report and it looks like you and Mason had an top class hunt and a blast while doing it! it was an absolute pleasure helping you guys out and was fantastic meeting you both.

Good shooting, nice detailed report! all the best,

Regards

Aubrey

Great write up Alex,

+1 on camo.

You had an experience many hunters visiting Africa can only hope to achieve. Being invited to join and view the world of a group of local South Africans who have opened their homes and professions to you and your son.

I'm glad to see you didn't dump the all too efficient .308W for just the .375.

Oh, the vehicle issues .....

I hope Mason can bring himself down to earth without too many issues. A boy, his hat, with his knives and with his Dad. It doesn't get any better than that.

Well Done.

Congratulations to you both!

A great hunt report on a great hunt.

I can think of no better experience than a Father & Son hunt and they're my favourite type of hunt to conduct.

It was great for both Susan and I to meet both of you and we're very glad the site was of help to you!

Looks like a truly special hunt, with some pretty good shooting as well! COngrats...

Congratulations and well done to the hunters!

Great Safari Alex. Glad you and Mason had a great time. I really hated that I missed the Braii but it sounds like it was great.

Larry

Great report, great trophies, great family... congratulations!

And kudos to Andrew McClaren!!!

Chet all I can say is congratulations on a great hunt. You could not have gone with a more honest and hardworking person. He is truly the salt of the earth. I have been over there with him twice and I would go again in heart beat

You guys look like you had a great hunt. I know your son had a blast.

I think you were two rows ahead of me on the flight from Atlanta to Joberg.

We were invited to the braai, but I wanted to hunt bushpig with Charl instead. I think he really wanted to go. I'm sorry we missed it!

Matt

I got an email from Andrew the other day. That wildebeest measured 26" inches this past week, well inside Rowland Ward measurements.
I wonder what I should expect after it dries a bit more?

You know, Andrew has a good philosphy on these things. He doesn't hunt with a tape measure in his pocket. Instead, Andrew knows how to enjoy the hunt (and the kill) for what it is. Yea, it's nice to whack a good one, that's true. But, numbers aren't memories.

ChetNC

Great report of a great hunt......next time one of those Buff will be on your list.......and then the JUMBO. Start planning! Jim

On CAMO:

Last year, my 9 year old daughter did her (1st place!) science fair project on Camo and which was "best". She stood behind a thin screen of brush wearing different types of camo, took black & white photos, and then asked folks at church to pick out which one that they thought was best.

The patterns she chose were: white (control), olive green (an older "SheSafari" shirt of my wife's), Digicam, Natural Gear, an older (not real dark) RealTree Hardwoods pattern, and "Old School" (a generic camo sweatshirt that I made in HomeEC over 20 years ago).

Although the folks at Church scored the RealTree pattern as the "best", all of the "camo" patterns were pretty close, and pretty much everyone commented that "there wasn't much difference" in any of them except for wearing a white shirt.

Troy,
I am sure you and your wife are raising one heckuva little girl if she is already testing camo at nine! That is awesome. Maybe she could reverse the experiment and do some double blind testing next year!


I left out Natural Gear from my list only by mistake. I think it has the right balance of black in it and works in a wide variety of areas.

ChetNC