Hi All:

I hunted South Africa in 2005 and got bit hard by the Africa bug. I wanted to share the addiction with my Brother and Nephew and then decided to add my son to the lifestyle that is hunting in Africa. My son is 10 but started shooting ducks and chuckars when he was 9 and hunting deer with me when he was only 5 so I thought he would be fine and I was right.

Our hunt was originally scheduled in 2006 for strictly a plains game hunt but when Dirk moved to Omalanga a couple of Leopard quotas became available and we increased our hunt to 14 days to give it a try.

We followed Kathi's (Wild Travel) advice and our trip from Las Vegas to D.C., Frankfurt and then Windhoek went off without a hitch. We did the day room thing in Germany and were able to get a little sleep as with the exception of my son are all over 6'3'' and sleeping on the plane in coach is an exercise in frustration.

We arrived at he Omburo camp about 2:30 P.M. after stopping for groceries, lunch etc. and thought we would do a game drive or a laid back hunt the first afternoon. Dirk had other ideas as he had a big tom leopard actively feeding and wanted to get after him immediately. To make a long story short we didn't get the leopard pictured below but only because we ran out of plains game to shoot on the 7th day and decided to move to the Oryx camp to fill out our PG list.


I'm very confident we could have killed the leopard given enough time but we were enjoying the PG hunting so much that we didn't stress over leaving him behind. I believe they killed a leopard overn the same bait the week we left.

The country was in fabulous shape with very tall grass and dense leaf cover remaining on all the acacia shrubs. It made for very difficult tracking and quick shooting as the animals were only in view for a short time as was this steenbok.

We ended up taking more than 25 animals and so I thought I would just report on some of the better animals we took.

Dirk was very generous and let my son shoot an Impala, warthog and jackal. The wathog was the highlight of our the trip as evidenced by my son telling me that he was "the happiest man in the world now that he had shot a warthog". His Impala was a great trophy but we lost him for a day and the vultures got him before we did.




I took a very heavy red hartebeast that we thought we had lost during the first stalk but found him again about a mile south of the first stalk. The .375 H & H, 260 grain accubond mushroomed perfectly but did not shoot through both shoulders from approxinately 60 yards.
He did not move more than 30 yards after the shot.


I had wanted to shoot a steenbok as I had not killed one on my last trip. I shot him with a Styer 308 mountain rifle that I brought for my on to shoot and he fell on the spot. I love these little guys.

My nephew killed a great springbok with horns over 16 inches. He shot him at about 350 yards in the open savanna grounds found at the Oryx camp.

My brother shot a monster warthog that we nicknamed hogzilla. Dirk had seen him earlier and told my brother to wait and try for him when we got to Oryx camp and he was happy that he did. He was shooting a 300 Win mag using 180 grain A-frames and sirrocos.

A close up of the hog.


I shot a good gemsbok on the Omburo camp that was a shade over 38". My shooting was off on this animal and we had to track it with a dog to recover it, but the accubonds did the trick.


I had taken a 38.5" gemsbok in S. Africa and after we moved to the Oyx camp I told Dirk that if we saw a bull or cow that was positively over 40" I would shoot it. In retrospect I think I messed up not shooting this one as after we got back and looked at the photos and video we were sure it would make an honest 40" on the right horn. What do you think? Is it over 40"?

My brother took 2 zebras on this trip. He shot a Hartman's for his daughter and this large Burchell's stallion for his wife.

My nephew shot a very large Hartman's zebra on top of a plateau where the landcruiser couldn't reach. They ended up having to skin and quarter him on site. That apparently is frowned upon in Namibia, which made us laugh as we frequently hunt elk and can never drive to them after the kill. It is always quartered and packed out.

I was looking for a large kudu as I had killed 2 before and I knew there was some very large bulls on the ranch. On about the third day I had a chance at a very wide and tall bull but he slipped away before I could shoot. The following day we went back and jumped this bull very near where the previous bull had slipped away. Dirk and I both thought we had found him but when I shot. It turned out not to be the bigger bull but my son was ecstatic because to him, a kudu bull was Africa.

To those of you heading off to Omalanga in the near future I thought I would let you see that Chef Leopold is still preparing those wonderful meals and the Lapa at Oryx camp is as comfortable and warm as can ever.



We ended the last day by shopping at the wood carvers market and in Windhoek for the less fortunate that didn't make the trip with us. Our trip home was uneventful and everything arrived right on time. The customs agents, Namibian police at the airport, TSA, ticket agents etc. couldn't have been any better to us.

To say we had a great time would not do this trip justice. It was a trip of a lifetime. Dirk, Rita and Weggies are fabulous hosts and PH's. If anyone is even remotely thinking of bring their young son or daughter along I encourage you to do it now. My son and I are extremely close, but a trip like this makes the bonds even stronger. He summed it up best on the last day by asking (begging) if we could at least stay in Africa until we were out of ammo.


I had killed a 38.5" oryx in South Africa a

Great trip. I can see by the similes all had a wonderful time.
Congrads

Great trip, story, and photos. The mass on the hartebeest is really something.

Great to see fathers and sons, uncles and nephews and brothers all enjoying the wilds of Namibia together. Congrats on a great experience!

Great family adventure! That's the kind of thing that will keep a kid grounded later in life.

There is nothing like a father and son in hunting camp together...
The smile on that young hunter with his Dad is beyond words...

Mike

Great report on what had to have been a great experience for you and your son.
Boy, Leopold sure is photogenic. Isn't he?

Dave

What a wonderful experience! Seems like you had a blast.. Thanks for sharing!

Your young man could not look happier. Tis memory will be with you and him forever. What a great trip.

Congrats on a great trip and a great report.

Very nice. Congrats.

I hear your son is ready to go out and get him a .338.

Dirk said that shot got as much meat on both ends!

Jay,
Congratulations on a great hunt and thanks for sharing.

Hi All:

Thanks for the kind words. Dave, Leopold never looks better than when he is about to grill some marinated gemsbok steaks. Acer, anyone who has hunted with Dirk knows his fondness for big bores. After seeing the difference between a 150 grain core-lokt in .308 on an impala and a 250 grain A-frame from a .338 on the warthog my son is a believer as well.

Jay

Nice report and Great pictures. Maybe some day my son who is 2 years old now will have the opportunity to stand together in the hunt! It is great to see fathers and sons in the woods to gether.

Great report. I'm heading back next year and hope I can connect with warthogs like you guys got into.

By the looks of things, it seems you had a wonderful father/son experience. I know the feeling. There is no better way to share your hunting passion.

As to the leopard, you have to leave something for the return trip!

TJB

Jay, Great report! Looks like all had a fine time. I'll be there the last half of next June and will be taking my 338wm and 9.3x62.

GREAT HUNT and STORY and PICS....

Godd on you for taking the son!!!

Memories to cherish forever!!!!!

Hey there, Jay! Glad to see this finally up - I had a great time meeting with you and your family and talking both in Frankfurt and in Namibia. Glad you had an awesome time - if you are ever in my neck of the woods look me up and we'll get together.

Eric