Location: Chirisa Safari Area and Sengwa Research Area, Zimbabwe
Outfitter: HHK-Safaris, Graham Hingeston
Booking Agent: none
PH: Derek "Gomez" Adams (again)
Trackers: Ophias, Fanny and Tabani (also driver)
Date: Sept. 1st - 14th 2011
Rifles: Steyr-Mannlicher "S" 8x68S with Leupold VX-3 / 4,5-14x50 with illum. reticle
"German #4" and (rebuilt) CZ 550 cal 416 Rigby with Aimpoint
Ammo: 187grn H-Frame from RWS and reloaded .416 with 410grn Woodleigh solids
Game hunted: Leopard, Tuskless, Bushbuck
Game taken: Leopard, Bushbuck, Impalas and Kudu cows for bait
Game seen: Lion, Leopard, Elephant, Buffalo, Eland, Zebra, Waterbuck, Kudu,
Zebra, Reedbuck, Bushbuck, Warthog, Baboon, Impala, Klippspringer,
Grysbuck, Duiker

I flew from Zurich to Munich, where I met my friend Sepp (Josef). We continued with the flight to Jo-burg and to Vic Falls, where a pilot was waiting for us. The flight to Chirisa was about an hour.



An "Appi" picked us up at the "Chivonde" airstrip and drove us to the camp. Pretty much the same staff as 2008 were waiting for us. We enjoyed the first evening at the fire after a delicious meal. The next day was a non-hunting day. Derek arrived in camp with his crew after lunch.





We hunted both concessions, so we had 2 game scouts, one for each area.
We were busy the first few days with shooting impalas and female kudus for bait. Sepp got a zebra at the Sengwa Research area. We also got some meat from a waterbuck and a kudu that another hunter shot.
We found a herd of elephant with a young tuskless. She was not fully grown, but legal. There was no need for meat for baits that day. Derek told me she had only about the size of a hippo, so we did not shoot her.
We finally had 17 baits hanging and it took several hours every day to check them. The first 2 cats we had on bait were females.
On day 7, we had a big male feeding on one of the impalas. Earlier this year, a hunter wounded a big leopard on the same tree. They found some blood and a small part of a claw under the tree. They were able to track him for 4-5 kilometers before they lost the track in rocky hills. Derek was sure it was the same cat, because he had a good feed and did not came back. The cat hit another bait about 2km from the first one, had a good meal and never came back.



On the morning of day 9 we checked one of the baits at Chenkanka. Tabani found the tracks of a big male that had been feeding on the waterbuck. The meat looked fresh and shiny and Derek was sure that the cat was still feeding when we arrived.
It took about 2 hours to build a blind and cut all the trees and branches that were in our way. The bait was 68m from the blind. I shot another impala that day and we put it up before we went into the blind around 4 p.m.



It was after 6 when the cat jumped into the tree. Derek had a careful look through the spotting scope to make sure we didn't make any mistake. He told me he wanted me to shoot the cat right behind the front leg in the middle of the body. The red dot found the right place behind the front leg and I pulled the trigger.
The cat jumped into the air. We heard angry growling, breaking branches and thrashing leaves. We waited for some time but heard nothing more.
Derek called the trackers by radio. It was dark when they arrived. We found some blood under the tree and we followed the track for about 150m, but no cat! We searched more than an hour for the leopard until all the batteries were flat. Went back to camp. I did not sleep very well that night. We were back with Sepp and the camp manager before 7a.m. the next morning. To make a long story short; after checking roads and dry riverbeds, we knew the cat must be in an area about 400m by 500m. That’s about 50 acres. And that’s a lot of bush in which to look for a wounded leopard. It was around noon and I was standing under a big tree. I heard a whistle and started walking. I was about 50m from the boys when I heard a shot. I started running and saw Derek walking towards a bush, his 450/400 NE 3" double ready. One more shot from him finally killed the leopard. He was lying in a thick bush waiting for us when Ophias saw him.
My shot had hit him in the right spot, in the middle of the body right behind the front leg. But then, instead of carrying on and flying through the lungs, the bullet had made a 90° turn and left the body just in front of the front leg. Sepp (who is a vet.) opened the cat after the skinner finished his job. He did not find an explanation for what had happened with the bullet.
I was just happy that we found him! He was about 68kg (150lbs) and the salted and dried skin was 8'4".









I shot a 16" bushbuck the same afternoon.




The next day, just before dark, we found some elephant. We were still looking for a tuskless. There was a big old cow with no visible ivory on the right side of the head. We carefully walked closer to get a better look. We spooked a grysbuck just before we could see the other side of the head. The grysbuck ran into the herd and just a few seconds later, all the elephant were gone.


Sepp shot 2 buffalos the next day. They tried for a hyena, but she did not cooperate. On the last day he finally got a very nice grysbuck.







We had a great hunt and a lot of fun and I’m already booked for 2012!! Same area, same PH/staff, same game.

Great picts and report...and another great tom!

Congratulations!

Congratulations on a magnificent leopard. Great photos. Thanks for sharing.

O

Congrats! I stayed in that same camp a few years ago. Beautiful view.

Roger,
I really like the pictures that go with the report. Once again, congratulations on a fine leopard and other trophies. Waidmannsheil.

cheers,
stu

Congratulations! Thanks for the report.

Excellent photos and trophies, especially the leopard. Congratulations! Few can match Mr Adams for infield hunting experience, that's a fact.

Very nice Leopard! Love that buff too!

Congratulations on your hunt.I once hunted there and left with the feeling that hunting there was difficult and if you did get something it would be very rewarding-especially a leopard or lion.In other words, if you did get a lion it would be a lion among lions.

The biggest lion any of my brother's clients ever took was in Chirisa. Bearing in mind he has guided clients onto dozens of big males. Can't remember the name of the hunter offhand but will find out and try and get a picture. Gomez came across it whilst hunting and informed Jon of its whereabouts. Gomez told me that he has only ever seen one lion bigger than that one, and that was a lion shot by one of Gavin Rabinovich's clients, in one of the Matetsi blocks I think, way back when...

Fantastic hunt, great pictures excellent report!

Thoroughly enjoyed it.

Congratulations!!!

rj61: congratulations on a successful hunt! I'm glad that you located your leopard and that must have been a stressful night indeed. I hunted cape buffalo at Chirisa a few weeks before you and had a great hunt. It is a wonderful concession with lots of plains game to go with the DG!

Booked again for Chirisa.
The same PH and camp and again for a leopard.
Hope to get my 2nd tom with Derek out of 3 hunts.

Roger congratulations on a good report and pictures. Amazing smilarity with the leopard I shot with Derek in Omey in 2004. after the shot the leopard jump out of try and hit the famous fishing line of Derek (which he ties to the bait with one end in the blind to feel any movment of the bait) and the jerk knocked his cordless search light out of his hand and the bulb broke. fifteen minutes later he Offee and myself were looking for the leopard using my pencil torch ! we found him dead 40 yards from the tree.

Hi Mahmood.
Hope you had as much fun with Derek as I had.
Great personality! I agree with David who wrote in his reply: "Few can match Mr. Adams for infield experience, that's a fact".

That is a huge leopard! Thanks for sharing a great hunt.

Proper hunt that. Well done and some great pictures.

Thanks for sharing, nice trophies and good report. I like those Bushbuck.

Beautiful cat, buff and waterbuck there. Thanks for posting them.

Excelent report.

Oscar.

Very nice. Maybe the rifle was made to shoot around corners?
Very nice leopard.

Mike

Thank you,thank you for sharing,congrats on a fantastic hunt.

Thanks for sharing! Chirisa was my first place to hunt in wild Africa...great memories

I had the same thing happens with an 8x57R with 196grain bullet on an impala. Bullet entered behind the shoulder and exited next to the breast bone in front. I killed the impala with a knife (long story, I was out of ammo).

Very enjoyable report.
Thanks for posting.