14 February 2024, 22:08
505 gibbsFree Range Kudu with Aloe Africa / Hunters Network
Good afternoon,My wife and I just returned from our hunt in KwaZulu Natal, RSA. I had never hunted South Africa but my interest was piqued when Arjun Reddy (Reddy375) posted an ad in '22 for a "different" type of Kudu hunt. It was during what is typically off season (Jan/Feb) and the premise was that the Kudu bulls would come out of the thick bush when things warmed up mid morning, the bugs became more active pushing them out into the breezy meadows where they fed on the blooming Acacia's. Amazingly enough, that is exactly how it happened. You couldn't be too early, as the morning warmed around 9am or so, the Kudu began to emerge from the trees and feed in the individual acacia's. There was much glassing from long distances, it was not uncommon to glass multiple groups of Kudu from 1000's of yards away. Once a potential target was identified, you made a plan to stalk in and make a closer assessment. The closest I could give you to this experience is Mule Deer hunting in the West. There is no shooting form the cruiser, everything is spot and stalk, we walked typically 3-5 miles per day, many times uphill to meadows on top of mountains not accessible by roads (typical elevation change is 300-500 ft). In simple terms, it is a massive valley with mountains lining both sides (think much larger version of the river valleys in the Texas Hill Country), Aloe has access to around 180k acres of free range cattle ranches and agricultural farming (corn & soy). I will put a link to Aloe's Facebook page where they do a better job of capturing the "hunting stories" than I do.
Aloe Africa Facebook
An important Side Note:
I feel compelled to share that this hunt was originally supposed to happen February of 2023, it was to be a celebration of our 20th wedding anniversary. 3-4 days before our departure, our beloved Sister-in-Law Kari, suddenly lost her 2+ year battle with Ovarian Cancer. The trip was completely funded, airfair purchased and there was no way we were leaving our family. I called Arjun and informed him there was no option, I apologized for any inconvenience and told him I understood it was our loss. He offered his condolences and hung up. Within 24hrs he had called me back and informed us that he had spoken with Chris at Aloe and they insisted on rolling the whole thing over to 2024. I was shocked (and a little taken aback), I told him that didn't sound like the greatest business decision for Aloe, asked if there was anything we could do to sweeten the deal/soften the blow to them, he insisted that they felt this was the right thing to do, my wife and I are eternally grateful for their kindness. Afton Lodge also rolled over our deposit out of kindness and even Delta refunded 100% of our airfair. Thank You to all of the companies involved that took on hardship to support us.
One more Side Note:
I am watching a bunch of hoop-la currently about traveling/transporting guns through RSA (which I had never done before). We used Afton Lodge to obtain our SAPS permits and they set up "Mr.X" to meet us at the airport and clear everything. First, I was shocked at how little it cost for everything, second, when we walked off the plane, there was a man with our name on a poster with a cart. He took our carry-on, walked us through passport control, picked up our luggage, walked us through customs to the SAPS office wher "Mr.X." was sitting with our rifles and permits. The whole thing took 15-20 minutes from the time we departed the plane to the time he hand delivered us to Aloe, free and clear to go. As far as the trip back, I sent Mr. X a text 24hrs before departure, then 2 hrs before arrival at airport, he literally opened the door for us as we approached the terminal with our bags. Delta had subbed our flight to KLM for return and their process was totally different than anything I have ever dealt with. I would have had trouble feeling my way through it, Mr.X breezed through it like he had done it 1000x. This service redefines "value", an invaluable service for what felt like pennies.
First day/First Property we were immediately on 4 bulls with one giant, a fun stalk through some contour and Karalynn was on the boards with a 230yd shot from her 6.5/140g partition:
First day/First property late afternoon, we spotted 5 bulls with 1 candidate from a little over a mile. they bedded in wash, we stalked in and just before dark the big boy got up and walked out of the erosion 50 yards in front of me.
Second morning, new property, found 2 different groups of bulls, both a mile or so out, picked one, Karalynn and Yogi stalked in to 150 yards and she put him down with 1 shot.
4th day we hunted what I thought was the most beautiful property of the whole trip, we did not find a mature bull but from the bottom we did spot a herd of 14-15 mountain reedbuck (all ewes with 1 ram) from miles away. Karalynn made a mental note and as our hunt for Kudu dwindled, she asked if we could make a move on them and see what he looked like. We stalked in above them, set up (we could only see the ewes), after 3 hours or so, the weather began to turn and the old man came up from below to check on everyone, that was the end.
6th day on another property produced no mature bulls, but as we were coming off the mountain we spotted 2 bedded Nyala bulls 600+ yards below us. We made a stalk and discovered there was a stack of cows and what ended up being 13 bulls. we were in dense bush and they were all around us, many times we were busted but they never went far and with a little maneuvering we were in them again.I finally ended up shooting this bull at 50 yards.
7th day we went to a new property and found a large group of bulls (12-14) with 1 obvious shooter, an easy stalk followed by a bit of a rodeo, another stalk and I was looking at him 150 yards below me under an acacia tree, done deal on our 4 Kudu bulls.
On the 1st day at the first property we had bumped into a small herd of Red Wildebeest (4 cows, a calf, a young bull and an old bull). Karalynn was mesmerized by them and their strange appearance, with everything done she asked if we could go back and hunt the old bull? Apparently there are only 2 herds of these on the properties Aloe hunts, there was discussion about the dynamics of this herd, they only had 1 calf (which was conspicuous), the only reasoning they could come up with was that the old bull was not breeding but would not let the young bull breed. They spoke with the landowner and he agreed to let us come in and hunt the old bull. We went up on top where we had seen them the first day but the clouds had set in and you could not see 100yds. We persevered and walked the whole top, we found their tracks where they had gone off the mountain into the thick bush but never saw them. We went back the next day and hiked up the mountain to where we had seen they dropped off the day before, it didn't take long and we found them bedded at a salt lick 400-500 yards out. Unfortunately, there was no way to close the distance and 2 of the cows made us immediately. We spent an hour or so watching them. They finally wandered off out of site and we began to follow. They moved into some thicker country that afforded Karalynn and Yogi to stalk within 150 yards. After patiently waiting an hour or so, the bull presented a broadside shot and she did it again.
In closing, it was a great trip with great people, it was the perfect speed for Karalynn who basically had no experience hunting (much less Africa). Yogi was patient and attentive to Karalynn's experience, always making sure to get her into a position for success. Hat's off to Aloe, Arjun and all involved.
