Tholo Safaris Botswana
Booked through Worldwide Trophy Adventures – Tim Herald
tim@trophyadventures.com
Late May –early June
Used .470 Verney-Caron with 460 gr CEB safari raptor bullets

Just returned a week or so ago from another amazing hunt at Tholo Safaris in Botswana. I had the privilege to hunt share camp with Boarkiller (Milan) and his girlfriend Renee, Dogcat (Ross) and his wife Diane, rgunn (Dick) all from here on AR, plus friends/clients Luke Hartzell (childhood friend from 30 years ago PA deer camp), Jim Sheehan and Kerry Rexroad. This was over 2 groups, and I think everyone had an incredible time enjoying the hunting, camp, staff, food, etc.

As I said last year, I believe Tholo is the absolute best place for the best price there is in Africa today for a high quality common plainsgame hunt on an absolutely HUGE piece of property. The kudu population and quality are unreal. The rut was ending, but one day I saw 19 mature bulls, and I was not hunting kudu.

I again chose to use my double V-C .470 for the practice, and it was great fun. I shot animals from 20 yards – 120 yards, and again I hunted with Bushman tracker Kamuru. That is especially enjoyable to me.

The double gun did cost me getting an eland as I had a shot in a thicket at about 60 yards in the shade and brush. With binos I could pick a spot through the brush, but I could not with the double. I also had a chip shot on a 57-58” kudu one evening that would have been easy with a scope, but it was too late for my double sights. All good, that is part of hunting with the gun…

As this was a plainsgame hunt, and I am sure some of the members are going to post reports of their own, I am going to mainly just post photos. These are about half of what some of the folks have sent me as far as trophy photos go. I know that Ross and Dick will have much more detailed reports, so some of the camp stuff and unique things there, I am going to leave for them to share. If anyone wants to do this hunt in the future, let me know. I still can do packages all the way til 2018 that are $7300 plus tax and road transfer and you get 9 nights, 8 hunt days including eland, kudu, gemsbok, wildebeest, impala, zebra and jackal. It is a superb deal.

Big puff adder I photographed at about 3 feet one day. He was as thick as my forearm.


Different kind of puff adder- gemsbok heart, liver and kydney diced and stuffed in intestine. It was delicious.



Kamuru- one special guide and a true pleasure to hunt with



Luke Hartzell with a heavy old kudu. Back story is Luke and I grew up hunting together as kids in PA deer camp. His unlce and my dad were best friends. We hadn’t seen each other in 25 years until Feb, and had not hunted together in 25+ years. This was his first safari, and it was a real thrill to be almost shoulder to shoulder with him when he took this kudu.


This is my longest kudu ever. Luke and I were on the truck together when we spotted him, and he watched from a high point as Kamuru and I stalked about 600 yards to get a 70 shot.


This was my highlight animal of the trip. We were stalking impala, when we saw this kudu in the thick stuff. We got within 25 yards when we realized he had “one horn”. He fed through, and Kamuru told me we would shoot him for meat if we weren’t closing in on the impala. I quickly told him I would much rather shoot a mature one horned kudu than an impala, and the sticks went up. When he hit the next opening (now at about 80 yards), I dropped him with a high shoulder shot above a deadfall.
He ended up having a freaky horn growing into his neck, it was swollen and bleeding, but he was healthy otherwise. It had to be miserable living like that, so it was a mercy killing, but to me a great trophy. The good horn was 57”!








Milan’s kudu


Renee’s kudu

Jim’s Kudu


Zebra Stallion at about 80 yards. Dust in the flash


Milan’s stallion


Renee’s zebra

Luke’s Zebra


Jim’s zebra


Some great eland taken





Excellent Gemsbok. Mine was just an old, heavy short bull, but we stalked in to about 20 yards, so great hunt.






Hogs:





Lots of blue wildebeest: I got to shoot some culls and the trophy bull I shot at 60 yards just below the eye(that is all I could see). I could spend a week there shooting these guys with the double.



120 yards!












there are some odds and end there as well.

Tim,

Great report and THOLO is a special place indeed. That Kamuru probably enjoys his job more than anyone I've ever met. Congrats to all. Oh! Didn't you shoot a similarly freaky elk once?

Mark

yep - thi sone from WY

Great pictures Tim! Massive kudu!

Wow!

Really great report and trophies.

I particularly like the group hunt with friends, camp fire, yarning ...

Did you do any small game or bird shooting?

Tholo is the best. I will be back.

Very fine animals taken there and Botswana seems to be a great destination for Kudu and Eland.

Those Kudu are very nice!!! congrats

Naki- We didn't shoot birds as only doves were in, and besides jackal, no one shot small game because of permits. I really wanted to shoot a honey badger and a porcupine and we had 2-3 honey badgers on a bait by camp. Only so much time...

Well done Tim!!! Congrats to you all. Looks like lots of fun.

WOW that suffering Kudu was really a freak! And your Kudu was a monster!

Best regards, D. Nelson

Great report. Sounds like an awesome place. Someday for me maybe.......can't get enough of kudu hunting.

My wife and I were on this hunt and had a great trip. Will post a detailed hunt report in a week. Also went to the Okavango Delta area for some bunny hugging and touring.

THOLO was easily one of the all time top places we have been. I shot more high quality animals and saw more here than anywhere I have been. I also used a Blaser (children, cover your eyes and ears!).More on that in my report.

quote:

Originally posted by dogcat:
My wife and I were on this hunt and had a great trip. Will post a detailed hunt report in a week. Also went to the Okavango Delta area for some bunny hugging and touring.

THOLO was easily one of the all time top places we have been. I shot more high quality animals and saw more here than anywhere I have been. I also used a Blaser (children, cover your eyes and ears!).More on that in my report.

Can't wait to see it. Your hunting reports are awesome.

Great pics!

quote:

Originally posted by RAC:

quote:

Originally posted by dogcat:
My wife and I were on this hunt and had a great trip. Will post a detailed hunt report in a week. Also went to the Okavango Delta area for some bunny hugging and touring.

THOLO was easily one of the all time top places we have been. I shot more high quality animals and saw more here than anywhere I have been. I also used a Blaser (children, cover your eyes and ears!).More on that in my report.

Can't wait to see it. Your hunting reports are awesome.

I concur, absolutely the best!

Awesome hunt
Great camp and great company
Thanks Tim

Cool stuff... glad to see Botswana still making a good showing on the hunting map, even if just on private land.

Still jet-lagged and grumpy. Will post my report as soon as I can. Best Plains game ever!

Great report and some really great trophies.

Well done! Great pics.

You couldn't ask for a better group of Kudu. As always they seem to produce plenty of old blue bull eland.

Everything is exceptional there gentlemen
I recommend it to everyone, even after some of you felt burnt out on plains game
So much country to hunt and so much game and bushmen at work is something to see...

quote:

Originally posted by JGRaider:
Great report. Sounds like an awesome place. Someday for me maybe.......can't get enough of kudu hunting.

Yep.

65 days to departure. Looking forward to hunting with Jason B. again. 2012 was a magical trip and I have no doubt this one will be as well.

Tim, if you ever put together another hunt at Tholo, please give me plenty of advance notice so that I can figure out a way to go. Jerry Hoover

Great report with great pics!

That Kudu with the horn in his neck is really something. A great mercy killing and to me at least, an unusual trophy to dispaly.

Congratulations!

Great Pics and hunt report! Looks like a great place to hunt.

Congratulations to all. Wonderful quality trophies and Tholo sounds awesome.

Thanks for the report!