Coutada 11, Sofala, Moçambique

Nyati, Mbogo, Dagga Boy, Black Death. What is it about calling a buffalo by another name that grabs our attention when seeing the release of a new book, a wildcat cartridge, or choosing a profile name for an internet forum?

What these alternate names certainly give, is credibility to having a sense of adventure when discussing your planned trip at a Friday night dinner party, as opposed to simply saying you are going on a buffalo hunt. Judging by internet forums, and forum names chosen, I would assume that Americans especially favour (favor?) these terms, as opposed to the plain and ordinary “Buffalo” term. A possible reason could be that the majority of the population in America does not understand the local African languages, so having Nyati roll off your tongue should impress the dinner guests to some degree and give your ego a boost in knowing what it’s all about. What these alternate African names do allow, is to let our imaginations relive the writings of famous hunters in days gone by. It conjures up images of the safari romance that so many of us wish to replicate, whilst adding a sense of mystery and danger, evoking that adventurer spirit within all of us.

With the last buffalo for the week down, our PH, Poen van Zyl asked, which could be deemed to be a rhetorical question, “What is it about hunting buffalo that makes them so different to any other animal?”

Different to other animals?

I’m not too sure if anyone can answer that question honestly. Hunting wildebeest, which has been coined as the “poor man’s buffalo”, is just as difficult in terms of the actual stalking aspect, and if you do not bring your part as the hunter, a misplaced bullet can ultimately result in a long day following the tenacious gnu around the countryside. Buffalo on the other hand if unaware of your presence, can be easily stalked, and provided you are reasonably fit and comfortable with your firearm, a well-placed premium bullet, with no adrenalin pumping, should down a buffalo effectively. The minimum calibre legislation for buffalo hunting certainly gives the species a boost in credibility to being tougher and if one considers some of the Wildcats that are being developed, almost bullet proof status. One cannot help but wonder what the pioneers and early settlers would think of the mythical status that we have given buffalo, through armchair ballisticians, and KO theories, to think that the lowly 9,3x62 and 303’s were used without any doubt in days gone by. The difference now, is that buffalo hunting is not free, and the prudent approach would be to hunt with the biggest calibre that you are accurate with. In essence, controlling as many of the variables as possible.

Every species has a charm about it. Outsmarting sly kudu in steep valleys, shy and elusive bushbuck in the forests or running like mad behind bushpigs with hounds; they all have their unique aspects. Buffalo hunting though, through the writings of the like of Ruark and Capstick, has earned a justifiable respect and reputation. The knowledge that they have the potential to kill you, does add a different element to the hunt. It is after all not called dangerous game for nothing. The average hunter will not be able to afford an elephant, rhino or lion hunt, possibly leopard; but as an entry into the realms of dangerous game hunting, buffalo is almost always the starting point where a hunter could stretch his budget to, even if only once in his lifetime. If you ask the average hunter, most will tell you they dream of hunting buffalo. There are exceptions, but from a financial aspect, I think most hunters would almost always choose buffalo as their first or sometimes only dangerous game quarry.

This brings me to the story of my virgin buffalo hunt. It was a sweltering day in early February while enjoying afternoon tea and light refreshments at Henning Klipp’s place, that we got to talking about guns and hunting. I suffer from what 99% of hunting forum members suffer - I keep buying and rationalising guns, scopes, bullets, accessories etc. that I don’t need. There. I said it. Do not tell my wife. Henning’s brother, Conrad has often said to me, “Where are all these antelope that we are going to shoot with all this ammo and all these rifles?”

At the time I was looking at buying a 500 Jeffery. Did I need one? No. I have a 416 Rem Mag and had just gotten a 450/400 NE 3” which for my hunting was overkill in any case. So, did I want one? Yes. Holding a 500 Jeffery Cartridge was all the convincing I needed. Luckily the conversation turned to the upcoming hunting season where Henning mentioned a hunt in Mozambique at the end of the year, and asked if I wanted to come along. He would give me more details at a later stage, but the brief details entailed two options; a mixed bag safari with a buffalo, or just a buffalo. That night I got quotes for the hunt from Henning. I don’t think I slept that night. Schemes to raise the funds were pondered, rehashed and analysed over and over again. With my shooting sickness I had quite a few firearms, and although each one had their specific task for a specific species, I realised if I sold firearms, scopes, and components, I would be able to raise enough money without having to dip into my savings account, or should I say, my wife’s couch and dining room chairs account. I would also still have a few core cartridges that would be able to cover the other rifles intended uses. The mixed bag safari included a Red Duiker, Blue Duiker, Livingstone Suni, Liechtenstein Hartebeest, Chobe Bushbuck and a Buffalo. The price difference for the mixed bag safari was however unfortunately too much for me, and my thinking was, I would always be able to accompany the other hunters on their hunts, so it wouldn’t be a case of shoot a buff on Day 1 of 7 and sit in camp all day thereafter.

With the deposit paid, there was no turning back, I was was going on a seven day buffalo hunt with Zambeze Delta Safaris! November could not come quick enough. With the build up to the hunt, everything I thought I knew had suddenly vanished, and I found myself researching topics on what to bring, ballistics, cartridges, bullets, scope choices, as well as reading hunt reports of people that had gone there. Like a man possessed, I promised myself I would practice shooting once a week every week until November. A Whatsapp group was started and there was some excitement amongst the other hunters that would be joining us, with regular photos posted of animals hunted in the lead up to the safari. With my hunting budget for the year tied up in the buffalo safari, my plan was to go on one wildebeest hunt in July to get my confidence up and practise carrying all the gear I intended on taking along to Mozambique. I was also hoping to post a picture, so as to boost my standing amongst my new hunting partners and peers on the Whatsapp group.

The wildebeest hunt did not go as planned. The farm had been heavily hunted and after three days of walking I had one chance at a Wildebeest. I shot underneath it. Missed. The confidence boost I had been looking for was not there. I went home and checked the gun a few times. It was dead on as it should have been; 2 inches high at 100m. The distance was 250m, I thought it was closer, so maybe that played a part, but ultimately I missed.
When I paid the deposit for the buffalo safari I thought I would have a lot more time in preparing for the hunt. Note to self, do everything in terms of Load Development and ordering bullets and powder when you are excited about the hunt at the time of paying the deposit; life and work has a way of catching up to you that you blink and it’s the week of your trip and you still have to load your ammunition.

I had two options in terms of rifles for the trip, namely a Ruger No.1 450/400 NE 3”or a Blaser R93 Safari 416 Rem Mag. The Ruger No.1 weights about 2 pounds less than the Blaser and not knowing what to expect in terms of walking I chose to take the Ruger, as it is light and very comfortable to carry. Yes I know it’s a single shot, but I felt that with a PH and a fellow hunter there, if need be, there would be plenty of time for back up. Both rifles use a similar bullet, namely a 325gr GS Custom HV in the 450/400 NE 3“ at 2450fps or a 330gr GS Custom HV in the 416 Rem Mag at 2650fps. After the wildebeest hunt, unsuccessful hunt that is, I changed the scope on the 450/400 NE from a Leupold VX3 1.5-5x20 to VX3 2.5-8x36. I prefer higher magnification on all my firearms. “Aim small miss small” is the motto that convinced me with the swop. It also gave me something to blame for my miss. I intended on borrowing a gun case, but ended up having to buy one. The SKB gun case I bought is excellent in terms of protecting your firearm, it is however unnecessarily heavy and bulky. With my temporary export permit already sorted it was too late to change my mind and take my Blaser which is possibly the best travel rifle there is. Arriving at the airport I immediately had regret about leaving the Blaser at home. Two of the other hunters had brought their Blasers, and the compactness of their guncases, as well as the concealable nature of them compared to my bulky SKB was clear to see. Not that it matters if you are travelling with a firearm, but unnecessary attention is best avoided. The Blaser rifle in its case also weighed less than the SKB does on its own sans firearm.

Arriving in Beira felt like stepping back into 1972. South Africa, with all its problems, is notably ahead of the rest of Southern Africa in terms of infrastructure. Firearms and ammunition were cleared without any unnecessary difficulty, and to combat the intense humidity and heat, some G&T’s were the order of the day. There was also only one pilot for the charter planes, so three of us hunters had to stay behind at the airport and wait while the first of our group flew to the camp. I got to enjoy the comforts of Beira International for a few hours. Thank goodness for Gin.

Flying into camp via the charter was an experience in itself, not from a flight perspective but rather because of the beautiful scenery. The vastness of the concession is difficult to put into words. It made me realise that my reasoning for wanting to hunt buffalo in an unfenced area was warranted, and explaining it to fellow hunters and friends prior to departure was unnecessary. This was truly wild Africa, and guys that think that hunting a tagged buffalo with a nickname on a 500 ha farm vs hunting them on a 600,000 ha concession is the same thing, will never understand. In camp that night I was assigned to hunt alongside Marc for the week as I was the only hunter that was focusing purely on buffalo, and would therefore share a PH, everyone else had deeper pockets. Timo and Henning would also be sharing a PH, this however was also to help Timo with the language barrier. As I had indicated before, I was excited at the prospect none the less, as I got to go hunting without the squeezing of the trigger part, or the paying part for that matter, as well as spending time with a hunter that has significantly more experience than I do.

We initially started hunting in the forests, looking for the different species that Marc had on licence, we would however be on the lookout for buffalo at the same time. On the fourth day it was decided that we would leave the forests and go to the swamps to look for Buffalo specifically. Hunting in the swamps is not really swamp-like at this time of year. With large tracts of land burnt out, the area resembles the Free State. Papyrus rivers wind their way through the open plains, forming islands of dry ground on which the Buffalo congregate. Other than having to cross these muddy rivers, the ground is generally hard underfoot and easy to traverse. The difficult part is that there is no cover to hide behind, and with herds in excess of 250, there are a lot of eyes watching you from afar. We went in to the swamps with Frans and his PH Gert in two 8x8 Argo Machines in case of breakdowns or vehicles getting stuck. We established the herd’s location at about 7:30 in the morning. They were on one of the grassed islands, and we parked the Argo’s about two kilometres from the herd. The plan was that one of us would try and get as close as possible to the herd. Judging by the vegetation around, if the herd was spooked, they should run in the direction of where the other hunters would be waiting in the hope of finding a shootable old bull. Poen and I were assigned to do the leopard crawl.

It did not seem too far at first glance, however crawling over burnt veld with new shoots does take its toll, especially when the roots are still hot from the fire. Leopard crawling was a slow process and in the end the PH, tracker and I managed about 750m in an hour, frequently stopping when the herd were getting suspicious. We managed to get within 80m of the herd, all the while having the buffalo look at us inquisitively trying to figure out what we were. The wind was moderate giving a fair amount of relief from the blistering sun, but the ash blowing into our eyes made the crawling rather unpleasant. Staying in the prone position, we proceeded to look for any hardbossed bulls that stood out. A bull with fantastic spread and deep drop was positioned at the front of the herd, however he was still soft on top and was not what we were looking for - Poen judged him at 42-43”. We kept working the herd and looking at different bulls. One bull in particular stood out in terms of width, drop and hard boss. It was resting at the back of the herd. The bull eventually stood up, and from the prone position I ever so slowly moved into a sitting position to try and get some elevation. With such a large herd, and with the bull we had our eyes on at the rear of it, there were a lot of horns and heads sticking out covering the vitals. Moving into the sitting position and setting up the sticks would get me a shot, the movement however caught the attention of the buffalo closest to us, and caused them to move around putting the bull we were focused on behind a lot of traffic. Poen kept looking for alternate options in terms of a shootable bull in case the wind turned, all the while keeping track of the bull at the back of the herd. We sat out there looking at the herd for about an hour and a half with my rifle on the sticks ready to go if need be. Back at the Argo’s, Frans and his PH Gert had decided to have lunch as they saw the sticks go up but not much else happening since then. I was happy to have a hydration pack, as the intense heat, humidity and burnt ash was starting to become taxing on the body.

With not much movement in the herd, and with the bull that we had our sights on at the back of the herd behind cows and calves, an old bull decided it was time for a mud bath and he started walking towards us. He did not seem to be too concerned about us and continued on his slow walk until he was about 40 metres to the right of us in a 2 o’clock position, with the rest of the herd at a 12 o’clock position still about 70-80 metres away. He stopped and kept looking at us. Although not spectacular in width, he had good drop and a very heavy boss, truly befitting of the name Dagga Boy. I indicated to Poen that I would be happy to take him if the other bull does not give us a shot, which at that stage looked highly likely. The bull continued on his slow walk and stopped again, this time a little closer to us. It was at this time that the rest of the herd started milling around and the bull we had focused on for so long started making his move at the back. We could clearly see him walking through the herd, as he was significantly bigger than the other buffalo around him. I got myself ready on the sticks. Cows started moving out of the firing line as if on a puppet string, with one last cow providing cover for the bull we wanted. Poen confirmed the distance and reiterated where I should hit him, at the same time keeping an eye on the buffalo to our right that was now staring us down. Poen, in a hushed whisper, kept asking the cows behind and the one in front of the bull to move out of the way. Finally the bull I wanted moved two steps forward and stopped, standing perfectly broadside. I had been steady on the sticks for quite some time, and settled the cross hairs high on his shoulder. “Remember to squeeze the trigger” Poen whispered.


Boom.


The shot felt good. I worked the lever and quickly chambered another round. The bull to our right was now 20m away and kept coming towards us. Poen kept telling me to get ready, but not to shoot. The bull stopped and for a moment had the look of a dangerous game rifle advertisement commonly seen in magazines - head up, quartering toward us. It’s that exact look you play through your mind when you dream of hunting buffalo. I wonder if it is the same look that inspired Ruark to pen those famous words “He looks at you like you owe him money” ?. The old bull spun around and headed in the direction of where we initially thought the animals might go if we spooked them. The rest of the herd came running at us, and with waving of arms, ran around us following the old bull. In the dust cloud we tried to see if we could find my bull amongst the herd, however as the dust cleared we could see the lifeless body of a bull exactly where he was standing when I had shot him. Walking towards the buffalo we heard three shots in quick succession coming from the direction of where we left the Argo’s. On our approach, stopping at 20m from the buffalo, I put in an insurance shot under the front leg, and with that, the hunt was over. The feelings and emotions that came over me cannot be put into words. I was in awe, overjoyed, yet at the same time had a feeling of sadness come over me. Poen and the tracker headed back to fetch the Argo whilst I remained with the buffalo.



I was grateful for the time, to contemplate the hunt and truly appreciate the buffalo that lay before me. The frequently quoted “One does not hunt to kill, one kill’s to have truly hunted”, was playing through my mind. A better script could not have been written for a novice buffalo outing. Having your cartridge and bullet perform as intended always brings a sense of accomplishment as well as some relief, while knowing that the hunt was conducted in the spirit of fair chase and without any unnecessary suffering made it that much sweeter.



SUCCESS, RELIEF, RAW EMOTIONS

When Poen and the tracker returned, it turned out that the entire herd came running towards Frans and his PH, Gert. They had not heard our shot, but only seen the dust cloud of buffalo running towards them. They were about to finish with their lunch and carry on looking for another herd when the dust cloud starting running towards them. An old bull stopped 40 metres away, allowing a shot, which were those three shots we heard in quick succession. Two very different buffalo hunts indeed. I was glad that I had been given the opportunity to do the dirty work for my buffalo, as it was the only animal that I would be hunting for the week, and although you take what you get given when it comes to hunting, the hard work and sweat never seems to be as bad when the hunt has concluded.

We butchered the buffalo under the watchful eyes of vultures circling above, leaving only the ribs and intestines behind for them to devour. We managed to recover the bullet from my first shot, which was taken at 200m. The bullet mushroomed as is to be expected from GS Custom and broke off one petal. Weight retention was 89.5% with the impact velocity being an estimated 1815fps. The second bullet had exited from 20 odd metres.
My hunt for the week was over.

Was buffalo hunting everything I had hoped for?

No. It was better.

Although my hunt was over, I was fortunate enough to spend the entire week hunting with Marc who used to PH himself. I was therefore privy to two additional buffalo hunts as well as the plains game he pursued, all the while getting the opportunity to be asking questions like a keen 5 year old and learn from someone with significantly more experience than I have. A lesson I learnt from Marc as well as the other hunters, or rather re-learnt; is that it is not about the inches, but rather shooting the correct animal.

Poen’s rhetorical question about what makes buffalo hunting so special compared to other animals comes to mind. He asked it while we were waiting for the tracker to fetch the vehicle. We had just completed hunting Marc’s second buffalo. We were deep in the swamps of the Zambezi Delta, in 49 degree celsius heat, slightly dehydrated and appreciative of the fact that the effort that we had put in to pursue the Buffalo was rewarded. At that stage however the only thing that we were thinking was that we were homeward bound.

Hunting wildebeest and the like have their similarities, especially when everything goes according to plan, but when the old bull stared us down at 20m, it made me realise that buffalo aren’t just your ordinary game animal and to me, that is what makes them so special to hunt.

I cannot wait to go again.



And now for some technical aspects to the hunt:

At the end of a safari there is always time for some reflection. So now, as a self-proclaimed expert, I’ll give my breakdown;

Single shots and dangerous game:

In the Zambezi Delta the buffalo in the swamp are generally found in open areas, so the time needed to reload and put in an extra shot is generally available. I was well versed with my single shot and spent a lot of time dry firing and practising my reload with empty cases. I’m not sure if I would use it in thick bush and how fast I could reload, especially compared to my Blaser R93 in 416Rem Mag. So in hindsight, considering we didn’t have to walk too much, the Blaser R93 would’ve been the better option, purely from a faster reload aspect.

Rifles:

We had 1x Blaser R93 375H&H, 1x Ruger No.1 450/400 NE3”, 2x Blaser R8 416Rem Mag (1 was the Camp Rifle), 1x Sauer S202 416Rem Mag, 1xCZ 458 Win Mag, 1x Heym 500 NE. The 500 NE wasn’t used as the shooting distance was too far on the buffalo, so the Sauer 416 Rem Mag was used by Henning instead. However, what became apparent is that shooting with an unknown rifle has dire consequences. On the buffalo and the sable that Henning hunted, the magazine of the rifle was on the floor when a reload was taking place, however, this did not happen when Timo, the owner of the rifle, used it. Also the front part of the rifle (It is a Sauer Take Down) dismantled twice after a shot was fired when Henning used it. Goes to show how familiarity with a firearm is important especially when following dangerous game. I must add, this also did not happen when Timo used it, so a case of operator error must have been the cause. Henning did say he would take an additional rifle along with his double if he was to go back to Coutada 11, thereby if the opportunity does come about he would use his double, otherwise a scoped 375 or 416. Frans used the R93 in 375 H&H, and the buffalo was not any less dead than if it would have been hit by a 416. However, watching the buffalo react to the shot from the 416 Rem Mag while accompanying Marc definitely made an impression on me, and I think given the flatter trajectory of the 416’s vs the 458’s etc with less recoil, plus the added knock-down vs the 375’s they are the ideal safari chambering. The camp R8 and Christoph’s R8 both had synthetic stocks. For hunting in the swamps and for general Safari’s as much as I like a wooden stocked rifle, I’m leaning more and more to seeing a rifle as a tool, with synthetic stocks making life a lot easier in terms of maintenance and not having to worry about scratches on your Bhuka Mina Piece of Timber. The story relating to excess pressure in 416 Rem Mags have always done the rounds on the internet. Marc’s R8 camp rifle was in the open sun all day on the swamp vehicles, with recorded temperatures in camp of 49 Degrees while we were out hunting. Visually the cases seemed to be normal, and the bolt was not difficult to open. So maybe we just got lucky.

Bullets:

Marc used 400gr DGX Hornady Factory Ammo in the camp Blaser R8 416 Rem Mag which had so-so results looking at the bullets afterwards, the buffalo were dead though, so they did work as advertised, but core separation did occur in a few of the recovered bullets. Personally I don’t think I would use them. The Sauer 202 416 Rem Mag was stoked with Trophy Bonded Bear Claws which worked as they should. Christoph’s R8 416 Rem Mag used Norma African PH 450gr Woodleigh Bullets. I think loading such heavy bullets defeats the purpose of using a 416, and the benefit of the flat trajectory is lost. The CZ 458 Win Mag was stoked with Barnes TSX 400gr Bullets. Their penetration side on was good. But shots quartering away were rather disappointing, the bullets mushroomed as advertised, but the lack of velocity could have been a factor in poor penetration. The 375H&H was loaded with Peregrine and gave excellent terminal results unfortunately we did not recover any bullets. The added bonus is that the solids and the softs shot to the same point of impact, so for the smaller species, the solids could be used without ruining the Cape. The 325gr GS Custom HV Bullet I used performed as advertised and I look forward to using the 245gr HV Bullet at 3000fps in my 416 Rem Mag for plains game next season. Ultimately any premium bullet (Swift A-Frame, Rhino, Barnes TSX, Woodleigh etc.) will work, but with the longish shots on plains game, having something like the GS Custom that does give you a flatter trajectory and makes your rifle more versatile is a big help. How versatile you may ask? I shot a 2 reedbuck for community meat. One at 211 and one at 307 metres standing off sticks with the 450/400 NE 3”. With a 400gr at 2150 it would have been a bit more difficult given the rainbow trajectory at the lower velocity and poor BC of Woodleigh/Hornady Bullets.


GS CUSTOM 325GR HV - 89.5% WEIGHT RETENTION


ONE OF THE REEDBUCK


So my ultimate mixed bag safari rifle for buffalo and plains game?

416 Rem Mag/Rigby/Ruger
Take Down ala Blaser R8 or Sauer 202 or Mauser M03, maybe a custom CZ Takedown in 416 Rigby
Preferably synthetic stock
Scope with a minimum not greater than 2.5 and a Max not greater than 10, I like the Leupold 2.5-8, although the Swarovski Z6 1.7-10x42 would be nice if I won the Lotto.
Any premium bullet – Swift A-Frame, Rhino, GS Custom, Barnes TSX, Peregrine
Binocs with a rangefinder are a must on the flat open floodplains. I struggled for the first two days then starting catching on with the estimation.


I Hope you enjoyed my ramblings. I was in the fortunate position to learn a lot from fellow hunters and considering the amount of game hunted in one week, was able to make certain deductions and summaries that I had always thought to be true. A week I'll truly never forget.

Waidmannsheil.



I'M ON THE FAR RIGHT. YOU SHOULD RECOGNIZE ME FROM MY SHALLOW POCKETS ;D

Well written, you certainly seem to have a penchant for writing and telling a good story. Congrats on your buffalo, he is a fine representative of the species. Well done all around!

Nice bull and a great report! Congratulations!

Great report - great buffalo

Thanks!

Good Hunting

Carl Frederik

Congrats on your hunt. Enjoyed your report.

I hunted the swamps with Poen some years back. We entered the swamp at 8am and departed at 9pm.

Thats how it should be done.

Where I am the buffalo is called Mbo which is one noise they make.

That is a serious Reedbuck and that is a Dagga boy in itself.

Well done!

Queen's English at its sublime best and a pleasure to read!

Awesome report. Thank you for taking the time to share.

JCHB

Outstanding. Thank you.

You have now been bitten by the "buffalo addict" bug! Congratulations on a successful safari. Zambezi Delta Safaris offers a very unique hunt & great operation. It will be hard to duplicate your first safari! Well done!

Best regards, D. Nelson

just keep in mind that Cape Buffalo will kill you dead in a gruesome manner. And the crime scene will make most people puke their guts out, trying to arrange the pieces to resemble something human.

Any questions about that, shoot one staring you in the face at about twenty-something feet...

Great Boss on that one!!!

Excellent report. Thanks for sharing. I'm going on my first buff hunt next year so can relate to the build up.

That Reedbuck is just ridiculous in the mass it carries. My type of animal for sure.

Congratulations on what seemed an awesome adventure. Thanks for sharing.

Take Care,
Marius Goosen