OK folks, i finally sat down and wrote everything down from my journal. here is my complete report. please forgive my long-windedness.

When: flew out of Washington-Dulles 22Aug, returned on 01 Sep.
Weapons:
myself: Bowtech Destroyer 350 with Barnsdale 80# limbs. 30" draw, Gold Tip Kinetic Kaos .200 arrows, 125gr Strickland Helix broadheads, arrow weight 642gr at 274fps.

Dad: Mathews Outback, 29", 62#. Gold tip Hunter XT with 100gr muzzy 3 blade.
PHs rifle, Tikka T3 in .300Win Mag.

PH: Kannas Kannemeyer
http://www.wwbeest.com/Wild_Wi...eest_Lodge/Home.html
kannas@wwbeest.com
PH for a few days to help me out: Travis Velasco, travis.velasco@gmail.com

Safari owners Tonie and Jorika DuBruyn
Lodge owners Mike and Karen Helbing
Wild Wildebeest Safaris
Thabazimbi, South Africa
We finally did it. After years of going on hunting adventures around the U.S., we finally had the opportunity to travel to South Africa. This has been a dream of ours for years, and it is finally happening. Flights are booked, and now it is official. We are going!

E-mails, phone calls, internet research, and lots of questions to my friends that are veteran hunters of the Dark Continent, and I think we finally have enough information to make this trip.

Dad and I sent packing lists back and forth, we had our bows as finely tuned as possible, and now it is almost time to go. Two days before we leave, I go to the archery range for one last confidence building shooting session. After around ten shots I draw back and know immediately something is wrong. Very wrong. My bottom cam adjustment module is broken, this is bad! Fortunately the local archery shop has a replacement, so I race to get a new one installed. Now one day before we leave I’m back at the range to re-tune the bow; then race to the airport to get Dad. I get it as close as I can and head to the airport.

21-Aug: I greet Dad at DCA and our adventure is about to begin. We grab a quick bite to eat, and head home for a fitful night’s sleep (way too excited to sleep) and to pack my bags for our flight in the morning…to Africa! I can barely stuff everything I want to take in my bags. We use Badlands rolling duffel bags with a bow compartment in the bottom. These work great, as one can stuff their clothes all around the bow to protect it. I am taking so many electronics that my carry-on bag is totally full of a Nikon D750, a Canon camcorder, Canon point and shoot, three trail cameras, a Go-Pro, extra batteries, tripods, my Leica binos, Nikon rangefinder, etc… We are packed full!


22-Aug: The alarm goes off Saturday morning, and it is time to go. Daniele drives us to Dulles and snapped a ‘before’ picture as our adventure begins. Not fifteen minutes later we have our first minor setback of the trip. Our flight to Addis Ababa Ethiopia is delayed. We only have a 90 minute layover in Addis, and we are delayed two hours. Oh well, there are more flights, lets go! The flight to Addis is a long one, around fourteen hours. As a side note, I am a wonderful son, and this is how I know. I gave Dad the window seat, and I took the middle, all the way to South Africa.

23-Aug: We finally arrive in Ethiopia and learn we have missed our connecting flight. We beat feet to the small office of Ethiopian Airlines to be placed on the next flight to Johannesburg. There is another flight for us, it is just fifteen hours later. We land around 9A.M. local time, and the flight to Jo’burg is around midnight. We decide not to take the hotel voucher and decide to stay within the airport. Addis is not what we call a nice airport. I now see a new problem, our PH (professional hunter) Kannas does not know we missed our flight, and I do not know how to contact him. I run around the terminal looking for Wifi so I can email Kannas and let him know. I email him, but also know he does not check emails that often, so I go find an internet café and pay $5 for an hour of internet time. I find a local phone number on Wild Wildebeest Safaris website, and try to call the owner to let him know. No answer. Between naps, I head over to the internet café and try again and again to call Tonie, the owner. Finally on the fourth try he answers, and I let him know we will be landing Sunday morning at 5A.M. instead of Saturday afternoon at 2 P.M. I thought to send Guy Moorman, a WWB booking agent in the U.S., a text telling him of our situation as well. Luckily, both messages get to Kannas, and he does not waste time at the airport for a flight we are not on.

We get a little rest, but there is not much to be had lying on the chairs in the Addis airport. We find a little food and a drink, and head to our gate area. The gates at Addis are a complete madhouse. Everyone is rushing to get to the front of a line through security, I think there is only one speaker in the entire airport, and I cannot understand a word the announcer says. It is a total cluster. We finally make it through security and get to our gate, and get on the plane heading to Jo’burg. It is now midnight local time, we are 30+ hours into our travels. On this flight we got a little nap in, but not much sleep. The good news is we are finally South Africa bound!
Addis airport, very empty during the day


Trying to get a little sleep

24-Aug: 4:30A.M. We touch down in Johannesburg. We have made it to South Africa! We feel a little energized after the nearly 40 hour travel day to finally be here. I think we are the only arriving flight, customs was a breeze, our bags make it, and we head out to be greeted by Kannas.

There is no mistaking Kannas Kannemeyer as he walks in the airport. Wearing the typical PH short shorts, a dark green jacket, boots, a Leupold cap; the towering 6’3” bearded man is impossible to miss. I guess Dad and I standing with two large bags that conspicuously look like bow cases are also hard to miss, as Kannas comes right over. We have exchanged many emails over the last year and a half, and now we finally get to meet face to face and shake hands. After a quick introduction we are off to his truck where we meet his two tracking fox terriers, Ruger and Tikka. Very fitting names. We load up and hit the road for the four hour drive to camp. Dad is in the back with the dogs and they are all over him. Kannas and I chat as Dad tries to nap, and we take in some of the South African sun rise as we head North to Thabazimbi.
the very friendly dogs

On the drive we pass a mine of some sort, and workers in matching uniforms are happily walking to work from their shack town homes. Some of the areas we pass remind me of the favelas of Rio, and send a reminder that not everyone on earth is as fortunate as we are.



Soon the signs for safari operations start appearing. Fences are starting to run along the roads, and a few game animals are spotted. We see ostrich, impala, and nyala, and I am already getting excited. We soon leave paved roads and travel on very sandy dirt roads. The dirt here is very red and sandy, and dry. Very, very dry. Kannas tells me they are having a very bad drought, with only about 5” of rainfall last year.

Almost to camp and we have our first adventure. Crossing the road is a very large black mamba. Kannas hits the breaks on the truck and we stop and turn around to see it. He makes a quick decision to have a try at it with his 9mm Beretta. “Stay in the truck, and keep the dogs in the truck please.” He does not have to worry about either of us getting out of the truck! The snake stays low on the ground, and Kannas walks to the front of the big black killer. The first two shots miss, and the snake turns around and heads for the tall grass on the side of the road, Kannas cautiously pursues and on his fourth shot he hits the snake just below the head. He comes back to the truck to get his machete, and very carefully pulls the dying snake away from the grass and lops off the head. After a quick pic is snapped he is back in the truck and heading for camp. His hands are shaking slightly, I ask him how his adrenaline is doing, and it is on high right now! For an experienced African PH to be shaken up is something I did not expect to see on this trip. The snake ended up nearly 8 feet in length.



The camp! There is the sign for Wild Wildebeest Safaris, finally! It has been a long day of travel to get here. On the way in we see Jacques, another of the PHs at WWB with his clients, Clinton and Flynn Mckinney of South Carolina, sighting in the rifle they will us on their hunt. We get to camp and are shown our rooms. The rooms are very nicely appointed with plenty of closet and storage space, two beds, and a private bathroom. Just outside our door is a seating area, and the pool just beyond that. The trophy wall outside is very impressive, with several of the species we will have the opportunity to see and hunt on our trip. We unpack a few things and put them away, shower off the travel, and are served a delicious breakfast. Finally something other than airplane food! We take a few minutes to check our bows at the archery range, and they both need a tiny bit of tweaking, but in short order we are back to very deadly at 30 yards.

Since our arrival day was supposed to be yesterday, and today our first hunting day, we head out to make the best of today so as to not waste it. We head to a bowhunting only concession about 45 minutes from camp. We set up in an elevated blind near a waterhole. The blinds here are very large. There are a couple of shooting windows, and a few small viewing ports, with plenty of room to move around. The treatment here is top notch. A lunch is packed for us, chairs are loaded into the blind, and a cooler full of cold drinks is brought along. This is a very different hunt than I am use to! Once settled in the blind throughout the day animals will come in to water and eat some of the hay that is placed down. Due to the drought, supplemental feeding is a must, and there are spots where hay is dropped around the property for the animals, as there is very little food right now.

When we arrive at the blind there is a group of kudu bulls at the water hole that spook off at the sight of the truck. Hopefully they will come back, as there were a couple of nice bulls in the group, and kudu is on Dad’s wish list. After a while in the blind a very nice impala ram is coming in, and Dad is getting in position to make a shot. Unfortunately, something spooks one of the ewes, and the ram bolts. They are very spooky creatures. A herd of zebra come in, and at this time they are not in any danger from either of us, although I find out later I should have taken a shot at a very beautiful, dark striped one. The zebra are very territorial and will not let any other animals near the water, not good for bowhunting. We also see four nyala, and a big one we name Fred. We see Fred for a long time; he is very content to feed near the blind alone or with a group. We see a duiker and a couple of young eland as well, all in all a great day in the blind, with a near opportunity for Dad at an impala.

We get back to camp and are shown to the dining room for a wonderful dinner. The food here is fantastic so far. We meet the other hunters in camp, but unfortunately can’t be too social tonight due to our nearly 44 hours of travel time to get here, we have to get some sleep!

25-Aug: An early start with a great breakfast is how we start day 2. Jacques teaches me how to make coffee “their” way, instant coffee with a little milk and a little sugar. It is good, but weaker than our “American coffee” that we are used to. Today Dad and I will be splitting up and hunting separately. Travis Velasco, a young PH hailing from San Antonio, TX is without clients for a few days, and will be hunting with me. Travis is heading back home to the states at the end of the week, and will be helping us out for the next few days. Since Dad and I are the only bowhunters in camp, it is easier for us to hunt separately due to the difficulty of getting animals into bow range, much less two hunters worth of animals into bow range. We load into Kannas’ truck and head out. Travis and I are dropped off at our blind, Dad and Kannas head over to the blind we hunted yesterday.
Coffee/tea bar


Travis and I see several animals early; a kudu cow and calf, several warthogs with a very large sow in the group, and several impala. A nice impala ram is slowly working his way into bow range, so I get my bow and get ready to shoot. I stand ready to shoot for over ten minutes watching this ram, just outside of bow range, until something spooks the warthogs and off they go. Around 11:30 another nice impala ram starts heading in. He is not as nice as the first one, but Travis assured me he was mature, and that is all I need. Impala are such cautious animals, it is amazing to watch. This ram is coming in alone, but hangs up around 40 yards away. Eventually a group of ewes join him, and he spends his time checking them out, just outside of bow range. Since impala are so jumpy, I want him to get within 25 yards for a shot, preferably closer. Again, I stand with my bow ready for over ten minutes, when he finally commits to the water and comes in. He runs a younger ram away from his water, takes a drink, and when he steps away he gives me a broadside shot at 23 yards that I take. Travis captured the entire thing on video, and the ram is down within 15 seconds not 50 yards away. My first African animal is down! There is no need to track this one, but we do anyway for fun. Blood on this dry sandy dirt is very difficult to follow, but this impala leaves enough to get the job done, even though we can see him from the blind. Pictures are taken, and the tracker, Saki, brings the truck to collect my first trophy. We load him up and get back in the blind for some lunch, and the rest of the afternoon sit. What I did not know is that Dad also shoots a nice impala ram today around the same time!
v

Impala shot video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a40QyMxSpdc
Dad’s impala shot using a Browning trail camera set to video: notice the scattering of monkeys in the trees behind the impala after the shot.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=81gNrT-stRI
During the afternoon in the blind we see more warthogs, but no big boars, a few nyala, more impala, and the kudu cow and calf come back. We see a few blue wildebeest in the distance, but they will not come to the water. Just before dark a few blue wildebeest are heading our way. Younger bulls and cows at first, but Travis can see a larger bull and tells me to get my bow. I am being slow and cautious about it, looking at my bow and not out the window, when Travis says, “he’s in range, get ready”. What!!?? I haven’t even seen him yet. I turn around and sure enough, there are several bulls feeding 20 yards away! He came in fast and on a string. There are five wildebeest in front of us, and the big bull turns and offers me a quartering away shot, I just have to wait until a young one moves its head out of my shooting lane. It does, I take aim, and release my second arrow of the day. The shot looks perfect to me, exiting the offside shoulder. Travis also says it is a great hit, and caught it on video as well. The green lighted nock looks great on video in the evening light. We get down and look at the arrow, covered in blood just like we want. However, the blood trail is somewhat sparse for a little while, and this sandy dirt is not helping. After 100 yards or so we see big pools of blood, and I start to feel better, but where is he? Very soon we see him still on his feet walking through the brush. There is no clear shot for Travis with his iron sighted Winchester .375HH, so we press on. After a few more yards, and more pools of blood, we see him again, running this time through the brush, but still no shot. He stops very shortly, we can hear him coughing, so we decide to call in for Kannas, Dad, and the dogs. We put the dogs on the last spot of blood we have crossing a road, very close to where we last heard him coughing. In no time the dogs were barking, they found him. Travis and I have flashlights and sprint through the brush and thorns to get to where the dogs are. I get there first and see the wildebeest still on his feet, unable to run from the dogs. Travis gets there seconds later, and holding flashlights and calling off the dogs, Travis puts a finishing shot that drops the big bull. Even though my shot I believe is a fatal one, it would have taken more time, and we did not want the bull to suffer. I hate having to do a finishing shot in my archery kill, but it is the humane thing to do. The trackers bring in a tarp and we load the big bull on the tarp to get him out of the brush to the truck. Kannas, Travis, myself, and two trackers lift and carry the bull through the thorns and brush, as Dad guides us with the flashlight. Pictures are taken, and he is loaded into the truck, and we are off to camp for some much needed dinner. Dad also shot a blue wildebeest today, we nearly had a double double. Unfortunately his shot was a little too high, and hit the big bull in his shoulder blade, stopping his arrow cold with almost zero penetration. That bull will live to fight another day. This has been a great day of hunting in South Africa! Four bow shot opportunities between Dad and I at nice animals. My wildebeest is a very nice bull with very big bases and a wide spread. Our impala are nice representative animals, mature rams, but not giant trophies by any means; but we are very happy with them. Back to camp for a great dinner, and we meet some new hunters in camp, Mike and Jane Keller. Still not caught up on sleep, we head in for an early bedtime.

My blue wildebeest shot
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yeRIVu4Rk3g
a compilation of Dad’s shots using Kannas’ cell phone camera
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7Kb0es_rE74

26-Aug: An early knock on the door by Kannas is our wake-up call. Another beautiful day in South Africa awaits us! I shower the sleepy off, grab a cup of coffee and we sit down with the other hunters for breakfast. Today we have the same game plan as yesterday, I am with Travis, Dad is with Kannas, and we are headed to the same blinds to see what will come in today. Kannas and Dad drop us off, Dad and I wish each other good luck, and off they go. The action starts early today with a kudu cow and calf seemingly sneaking in out of nowhere. A very large herd of impala come in, with a very nice, very tall ram with them. He is beautiful, and I contemplate adding a second impala to my trophy collection, but I decide to pass. I want a gemsbok and a warthog, so hopefully one or both of those will come in. We see a lot of warthogs today, but no shooters; only small boars and sows. Then come the baboons. Baboons have the most incredible eyesight I have ever experienced. It is difficult to even get pictures of them through the small viewing holes in the blind. I have no interest in shooting a baboon, but Travis wants the big male of the group. He gets up and gets my bow as the big male is coming in, but the big primate spots him, even in the dark blind, and takes off at a pace that surprised me. They are incredibly fast! Near dark a very nice duiker comes in to the water. Travis said he was a very nice one, but I decided to pass, as I do not appreciate the size of the trophy since I know very little about them. At nearly dark we hear the distinctive clicking of a big eland’s ankles. Then here he is! Holy cow, this thing is the size of a truck! It is a giant bull, with a younger bull with him. The younger bull has longer horns, but he does not have the body size of the old broomed off warrior. I want to shoot an eland so bad, but my budget for this trip just will not allow it. It is so great to see one of these massive beasts so close, it was one of the big things I wanted to happen on this trip!
Impala ewes drinking

The duiker

Dad and Kannas come to pick us up, and I ask Dad how the day went. He just said “Kannas has the video on his phone.” He would not tell me anything else, so Kannas handed me his phone, and I see a great shot on a beautiful kudu! Dad got his kudu! He made a perfect shot with his bow and when we get back to camp there is a beautiful kudu waiting for us in the salt. Once again we have an amazing dinner, a few drinks with the other hunters and PHs around the fire, and eventually head to bed. I can’t wait to se what tomorrow brings!

27-Aug: Another early morning and another great breakfast with the other hunters in camp. Today is a little different, as Dad has finally decided to go after a sable. He and Kannas will go to a new concession that holds sable, while Travis and I will stay on the lodge property, and try to spot and stalk gemsbok. Travis and I have a bit more time, so I decide to shoot my bow for a while and warm up a bit. We load up and head out to try and find a gemsbok. We find a small herd of impala driving around, and spot a few giraffe. We decide to see how close we can stalk to the giraffe, so we park the truck with a good wind direction and head out with camera and camcorder. There are four total giraffe, and we stalk up to about 75 yards getting pictures and video before they get nervous and decide to put some distance between us.





We drive around to an edge of the property so we can get the wind in our face for a stalk, and spook a gemsbok that takes off through the brush. We get out and take off on foot, trying to see what we can get close to. We get spotted by a couple of small eland, and then see a small herd of gemsbok running through the brush, but should not have been spooked by us. We soon realized that some wires had gotten crossed and another PH with his clients were driving towards us, spooking the gemsbok. We thought they would be on the opposite side of the property, and vice versa. This pretty much took care of the morning stalking, so we head over to a blind where we will sit this afternoon. Travis sees gemsbok from this blind often, but they are usually 80 yards or so away. With this in mind, we find a good location for a ground blind, and brush in a great blind for the afternoon sit. With this chore done, we head back to the lodge for lunch.


After lunch, before we head out, we get a call from Kannas that he and Dad are on the way back with Dad’s trophy gemsbok. He shot a beautiful, big gemsbok with Kannas’ rifle that measures around 39 inches. The gemsbok was in bow range, but Dad had been eating chicken wings for lunch when the gemsbok appeared, and his hands were slick and greasy. After the botched shot on the blue wildebeest, and with the slippery hands, he did not have the confidence to try the shot with his bow. He picked up Kannas’ Tikka T3 .300 Win Mag and made a great shot on the beautiful antelope. Kannas has never heard an excuse to use a rifle quite like this, and I tell Dad he is now and forever going to be one of Kannas’ stories about crazy clients.

Now that Dad is back and hunting with us this afternoon, we abandon the ground blind idea and head for the pit blind as originally planned. He cannot sit on the ground in an uncomfortable position for that long due to his hip and back. The afternoon hunt is pretty quiet, until a Crested Francolin decides to push the door open and get in the blind with us. He wedges himself between our bags and the wall and all is quiet. Travis can see a big hawk or eagle just outside the blind, the Crested Francolin luckily and narrowly escaped being dinner by joining us in the blind. About an hour later I guess he realized he was not going to be eaten, and wanted to fly out of the blind. The windows in the blind were mostly closed and fairly small, so this plan is not going to work out well for the bird. He kicked up dust everywhere trying to get out and making a hell of a racket, when he finally landed at my feet and I could grab him and toss him out my window. He must have tried to fly as soon as I let go because he lost a lot of feathers on the ground just outside the blind. Just before dark a few blue wildebeest show up to drink, one with a broken horn that I want to shoot, but I am not sure of the price discount, so I elect to pass. We watch a beautiful sunset and head back for dinner. Tonight I have the pleasure of talking to Jacques during and after dinner. Jacques is a PH with a wealth of knowledge, and has worked for some of the current legends in the industry, including Johan Calitz. Jacques has hunted lots of dangerous game, and I get to see his video of his archery cape buffalo hunt. After chatting around the fire for a while it is finally time for bed, with plans of going after a sable in the morning.



28-Aug: It is a sable kind of day! Dad and I are back together hunting with Kannas today, and today we are going after Dad’s sable. We have another wonderful breakfast, load up and head out. We head to the concession Dad and Kannas hunted yesterday, but in a different blind. The morning is very slow, I spend time catching up on my journal and relaxing in the blind, and while writing all of a sudden Kannas says “nyala cows……Sable!” There he is. Out of nowhere, here stands one of the most beautiful and magnificent animals on planet Earth. I start filming with my camcorder as Dad gets Kannas’ rifle, this time he is not even considering the bow. I have the Go-Pro camera mounted on a shelf in the blind facing inward, and when I try to turn it on I make a small “click” noise, but echoing through the blind the animals at the water hear it very well. Everything is on high alert, and I think I have just ruined Dad’s chance at his dream. The nyala cows get nervous and leave. The sable is on high alert, staring holes through the blind. We are frozen in the blind, afraid to move. Dad and Kannas are on their feet, with the rifle in hand but unable to move to aim at the sable. After over three minutes, which seems like an hour, the big bull finally turns to walk around the back side of the water hole. This gives Dad an opportunity to raise the rifle, and when the bull turns broadside, there is the quick “snap” of a safety being flipped, then the boom of the rifle. The bull bucks hard and turns to leave, sprinting his last few steps.

Now comes the adrenaline rush. The shaking hands, the flood of emotions, and the realization of a childhood dream finally accomplished. He did it, and I am so proud, and so happy I can be there with him today to share it with him. This may be the only time I have hunted with Dad where I see his hands shake, it is quite the experience. We give the bull just a few minutes and leave the blind to go recover him. There is no need to blood trail this one, we know he is hit perfectly. We see two more sable running through the brush, and for a split second we panic thinking that one of them is Dad’s, somehow still on his feet, but quickly realize it is two more that had been on their way to get a drink. Soon Kannas spots the downed bull through the brush and we head over. It is a magnificent creature, and a large trophy sable at that, with 41 inch horns. Kannas and I back off and give Dad a moment alone; letting him have this moment with his sable. Watching this one moment unfold to me is worth the entire trip. I go hug him, we both shed a couple of tears, and Kannas tells us to stop before we make him cry. We spend a few minutes just admiring this animal. The sable is truly one of the most beautiful animals ever to walk the Earth.

Pictures are taken, Kobus the landowner comes to see the bull, and we load him in Kannas’ truck to get him to the skinning shed as quickly as possible. In the heat we have to get the skin off quickly so the hair does not slip. We head back to the lodge for lunch, and to make a game plan for the afternoon. Dad still wants a warthog, and I have changed my mind on a gemsbok, and decide I would like a zebra instead. We head back to the blind Dad and Kannas hunted earlier in the week, as they were covered up in zebra every day. This should be easy, or so we think. We make our way to the blind and get settled for the afternoon. We see a nice herd of impala, a few nyala, and a few kudu, but the zebras appear to be a no show. Finally right at dark a small herd of zebra approach the water, but would not commit, and stayed well out of bow range. Not to worry, we still have two more hunting days, and we are sure to get one out of this spot.




Back at camp the fire is waiting as usual, and a celebratory drink is in order for the sable. All the hunters in camp wants to hear the story, and luckily I caught it all on video, so we watch the video several times on my laptop. Tonight is steak dinner night; normally we eat wild game for dinner and sometimes lunch, but today is beef steak night. The PHs and camp staff want a break from wild game sometimes, and Friday nights are steak nights in camp. More storytelling after dinner around the fire, then off to bed, for tomorrow, will hopefully be a zebra kind of day.


29-Aug: This morning started like most, hot shower then the usual delicious breakfast and catching up with the other hunters in camp. Shortly after Kannas, Dad, and I head off to the bowhunting only concession we started early in the week. Dad had to actually scare zebras away a few days before, as they will not let other animals near the water when they are there. So this should be merely a patient wait until a shooter zebra shows up. That’s how hunting works, right???

Impala start the day off early, along with nyala and my first sighting of vervet monkeys. They are cute little monkeys, and very very wary. There is lots of action around the blind until a kudu winds us, barks, and everything scatters in all directions. Around noon, the word gets out that it is safe once again to visit the water, and four nyala, a kudu, a small herd of impala, and a few warthogs appear. It is amazing how the animals all seem to know when it is time to go to water, and everything shows up at once. It is very feast or famine. A giraffe cautiously comes in and awkwardly spreads her front feet wide apart so she can get her head low enough to get a drink. Around 2:00p.m. a large group of baboons show up, along with Fred the nyala. Fred is a regular here, and has been all week. He is a very nice nyala with horns that curl in towards each other near the top. Fred is very laid back and not bothered by our blind. The baboons make a hell of a racket, but the animals do not seem to mind. At this point we have animals everywhere: 6 or 7 kudu bulls, a few kudu cows, several impala, the baboons, and nyala. It was amazing to see. All of a sudden one animals spooks and everything scatters, and it is all quiet for a while. An hour later three of the younger kudu ease back in along with some of the vervet monkeys, and two giraffe appear. By 4:00pm we have 6 kudu bulls and a couple cows and several impala. Still no zebra, even though they are supposed to be guaranteed at this blind! A very nice cow gemsbok makes her way to the water, of course, now that I am after zebra. She is an old cow with sunken hips and showing ribs, and as we are taking pictures something spooks, and once again, everything scatters. Just before dark, two young eland bulls slip in, and even the young bulls are very impressive. A cow and calf giraffe cautiously make their way to the water for a drink, and that will wrap up our animal sightings for the day. The “guaranteed” zebra blind we are in of course, produces no zebra. But, this is hunting, and we still have tomorrow.





Back to camp, and tonight is a much larger camp with even more PHs and hunters arriving. We are arranged in a big circle telling stories and catching up on the day, while washing down the dust of the day with a cold drink. I chat with Travis as much as I can, as he is heading back to Texas tomorrow. It was a pleasure to hunt with him, and I hope I get to again some day, some where. We find out Clinton from South Carolina got a monster 58” kudu! Dad and I check it out in the salt, and it is a beauty! Several hunters in camp have had a great day with some great animals taken. After dinner I bring out the laptop and review pictures and videos with everyone that is still up until the sandman calls, and we all head to bed; for Dad and I we have one more day of hunting to try and get a zebra and warthog for me and a warthog for Dad.

30-Aug: Today is it, the last hunting day. Where has the week gone? It has gone by so fast. Today is Kannas’ little girl’s birthday, so he heads home to be with his family. Today we are hunting with Dylon, an apprentice PH. We have breakfast with everyone and learn everyone’s goals for the day, and we all head off in search of our unique adventures. We head back to the same concession after the zebra, but this time we start in a different pit blind several hundred yards from the “normal” blind we have been hunting. This blind is small, and it is pretty tight quarters, especially for bowhunting. Early on we see a young kudu bull approaching the water, but something is not quite right, and he makes a wide circle around us. A herd of impala also start their approach, but again skirt around us, not committing to come into the water. Something is off today, it must be the swirling wind in this little nook. A few vervet monkeys come in to the water giving us a show and allowing for some good pictures. They are very spooky, though, and do not stay long. Two gemsbok skirt around in front of us, we can see them through the brush, but again, will not commit to the water. It is not getting frustrating in this blind, as the wind is just not cooperating with us. From a small side window, Dad spots a few zebra heading our way from behind. This could be my chance! However, once again, something is not quite right, and they hang back. The peephole we can see the zebra though is very small, so there is no chance of a shot. The zebra wander off without coming in front. Soon thereafter a few eland bulls and cows approach from the same direction as the zebra, and two of the bulls looked giant to me. I am not sure if they are mature or not, but they are such magnificently big creatures. Same story, however, as the eland also get nervous and leave. At this point we are very disappointed in this blind and ask if we can switch and go back to our regularly hunted blind. Dylon seems reluctant to move us, as he has gotten in trouble for moving clients before. Dad and I assure him we will tell his superiors we asked for the move, and he is not to blame. Around noon we call Saki in with the truck to move us.

As we are driving to the blind, as my luck would have it, there are 5 or 6 zebra standing at the water hole, and spook as the truck approaches. Of course, twenty yards from the blind! Oh well, we have all afternoon so hopefully they will come back. Unfortunately, it is a very slow afternoon with only a few impala spotted, and a nice duiker just before dark. Our last hunting day in Africa ended with no shots, no zebra, and no warthogs. It did end with a beautiful sunset, and a fantastic last dinner. I stay up as late as I can to chat with the other hunters and PHs, not ready to go to sleep for the last time in Africa. Finally it is time, and it is off to bed.
Another fantastic meal:


31-Aug: One always dreads the last day of a great adventure. Today is our last time to wake up in Wild Wildebeest Safaris Lodge, last breakfast with our fellow hunters, and last day with Kannas. We are up early to have breakfast with the other hunters, to say our good-bye’s. We all shake hands as everyone leaves for their day’s adventures, and Dad and I finish packing our room. Paperwork is completed, tips handed out, last minute photos of the lodge are taken, and we load up in Kannas’ truck to head back to our lives and back to reality. I am going to miss this place.
Breakfast table

We stop at a ‘curio shop’, or souvenir shop on the way to the airport. It is quite the experience. The “good” shop that Kannas likes is closed, so we make our way to one Kannas hates, but the options are very limited. It is like an open air market, with small vendors operating their small shops, yet it was all under one very large open building. Kannas stays with the truck and our things, as Dad and I brave the vendors. Kannas’ advice to us, “do not pay more than half their price”, works quite well, although I am sure many vendors are making a healthy profit off of us. People are pulling us in every direction, using lines like “please, bless my shop with your eyes”. The merchants are very slick, when I would buy one thing from one shop, he would have his “friend” wrap it and bag it for me, at his shop, so I would be forced to visit that shop as well. Luckily I catch on to this scheme quick, and it only happens one time. Once I have a shopping bag, I just take the items from the seller and refuse the “wrapping service”. Dad and I separate at one point, and I tell the many people trying to pull me into their shop “I need to find my Dad and talk to him”. Their simple reply is “he is right over there, he is not going to leave you, we will tell you if he moves.” It does not pay to be two of very few shoppers in this market, we have a lot of eyes on us and our dollars. We finally escape this market, and head to the airport.

The service of Wild Wildebeest Safaris and their PHs really shines here. Kannas loaded our bags into a cart, and walks with us to the check in terminal. My bag is of course over the weight limit, and I pay an overage fee. We finally get checked in to our flights, and Kannas takes our bags all the way through the terminal until we reach the security line. This is service! This is also where we must part. We shake hands, say our heart-felt thank you’s, and start the long journey home. I hope to see Kannas again one day soon.

The flights home were long, but on time! We fly overnight to Munich, have a couple hours there to relax and enjoy some food, and then make the flight home to Washington. We arrive home and find our bags safe and intact, and are greeted by my beautiful wife to take us home. A quick seafood dinner and an early bedtime are in order for some much needed rest.

01-Sep: Dad and I sleep in as long as we can to try

What an outstanding first trip and to be able to share the experience with your dad? Priceless...

Thanks for sharing.

Gorgeous Sable.

Some respectable trophies with a bow (Or a Rifle)
Congratulations.

Those guys, Tony, Jorika, Mike and Karen are great. I am taking a group of 24 over there next May. I hunted with them in July 2014.

i did not get to meet mike and karen. tony and jorika are great. tony is quite the life of the party. that's a hell of a group! i can't wait to go back.

I hunted with Kannas when he worked for another company. He is a great guy.

I shot a bush pig at Toni's ranch. It was the first ever taken there.

Congrats on your first trip.

Here are a few quick vids of shots I put together. Way more to come in a month or so

https://youtu.be/yeRIVu4Rk3g
https://youtu.be/a40QyMxSpdc
https://youtu.be/Jsa0Th2O1uc

Great report John!

Nice mixed bag for the two of you.
Congrats to you and your dad.

OK,
I'm in Denver and slowly sorting through my pictures, so i thought i'd update a bit.

since this was to be a bowhunting trip primarily, i knew we'd be hunting blinds. with that in mind, i took a few trail cams. I took a Bushnell Trophy cam for pictures, set to shoot 3 pics then pause for a bit. I took a Browning set to video, and a Primos plotwatcher to get time lapse video around camp.

here are a few pics from the Bushnell trail cam set to photo mode:











lots of action at the watering hole here


my fav shot by the trailcam of a nyala





showing a little leg...



hogs playing around

I shot one of these wildebeest during the pause time of the camera



i was hoping one of the baboons would get curious and mess with the camera, but no such luck


sheer luck catching a bird mid flight



a neat set of 3 of a nyala moving some warties






got 3 of shots like this; dad shot the sable during the pause, JUST before the next set of pics started. the first pic is a fraction of a second after the shot, and we have the reaction of the sable on pic





pretty kudu shot



now, for the Browning trail cam, i gave that to Dad when we were separated. he caught his impala shot on camera, just dont' mind the slightly crooked mounting of the camera

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=81gNrT-stRI

He would have captures his kudu on cam as well, but he pointed it at the ground that day, so the only videos we have are a few birds hopping around. we also just missed his shot on a wildebeest that didnt' turn out so well.

more to come in a bit...

I wanted to do some spot and stalk bowhunting, even though i knew it would be very difficult with the dry and open conditions... and it turned out to be.

PH Travis


we found a few impala, but we were after gemsbok



we spotted a couple giraffe, and i wanted to see how close we could get. we were seen instantly from the truck, so they let us get to within 75 yards or so before they had enough of us








we did manage to spot a few gemsbok, but could not get into any sort of position to stalk within bow range.

and stalking through this stuff is a little difficult


here are some other shots from the Nikon D750 from blinds. I"m just learning how to operate a DSLR, my wife is the shutterbug of the house. but i do really love this new camera. i just wish i had a bigger lens. we only have a 24-120mm at the moment since its new.



a nice duiker i was trying to photograph through a hole in the blind




a hawk of some sort tried to nab a crested Franklin just outside our blind, and the Crested Franklin made its way into the blind to escape. it made a little spot between our packs and the wall, so it was all quiet for an hour or so. after a while, i guess it recovered and tried to fly out. this did not work well for the bird, and it managed to make a hell of a racket in the blind, kick up dust everywhere, and i was finally able to grab it and set it free out the window. when i let it go, however, it freaked out and knocked off quite a few feathers just outside the window.





some other animal sightings from the blinds:

one last post then i have to turn in for the night.

here are a few shots of the lodge. Wild Wildebeest Lodge is very nice, and will accommodate around 20 hunters total.

the Rhino door is the door to our room


our room:




coffee/tea area adjacent the fire pit



sitting area and fire pit, where lots of stories/bs is shared



our room door is under the wildebeest on the left edge of the photo


looking into the rooms with the fire pit to the right


and the dining room



OK, more to come later as i sort thru more pics. gotta fly to DC tomorrow and drive the wife's Jeep out to Denver this weekend. moving is a lot of work!

Nice !!!
One of the best things about a bowhunting safari is getting to see so many animals up close and undisturbed.

Congratulations on a fantastic hunt . Great pictures

I must have missed this earlier. Congrats!

Love the trail cam pics! Can you tell us more about the shot distances for the various archery trophies?

BenKK,

for the shots, we hunted blinds situated near water holes. due to the extreme drought they are having, they also must provide supplemental feed (hay) to the animals, so they spread that near the water as well. that part i wasnt as wild about, i'm not that thrilled about hunting bait...but, when in rome...i guess.

luckily they had hay spread around all over the place, and not just in one spot, that made me feel better.

my shot distances were 23y or so for the impala, and i think right at 20y for the wildebeest. Dad's distances were also between 20-25. they prefer nothing over 30y. i was confident to 50y pretty easily on anything bigger than an impala, but had no need for that. the impala were very jumpy, and i had a nicer one that would not get any closer than 30y or so, so i elected not to shoot. i wanted the impala as close to 20y as possible, they are bad string jumpers.

we constructed a ground blind to hunt gemsbok one afternoon, as they are usually seen 75y or so from the pre made blind. so myPH and I made a natural blind one day mid day. Dad wanted to hunt with me that afternoon, and he cannot sit on the ground for extended periods, so we never got to actually hunt that blind. i'll try to find pics and post them.

finally updated with my entire, very long winded, writeup.