Hunt Report 2005.

Professional Hunter: Myles McCallum of Charlton/McCallum Safaris. This 30 year old PH with more than 12 years experience is at the top of his game. He showed tremendous ethics and determination with my wounded buffalo. Imagine a young major in the British army.


Bwana Andy about 1:00 PM and still fresh.

Country hunted in: Zimbabwe. Hunting area, Dande North, about 12 Km South and 5 Km West of Maruru camp run by Swainson’s Safaris. This is about a 1 ½ hour drive from the Zambezi river. Elephant and buffalo quotas shot out in Dande so we make a short drive into Communal Lands to hunt. I fly into Dande in a one and one half hour flight from Harare in a Cessna 206.

Dates: October 31 - November 8, 2005.

Temperature: 50-51 C in daylight, about ten degrees cooler in shade. (122-123.8 degrees F in direct sun and 104 – 105.8 F in the shade!). Clouds build up all week, and it gets hotter and more humid as the week goes on.

Terrain: Black sandstone, dry scrub brush, dry sand river beds. Good visability due to lack of vegetation. It is not pretty country in the dry season!


Bwana Andy after 30 Km "Death March."

Game shot: 19 year old cow elephant, 35 ½ inch buffalo with 13 inch boss, 54 inch Kudu, Impala. Game stalked but not shot, Zebra.



Day Rates: Modest due to late season (hotter than hell) hunt. $600/day for 1 x 1 and attentive staff. The camp is staffed for six hunters in three thatch roofed chalets, but I am the only hunter in camp. I tip well and can only say I was pampered. Even the servers at dinner congratulated me whenever we brought home nyama (meat). Only unexpected expense was $1,400 air charter as I could not drive in with Myles from HRE. This added a day to my hunt since you cannot shoot within 24 hours of flying in. The company partly made this up to me by not charging me the extra day.

Trackers: Buzz Charlton’s athletic young elephant tracker Criton, Myles tracker Choice, and 80 year old Chrispen who carried an axe and occasionally my rifle.


Left to Right: Andy, Crispon, Myles, Cryton.

Rifle and Ammunition: 450 Dakota on CZ 550 Mauser action imported by American Hunting Rifles (AHR). The 450 Dakota is a 416 Rigby necked up to .458. AHR Model 70 style trigger and safety. Teflon and nickel plating and gray McMillan Kevlar stock for BRNO 602 by ROBAR. Twenty year old 3 X Leupold scope in removable Talley rings. Leather three point Chinn sling. I load my own ammo using Dakota brass and RL-15 powder which proves to be very stable despite high temperatures. I use a 465 grain TCCI solid bronze round nose for elephant and 450 grain North Fork bonded soft point for everything else. 450 grain North Fork FN used on dead elephant had twice the penetration of the TCCI solid. Velocity was 2,500 fps for both bullets.

Equipment: The Nikon 8 x 32 mm Superior E binoculars are bright and light weight. Boyt canvas gaiters used every day to keep debris out of shoes and socks. Flexible rubber slip-on barn shoes are a lot quieter than my hiking boots. I carry two Africase leather shell holders. I wear a brown Ex Officio Buzz Off hat, cotton shorts, and long sleeve shirt. Smart wool and Buzz Off socks. I pack a 20 pound duffle bag with a change of clothes as a Carry-On and a 66 pound wheeled Tough Pack (that looks like a plastic golf bag) for the rifle and clothes. The Tough Pack is not a traditional rifle case but a hybrid rifle case and hard sided luggage carrier. A soft rifle case is used for padding inside the luggage and used again in the Toyota Land Cruiser. Inside the Tough Pack is a lockable plastic ammo box, and clothes.


Luggage; Everywhere I went, they would ask me, "Is that all?"

Travel Plans: Kathi at Wild travel.

Airline: Delta from Portland, Oregon (PDX) to Atlanta, and South African from Atlanta to Johannesburg. Airbus across the Atlantic has individual video screens and a dozen movies. Open bar. Decent food. No problems coming or going at any airport. Customs and Immigration and airline staff all hunter friendly, especially in Zimbabwe, where I am escorted through customs coming in by two luggage handlers and a courteous customs agent, and I have my own airline escort departing. They even go down to the luggage area with me to check ammo box and lock the Tough Pack. Hunters are one of the countries few sources of foreign currency.

Lay over: I stayed at Afton House guest house for 7 hours to “shit, shower and shave†before going onto HRE. They were very plesant and charged me one half normal rate as I was just there for daylight hours. I arrive at 9:00 PM in Harare and was met by Georgie, a 60 year old white Colonial widow, who has been hosting hunters in HRE for Roger Whittall safaris for the last ten years. Buzz Charlton met me the next morning and took me to the air charter.

Sit Rep: Conditions in HRE are horrible. Anyone with a yard is digging a bore hole for water and planting veggies for a garden. Georgie in “Condition Orange,†as she left airport by passed police road block and ran red stop lights so thugs could not car jack us at stop light. Georgie’s house a pleasant upper middle class neighborhood with large lots and mature vegetation.

Camp: Our camp in Dande has three chalets, each with a private shower on port side and toilet on starboard. A sink is in between. Two twin beds each with a mosquito net, two shelves for clothes and a rifle rack. Good ventilation from side windows, Dutch door and high roof.

Food: English breakfast alternating with either corn or oat porage for breakfast. Instant coffee is a disappointment. Lunches far exceed my expectations. We have everything from meat pies to cold chicken with Fava and green bean salad. Most humble lunch was buffalo sandwiches which were left over filets from dinner. Somewhat cool fruit juice, soda and water in a cooler. Dinners simple grilled meat and vegetables with a sauce or gravy. I loved it! A good local wine served with dinner.


My accomadations were excellent and bug free.

Elephant: We stalked about 4 hours first day and found several herds without tuskless cow. Rested, ate and slept by nice spring surrounded by baboons. 105 degrees F my first day out. Make another short stalk after lunch and get within large group of maybe 40 head. Wow! Even a short stalk and I am drinking 500 - 750 ml water per hour. T-shirts too hot. Needed more collar shirts. When stalking we are walking fairly slowly, 3-4 km/hr. Shifting wind makes it difficult to close in and we frequently have to run to get in front of herds. My legs are shaky by end of first day. We typically find foot prints, then fresh leaves on ground left over from elephants stripping trees, then fresh dung, then elephants! Cows easy to identify due to long slender tusks.

Second day it is more difficult to track due to hard sandstone or hard packed dirt but we find small herd with no dependant calves and a good sized cow without tusks. Myles says that these are frequently aggressive since they don’t have tusks to push other elephant around with, so they get by on attitude alone. We are very close to herd, and he tries to get the tuskless to face me but she keeps trotting off to join herd. We back off a bit and she joins up with big matriarch behind medium sized termite mound. Myles tells me to climb termite hill and I am looking right at her at the same eye level as the cow! Range turns out to be just nine steps (20 feet) away. I kneel, resting by side of tree and line up half way between eye and ear hole but shoot low. The bullet is later found expanded and imbedded in her opposite jaw, a distance of only 29 inches. The impact rocks her hard, and she nearly falls down, spinning on rear leg. She stays on her feet but is now facing away from me. It is late in the season, five days before first of short rains, and she is in poor body score condition. I clearly see the buldge of her left rear hip bone, aim at that and fire second shot. This bullet breaks her leg below the 5-6 inch diameter ball joint, passes through her 21 inch thick rear leg, and continues on into her lungs. She spins around facing me again and I fire about 2 inches low and left of eye. This bullet is found underneath her skin on the opposite side of her head, a distance of only 32-34 inches. The 3 X scope has way too much magnification for this and all I see is the head of the cow plus about ½ of the matriarch’s head who is propping her up with her head. I do not even see the more obvious shot which was front on chest, a sure thing. I have tunnel vision of her head rather than entire body. I stand to reload one round from the leather Africase shell holder. Bad idea. Matriarch feels threatened by my body language and leaves her buddy for termite hill. I do not remember shooting again but Myles says I did. This explains the extra hole we find in her neck and ear!


The expanded solid was recovered from the jaw bone which it broke off. The other bronze TCCI solid was recovered underneath hide from front on head shot. The North Fork FN had much more penetration than the TCCI RN.

Myles yells to run for it, and I run down the termite hill, passing Gaderick the efficient indignious camp manager who is studying to become a PH. Didn’t know I could run that fast! We run off about 50 yards, and Myles tells us to run again. We jump gulley and scramble up a hill. Myles covers our retreat w his 416 watching the matriarchs two demo charges. There is a lot of thrashing and crashing around of cows but they move off quickly. We approach the cow down wind. She is lying away from us. I shoot her in the spine to make sure she is dead. No movement. Myles touches her eye with his rifle barrel. She is dead. We pace off distance to termite hill. 17 paces, about 37 feet. There is a whirlwind of grass beaten down from where I first shot her at 9 paces, and I don’t know if she moved off as I was shooting or afterwards. Either way it was way closer than I expected and the thrill of a lifetime. Myles said second shot in hip was perfect which was a nice way of saying the others were not. As we butchered her we noticed huge blue necrotic areas through guts from second shot. Myles observation on the 450 was, “Lots of horse power, that.†He also suggested I throw away the TCCI RN solids. Not enough penetration except for the hip shot.


This is where I shot the elephant from.

As a favor to Mike Brady who makes the North Fork bonded soft points I like so much, we tried three North Fork Flat Nose copper solids at about 20 feet on the dead elephant, and all three of these exited skull and entered chest. We recovered one in sternum that went 60-64 inches. The FN threw blood splatter on me and left a one inch diameter sized hole in skin. Myles was careful to instruct me where to shoot, ensuring the FN encountered the most possible resistance. The skull of the elephant is quite moist and I am prepared to believe that a FN out penetrates a RN. We collect the lower jaw and ovaries of the dead elephant for a PhD project. It takes 4-6 men to lift the rear leg or ribs onto pile of leaves to keep meat cool. We radio for a tractor from camp to pick up and deliver meat to village council. Myles tells me he does not like the monolithic solids. They tend to bend, mushroom or fracture. He uses steel jacketed Woodleighs though their cores often migrate a bit.

I had expected to feel some remorse in killing a pregnant cow but don’t. After seeing how the elephant herds have completely destroyed the areas they graze in, it is very clear they need to be controlled. Gaderick and Myles say they are doubling every 12 years. It is difficult to describe their habitat. It looks like a wild fire has run through it, so many dead trees. Nothing but bare earth underneath what was once a green canopy. Complete destruction of habitat, then they move on. We collect the ovaries of the dead cow for the game department and lower jaw. She is 19 years old. A single molar weighs 3 kilograms (6.6 pounds).


This is what the TCCI RN did to the jaw after passing in front of the brain. No wonder she turned around so fast!!!!

Buffalo: The next day we look for buffalo. We ignore the large herds of 200-400 cows which have some bulls in them in favor of solitary old bulls called “Dagga Boys.†It is virtually impossible to isolate a breeding bull in the large herds of cows. They are either at the front of the herd or the very rear, and you have to run ahead of them to look for a bull, then be very careful to line up a shot that does not exit and injure another buff. We find a group of 5-6 bulls and follow that track. We glass them and Myles determines there are two worth hunting. The curve of their horns extend beyond their ears by a hand width or more, meaning they could be 40 inches wide. They are on high ground above us and we have to sit on our butts with rifle in lap and “bum crawl†across open ground the last 50 yards to get into range for a shot. The largest appears to be a bull lying down facing to our left. Myles sets up the shooting sticks, I rest the rifle in the V of the sticks and feel very steady. He asks me if I can make the shot. Its about 110 yards uphill, and while I’d rather he were standing, I say I can. The bull gets nervous as his buddies move off, and begins to stand. Rather than abort my trigger pull, I continue with the shot and adjust my aim as he rises. Just as the trigger breaks I have a perfect heart shot but he turns to his right at the shot. Myles had told me earlier that buffalo were articulated like a fire engine and are surprisingly nimble. Sure enough they are. The bull turns sideways simultaneously while standing and my bullet just gouges out a large gash underneath his left front leg. He is off and we have a 30 kilometer stalk on our hands!

We repeatedly jump the small group of bulls but cant tell which one it was I shot. Myles and Criton determine it is probably a bull which appears to have a large white loop of bowel hanging down in front of its prepuce. This might have been from my shot, or from an earlier injury. The wind is against us all day and just gets worse as the day grows hotter. The crafty old bulls are traveling with the wind so they can smell us. If the wind changes in our favor we try to run ahead of them, but then a whirlwind will give us away, or the wind changes permanently against us as the day becomes hotter. Despite their 1,600 pounds of bulk, the buffalo are difficult to see, having rolled in mud. They look alternately like black sandstone or dusty brown dung piles which are the same color as the scrub brush or ground. Two bulls have a similar face shape and horns and this makes it even more difficult to tell which is which as they gallop away.

After 4 ½ hours of tracking we are all tired and the game guard confers with Myles. He asks how long we are going to follow the bull who does not appear to be seriously injured. Myles and I say, “All day.†By now it is over 40 degrees C (104 F) and will eventually climb to 51 C in the sun (123.8 F!!!!) The game guard is willing to stick his neck out and let us shoot the bull who appears to be injured, saying he will probably die anyway, and the village council can use the meat. Myles is completely honest with the game guard and gives him every chance to turn us down. None of us are sure this is our bull, but he is certainly the most likely one. I give Myles permission to whack him if he sees him again to slow him down. Since I am the third man in a row behind the tracker and PH as we crowd around a termite hill to look over the suspicious Dagga Boys, it is unlikely I will be the one to get a shot in. The buffalo have grown up being hunted by prides of lion and did not get to be old dung covered “Dagga Boys,†by being stupid. They continue to use the wind to their advantage, and we get fleeting pictures of their bums as they continue to run away from us.


The North Fork's recovered from buffalo. Shorter one is 400 grain at 2,700 fps, longer one is 450 grain at 2,500 fps.

As the day wears on I become less and less effective, stumbling often and making noise. I am drinking a liter of water an hour, and at one point give Criton the tracker my binoculars to help him identify the bull. I pass my 11 pound rifle off to either Criton or 80 year old Chrispen. I try to keep fresh and ready for a shot in this way, but should have done so much earlier. Passing up the initial shot would have been so much better than following a wounded bull. It would have been relatively easy to shoot any of the bulls as they run away using a solid rather than expanding bullet. But we pass up all these opportunities trying to identify the wounded bull. Finally Myles gets a couple of shots with his 416, connects with one, and we pick up a serious blood trail. I take my rifle and am revived for awhile, taking an interest again in the hunt. The buffalo turn down hill and are heading for the Angwa river. We got up at 4:15 in AM and left camp by 5:00. Made first shot by 7:30. By 3:00 PM even the incredibly fit and handsome Criton is stumbling. I call a halt and lie against a tree, and start taking off my clothes to cool off. My core temperature is probably 104 degrees. Myles and Criton press on. The game guard stays with me. I hear two shots, just 300 yards away. The other bulls run uphill past us. The wounded bull has finally stopped, and I am so close to the end of the chase but cant go any farther. Gaderick comes back to get me but I am finished. The bull is still alive. He bellows and I wish I were there to finish the old boy off. More shots. He is dead.



We have been walking briskly for something like 28-30 km. I get dressed and walk down hill. I was so close to the bull! We find the gash made by my first shot underneath his left front leg. I shoot a 400 and 450 grain grain North Fork soft point into the still warm bull to compare it to those I have collected in 5 gallon water buckets. Penetration and expansion are nearly identical. We begin butchering the bull. The white loop of bowel we saw turns out to be either an umbilical hernia or abcess that has stretched his skin taught underneath his belly. The skinners jump back as the hernia is opened and are sprayed with a milky liquid. I worry that it may have been a TB lesion. Criton climbs a tree and radios the Land Cruiser. The men take empty water bottles and bring them back full of river water. We all drink thirstily despite the risk of Giardia or worse. We douse our heads with water. A young boy shows up out of no where with the Land Cruiser to take meat back to his village. The men all haul back meat, legs and hind quarters a km to the river and the cruiser. Criton carries the bulls massive head. The boss is an impressive 13 inches wide and is hard and knarly like an old bull. But he had a small, feminine head, and his horns are not as long as Myles had thought, just 35 1/2 inches. Still he is a handsome example of the breed and a memento of a day that I will never forget.



We drop off buffalo meat at the young boys village and Criton’s village, meeting his wife. The lyrical voices of the village women are the very heart and soul of Africa. We don’t arrive back to camp until 8:15. We have been up 16 hours.

Impala: The next day we take easy but still get up at 4:15 AM. We go for a game drive from 5:00 to 9:15. We stalked zebra but no good shot or great stallion. I wear my barn shoes and am much more stealthy in bush. We find a bleached white human skull. It is hot, hazy and turning muggy, which brings out the Tetse flies. They sting like horse flies. We see wort hogs, bush buck, Fish Eagle and all three varieties of Hornbills. Baboon troops all over. I am reluctant to shoot a baboon for fear of wounding it. Many broken branches and Mopane leaves. Elephant and buffalo sign all over. We come back to camp early for lunch and nap til 3:30-4:00. We find a group of Impala bucks who are fighting. One old male is battling some younger bucks. We set up shooting sticks and I get one shot at him at 125 yards as he fast walks uphill. He turns around 180 degrees and dashes downhill, piles up dead. I hit him in front of left rear leg and bullet exits near heart. Good shot with 3 X scope and an elephant gun. Why couldn’t I do that yesterday????



Kudu: On the 5th day of my hunt we look for Kudu, but it is getting hotter every day and we see little game in the AM. We eat lunch and take a nap at Mukanga camp by a sandy river bed. We find a nice Kudu bull, track it but don’t get a shot. They are very difficult for me to see. We follow a large buffalo herd just so I can get some more experience tracking them. We get very close to them in thick brush. There was no reason for me to rush my shot like I did. I watch one bull strip mopane leaves off a limb, unseen, as another group watches us, not sure what we are. Either would have been an easy shot.

The next day I shoot a large bodied Kudu about 7:00 AM. He has a 54 inch long spread and is even nicer than the one we saw day before. I get a glimpse of him as he follows a group of cows, and have to make a quick shot on the move. He is probably 200 yards off, a long way with a 3 X scope. No reaction at the shot but I am sure I have hit him. We tack him with good blood spoor til 11:00. The blood is high up on tree limbs and he is bleeding from both left and right side, so the bullet exited. A good sign. We are pushing him too hard and the trackers decide to back off. We eat lunch and rest til 1:40. It is hotter than hell. The Kudu has left the herd of females and is on his own. He has bedded down and bled a lot. We find him in dense brush but by the time I can move forward of Myles and Crtiton don’t have a shot. We jump him again but loose too much time fussing with the shooting sticks which I don’t need or want. We find him again at Urira springs at 4:00 PM. Myles shoots twice quickly and misses. I am confident now about moving forward and make an easy shot as he runs away, flattening him with the big 450. For once the 3 X scope is perfect for the job. The trackers actually cheer, another long day finished. My first shot had hit him through both rear legs but missed the femur and artery. Myles is surprised he could travel so far with a 2 inch wide hole through both rear legs. The Kudu bull used the wind to his advantage and was a tremendous athlete. African animals are much tougher than their American counterparts. My finishing shot hit him on the forward most white stripe and exited out his neck. It blew a 3 inch hole through his ribs. The North Fork soft points expand very quickly yet remain intact. The Kudu went down so decisively Myles thought I hit the spine but it is just good old frontal area and velocity.



Fishing: My last hunting day is devoted to fishing on the Zambezi river. We make a game drive 1 ½ hours north and see lion spoor, then a large cow buffalo which has been eaten by lions. We drop of Chrispen and Criton at Chrispen’s house. The old tracker carries a large bag of buffalo meat with him that he can barely lift. It is charming to see how young Cristan defers to the old man. Africans still respect their elders. A tropical rain storm greets us near the river, the first of the short rains. I see more people than I have seen all week. Small villages everywhere. School children run for cover. Surly Mugabe supporters trudge by glaring at us, going probably to a political revival meeting. To all of us who have suffered on the buffalo and kudu tracks, the rain and wind are delicious. No one cares they are getting wet! We arrive at a lush green fishing camp on the river. Across the wide fast water is Zambia. Down river is Mocambique. Swainson’s safaris runs the camp, which is undergoing a major change of management. The new manager and his wife have replaced a young fishing guide. We bring much of our own food and drink and stay in tents covered with thatch roofs. They are hot and the staff is not nearly as attentive as those who Gaderick has trained. Our captain is capable and the camp has fast boats with 90 hp Yamahas. We fly up river, enjoying the cool air. Lots of hippos but no crocs. We drift down stream and I catch one Tiger fish. We see geese and Fish Eagle. Gaderick’s cook has sent marinated kudu filets with us for dinner. It actually melts in your mouth.



What Worked: I wore the short canvas gaiters every day. Did not have to tie my boot laces or pick debris out of my socks even once. The Smart Wool socks which were recommended to my brother John by Special Forces in Afghanistan were great. Ex Officio cotton Buzz Off socks also good in the lighter shoes. The soft rubber barn shoes were quiet and had adequate support for the relatively flat ground we were walking on. The Ex Officio Buzz Off hat worked well. The neck flap kept my neck from getting sunburnt, kept bugs off, and could be soaked in water to cool off. The 8 x 32 Nikon binoculars were bright and light weight. I would not have carried anything heavier than these 21 ounce binoculars. I stripped down to a single 5 round leather Africase shell holder and had Criton carry my second ammo wallet in his back pack. After a few days in the bush the leather loosened up and I could reload from it quickly. When I did my part the North Fork soft points were killers. The FN solid looks promising. The rifle got very dirty and was handled roughly and always worked, even on a rapid reload. The Tough Pack worked well since it reduced my luggage to a single checked bag. It was essential to have a soft case while traveling in the Land Cruiser anyway. It was hard to remove the rifle case from inside the Tough Pack for customs and airlines though.

What did Not Work: The extractor and magazine follower on the CZ are the same for all calibers and cycling the bolt required a strong, deliberate bolt throw. The feed ramp is not beveled all the way across the width of the magazine. The extractor would not “snap over†the rim of a cartridge when push feeding a 4th round into the chamber, so I had a 3-shot rifle. Little details that would double the cost of the rifle if doneproperly, and I could live with it. The 3 X scope while simple and light weight but had too much magnification for elephant and not enough for plains game or buffalo. A 1.5 x 6 would be better. Myles used a Trader Keith culling belt to hold ammo and other gear. Probably a better choice than my Africase and gun belt. Sun glasses are a hazard and I discarded them after first day, using while driving only. I lost too much contrast with dark glasses. T shirts were too hot. Collar shirt easier to ventilate. Muzzle brake on rifle a real nuisance to PH, trackers and skinners. I had to stand well in front of them to shoot and this caused several missed opportunities. Rifle too heavy for a late season hunt, and the synthetic stock a bit “tiney†sounding when tree limbs hit it. Probably better to use a wood stock. If I hunt again it would probably be with an 8 ½ pound 416. The brass TCCI solid bullet was too soft for an elephant skull even though it did fine on body shots.

Cost: Day rate $600 x 7 = $4,200. Cow elephant $2,500. Bull buffalo $2,500. Kudu $950. Impala $250. Air charter $1,400. Air fare PDX to HRE $1,589. PDX to RDM $125. Dip and pack fees $500. Tips, PH $1,000. Tracker $150. Tracker #2 $100. Tracker #3 $100. Cook $150. Camp Manager $150. Game Scout $100. Skinner $75. Afton House $60. Georgies house in HRE, $100 plus $20 tip for high price of gas. $16,019 total.

Excellent report and congratultions on a challening but successful hunt!

Thanks for the report. I'll fix your photos for you.

A few comments:

"The extractor and magazine follower on the CZ are the same for all calibers and cycling the bolt required a strong, deliberate bolt throw. The feed ramp does not go all the way across the width of the magazine. The extractor would not “snap over†the rime of a cartridge when push feeding a 4th round into the chamber, so I had a 3-shot rifle. Little details that would double the cost of the rifle if done properly, and I could live with it."

Did you buy this rifle from AHR? If so, couldn't you send it back to them and have them fix it - for free?

"Only unexpected expense was $1,400 air charter as I could not drive in with Myles from HRE. This added a day to my hunt since you cannot shoot within 24 hours of flying in. The company partly made this up to me by not charging me the extra day."

I have never heard of the rule that says you can't shoot within 24 hours of your flight. I suspect you may have arrived a day earlier than expected, because of your charter, and your hunting license didn't start until the following day.

"It was hard to remove the rifle case from inside the Tough Pack for customs and airlines though."

Did you remove the rifle and soft case? I have found that it is easier to leave the soft case in the Tuffpak and just slide the rifle in and out.



Regards,

Terry

Congratulations on surviving a very tough hunt.

Terry and Dan,

Many thanks for fixing photos!

Wish you'd been there to fix my buffalo!

What a treck. It really was plus 122 degrees F. Unless you are a 10 Km runner or marathon runner, or lay down asphalt on freeways in Arizona in the summer you dont need to do a late season hunt.

But I would certainly hunt with Myles or Buzz. Check out their elephant and buff deals.

http://www.cmsafaris.com/gallery.htm

Terry, I did send it back to AHR so it would snap over and it came back unchanged. They say they make all of them to snap over now, but mine would not.

They tuned up a few other things for me, including the recoil lug and express sight base, no complaints. But I could have used that 4th round at 9 paces.

I re-read my correspondance and you are correct about my license not starting earlier. They did mention the 24 hour rule however. Is this so you cant spot game maybe?

PS John Sharp flew in with clients in his own Piper as I was flying out.

Andy

Andy - great report and well written. Maybe you could expound on the projectiles pictured as to type and identify which gave the deep penetration?
I had a trip to Chewore South in October 10 years ago and could not believe the temperatures experienced. I have a photo of a thermometer taken at 9.30pm at a camp on the Zambezi [fishing after the hunt as you did] and it is registering 103F. The minute the red glow started in the am you felt like you were standing beside a fire. Never will go that late again even though being from northern Australia I am used to hot summers.

BTW the 24 hour rule has been in effect for a long long time when elephant hunting and flying into camp.
Not sure whether it allies to any other game but don't think so.
It is for the obvious ethical reason to stop aerial spotting a la "Out of Africa"or Beryl Markham style.
I guess it depends on whether you have an ethical PH and game scout as to whether these rules are abided by?
As pointed out in other recent posts there should be no shots taken at permanent water [or hides constructed]; from vehicles or roads or after 30 minutes from sundown or prior to 30 minutes from sunrise.
Plenty of rules broken especially in regard to cats.
My 02.
APB

I told you it was going to be hot!

And you wonder why PH's get killed.

Andy,

Very well written, and very interesting as well. Congrats!

Andy,


Nice report and photos.


bunduki458

Outstanding and the thanks for sharring. I hunted the same area in July and saw what you described.

APB,

The monolithic solids pictured are TCCI RN and North Fork FN.

The FN had twice the penetration of the RN.

We only found one FN but the other two made it into lungs of elephant.

The expanded soft points oare 400 grain North Fork bonded and 450 grain bonded. 80 caliber and 87% weight retention at 2700 and 2500 fps on dead buffalo.

The 450 grain exited Kudu from quartering rear.

Andy

Andy - Thanks for the detailed and honest report, I respect the way that you openly address what worked for you and didn't, as in the end, both are what makes the hunt memorable and yours sounds like a real adventure. You not only got to test your bullets/loads under field conditions, but your shooting, endurance and mental tenacity.

I'll also comment that you were very generous with your tips, which I am sure was appreciated by all. That Cryton is a heck of a good guy and awesome tracker, isn't he.

I know they like cotton in Africa and for good reason, but when it is hot, give me the "wicking" poly/nylon and blends any day. Andy, did you happen to experiment with the Ex Officio Buzz Off ventilated shirt?

Congrat's on a good hunt!

Wonderful report! I thought it was hot when I was there in August! Did you end up with any problems from drinking the river water?

Andy: GREAT report and made my wife and I "homesick" as the picture you showed was our "our" chalet there in Mururu. I too hunted with Sharp for buffalo this past June. I'm sorry your rifel didn't work as advertised, could it have been those flat nose bullets maybe? Also, you've validated a theory I've been discussing with a fellow forum ember regarding the "perfect" rifle for use by clients. You hit it right on the mark: a 9lb 416 is perfect and I intend to go that way, probably with Hill country Rifles or maybe a Model 70 with a tune by Mark Penrod. The CZa are ALL way too rough and they DO require way too much effort to cycle smoothly. BTW, was your game scout a gent named "Peace?" We werent' too impressed by him especially when he got lost with my wife in tow as he was walking her back to the vehicle! Well, glad you're back and thanks again for a great report. jorge

PS: we hunted the same day we got there albeit for buff only

Ann, Will, Bill and Jorge,

ANN

I was amazed at the quality of the water. No problems. The sandstone is an effective micro filter I think. Also, sanitazion of camp staff was excellent. No stomach or GI problems. I did take a cipro as a profalactic the day after my long buffalo hunt where I did drink alot of swamp water.

BILL

I did use the Ex Officio shirt and with my build it had one hang up which was the pleat on the side vent caught the bolt of my rifle if I carried it over my shoulder w strap. Made for a slow "draw" once or twice that scared me. Id just try it w your rifle first and see if it catches your bolt like it did mine. It was my coolest shirt.

WILL

You did say it would be hot, so I was warned! No one was in danger of getting killed on my safari (the animals did not have guns). But I was seriaously worried about an accidental discharge. I have never had so many rifle muzzles pointed at me in one weeks time!!!!! Our game scout caried cocked and locked the entire week, never taking a round out of his FN FAL's chamber, even bouncing along in the Land Cruiser. The other rifles were at least Mauser actions and the firing pins out of alignment with the primer when the safety was one, if it was on. . . .

Dont know about you guys but it gave me the creeps.

JORGE

The CZ's use the same follower and extractor for all calibers and that seems to be the problem. The FN's worked within specific overall ctg length. The feed ramp does not go all the way across magazine box either and that was a problem for FN more than other types of bullets in my rifle but doubt it would be a problem for a Winchester or Dakota.

Andy

Great report and photos. Thanks for sharing.

Craig.

Andy

Thanks for the report and well done on the hunt . I appreciate the effort you’ve gone to in detailing this.

Fergus

Some more photos.



Cryton with buffalo head which he carried one kilometer.


A typical dinner at camp.



Georgie's house where I over nighted in Harare.



Cross section of elephant skull.



64 inches of penetration half of it through solid bone. (North Fork FN).



The ENTRANCE wound with 450 grain North Fork bonded soft point.


Teh NF expanded very quickly despite 200 yard range and still held together at point blank. Surely the best .458 soft point made.

Andy

quote:

I had expected to feel some remorse in killing a pregnant cow but don’t. After seeing how the elephant herds have completely destroyed the areas they graze in, it is very clear they need to be controlled. Gaderick and Myles say they are doubling every 12 years. It is difficult to describe their habitat. It looks like a wild fire has run through it, so many dead trees. Nothing but bare earth underneath what was once a green canopy. Complete destruction of habitat, then they move on.

Thanks Andy for your detailed outline and implicit advice.I consider myself vulnerable in heat and your comments are filed

I appreciate your comments re feeling remorse killing the noble elephant.I had the same handicap unti I read Ron Thomson's Book "Mahoboh". He emphasizes the same picture your are relating.As all know my own ele hunt did not come to fruition,but who knows,better selection next time might do it.

You are mentioning 2 other points of interest to me:
1 removable Talley scope rings in a large caliber DG rifle:SOme folks advised me not to use them removable,for lack of repeatability or lack of "staying power", so my removable rings are srewed on permanently,not using the levers.What has been your experience?

2 I am encountering a similar problem re the FN solids from Northfork as well as Bridger. They will not feed from my magazine (M70 Winch, Rem,416)
soft points will,so it probably is some interference from the FN profile.

Sheephunter,

Dan leant me Mohoboh and it was one of the best books on African hunting I have read. He liked the 458 win mag by the way. Also the 470. His descriptions of elephant "habitat" (or lack there of) still did not prepare me for what they can do to a forest.

My Talley rings are pretty sloppy ini my CZ action. Too much movement forward and aft. The return to zero depends on if you put the scope forward or back in the milled slot. If you consistantly put it forward the scope returns to zero about 3 inches low and one left. If you put it in back it is random within about 3 inches as I think the scope bases move forward under recoil anyway.

Either way you still have to re-zero after removing them.

My PH, Myles had a 375 CZ w Talley rings and he took it off and on all the time, no meaningful change of impact but they very snuggley fit his CZ receiver base. The slot in my action is quite a bit larger than his was.

I personally think the FN is worth the cost of adapting your rifle to function properly. Ive got mine down to where it feeds fine from the left rail but occasionally bolt over base on right. I carried it first round up on elephant for first day but it was too confusing having three ammo types one of which would not feed from right rail!

I repeat, they are worth fiddling with your rifle for. Neither of the TCCI RN made an exit on elephant skull and all three North Forks did despite having more skull to go through.

They are worth a new extractor, floor plate or feed ramp, what ever it takes.

(On my rifle just opening up the extractor helped alot. It was binding on the rim and forced the ctg up and right, so it missed the feed ramp). My next addition will be to put in a wider feed ramp.

John S. told me that D'arcy Echols makes M70 floor plates that are specific to each ctg. I dont know if he sells these as components or not but it might be worth a phone call.

Andy

Thank you for your detailed report Andy!

AWESOME hunt report Andy!

Congrats!

Cheers,
Canuck

Andy
An exelent and honest report. I'm glad you had a wonderful time.

Andy,
Darcy makes his own magazine boxes specific to each caliber for use in his rifles. He does not sell them separately.

Great report Andy, we were hunting only a few Kilometers apart. I missed two Dagga Boys that made it into Dande not far from Makango after drinking at a lovely Spring just in Chewore and agree the shifting wind's were the worst I have experienced there.
If you have the oportunity to hunt the Valley again, hunting early season is a great way to see it totaly different{green}.

Congratulations. Thanks for sharing.

Andy,

Great report and glad you had such a great time.

JPK

Andy,

Thanks for your excellent report.

FWIW, if I were you I would definitely send the rifle back to Ed for reworking until it is as it should be. In my experience (I have 4 AHR rifles), Ed will stand behind them and do what it takes to iron out any wrinkles.

And I do know what you mean about the heat. The 120s F. will really fry your bacon!

Mrlexma,

What caliber of AHR's do you have? Any chance one is a 416 Rigby or similar case head size? I would be curious if you did anything to the extractor or feed ramp.

thanks in advance, Andy

Andy,

I have a .375 H&H Mag. that AHR built for me on a pre-64 Win. Model 70 action. But the other three of my AHR rifles are all built on CZ 550 Mag. actions: a .500 A-Square, a .458 Lott and yes, a .416 Rigby like yours.

Ed had to fiddle with a few things during the "shake down" phase on my .458 and my .500 to get them right. But my .416 worked like a champ right out of the box. I used it to good effect on a zebra in the Caprivi last month.

I didn't have the problems you describe, which convinces me that Ed should be able to get them fixed for you.

Bravo! A road map for adventure, and some good advice to be heeded.

Andy,

Thanks for the report and photos.


Hamdeni

Andy...may I add my congratulations on both the hunt and the telling thereof!!! So, now that you have "been there and done that" what do you think of the 375 Improved you have as "the" rifle to take...My long conversations with Gil Van Horn (who turned me on to Bitterroot Bullets, for/with whom you did so much testing), thought that a .416 at 2700 fps might be the way to go for 1 gun. What do you think? Thanks again, Arthur

Arthur,

Nice to hear from you.

I have been very tempted to sign up for a three buffalo hunt in Tanzania w Myles or Buzz, since I now have some "issues" with buffalo to sort out!

I would deffinately take the 375 inmproved for a buffalo only hunt. It is lighter than my 450 and the ranges were potentially greater than I had anticipated.

And yes, I would use the Bitterroot at 2,800 fps.

(Crazy unless you have used them).

Best wishes, Andy

Thank you, Andy, for the thoughts on the 375 improved and the Bitterroots!! I appreciate the candor, here...the quick twist and improved chamber do make for much improvement...the North Fork bullets seem to be the next-best-thing...especially the flat nose for solids and the cuppoint for almost-solids...Thanks again for the reply...Arthur

Arthur,

The North fork is a medium expansion bullet compared to a Bitterroot, but you can equal the expansion of a 375 BBC with a 458 caliber.

I know Bill has clients who have used his 335 grain 416 at 2,700 fps on buffalo w decisve results. (Again, crazy unless you have used them).

I still prefer the NF bonded SP to a FN or CP for buffalo. Mike Brady is a craftsman like Bill Steigers, and when it comes to hunting bullets, there is as much craft as science to making a superior product. If you are out of Bitterroots I would use Mikes bullets before any other.

You will find the North Fork uses up more powder space than a BBC, and you will loose maybe 100 fps, but in a 416 Rigby it hardly matters!

I think the NF is th best designed bonded bullet available in the world today, and would use it without reservation. But if the CP turns you on by all means use it. Mike certainly can claim to have the "Triad" of bullets!

PS I did find it an absolute nuisance to have more than two kinds of ammo w me. I had two Africase leather shell holders, one for softs and one for solids. Since I also had Mikes FN, I stuck those in my pockets, and they clanked alot as I walked, making me very unpopular w the staff! So whatever you use, dont get too fancy.

Andy, thanks again...Is Mr. Steiger's still in business or are Bitterroots a thing of the past??? By the way, where did you get a 8 twist .375 barrel??? Not to mention the 8 twist .270? Arthur

Arthur,

This is a photo of a 450 grain NF Cup Point collected in water buckets not buffalo but should be very similar. Velocity was 2550 fps which is faster than most large bores can shoot a SD 300 bullet.



My 1-8 375 was made by Atkinson, who I think may be Rays brother???

Kreiger who uses cut rifling, has a very large selection of rifling twists available, including the large bores.

Bill Steigers does not make many bullets anymore but he is sitting on a decent collection of merchandise.

His Phone number is 208-743-5635, and e mail bitterrootbill@usfamily.net

Tell him I said hello I missed him the last time he called.

After testing every premium bullet made in 458 caliber, Bitterroots are still my first choice in any caliber he makes them for (277-416).

Andy