HUNT SUMMARY

Date of Hunt:
March 4-17, 2007

Location:
Nkayi (Lupane Area) & Deka Tail + Stateland C (Hwange Area)

Animals Hunted:
Non-Export Meat Elephant & Trophy Elephant Bull

Outfitter/PH:
Buzz Charlton; CM Safaris
Email: admin1@cmsafaris.com
Website: www.cmsafaris.com


NON-TROPHY ELEPHANT (MEAT QUOTA) HUNT

We booked the Nkayi area (Lupane) for a 7-day meat rations bull with the option for a second bull at a flat rate, via the traditional "PAC" methods. We hunted 2.5 days covering the entire area and following all leads until we came to the conclusion that there were no elephants in the land that we were able to hunt. Although other parts of Zim have had good rains, it has been a very dry in the Lupane region and as such the maize (corn) crop has not yet matured (and may not).

Our spike camp in Nkayi:




Brett, Buzz and Ryan (cameraman):


There had been some elephant activity in the villages along the Gwampa Forest area, however, they were just checking at nights to see if the corn was in, and were not returning. Karel Strydom of Hwange Safaris, who operates the area, had been told prior to our arrival by his man on the ground that eles were causing problems. However, this gentleman confided to us that due to a lack of petrol, he had not actually verified this for himself, and instead relied on reports from the villagers. Anybody who has hunted Africa knows how valid these reports typically are.

Village in Nkayi where we looked to gather intel on problem elephant:


"The elephant come in from over there...."


Children tending to their cattle and donkeys were a good source of intel:




Schools we visited asking children and teachers if they had heard of any elephant activity:




I took a picture similar to this at a school in Zambia in 05 (click here)...haunting images...


A mobile library full of children's books:


Maize (corn) crop hampered by poor seasonal rains:


Waiting for a problem croc (which never beached):


Once we were certain that there were indeed no ele's in the area, we arranged to head out early to another concession also run by Karel. Given the problematic communications, I was offered an appropriate reduced day rate which I thought was fair, as these things happen. We did get the PAC experience up to the shooting and distribution of the meat, and my son (Brett, who is now 16) was able to interview and take enough pictures to complete his high school Grad Project on the life of rural Zim villagers. We stayed in a tented spike camp which was very cool..despite the bees and miggies!

We had a few showers while in Nkayi:



TUSKLESS ELEPHANT + TROPHY BULL HUNT

From Nkayi we drove the ~5hrs west to the Deka Tail area, which boarders the Hwange National Park. We were on a tuskless hunt with an option to uplift to a trophy bull if we shot one. As I have already taken an elephant from the Zambezi Valley of 47/43lbs, Buzz and I were looking for something special. We hunted very hard for eleven days, staying in the field from 5:30am until ~6:30pm, and walking up to 9hrs a day. The cameraman, Ryan, confided that we did considerably more walking then any of the hunts that he has been on with Buzz to date. But it was not to be, at least not on this hunt.

The permanent camp, run by Mr & Mrs Peter Banks (terrific people I might add), was very nice and service, food and attention to detail were excellent. After a long-hard day of boarder patrol and 5-9hrs on foot, it was a nice place to come home to.

Permanent camp in Deka Tail operated by Hwange Safaris:






Ryan preparing the "Braii"; food was excellent, mostly traditional Zimbabwe fare:


Our group at 5am breakfast with Peter Banks (aka "Pop", Mumsie was busy in the kitchen!):


Hwange has also had poor rains this season, and we literally watched the bush dry in the time that we were there. The grass and wild basil (which has a wonderful aroma and is nice to crush between your fingers as a distraction when walking) went from green to brown. Towards the end of the hunt the ground was crunchy with fallen leaves. However, the bush was still very thick and we were into elephants multiple times every day. One day we watched a group of at least 60 eles (likely it was multiple herds) drink at a dam, and on several afternoons we enjoyed watching smaller herds drink and play in the water. Real National Geo stuff.

Our day began with the wake-up "Mornin, Mornin" alarm at 4:45, followed by a breakfast of oats or mealie-meal, cereal, toast, coffee, and yogurt (until supplies ran out). We were typically loaded up and on the trail by 5:30, which was just prior to sunrise.

The goal in the morning was to be selective and follow only large (24 inch plus) and well-worn tracks. Some days were spent on boarder patrol, driving the dirt track along the railroad that separates The Hwange Park from the hunting concession. Other days we drove areas where Patrick, the tracker supplied by Hwange Safaris, thought there might be elephant activity based on his knowledge of the area and past hunting experiences.

Awesome Tracker Tino on point (that hood must have been 140+ degrees midday!):


Boarder patrol, looking for tracks coming in from Hwange National Park:


Dragging the road to help identify fresh tracks the following morning:


Things began to heat up by around 10am, although if time permitted we tried to get one more session of tracking in. The heat may make the hunting more challenging, however, it does tend to slow the elephant down and usually we caught up with the elephant after 2-3 hours (sometimes less, other times more) of tracking.

We walked [marched] between 5-9 Hours each day:




Tino hot on the trail of what we hoped was THE ONE:


As usual, Buzz was energetic, enthusiastic, and great fun to be with. Buzz and I enjoy the challenge of a physical hunt, and being competitive people, we tend to push each other as well as ourselves. He and Brett spent most nights locked in an intense Backgammon competition which was decided the final night in a 3-0 sweep by the young lad. This was Brett's second hunt with Buzz, and he thinks Buzz is one cool dude.

[b]Glassing from one of the many mountain ridges:

Many of the bulls were found after they had joined up with herds of cows and calves. From my perspective this was not a terrific sign, as I was hoping for that old, grumpy, solitary bull that didn't want to have any association whatsoever with the cows and youngsters. However, by tracking a single bull into a herd, we were able to look over other bulls that we might not have otherwise seen. And who knows...maybe we would stumble on that clever, old 70-pounder!

I enjoy staying in the field all day, and the bush lunch and subsequent nap on the high seat is relaxing and refreshing, despite (or maybe because of) the occasional mopane fly.

[b]One of many lunches enjoyed in the bush:


Buzz's driver Eddie making sadza (pronounced "sud-za", thickened corn meal) and kapenta (tiny sardine-like fish) for lunch:


After lunch we would usually check water points looking for elephant drinking, or tracks that would indicate the presence of a bull in the area which we could track or at least look for the following morning. Often we would take an exploratory walk down a sandy, dry river bed or into a valley where there was thought to be elephant, looking for fresh sign and maybe a secret elephant hideout.

One of the more enjoyable walks was to the top of a mountain from which we could walk along elephant paths and glass the valleys and plains below. It was difficult to see due to the thick vegetation, but I enjoyed this African-style "mountain hunting" - noting I missed my Lowa Sheephunter boots! If the day had been somewhat dull with more driving then walking, prior to sunset we would mix it up with the cows and young bulls, hoping to spot a tuskless, while getting our daily adrenaline rush.

Looking for bull tracks at one of the dams:


Waiting for the truck to meet us after a long walk down a dry, sandy and hot stream bed:


Zero flats and only one winching...not bad:


The trackers were awesome to watch, especially Tino, who has continued to progress over my three hunts with him. We didn't lose an elephant, despite rock, dead grass and mixed herds. In fact, we only had to abandon one march as the two bulls left our hunting area. The only times that the team frustrated me was the last ~mile before the road where we were to meet the truck, where they put on the afterburners. I don't see the logic of this, as most often we end up waiting anyway for the truck to find us, but accept it as part of the African hunting experience.

Hard-working Hwange Safaris Tracker Patrick getting a drink: [/b]


Once we caught the bulls that we had been tracking - a few of which we literally ran down which is a pretty good accomplishment considering how quickly elephants can cover ground - we were able to get close and work through the herds for an hour or more in some cases, until we identified all the elephants in the group. The elephant, and in particular the cows, were calmer then those in the Valley (or elsewhere that I have been), and we had no full-blown charges. A few times we inadvertently split a large herd, but instead of coming to look for us and/or going wild trumpeting as they might elsewhere, the ele's downwind would quietly and quickly head off in the opposite direction. Nevertheless, sneaking around feeding elephant at 10-yards in the thick bush is dangerous, and we never let our guard down completely.

We did confront ~6 bulls at very close range (10-15 yards), and got some excellent close-up footage for Buzz's next DVD. One bull heavy in musth had an aggressive and wild look in his eyes, and might have come at us if it was not for the boulders separating us from him. We viewed many other bulls from a slightly greater distance without disturbing them. None were carrying the ivory that I was looking for, and the best bull was a double-tusked ~45 pounder on day 5 (which might have gone more as the ivory is much thicker and shorter then in the Valley) that we passed on.

A few of the bulls were absolutely massive, considerably larger and more intimidating at close range then those that I have interacted with in the Zambezi Valley, Luangwa Valley (Zambia), Masailand and the Selous (Tanzania), and closer to the Botswana elephant that I spent time with in the Caprivi Strip. We knew going into it that the genetics of the area did not produce tuskless cows, and we indeed did not see any (there may have been one in a group that we pursued the last hour of the last day, but we saw only one side).

Some of the many elephant we tracked and/or encountered:


This was a big, old bull with a massive, worn track...but only one small tusk:






An obvious old "Park elephant", this guy wouldn't even look our way despite being upwind on him at ~20-yards:


There were at least 60 elephant in this group:


The bulls seemed to prefer to dig for the clean water, which was rapidly drying up:


...well except for these two:


We did not see much game besides elephant, and poaching has had an obvious impact on the plainsgame populations - as well as the elephant as we saw at least a half-dozen elephant with the tips of their trunks missing or mutilated. That being said, it was early season and we did see on the move on at least one occasion: Kudu, Warthog, Duiker, Klipspringer (a nice one that would have given me a shot), Impala, Jackal, Giraffe and a Bushbuck (he was ultimately responsible for the ~45-pound ele fleeing for good, as we jumped the Bushbuck which bolted which took the elephant with him). We did not hear lion or hyena at night, which I missed, although Mrs. Banks said they saw a nice male with females a few weeks prior. This is an elephant area, and hunts are sold as such.

Herders/fisherman (and likely poachers) from the Deka Tail area, who had not seen any recent ele sign:


One of several snares found and removed:


An impala ram snared, and left to go to waste:


As was stated, it was hot, especially the towards the end of the hunt, with the thermometer reading 115+ in the sun and 100+ in the shade during the mid-afternoon hours. Daytime walks in the sandy stream beds were brutal. Brett carried a Northface Hammerhead hydration pack which was a wonderful supplement to the bottles of water carried by the trackers in their backpacks. There are no tsetse flies in this part of Zim (which is good and bad), but as water became scarce the mopane flies were a bit bothersome at times.

"CRAP - we killed the Game Scout!" Daniel was a real trooper and hung in there in what turned out to be a very physical hunt:


Daytime temps were quite hot, although nights and mornings were quite comfortable:


Hot sun, beat'en down....


We saw two Black Mamba's plus several non-venomous snakes (such as this one) - and I am sure we passed by many more!:


A huge Black Mamba that took to the trees (while the trackers took to the truck cab!):


Later in the year (Sept-Oct) is said to be the best time for this area, as elephant are forced to come out of the Park to drink at one of a few permanent/pumped water holes or springs in the area. Buzz has several hunts lined up and now has a good understanding of the area with most of the dirt tracks, water points and elephant valleys saved to his GPS.

The train can be heard periodically during the day (this sucker was MOVING!):




Another glorious African sunset:



TRAINING / PHYSICAL PREPARATION

I approached this elephant hunt similar to my Dall sheep hunt last August, and trained everyday, including backpacking hills with a weighted pack and lots of weightlifting, plus the occasional run and ride on the bike. We had a fairly mild winter which allowed me to train outdoors, noting this is a consideration on an early season hunt such as this.

Another consideration is the sun and the fact that in March, Brett and I were pale-white. Lots of Coppertone Sport SPF30 sunscreen prevented burning, and we carried some in the backpack and reapplied often. Brett took Larium and seems to tolerate it fine, but I chose Doxycycline for this trip. I do not appreciate the groggy/grumpy feeling that Larium gives me, and I like having a general antibiotic in my system while traveling and in the bush. I took the Doxy each night with dinner and did not burn (except a few spots that I missed with the lotion) despite late mornings and afternoons on the high-seat to save Ryan, who is light-skinned, from taking a beating.

Like the sheep hunt, I supplemented my diet (as well as those around me!) during the hunt with high-quality foods, including biltong, 2 jars of peanut butter, Clif bars, Protein Plus bars, and 12 pounds (!) of Costco's Trail Mix (highly recommended by the way, especially at ~$10/6lb bag). I am certain these extra calories helped me go faster longer - and maybe more importantly - recover quicker, so that I was ready to go hard again the next day. Even so, I lost 5 and Brett dropped 7 pounds.


MISCELLANEOUS

While we were hunting there were some disturbances in Harare which made the national news, but in the bush we didn't experience any issues whatsoever. Everybody was friendly, the roads safe and mostly empty, and the stores much better stocked then when I was there with the boys in July-05. When in the hunting concession, one hears little of any political or economic concerns, and even Vic Falls (like the Zambezi Valley before) seemed a world away. I am hesitant to give advice to others here, and things can change rapidly, but as of this writing I fully intend and am planning to hunt Zim again.

Flights were trouble free, SAA out of Dulles was a pleasure, and all luggage arrived safely and intact going to and coming home. Guns were checked through in both directions with my layovers an ideal 3-4hrs, and as such, I did not use a service in Joburg. Upon arrival, we stayed at Buzz's house in Harare.

Kumba, Royal's son, with his soccer outfit from our last visit and his new "football":[/b]


The flight from Dulles to Joburg was a straight shot, with no stop-over for refueling necessary. The only travel problem was a minor one due to a "slow strike" in Dakar (thanks knuckleheads, as if the stop-over is not painful enough) on the way home that turned a ~1hr stop into ~2hrs. Due to strong headwinds, we were not able to make up ground on the way home, which may have impacted those with tight connections (we drove to Dulles from PA so this did not affect us). Our seats were at the back of the plane, mine not having a seat in front, which was great for stretching out. The trade-off was that Brett and I got a bit airsick at times as the flight was bumpy, but thankfully we didn't need the bag!

Flying out of Victoria Falls, we visited the Falls (wear your swim suit!), and bought some curios at an Open Market which was quite an experience. If you have never done this, it gets quite chaotic once they see the USD's. Having room in the suitcases that were filled with goodies on the way over, I picked up a few nice items including a "bush chair", but could have done better had I allocated more time.

Victoria Falls:





CLOSING
Suffice to say, that despite a disappointing start in regards to the Meat/PAC hunt, and not pulling the trigger on my Ruger .458 Lott, we hunted hard each and every day. Brett, myself and Buzz had a very good time and an overall most-excellent adventure. This was the experience that I was looking for - a hard-core, physical, old-school elephant hunt in an area that potentially could produce a very exceptional bull. I am already thinking about the next elephant hunt!

Please feel free to contact me for a current reference, or if I may be of assistance in planning your next hunt (I am not a booking agent nor do I derive any financial benefit from the safari industry). As always, thanks for reading my report and sharing my experiences with me!

PLEASE SEE ADDITIONAL PICTURES BELOW ON PAGE 2 - ADDED 9/2014

Bill welcome home to frigid country...Was looking for a post any day....


Mike

Bill, fabulous as usual!

Welcome back and congratulations on a great hunt!

Welcome back Bill, looking forward to the entire report.

Great attitude and a good example.
Thanks

Great report, thank you. Glad you enjoyed your hunt.

JPK

Bill,

Your report epitomizes that of a true hunter. The hunt is the experience of the hunt not the kill. Congratulations.

Mike

Bill,

Great report and excellent pictures. Ditto what Palmer wrote. Now thats spending quality time with your son.

Woody

Wonderful report, Bill. I enjoy reading about your hunts.

How old is your son that tagged along on this trip? He must be a trooper to stay hooked with all that walking and little shooting. It seems most kid these days would be bored but it looked like he was having a ball.

This is the short report?

quote:

Originally posted by 500grains:
Bill, fabulous as usual!

Welcome back and congratulations on a great hunt!

Same goes for me -- I really admire your attitude toward the hunt.

Bill,
Great to see you and Brett had an excellent hunt... as others have said, not all hunts are measured by the bag at the end of the day and your safari proved that! Most hunters would not have passed a 45 pound elephant either so cheers to you for your ethics and high standards. Congrats!

Bill,
Your a man to be respected and you are obviously raising an ethical hunter. Thanks for the great report!

Hello Bill

Thank you for sharing your experience. I have always enjoyed your reports.
You were in the field and gave it your 100% and enjoyed your experience, that is what counts.

Regards
Aziz

Good show Bill. Congratulations and thanks for sharing.

Kyler

I really enjoyed your photos, Bill. And your excellent report, as usual. You set a high bar.

Luck plays a huge role in these things, of course, and it was tough luck indeed that even with all of your hard work, you did not find a big enough bull.

Still, I would say that you earned an elephant on this safari, and earning it is what hunting is all about. Congratulations.

Super report and pictures, thank you for sharing, Sir. Any day that this incredible land is shed in a positive light is a good day for me....

Bill,
Great to hear you had another excellent Safari.
No doubt you will let us know what other game was seen.
<img src="https://forums.accuratereloading.com/cheers.gif" alt="cheers" width="60" height="40"><!--graemlin::cheers:-->
ozhunter

Thanks for sharing. I really enjoyed the photos.

Welcome back Bill. I'm glad to hear you had a good time and no problems. Maybe next year the weather will be normal and rain will be plentiful. It was very hot and dry when I was there in February. Thanks for posting the pics too. I enjoyed all of them. Good hunting, LDK

Bill- When you are sitting in your rocker many years from today I'll bet that this hunt will be right up there! And the same goes for your son. Great report.

I rode up and down that road by the railway for countless hours back in 2004. I saw no trophy elephants either... but I know that they are there, at least seasonally.

I really enjoyed the photography!

Thank you so much for sharing and your great attitude that a safari is so much more than just killing something!

Welcome home Bill!

Nice report! I really enjoyed reading it.

Thanks for the great 'short' report Bill! (I can't believe you got this up in about 24 hours from getting home!!!)

And congrats on a great hunt! As usual, I love your narratives and especially your perspective/attitude. I believe its been said before, but you really are an outfitter/PH's dream client!

You have to appreciate having this level of effort/experience in the bank. When you walk up on a 80lber the first day of your next hunt, it won't feel like you didn't earn it.

Cheers and thanks!
Canuck

Wonderful report and pics as usual!

Bill, Great report once again. Thanks for posting.
I read this report with even more attention than usual, as I leave in just three days for my own elephant hunt with Buzz and Company. (I'll be hunting with Alan, I believe.) I can only hope to produce a report of half the quality that you always post.
Most excellent!
Bill

Great report, it shows that you can have a great hunt without firing your rifle.
Great pictures.

TerryR

Bill- Welcome back and thanks for sharing your adventure with us. A super time for father and son! Coming home "empty handed" has happened to most of us and yet we keep going back. Therein lies the proof that it's not the killing we enjoy but the love of the great outdoors. Thanks for reminding us all of that!

John

A great report, Bill, and I know enjoying the hunt with your son was priceless.

This is a fantastic report and pics. It shows how great the trip can be, especially with your son, even though you dont do a lot of shooting. Really good. More pics and details are always appreciated.

It seems there have not been as many trip reports as there were when I joined a few years ago, but one like this makes up for the shortage.

Again, congrats on a great trip.

Awesome report. You got be pumped as I will be joining Buzz on a tuskless hunt in Makuti at the end of April. Thanks.

Bill,

Welcome home. Your hunt is the epitome of what one buys when they book a safari. You bought an opportunity to hunt. Period! You and Buzz I'm sure made the best guess you could on the optimum time for your hunt but weather and animals outsmart the best of us. Your attitude is commendable as some hunters would let the lack of trophies ruin their whole safari.
Congratulations on holding out on your one real shooting opportunity for a bull you really wanted. Often the pressure to be successful is too great to ignore and a hunter will take an aniamls that later he may regret.

Mark

Thanks to everyone for the nice replies thus far. 14-days in the Africa bush with my son, hunting elephant with a mate, pushing ourselves to the limit, escaping the cold in Penna, multiple adrenalin rushes each day...it was really not that difficult to be happy and satisfied regardless of the outcome.

PS - I do want to point out that we were into elephants several times everyday, and I shot two tuskless and one trophy bull previously. Had there been NO elephant activity in the area I was hunting in Hwange, it would have been a different story and after a few days I am sure we all would have been rather glum.

ADDED 10/11/14 - These images were clipped from the video. Massive bulls, but with poor tusks.

Great work on the extra details and pictures.

Thanks!

great report Bill and great attitude. Wish more hunters had the same idea of hunting and that it is not always a success story, but the experience and adventure is always a success.

Glad i was not walking all those miles with you though!

quote:

Originally posted by Charles_Helm:

quote:

Originally posted by 500grains:
Bill, fabulous as usual!

Welcome back and congratulations on a great hunt!

Same goes for me -- I really admire your attitude toward the hunt.

Me to

Adam

the first snake is a harmless grass or sand snake (genus Psammophis, I believe).

The second one is, of course, a big Mamba. Nice shots!

Troy

Bill, what an awesome hunt report. I was amazed at your detail and the photos were incredible. I would like to hunt with Buzz some day. He sounds like a true "Professional" in every sense of the word.

I am not sure I would want to be in Zim in that heat or with the snake activity. I usually go in May or June. I have two of the "Big Five" from Zim under my belt from two previous hunts. Ele is on my list for the next hunt. Any thoughts on gun or caliber. My friends all say go with a 500 double, however, I have had excellent results with my Blaser R-93 .416.

Does Buzz have any feelings about double vs. bolt? Do you think I would be okay with the .416 Rem. Mag.?

Thanks for any input.

Dr. Tim