Complete Hunt Report: CMS Lion and Buffalo Hunt

[Rather than edit my short post, I thought I would simply do a new post with a more complete report on my recent hunt. I have also rationalized in my own mind (since it easier to do!) that the reports that are focused more on pictures and less on stale narrative are likewise easier and more enjoyable for users to digest. Hence, the lack of detailed narrative and plethora of pictures.]

Dates: October 25 - November 7, 2013
Areas: Dande North Ward 1 and Ward 2 (Zimbabwe)
Outfitter: Charlton McCallum Safaris
Professional Hunter: Buzz Charlton
Airline: Emirates (Houston-Dubai-Harare)
Travel Agent: Steve Turner and Susan, Travel With Guns
Rifles Used: Ruger Guide Gun .375 Ruger (Barnes TSX) and Verney Carron .470 NE (CEB Safari Solids and Safari Raptors)
Cigars: Flor de las Antillas Toros

This trip was booked as a continuation of my lion hunt with Buzz last year. In 2012 Buzz and I hunted hard for lion for nineteen days but were unable to connect. After my trip, Todd Williams was able to take a nice male that Buzz and I had tracked but been unable to catch. Kudos to Todd and Blake for connecting on “Stumpy”.

This year Buzz and I decided very late in the season to try one more time for lion. The odds were in some respects stacked against us. One, we were hunting late season which means temperatures are hot and therefore baits go bad quickly. Two, we were hunting the communal areas in Dande as opposed to the safari area (although I am not convinced in retrospect that this was a downside at all). Third, the hunt would only be for fourteen days. With Buzz trying to balance an otherwise full safari season with the arrival of his second child, fourteen days was the maximum amount of time we felt would be possible. In some respects, going into the hunt with these limitations in mind actually made the hunt easier. Since expectations were somewhat tempered, it made the hunt much more relaxing. We sort of approached every day with a view of let’s have fun and just take things as they come.

The early part of the hunt we focused on Ward 1. The Ward 1 area borders on the Dande Safari Area on the south and the Zambezi River on the north. We spent our days doing a combination of tracking for lion and baiting. There was a male lion and two lionesses operating in and through Ward 1. We tracked them early in the hunt and ended up baiting them later in the hunt. While we had them on bait, the male was an uninspiring representative of the species. We sat two evenings in the blind, with the lion and lionesses coming in on the first evening but not the second. In between chasing and baiting for lion in Ward 1 we also gave some dagga boys and herd bulls the runaround – or maybe it should be said that they gave us the runaround!

With things slowing down in Ward 1, we elected to relocate to Ward 2. The program in Ward 2 (which is south of the Dande Safari Area and north of Dande East) was to be a repeat of the program in Ward 1, a mix of tracking and baiting. On Day 10 of the hunt despite some early morning drizzle we were able to catch a group of buffalo after a relatively short tracking session. We watched the group from the top of a termite mound and spotted a nice hard bossed bull with a 40+ inch spread (41" it turns out). As the herd started to move off, the bull presented himself. After the shot he ran less than 25 yards and piled up. We were back in the baiting game. The afternoon of Day 10 we spent putting up two baits, one on each end of a sand river which still had areas that were holding water or were spring fed.

The morning of Day 11 Buzz decided that we would do a walk down the Mkanga Gorge. As I understand, the entire walk is approximately 8.5 kilometers. The gorge is a beautiful area but the walking can be challenging. There is a lot of climbing over and around boulders, traversing rocky areas, etc. During our walk in the gorge we noticed a lot of bushpig sign, as well as hyena, elephant and bushbuck. When we had completed approximately 2/3 of the walk, Buzz spotted some bushpig walking on an elephant path on the side of the gorge. With Buzz’s instructions to “have fun” I opened up on the pigs. They were running left and right, but in less than thirty seconds and after four shots, three were down. A bushpig trifecta. Then we started to focus on the reality of, what next – how are we going to get these pigs out of the gorge. With 2.5 kilometers left to go on the walk, Buzz radioed the vehicle and suggested that they start walking down the gorge to help us carry the bushpigs out. Then Buzz suggested that before they do that, they should check the other bait to see if it had been hit (the bait was at Buffalo Bend for those familiar with the area).

Shortly after talking to the crew on the radio, they called us. In driving up to check the bait a male lion had charged the vehicle. Buzz quizzed the team, “is it a good male”? The reply, “110%”. So now the mission becomes to get to the bait. We field dressed the bushpigs and Criton, Buzz’s tracker extraordinaire, proceeds to hang one pig off of opposite ends of a pole and carry them out. We took the hams and shoulders off of the other pig, loaded them in a backpack and started up the gorge. Remember, they are carrying these loads over, under and around boulders, rocks, etc. The strength and balance were something to behold. At 55 I can only admire their physical abilities.

As we came out of the gorge, we put the bushpig down and began to approach the bait site. Rather than approach the bait site from the river, we cut over a rocky ledge that came up behind the bait. The wind was perfect both in terms of direction and speed, enough to help cover the sound of our approach. As we reached the edge of the ledge we could see the bait. Laying near the bait was the lion. He was facing away from us, looking up the river. Since we were above the level of lion, I lined up for a little higher shoulder shot. One shot and the lion simply rolled on his side. I elected to put a second shot in but it was unnecessary, the first shot was all it took. He was a tremendous free range, Zambezi Valley lion. It was just before noon and we had shot three bushpigs and lion . . . amazing.

. . . thanks again to Buzz and his team for another fantastic safari. Enjoy the pictures.

Mike

Posts: 21997 | Registered: 03 January 2006

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