09 September 2007, 01:14
Tim HeraldHHK Zimb Charisa - Sijarira - Aug 22-Sept 7 - report and lots of photos
Hunt Dates – Aug 22-Sept 7 including travelHunt Area – Chirisa and Sijarira Zimbabwe
HHK Safaris – Jim Mackie PH
Weapon – T/C .375 H&H Encore Pro Hunter– 300 Gr Remington Swift A Frames
Game Taken – 2 Cape Buff, Chobe Bushbuck, Hippo, Kudu, bait impala
Well – here we go…Got to Harare, and SAA had lost my duffle – I could do without of everything in it except my ammo (both .375 and .416). So I get to camp with 2 rifles, 1 extra shirt, underwear, socks and my camera. I borrow .375 camp ammo and have to re-sight my gun as they were 275 gr.
1st day tracked dugga boys from 7 am -1:15 PM. Finally got within 50 yards of the 3 bulls and had to pass on the big one. Two were sleeping and one was dozing/standing. The big one was lying (38-40â€) and it is against the rules on Outdoor Channel to shoot an animal in the bed. (RETARDED RULE). Anyway we wait around on the big guy to stand, eventually the wind swirls and the jig is up. 1 ½ hour walk back to truck. It was awesome!
Day 2 – Got on a herd of buff early, but all young bulls. A couple hours later we are on another herd and close in. It is fairly open so we can get some footage, my PH looks the bulls over, makes the call on which one for me to shoot, and I hit him. It is about 3-4 inches back, but he is sick. I put a solid in and promptly hammer a small tree. By the time I go to shoot again, the bull is down and dead.
I will let the photos speak for themselves on the bull. Let’s say I was very surprised.
Shot a female impala for leopard bait later.
My luggage came in via a charter that afternoon. Nice work SAA – whatever…
Day 3 – I go sight in the .375 with my ammo. It is close but I adjusted a little. We hang buff and impala baits for leopard. I will say here, we ran baits for 6 days with no hits. There were tracks, etc., but no hits.
I missed a nice approx. 16†Chobe Bushbuck that afternoon.
Day 4 – At around 10:30 AM while checking baits, we are sitting near the dry Sengwe River bed. About 400-500 yards away, a big male leopard just strolls across in plain view. He is going away and disappears in the high grass. A few minutes later – a herd of buff come out of same high grass and come across the river. Then 4 mature kudu bulls come out as well. We want a kudu, so we hustle around hoping to cut them off. We get within about 225 yards, and I zip a bullet by the biggest bull and miss by about 3 inches. He is quartering away, and I just slid it right past the shoulder – you can see the bullet and vapor trail on the video.
The kudu are confused and run right at us. I am following the biggest bull and am about to squeeze the trigger, when my scope turns completely black as the herd of buff stampeded back in front of me! The kudu pulls of so as to not be run over, and when the buff and dust cleared, my bull was standing there. I hammered him and he crashed about 10 yards inside the brush. He is the only animal measured and was a bit over 53â€.
Day 5 – Set up at pan to try to ambush a bushbuck. Buff, elephant, kudu, bushbuck, impala, warthog, waterbuck and baboon all came in to drink. After an hour and a half, a ram bushbuck came in and Jim said to shoot. I heart shot him and he went 10 yards. He certainly wasn’t as big as the one I missed 2 days before.
Day 6 – got word from HHK that a hunt was cancelled and I could hunt another buff. That was at lunch and we checked baits and stalked a herd of eland with only young bulls in the morning.
Day 7 – We got on a dugga boy 400 yards out of camp. We got within 30 yards in about 10 minutes, but it was too thick to film and he was just an o.k. bull. A while later we got on a herd and there was a 40†bull in the bunch. When we caught up – Jim told me he was soft, so we passed. We then went to a spring line and found a herd drinking. We got in the thick stuff with them, and they made a circle and we caught them back at the water about ¾ of a mile on down. I was watching cows, when Jim showed me a bull looking right at us. I got on the sticks, asked Jim if he was for sure all hard bossed, and got ready when he said for sure. The frontal shot had some brush in the way at heart level, so I waited. The bull finally turned and gave me his shoulder, and I hammered him. It knocked him off his feet and he was back up after rolling all the way over. He stood up, and then just fell over on his back. The death bellow came immediately. It was a good hunt and the one 300 gr Swift A frame did a great job.
Day 8 – we went back to a pan to try to get good video of shooting a nice impala if one came in, but we got run out by about 25 jumbos. I have a couple good impalas, so it was no big deal at all. Went to some scenic spots to do photos in afternoon and then had a huge “last†meal at Chirisa.
Day 9 – We drove 6.5 hours (only 140 miles) to Sijarira on Lake Kariba. The apprentice PH told of us of a good bull hippo on the Senkwe a few miles up from the lake, so we just chilled the rest of the day.
Day 10 – Hippo and crocs all over in Senkwe. We got out in a big bend and stalked to the other side. There was a bunch of hippos there, and after 20 minutes, my PH showed me the one he said was a good bull. We slipped in closer, and I just couldn’t get very steady on is sticks.
I took the tripod from my cameraman and made him freehand it, and I used the tripod as my rest. I was on the sticks for 26 minutes before the hippo I was told to shoot gave me the shot I wanted. I was 75 yards away and knew I had a spot the size of a tennis ball to hit. It was nerve racking, but when I got the shot I wanted, I put the horizontal crosshair on the line from eye to ear and Squeeeeezed…perfect shot and the big WHACK told the story. Dead hippo- immediately. Lots of back slapping, great footage and celebration – until we recovered the animal.
Again, I will let the photos speak for themselves.
While waiting for the hippo to float up, I got a great show from a croc chasing a vulture.
Day 11 – we fished on Kariba and relaxed.
Day 12 to Vic Falls and toured.
Day 13 – we started the long haul home.
I will say that Chirisa is absolutely loaded with buff and elephant. The elephant were just every where. Lions roared at night, hyenas laughed, it was real Africa and I loved it. Sijarira is one of the most beautiful places I have ever been. The staffs at HHK were top shelf, and I never felt at all threatened in Zimb, although it is obviously in terrible shape. We saw a lot on the 6 hour ride from Chirisa to Sijariri. I wouldn’t hesitate to hunt in Zimb if I were someone out there considering it. I truly hope something gives in the near future so the people can begin to make better lives and the great country can start to mend. It is a shame what has happened there.
Never got the .416 out of the case and SAA lost my cameraman’s bag on the way home. Still no word on where it is…
Looking forward to bowhunting Namibia next July with Roger Coomber and Vieranas Safaris. Seems like forever until July 2008!
Look forward to our hunt next year.