Outfitter: Fulton Classic Safaris
Booking Agent: Wendell Reich
Travel Agent: Gracy Travel
location: Tsiseb/Otjimboyo Conservancies - Namibia
Hunt Dates: May 10-16 2008
PH: Brian Bartlett/John Jacob
Rifle: Rem 700/.300 RUM/200grn TSX
Animals Taken: Kudu, Gemsbok, Mtn Zebra, Springbok (2)
Other Animals Seen: Steenbok, Spotted Hyena, Bat Eared Fox, Jackal, Ostrich

BOOKING
Did a ton of research on the web and decided on Vaughan's operation based on many good reviews on AR and his unfenced concessions. Booked the hunt through Wendell Reich at Hunter's Quest and he patiently endured our many obvious questions and made the whole process easy.

TRAVEL
Flights were booked through Gracy Travel. Started my trip on Delta from Grand Junction, CO. Met up with my dad in Atlanta and flew to Frankfurt and then to Windhoek on Air Namibia. Used the Delta Crowne Room in Frankfurt for 12 hour layover and would highly recommend it. We were able to take showers, eat and take a nap. Took the train into Frankfurt and visited the zoo which was a bit of a letdown.

Arrived in Windhoek on time and had no problems getting guns through. Very simple process and everyone was helpful and friendly. We were picked up shortly by one of Vaughan's employees and we were soon back at Vaughan's house where we met our PH's Brian Bartlett and John Jacob, who is Damara/Owambo. We loaded trailers and were off for the camp in the Tsiseb Conservancy. We stopped for lunch along the way and a quick beer in Uis and reached camp after dark. Took a hot shower and dinner was waiting for us.

Traveled for two weeks by truck after hunt, visiting Etosha, Chobe Park, Okavango Delta and Victoria Falls.

DAY 1
The first morning we were up before dawn and got to watch a spectacular sunrise light up the Brandberg Mountain. I began to realize just how big the Tsiseb hunting area is when Brian pointed out that the entire mountain lies within it's boundaries.



We headed out in two vehicles traveling about 50km's to an area that held Zebra in hopes of knocking them out quickly. Killing a zebra turned out to be a difficult task. We found a high spot to glass from and almost immediately spotted zebra in two directions, both a couple of kms away. However in the valley immediately below us two gemsbok bulls were fighting and the larger of the two chased the smaller bull out of sight around the base of a hill. About 20 minutes later a lone gemsbok bull returned from that direction and Brian immediately indicated this was a good bull that we needed to try for. He closed to about 500 yards and then began angling away from us heading across a large flat valley. We were not in position to move until the bull was about 800 yards away and had dropped into a small gully. We immediately took off across the valley hoping to get in position ahead of him. We missed him at the first ambush spot and raced to get ahead of him again. I could barely keep up with Brian in the soft sand. As we rounded a small hill I had fallen about 30 yards behind. Brian suddenly threw up the sticks and then hissed "just shoot him". I looked past Brian down the valley desperately searching for the Gemsbok I expected to be a 100 yards away. I caught movement out of the corner of my eye and suddenly saw the bull no more than 35 yards away standing on a rise above me. As I threw the rifle up he spun and ran and I hit him in the spine as he dropped over the rise. I will never forget the image of that bull appearing on that ridge. The bull was hit through the spine and the bullet angled forward into the far shoulder. I gave him a finishing shot through the front of the chest and he was still trying to hook us or get to his feet several minutes later. Tough, tough animals. I was absolutely thrilled with this bull. He had heavy worn bases (8 1/4") and the hunt was a very good one. 37 1/2" on longest horn. My first African animal!

Gemsbok Bull


We were some ways from the jeep road where we had parked and Brian hiked out to get the truck. After photos and loading up the Gemsbok we headed back to camp quickly as the day was getting very hot. After lunch we headed out to look for Springbok near camp. We spotted several herds but saw nothing that got Brian excited. Late in the afternoon I saw a herd far in the distance and we drove as close as we could and Brian looked them over with his spotting scope. He saw a good ram and we took off with the setting sun at our backs and the wind in our faces. We started crawling from about 300 yards away and as the sun dropped below the horizon we were spotted by a ewe. She blew and the herd ran but only went about 50 yards. With light fading I shot off of Brian's shoulder and dropped the ram. Unfortunately the cape was completely destroyed. The TSX entered the base of the neck and left a tear at least 8" inches long when exiting. He measured 16" on the long horn and again I was thrilled to say the least.

First Springbok


To make the day even better, on returning to camp I found out that my Dad had taken a 39" cow oryx after missing a zebra. Good first day!

Dad's Gemsbok Cow


DAY 2
One of the trucks had brake problems and had to be taken in to Uis. My dad I and hunted together with Brian in the morning and were focused on zebra again. We looked over a herd of about 200 springbok. Spotted zebra at long distance but had no good stalking opportunities. Found a kudu bull with 4 cows but Brian decided he wasn't quite mature. He looked huge to me!

In the afternoon we split up again. Brian and I found a herd of zebra on the side of the Brandberg but there was no hope of approaching them. They were obviously waiting for dark to come down. My dad killed a huge zebra stallion with PH John.

Dad's Zebra


DAY 3
We spotted zebra, again from about 2kms away. After driving quite a ways to get the wind in our favor, Brian and I climbed a ridge to try to relocate the zebra we had seen. We spotted a small herd with a big stallion feeding in the bottom of a valley about 500 yards away. As we maneuvered to get a ridge between us we spooked an ostrich, that ran and spooked a young kudu bull, who ran and spooked the herd of zebra. The zebra ran half way up a hill and froze, about 50 yards beyond my maximum shooting range of 300. To make a long story short, Brian and I sat for what seemed like days baking in the hot sun waiting for the zebra to move back down into the valley. It never happened. We backed out and returned with a cloth hide and used it to move closer only to have the wind shift and end the game. I learned that day that mountain zebra are not a gimme by any stretch. Wind howled that afternoon and evening and we saw nothing more.

DAY 4

Went back to same area as the day before and immediately spotted zebra. We parked the truck in a canyon and stalked into the wind. Brian set up the sticks for a 225 yard shot at the stallion but the wind was causing my cross hairs to swing wildly. We tried moving closer but the zebra saw our movement and got nervous. Brian put the sticks up again and I hit the zebra low in the shoulder. The stallion reared up on his hind legs and did a pirouette, landed and did it again. I fired again and he went down but was still moving. We moved closer and a third shot into the front of the chest finished him.

Mountain Zebra Stallion


Brian was able to drive the truck up to the zebra on top of the hill. Even after gutting him it was difficult to get the zebra loaded with 4 of us. As we headed back to the riverbed to pick up the road to camp, Matthew our tracker began beating on the cab yelling Kudu! We all bailed out of the truck and Brian was yelling "Shoot him!" I couldn't find the kudu, and Brian kept insisting he was right there in the shadows. I was frantically trying to get my rifle loaded, looking under every bush for the damn kudu. I finally figured out the kudu was above us under a rock overhang. About the time I spotted the first bull, a second trotted into view. Brian immediately determined this was a better bull. I meanwhile, was completely losing it. I was so excited I couldn't get a round in the chamber. I finally succeeded only to immediately eject it onto the ground. I finally got on the sticks and shot right over the kudu's back. The first bull was now heading over the ridge. I realized I was about to totally blow things, took a deep breath and put a shot right into the bigger bulls neck dropping him..... kudu fever. He was a beautiful animal and measured 53" on both horns.

Kudu Bull




My dad killed a nice springbok today with PH John. They had a huge herd (250+) of springbok lined up at about 100 yards. Through what could be called a miracle, the herd parted leaving the lone ram standing in the open. My dad dropped him shooting from his bipod. 15 1/2" on longest horn.

Dad's Springbok


DAY 5

Went out with my dad this day with one goal, to find him a kudu. My dad and I with our PH's split up and moved along hilltops glassing everywhere. We saw bat eared foxes driving in and jumped two spotted hyena in the canyon bottom. This was apparently a pretty rare event as there are few spotted hyena this far south. We located a waterhole hidden back in a canyon with zebra, oryx and kudu tracks. Saw 10 or 11 zebra as well.

DAY 6

John and my dad returned to the waterhole hoping to pick up fresh kudu tracks to follow. I went with Brian to the Otjimboyo Conservancy to look for a second springbok to replace the cape I destroyed on the first. Saw many springbok and several good rams, but the cover was much thicker here. We climbed a koppje and saw a huge ram but there was little hope of closing the distance. We tried using a cloth hide to move towards them but they left the country. Ended up shooting a nice ram off the sticks at dusk after missing a bigger ram earlier. Made a poor shot striking the ram much too far back and he required a finisher. He measured 14 3/4" on both horns.

Second Springbok


My dad struck out on Kudu, but killed a very nice gemsbok bull in the morning. He had 8 1/2" bases and measured just under 37" on the longer horn.

Dad & PH John Jacob with Gemsbok Bull





DAY 7

We spent day 7 sleeping in and we left for Windhoek late morning. We had taken everything we had come for, plus some. Had a great dinner with Vaughan and his family at a steakhouse and although we were exhausted it was a very enjoyable evening. We stayed at the Casa Piccolo in Windhoek that night and host Claudia was gracious and hunter friendly.

PROBLEMS
Very few. We had some problems concerning the game scouts that are provided by the conservancy, but I don't believe this to be a permanent problem. The "official" game scouts were on strike, and the replacements refused to stay in camp overnight. The result was that they had to be picked up in Uis each morning which meant we lost a little hunting time each AM. This just seemed like tribal politics.

SUMMARY
Fantastic experience. Brian and John are both terrific PH's who worked hard to get us the animals we wanted. The Tsiseb conservancy is big, beautiful country that suited the way I like to hunt. This is hunting, not shooting and trophies here are earned. There is not a high density of animals here (springbok excepted), but the open terrain makes for perfect spot and stalk hunting. I got the impression that there are parts of the Tsiseb yet to be explored.

The camp staff did a great job of taking care of us. We came home every night to a spotlessly clean tent, good hot food and comfortable bed. The skinners did a very good job of taking care of our trophies.

We were more than pleased with the quality of the animals taken. I wanted fully mature animals and was not too concerned about score. However, all of our animals qualified as NAPHA Gold animals and the springbok qualify for Roland Ward as well.

Booking through Wendell at Hunters Quest made the whole process painless.

I would not hesitate to recommend this hunt to someone looking for a truly fair chase hunt in wild country. We are already planning our return.

Another addict

Sounds like you had a great hunt. I am looking forward to your report.

Congratulations on a great hunt!!

Welcome back.

I'm anxiously awaiting photo's and tales.

Cheers,

Larry

Great report and great trophies. Sounds like a good trip. I especially like the springbuck. I was only able to spend two days there as Vaughan and I were hunting eland in another area for 8 days, but it was interesting nonetheless.

George

Don,

Fantastic pics and some really nice trophies, all in fact. Great springbok and a nice heavy Oryx bull. He's a pretty kudu bull mate.

How did the 300 RUM perform with the 200TSX in general? Were you happy with it? Would you use a different bullet next time? I think it's the penultimate Namibian plains game round.........

I'm impressed that you were able to get within bow range of a gemsbok out there wow! I spent several days in that wide open place trying to get under 400 yards of one.
Great report and photos! Your kudu is really nice. I like the shape of the horns. Mountain zebra are tough. I was surprised as well.

BTW, did they take you to the fountains? Did you see any elephant or rhino?

Ain't Namibia great?!

Thank you for the nice report. You guys look like you had the time of your lives. Great trophies!

Jriley,

We did not get to the fountains. Both PH's John and Brian started working with Vaughan this season, and were still learning the area. Brian liked to hunt the hilly areas because it made stalks easier. We hunted an area of canyons and foothills that was like a maze. We saw old elephant sign but did not see any rhino.

Don

DC,

Thanks for the report, brings back good memories for me, hunted there July 2007. Like you ran into issues with "Game Scout", same deal, he wanted to spend nights in Uis. We went without him one day, he paid us back by insisting our "paperwork" needed inspection as we were leaving....this after hunting with us each day save one, for 8 days. Think its just part of the game, Helgaard (my PH) got the head man into it and all was instantly OK. THIS DID NOT reduce my enjoyment of a wonderful area, well run camp, a true adventure.
Mountain Zebra hunting surprised me with its difficulty, definitely not just shooting.

DC Roxby,

Congrats on a great hunt! My dad and I hunted with Boet Nel in 2005 and 2007 and Brian was my dad's PH while there. He is top notch for sure. Glad you had a great hunt! I sure miss Namibia! Can't wait to get back some day.

DC
Wonderful trophies and Pix. That sunrise pict is great! Namibia is a great place to hunt.

Thanks for the report and congrats on your successful hunt. Any photos of the camp setup?

Cooking Tent



Dining Area


Tent

Thanks.

VERY nice indeed!
I wish I could have shared a hunt in Africa with my Father.
I did share a 10 day bow hunt in RSA with my son this past August and hope to do it agian soon.
Congrats on some fine aniamls and thanks for sharing.

quote:

Originally posted by Blair338/378:
How did the 300 RUM perform with the 200TSX in general? Were you happy with it? Would you use a different bullet next time? I think it's the penultimate Namibian plains game round.........

I was happy with the bullets. I only recovered one bullet from the Gemsbok. It had lost a few petals but traveled through a bunch of bone. I had one round traverse a zebra from front to back and exit. I was shocked by how how tough the animals were in general, but would go the same bullet next trip.

Great report DC, I actually became nervous with the Kudu/rifle bit .

quote:

Originally posted by DC Roxby:

quote:

Originally posted by Blair338/378:
How did the 300 RUM perform with the 200TSX in general? Were you happy with it? Would you use a different bullet next time? I think it's the penultimate Namibian plains game round.........

I was happy with the bullets. I only recovered one bullet from the Gemsbok. It had lost a few petals but traveled through a bunch of bone. I had one round traverse a zebra from front to back and exit. I was shocked by how how tough the animals were in general, but would go the same bullet next trip.

Thought you might be happy with them mate and the 300RUM certainly shoots them at good speeds.

Nice work on that zebra!

I'm taking a 338RUM in August, (to try something different) will be shooting the 338 Lapua Natualis 231gr mostly, but will switch to the 250TSX for Giraffe.

If I can find enough Oryx to shoot I may test the 225 TBBC, 225NF, 225 Accubond, 210 Swift Scirocco, 210 and 225 TTSX and hopefully recover some projectiles!

Glad you and your dad had a fantastic hunt.