Planning for Africa

casterpollox

casterpollox

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I have a goal. I want to hunt Africa before I'm 30 and it looks like I'm on track to make it happen.

I've read just about every thread on this website from reloading to the pictures of successful hunts. In searching this info, I started thinking a sticky might be helpful. There is a lot of very good information on here but it's not exactly organized in anyway. It's very useful but time consuming to find. If not, then at least a thread talking about all of the basics that you need to consider while planning a trip.

So, with that said... what are some tips and tricks that you would like to pass along from your successful African trip? Plains or dangerous game, bow, muzzleloader or rifle. Doesn't matter.

What went well? What would you do different next time?

Of course, pictures are encouraged! :D

Thanks in advance
 
Find a PH who is willing to forward you the information you need to make you trip successful and enjoyable. If possible book a hunt in a wilderness area, it is more expensive, but IMHO a wilderness hunt is more enjoyable than a ranch hunt. Make sure the animals you want are A) available on your license and B) available in your hunting concession. Don't allow the PH to talk you into taking more animals than you want or can afford as each shot you take at game comes with a price tag which ranges from several hundred to several thousand dollars in trophy fees.

Wear as much 100% cotton as possible, one change of clothing will be enough as most camps provide daily laundry service. Take a camera and a notebook to record your adventure. A good pair of binoculars is a good idea. Take money for tips. Take presents for the tracker and the other help, they'll appreciate it.

Be sure to get the appropriate "intransit" permits for your rifle(s) for each country you will land in.

Get all of the appropriate shots and medications prudent for the country you are going to.

You don't have to be the best shot in the world to have a successful hunt, but the more realistic trigger time you get prior to leaving the better. If you don't already, practice cycling the action without removing the butt from your shoulder.
 
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...planning an African trip...

...assuming that you will be hunting in South Africa, it's a good idea to learn a few words in their language - "Afrikaans"..........danke!........
 
Get some money together. If you don't do that, the rest doesn't matter. Hang around with people who have the same dreams and also can afford it, or be prepared to go by yourself.
Become numb handing out money, and being chiseled by everyone from airport porters to government officials. It's probably going to happen, just don't let it ruin your trip.
If you dream about dangerous game, start there. Get your shooting skills to the point that you would cheerfully bet several thousand dollars on every shot, in front of a sceptical audience, because in reality that's exactly what you're doing.
Ignore everyone that tells you that you're never going to make it. If I had a dollar for every time people told me it wasn't going to happen, I would got there by 30 too.:D
 
Boomer, when you say presents what is a good idea? Thanks for the tip about clothing.

What about booking flights? Any headaches that a guy should be aware of?

Also, calibre. I've ready basically anything that I would use for elk will be great for the plains game that I'm planning. But what did you take? I'm thinking 300 wsm. I currently have a 243 and a 45/70, plus it's an excuse to buy a new rifle.
 
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Choose something easy for us to get but that might be tougher for them. Folding knives with locking blades make good gifts, but they don't need to be expensive. Depending where you are, pencils and note books can be a big hit with local kids as well.

Aside from comfort in the heat, another reason why cotton clothing is important is that when the do your laundry they air dry the clothes and while on the line flies will lay their eggs in the fabric. To kill the eggs and make your cloths look good they iron them with big heavy and very hot cast iron, irons. Cotton stands up well to this.

Dogleg nailed it when he said to learn to be tolerant of chiselers. It will cost you $200 for each rifle to bring into the country. They will charge you for permits that you will swear they are making up on the fly. The baggage guy for the local airline will take you aside and hump your leg for $20 USD to ensure your bag gets on the plane. I paid it and my stuff made it from Dar to Arusha and back. There is no Transport Canada over-seeing small African airlines, so you might come home with some good stories to tell. Mine involves a plane that ran out of gas on the taxiway after we landed and we had to walk from the hold line to the terminal building. I like the way they make you take off your shoes to go through security, then pass your rifle around the metal detector and hand it back to you. That reminds me, if you fly into an outbound camp, take a soft gun case with you, you will have to leave your hard-shell case behind, but your hotel might keep it for you.

Tell the skinners you want full body mounts of all your trophies, otherwise the first thing they do is wack off the head.

The best advice I can give you is to not book your flight through Great Canadian Travel. Choose a travel agent that caters to hunters going to Africa. Avoid any routes that require stop over’s in the US. Dogleg can probably line you up with the right people. If at all possible, I would make the trip with a single rifle and 100 rounds. You can choose to have half solids and half softs or go with TSX for everything if you're not going after anything bigger than buffalo. The advise normally is that the ammo must be in factory boxes, but it seems lots of guys get in with handloads in common MTM boxes.

You will need to take cash, credit cards don't work well in the bush. But you will need to take US dollars, they never heard of and will not accept Canadian currency. Practice on your haggling skills. If you buy souvenirs you are expected to argue them down. I thought I had done pretty well until I saw a table set up in Winnipeg's Health science Center selling the same junk I bought over there, but it was half as much in Winnipeg.
 
If I was doing it again I would not bring home any trophies, it would have saved me $6,000 or the cost of an Eland, Waterbuck, Kudu and Gemsbok put together.

SAve some money, pay for the trip over three years. I went with my son in 2007, total cost about $25k. Airfare $9,500 paid in 2006, deposit of $3,000 paid in 2006 as well. Remaining costs of actual hunt in my day was $9,000, tips and souvenir money $1,000, both paid in 2007 and then about $5,000 for taxidermy and shipping.

Spread out the costs, if you are a young guy you aren't going every year.

Enjoy it, the planning was almost as much fun as the trip and hunt itself.
 
Taxidermy/ packing/ freight can easily double the price of a plains game hunt, or make a plains game hunt cost more than a buffalo hunt. How about a two buffalo hunt for the price of a single, which might be cheaper than a plains game hunt with a taxidermy bill? How about going back with the money you saved? Now you're talking.
European mounts can save a lot of coin, and may be a good compromise.
 
1GLOCKAHOLIC said:
And dont get married and have kids....because once you do, your wife will never let you drop 25grand on an African hunt.
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My safari would have been greatly diminished if my wife hadn't been there to share it with me. She quite properly pointed out that the cost would be much higher if she went, but I said I wouldn't consider going without her. She loved every minute of it.

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Sharing an African hunt with someone you love would be a terrific adventure weather it be your wife/son/brother or friend, I guess it just matters how passionate you are about making it happen, but for the majority the price tag makes it out of reach.
 
Depends where you go. My boss went last year for a 10 day 5 animal in south africa. Everything was well run and handled, a completely professional operation and his total cost was under 12 grand. That inccludes airfare, taxidermy, trophy fees the whole lot. That is still a good chuunk of money, but not impossible to save for if you really want to do it.
 
Here's what I have so far. Please tell me what you think and openly pick it apart. I would rather be a little embarrassed on here than forget something or completely phuck up all together.

I talked with an outfitter at HuntFest, here are the notes I took down.

7 days including kudu, impala, bushbuck, springbuck and blesbuck. 2 hunters with 1 guide for $2950 US each. I wanted to add a warthog and it was $300 for a male, $150 for female. Tax was included in the price. Pick up and drop off at the airport. Cull animals could be available depending on when you go and usually for very low rates compared to the other animals on their list. Non-trophy animals could also be available, again at lower that listed rates. (does anyone know how low?)

The only thing not covered was air fair and shipping back to Canada. dipping and packaging was $100 for each skull and hide. The skull ready to put on the wall as a european mount, the hide in salt ready for the taxidermist if I wanted a traditional mount. Then $100 per animal for shipping to my door. He also suggested $50 a day tip for my PH and $10 for kitchen staff and hunting help.

The cheapest flight I can find right now is $2500 round trip with three stops. One, unfortunately, is in the USA. I don't like this idea and will be searching for something else.

So, I get just under $9000 for my trip, right now. Not including the mandatory new rifle and scope and reloading gear. :D I will likely get just one thing mounted at the taxidermist, the nicest thing that I take, the rest will be euro's since I really like that look.

He said it was 80% open hunting and 20% high fence ranch land. We have the choice of 3 locations to stay at night, the main house, cabins and a tent camp that looks pretty awesome. We can stay in one the whole week, or pick and choose each night in advance, depending on what we are hunting that day to save on travel time the next morning.

I forgot to write this down but I think he said May through the start of September is the most popular but you might be able to get cheaper flights in March, April or end of September.

Anything I missed?
 
Caster,
Looks like your well on the way in your plannng, I envy your oppertunity. I can only throw out a personnal opinion about your game selection, you have a good number of animals but I've always associated Africa with dangerous game and Im sure Warthogs and Eland can be dangerous but I would be more interested in something like cape buffalo, lion or leopard or rhino I think I even read a past thread on Africa where a guy took a hippo, I know all of these have a cost and availability but I would be more inclined to take 1 hoofed animal like a Impala or Zebra then a cat or buffalo. Just a personnal thought that I'm throwing out there.
 
I hear ya, but it's way outta my price range and would push the trip several years down the road.

For example, the quote I have for a croc is $6000. hippo is $8000. buffalo is $13,500, lion is between 17,000 and 50,000. rhino are 2,800 per inch of horn. Leopard is $1000 per day with a minimum of 14 days, plus 1700 for baiting plus 3990 for a trophy fee. black rhino is 140 thousand and elephants are 30 thousand dollars.

These are all way outta my reach right now. That said, since my goal is to go by age 30, it gives me a few years to save up and go later in life.
 
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