African Advice

[Kudu]

Kudu,

Botswana AND Zambia are stopping / stopped hunting (except for high fenced ranches). Botswana doesn't offer Buff for the last 4 years. Zimbabwe and Mozambique would be your answer.


"...Did I mention that I lived for 45 years of my life in South Africa where I grew up on a game Ranch?..." This must be bad!! Damn, i would die NOT staying in the bush...

That's a pity - Bots is by far my favourite Southern African destination now a days!

Yep - leaving my family home and land after two and half centuries of continues habitation by my forefathers, was a little distressing for me to say the least - but living in BC has its advantages - After 7 years of living here, I'm just starting to unpack the tea chests.... May think about becoming a citizen in 10 years or so.

 

[medvedqc]

With Douglas post nothing else has to be said do your homework and make everything in writing ...

you re paying and they re looking for your money.

if it s too good to be true : it s certainly not.

 

[BigUglyMan]

Not all that true!...Namibia has bigger ranches, yes, but RSA have larger variety species to hunt...On the crime, Namibia only has 1 big city - Windhoek, where SA has many and i suppose the crime wil lbe more...then yet again, we don't hunt out of cities but in the bush...

Depending on your 'wish list' to be hunted, South Africa can offer your roughly 42 species from the smallest blue duiker to the Largest Elephant.

Joffie Lamprecht is an excellent PH and Outfit. Highly recommended.

Bushwack, welcome to the Forum.

I agree on the variety in RSA (there are ranches with fallow deer and such, but I'm not going to RSA to shoot South Pacific trophies same as I'm not shooting a gemsbok in Texas), but how much of that is not only high-fence, but high-fence in a smaller area than the animals would naturally inhabit? Sure, you can effectively high-fence many animals and have them in an area much larger than their natural territory thus preserving the ethics of the hunt, but for animals that range over larger areas there is an ethical question that the hunter must not only be aware of and resolve in his or her mind. I'm not against game ranching...it has been of great benefit in preserving animals that have been extirpated (Scimitar-horned Oryx for example) and has saved animals from being cross bred into oblivion (bontebok). That said, I have seen Cape Buffalo with ear tags that lived in 500 acre enclosures which I would not shoot unless I was starving. I know there are outfits that run hunts near the border of Kruger and there are some obscenely large elephant and buffalo that wander out of the park. I don't know all about them but to my mind if they cam come and go as they please back and forth to the park and the concession then I'm fine with that. Hell, there are some skookum elk that wander out of Banff and Jasper into the hunting areas in Alberta and no one feels bad about tipping them over! In Africa, all things are not created equal. To compare a ranch hunt in RSA for buffalo or elephant to a hunt in the Chewore in Zimbabwe would be ridiculous.

Some guys don't want to travel to a country controlled by a corrupt regime (might almost be time to take up knitting rather than hunting in Africa). Some people find it unethical to sit in a blind near a water hole (great amounts of controversy about this has raged in the pages of African Outfitter and African Hunting Gazette) waiting for animals, but a mobility-restricted hunter might not be able to get into the field otherwise. Some disdain the shooting of females. All in all, it's up to the hunter to ensure that the outfit he is looking at going out with operates in an area that is morally acceptable to them and that the hunt will be conducted in a manner that corresponds with their ethics.

 

[medvedqc]

BUM,

the more I read you the more I like you ....

all the best.

 

[Bushwack]

Botswana in process to close down but 4-5 Outfitters still have quota animals up to 2017 (Ivan Carter, Johan Calitz to name a few). Zambia is closed for the next 5 years (and still under negotiations) and ONLY high fenced species to be hunted.

Douglas,

Sorry to hear of your bad hunting experience...95% of all PH / Outfitters do run a ethical, honest and good outfits. Yes, there are the BAD apples and you have to be wary of them...We cannot compare RSA and Namibia to the Zimbawian's or Zambians, but both Namibia and RSA do cater for Plains Game and Big 5 hunts - FIRST TIMERS and EXPERIENCED hunters.

Hunting was NEVER and will NEVER be guaranteed unless it is canned...Hunting The Kimberley's and Namibian are different hunting to the THICK JESSE (bush) of the RSA Limpopo / North West / KZN areas, and the more open you environment the bigger your farm will be, it goes hand-in hand the field carrying capacity...Farms in RSA where hunting is conducted varies from 500ha to 25 000ha (private land).

Some pointers to look at:
1. Have a hunting contract in place before the safaris commence!!! (all pro's / con's / exclusive / included / payments, must be indicated)
2. Have your PH / Outfitter send your previous hunting references!!!
3. 'Shop around', there are very good / honest outfits out there!!!


BigUglyMan,

Point taken on that 'Fellow Dear', i myself don't like hunting either any specie that isn't ethnic to the country or region...

 

[Bushwack]

Some pointers i 'stole' from another forum.

BEFORE YOU GO ON SAFARI

A. WRITTEN CONTRACT.
Before paying a deposit, you should have a detailed written contract with the outfitter. The contract should, at a minimum, include the following:
1. The specific dates of the safari.
2. Are arrival and departure days counted as hunting days?
3. The number of hunters and PHs (1X1, 2X1, etc).
4. The name of the PH.
5. The area(s) to be hunted.
6. The daily rate.
7. The observer rate.
8. All applicable taxes.
9. Any licensing, permit or other fees or costs.
10. The animals to be hunted.
11. The applicable trophy fees.
12. The cancellation and return of deposit policies.
13. The services to be provided by the outfitter. Airport pick up and return. Field preparation of trophies and delivery to a taxidermist/shipping agent. Services of a fully licensed PH. Hunting vehicle. Tracker, skinner and camp staff. Meals, alcoholic beverages, lodging and laundry service.

 

[c-fbmi]

Douglas,

Sorry to hear of your bad hunting experience...95% of all PH / Outfitters do run a ethical, honest and good outfits. Yes, there are the BAD apples and you have to be wary of them...We cannot compare RSA and Namibia to the Zimbawian's or Zambians, but both Namibia and RSA do cater for Plains Game and Big 5 hunts - FIRST TIMERS and EXPERIENCED hunters.

Hunting was NEVER and will NEVER be guaranteed unless it is canned...Hunting The Kimberley's and Namibian are different hunting to the THICK JESSE (bush) of the RSA Limpopo / North West / KZN areas, and the more open you environment the bigger your farm will be, it goes hand-in hand the field carrying capacity...Farms in RSA where hunting is conducted varies from 500ha to 25 000ha (private land).

Some pointers to look at:
1. Have a hunting contract in place before the safaris commence!!! (all pro's / con's / exclusive / included / payments, must be indicated)
2. Have your PH / Outfitter send your previous hunting references!!!
3. 'Shop around', there are very good / honest outfits out there!!!




Bushwacker............you obviously do not know this site yet and are very new, I have hunted every region in SA and taken virtually every trophy available there. I have hunted every region of Zim and taken virtually every trophy available there. I taken elephant in Bots, hunted Zambia, Namibia and Congo. I'm pretty sure I know "the thick stuff", in fact I would say the Congo is thicker than anything I've seen in SA and I've hunted the eastern cape. I have really only hunted with one outfit with any real problems, I do my home work and due diligence, and generally hunt with some of the oldest and best southern Africa has to offer.........I assume you know Coenraad Veermaak, PH license #1 in SA, Johann Carlitz, who owns virtually every elephant permit in Botswana and the Stormberg Elangeni group consortium.

All I was saying to the OP is be aware and ask the right questions, even the oldest and biggest in Southern Africa are struggling for our disposable income these days and these "little" add on expenses are becoming all too common, with all the operators. It has nothing to do with the ethics of the hunt etc, but they all think we are filthy rich and what's another 500 bucks to us, or a thousand. My son found out the TRUE cost of an African hunt a couple of years back and is still paying for it. He was not deceived in any way he just refused to listen to the old man about all the other costs involved..........air travel of course, but airport transfer charge, hotels, oh ya and then there was the extra animals "you can pay us when you get home program", staff and PH tips, more hotels and meals, dipping packing and shipping of trophies and finally the importation costs and taxidermy costs. He now knows the true cost of an African adventure and won't be going back anytime soon.

 

[Bushwack]

All I was saying to the OP is be aware and ask the right questions, even the oldest and biggest in Southern Africa are struggling for our disposable income these days and these "little" add on expenses are becoming all too common, with all the operators. It has nothing to do with the ethics of the hunt etc, but they all think we are filthy rich and what's another 500 bucks to us, or a thousand. My son found out the TRUE cost of an African hunt a couple of years back and is still paying for it. He was not deceived in any way he just refused to listen to the old man about all the other costs involved..........air travel of course, but airport transfer charge, hotels, oh ya and then there was the extra animals "you can pay us when you get home program", staff and PH tips, more hotels and meals, dipping packing and shipping of trophies and finally the importation costs and taxidermy costs. He now knows the true cost of an African adventure and won't be going back anytime soon.

Oh yes, that's true...