Early stages of potential 1st safari

[dailordasailor]

we did our first hunt a couple years ago. We decided to use camp rifles and happy i did. Travel was easy and guide knew how to call for hold on distances since they were his rifles.

Strongly consider a good camera purchase and leave without taxidermy. The cost is outrageous to me and i know i will go back and what should i do with a bigger kudu since i already have one on the wall? Shipping costs keep going up and i'll bite the bullet on my next safari for buffalo mount but it'll be only thing coming home and dont plan to bring anything else home on future hunts. A nice photo blown up on metal print from costco makes great wall art.

Pack three pairs of clothes and like 5 socks/underwear, 2 pairs of boots. Was very hard to convince wife of this but it worked and we were able to travel with carry on only and had freshly washed clothes each day from camp staff.

 

[Hogpatrol]

Depending upon where you are going.... Most of South Africa, why add the expense?

Do you have $25,000 to bring your corpse back to the states or are you just going to leave it in the bush? Does your health insurance work in South Africa or anywhere else in Africa. Check the cost of medivac from another country. Penny wise and pound foolish. I always buy insurance. A couple hundred bucks in a four, five or six figure hunt is pocket change in my opinion. YMMV.

Here's a post from nine years ago quoting a cost six years before so fifteen years ago, medivac cost $18,000 Lusaka to Joburg.

Medical travel coverage

Hi everyone, I am looking into medical coverage and evacuation insurance. I came across Med X. They are very reasonable compared to global rescue. Anyone know anything about them?

www.africahunting.com

 

[Hyde Hunter]

So I have decided that I want to do the dip and pack route aside from the taxidermist and utilizing trophy shippers is there anybody else I need to employ?

try not to use Turkish Airlines, use Delta for your hides coming back to the US as they will land in Atlanta and clear agriculture inspection there then travel on.

 

[ActionBob]

Do you have $25,000 to bring your corpse back to the states or are you just going to leave it in the bush? Does your health insurance work in South Africa or anywhere else in Africa. Check the cost of medivac from another country. Penny wise and pound foolish. I always buy insurance. A couple hundred bucks in a four, five or six figure hunt is pocket change in my opinion. YMMV.

Here's a post from nine years ago quoting a cost six years before so fifteen years ago, medivac cost $18,000 Lusaka to Joburg.

Medical travel coverage

Hi everyone, I am looking into medical coverage and evacuation insurance. I came across Med X. They are very reasonable compared to global rescue. Anyone know anything about them?

www.africahunting.com

Well, um, yes.... not that I'd have much say at that point but what you are really asking is would my wife... So yes @Just Gina could simply take it out of our kids' eventual inheritance. Or she could decide to have me cremated over there and throw the urn in her backpack

A quick easy solution might be her tipping the PH $1000 to have him send the trackers out to get a bit of firewood for a funeral pyre

Seriously if I was on a hunt in RSA and died and suddenly needed an extra $25,000. The simple act of throwing any trophies in a ditch rather than paying dip and pack. Transport fees, clearing fees, tanning and taxidermy.... Yea that would result in at least $25,000 from one of my average hunts...

Be sure to check your insurance policy as to what it covers... When we went to Tanzania, paying for all the add ons, to make the insurance worth having, added up to a pretty high premium.

And finally, last time I checked, Lusaka was in Zambia..... We are talking about a hunt in South Africa. Quite a different Infrastructure.

 

[Bert the Turtle]

Do you have $25,000 to bring your corpse back to the states or are you just going to leave it in the bush? Does your health insurance work in South Africa or anywhere else in Africa. Check the cost of medivac from another country. Penny wise and pound foolish. I always buy insurance. A couple hundred bucks in a four, five or six figure hunt is pocket change in my opinion. YMMV.

Here's a post from nine years ago quoting a cost six years before so fifteen years ago, medivac cost $18,000 Lusaka to Joburg.

Medical travel coverage

Hi everyone, I am looking into medical coverage and evacuation insurance. I came across Med X. They are very reasonable compared to global rescue. Anyone know anything about them?

www.africahunting.com

Let me just get it on record here that if I die in Africa, bury me there, cremate me on a pile of camel thorn, or leave me to the vultures (my preference) and know I was glad to make one last trip.

 

[Inkgardener]

Let me just get it on record here that if I die in Africa, bury me there, cremate me on a pile of camel thorn, or leave me to the vultures (my preference) and know I was glad to make one last trip.

That’s the spirit!

 

[Hogpatrol]

Well, um, yes.... not that I'd have much say at that point but what you are really asking is would my wife... So yes @Just Gina could simply take it out of our kids' eventual inheritance. Or she could decide to have me cremated over there and throw the urn in her backpack

A quick easy solution might be her tipping the PH $1000 to have him send the trackers out to get a bit of firewood for a funeral pyre

Seriously if I was on a hunt in RSA and died and suddenly needed an extra $25,000. The simple act of throwing any trophies in a ditch rather than paying dip and pack. Transport fees, clearing fees, tanning and taxidermy.... Yea that would result in at least $25,000 from one of my average hunts...

Be sure to check your insurance policy as to what it covers... When we went to Tanzania, paying for all the add ons, to make the insurance worth having, added up to a pretty high premium.

And finally, last time I checked, Lusaka was in Zambia..... We are talking about a hunt in South Africa. Quite a different Infrastructure.

Bob, I'd prefer being thrown in to a pride of lions, have my name carved in a tree and forget about it. Unfortunately, my wife didn't agree with that plan. As far as South Africa, medivac back to the states is still pretty pricey. Global Rescue or Ripcord wasn't more than a few hundred dollars.

 

[CO_mtnman]

If my outfitter already takes care of the weapons import process, is it necessary to hire a travel agency such as gracy?

 

[ActionBob]

If my outfitter already takes care of the weapons import process, is it necessary to hire a travel agency such as gracy?

First off I've tried hiring Gracy a time or two. After no return emails I moved on. Travel Express or Travel with Guns was more responsive.

I don't believe I've ever had a Stateside Travel Agency assist with gun import paperwork. The do a great job of getting you booked to fly with your guns. Different issues.

So if your Outfitter is handling the import of your guns into RSA, you still need to have your guns arrive with you to Joburg If you are confident in booking that yourself, go for it. It really is just one of your two allotted checked bags under 50 pounds for coach or 75 pounds for First Class or Business. Be sure you don't go over 11 pounds or 5 Kilos of ammunition. Put that in your main checked bag, not with the rifle. That 11 pounds is part of the 50 or 75 for that bag.

If you fly Delta it has always been really straightforward to fly with guns for me. Going through Europe makes me want a Travel Agent helping.

 

[JimP]

On the issue of a travel agency, are you prepared to deal with a problem with your flights when you are out at the lodge with possibly limited internet connections?

On my first hunt Jennifer with Travel Express caught a flight change on my original return flights, I doubt that I would of caught it if I would of booked the flights myself. When she saw it she contacted me and we arranged for a later flight, this was on a connecting flight here in the US. As our flight from South Africa was landing or original flight was taking off, there was a difference of 30 minutes from our landing time to the other plane leaving.

For what little they cost a travel agent is well worth the little extra that you spend, if nothing else just for peace of mind.

As for firearms, some travel agency's deal with it for you while others don't. On my first hunt I dealt with it myself, and I wished that I would of dealt with it myself on my second hunt, it would of saved me $300 that the agency charged for doing it for me after I filled out all the forms myself without their help.

 

[bakerb]

Global Rescue is worth the $250. My last trip over I came within feet of stepping on a puff adder. I saw a mamba, and a tracker was killed by a mamba while I was there. Also, just a couple days before I got there, a charter had crashed out of Maun, killing the two American hunters on board. I think Global Rescue is worth it.

It's been said above, but don't overpack. You can do two weeks in Africa out of an 1800 CI backpack. I've done it and didn't miss anything. When in doubt, throw in an extra pair or two of socks and underwear. Otherwise, everything else will be washed regularly.

Budget for more animals. And don't be afraid to ask about cull animals, broken horns, etc. I'm not the type to negotiate price on every animal that walks by, but it's worth it to ask if broken horned animals are cheaper. Some places are and some aren't.

Have fun. I wish I was planning one right now . . . .

 

[Hyde Hunter]

On the issue of a travel agency, are you prepared to deal with a problem with your flights when you are out at the lodge with possibly limited internet connections?

On my first hunt Jennifer with Travel Express caught a flight change on my original return flights, I doubt that I would of caught it if I would of booked the flights myself. When she saw it she contacted me and we arranged for a later flight, this was on a connecting flight here in the US. As our flight from South Africa was landing or original flight was taking off, there was a difference of 30 minutes from our landing time to the other plane leaving.

For what little they cost a travel agent is well worth the little extra that you spend, if nothing else just for peace of mind.

As for firearms, some travel agency's deal with it for you while others don't. On my first hunt I dealt with it myself, and I wished that I would of dealt with it myself on my second hunt, it would of saved me $300 that the agency charged for doing it for me after I filled out all the forms myself without their help.

Africa Sky, Mr X and Henry with Travel with Guns are only 150.00. Travel Express I believe is now handling permits also

 

[JimP]

Africa Sky, Mr X and Henry with Travel with Guns are only 150.00. Travel Express I believe is now handling permits also

I won't say who the last one was that I used but I was totally unsatisfied with them and I let them know it.

As easy as it is to do it yourself I don't see any reason to not do it.