NAMIBIA: Erongo Lodge 2015 Hunt Report

[Trap123]

April 19-May 4
Ruger .308
Federal Vital-shok 165 grain trophy bonded tip.
PHeter Hinterholtzer
Tracker:Andreas(also a licensed PH)

It has been a couple of months since I have returned as I wanted a cool down period so I could let the excitement subside a little so I could give an objective report and not just blow sunshine as I am the eternal optimist and convieniantly ignore thr negatives.That being said I cannot think of anything that wasn't outstanding on this safari do here we go.

Travel

Syracuse,NY-Atlanta-Johannesburg(Delta)-Windhoek(SAA)

after the excruciatingly long flight from Atlanta to Johannesburg we were met at the airport by Gilbert from the Africa sky guest house where we had arranged for the Hunters package.(2 people,meet and greet at the airport,rifle permits,meals and cocktails included.....$415 and worth every penny!)
after a nice dinner and relaxing evening and goodnight rest we were up in the morning to catch our 11 o'clock flight to Windhoek where the Africa Sky representative did everything but hold our hands onto the plane.If it is necessary to layover in Joburg I highly recommend the Africa Sky guesthouse as they made that portion of the travel absolutely hassel free.
after the short flight to Windhoek we were met at the airport by Peter from Erongo Lodge
and off on the 3 hour ride to the Lodge after a couple of longer than expected stops to the local cellular phone shop to try to arrange for some communication for my wife so she could relax knowing the kids were not burning down the house, and a search for some Cuban cigars since I was out of the United States(unsuccessful I mught add)

DAY 1

After arriving late we got settled and hit the sack with great anticipation on what the following days will bring
the day started with breakfast at eight o clock due to our late arrival and then off to the range to check the zero on the rifle.
after a couple of shots all seems good we are ready to rock and roll so off we go to begin the safari in earnest
We hiked to the top of a koppie to glass the valley below and after about an hour of looking over some Oryx and Springbok Andreas decided to go around the corner and check out a different part of the valley.
a few minutes later he comes back and says there is a nice Hartmann's mountain zebra Stallion and Peter decides we should try for him
after sneaking up to the edge we could get no closer without being in full view climbing down the hill.I ranged him at 315 yards and Peter asks if this is ok and if I want to try for him. now I have sent hundreds of rounds down range and am supremely confident in my abilities so of course I said no problem I got this.
as soon as the rifle goes up and I have this magnificent animal in the scope my entire nervous system short circuited.... I was shaking like a long tailed cat in a room full of rocking chairs! this is certainly something I had not anticipated happening as I have not experienced buck fever in many many years.
so I tried to study myself and let er rip.UH OH!the shot goes high......way high like above the spine and it felt like someone kicked me in the guts. we watched him trot away and then stop a couple of times and watch some more until he went out of sight. we discussed for a few minutes what to do and decided that Andreas and I would go down the mountain and track him while Peter and my wife went around to bring the truck. after a few minutes of looking Andreas was confident that he found the track although I had my doubts as they were hundreds of tracks everywhere how could he possibly know this was the right one but I followed along hopefully but without much confidence as I know it was a horrible shot. after bumping into him a couple of times I began to gain confidence in Andreas's tracking abilities and could not believe he could follow this animal with no blood and largely tracking on rock.... must be magic. the third time we bumped into him with no shot available he took off looking pretty strong and fast so we decided to break for lunch and take it up again in the afternoon. we were only gone for about an hour and a half but that felt like the longest lunch in my life.
we got back on the track and followed him for another couple of hours and then ran into a spot where I Andreas had a hard time finding the track and I had lost all hope.
I think Peter could see that I was a bit distraught over the whole situation and suggested that we go check a nearby leopard bait that he was prepating for another hunter while Andreas sorts out the tracks.
when we returned a short time later Andreia said he has found the tracks and thinks she knows where the stallion is going so off we go again with a glimmer of hope after another hour of tracking with no visible sign that I can detect all of a sudden Andreas starts to get a little more tense and tells me "I watch the track you watch the bush"so now the hope is shining bright!Then we start to see a drop of blood here and there and Andreas says he is slowing down. a few minutes later he picks up a broken piece of plant and says he has JUST been through here. about 10 steps later andreas suddenly stops throws up the sticks and motions for me to hurry. when I get up to the sticks I see the zebra starting to climb out of a dry river bed at about 70 yards....take aim and pull the trigger and down he goes for good. and instantly I was walking on clouds knowing I had dodged a bullet with that one only due to the superb tracking abilities of this man.I felt like this was his zebra more than mine but hey I'll take it.... my first African trophy.

Sorry about the picture.... the light was not great when we finally got it.

 

[baas303]

Nothing wrong with the photo. Well done on a great zebra. Waiting for Day 2.

Dries

 

[billc]

Wow the high and lows of a hunt but end on the high note in the end. Great looking zebra and in the end must have been awesome seeing hose kinds of tracking skills. Cant wait to read more.

 

[CAustin]

Good looking stallion! That was a long shot but your PH and tracker must have seen the hit! Good tracking for sure to find the blood after lunch.

 

[johnnyblues]

April 19-May 4
Ruger .308
Federal Vital-shok 165 grain trophy bonded tip.
PHeter Hinterholtzer
Tracker:Andreas(also a licensed PH)

It has been a couple of months since I have returned as I wanted a cool down period so I could let the excitement subside a little so I could give an objective report and not just blow sunshine as I am the eternal optimist and convieniantly ignore thr negatives.That being said I cannot think of anything that wasn't outstanding on this safari do here we go.

Travel

Syracuse,NY-Atlanta-Johannesburg(Delta)-Windhoek(SAA)

after the excruciatingly long flight from Atlanta to Johannesburg we were met at the airport by Gilbert from the Africa sky guest house where we had arranged for the Hunters package.(2 people,meet and greet at the airport,rifle permits,meals and cocktails included.....$415 and worth every penny!)
after a nice dinner and relaxing evening and goodnight rest we were up in the morning to catch our 11 o'clock flight to Windhoek where the Africa Sky representative did everything but hold our hands onto the plane.If it is necessary to layover in Joburg I highly recommend the Africa Sky guesthouse as they made that portion of the travel absolutely hassel free.
after the short flight to Windhoek we were met at the airport by Peter from Erongo Lodge
and off on the 3 hour ride to the Lodge after a couple of longer than expected stops to the local cellular phone shop to try to arrange for some communication for my wife so she could relax knowing the kids were not burning down the house, and a search for some Cuban cigars since I was out of the United States(unsuccessful I mught add)

DAY 1

After arriving late we got settled and hit the sack with great anticipation on what the following days will bring
the day started with breakfast at eight o clock due to our late arrival and then off to the range to check the zero on the rifle.
after a couple of shots all seems good we are ready to rock and roll so off we go to begin the safari in earnest
We hiked to the top of a koppie to glass the valley below and after about an hour of looking over some Oryx and Springbok Andreas decided to go around the corner and check out a different part of the valley.
a few minutes later he comes back and says there is a nice Hartmann's mountain zebra Stallion and Peter decides we should try for him
after sneaking up to the edge we could get no closer without being in full view climbing down the hill.I ranged him at 315 yards and Peter asks if this is ok and if I want to try for him. now I have sent hundreds of rounds down range and am supremely confident in my abilities so of course I said no problem I got this.
as soon as the rifle goes up and I have this magnificent animal in the scope my entire nervous system short circuited.... I was shaking like a long tailed cat in a room full of rocking chairs! this is certainly something I had not anticipated happening as I have not experienced buck fever in many many years.
so I tried to study myself and let er rip.UH OH!the shot goes high......way high like above the spine and it felt like someone kicked me in the guts. we watched him trot away and then stop a couple of times and watch some more until he went out of sight. we discussed for a few minutes what to do and decided that Andreas and I would go down the mountain and track him while Peter and my wife went around to bring the truck. after a few minutes of looking Andreas was confident that he found the track although I had my doubts as they were hundreds of tracks everywhere how could he possibly know this was the right one but I followed along hopefully but without much confidence as I know it was a horrible shot. after bumping into him a couple of times I began to gain confidence in Andreas's tracking abilities and could not believe he could follow this animal with no blood and largely tracking on rock.... must be magic. the third time we bumped into him with no shot available he took off looking pretty strong and fast so we decided to break for lunch and take it up again in the afternoon. we were only gone for about an hour and a half but that felt like the longest lunch in my life.
we got back on the track and followed him for another couple of hours and then ran into a spot where I Andreas had a hard time finding the track and I had lost all hope.
I think Peter could see that I was a bit distraught over the whole situation and suggested that we go check a nearby leopard bait that he was prepating for another hunter while Andreas sorts out the tracks.
when we returned a short time later Andreia said he has found the tracks and thinks she knows where the stallion is going so off we go again with a glimmer of hope after another hour of tracking with no visible sign that I can detect all of a sudden Andreas starts to get a little more tense and tells me "I watch the track you watch the bush"so now the hope is shining bright!Then we start to see a drop of blood here and there and Andreas says he is slowing down. a few minutes later he picks up a broken piece of plant and says he has JUST been through here. about 10 steps later andreas suddenly stops throws up the sticks and motions for me to hurry. when I get up to the sticks I see the zebra starting to climb out of a dry river bed at about 70 yards....take aim and pull the trigger and down he goes for good. and instantly I was walking on clouds knowing I had dodged a bullet with that one only due to the superb tracking abilities of this man.I felt like this was his zebra more than mine but hey I'll take it.... my first African trophy.

http://i296.photobucket.com/albums/mm170/kota4 221/IMAG0036_zps03170e44.jpg
Sorry about the picture.... the light was not great when we finally got it.

Great looking Zebra...I hopefully will have an opportunity at one in September.

 

[gillettehunter]

Nice Zebra. Its really nice to have a great tracker. I always wonder how they do it. Bruce

 

[Wheels]

Nothing says Africa like a zebra. Proper first African animal! Congratulations.

Looking forward to the rest of the report.

 

[bluey]

congratulations , trap . bueatiful zebra.....

 

[enysse]

Beautiful zebra, I love hunting them.

 

[Bhfs300]

Here you can have a better look!
Trap123 keep the daily reports coming!

 

[Redruff]

Congratulations! Keep it coming! R.

 

[dory]

Well done Trap ,Neat Zebra .
Dont worry about the buck fever .
Its not you its Africa , I had the same problem !
Cant be us it must be Africa ?

 

[Trap123]

Great looking Zebra...I hopefully will have an opportunity at one in September.

I am really looking forward to your report on your Leopard as hunting a leopard has shot to the top of my list I hope to be able to arrange it for 2018

 

[Trap123]

Well done Trap ,Neat Zebra .
Dont worry about the buck fever .
Its not you its Africa , I had the same problem !
Cant be us it must be Africa ?

I'm glad I'm not the only one........ misery loves company

 

[enysse]

When I shot my mountain zebra, I got the shakes too. My PH got a good laugh, I just love hunting them, they are majestic.

 

[Trap123]

DAY 2

after breakfast at 7 o'clock I said that I wanted to hit the range again to check my rifle just to be sure.
well after yesterday's shooting debacle with the zebra I was really feeling the pressure to perform. but alas I could not seem to put two shots in a row in the bullseye from a lousy hundred yards. show Peter asked me if I mind if he takes a couple shots and yep you guessed it....... no problem with the rifle the only problem is sitting right underneath my hat so it looks like we will just have to work with it and get me a little closer until I can figure out a way to calm down so it looks like we will just have to work with it and get me a little closer until I can figure out a way to calm down.

we spent the rest of the day in search of to do in klipspringer but to no avail thoroughly enjoyed the experience and the scenery and ended the day with a nice dinner and a cigar with a beer and some good conversation


DAY 3

after a7 o'clock breakfast Peter had a lot of things to do with the day-to-day operations of the Lodge( I guess I should also mention that Peter is the owner of the operation) so andre is close to act as our pH for the day which pretty much became the theme for most of the rest of our stay as Peter had mountains of paperwork to muddle through for some tax type nonsense so he figured he better get it done as my wife and I were the only ones there and for the foreseeable future he had larger groupes in camp but he made it known that he was available at a moment's notice for any need we may have.

with Andreas driving the hunting truck my wife got to sit in the "high seat"which she thoroughly enjoy

so off we go and the plan is to sneak up on a waterhole and see if we can ambush something there. we parked the trucks I'm guessing roughly a half a mile away and made the long slow sneak to the waterhole and almost immediately we saw a group of six oryx with one nice bull in there so we set up to intercept them in the direction they were heading. the plan worked perfectly except that when the targeted bull stepped From behind some acacia bushes at about 50 yards I put my eye to the scope and could see nothing but the Sun. and just like that they were gone so we decided to sit for a little while to see if anything would come to the water hole and if not maybe go and see if we could catch up to the Oryx.

after maybe about a half hour we saw some movement in the bush that turned out to be a small group of Springbok coming our direction.
they suddenly stopped at about a hundred yards out and begin to act very nervous...... I think maybe they caught our scent. Andreas quickly points out a mature male and tells me he's not huge but mature and that was good enough for me....... he gives me the go ahead and at the shot the Springbok leaped straight up in the air in that peculiar hop they have and then took off like a rocket.
I immediately thought in the rush that I had shot low and that suspicion was confirmed when we got to the point of impact where we found bits of white hair and a little blood.

OH NO! here we go again. now I am really disgusted with myself and in a really foul mood I followed andreas along tracking this thing for the rest of the morning and again we had to break for lunch with an animal on the run.

on the way back to the Lodge we stumbled across a situation that brightened our moods a little bit.
my wife spotted a baby zebra caught in an old sheep fence and we were able to get to it and set it free.
it got a bit tense a couple of times as there were four or five adult zebras around and we heard their thundering hooves come pretty close a couple of times but we never did see them as the bush was very thick and that particular area

after lunch Peter decided to put off some of his paperwork until the next day so he could assist in trying to recover the Springbok. as we were driving in the truck to the last spot we had tracked him long before we got near that area andreas suddenly shouts stop stop stop and jumps out and looks at a big jumble of tracks for a few minutes and then says this is him.
now I am thinking to myself how can this guy possibly No that this could be my Springbok while we are cookin down the road at about 10 miles an hour but after yesterday's performance I certainly old him the benefit of the doubt so off we go again. and again after about 2 more hours of tracking( what he was saying I will never know) he again suddenly starts to get tense and tells me to get ready we are close. after about another 50 yards he spotted the Springbok laying underneath an acacia bush with its head up looking at us. with one final finishing shot it was finally over um the only thing I could think of to say to nobody in particular was holy @$&! now he is just f%?@#?g!!!

after I settle down a little bit Andreas told me to smell his back it smells like chocolate he says.


and I say yeah right like I'm going to fall for that.... the old let's get the dumb American to sniff a springbok ass trick.

then after a little coaxing he convinced my wife to give it a whirl and I guess he wasn't joking.....who knew

spirits were high at that point and we all got a good laugh. then we loaded up the Springbok and headed back to the lodge for a shower another nice dinner and a little relaxation.

 

[Trap123]

When I shot my mountain zebra, I got the shakes too. My PH got a good laugh, I just love hunting them, they are majestic.

during all my planning I never really gave much thought to hunting zebra but after reading a lot of stuff on this site I came to the conclusion that I have to have one and now I could not imagine going to Africa and not at least trying for one

 

[bluey]

mrs trap would've loved that opportunity to get all close and cuddly with that zebra foal , hey mate?
the tracker are just magic the way they unravel the tracks , its a inspiring thing to watch .
great report trap , let your fingers dance ,cob.

 

[johnnyblues]

I am really looking forward to your report on your Leopard as hunting a leopard has shot to the top of my list I hope to be able to arrange it for 2018

Hope to be able to give a glowing report on my leopard hunt. This has been a dream for so many years for me. Leopard hunting being what it is i am keeping my fingers crossed!

 

[Trap123]

mrs trap would've loved that opportunity to get all close and cuddly with that zebra foal , hey mate?
the tracker are just magic the way they unravel the tracks , its a inspiring thing to watch .
great report trap , let your fingers dance ,cob.

I think rescuing that little zebra was the highlight of her trip whenever she talks about our trip that is the first thing she mentions.
as far as the tracking goes Andreas has made a believer out of me I believe he could track a house cat across dry pavement