They don't normally hunt Sundays so we spent the day touring Ithala National Park. We were able to see eland, baboons, monkeys, hyrax, and other game. We saw baboon and monkeys at Zeekoepan but they were never where we could take pictures. Had a great buffet dinner at the lodge and shopped for a few souvenirs. I'm not a big souvenir person so I bought a coffee mug with a South Africa theme. When I have coffee in the morning, it brings back wonderful memories.
Monday, our last hunting day. Wow, where did the time go. Nyala was the game today and we left at 7:00 am and immediately started seeing nyala and numerous kudu. We went up higher and looked at zebra, giraffe, wildebeest, etc. but none of the nyala passed muster. Then as we were starting to get complacent, suddenly, there it was. The nyala we'd been looking for all week. I jumped down from the truck, moved into the brush and Willem set up the sticks. The animal stood looking at 50 yards. I had plenty of time and squeezed off the shot. At the shot, Willem said, "perfect shot." When I recovered from the recoil, the nyala was gone. However, he only went about 15 yards into the heavy brush. Willem was right, the shot had gone right through the heart. The three hundred grain bullet never opened much so meat damage was minimal.
I looked at my watch and it was only 8:35 am. Shucks, the fun was over.
When we got back to camp, Ken had taken a zebra, so he, too, was done hunting. We ate a hearty breakfast and then went to the taxidermist to make arrangements for the processing and shipping of our trophies.
When we got back to camp, Bo took us for a photographic game drive. Now we had time to take a few better pictures of rhino, elephant, zebra and to our great fortune, three lionesses eating a freshly killed nyala. The next day we had to catch a plane to Johannesburg and then Victoria Falls for a couple of days, so it was off to bed early.
Willem and Amanda drove us to Richards Bay the next day. On the way we stopped at a national park and were able to attend an auction of surplus game from various national parks. A unique experience to say the least. We saw them sell impala, nyala, rhino, hippo and buffalo. Anyone could bid. The animals were all confined in a holding area in the park and one could look at them before the sale. The sale was inside with a video screen. Willem had a bidding number, but bought nothing.
We continued on to Richards Bay, and Willem and Amanda stayed in the lodge with us that night and gave us a tour of the town. We looked over the Indian Ocean and went out for a last meal at a very nice seaside restaurant. We sat outside on a warm evening with a gentle breeze. We intended to pay for the meal, but Willem insisted he was going to pay. He said we had been good clients and he wanted to do this.
The next morning at 6:00 am they took us to the airport and we were off for a couple of days at Victoria Falls, then home via Paris for two days. Nice side trips, but anti-climatic after what we had just done.
So, what are my final thoughts? It was the greatest vacation of my life. Probably one of the best things I've ever done except talking my wife into marrying me 41 years ago. Believe me I was no prize, but must have been good with words.
Willem and Amanda were perfect hosts, the lodge as luxurious and comfortable as anyone could want. The food excellent. The game plentiful and high quality. I heartily recommend their operation to novice and veteran alike and I hope to return soon.
Look up their website and see what they have.
They have a US representative Gary Morris in Minneapolis and believe me, he is worth his weight in gold to any first timer. He had the answer to every question we had.
They will be at numerous Safari Club events so if you wish to meet them face to face, check this out.
I look forward to reading about others' adventures on the dark continent.
One thing I forgot to mention, we stayed at a place called Afton House in Johannesburg our last night in Africa. It is a bed and breakfast that caters to hunters. Annelise, who runs it is super. Someone will meet you at the airport and help you bring your gun into the country if necessary. It's a bed and breakfast, and the service is superior. There were two English hunters there when we were there and were very interesting. After talking to them, I made sure to send a little extra donation to the NRA when I got home. You need to book early as she was booked on our way in. Her prices are reasonable to say the least.
Pictures as follows: Nyala, game auction, one room of taxidermists studio.
Happy Trails to All
