SOUTH AFRICA: First Safari On My Way To The Eastern Cape June 2018

[Hunter101]

Great start to your hunt haveing all your bags waiting for you is something to smile about and great shooting

 

[Nyati]

Good luck and have a great time !

I was in Bloemfontein last year, nice city.

 

[gillettehunter]

Great start. Bags arrive with rifle and animals down the first day. Congrats.
Bruce

 

[Ridgewalker]

Exciting with such an excellent long shot on a very fine BW!
Great start on your first day!
Cant wait to read/see more!

 

[MikeDeltaFoxtrot]

Day 2

Yesterday was a late night, so I did not have time to post. On day two, we stayed on the same property and spent most of the day pursuing blesbok and springbok. I was on the sticks several times but could not get a clean shot a a decent animal. Both species were very skittish. I ended up shooting a red hartebeest when a shot presented itself. It was downhill about 220 yards. I did not make a good shot and hit the bull too far back. He ran off. We found him, and a second shot from the 300 put him down for the count. I am embarrassed at the poor shooting, but i think I should share the good with the bad. After a break to eat and rest a bit, we went back out after springbok. I shot a nice ewe at 200 yards, that we had mistaken for a ram. I didn't mind at all, as I wasn't planning on a trophy for it anyway. After dinner, I went out with one of the guys who is a semi-professional jackal hunter. He has a 1993 Toyota Hilux kitted out for predator hunting. In the bed is a homemade swivel seat with a mount for a rifle and an integrated spotlight. We also used a FoxPro Inferno caller, reprogrammed with jackal sounds. I was in an observation role on this one, but my companion dropped a female jackal in the dark at 340 meters. It was impressive.

 

[MikeDeltaFoxtrot]

Day 3

This morning we drove to another property about 30 minutes away to hunt waterbuck. The terrain was very rugged. We saw a group of five almost right away, but there were three cows and two small bulls--no big bull to shoot. We spent another 2.5 hours locating and stalking a nice bull. We used the farm's LandCruiser and made several dismounted stalks. The terrain was very rugged. Ultimately, our final stalk put us 120 yards from a group of six animals that included a very nice bull. I shot him with my 375 at 120 yard from a sitting position off the sticks. He was quartering away, so I place the shot fairly far back behind his shoulder. He ran about a 100 yards and was out of sight. We found him a few minutes later, dead. The 260 grain Nosler Partition did not exit, but when the skinners removed his internal organs, we learned that the shot shredded his liver and both lungs. I was very pleased with the hunt.

 

[Graham Hunter]

Well you got one off your original list!! LOL Enjoy.

 

[cagkt3]

Great hunt so far! How do you like the FHF harness @MikeDeltaFoxtrot

 

[Ridgewalker]

More great days in Africa! Oh I’m jealous!
A 340 m jackal in the dark! Remarkable! I can’t seem to get one at 30 m in the dark!

 

[MikeDeltaFoxtrot]

Great hunt so far! How do you like the FHF harness @MikeDeltaFoxtrot

So far I am very pleased. It doesn’t bounce around, and it carries well. Both binos and rangefinder are very accessible.

 

[cpr0312]

You have done well s far!! Congrats on the early goings on!

 

[MikeDeltaFoxtrot]

Day 4

Today we moved to another farm, where we will spend the night in a lovely guesthouse. We mounted yet another Toyota LandCruiser in search of impala. The usual pattern of locating from the cruiser and stalking on foot went on for a while. I ended up taking a decent, but not trophy ram at 130 yards, using the PH's Savage Model 12 chambered in 260 Remington. The 123 grain Nosler bullet performed well. He went about 10 yards and dropped.

We went back out after blesbok. They were very skittish, and after a number of stalks and several times I was on the rifle on to see have them run before I could shoot, I shot a decent, but not trophy quality ram at 265 yards with my 300. It was not the best shot, and I put him down with a follow up at 200 yards. I am very content with both animals.

Tomorrow we go to another farm in pursuit of kudu. Note: if you are going to hunt the EC, be prepared for 300 yard shots from improvised positions. It has been fun and challenging.

 

[Ridgewalker]

Sounds like quite the challenging hunt! Congratulations on getting some animals under some difficult shooting conditions.

 

[Shootist43]

MDF good hunt so far. Are you already contemplating your next one?

 

[375 Ruger Fan]

Great report so far, excellent trophies and top notch shooting!

 

[MikeDeltaFoxtrot]

Catching up. Connectivity has been limited.

Day 5

We packed up and traveled to a large sheep farm. This property is not operated as a game farm, but my friend knows the owner. The farm includes a mountain populated by kudo. We spotted some and hiked in a mile or so, trying not to spook them. Five hours of pounding up and down the moment resulted. We saw a number of kudo, including a nice bull, but I could not get a reasonable shot at him. The terrain was extremely rough, and recovery of a wounded animal would have been difficult or impossible. I had a great time hunting true, free range kudo. It will be at the top of my list next trip.

 

[MikeDeltaFoxtrot]

Day 6

Woke up at 4:30 to finish the week with a fallow deer hunt. We drove about an hour up into Barkly Pass. The elevation rose steeply. We hunted a 4,000 hectare sheep farm surrounded by mountain peaks. We were at about 9,000 feet, and I felt it as we hiked. This was a pure walk and stalk hunt similar to the day before. After thirty minutes of vigorous walking, we crested a ridge and spotted a group of seven fallow deer below. They were facing away from us with their heads down, and at first we thought they were does. Then they raised their heads, and we saw they were all stags! I got on the sticks from a sitting position and took the biggest one at 320 yards with my .300 Win. He stumbled about 50 feet and went down for the count. My quartering away shot entered through his ribs, shredded the bottom of his heart, and exited through his opposite shoulder. This farm has no game fence, and the deer are free ranging. This was a great way to finish the week.

 

[Ridgewalker]

What a fun hunt! Thanks for sharing! Have a safe trip home!

 

[cagkt3]

Fallow are such beautiful animals, definitely on my list one day. Congrats!

 

[tarbe]

Good hunt and thanks for the report!

There is some long shooting in the EC, and you did your share.

One animal I did not get on my PG hunt there in 2015 was the red beest. Guess I have to go back! Thanks for reminding me, lol.