Sorry for the delay in filling everyone in. (came back from vacation with loads to do at the business, then a flu, then a minor surgery etc...).
Anyway I can give you my perception as I'm not privvy to their actual finances nor have I been on safari before. I did ask a lot of questions and made a point of trying to confirm what is happening with the trophies.
Again, I must add that I do not regret the trip. We had a fantastic time. Both us and other attendees loved the PHs we worked with.
However... there are plenty of signs that they are walking a tightrope financially and I fear that someone with a deposit will be cancelled on before the trip, will not be picked up at the airport, will be housed somewhere completely unexpected (ie in a spare room of someone at the last minute) or the most likely... simply not have access to hunting grounds. We barely had enough access. We were fortunate that our PH was very good at getting us to animals, and at pressing the issue when they tried to send us back to another small game farm. But we were also happy after shooting 3 animals each. Had we wanted to continue to take more all week, we were running out of opportunities.
As I think I already mentioned, we overheard an episode where an employee was sent to the ATM to take cash to a landowner so that we could continue to hunt there, because they owed money from previous hunts. (this caused us to go in later than desirable that day). Each day, there was a debate about who was hunting where, and availability was apparently an issue.
Our trophies were not subject to being withheld, because Bayete is working in different places than a few months ago. The trophies were taken to the home of the current local manager, and we have since verified that the taxidermist picked them up a few days later and is working on them. However, who knows what will happen to those who go later. I suppose it depends where you hunt.
We did stay at Mt Amanzi. It was adequate and we were happy there; it was not the "luxury" implied when the trip was booked however. They were adequately staffed in terms of a great cook and cleaning staff.
to answer an above question, Friike was one of the PHs but was not ours. We did talk and drink with him in the evenings.
The PHs are not responsible for this; they are trying their best to make a good situation. I'm not sure if the local manager (was a new guy named Peter while we were there) even is party to the problem or is rather trying to do his best. I suspect if things get worse he will drop out of the picture also. In short, my impression is that Bayete is one guy in the US (St John) making promises and then hoping and begging that people in Africa carry out enough of his promises to keep his safari company going.
The idea of offering a "free" safari isn't unrealistic as I come to understand the operations. If you give people lodging and food, most will come and shoot more than the minimum number of animals. A few will come and shoot a LOT of animals. Thus they can make back their "free" lodging and also gain more publicity. We did meet some other PHs and operators there. One of them is very experienced, is coming to the US to the safari club meeting and we will try to connect with him some time during his trip to the US . He may be able to offer you a similar deal (ie provide you lodging, you pay a fee for what you shoot) and I think would be a safer bet than Bayete. But I would want you to decide that for yourself. PM me if you want me to tell you more or connect you with him. We are considering booking a trip with him next year but I don't want to become a middleman for anyone else. Unlike the guy upthread, we are NOT interested in becoming a booking agent for anyone.
