SOUTH AFRICA: My “Hurricane Hippo” With BAYLY SIPPEL SAFARIS

[Fatback]

I have a little bit of time so I am going to start my hunt report from my recent hunt with @BAYLY SIPPEL SAFARIS. My desire to try and hunt a hippo all started for me last September of 2022 while I was hunting on the Kwando River in the Caparivi. I saw all sorts of hippos, some up close and personal and thought it would be great fun to try and get one, on land. Well when I got back I sent out quite a few PMs to various outfitter to set up my hunting plans for 2023. After discussing options with several operations and speaking with references provided by the various PH/Outfitters I decided to book a hunt with Bayly/Sipple. Before I go any further with this report I want to emphasize that I truly believe I would have had a great hunt with any of the outfits that I spoke with who are sponsors here on the AH site.

Since I couldn’t hunt with all of them I had to decide and based on several factors including the ones I mentioned earlier, price, timing of my hunt that I booked, etc… I had several good conversations with Dempsey Bayly, who was going to be my PH about what to expect and all I can say is did he ever under promise and over deliver on this hippo hunt. I was adamant that I wanted to hunt his hippo on land and he assured me that is what we would do and that is what we did for 3 hard and long days, but I don’t want to get ahead of my self.

An overview of my travel issues can be found in the thread “On My Way”. Once I made it on board the plane over, all went smoothly. Representatives from Gracy Travel met me off the plane, walked me through customs and baggage claim and turned me over to Bruce for clearing my rifles through the SAP office. All went smoothly and Brice then helped me find Dempsey in the arrivals areas. Hands were shook and greetings exchanged and we headed toward his Toyota HiLux that would be our mode of transportation for the upcoming week. A couple of quick stops in town and we are on our way to camp. One final note before I finish for this evening is that I’ve have always believed you can tell a lot about a person by how they treat animals and children. Well one of our stops was to pick up Dempsey’s hunting dog, Ricky, from his wife, and based on how he treated his 4 legged hunting partner I knew I was in good hands

Ricky, a fine gentlemen of a pup and a real pleasure to hunt with and have in camp.

To be close continued…..

 

[shootist~]

Nice start...following along, and anticipation building.

 

[Fatback]

I find that whenever I meet a guide or PH that I will be hunting with for the first time there is a “feeling out” process going on from both sides of the conversation. The PH is trying to figure out what kind of person he is going to be hunting with based on previous experiences of the hunter, the type of questions the hunter is asking l, etc…. As a client I’m doing the same type of thing. What kind of answers am I getting to my questions, is he laid back or more high strung, etc…. Well on our drive to camp I really seemed to have a lot in common with Dempsey and we were swapping hunting stories, details about our families, etc… I was once again reassured that I had made a good choice for who I would be hunting with over the next week. We started discussing the details of the upcoming hunt. Dempsey told me that he had a particular hippo in mind for our hunt. An older bull, that had taken to bedding on land during the day and not staying in one of the several dams on the property. He felt as if we could track this hippo much like a buffalo hunt and try and get close for a shot. This sounded just like what I wanted to do. This is sounding exciting. So now that Dempsey has set the stage for what the hunt could be, he then starts telling me some of the difficulties we might encounter. Hippos can be difficult to track on land, he is bedding in some “thick” cover, there may or may not be other hippos around with him that we might have to be aware of. Then he made sure that I understood the potential dangers of on land hippo hunting in general and the importance of making a good first shot so as not to ratchet up an already dangerous situation by having to follow up a poorly shot and wounded hippo in the type of cover he would be in, not to mention the possibility of him getting into the water and making a potential recovery much more difficult and dangerous. I assured him I was aware of all of this and would follow his lead and do my very best to make sure we didn’t find ourselves with a wounded, dangerous animal to have to “sort out.” I did ask that unless he felt is was absolutely needed to ensure safety that I would prefer he not shoot the hippo after I made my first shot. Obviously, if there was the slightest chance of the situation becoming dangerous I wanted him to shoot as much as needed to keep everyone safe but if it could be avoided I would prefer that. I understood that would depend on how I handled the situation from the start. We agreed and that issue was settled.

We arrived at a well appointed camp to be greeted by staff with a refreshing drink and a warm cloth for washing your face. A welcome treat after the long journey to get here. My belongings were taken to my chalet. As it was getting later in the afternoon I hustled up and got my gear squared away and met Dempsey back at the HiLux with my rifles that I brought on this hunt, my 404Jeffery and 375 H&H and we were off to the Range. The zero was confirmed on both weapons quickly and were were back at camp for a drink, a fine meal and a bit of time around the campfire. Such a good feeling to be back in Africa, around good people with the entirety of your adventure awaiting you. I headed off to try and get some sleep but before I did, I checked in with the family back at home, via text message since the camp has Wi-Fi. All was well with the family at home. I also checked the weather for home and saw that there was a chance of rain for later in the week at home which was much needed. There was a possible tropical disturbance down around the Yucatán in Mexico that might bring some rain later in the week. It was not even a named system at this point. I figured, how bad could it be. It would bring some much needed rain and maybe the wind would blow a little bit. My wife assured me everything should be fine but that she had already started to take the needed steps to ensure that they would be safe and sound. She told me to just focus on my hunt and be safe and she had everything covered at home. I went to bed with thoughts of hippos in thick cover but in the back of mind mind, a small bit lingering though about the possible weather at home was there, I convinced myself it should be no big deal and drifted off to sleep….

To be continued…..

 

[Fatback]

I haven’t forgotten about this hunt report, just been busy with work and hurricane clean up. I finally have a few minutes so onward we go.

DAY 1 I wake up at 5:45 am, gather my gear and my thoughts and head over for breakfast. Breakfast is served at 6:30 and was quite tasty. Sausage, scrambled eggs and toast. Your choice of coffee, tea or juice. The food and staff at Bayly/Sipple Safaris is top notch. After breakfast Dempsey introduces me to the rest of the team that will be helping aid in this quest for an on land hippo. Trackers are Eric and Alfred, tracker/driver is Big John and there is an apprentice PH, Ollie, that will be part of the group. Proper introductions were made and we load up on the HiLux and we are off. It is overcast, breezy and cool. Not the type of weather I have experienced on my other safaris but to be honest, it had been so brutally hot this summer at home, it was a welcome relief.

Dempsey tells me they we are going to check the several dams on the property and see if we can find a track of a hippo and “do a bit of tracking” Apparently, there are a couple of hippos that have taken to bedding on land during the day for what ever reason. What is being described to me sounds a lot like hunting buffalo, this could get exciting. After about an hour a promising track is picked up by Eric and we, with excitement and a bit of trepidation, take up the track. It is very slow going due to the amount and type of cover this hippos was wandered into to bed down. Also, we are being cautious as visibility is limited to 40-50 yard at most. We don’t want to just stumble on and surprise a hippo at close quarters. We stay in the track for about 3 hours and then we lose the track. Dempsey makes the call to back out and head back and eat lunch and pick it up in an hour or so. I think everybody was glad for the break as it takes a lot of effort to remain that focused for such an extended period of time. If it was excitement I was looking for, I believe I may get more than my fair share on this hunt.

Back at the lodge for a quick lunch and I get the chance to check the weather back home. The tropical disturbance that was down around Mexico had now developed into a named system, Hurricane Idalia. Checking the potential tracks of this storm leaves me a bit concerned and some of them have the storm tracking directly over Valdosta, GA which is only 15 miles from my home. I get a sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach as I know how destructive these storms can be and I am obviously concerned for my family and friends back home. However, there is nothing I can do from half a world away, so I say a quick prayer asking for protection of my loved ones and we are back out hunting.

The afternoon unfold very similar to the morning’s hunt. Eric picks the track back up and over the course of the next couple hours we make our way through the thickest, nastiest brush I’ve ever hunted in. Then suddenly Eric comes to a quick halt, Dempsey and Eric have a hushed exchange and Dempsey motions me forward. There, about 25 yards in front of us is a bedded down hippo, they tell me. I have to trust them as I can not make anything out of the tangle of thorns in front of me. After a few minutes and looking I am finally able to start to make out the hippo bedded down in front of me. After closer inspection by Dempsey, he tells me he is pretty sure that this is a cow and not the bull we are after. He thinks the bull must be close by but due to the cover we are unable to spot him. We carefully back out a bit so that we can have a chance to make a plan. Over the course of the next hour we make several different approaches to try and get a better view and to try and confirm the hippo we can see is a bull or a cow or to try and see if there is actually another hippo bedded in there. We are unable to accomplish either goal and as light is fading Dempsey makes the wise choice that it is best if we back out before it gets any darker, so we make our way back to the HiLux and on to camp for supper. I thank everybody for there efforts today and let them know how much I appreciate the effort we put in. I check my fitness tracker that I wear and it tells me we covered almost 4 miles on the tracks of hippo. I can feel the effects of being on such high alert for such an extended period of time so I don’t linger around the campfire too late and as I am getting ready to head to bed, I am able to get a text message through to my wife to let her know I am safe and that as for now so are the hippos. We discuss the storm and she assure me she was all the preparations made and supplies laid in that they will need, if the storm comes like some are forecasting. I tell her I love her and that I know she had things under control. Still as a husband and a father I am concerned so it is with these thoughts bouncing around in my mind that I retire for the evening and finally drift off to sleep.

Tomorrow will be a new day.

To be continued…..

 

[Mark Biggerstaff]

Enjoying this a lot. Can't wait for more!

 

[Fatback]

Before I head off to bed, it’s been a long couple of days running a chain saw, I figured I could add a few pictures.

The camp

 

[Fatback]

Day 2 starts similar to the first day. Up at 5:45 am, after a good night’s sleep. Breakfast at 6:30. Eggs, sausage and toast and we are off to the HiLux to go in search of a hippo. The day is overcast and a bit breezy again but it doesn’t take long for the sun to burn through the clouds and it is turning out to be a beautiful day. It takes Eric about 20 minutes to sort out the track we want and it is off on the track of what we hope is the hippo bull we want to take. It is again slow going due to the seriousness of the task at hand and the type of cover we are trying to work quietly through. Over the course of the next couple of hours and a few starts and stops Eric quickly and we all freeze where we are standing. Eric is studying the ground that is entering and even thicker patch of bush. We start working out way around an about 30 yard square patch of the thickest, nastiest bush in all of Africa. We are trying to determine in the tracks that have been followed into this hell’s half acre can be found leaving it. After slowly making our way around this area, we are back where we started and there is only the tracks that enter without any sign of them leaving.



After discussing the circumstances we find ourselves in we believe that the bull is in there and there is no way to safely pursue into this cover. We would have to get on hands and knees and crawl on there and obviously that is not an option not knowing exactly where the bull is in this mess. Dempsey makes the call the just wait and not and see if the bull decides to make a move on his own. After about an hour of waiting and deliberating Dempsey comes up with a plan to try and get the bull to move out of this cover to an area that might be more conducive to a shot. The plan involves hurling a rock into cover to get the hippo rousted out of his bed. We discuss the possible pros and cons of such a move and decide to give it a go. Eric has apparently missed his calling as a MLB pitcher and he throws the rock and I swear he must have scored a direct hit on the hippo bull. There is a tremendous commotion and what sounds like a thundering stampede erupts through the brush, thankfully, away from us. We never actually see the hippo just hear and then witness the trampled brush after he beat his hasty retreat. Well, that didn’t go exactly as planned. It appears Mr. Hippo did not appreciate getting bonked with a rock and has left the area. Dempsey decides our best course of action is to back off the hippo and let him rest the last couple of hours of the day and try and take up the track in the morning. So on to plan B, I didn’t really have any specific PG on my wish list. So after a brief discussion with Dempsey we determine to just go see what the African bush is willing to share with us and take advantage of any exceptional quality trophies we might encounter.

So off to another part of the property that Bayly/Sipple has access to hunt. We are seeing all type of game, Wsterbuck, Kudu cows, Impala, Steenbok, Duiker. Some nice animals for sure but nothing old enough to draw out interest. With about 45 minutes of light left, we spot a large group of Red Heartabeast. Dempsey thinks we should go take a look so off we go. For this chore I am carrying my Winchester M70 in 375 H&H, loaded with 300 grain Swift AFrames. After a 30 minute stalk that included quite a bit of crawling and sliding around on our rear ends, we are 175 yards from 30-35 heartabeasts and they have no idea we are there. Dempsey is surveying them closely and he has identified a tremendous old bull. Tall, massive and long sweeping tips. The sticks go up, I settled in and a brief discussion ensues to make sure we are on the same animal. We agree that we are, there is no mistaking this bull, he is obviously bigger, by far, than another other animal in the herd. I settle the red dot of the Leupold VX6 on his right shoulder and Dempsey is trying to confirm that I am on the right animal and the shot breaks and I am expecting to see a reaction and a reaction is what I get, not the one I am wanting, the entire herd running away kicking up a cloud of dust. Then I hear the words nobody wants to hear, “I think you missed.” Huh? I am in a bit of disbelief. I felt very solid and comfortable with the shot. We go down with the Eric, Alfred and Big John and start to look for sign of a hit. Nothing, nada a clean miss. I am obviously disappointed in my shooting performance but I would much rather a clean miss than a poor hit. It is kind of a quite ride back to camp. But I am not going to let this get me down, tomorrow is a new day with new opportunities awaiting. Dinner and time around the fire seem to wash away the bad juju from my poor display of shooting. I am able to make contact with my wife back at home and forecast for Idalia is not liking good for our home. It is tracking to come over the top of our place and it appears to be strengthening. The concern for my family and friends back home replaces any thoughts of my missed opportunity on the heartabeast. I head off to bed to bed and ask the Good Lord to look after my family and friends and keep them safe through the upcoming storm and I am actively pursuing a storm of my own, in the form of a bull hippo, on dry land. The storm is supposed to hit home tomorrow and I fade off to sleep thinking that tomorrow might also be the day that I face my own storm.

An example of the type of cover we have been tracking in the last 2 days

To be continued….

 

[Fatback]

Day 3.

I am up well before the alarm, anxious about the hurricane and how my loved ones will fare. I say a prayer and ask the Lord to look out for my people. I know that is all I can do from here so that had to be enough. I get my self and my gear together and head over for breakfast. Once again breakfast is delicious and we are loaded up on the HiLux and off in search of a hippo. It isn’t long and Eric finds the tracks and we begin our stalk. Several hours into this stalk and Eric freezes, which starts a chain reaction of the rest of the team stopping in place. I can see Eric squat down and start studying the dense brush in front of us. For the life of me I can only see thorns and brush but it is obvious to me that he sees something else. He motions Dempsey up the 2 yards to so that they can peer into this abyss together. After a few minutes, Eric slowly eases back past me and Dempsey motions me forward. As I start to move forward, I get a look from Dempsey that conveys the message “Be Quiet, VERY QUIET” This may just be our opportunity. I slowly and as quietly as possible ease the 12 feet to Dempsey’s left shoulder and lean my head down. Dempsey hisses into my right ear, he is “Right There.”

Now, when I say that it was thick, it is thick enough to almost completely conceal not one but two adult hippos at 15 yards, because I can’t see a thing but brush and thorns. Now the most agonizing conversation of by hunting career begins to unfold. Do you see them? No. They are right there. I can’t see them. Dempsey has set the sticks and has motioned for me to get my rifle on them. He tells me to turn the power on my scope all the way up and look. After about 30 seconds of this, I see the twitch of an ear, then my mind begins to piece together the outline of a hippo. I explain to Dempsey that I can no make out the outline of the hippo and that is when he tells me there are actually 2 hippos bedded down there. The bull is lying on his side, with his back to us and the what we think is a cow is laying right next to him, on her belly. I am back in the scope again and after about 30 more seconds I can see the the line that marks the destination between the two hippos. Now, how in the world am I going to be able to tread a 400 grain solid through this jungle. Over what seems like the next hour but was actually only about 3-4 minutes a fevered discussion unfolds between me and Dempsey. During the course of this discussion we analyze every branch, twig and blade of grass between us and the hippos. We finally agree that if I put the bullet just to the left of the gray branch and the right of the darker gray branch, just below the single stem of yellow grass we should be good. I settle into the rifle and take a couple of calming breaths. I am surprised when the 3lb trigger on my 404Jeffery breaks and sends a 400 grain Barnes Banded, Flat Nosed Solid on its way at 2,200 feet/second.

Then absolute chaos breaks out. The cow bolts like she has been hit by a lightning bolt and the bull begins trying to get up and follow her. I am already back on target after recoil and send the second round, work the bolt and send the third. I think I hear Dempsey telling me good shooting but I can be for sure as my only focus is getting 3 more rounds loaded into my rifle. I get that task accomplished and check with Dempsey, the bull hasn’t gotten up but is still struggling trying to so I shoot him 2 more times and and as the echo from the 5th shot begins to fade, all is deathly silent. Me and Dempsey look at each other with a sense of almost disbelief and the dangerous situation we seemed to have managed safely for all involved. I am not ashamed to say that at this point I get the shakes, pretty badly. This is not the first time this has happened to me but it is not a common occurrence either. After asking for and receiving a minute or two to collect my thoughts and gather myself a bit, the handshakes and hugs and congrats begin to flow like water from a broken dam. I have accomplished the goal I came half way around the world to accomplish with the help of Dempsey and his great team. I feel true gratitude to all involved and offer up a prayer of thanks for the team being able to complete this task safely.

Now when begin the push and hack our way to the downed hippo. When we get there all I can do is stare in amazement at the size of this beast. Dempsey tells me that this is by far the biggest hippo he has ever guided. We start cutting away some of the brush for pictures and wince that is done. Dempsey proceeded to instruct all of us on how we need to roll this hippo onto is stomach for pictures. Easier said than done but with 6 of us and a lot of elbow grease we are able to do just that. Then the photo shoot starts. I think Dempsey is only running Safari company and PHing until he gets his big break as a professional photographer. He does a great job with the pictures and then the real work begins. I’ll pick that part of the story up a bit later. But for now, here he is, the hippo bull of my dreams.

 

[Mark Biggerstaff]

Congrats on an awesome hippo! Thanks for taking us along. On this trip.

 

[Fixfire]

Wow!! Impressive trophy!! Taxidermy plans??

 

[Fatback]

I’m going to have a euro done of the skull and I am having some leather made from the hide that I will have made into rifle cases/gun bags. That is the plan as of now.

 

[Fixfire]

Good plan!!

 

[Firebird]

I love your “on land” experience! Congratulations on a monster bull and a great hunt. I’m eager to see what else you hunted while staying with Bayly Sippel-

 

[abnhog]

Congratulations on your bull and a great report. I know how thick it is when I was trying to get a dart in a rhino.

 

[gillettehunter]

Great bull. Sounds like an incredible hunt. Well done!
Bruce

 

[Karl Johnson]

Day 3.

I am up well before the alarm, anxious about the hurricane and how my loved ones will fare. I say a prayer and ask the Lord to look out for my people. I know that is all I can do from here so that had to be enough. I get my self and my gear together and head over for breakfast. Once again breakfast is delicious and we are loaded up on the HiLux and off in search of a hippo. It isn’t long and Eric finds the tracks and we begin our stalk. Several hours into this stalk and Eric freezes, which starts a chain reaction of the rest of the team stopping in place. I can see Eric squat down and start studying the dense brush in front of us. For the life of me I can only see thorns and brush but it is obvious to me that he sees something else. He motions Dempsey up the 2 yards to so that they can peer into this abyss together. After a few minutes, Eric slowly eases back past me and Dempsey motions me forward. As I start to move forward, I get a look from Dempsey that conveys the message “Be Quiet, VERY QUIET” This may just be our opportunity. I slowly and as quietly as possible ease the 12 feet to Dempsey’s left shoulder and lean my head down. Dempsey hisses into my right ear, he is “Right There.”

Now, when I say that it was thick, it is thick enough to almost completely conceal not one but two adult hippos at 15 yards, because I can’t see a thing but brush and thorns. Now the most agonizing conversation of by hunting career begins to unfold. Do you see them? No. They are right there. I can’t see them. Dempsey has set the sticks and has motioned for me to get my rifle on them. He tells me to turn the power on my scope all the way up and look. After about 30 seconds of this, I see the twitch of an ear, then my mind begins to piece together the outline of a hippo. I explain to Dempsey that I can no make out the outline of the hippo and that is when he tells me there are actually 2 hippos bedded down there. The bull is lying on his side, with his back to us and the what we think is a cow is laying right next to him, on her belly. I am back in the scope again and after about 30 more seconds I can see the the line that marks the destination between the two hippos. Now, how in the world am I going to be able to tread a 400 grain solid through this jungle. Over what seems like the next hour but was actually only about 3-4 minutes a fevered discussion unfolds between me and Dempsey. During the course of this discussion we analyze every branch, twig and blade of grass between us and the hippos. We finally agree that if I put the bullet just to the left of the gray branch and the right of the darker gray branch, just below the single stem of yellow grass we should be good. I settle into the rifle and take a couple of calming breaths. I am surprised when the 3lb trigger on my 404Jeffery breaks and sends a 400 grain Barnes Banded, Flat Nosed Solid on its way at 2,200 feet/second.

Then absolute chaos breaks out. The cow bolts like she has been hit by a lightning bolt and the bull begins trying to get up and follow her. I am already back on target after recoil and send the second round, work the bolt and send the third. I think I hear Dempsey telling me good shooting but I can be for sure as my only focus is getting 3 more rounds loaded into my rifle. I get that task accomplished and check with Dempsey, the bull hasn’t gotten up but is still struggling trying to so I shoot him 2 more times and and as the echo from the 5th shot begins to fade, all is deathly silent. Me and Dempsey look at each other with a sense of almost disbelief and the dangerous situation we seemed to have managed safely for all involved. I am not ashamed to say that at this point I get the shakes, pretty badly. This is not the first time this has happened to me but it is not a common occurrence either. After asking for and receiving a minute or two to collect my thoughts and gather myself a bit, the handshakes and hugs and congrats begin to flow like water from a broken dam. I have accomplished the goal I came half way around the world to accomplish with the help of Dempsey and his great team. I feel true gratitude to all involved and offer up a prayer of thanks for the team being able to complete this task safely.

Now when begin the push and hack our way to the downed hippo. When we get there all I can do is stare in amazement at the size of this beast. Dempsey tells me that this is by far the biggest hippo he has ever guided. We start cutting away some of the brush for pictures and wince that is done. Dempsey proceeded to instruct all of us on how we need to roll this hippo onto is stomach for pictures. Easier said than done but with 6 of us and a lot of elbow grease we are able to do just that. Then the photo shoot starts. I think Dempsey is only running Safari company and PHing until he gets his big break as a professional photographer. He does a great job with the pictures and then the real work begins. I’ll pick that part of the story up a bit later. But for now, here he is, the hippo bull of my dreams.

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Fantastic account or your hunt! Congratulations.

 

[cpr0312]

Congrats and thanks for sharing!

 

[Altitude sickness]

Thank you for the great story telling. The hurricane drama in between hunts added additional tension. Great bull congratulations

 

[DWB]

What an amazing hunt! This is exactly what I have been dreaming off as well!!!!

Well done!!!

 

[IvW]

Awesome when you can take them on land.....and an excellent one at that!