JimP
AH legend
- Joined
- Dec 14, 2014
- Messages
- 4,888
- Reaction score
- 11,609
- Location
- Gypsum, Co
- Media
- 64
- Member of
- NRA, RMEF
- Hunted
- US (Utah, Arizona, Idaho, Colorado, Nevada. Canada (British Colombia), South Africa (Eastern Cape)
I’ll start with telling the rest of you that if you are planning on loosing weight on your safari forget booking with Frontier. Their food is out of this world and there is lots of it. Starting with breakfast, then lunch, and finally dinner. You can eat like a king. Now onto my hunt.
The first day out my PH took me to his property that he owns. It was an hour or so down the road so we got an early start. Once on the property we drove past his home and onto the hunting area. Here he had ostriches and another bunch of animals right near his home. We drove past quite a few impala and up a hill. We started down a hill and we spotted a nice kudu. We both watched him as he fed and I tried to determine if he was as good as the one that I had taken several years ago. Cid my PH liked him and told me to go ahead and take him if I wanted. I got out of the truck and walked a ways to where I could sit down and get a good rest. At the shot the kudu reared up onto his hind legs and was into the brush. We tracked him for about a half a mile when we decided to get up onto some high ground and let my tracker push him towards us or into a clearing. Well after another quarter of a mile this wasn’t working so Cid called in one of his workers to help out. We headed up to a higher location where we could watch more clear spots and see what was going on. Once the two trackers started to push the brush the kudu was moving from groups of trees to groups of trees. I finally got a shot and managed to hit him again. The trackers got up to him but stayed about 50 yards behind him until we got down to the location. As we tried to get a little bit closer he was up on his feet and moving, a third shot put him down for good. He’s a little bit smaller than my first kudu but his a good one. I had my first animal of this year’s trip.
After dropping the kudu off at the skinning shed Cid and I took a drive to look around and came upon a herd of blue wildebeest. I could tell you that I took a 1000 yard stalk and then a 500 yard shot on a running wildebeest but that would be the fisherman in me. Truth be known I just got out of the truck and walked about 50 yards and had a 100 yard shot, this is almost too easy.
While the skinners were working on my first two animals Cid and I took another drive. We got to a location overlooking a green valley where a number of impala were feeding with a couple still in the rut mode. We hiked down into it and watched one nice ram trying to breed a female. Once he was in the clear all it took was one shot and I had my third animal of day one, could this get any better. Cid called the skinners and they came out in a truck to haul the impala back to the shed. My tracker got back with us and we headed to another location where Cid said that the warthogs liked to hang out. Well, after about a half mile walk there was a group of them. There was a fence post right near me so I was using that as a rest. There was a nice boar in the group but there was always another one behind him. Finally he was by himself and I took the shot. It was a clean miss over his back and they were gone. I could have had 4 animals down the first day. This is some fantastic hunting.
Day two found us heading north to a different property for gemsbok. Once we found the property and picked up a tracker we headed up a mountain to see if we could find any. On the way up Cid spotted a mountain reedbuck up on the hill around 400 yards away. There was no way of getting any closer so I found a tree where I could use a sturdy branch for a rest. At the shot the reedbuck was rolling down the hill. He rolled around 20 yards and then he caught up on some brush. One more animal down.
Once we retrieved the reedbuck we headed up the hill again. The tracker tapped on the hood of the truck and let us know that he had spotted some gemsbok. We drove a little bit further to get the truck out of sight and then hiked back to where the tracker had seen them. Down the hill there was a group of 6 or 7 of them feeding in the trees. Cid decided that one of the trackers should go down into the valley and get behind the gemsbok and push them up the hill to where I could get a shot. We hiked down to a large tree where I could get a good rest and waited.
Soon they were on the move. The only problem was that we couldn’t see them and they were moving the wrong direction. Elvis, my tracker spotted them down the hill and to my right. Cid got the sticks up but the wind was blowing so bad it was hard to get steady on them. As I watched them through my scope I hoped that both they and the wind would stop. I spotted a bull with them and tracked him. Then he stopped, just at that moment the wind also stopped and I pulled the trigger. He was now running and I tried to track him but didn’t notice any blood. He came to a stop again and I shot again, only this time the wind was really kicking up. They were off again so we followed down the ridge staying above them. We then spotted the bull laying down, I worked my way down to a rocky outcropping where I could get a solid rest in the wind. I took a shot and Cid yelled that I had shot over him. I lowered the sights and took another shot. It was a solid hit and he was done. We hiked down to him and got some pictures. The wind was blowing so bad that it was hard to steady the camera so the picture of him is blurry. As Elvis cleaned him the other tracker called in 2 more to help get this bull out of the bottom and up to the truck. It was going to be quite a chore to do so. Finally all of us and the gemsbok were back to the truck and we were headed back to the lodge.
The third day was a bust for me. We drove around without seeing anything that I wanted to shoot. Then that afternoon Cid told me to pack a overnight bag and we would take a trip.
Day 4 was an early day. We headed to Cid’s property again and hunted one of his neighbor’s property. I wanted a warthog so that is what we were after. We saw several but were never able to make a stalk or get close to them. The day ended and I had a fantastic dinner that Cid’s wife cooked. A nice lamb roast with all the trimmings. The next day we were up bright and early and had breakfast. Then back to Cid’s friend’s property looking for a warthog. We hiked quite a ways and then watched a group of them just on another person’s property. We hiked along the edge of the fields and then up onto the ridge, then there he was about 40 yards away. It only took a second and it was over, I had my warthog. We loaded him up and headed to the skinning shed. Then it was over to another property to look for a bleastbuck. We found some on a hill but they took off at the sight of us. We then got out of the truck and had Elvis drive around to the far side of the property where they had ran and while we were hiking down towards them he would see if he could push them back towards us. This worked quite well. It wasn’t long before they were coming straight at us. I was set up on the sticks and at 150 yards one stopped just in the right spot. Another one down.
The next morning we were after baboons on the same property that I had shot my warthog on. There was a large canyon that they liked so we dropped off Elvis and another tracker at the bottom and Cid and I drove up to the top to wait hoping that they would be pushed up to us. But no luck. We then headed to a area to sit and watch a pond to see if I could get a duiker. We sat and watched for about an hour when a warthog came out and began to feed below us. After another hour or so all of a sudden a duiker came out of the trees right below us, ran past the warthog and into a field and stopped at 300 yards. Cid said that he was a good one so I pulled the trigger, one more off of the list. Cid then asked if I would like to try calling in a jackal, he didn’t have to ask twice. We went back to his property and picked up an electronic call and headed up the hill for the rest of the evening. Nothing show up so it was back to Frontier.
We were now trying to get some of my 3 elective animals off of my list. We decided to try for a cull bleastbuck. Once again when we found them the wind was blowing so badly and they were so spooked that we never got close enough. We were at the lodge and another PH mentioned that there were some nice baboons at a location so off we went. As we got near we spooked a number of them so we took a different road and then hiked up onto a hill to watch. Once up on top of the small hill we spotted a single baboon sitting in the middle of a field. I got up onto the sticks and pulled the trigger and he was down. As we drove over to where he was at he got up and made it to some brush. As Cid and Elvis moved around the brush to the left I stayed in the middle and then say him trying to make an escape to the right. He was at a fence post and going up it to a hole in the fence when I took the shot. It took him through the fence and he was down, I had a baboon.
I was now down to two cull animals. A female impala and a female bleastbuck. We tried locations for the bleastbuck but with the wind and how spooky they were nothing was happening. Finally we got into a location where I was able to take the impala. Then the next morning we headed to a new location for the bleastbuck. We spotted them and followed them down the ridge as the mist came in. Finally Cid told me which one was a female and to take the shot. Well 4 shots later I had hit her twice but she was still moving. We sent Elvis over to track her into a group of thick trees while I waited to see if I could get off another shot the blood trail had ended and Elvis couldn’t find any more. Cid and I took the truck around to the ridge and hiked down it. Cid called in another PH who had a tracking dog but just after the call he found her. It was over and I had all of my animals for this trip.
Just to let you know Frontier Safaris is a top notch camp. The food is fantastic and the rooms can’t be beat. I’d go back in a heartbeat.
The first day out my PH took me to his property that he owns. It was an hour or so down the road so we got an early start. Once on the property we drove past his home and onto the hunting area. Here he had ostriches and another bunch of animals right near his home. We drove past quite a few impala and up a hill. We started down a hill and we spotted a nice kudu. We both watched him as he fed and I tried to determine if he was as good as the one that I had taken several years ago. Cid my PH liked him and told me to go ahead and take him if I wanted. I got out of the truck and walked a ways to where I could sit down and get a good rest. At the shot the kudu reared up onto his hind legs and was into the brush. We tracked him for about a half a mile when we decided to get up onto some high ground and let my tracker push him towards us or into a clearing. Well after another quarter of a mile this wasn’t working so Cid called in one of his workers to help out. We headed up to a higher location where we could watch more clear spots and see what was going on. Once the two trackers started to push the brush the kudu was moving from groups of trees to groups of trees. I finally got a shot and managed to hit him again. The trackers got up to him but stayed about 50 yards behind him until we got down to the location. As we tried to get a little bit closer he was up on his feet and moving, a third shot put him down for good. He’s a little bit smaller than my first kudu but his a good one. I had my first animal of this year’s trip.
After dropping the kudu off at the skinning shed Cid and I took a drive to look around and came upon a herd of blue wildebeest. I could tell you that I took a 1000 yard stalk and then a 500 yard shot on a running wildebeest but that would be the fisherman in me. Truth be known I just got out of the truck and walked about 50 yards and had a 100 yard shot, this is almost too easy.
While the skinners were working on my first two animals Cid and I took another drive. We got to a location overlooking a green valley where a number of impala were feeding with a couple still in the rut mode. We hiked down into it and watched one nice ram trying to breed a female. Once he was in the clear all it took was one shot and I had my third animal of day one, could this get any better. Cid called the skinners and they came out in a truck to haul the impala back to the shed. My tracker got back with us and we headed to another location where Cid said that the warthogs liked to hang out. Well, after about a half mile walk there was a group of them. There was a fence post right near me so I was using that as a rest. There was a nice boar in the group but there was always another one behind him. Finally he was by himself and I took the shot. It was a clean miss over his back and they were gone. I could have had 4 animals down the first day. This is some fantastic hunting.
Day two found us heading north to a different property for gemsbok. Once we found the property and picked up a tracker we headed up a mountain to see if we could find any. On the way up Cid spotted a mountain reedbuck up on the hill around 400 yards away. There was no way of getting any closer so I found a tree where I could use a sturdy branch for a rest. At the shot the reedbuck was rolling down the hill. He rolled around 20 yards and then he caught up on some brush. One more animal down.
Once we retrieved the reedbuck we headed up the hill again. The tracker tapped on the hood of the truck and let us know that he had spotted some gemsbok. We drove a little bit further to get the truck out of sight and then hiked back to where the tracker had seen them. Down the hill there was a group of 6 or 7 of them feeding in the trees. Cid decided that one of the trackers should go down into the valley and get behind the gemsbok and push them up the hill to where I could get a shot. We hiked down to a large tree where I could get a good rest and waited.
Soon they were on the move. The only problem was that we couldn’t see them and they were moving the wrong direction. Elvis, my tracker spotted them down the hill and to my right. Cid got the sticks up but the wind was blowing so bad it was hard to get steady on them. As I watched them through my scope I hoped that both they and the wind would stop. I spotted a bull with them and tracked him. Then he stopped, just at that moment the wind also stopped and I pulled the trigger. He was now running and I tried to track him but didn’t notice any blood. He came to a stop again and I shot again, only this time the wind was really kicking up. They were off again so we followed down the ridge staying above them. We then spotted the bull laying down, I worked my way down to a rocky outcropping where I could get a solid rest in the wind. I took a shot and Cid yelled that I had shot over him. I lowered the sights and took another shot. It was a solid hit and he was done. We hiked down to him and got some pictures. The wind was blowing so bad that it was hard to steady the camera so the picture of him is blurry. As Elvis cleaned him the other tracker called in 2 more to help get this bull out of the bottom and up to the truck. It was going to be quite a chore to do so. Finally all of us and the gemsbok were back to the truck and we were headed back to the lodge.
The third day was a bust for me. We drove around without seeing anything that I wanted to shoot. Then that afternoon Cid told me to pack a overnight bag and we would take a trip.
Day 4 was an early day. We headed to Cid’s property again and hunted one of his neighbor’s property. I wanted a warthog so that is what we were after. We saw several but were never able to make a stalk or get close to them. The day ended and I had a fantastic dinner that Cid’s wife cooked. A nice lamb roast with all the trimmings. The next day we were up bright and early and had breakfast. Then back to Cid’s friend’s property looking for a warthog. We hiked quite a ways and then watched a group of them just on another person’s property. We hiked along the edge of the fields and then up onto the ridge, then there he was about 40 yards away. It only took a second and it was over, I had my warthog. We loaded him up and headed to the skinning shed. Then it was over to another property to look for a bleastbuck. We found some on a hill but they took off at the sight of us. We then got out of the truck and had Elvis drive around to the far side of the property where they had ran and while we were hiking down towards them he would see if he could push them back towards us. This worked quite well. It wasn’t long before they were coming straight at us. I was set up on the sticks and at 150 yards one stopped just in the right spot. Another one down.
The next morning we were after baboons on the same property that I had shot my warthog on. There was a large canyon that they liked so we dropped off Elvis and another tracker at the bottom and Cid and I drove up to the top to wait hoping that they would be pushed up to us. But no luck. We then headed to a area to sit and watch a pond to see if I could get a duiker. We sat and watched for about an hour when a warthog came out and began to feed below us. After another hour or so all of a sudden a duiker came out of the trees right below us, ran past the warthog and into a field and stopped at 300 yards. Cid said that he was a good one so I pulled the trigger, one more off of the list. Cid then asked if I would like to try calling in a jackal, he didn’t have to ask twice. We went back to his property and picked up an electronic call and headed up the hill for the rest of the evening. Nothing show up so it was back to Frontier.
We were now trying to get some of my 3 elective animals off of my list. We decided to try for a cull bleastbuck. Once again when we found them the wind was blowing so badly and they were so spooked that we never got close enough. We were at the lodge and another PH mentioned that there were some nice baboons at a location so off we went. As we got near we spooked a number of them so we took a different road and then hiked up onto a hill to watch. Once up on top of the small hill we spotted a single baboon sitting in the middle of a field. I got up onto the sticks and pulled the trigger and he was down. As we drove over to where he was at he got up and made it to some brush. As Cid and Elvis moved around the brush to the left I stayed in the middle and then say him trying to make an escape to the right. He was at a fence post and going up it to a hole in the fence when I took the shot. It took him through the fence and he was down, I had a baboon.
I was now down to two cull animals. A female impala and a female bleastbuck. We tried locations for the bleastbuck but with the wind and how spooky they were nothing was happening. Finally we got into a location where I was able to take the impala. Then the next morning we headed to a new location for the bleastbuck. We spotted them and followed them down the ridge as the mist came in. Finally Cid told me which one was a female and to take the shot. Well 4 shots later I had hit her twice but she was still moving. We sent Elvis over to track her into a group of thick trees while I waited to see if I could get off another shot the blood trail had ended and Elvis couldn’t find any more. Cid and I took the truck around to the ridge and hiked down it. Cid called in another PH who had a tracking dog but just after the call he found her. It was over and I had all of my animals for this trip.
Just to let you know Frontier Safaris is a top notch camp. The food is fantastic and the rooms can’t be beat. I’d go back in a heartbeat.
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