SOUTH AFRICA: Tootabi Hunting Safaris In The Pink

[tarbe]

Tim,

This is certainly one of the most cerebral starts to a hunting report I have ever read.

Another preadolescent in love with Raquel Welch!!! I still think Raquel should have won the academy award for :

....."Oh, ohhh yeah!



Certainly enjoying your report and looking forward to the rest.

All the best.

I am over her. Really. I am.

 

[tarbe]

Blue Wildebeest!

While visiting Paul at Relive Taxidermy in Port Elizabeth, Kathy had a chance to see quite a few different animals mounted. One animal that she was intrigued by was the Blue Wildebeest.

Given that we had gone from 1 to 3 Zebra, I figured I would have to sacrifice an animal or two somewhere along the way. But it appeared Kathy thought it a good idea to chase a Blue WB, so guess what? I did what my wife wanted me to do!

Loodt knew of a farm nearby that had a group of 3 Beest running together that he thought we ought to be able to get onto, so off we went...just Loodt, Deon and me.

It took us about an hour to spot them...but of course, they spotted us before we spotted them. So we parked the Bakkie and started off after them, marking the spot on the ridge where they disappeared.

Oddly enough, when they went out of sight over the ridge, instead of turning left and moving more or less into the wind, they went right and with the wind. Maybe they were trying to circle around and catch our scent??

After just a short half-mile walk we made a visual on them and it came down to Loodt figuring out which should be the target. In truth, they were all the same. He told me to take the one in the middle and that is what I did. It was facing nearly straight on and I visualized where the heart was and fortunately put the bullet right where I wanted.

The Wildebeest ran 25 to 50 yards max and dropped.

 

[tarbe]

Kudu #2!

Next up was going to be Eland, but there was a twist to the plot.

The concession we were going to for Eland had an opportunity for a Kudu that, if we could capitalize on it, I could not say no to.

So we were going after Eland, but we had our eyes peeled for a Kudu that had a death sentence placed on it.

We arrived early in the am and it was still foggy and humid. We parked the Bakkie and took a hike down the road through the bush, to get to the edge of a large clearing to glass (well, sort of a clearing...there were bushes scattered around, but compared to much of the area, it was a clearing).

Amazingly, as we peered around the last bush, Loodt almost came out of his boots. He basically said "I see a Kudu you have to shoot"!

Remember what we learned earlier? TRUST YOUR PH! At least, that is what I was going to tell Kathy, in the event this whole thing went south!

The land owner was with us as Loodt put the sticks out. I later learned the land owner said (in Afrikanns) to Loodt something to the effect "you aren't going to let him shoot from here"?

I guess Loodt was feeling confident, and as soon as the sticks were up I let loose on the walking bull. The bull was obviously hit, but did not fall or break into a run...he just seemed to continue on his way. I took a too fast follow-up shot that turned out to just graze his brisket (shot 4 inches too far forward for effect).

It didn't matter. The bull fell within 50 yards and never fully made it into the bush.

I did not put a tape on any animal, but it was obvious that this bull was longer than the first...but of very similar, and pleasing, conformation.

As for the distance, I am not sure...it all happened very quickly. I held for a 250 yard shot and the recovered bullet shown below (on the left) compares favorably to the long range Zebra bullet on the right. So he was a ways off...

What was interesting about this bull is that both Loodt and the land owner estimated his age to be about 14 years. His hair was thin and his teeth were worn.

The land owner insisted that the bull would quite possibly not made it through the winter. So we felt very good about the timing of taking this bull!

Here is a cell phone photo of the concession where we chased this second Kudu, as well as Eland.

 

[BRICKBURN]

Great job.

You had way too much fun.

Thanks for sharing the sleep deprived/jet lagged write up.

 

[tarbe]

Eland!

Well, Loodt told me Eland was going to be tough...and he was, as usual, correct.

We got Kudu #2 off-loaded in a safe place and commenced to search for Eland. We caught a glimpse of a large, lone bull and Loodt can correct me if I am wrong, but I think we tracked and chased that bull for about 4 hours and we had to cover at least 5 miles.

I think we laid eyes on him three times, but they were all brief glimpses. One time this bull got into the thick stuff and the trackers were going in circles and figure 8s for what seemed forever! This bull was crafty!

At one point the trackers were busy sorting out the mess of sign and Loodt and I were 30 yards away in thick bush (trying to act like we were helping??) when all of a sudden we hear crashing in the bush just 30 to 50 yards behind us, heading the other way.

We think that darn bull was standing there the whole time while we got dizzy trying to find him! He finally tired of the nonsense and ran off.

We kinda half gave up on him and drove around to another part of the concession when who do you think we see, 300 yards out in a bit of a clearing? Yup, Mr. figure 8. By the time I get my tired butt up to the sticks he is running for Montana.

We watch him for 5 minutes and he never stops putting country between us and him. But being the gluttons for punishment that we are, we decide we are going to make one more good stalk on this boy, just to show him who's boss!

So we make a wide swing and try to come at him from a favorable wind, but I really don't think any of us thought it would turn out to be more than a nice 2 km walk in the bush with friends and a rifle. Which is exactly what it turned out to be.

Are you seeing a pattern here in this report? We are kinda slow to learn when we are defeated!

At this point, we decide we better find an Eland not quite so determined to make men look stupid. So we get on our horses (ok, the Bakkie) and head off to another section of the concession, searching all the while for a dumb Eland.

One nice thing about this country we were hunting is it is huge. Where I come from, if you see an animal a half-mile or a mile away, you'd have to trespass on 4 different properties to get to him.

Well, while driving along trying to forget about our butt-kicking from Mr. Figure 8, we spot 3 Eland in a clearing about a mile away. Loodt does a quick U-turn and we make a wide swing back around so we can park the Bakkie and hopefully execute a nice 400 to 600 yard stalk with the wind in our favor...pop around the last bush, pick out the oldest bull and start worrying about how to get a 1,600 pound animal into the truck with just 4 tired guys.

And that is exactly how it played out. After all the false starts, u-turns and dead-ends from earlier in the day, this second go-round worked out just as you'd dream it up.

We made our stalk, Loodt studied the Eland with his binos through the bush, got the sticks up (a little high...I had to shoot on my toes!) told me which bull to take and I shot him in the shoulder.

We thought he was going to go down right there in the field, so we held off shooting him again. In hindsight, I probably should have popped him again right away when he was only 150 yards or so off.

By the time we decided to shoot again he was farther out and had regained some composure....while I was loosing mine! I pulled my shot in front of him and he was in the bush.

We started walking down the edge of the pasture to intercept his path into the bush. When we got near his blood trail the Jack Russel took off like a shot and within 15 second he was barking up a storm, indicating he had the Eland at bay.

We got to him as quickly as possible and there stood an essentially dead Eland...his brain just didn't quite know it yet. The Jack Russel was barking, but the Eland seem oblivious to the dog or even to us, even though we were only 25 yards away.

He was quartering hard away so I put a Barnes near the back of his rib cage and angled it forward. He dropped immediately at the shot, but was still able to keep his head up, so I gave him another and that ended the affair.

It amazes me how these animals can cling to life. I guess life in Africa breeds a tenacity we should all hope to emulate.

Nothing brings in the flies like an Eland! Note the fly on my left cheek, on my hat, on my right arm and of course, on the Eland.

 

[tarbe]

This Eland was exactly what I told Loodt I was looking for. An old bull who was starting to turn blue, with a mop and a large dewlap. He had it all!

 

[tarbe]

Here is a pic of the Eland after a little ax work.

Note how much of the bed the front part of this boy takes up!

I can also attest that the four of us struggled mightily to get this piece of the beast into the truck!

 

[Diamondhitch]

Very nice, looking forward to the next chapter. Thanks for sharing.

 

[Diamondhitch]

View attachment 42672

Hey Billc, theres that shoulder hump you like.

 

[tarbe]

Zebra #3!

No doubt about it, if there is one gotta hunt animal on my short list right now, it has to be the Zebra. I never thought I'd be saying that, but my limited experience with them has been a blast. #3 was no exception!

We set out in the am to find the Zebra, first checking the area we found them in previously. No stripes.

Eventually we found the Eland herd and got excited, thinking there would be Zebra nearby...just like during our previous hunt.

Nope.

More searching and eventually we spot 3 Zebra in a small clearing on a hillside a long ways off (at least a half-mile). It appears there are two mature animals and one adolescent.

We drive the Bakkie a few hundred yards further and park it where, with a little walk, Kathy and the property owner's son can watch the Zebra while we make our stalk.

We must drop down and swing wide around the Zebra to find good cover and favorable wind for the stalk. We have previously discussed their keen senses, so we pick our way slowly...partly to be quiet and partly because after 15 or 20 minutes of picking your way through the bush, you kinda forget exactly where that darn Zebra was on that mountainside scattered with small clearings!

We knew we had to be getting somewhat close, so the last 100 meters was pretty slow going with frequent stops to get low and look for legs through the bush.

Eventually Deon spotted Zebra hide through the bush and the final approach could be made. We are now 50 yards from the animals and I have not yet seen my first patch of hair. Of course, I am in the back where I belong, so I am always the last to see!

Loodt motions for me to come up to him and he very quietly whispers that he is going to set up the sticks to his right and when I get on them, I should be able to see the Zebra.

He did as he said and sure enough, when I move the 3 feet to the right to get on the sticks, I can now see Zebra!

There are two, one mature and one adolescent. They are both facing straight away from me, offering only a Texas heart shot, which I would not take.

So long as the wind stayed favorable, and no one moved, and no one had a coughing fit...we should be able to stand here for some time, waiting on the mature animal to give me a target.

As luck would have it, within perhaps a minute, the Zebra raised its head slightly and turned it just a bit to the left. I was able to slip a bullet into the left side of the neck and out the forehead. The mare never heard the shot.

 

[tarbe]

Baboon #2!

So here we are, Zebra #3 is in the back of the truck and we are on our way to the skinning shed.

Loodt is tooling his Toyota diesel down the gravel road on his Dad's property (at about his usual 70 kph) when about a half mile from the skinning shed he suddenly applies a heavy dose of the binders. As inertia has me tugging against the seat belt I hear him say "get your rifle out, there is a troop of baboons".

Loodt backs the truck to a fence row just in time for me to see the last of the baboons heading away up the fence row.

Just as I find the bugger in the scope, he decides it is time to make a right turn, complicating my shot.

All that did was delay his end...my shot hit him a little high and a little back.

Deon and I bail and race down the fence row. Meanwhile the baboon had enough left in him to use his forelegs to pull himself just out of the fence row and into some brush. When I got up to him his teeth were bared and I am quite sure he wanted to rip my face off. Loodt was yelling for me to shoot him again, which I did, and that ended the fracas. I probably should not have even waited for Loodt to tell me to shoot him again...I think in the excitement I was guilty of soaking up the moment before the moment was finished.

This was a very large male, clearly larger than the first that had been taken. Here is is getting a ride to the skinning shed with Zebra #3.

Here is a picture of the two baboon skulls in salt.

 

[BWH]

That's is a lot of fun/animals..... Congratulations on what sounds like was a kick ass time!!!! Very similar to my hunt. Ton of fun!!!!

 

[tarbe]

Black Backed Jackal!

When you're lucky, you're lucky. What can I say?

After dropping Zebra #3 and Baboon #2 off at the skinning shed, it was time to head off to some other adventure.

As we are driving back out from the skinning shed and within a quarter mile or so of where Baboon #2 met his end, guess what Loodt spots? Yup, a young, stupid Black Backed Jackal.

As a land owner, you want the meat-eating predators to be controlled, so once again the brakes on the Toyota get a workout!

 

[billc]

Dam you got it done. I love that second kudu and that dark cape. I just can not believe a ph just starting got you on all these animals and did such a good job. I guess your gut feeling like mine was right on the money. Glad you had so a great trip and I know here is even more to come. Your bill at relive is looking like mine at this point. LOL Glad your wife helped you though since she wanted some of the extras you got to hunt.

 

[tarbe]

Nyala!

Nyala is one of those animals that is almost to beautiful to hunt. Almost.......

I had really been debating whether or not to include Nyala on this hunt, especially since we had clearly taken quite a bag already.

But once again, Lady Kathryn came to the rescue and said she definitely wanted a half-mount of a Nyala...so what is a man supposed to do? If Lady Kathryn wants a Nyala...Lady Kathryn gets a Nyala.

So off Loodt, Deon and I go. Loodt has an old solitary bull who is past prime and no longer breeding - a perfect bull to hunt. He knows this bulls habits well, so we should be able to get on him.

Ok, so now you already know how this ends. Yup, that old bull tells us to take a hike and look elsewhere for a bull!

First time through his thicket we swear he has been abducted by aliens.

Second time through we catch a glimpse of him, twice, as he runs around us (laughing, no doubt). Third time we look at each other and decide (like with Mr. Figure 8 the Eland) some animals just need to be ignored.

We moved on to other pastures.

We went to another camp where there were supposed to be several dozen Nyala and we were not seeing any.

Then suddenly, he was there. Frozen like a statue in brush so thick it could serve as a fence to keep goats in (that's thick!).

Trouble was, all I could see was his head. And you don't shoot a Nyala in the head (remember the pretty thing?).

So we had to get him to move enough to expose some vitals, but not move so much that there would be so much brush in the way that once again, I can't shoot.

It almost seems like a conundrum as I think back on it. So many ways for it not to work out. But it did work out.

I moved closer and the Nyala jumped out of the thicket it was in and stood under a tree with only ~60% of his body hidden. That left plenty of Nyala showing for me to find a spot for a killing shot.

The Nyala never took another step.

 

[Royal27]

What a beauty Tim!

 

[billc]

I know my favorite part of your hunt report is coming soon. LOL Can hardly wait for that great picture.

 

[tarbe]

And The Best For Last....The BillC SAGoat!

The animal you've all been waiting for, the infamous BillC SA Goat.

Get this...I had a hard time getting one of these goats. We hunted the same property that I got the Blue Wildebeest on. I thought to myself "we'll have a goat down in no time".

Well, those dang goats had other thoughts.

We chased them around until I finally decided a 317 yard shot in the wind isn't so tough...except I should have had Loodt range it BEFORE I shot, not after. I shot right over that darn goat! Note to self...work on range estimation skills!

We chased them some more after my miss, but never got a good opportunity again. So we headed to another spot....all ewes.

We headed to another spot...all ewes except for one or two males. After some coaxing, Loodt talked me into taking the largest of the males...and I didn't make a particularly good shot on it either! It did drop at the shot...but I didn't exactly hit it where I intended.

So the last animal, the BillC SAGoat, gave me a serving of humble pie. Which I now eat in all humility!

Best of all though is this is one fine goat, and it was a gift from Bill and Dakota Capwell as a thank you for some loading I did for them prior to their last hunt.

So thanks Bill and Dakota. Once this SA Goat is properly mounted he will be displayed and enjoyed forever, and will serve as a monument to our friendship!

Unfortunately, I can't get my favorite goat pic to upload from my phone (Boddington pose) so the below will have to do!

 

[billc]

It was our pleasure as you helped us big time with all that ammo you reloaded for practicing and the hunt. It is funny how the blesbuck gave you that hard of a time as they are normally not hard at all. Maybe they heard all the joking we did about them and this was pay back. LOL The hardest part for Dakota and I was waiting for your trip to get here so we could give you your gift. We had decide last year already we were going to do this for you. That's why I was giving you such a hard time when you told me how you thought a blesbuck was so nice. I finish the gift and add the picture you wanted. I cant wait to see the finished mount.

 

[tarbe]

It is funny how the blesbuck gave you that hard of a time as they are normally not hard at all. Maybe they heard all the joking we did about them and this was pay back.
View attachment 42697

Sometimes the hard ones are easy and the easy ones are hard. That is why it is still called hunting - you just never know for sure.

Thanks for the pic!


Tim