Jake,
First of all congratulations on a successful hunt. Nobody should go to Africa and come back disappointed. I have also not commented on Bubiana other than to say I have know some people to have enjoyed some good hunts and others who have not.
I personally do not like Arnold. I have met him a couple of times and have seen how he operates some aspects of his business which I do not agree. That is just me. You can find plenty of people that do not like me, it is just life.
The fact is Arnold was selling hunts on Savuli (in the Save Conservancy) immediately after Terry Anders was forced off the property. I saw this on his website. He is no longer offering these hunts on his site, I am not sure if he offers them at all now. It was also documented in the SW Radio article link I posted. Without a doubt he was selling these hunts. I am sure the clients that hunted Savuli had excellent hunts. I have hunted up to the savuli property line and there was very good game in the area. It is not about the quality of the hunts, it is about how the hunting rights were obtained and taking advantage of a bad situation.
Ken Drummond played a hand in forcing rightful owners off their property in the Save and the takeover of the hunting. I know several of the players that were involved and I can assure you they are no longer hunting Savuli. This was also documented in the article I mentioned. Ken Drummond is very politically connected in Zimbabwe. As a Zimbo, you do not want to cross him.
I quit posting for a while because of the political nature of lot of my posts. I have spent a lot of time in the last three and half years in Zim and have made many friends there. I understand the political situation better than most, and more than I wish I did.
Mike,
Glad to see you are back and posting.
I view these forums every day and often sit back without response for fear of speaking out on a subject of which I do not know both sides of the story.
This is the case with the Arnold Payne post. I have heard stories from several outfitters voicing their opinions on the matter and several more like it but only have heard one side of the story so feel it unfair for me to comment either way.
I, like Mike70560, have spent from one to three months per season in Zimbabwe since 1995, have many friends in Zimbabwe and a better than average understanding of the political situation and politics involved with the safari industry within the country. I did all the marketing and booking for Matetsi unit 1 in 2011-2012 and am still working with the owner of this concession. In addition I work closely with several of the other major outfitters within Zim. Due to these factors I avoid commenting negatively on other outfitters as It would come across self serving and appear that I am soliciting business by putting down outfitters that I do not work with. I do not believe is doing business in this manner so will never make disparaging remarks regarding an outfitter or situation that I do not have first hand knowledge of and even then not publicly.
I personally know Mike70560 has spent a great deal of time in Zimbabwe as well and has insight on several issues due to first hand knowledge. For him to quit posting, (and others here as well), due to it being "to political" short changes everyone that is trying to make decisions on where and with whom to go on safari.
As in every country where outfitters operate there are good ones, mediocre, and bad. I believe there is always more good than bad but bad businessmen are like a match in a large dark room, a small speck but everyone sees the effect. Many on these forums have insights on good outfitters as well as bad due to personal experiences. It is these experiences that can make a forum like this an invaluable asset to a hunter trying to narrow down choices and hopefully help them avoid the pitfalls that exist.
Every year I end up talking with a potential client about the horror story that they heard from someone that hunted in Zimbabwe. Invariably I can guess how the hunt came to be and narrow it down to three or four areas and or outfitters. I then have to convince them that these events are not indicative the majority of outfitters in Zimbabwe but the results of a few unscrupulous outfitters that give everyone a bad name. During these conversations I still do not try to convince folks to hunt with a particular outfitter based on the actions of the bad ones. These bad experiences are not the norm, but rather the exception to the rule.
I trust this post will encourage people like Mike70560 and many others of you to continue posting issues that you are aware of for healthy discussion.
Along with this I would encourage you all to post the positives as well.
I feel badly for the many good operators, PH's and Outfitters within Zimbabwe that are often times painted with the broad brush of unethical behavior due to the actions of the few.
In closing, there are many issues constantly rearing their heads within Zimbabwe and many other African countries surrounding the safari industry.
There are also many good outfitters along with a few bad in every country that offers paid hunts.
There is a great depth of knowledge represented by the members of this forum and I encourage all of you to continue to post
the positives and the negatives in an ethical manner which will only serve to assist everyone from the first timer to Africa to the seasoned veteran in making decisions
on where and with whom to hunt. It also is a voice for the outfitters themselves that quietly sit on the sidelines of these forums, often wanting to jump in, but forced to bite their lip prohibited from doing so by their personal ethics and politics within the industry.
I apologize if this somewhat hi-jacked this thread as I am not offering any opinion on the Arnold Payne situation but feel my thoughts are related.
