ZIMBABWE: Bubye Hunt With David Langerman

[Zim Fan]

Just spent 15 days with David Langerman in the Bubye Valley on a multiple Buffalo and Family plains game hunt. As always with Dave we had a wonderful time and cant wait to go back again. The effort that he, Kevin and Dylan and the trackers made was tremendous and made for lasting memories.

Should have tried harder to post some stuff from camp as we had very good internet but was too tired or having too much fun to spend my time on a computer. Now that we have returned, I'm playing catch up with work and will do my best to post a few things .

Some of the trip notes

Taking 4 old Dugga boys in 8 days all but one of them on their own. 416 Nosler Partition did its job with recovery at 0, 10, 15 and 40 yards. The one at 40 yards was due to operator error and placing a solid in the chamber. Due to the grass I tended to shoot a little higher but all double lung shots with the partitions ending up in the far shoulder.

Backing up the Son In Law on his Buffalo. He made a good shot so my follow-up was not really needed but bullets' are cheap. It was better to have it die in the sand river than make it up the bank.

Grandsons each taking a Zebra with one shot from a 270. The bush was thick and made it difficult for shorter guys to shoot over or to find a gap and the plains game on the Bubye do not just stand there and wait for you to shoot them like in SA. 6 year old was on at least 15 stalks before he felt comfortable to shoot.

Plus, or a minus depending on how you look at things but seeing Lions on all but one day. Game was spooky and there seems to be less plains game either because of the Lions or because the bush was so thick. 2 Cheetah kills and couple of the family watched a Leopard take a warthog while they were hunting another warthog.

John Sharp bear hug and the look on the grandsons faces when they realized this man was not a character in a book but an actual person. So glad he made the trip over from his camp and the boys and the rest of the family got to spend some time visiting with him.

 

[WAB]

Awesome trip!

 

[cpr0312]

Looks and sounds like a great time, congrats!

 

[375Fox]

That looks like a really great safari. Are the 2 buffalo in front “trophy” buffalo and the 3 in back “non-trophy” buffalo? If you selected the “non-trophy” option, I’d really like to hear more about the opportunities you had. The non-trophy option in BVC seems like a great hunt for an old old worn down bull that doesn’t exist in all areas.

 

[Zim Fan]

The first part of my hunt was planned as a multiple non trophy hunt with the option for a trophy. My son and I were on a 15 day hunt and the Family came in and did 9 days with the son in law doing a Buffalo. The idea was to hunt extremely hard before the family arrived so I could concentrate on spending time hunting with the grandsons and spending time with the family.

For the first three days we didn’t shot anything but put in close to ten miles a day and multiple stalks. My son carries his phone and recorded the distance travelled. It was tough getting on to single or small groups of Dugga boys due to the amount of vegetation.

Been with these trackers and David on previous hunts and like so many Zim guys they can track for hours and find the game. The grass didn’t allow for efficient tracking as before so it was a little slower than normal. The good thing was we could get close and really judge the animals.

We were looking for Jaws or the oldest Buffalo we could find. Worn out, broken horn mean nasty dudes. We played cat and mouse for hours with a scrum cap that wound up filtering into a herd but couldn’t get him separated for a clean shot. Had multiple chances on Buffalo between 36 and 40 but nothing we really liked.

Just before sundown on the third day we were gearing up for the long ride back to camp and were considering a cold beer when we saw a lone bull making it’s way through the Bush. We jumped out and ran to intercept the bull and watched as he lay down at 75 yards. We crept in and set up the sticks.

At that time of day they don’t see very well so we were able to position myself so that I could get a clear shot when he raised up. Two issues were the grass and the sun setting behind the Buffalo. We figured the wind would blow towards him and he would stand just long enough for a shot.

He lay there and after shouting and jumping up and down by the trackers didn’t work, one of them threw a stick. With that he raised up and I put a partition through both shoulders and the lungs and he dropped in his tracks. After all those miles this was the least walking I had ever done on a Buffalo.

He was a dandy at least 13 years old. Very ancient and a perfect non trophy Dugga boy.

 

[Royal27]

That's a bull!

 

[WAB]

Awesome bull!

 

[cls]

Now that's a cool bull

 

[Ridgewalker]

Now that’s an ancient trophy dagga boy!

 

[Brent in Az]

Scarfaced old bush warrior bull. Great trophy!

 

[BRICKBURN]

Very nice set of trophies for the whole crew.
Congratulations.

 

[DaveL]

Ah "Zim Fan", what a trip! Thank you for choosing to spend it with me and my crew in the BVC. It truly is a special place. Here is to many more and hopefully a couple buff for the grandsons in the future!

 

[Ravensview]

Sounds like an awesome hunt, getting to spend time with your family hunting in the bush on safari is priceless in my eyes, congratulations

 

[VertigoBE]

Congratulations on that old warrior @Zim Fan !

 

[Bullthrower338]

@Zim Fan sounds like a wonderful hunt, you could turn every stone in Zimbabwe and not find two finer gentlemen than @DaveL and Uncle John! The BVC is an unbelievable place, would love to hear more of the tale!
Cheers,
Cody

 

[DaveL]

@Bullthrower338 Cody, hope you are well? 'Tacti-cool Tom' was in fine form!!

 

[DaveL]

That looks like a really great safari. Are the 2 buffalo in front “trophy” buffalo and the 3 in back “non-trophy” buffalo? If you selected the “non-trophy” option, I’d really like to hear more about the opportunities you had. The non-trophy option in BVC seems like a great hunt for an old old worn down bull that doesn’t exist in all areas.

Hi 375Fox, get hold of Zimfan and he can full you in on the details. The BVC is crawling with dagga boys. Excellent buffalo hunting indeed.

 

[Zim Fan]

So I messed up and put a picture of Bull number 2 in place of bull number 1 and I don't know how to fix it so here is the first Bull we took.

This picture is just after as we are approaching the down bull.

 

[Zim Fan]

For four days we had put in a lot of miles driving and walking. Checked out small groups and herds and got busted numerous times. We typically started out when the sun rose and except for a few days coming back for a quick lunch we did not arrive back in camp until dark. With any planned day there is always something that sends you in a different direction.

On our fifth hunting day, a short while out of camp on our way to a far way spot we saw three Bulls in the bush and got out to chase them. Within minutes we heard Lions to the east of them and then part of a group cross the road further to the South. We circled around and got busted and then came back out to the road to plan our next move. Another group passed even farther to the south and contained at least one old Bull.

Being in amongst three different groups of Buffalo and the sounds of Lions hunting them really makes one concentrate. With the heavy bush we were able to move around but what was an advantage to us was also an advantage to the Buff as we did miss some of the fringe Bulls and small groups that were well hidden. We got busted numerous times, but the air was still.

After some time, the pride of Lions had moved from the east and circled to the North and now were on the west side with us between the Lions and the Buffalo. We had walked and crawled around them in case the wind decided to blow. In a way our moving around and the Lions worked to our favor as the Buffalo started to herd up and the Bulls on occasion would take up their defensive positions. Normally we would have left these guys alone but there were a couple Bulls in the group, and we were after a Scrum Cap we had seen a few days before.

Dave and I have hunted enough together that when he pulls the sticks forward to set them up, I sneak in behind him, using his body as cover. When the sticks are set, I instantly place the rifle on the sticks and visually focus on the Bull we want to take. As with each stalk Dave and I quietly discussed the Bull, the way he was facing, the descriptions, enough detail that we were looking at the same animal.

This Bull was still in the heavy bush and two smaller Bulls were facing us down. He stepped out behind the bush and nudged the two smaller guys out of the way and then faced us a little quartering shot. Dave didn’t even need to tell me to shoot, and a partition went into the change in color on his chest and the bull buckled and spun.

I installed a tactical knob prior to this trip, and it has made reloading a real breeze and as we ran forward for a follow up shot, I quickly reloaded. As we came through a gap in the bush, we were faced with 20 or more buffalo facing us down at 25 yards.

At his time I must comment on a disappointment (at the time) with our hunt. Dave and I did a ton of planning and preparation and I brought with me some video equipment and my usual camera setup. We had hired an Appy to come and shoot video so the Family and I could just enjoy. In addition to some revenue the Appy would have been involved in some much needed dangerous game hunting experience. He never showed, the PH that loaned him to us decided to have him do some menial tasks. We lost out on some great video opportunities with these buffalo, but now I'm glad he never showed. We hunted with each other and share those memories.

We have confronted Buffalo like this before but at last light and they couldn't see very well but this was daylight although overcast. At first I thought this Bull would come as he looked agitated. The other Buffalo were packed in tight around him and he started to wobble and then dropped straight down dead, it just had taken a minute. The remainder of the group milled around and the trackers spooked them off. Leaving a real nice old Dugga boy. For effect the Lions called from a distance.

 

[meigsbucks]

WOW, some great old bulls. The BVC is indeed a special place. My first safari was there and I hope to make it back sometime.