ZIMBABWE: Elephant Hunt With Mbalabala Safaris

[Jesus F. Elizondo]

Wow That´s an elephant! Congratulations.

 

[Nyati]

That was a fantastic experience, congrats

 

[MARK KEENE]

Awesome story! Congratulations!

 

[Kevin Peacocke]

Very nice ele, well done. Handsome tusks too, do you have a weight yet? That stalk could have gone either way, you can honestly say you have experienced the pinnacle of African hunting. Refresh my memory, what rifle are you using?

 

[pappy62]

Very nice ele, well done. Handsome tusks too, do you have a weight yet? That stalk could have gone either way, you can honestly say you have experienced the pinnacle of African hunting. Refresh my memory, what rifle are you using?

Kevin, the tusks were 25 and 27 pounds, respectively. They looked bigger because they were long and thin.

I was shooting a Ruger Hawkeye African, in .416 Ruger. Hand-loaded, 400 grain, Cutting Edge Bullets Safari solids.

 

[pappy62]

Day 4...

Elephant Recovery

Because we had gotten the elephant late in the day, we waited until today to recover the elephant. The crew from camp left at 6am to have time to start cutting the road into the elephant. We left camp at 7am, after a good breakfast.

They hadn't yet completed the trail when we arrived. They had to cut about 300 yards through very thick brush. One team was working from the road in and the other was working from the elephant out. The locals were already lined up waiting when we arrived. It took about 30 minutes for the road to be finished. We took some more pictures and watched the start of the butchering.

We left before they were finished so we could do some shopping and have a celebratory lunch at The Lookout Cafe at Victoria Falls -- Lin's treat! Great view of the gorges and awesome food. We decided that chocolate shakes were the perfect drinks to celebrate a successful elephant hunt.

We were surprised coming out of the restaurant that there were elephants just outside of the parking area.

We went to the grocery store to pick up food and camp supplies. The bill was over 21,000 Zimbabwe Bond, roughly $210 USD. We were amazed at the exchange rate and very glad that we had brought American dollars.

We went back to the elephant to pick up some meat to give to the local chief. We stopped at the chief's compound to drop off the meat where we were met by the chief's wife. She was delightful, teasing Lin. She had been hoping for something nice for supper and glad that we did not bring the trunk, since it was tough chewing. Lin assured her that we brought nice steaks.

Back to camp, a good supper for us and off to bed. We were the only clients in camp. Don't know if Lin was ready for a wild and crazy lifestyle, I don't drink and my wife drinks sparingly. We were normally in bed by 9pm.

 

[thriller]

Congrats buddy I heard the story from Lin last week in Makuti! Glad to see the photos and to hear it from your angle that sounds like it was a hell of an adrenaline rush!! Congratulations on your elephant!!

 

[Mort Hill]

Fabulous hunt and excellent report. So glad you got this hunt supporting a great cause. Looks like it was everything you could have wanted and more!

 

[elephantmaster29]

Congratulations on the elephant, excellent shot

 

[VertigoBE]

Superb hunting adventure! This will be a lifelong memory for you to cherish! Congratulations on the bull!

 

[pappy62]

Just to finish up...
Day 5 we went to Hwange National Park. It was an excellent opportunity to view more of the plains game and elephants. Happy to report that there were a good number of young animals in the group.

Day 6 we hiked through a valley that ran from a rock gorge with several waterfalls and pools into Lin's Hwange camp.

Day 7 we did another hike through Lin's Hwange camp, where I shot this nice bush buck

Hit it a little far back, but it dropped in its tracks, so all good.

Day 8 we were back to Victoria Falls for our last day. We took the helicopter ride around the falls and the sunset cruise. If you haven't been to Victoria Falls, take a trip, the falls are worth it!

Getting back to the US was a bit of a challenge, between delays in customs and with flights - 32 hours all told, airport to airport, but definitely a TRIP OF A LIFETIME!

 

[VertigoBE]

Just to finish up...
Day 5 we went to Hwange National Park. It was an excellent opportunity to view more of the plains game and elephants. Happy to report that there were a good number of young animals in the group.

Day 6 we hiked through a valley that ran from a rock gorge with several waterfalls and pools into Lin's Hwange camp.

Day 7 we did another hike through Lin's Hwange camp, where I shot this nice bush buck
View attachment 409870
Hit it a little far back, but it dropped in its tracks, so all good.

Day 8 we were back to Victoria Falls for our last day. We took the helicopter ride around the falls and the sunset cruise. If you haven't been to Victoria Falls, take a trip, the falls are worth it!
View attachment 409871View attachment 409873

Getting back to the US was a bit of a challenge, between delays in customs and with flights - 32 hours all told, airport to airport, but definitely a TRIP OF A LIFETIME!

A great bushbuck! One species that really managed to remain elusive during my trip!

Loved this story about the elephant hunt!

 

[Edge]

Great story and congratulations on the elephant!

 

[Frederik]

Fine Chobe Bushbuck!!!

 

[Probono]

Congrats!!
Am i the only one that likes that word 'Mbalabala'

Mbalabala Mbalabala Mbalabala Mbalabala

 

[Uncle Sauce]

Congrats! Great trip!

 

[Texas Sharpshooter Fallacy]

Congrats!!
Am i the only one that likes that word 'Mbalabala'

Mbalabala Mbalabala Mbalabala Mbalabala

Ha! I was thinking the same thing. Fun to say.

@pappy62 congrats on your bull. Great report