ZIMBABWE: Kwalata Wilderness Safaris

[messmate]

Has anyone hunted with Kwalata Wilderness Safaris in the Matetsi area Zimbabwe. Am keen to know what the concession is like with respect to Buffalo and Sable. Also best time of year for this area?
Thanks
Jon

 

[Mike70560]

Does Kwalata actually have the hunting rights or do the act as a booking agent?

Which Matetsi Unit are they selling hunts?

 

[BRICKBURN]

Only Kwalata Wilderness I know is north of Vaalwater in SA.

 

[messmate]

Yes they are established in the Waterburg mountains near Vaalwater and offer PG hunts and hunts on 4 of the big 5.
As I read it they also have access to concessions north of Vic Falls on Lake Kariba so was wondering if anyone new anything of that part of their operation.

 

[richteb]

messmate, never heard of these guys, but talking to my ph by all accounts Matetsi should be great for Buff and Ely. I would be carefull and ensure that they have someone who is a licensed Ph in Zim.

 

[Mike70560]

messmate,

It is doubtful that you will find anybody who has hunted with Kwalata in Zimbabwe. That I can find they are not registered in Zim nor are their PH's licensed in Zim. As a disclaimer all list are not up to date. Contact SOAZ for verification.

Safari Operators Association of Zimbabwe Home Page

The questions I would ask Kwalata would be: What specific concession. What company will you really be hunting with. Who is the licensed Zim PH that will conduct the hunt.

Does Australia have a list of individuals in Zim that are banned from doing business with Aussies similar to the US banned list?

You mentioned Matetsi and Kariba. They are in basically opposite directions from Vic Falls. None of the Matetsi units border Lake Kariba.

Or you could find an established Zimbabwe company with an HOP number, licensed PHs, hunting their own property, and a member of SOAZ and ZPHGA. There are a couple that post here along with some good reports in the Zim section on others.

 

[richteb]

Mike,
Australia does not have a list of individuals that are banned from doing business as you guys have in the states. However, I think that perhaps it may be well worth posting here on AH and be used by Aussies and anyone else to at least be aware who some of the people are to be avoided.

 

[AfricaHunting.com]

Mike,
Australia does not have a list of individuals that are banned from doing business as you guys have in the states. However, I think that perhaps it may be well worth posting here on AH and be used by Aussies and anyone else to at least be aware who some of the people are to be avoided.

richteb, You will find the information at the following link: If You Are Planing To Go To Zimbabwe You Need To Read This First - U.S. Economic Sanctions Against Zimbabwe

 

[Mike70560]

Rich,

Does not Linden and his dad "specialize" in booking "Aussies"? If My memory is correct a lot of their clientele is from Oz.

 

[richteb]

Mike, I believe they do. Unfortunately our government does not know where Zimbabwe is let alone what its political or economic plight may be. For guys hunting Africa from Oz we mostly rely on forums like AH and word of mouth referrals from happy hunters for our up to date information. When I booked my hunt with the Stanton's I was fortunate that a close friend had hunted with them before and also I had the opportunity to meet them here in Oz prior to booking the hunt. With the amount of operators out there in the Safari industry throughout out Africa it is not always easy to work out who is above board who is not. I'll will say it again, forums like this are invaluable source of information for guys that are looking to book their first safari.

 

[PaulT]

The Australian Government has Targeted Autonomous Sanctions in place (since 2002) on the Mugabe regime and various members/supporters of it, and State owned companies.

These sanctions include;
*restriction of travel and financial transactions for specified members/supporters of the Mugabe regime and State owned companies; (imposed by the Australian Reserve Bank),
*Arms embargo,
*Downgrading of Gov'ment - Gov'ment contacts at multilateral forums,
*Downgrading of cultural links.

More info at: Australian bilateral sanctions: Zimbabwe

To my knowledge there are no restrictions on private individuals, holding Australian citizenship, from conducting private business/recreational enterprise.

The moral ethics of doing business with any of these individuals, listed Sanctioned members/supporters and State owned companies is a whole other discussion.

And before I get any mail i am NOT in any way suggesting that the Stantons, their business or any of their associates form any part of the listed sanctioned individuals/members/supporters etc as i know this simply is NOT the case.
I have known several close freinds hunt with the Stantons over a period of many years with nothing but positive praise for high standards of eithical hunting and quality service.

I am mearly explaining the Australian Government's stance on the exisiting Mugabe regime and its supporters.

 

[messmate]

Gents.
Many thanks for your comments and advice, you've given some paths to follow. It is very early days as far as my probable trip to Zimbabwe and I will be doing a lot of research beforehand. I'll be contacting Kwalata directly for more detail and I have hunted with one of their PH's in SA (then with another outfitter) whom I'd trust with my bacon. I am hoping to find some "independent" soul who may have 1st hand knowledge of their concession(s) access in Zim so will keep my fingers crossed.
Again many thanks.

Jon

 

[awcorder1]

Kwalata Wilderness does hunt in Zim. I hunted there in 2009, shot 43" buff and a 40" sable, and a hippo. The
concession is located just outside of the Matetsi Safari area next to Woodlands Nature Conservation Area. It is over 80,000 acres and a nice camp, with elephant, buffalo, lion, leopard, hippo, hyena, and lots of plains
game.
I am heading back to Kwalata now as i'm typing, give there website a look. I've been hunting with Jaco Strauss
(Professorial Hunter) for 5 years now and never had a bad experience!!! Kwalata is a great operation to hunt
with, very friendly and very hands on by the owner. A friend and i are heading to Zim next
year with Kwalata to hunt buff and leopard.


Anthony

 

[messmate]

Anthony
Thanks for replying. You've obviously had great success and knowing Jaco that's about what I'd expect to hear.The buff & sable sound very impressive, would love to see your photos.
I know little about the area, never hunted Zim & hunted Sth Africa just once. Am slowly gathering info....will send you a pm and bend your ear.
Best of luck on your next sojourn.
Thanks again.
Jon

 

[Mike70560]

Just remember the following when booking a hunt in Zim with a company based out of Zim.

Only Zimbabwean citizens can become professional hunters in Zimbabwe, a foreign licensed PH, MAY NOT under any circumstances hunt for reward or act as a professional hunter or guide in ZImbabwe, they MAY NOT use for reward their personal foreign licensed vehicle, they MAY NOT carry a firearm unless they have paid a daily rate as an observer and they are included on the TR2 a Zimbabwean hunting document.

 

[MARTIN PIETERS SAFARIS]

Mike 100 % spot on!!

 

[KWALATA SAFARIS]

Hi guys good to join this heated debate, I am the profesional hunter that hunted with messmate, to set all straight I AM NOT AN ILLEAGAL OPERATEOR IN ZIMBABWE!!!! I work with a Zimbawean company and a registered well known profesional hunter in Zimbabwe that has a sterling reputation allot like some of the outfitters that has posted on this thread....... Anyone that runs a dedicated honest fulltime hunting company knows that one builds a relationship or friendship if you will with some of your clients.

What I want to know is is there any hint of shadieness in keeping such a client and hunting with that client in a different country on his request through another reputable outfit. C'mon wake up and smell the coffee, not all South African are crooked and surely not all Zimbabweans are HONEST!

I truly do not belive that it is fair or wise for that matter to hang a label around my neck because of 1 or 2 rotten apples, I am not in the buisiness of throwing stones so I won't!!

I just don't think that it is wise to crucify guys without even having the slightest idea on what they are about or who they are, I am sure that with a little bit of research that all of you will find that I am actually very reputable and have been for more than a decade, surely it can not be fair to label someone because they are not the "wall mart" of hunting, to be honest I like being exclusive and runing only 10 - 15 big hunts a season.

I appreciate all your time and effort!
.

 

[classicsafari]

Jaco,
You must bare in mind that there is distrust for a good reason. For instance it is a notoriously well know fact that SOME SA company's hitch up with little known Zim PHs to sell hunts on stolen land and often flaunt the game rules with issues such as overshoot quotas.
This may not be the case BUT messmate was asking questions of a hunt with very similar information as these dodgy dealings so it would be prudent to be aware of these possible problems UP front.

 

[KWALATA SAFARIS]

True, very true, one should also be aware of outitters from other countries that get pulled in by Zimbabwean outfits on so called RATION ellie and Buff hunts in very well known parks in Zimbabwe. To be honesgt with you, the rotten hive is located in Zimbabwe and unbeknownst to most foreign outfitters they are hunting on so called non reputable areas, this is an un arguable fact!

I do find it extremely amusing that the only side of the story that seems to be high lighted comes from the Zimbawean side, C'mon I am not even mentioning so called PAC lion hunts marketed by NON SOUTH AFRICAN COMPANIES. If it was not for but 2 maybe 3 south africans we would not be having this conversation. A South African does not just just pitch up in Zim and hunts an area they have a Zimbabwean contact (PH, OUTFITTER call is what you like).

To be honest it is very clear to me that like South Africa, Zimbabwe needs to clean their HOUSE.

 

[Mike70560]

Jaco,

You are correct about rotten apples in Zimbabwe. They are in Parks, in the government, PHs with licenses that never took the exam, and even some supposed qualified PHs. But to say there are maybe 2 or three South Africans causing problems in Zim is laughable.

I always find it funny that the SA operators seldom post the areas they are actually hunting.

When I read this I read it that you are the professional hunter. Maybe the guy should be a little clearer but you are not licensed to hunt in Zim.

Kwalata Wilderness does hunt in Zim. I hunted there in 2009, shot 43" buff and a 40" sable, and a hippo. The
concession is located just outside of the Matetsi Safari area next to Woodlands Nature Conservation Area. It is over 80,000 acres and a nice camp, with elephant, buffalo, lion, leopard, hippo, hyena, and lots of plains
game.
I am heading back to Kwalata now as i'm typing, give there website a look. I've been hunting with Jaco Strauss
(Professorial Hunter) for 5 years now and never had a bad experience!!! Kwalata is a great operation to hunt
with, very friendly and very hands on by the owner. A friend and i are heading to Zim next
year with Kwalata to hunt buff and leopard.


I have a passion for Zimbabwe and it troubles me to see the problems the country is facing. My ties to Zim are much longer and deeper than the hunting I have done there. The tide will turn one day and many people will be held accountable.

But everytime I see a SA posting a hunt in Zim I will always give them this warning:

Only Zimbabwean citizens can become professional hunters in Zimbabwe, a foreign licensed PH, MAY NOT under any circumstances hunt for reward or act as a professional hunter or guide in ZImbabwe, they MAY NOT use for reward their personal foreign licensed vehicle, they MAY NOT carry a firearm unless they have paid a daily rate as an observer and they are included on the TR2 a Zimbabwean hunting document.


Just for clarity what concession are you hunting in Zim?