ZIMBABWE: Our Zimbawe Adventure & Hunt For Buffalo & Elephant

[ActionBob]

The Night of the Leopard;
And elephants!
We got back late of course and during supper we heard a leopard over in Kruger. This was not totally unusual and we heard it before... And up in the hills of Diti the day after the big rain we saw fresh tracks of a big male, female, smaller male and a hyena on top of each other... Leopards were definitely around. But this one was more distinct and closer.

We went to bed and heard him again very clearly. And we heard an elephant trumpet somewhere behind camp towards the Bubi and not very far off. I passed out and slept until about 2 AM or so when I woke to major ruckus of baboons barking and heard an elephant trumpet again.. I figured the elephant was eating the tree the baboons were sleeping in? I went back to sleep until the alarm at 3:30.. Ann was awake and a bit excited about the leopard and elephants. She had gone to the bathroom and heard the elephant and got back to the tent and heard the leopard and she thought it was right outside the tent and then the elephant out back, leopard, and so on. She could hear the leopard as it walked down the river and she thought it was right out in front of the tent. During breakfast she brought up that she would like to go look for the tracks if we got a chance because she was sure it was just out front.. Quinn told her he had heard it and it was over in Kruger.

Elephants!
We got going a few minutes earlier this day, maybe almost half an hour... It was not really light yet when we got to the Bubi... So we were driving slowly and watching for tracks, made the turn into the Limpopo and started towards camp. We had just gotten going in the Limpopo when Quinn stopped to glass ahead and swore under his breath.. I was groggy, Ann was sleeping in the truck as usual. Quinn stepped on the accelerator and was trting to go ad fast as he could because there was a herd of elephants crossing way up ahead from our side back to Kruger and there was a big bull half way across already! And they are way up there like maybe a mile? Just as he is getting going the guys on the back thump on the roof... "elephant!"... Quinn says yea I kno... and the guys are "No! right here!" pointing to the right side... There are a couple elephants right here under a big fig tree not 50 yards from the truck! One is a nice enough bull but he looks long and thin, at first I think the other one is short but then he turns to look right at us and has these big thick tusks curving way out, looking like the mastodon on the Flintstones. Quinn has his binos up and very matter of factly states "this is your bull. We are going to get him right now!"

We are out if the truck, got the 416 off the rack and I want to shoot him right now! Quinn does not want a dead elephant laying in the river in full view of Kruger and says hold on, we'll get him but let him move up out of the river... We are not completely sure just how many are their either... Now we see three total. They are totally at ease yet and jut slowly walk up into the bush, my bull goes into the thickest stuff there is, no trail just walks up into the thickest stuff, eating as he goes.... We move up and hide behind the giant fig tree, biding our time and waiting to make our move.

We lose track of the third elephant but it went up to the right and Quinn is concerned about it and watching that it does not circle back on us... The smaller companion bull is ahead of us and the one we want has gotten up into the real thick stuff but we can hear him and he is right there on the back side of the tall bushes! He breaths exceedingly loudly and sounds like Darth Vader in a steam engine. We are stalking up into the bush on a narrow trail and the other bull is just on the other side of the bushes to our left and we hear him eating... We sure as heck don't want him on top of us! Quinn is up front, I'm right on his heels and Ann is behind me, then the tracker and Ben. Quinn keeps turning around and motioning to the tracker, Ann wanted to video the whole thing but put it down to try and let him past her but he is not budging. Ann also thinks we want the bull to the left when we are really after the Darth Vader on the right. I can hear him getting closer and the bushes drop off to shorter ones in front of us. I'm expecting the sticks to be set up and Quinn is making stick finger motions but the tracker is still behind Ann and I'm pretty focused on the elephant because it is obviously coming closer... His trunk and tusks clear the bush and he is right there eating, the other one is over to our left, I'm pretty sure he is just s close or closer, like on the other side of a tree but we cannot see him. Quinn is splitting his attention now between the two when my guy steps out and Quinn says, shoot him off hand right in the ear. We have a little time so I ask a question about exactly where to aim. I can see the crud seeping out of his ear and Quinn says to shoot him right in there. I sqeese of the shot and the elephant drops... I reload and have my gun at the ready when Quinn says "ok reload and stay ready", he is still glancing off to the left. We are concerned because the bull went down front first... I know we wanted the back to drop first so I really want to get more bullets into him. Quinn asks if I can see the head.. .I lie and say yes and shoot into the general area (the grass and bushes are hiding the head). I reload again ask if I can shoot him again. and Quinn is checking to the left... We move up a few yards and now can see the head so I like up between the ears and shoot him again. I think I stuffed in 3 more but now Quinn's shoulders are relaxed and he is comfortable the other elephants are gone. So hugs and hand shakes and I give Ann a little kiss get my hands on him. Ann actually got emotional for a minute about the elephant.. Elephants are different. I shot it at 19 or 20 yards. And Ann was right there to see it drop when she was not prepared, she still thought we wanted the other one. That is a huge critter going down in a heap. I think it would have been a bit different if she had been looking through the video lens. She explained that she knows the science and that rational thought requires the hunting of elephants, but she just needed a few minutes.

She seemed to get a lot of satisfaction out of the whole human experience of the village coming out to harvest the meat.

Up next, Free Meat!

Ben takes charge of the carcass. He is responsible to oversee distribution of the meat.

P.S. This elephant had been caught in a poachers snare at one time and he had a little rock stuck up his nose, thus the Darth Vader breathing.

 

[JustinC]

Congratulations Bob, special animal!

 

[ROCKET]

Wooowww.....I have no wards....just a simply wonderful hunting story......I am so happy for the great trophy you accomplished......I have no doubt that Ellephant hunting is the maximun in a hunter life......at least it would be for me.....especially if it is on a hard hunt full of complications.....!!!!!

Congratulations Bob.......well done.....Bravo....!!!!!!

Waiting for the rest.....!!!!!!

 

[James.Grage]

well done...

Blister mole skin and a second pair of socks help. Damp or wet shoes will bring on blisters in a hurry...

The second pair of shoes to allow the drying is necessary, when doing a lot of walking...

 

[BRICKBURN]

Feels like a yoyo!

Impressed by Ann. It is shocking to see such a large beast go down.
If you don't need some time I'd have to wonder.

Boundary hunting is tough. Lots of luck and persistence required.

Congrats.

 

[Wheels]

Great looking bull Bob.

Seen photos of the end of the trunk cut off by a snare but none quite like yours.

Congrats on the elephant!

 

[CAustin]

Amazing story Action Bob! Was you 416 a Ruger?

 

[ActionBob]

Winchester M70 416 Rem Mag with Federal Premium hydro solids... blew straight through sideways.

I have M70's in 30-06 and 375 H&H so the 416 rem mag was a natural fit for me, I really like the Winchesters but....
Ann has the Ruger Guide gun in 375 Ruger and 30-06. I'll need to post an update on the big bore thread soon. After being caught in the rain with the Winchesters, I would very seriously consider taking Ann's Ruger to a place like Alaska for brown bear and/or moose.. (both on my short list). Tougher gun when it comes to weather issues.

 

[Nyati]

Congrats Bob, amazing experience, I understand about Ann getting emotional, I would have, too !

 

[Christina Nyczepir]

Incredible story! Thanks for sharing. I would have loved every minute of it. Almost like dealing with a pregnancy......the waiting and waiting and waiting....and then BOOM. It's time! (I know y'all can relate to that. LOL!!)

 

[Say Man]

Congrats Bob! Wonderful story, Great that you had Ann there and as others have stated nothing wrong with taking a few minutes to recoup.

 

[Wheels]

Incredible story! Thanks for sharing. I would have loved every minute of it. Almost like dealing with a pregnancy......the waiting and waiting and waiting....and then BOOM. It's time! (I know y'all can relate to that. LOL!!)

Probably a nice analogy but it is lost on me......thank goodness!

 

[jeff]

Thanks and congrats!!

 

[Royal27]

Congrats again Bob!

Wow....

 

[IdaRam]

Great write up Bob! I have enjoyed every minute of it and the pics have been wonderful!
Thank you for taking the time put this together so we could all come along on the adventure.
Congratulations and well done!!!

 

[ActionBob]

Hey we're not done yet! It's only day 9 of 12. Still have to cut up the meat and hunt buffalo.

It takes a village;
The elephant is down, the other elephants have moved off.. So it is time for the work to begin!

Quinn and his crew are really in their element with elephant. Ben the government game scout is VERY happy. This is his ultimate! By taking this elephant, the local village gets most of the meat (we take a very small sample for camp, and all the guys on the crew get a share, decided and doled out by Ben. He is responsible to distribute the meat. The village also gets half of the $10,000 trophy fee. The other half goes to Ben's employer, the CAMPFIRE District. These funds must be used for community projects. such as fixing district roads/bridges. And for things the village needs such as new roof on the school, wells, medical facility, etc.... This particular village has all the above things so they can use the money for something else. In fact they just put a new roof on the school and the Principal of the school sold the old one and fled with the money.......... That was part of the local gossip and scandal....

First order of business was to send Fanni to get skinner from camp, the Game Scouts, and a select few strong young villagers to come help skin it out and cut a road in to the site. Fanni had strict orders to not let villagers come out yet as we wanted to get a road made as well as skinning done without too much mayhem.

 

[ActionBob]

Soon after the road was cut through, more villagers started showing up. We had to get the parts we wanted hauled out so Ben kept things in check but it was becoming a bit of a large crowd. Everyone wanted their share and came out with buckets and bags (ADM corn bags, that is another story) and the donkey carts. It also became a real social event.... Especially for the ladies. And of course political... The "headman" showed up to take credit where he could and do his politicking... Similar to some local government in the USA, the village idiot is elected headman. Also similar to politics everywhere, I wanted to find out how he intended to use the money but he skillfully skirted the issue and went on shaking hands and kissing babies. I guess the donkeys were not the only jackasses that showed up.

 

[ActionBob]

It took a good portion of the day to get the elephant taken care of and the guys were all exhausted from the work so we took the rest of the day off. The guys wanted to party that night and Quinn gave them some beer, but they all fell asleep at a reasonable time from the hard work and intense heat..... Quinn did call Threeways to send a truck to pick up some of the elephant parts as they had two skinners there who had nothing else to do so they could do a lot of the finish work. The guys who had wives back that way sent their shares of the meat home for the wives to strip and dry.

Fanni's family is too far away so he had to strip all his own. He has several son's and a couple daughter in laws as well. He was frustrated getting enough help to cut meat off the head to lighten it enough to load.. So he got it loaded as is... Then proceeded to strip all the extra meat off it by himself.. So he made the best of the situation and worked hard at it, and got about 3 times as much meat as the rest! He said it would last his extended family about 3 months.

Another interesting point was that local custom dictates that we give the elephant trunk to the regional Chief. I would have liked to go with to deliver it to him but he was about half way to Threeways so that truck took it with. Quinn commented that it is very difficult to skin (they simply cut it off whole) and that the meat is very stringy and tough. It was about 100 degrees Fahrenheit by the time the truck showed up and had a couple hours to go yet. It had been several hours sense I shot the elephant.. I asked Quinn what the Chief does with it and he said "oh he'll eat it."

I will get replica tusks made from casts of the originals in Zimbabwe. And I plan to get a replica shoulder mount made back here in the USA. Quinn helped me find a market for the hide.

Fanni also had to chop out the tusks, he did that the following day... A lot of work!

 

[ActionBob]

Back to Buffalo Hunting day 10;
The next morning we got up as usual and went looking for buffalo. We had gotten some tips from the game guards as to where they had spotted some buffalo so we picked up Ben and headed to those areas and went on a long walk starting before there was really even good shooting light. It was great to be out there and stretching our legs after laying around the previous afternoon. But no buffalo and only old sign.

So we drove the rivers and nothing going on their either... Quinn had that big dugga boy he had spotted in the irrigation area and we had been watching a water hole he seemed to use every other day. We had lost track and had not checked it in a few days with the elephant excitement. So we went looking for him but to no avail. Fannie had to chop out tusks and it was getting hot so we headed back to camp and Quinn had a few little things to do while Fanni worked.... Quinn actually did some mechanic work and Ann took some more pictures.

Later that afternoon we went out and built a blind to try and ambush the dugga boy. This was not how I wanted to hunt buffalo but I had pretty much resigned myself to the realization that I was unlikely to get a buffalo after our close encounters in the bush. So in desperation we sat way into the evening but nothing.. Although Ann snapped a few great pictures of the sunset, in between nasty looks from me every time she moved!

Another late meal and bed time.

Day 11;
After we had the struck out at the water hole, Quinn figured for sure the buffalo would show up this evening but we knew it was still a long shot because he did not have a set pattern as to what time he came in. So we went hunting early as usual and ended up driving the rivers again as it was still the best and quickest way to find fresh tracks. Nothing, there was a big troop of baboons out in the river so I took a long shot at a big male but missed. We drove down to the croc pool but only small ones as expected. We were also watching the cliffs above for Klipspringer and had a little hilltop to watch for greysbuck... But nothing. Another long shot we had checked a couple times was some woodland on the back side of a big hilltop. Quinn sent the guys up to glass while we stayed back.... (dumb luck?) They took a radio to report but saw nothing.........

Buffalo!
Suddenly the guys call on the radio, as they were coming down the hill they spotted a herd of buffalo crossing the river so they excitedly told us to run to the river! I grabbed the 416, Ann had the video camera and Quinn grabbed his 500 and the sticks and of course he out ran me but looking back and encouraging me on. We got to the riverbank but were inside the tree line and there was the herd marching at a steady pace and coming right over in a very determined fashion, angling to our right.

Quinn had the sticks up and was glassing telling me to concentrate on the dark bull who was 3 or 4 from the front. I think he was almost more excited than I was! His instructions were a bit stammering as the buffalos kept changing place. I was trying to get my breathing under control and figure out which one to shoot. They were closing in on the bush fast and were almost straight across from us by now. I needed to shoot soon. I was on the dark bull and following him best I could but there were others behind him and there was no clear shot. Quinn said he would stop them and bellowed like a buffalo. They did not stop but the one behind the dark one speeded up and cleared so I shot. Got the classic bucking response and they all started running, I hit right behind the shoulder and double lunged him but he was true to buffalo form and far from convinced that he was dead. I had a solid in next as I had figured we would be in tight bush and the only follow up would be at the South end of north bound buff heading into the thick stuff... So I had to wait again for him to clear. Got the shot off with the solid and That one caused the bull to veer off from the herd and actually got him running towards us. Quinn shot and the bull stumbled right before getting into the bush I think his shot broke the back leg as there was a hole that went right through the left rear leg, either that or my solid did that and Quinn hit high in the back and blew out the other side lower down.... In any case the bull was standing in the bush not more than 10 yards in but we could hardly see him. And we were not sure if he was the only buffalo in there.

So Quinn took a minute to glass and I noticed the guys had pulled up a bit back with the truck. Also noticed Ann was getting way to close with her camera and with a pissed off wounded buffalo in the bushes in front of us and a herd near by! I tried to get her back to the truck and I think I might have even yelled at her... Of course that did no good and she kept coming determined to damned well do whatever she wanted. Ben and Fanni were slowly coming up behind her as well so I was hoping they might get her out if there, yea right!

Quinn determined it was only my buffalo in the thicket and I could make out his horns so I thought I was shooting right behind the horns but I think I only saw the one side as he was turned facing us but mostly hidden. At the shot the bull dropped and it turned out that I had clipped the bottom of his right horn and the bullet went in at the base of the ear. We got up the bank and around the side. We heard a first death bellow but he was still moving so I shot into a hole about 6" in diameter and into his back where I hoped it would go into his chest. Still moving so Quinn directed me to aim into the Y of a tree branch in front of him and I put in one more. At his point the whole crew was up there and Quinn said to wait a few minutes. Then the brave tracker went in and I followed to admire my first buffalo bull! Not the widest but decent drops and ok bosses. Total SCI score well over 100". I was thrilled! We just had to get him out of there.

 

[ActionBob]

What you see is what you get.