South Africa Trip Results

[hogpatrol]

Scott, You guys really kicked butt for a first trip or any trip for that matter. I made it over in May/June of this year and it was awesome. Didn't get as many as you but still worth every penny. Did you post your pics on Africahunting.com?
I put mine up there under the same username, Hogpatrol. What was your vervet, male or female? Those males make a great mount. :
Like they say, "nobody goes just once", I have my next year's trip tickets bought and dates locked in with my PH. ;D

 

[effendude]

To answer some comments in no particular order,
Warthog wasn't on our list of animals until we saw a real big one, he was the only shooter of the trip, and gave us the slip. Next time...

I am already planning another trip. I would like to eventually hunt buffalo, a leopard, wildebeest and a nyala. Lisa is considering a giraffe and a sable would be incredible too. Maybe some of it with a bow.

I tell everyone that Africa has some incredible values right now for hunters. For example, a 7 day plains game hunt with 5 animals often costs around $5000. About the same as a western big game hunt. The experience was amazing, people were great. There was something to see or photograph constantly. Airfare wasn't bad, around $1800 round trip per person.

I originally wanted to hunt the lion with the bow, but Lisa pulled rank on me. After two days of tracking, we caught up to him while he was sleeping in the thorns. Being with 20 yards of the lion for more than 20 minutes before he stood and presented me with a clear shot was a little intense. Both PH's had .458 Lotts to back me up, I felt undergunned with my .375. The lion finally stood and roared at us, I dropped him with a frontal shot to the top of the heart with an Accubond. After some high fives, I put an insurance shot with a Partition into him from 8 yards away. The PH stated "It is always the dead ones that will get you if your'e not careful".

Scott

 

[hogpatrol]

Without hunters in an area, this is what happens:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/10/21/zimbabwe-elephant-poisoning-death-toll_n_4135766.html

The poachers got jail and the bigwigs in the government that were involved are still in power.

 

[tisme]

Interesting article http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2013/jun/03/canned-hunting-lions-bred-slaughter

 

[XTR]

Interesting article http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2013/jun/03/canned-hunting-lions-bred-slaughter

And then there are days like this:

[youtube]http://youtu.be/vNYwusa8xUY[/youtube]

or this:

[youtube]http://youtu.be/0tbSuGINWic[/youtube]

They call it Dangerous Game for a reason. They don't always just fall down.

 

[Alex Wheeler]

Those videos were pretty cool. Rich white man almost bit the dust.

 

[BigDMT]

The monkey, specifically a Vervet monkey, are considered pests in South Africa. The PH had told us upon arriving the first day that he had one nuisance monkey that had become aggressive towards staff and guests. He told Lisa that he wanted her to shoot it or he was to have his 8 year old son do it. Not unlike what we do with bold raccoons, possoms or wood chucks.
Scott

That's kinda what I figured. Great hunt

 

[Quinc]

That is really cool and sad at the same time. :-\ Which one tasted the best?

I am not sure what you mean by sad, and I won't waste my time defending hunting to you. All the meat except the primates was taken and eaten. Nothing went to waste, not even the entrails. The average diet in South Africa for rural people is lacking in protein of any type therefor game meat taken by sport hunters becomes a real treat when hunters are successful. We as hunters could request any game be cooked and served. We ate a couple meals of bushbuck and it was delicious. The trackers were ecstatic when the lion was down. Lion is considered exceptional meat and even the belly fat of the lion was removed as a special prize.

Scott

I have no problem with hunting and killing. It's the killing of exotic animals for sport who's numbers are dwindling daily that is sad. Now if you leveled the playing field a little and took it with a bow or a spear that would deserve a pat on the back! ;D

You really have no concept of game management or the idea that hunting is a business that supports (i.e., funds) and encourages strong health animal populations. I can venture a pretty good guess of what effendude probably paid just in Trophy fees. The monkey was probably about $50 if he paid anything, but the Trophy fees on the rest of those animals probably ran in the range of $20,000 or so, just the trophy fees. That's the charge for shooting, which by the way you pay whether you recover the animal or not. Think about that next time you draw a bead on a deer.


Did you know you can hunt Bison here in the US, you can shoot them, costs you about $4000 for a meat bull, and you know what, that's why there are bison ranches. (and you end up with a freezer full of buffalo)

I like that, "it pays it stays."

My bad I guess I didn't quit get it, but now I do. We kill the Lions to save the Lions! How about instead people go over there and hunt the poachers! ;D

 

[MNFinn]

My bad I guess I didn't quit get it, but now I do. We kill the Lions to save the Lions! How about instead people go over there and hunt the poachers! ;D

The S Africans do hunt poachers.....however, they need funding to keep it up, allowing in sport hunters ensures they have the funding to do their job....and the incentive of a nice trophy, and meat for a village makes it so hunters continue to com and help find them. Proper game management will always involve killing some, to ensure the species survives, it's just another tool in the box.

 

[hogpatrol]

25 years ago, at the behest of "humane" organizations, an African country banned leopard hunting. No hunters, more leopards, more cattle, more humans eaten. They had zero value to the natives so they killed off almost all of them. Eventually educated people who actually think, prevailed, the ban was lifted and the government and natives now want to protect them for the money, jobs, and food they provide through the hunting industry. Banning hunting has been proven to be counter productive to maintaining a species. Contrary to populist propaganda, the animals that have been killed off to the point of where they are today is the result of the native populations protecting their livelihoods, corrupt governments engaged in illegal wildlife trade and non-governmental militias. Hunters are an extremely tiny minority of takers of wild game in Africa. Unfortunately, the anti-hunters are always hard at work, some on this forum.