Best time to hunt South Africa

[johnnyblues]

Hello everyone, I am new to this site and would appreciate any input. I will be hunting in South Africa in 2015 for the first time. I have seen several opinions on the best time to hunt. I will be looking to hunt cape kudu,nyala,waterbuck,cape bush bush, black wildebeest and red hartebeest. How is the month of May for this?. And if so early in May or later? It seems like the overall consensus is to hunt in the moon dark . Thanks for your help.

 

[Buff-Buster]

Welcome to AH johnnyblues! Just my opinion....mid May thru mid Aug, try to plan on the dark moon. Not saying the time before or after will be bad, just earlier and the green bush tends to limit some visability and later can be very cold depending on your elevation (which can be as high as 7000ft above sea level.) I've seen snow in mid May and the first of Sept. One thing I can pretty much guarantee...whenever you go, you'll have a blast. Enjoy and please share a report with us when you return.

 

[johnnyblues]

Thanks very much for the info. I am told I will be hunting in the Unkomass valley. I kinda thought 2nd or 3 rd week of May would be good. I will see when we have a right moon and book it accordingly.dark moon. That area is about an hour and and half from Durban airport. Look forward to my first safari!

 

[DOC-404]

...mid May thru mid Aug, try to plan on the dark moon. Not saying the time before or after will be bad, just earlier and the green bush tends to limit some visability and later can be very cold depending on your elevation (which can be as high as 7000ft above sea level.) I've seen snow in mid May and the first of Sept. One thing I can pretty much guarantee...whenever you go, you'll have a blast. Enjoy and please share a report with us when you return.

..:welcome:..to AH. This is about as good an answer to your question as you can get.

 

[enysse]

Buff-Buster nailed it, And the weeks you are looking to hunt johnny sound excellent!

 

[johnnyblues]

Great thanks everyone! I know it's a long way off but man am I excited!

 

[Buff-Buster]

Enjoy it all Johnny! You'll only have one "First" Safari. I think the best advice I could give is to really enjoy the planning piece of your safari. You've come to the best place in the world to get answers. Here, do not be afraid to ask any question at all. You will not be ridiculed or made fun of. We've all been there. The guys here on AH live to help, especially to help the inexperienced. It's our way sharing in your adventure. Plan, dream and go. When you get there your planning will pay off. If weather, the moon, falling meteors, etc...disrupt your plan....go with the flow, relax, soak in every detail you can. Chances are, this will be one of your most cherished memories for the rest of your life........Sometimes people wonder why PH's endure the hard work and long hours like they do. Trust me. Having a "wide eyed" client that truly appreciates the country, the animals and the experience and helping them be a part of it....THAT's why they do what they do.....Wes

 

[johnnyblues]

That's great advise. I have hunted extensively thru out North America having hunted Alaska 5 times Canada many times and I just returned from my second trip to New Zealand. I love the pre planning part of it. I appreciate you saying what you did and I probably will have more questions. It's sites like this that make me proud to be a hunter. Thanks very much again.

 

[Buff-Buster]

That's great advise. I have hunted extensively thru out North America having hunted Alaska 5 times Canada many times and I just returned from my second trip to New Zealand. I love the pre planning part of it. I appreciate you saying what you did and I probably will have more questions. It's sites like this that make me proud to be a hunter. Thanks very much again.

No offense intended with the "inexperience" statement...just talking safaris!!...lol. I'd love to hear your Alaska & New Zealand stories!

 

[johnnyblues]

Lol, no offense taken.. I was just trying to share my experience with you..One day I ll tell you about my Alaskan brown bear charge where I shot him between the eyes at 50 ft. That was a thrill I'll tell ya! lol

 

[gillettehunter]

One other factor to ask your PH about is the rut. Your going to see good numbers of animals, but the the big ones get that way by staying out of sight. You might ask when the peak of the rut is for your top 2 species. Might give you ever so slight of additional edge. I'll second the request for stories and pics of your other hunts. Bruce

 

[Buff-Buster]

Lol, no offense taken.. I was just trying to share my experience with you..One day I ll tell you about my Alaskan brown bear charge where I shot him between the eyes at 50 ft. That was a thrill I'll tell ya! lol

Love to hear that story!!.....bet you threw those pants away after that..huh?...lol

 

[johnnyblues]

No, but we did finish a bottle of Canadian club that night!..lol

 

[johnnyblues]

Thank you i plan on discussing that with my PH..My top 2 trophies I really want are Nyala and cape Kudu. Followed closely by cape bush buck and black wildebeest.

 

[Warbird782]

Moon phase is big. I hunted this year the first two weeks of May and the kudu were just coming into the rut. My next hunt will be the last two weeks just to get in on the bulls getting nuts.

 

[Rob404]

I,m a Newbie myself I go next May 2014,,,,Plenty of help and great advice On this site

 

[johnnyblues]

Great advise. How was the weather at that time?

 

[Warbird782]

The weather was in the 70's most days. I would start the morning in pants and a fleece and part way through the morning zip my pant legs off and go with a short sleeve shirt. The Eastern Cape is full of thorns and cactus but I still hunted in shorts. We did get two days of rain and temps in the low 50's. Thankfully I had brought some light rain wear.

 

[BRICKBURN]

Thank you i plan on discussing that with my PH..My top 2 trophies I really want are Nyala and cape Kudu. Followed closely by cape bush buck and black wildebeest.

Another Spiral horn addict in the making!!! Love them.

Good luck.

 

[Patrick R]

Hello everyone, I am new to this site and would appreciate any input. I will be hunting in South Africa in 2015 for the first time. I have seen several opinions on the best time to hunt. I will be looking to hunt cape kudu,nyala,waterbuck,cape bush bush, black wildebeest and red hartebeest. How is the month of May for this?. And if so early in May or later? It seems like the overall consensus is to hunt in the moon dark . Thanks for your help.

You can hunt throug-out the year it is just that in the summer months (October-April) its very hot and high temperatures in different areas of RSA can be expected. MAY IS GOOD.

Keep in mind our hunting season for the locals opens in May and ends in August. I will rather hunt before May or after the hunting season closes; in September...