Greetings from West Texas!

Hey all! My Name is Paul "Copperhead" and I live in West Texas. I am a Certified Welding Inspector for a large Drilling Rig Manufacturer. My wife and I are going to Namibia in September to hunt Plains Game, but my dream is to get a trophy Cape Buffalo. I am here to learn from the experienced, and contribute where I can. I am e veteran of "Operation Enduring Freedom," a handloader, and love all types of shooting sports. I recently purchased my African, 1- gun battery, which is a Ruger Hawkeye African chambered in .375 Ruger, so I would love to hear from any of you who have used that rifle on Buffalo, or what ever! Anyway, I look forward to reading/posting here!:

Hi Copperhead, welcome...and Namibia is a fine place to start hunting Africa.

I you look under the gun section of the "Forums" you will find information on the 375 Ruger...I think it's a fine choose as a one gun for Africa....I hunted with a guy two years ago in Africa that was totally in love with his 375 Ruger and he had a number of bullet weights to cover everything..anyway there are number of places to hunt Cape Buffalo..."The Caprivi" in Namibia, Mozambique, Zimbabwe and Tanzania, Zambia, and parts of South Africa come to mind. They all are different experiences and adventures.

Welcome to the forum Copperhead. I'm sure you will find what you are looking for here!

West Texas and oil rig inspector... Yep you are in the other Bushbuck country..

Enjoy your hunt to Africa, it won't be your last. A Bushbuck is a great little Plains game animal in Africa, but the other definition is, the money derived from a Texas oil well.

Thanks everyone for the warm welcome! This is a great site, one could get lost here with all the stories and photos'! We are very excited about the hunt, and trying to learn as much from those who have been there as we can. The hunt is booked through Cape to Cairo, and Cedric has been EXTREMELY helpful and informative. He also does the Cape Buff. hunts as well, but that would be at least another year away after this hunt. We are currently booked for Kudu, Oryx, Blue Wildebeest, and Zebra. I am planning on getting a lot of practice in with my rifle and shooting from sticks as well as off hand before we leave so as to not live up to the "Americans can't shoot" stereo type I keep hearing about, and try to make Cedric and his staff enjoy having me as much as I enjoy the hunt! We have a ton to learn, and will have a lot of questions, but I won't over do it on my first thread. Thanks again!

Welcome copperhead to AH Your going to love it here and as far as "Americans can't shoot" look at the Pictures as they say a picture is worth a thousand word. Good luck on your hunting trip to Namibia. Bob

Hahaha I know what you mean! Yeah, I had been hearing that on the safari shows and so on trying to encourage poeple to go and shoot their rifles. I have been reading the book, "Dangerous Game Rifles" by Terry Weiland, and he made the comment that Americans tend to make a shot, then hesitate to see where the bullet hit rather than immediately reload and take a second shot. As a veteran of over 15 years I have it engrained into me that you practice with your weapon regularly, ESPECIALLY a new weapon! I just took delivery of my Ruger African, and plan on doing just that with the loads I will be taking with me. I think that the remarks made on the shows and the book refer to mainly gentlemen that purchase large, hard recoiling rifles and don't shoot them enough to become used to the recoil and/or develope a flinch. Anyway, thanks for the reply and I look forword to more conversations with you all!

Welcome aboard Copperhead. There are a lot of guys with some good info on here. Can't wait to hear about your trip when you get back.

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Copperhead welcome to AH. Glad to see someone else from West Texas is a member. I was born in raised as far west as you can go - El Paso. Can't wait to hear about your quest for cape buffalo.

Welcome. Where in Namibia are you hunting plains game? You could also hunt plains game and buffalo in the Caprivi. Zimbabwe and Mozambique are also good areas for this combination hunt.

Originally Posted by Intu Safaris

Welcome. Where in Namibia are you hunting plains game? You could also hunt plains game and buffalo in the Caprivi. Zimbabwe and Mozambique are also good areas for this combination hunt.

We will be hunting in the Kalahari with Cedric from Cape to Cairo on their ranch which is on the border of the three countries. He was willing to fly us around for what ever we wanted as far as game, but the check book said we had to stick to the plains game this trip. Are you familiar with Cape to Cairo and/or Cedric?

Hey Paul,

welcome to the site. I hope you guys enjoy your first African Safari and when you are ready for Cape Buffalo let me know. We have good deals on qaulity Buff in Zimbabwe.

Best regards,

Welcome Paul
You will find what you are looking for i am sure. Enjoy the planning of your hunt and do not hold back on the questions.
Johan