Hello from Wisconsin

I thought it was about time to say "hello" to everyone. I found this website and registered on it about a week ago. With all of the "Africa" web searches I've done over the last 2 years, it's hard to believe I didn't find it sooner. After over a year of planning, my wife and I are leaving for S.A. in 3 weeks for a plains game hunt with Bowker Safaris. It will be our first trip. We're upland bird and whitetail hunters, so this is going to be a really new experience.

Another member of a sportsmen's club that I belong to has hunted with the Bowker folks before and speaks very highly of them. He said it was a great place to go for a "first hunt".

Thank-you for all of the informative posts that are already on the site. I learned a lot as clicked-through all of it.... wish us luck!

Welcome browningbbr and of course we wish you luck on your upcoming hunting safari. I am sure that you will be prepared after spending 2 years researching online! I am sure that your anticipation is at fever pitch right now...

We look forward to hearing about your safari when you return, we are a very receptive audience .

Probably the reason that you did not find AH until recently is that the site was just launched in September of 2008 and has just started to really show up on the search engines in the last few months.

Hunting Africa is a slippery slope browningbbr, you will never get enough if your like most of us. This site has some great information and there are several PHs and seasoned hunters that can answer most questions. Good luck and enjoy your trip.

Welcome Bwana... good to have you on board browningbbr. Enjoy your first outing and tell us all about it when you get back. Cheers,

Thanks for the welcome. I'll be sure to update on the outcome of the hunt and post some pictures. Ryan, if it's OK, I'd like to ask some questions about Tanzania. My older daughter (a med student) will be doing volunteer work there late this summer.

browningbbr... will be glad to assist on anything you want to know about Tanzania. Where is your daughter going to be placed in Tanzania? Ask away bwana... info@wild-footprints.com

Welcome to the website! I'm from Wisconsin too. New Holstein, WI to be exact. Good luck on your trip to Africa...I will be heading there myself about the same time to hunt in the East Cape and the Limpopo Province.

enysse - I live west of Plymouth in Kettle Moriane, so we are in the same general neighborhood. We will also be hunting in E. Cape Province. I think we finally have all of our preparations completed for the trip. There is sure a lot to learn before going the first time. When we get back, I think that I will write out some kind of a "checklist" that I can save for the NEXT hunt...

Welcome Browningbbr! I myself am from Wisconsin, live in Black Creek- 15 miles north of Appleton or 20 miles west of Green Bay! I know Mr ENYSSE so we can keep you in good company!! Good Hunting!!

Calhoun - If you are a member of the NE chapter of SCI, I'll probably meet up with you some day. We plan to start attending monthly events when we get back from our hunt.

Sounds like a plan - I'm the president elect of the chapter I will take over in June. Wild game Feast is Thursday Aug.20 at liberty Hall in Kimberly. Let me know when we get closer to it! It's a great event to attend!!

Boys from Wisconsin... I assume that you are all familiar with Mr. Belongia then? Just checking to see just how small the world is... Jeff Belongia was the SCI Chapter President when he came down to hunt with us a few years back. Cheers,

Browning bbr..................welcome to AH! I have guided a lot of Wisconsin hunters over the years and a number of them have become life long friends. One problem has been that when they come to visit my wife and I they always come bearing gifts of cheese................very good cheese that I really like and can't get at home.

Looking forward to seeing the pictures from you hunt.

Yes Ryan, the boys from Wisconsin know Jeff Belongia, that are in SCI and follow SCI closely, he is great guy and has been on over 30 trips to Africa. He can talk about Africa for hours on end. I haven't talked to him in a while. But he a great hunter with a ton of knowledge.

But I'm very happy you mentioned that, I'll have to ask about his hunt with you.

'Just got back from SA yesterday afternoon, so I have a lot to catch up on at work this week. I'll post an update on the hunt this weekend - suffice it to say that my wife and I had an OUTSTANDING time! I'm sure she had as much fun as I did: On the way home, my wife told me that we had to plan to stay a lot longer on the next trip plus she told me that she was now claiming permanent ownership of the 7mm...

I did post pic's of the 7 animals that I took. My wife shot a springbok and a nice warthog as well.

The PH and Outfitter made our stay and hunt enjoyable beyond belief.

Browningbbr, glad to hear that you and your wife had such an outstanding time in South Africa. Saw your trophy pictures, looks like you had lots of success on your hunt. Nice to see that the person taking the trophy pictures knew what he was doing... Can't wait to read your "hunt report". Welcome back!

Anyone can look at Browningbbr photo gallery by clicking on the number following "View My Photos" in his post header to the far right.

Jerome, where on the site is the appropriate place to post the information about our hunt?

....Browningbbr welcome back! those are some nice animals you got over there! a very nice Kudu & Eland how big was the Kudu? Enysse e-mailed me from Africa last night & it sounds like hes got a boat load of animals 12 or 13 & he isn't done hunting yet!! That should make for some great B.S.!!! It looks like you had a fabulous time!!

Calhoun: We didn't measure the kudu, or anything else for that matter. I guess we were more focused on "fun" than numbers. Stalking the kudu was the most exciting part of the trip. We spotted him from over 1000 yds and sneaked up to 273 yds for the shot. Nerve wracking when 5 people are trying to be stealthy on a rocky hillside then trying to make a 45 degree down-angle shot!

I met up with Enysse in SA. He was sitting in our PH's car when we got to the airport! The outfitter that he used had contracted for lodging-hunting with our outfitter for a couple day's of Enysse's hunt, so my wife and I rode back to the ranch with him on the 8th and had dinner with him a couple times last week. The last I talked with him, he had accumulated a pile of trophies.

Small world...

browningbbr, you can post about your hunt in the South Africa Hunting Reports section by clicking here. I just opened this section recently so you'll be the first to post there, just start a new thread.

Funny coincidence that you met up with Enysse in South Africa!