Off to Namibia and Counting down the Days

[Ukstalker.375]

Well, I'm off for my first taste of Africa in February with 3 friends. We are going for a week from flying Germany to Windhoek then on to the hunting area in Erongo.
Hunting Oryx, Kudu and Mountain Zebra and hopefully/possibly one or two extras like warthog and impala.... I sense I may get carried away!
I'm travelling with my Blaser R8 Safari with 8x57 and .375 h&h barrels on board. The .375 will be using 270gr Federal and I'm currently undecided on the 8x57 but looking like Norma Oryx 196gr. Any tips and suggestions or advice gratefully received!

 

[johnnyblues]

Have a great hunt. Namibia was my first African destination I absolutely loved hunting there and hopefully will be returning again next year. Look forward to pictures.

 

[cpr0312]

Have a great fist safari, best of luck!

 

[gillettehunter]

Best advice is to practice off the sticks, a lot. If you have not used sticks it can take some getting used to. I bring my set up to my kitchen 6 weeks before I leave and dry fire a lot out the window. Finger memory. Second is don't take too many clothes. They do laundry each day so 2-3 outfits is plenty. Next determine dip/ship/taxidermy before you go. This can make after the trip much more more successful. Bring sunscreen. That will get you started. Gotta get to work. Bruce

 

[Ukstalker.375]

Thanks for the good wishes.
As for shooting off sticks, its all I do for all my stalking at home so that's no worry at all and I've recently invested in a set of travel quad sticks which make for a very stable reliable platform to shoot off, and crutially weigh in under a kg and fit in my suitcase.... I've been practicing with them for he past few months to make them second nature to use.
Taxidermy is no issue, with the exception of a zebra skin everything else will be skulls, I don't have room or budget for a house full of shoulder mounts, I'd rather spend the money saved on additional quarry!
Sunscreen is a good tip, it'll be hard to contemplate the sun when departing from the ice and snow of Northern Europe in February! Easy to overlook something so simple!
Thanks all!

 

[Alexandro Faria]

I'm going to chip in here, as a sort of "local". I live in Pretoria (South Africa, I know, bare with me) and we have had one of the hottest Novembers I have experienced. 38 degrees C kinda hot. Namibia, regardless of where you go, is HOT. Either dry hot, or humid hot (Coast and up North), but hot.
My point is this: If Pretoria is that hot now, you're gonna boil in Feb in Namibia. Lots of sun block (go as high as you can on SPF) and stay hydrated- nothing worse than sunstroke when you're hunting something like kudu, trust me. Take a safari hat too, some people don't like them, but they protect your ears and neck nicely.

 

[Ukstalker.375]

I'm going to chip in here, as a sort of "local". I live in Pretoria (South Africa, I know, bare with me) and we have had one of the hottest Novembers I have experienced. 38 degrees C kinda hot. Namibia, regardless of where you go, is HOT. Either dry hot, or humid hot (Coast and up North), but hot.
My point is this: If Pretoria is that hot now, you're gonna boil in Feb in Namibia. Lots of sun block (go as high as you can on SPF) and stay hydrated- nothing worse than sunstroke when you're hunting something like kudu, trust me. Take a safari hat too, some people don't like them, but they protect your ears and neck nicely.

Thanks, that's invaluable 'local' (ish) advice.... my biggest unknown is the weather and what to expect, so to know things are warm to say the least makes a difference.

 

[BRICKBURN]

Enjoy yourself and take lots of pictures.