SOUTH AFRICA: Paw Print Safaris & 5 Guys From PA July-August 2016

[siml]

Lee fantastic report, well done to Pieter. That sure is one snorter warthog. Congrats.

 

[Lee M]

Day 7, Mon 1 Aug
Woke up to another good breakfast. I will admit to not being hungry but eating my fair share. No reason to offend the cook!

Headed out to Kali's place looking for Zebra, hartebeest, pigs and anything else that may make me think twice. Going to try to walk and stalk with the bow if possible. John and Larry with with me as they were well into their animal list and going to take a day to see the sights, take pictures, etc. They were also looking for animals that were going to be at a new location we were headed to the next day, such as Gemsbuck, so no rush.

We drove up on 5 kudus, one being a nice 48-50 inch bull not 250 yards into the property. He seemed to know he was not being targeted. They are truly magnificent creatures. We then came upon a group of Zebra and Reds and stopped the truck a good distance (600+ Yards) away to let me get out. I stalked across a small ravine and up a hill doing my best to stay hidden behind the bush. I had a female Red and calf appear and run by as well as a decent Blesbuck. I got to the end of the bush and saw the zebra and reds feeding away at 95 yards. An easy rifle shot but not an option with the bow. They were a short distance from a knoll and the plan was to let them crest the hill and move quickly to the top and hope to catch them browsing for a quick shot. As soon as the last one topped the hill I made my move. I was only 1/3 of the way there when a group of Blesbuck that I had not seen busted me and ran over the hill 50 yards from their last position. The game was over as when I got to the top there was nothing in the near 1/2 mile of area I could see. They all vanished. This was after all hunting and not just shooting. I made another attempt at stalking a single male red and got to 63 yards when he busted me. He was bedded and I misjudged his location or it would have been a good opportunity. He stood up facing me and a ranged him in the chest at 63. When he turned there was no hesitation and he was gone in a flash. I practice at that distance on targets but would never launch an arrow at an African animal at that range. I had to circle around the bush and I later learned the group in the truck saw him bed down and had a good view of the whole stalk. Unfortunately, I didn't know he moved his position. I did sneak up to 40 yards on 4 eland, but all were young bulls or cows. Overall, we saw 2 pigs, many herds of blesbuck/reds/zebra, two small groups of eland and five blue wildebeest on our morning hunt. A good morning. Headed back for lunch around noon.

We headed back to Kali's after lunch and set up a pop up blind at a waterhole in a red claylike area with a good sized waterhole that had a lot of sign. We found a good location, however the ground was not level. We were a little eager and decided to go with it anyway. Three of us were in the blind - Larry, me and PH Johan, who is another ex rugby player. About 700 lbs of men sitting on folding chairs at 30 degree angles in a blind with the hot sun beating down. We had two bows in hand to defend us if attacked by any ungulates that dared come close. I am laughing now writing this thinking of the back pain and cramping we had. Too funny! We didn't try to determine how we would maneuver to actually shoot, figuring we would do this if needed. We should have taken a little more time to sort out the small details. We really liked this exact location but needed a shovel to level the dirt, or we should have set up on the other side of the waterhole. We were too worried about getting hidden before the evening watering began and decided to settle in. At one point I took a picture of Larry eagerly scanning the area for game. LOL

It was a quiet snore, so no animals were alerted!

We did have 2 pigs come to drink, but they didn't stay long and seemed to realize the camo covered hut they saw didn't seem to belong. About 45 minutes before dark 8 Zebra came in but they froze upon seeing the pop up and we were unable to move and get ready to shoot with all eyes upon us. One of the mares was particularly wary and with her constant look we didn't get a chance. They ended up running off before any opportunity to shoot. We left that night knowing that this would be a good spot. We would return in a few days after going to another area and we were sure the blind would be accepted by the animals by then. We would also fix the uneven ground and chair placement.

Back at camp we found out that Doug had a shot at a nice Kudu, but did not recover him before dark. For all who have hunted, this is something many of us have experienced. It is a tough situation and makes for a restless night. We were all headed to a new concession the next day, but Doug and John would first go after this kudu with PH's Proppy and Scobie. Dinner this night was waterbuck and Zebra steaks, potatoes, cheese sauce, and mixed veggies. The steak was outstanding, both better than venison in my opinion, with Zebra my favorite!

Getting the coals ready to cook waterbuck and Zebra steaks. Now that's a fire!

Another great day in SA had come to an end.

Tomorrow morning we were headed to a new concession that Pieter had not yet hunted. It would be a first for all of us.

 

[Bsto270]

just beware taking tips on self approval for a divorced guy. LOL you do it at your own risk.

The sable was a special treat for larry. he wanted one bad but they cost some serious money. Pieter had a landowner offer some up that larry thought the price was right and took advantage of the deal. I can still see the fletching going in as I called the range out for him.

Haha, noted on that end bill. I did get her to chime in that she thinks the idea of a shelf with a warthog and bushpig skull free sitting would look good (and particularly if I could put a baboon skull between the two). I was shocked how okay she was with that one.

And on that Sable , I can definitely see that if you get a great offer on the ground, you gotta take what Africa gives you.

 

[CAustin]

Keep it coming Lee. This is a great thread! August 1st you guys were eating well and I was flying home!

 

[kathy]

Great story, glad you got a beautiful Kudu bull with your Bow. Forrest

 

[gizmo]

Man, sounds like y'all had fun. Congrats!!!!

 

[Lee M]

Day 8, Tues 2 Aug
We headed to the new concession this morning. It was about a 2 hour drive and we got there around 9 am. The last 20+ mins was all bumpy dirt road and this place definitely was more remote then our previous locations. We met up with the land manager at the gate and drove to the lodge. After unloading our gear into our rooms and taking a tour of the facilities we headed out to see the property. It was much drier in this location and the area was a mix of semi open areas, bush and mountainous terrain. We took a drive around the land, checked out a few water holes, and set up a pop up blind on a nearly dry mud pit area. We saw a lot of tracks, 5 Impala, and one kudu sneaking up the side of one of the mountains.


We heard some good news from back at base camp at Flintbeck - They found the kudu Doug had hit the previous night and were able to finish him off with one shot.

A very nice animal and a big sigh of relief for Doug! Max The tracker did a great job of finding the animal.

While we were exploring the new property, we noticed a distinctive mark coming out of a thicker area and stopped the truck to get a closer look. It was a drag mark with leopard tracks. We followed toward the thicker area for a 1/2 km or so and found some blood in the trail. PH's assumed that an Impala was killed and dragged to an area where it could be placed in a tree. The drag mark went on for quite a distance but we did not follow as we not after a cat. An exciting find that reminded us that we were not in PA looking for whitetail, whose biggest predator outside of hunters are motor vehicles!

Bill looking at the drag while Pieter and PH's follow it for a closer look

We had a late lunch of spaghetti and then all headed out around 3 pm to different locations.

That afternoon I sat in a brick hide that overlooked a small waterhole. The water color was less than desirable, but the tracks on its edge showed the animals had a different opinion then me. Around 5pm we heard some animals approaching from behind us and left. They worked there way in and drank from brown/green tinted water. It was 3 blue wildebeest - a young one, medium sized one and an older but only medium sized bull. As there was still a prime 45 mins of good light left, I passed as I had other animals higher on my list. Only a rabbit and 10 sand grouse came to water after the wildebeest left.

A view looking out of the side window of the brick hide

Bill used a climbing tree stand at a good sized waterhole and saw a few different groups of Impala and some vervet monkeys come in to drink. There were 2-3 good sized Rams in these groups. I can't remember want Larry saw, but he was focused on getting a Gemsbuck as this was the last priority animal on his list.

We once again had a great dinner, Steak, potatoes, salad and rolls and then gathered around the fire. This location had "lead" wood. It was very dense and heavy and burned very hot.

First fire at the new concession

Open lighted area is the main dining area with the fire pit area off to the left

 

[CAustin]

Looks like a nice place Lee. I wish I had time to go and visit there. The lodge looks comfortable. And I think the good must have been good as you shared no complaints.

 

[Lee M]

Day 9, Weds 3 Aug
Up early and we headed out to hunt. I went back to the brick blind with Pieter and Larry went to another nearby ranch to target Gemsbuck with one of Piters PH's who had hunted their previously. John and Doug were on the search for Impala with PH' Proppy and Scobie, and Bill was off at another waterhole in a blind looking for anything big or with funky horns, or with that look that just said, "shoot me." Bill has never needed much of a reason to pull the trigger. LOL

Not much was moving at my location, but I did see a black mongoose which was pretty cool. Pieter got a text mid morning with a picture of the Gemsbuck that Larry shot. Larry now had his primary animal, the one he wanted even more than the kudu and sable he had already taken.

After lunch I went to the big waterhole where Bill had been the night before. I was in the process of going up the climbing stand and Impala started coming in to water. It was only 12:45. First a small ram came in on the right, then a few ewes on the left side 30 mins later.

Then 9 monkeys came in on the far side of the waterhole. It was interesting to see the pecking order and discipline of the group of monkeys. First a single large monkey took position on the bank of the pond. He sat there watching for 5-10 minutes, then one by one others came in to drink. The sentry kept a watch the whole time and only came in to drink when all others were done. Very interesting how they acted as a team/family with larger/older animals taking the lead and protecting the smaller females and young of the group.

More Impala came in over the next few hours with 2 good sized Rams in the 22-23 inch range (later verified with my measuring tape ). Just before dark another Impala group passed by 125 yards out with a real slammer of a ram.

All of the Impala were out of bow range, so no shots taken, but a very fun and exciting night.

I did hear a nearby shot around 3:30 and later learned that John had taken his Impala from the elevated blind on the property.

View from the elevated blind

Bill had an experience as he had 2 trespassers with 5 dogs pass by his blind off in the distance. They moved off upon seeing him. As this area had not been hunted in quite some time, except for a few meat hunts, things like this can happen. As they say TIA - this is Africa! The land manager, Rudi, took some action with some security workers on the property to ensure the property was searched. No further issues or sightings in the future occurred.

We had another good night around the fire. Got to know Rudi over a few beers and found out he had a very interesting career path to his current lodge/property manager position. He was a Kruger tour guide, Ph, worked in mining for some time in numerous countries, crewed on both crab and fishing boats (think deadliest catch show), and was a plumber in Las Vegas for a while. How is that for a diverse background! Very interesting. I enjoy the stories and the people you meet around a campfire as much as the hunting sometimes. When the mining industry hit a low point he leaned back on his PH and management skills and took this job as property manager. He has been at this location for 3 years with his wife.

The gang around the fire.

 

[Lee M]

Day 10, Thurs 4 Aug
Headed out to a blind we had set up on day 1. It was a dried out waterhole that showed some pig sign. We had also put out some food and added some water from a truck. We figured that it may now be ready after 2 days of being left alone. We got there and unfortunately there was no new sign - oh well at least we tried. We did see a group of giraffe on the drive back out.

We decided to go back to the brick blind. 15 minutes into our sit an ostrich came in for a drink and some pellets.

After 2 hours and no activity we got out to go for a walk. After getting out of the blind we noticed a smaller drag mark going from the waterhole past the blind and off into the bush. PH saw the tracks and said Caracal. Another pretty cool find. Seems like this place was loaded with cats. We walked back towards camp and saw numerous tracks - Zebra, Wildebeest, kudu, more caracal. Then back to camp for lunch.

I went back to the large waterhole and the climbing stand at 1:30. At 2:10 an Impala walked in from the right to water and came in to 43 yards. It was only of average size, nothing huge, and was a little farther then I wanted to shoot from as they are known to string jump, but I figured give it a go. I waited until it seemed to calm down and lowered its head to drink. It was a slight quartering away shot with its head looking slightly away in a good position. I slowly drew back the bow and just when I hit the valley and started to take aim it somehow turned and looked at me and in 1 second was gone. Incredible sixth sense as my bow made no noise. It must have saw movement in its peripheral vision. Another good hunting experience that made me appreciate the Impala I took with the bow in 2014.

I decided get down from the stand and set up on a section of the bank that had some cover in front to it. Also, I had the gun with me this time in case longer range opportunities presented themselves, as this was the last night of our visit to this concession. At 3 pm on the far left side of the waterhole some Impala appeared. They came out of a thick section of bush that ended only 15 feet from the waters edge, so I didn't see them arrive, I just caught a glimpse of one and all were already drinking. There were 4 rams and 3 ewes. Two were small Rams and 2 good sized ones. The same 2 from the previous night. Similar length, but one had typical shape and the others tips angled in a little. I had determine previously that the one whose tips came in had a slightly better mass and this to me overrode the slightly angled tips. It was at this time that I realized how much bush was a few feet in front of me. I actually rested the gun on the top cam of my bow, picked a spot through a 5 inch hole in the bush and shot. The Impala dropped like a rock without a single twitch. The others vanished. I think they all cleared the 15 foot distance into the bush in one leap. I walked over and was excited to see the nice ram. He measured 23" and 22.5".

I put him a short distance away and went back to my position overlooking the waterhole. This site was now named "the impala waterhole". I wondered if the bigger Impala that came in near dark the previous night would show again. If he did I was going to let er' rip. I noticed quite a few zebra tracks and hoped to get a visit from them before dark.

I heard a distant shot at 4 pm and figured Bill or Doug may have connected on something as well.

Around 5 pm I heard some hooves and saw zebra were approaching from the right. I decided to use the bow and let them move in. I got my bow ready and waited for them to get closer. The lead zebra passed by my right side and I froze. He moved out in front of me at 20 yards, but the others were now to my right so I had to freeze until they also moved past me and down to the water. Bad luck as I had a clear broadside shot on the lead animal. The lead stallion had moved farther to my left and was now 15 feet into the waterhole, distance approx 28 yards, as he was just past a branch I ranged at 25 when setting up. I drew but then ran into the problem of finding a hole in the bush/sticks that were in front of me. The shot was closer and more downhill compared to the previous rifle shot and I had to extend my torso higher to get to a triangle shaped hole. Kind of awkward as I was kneeling. At the shot I saw the thorny stick that made up the bottom of the triangle hole twang and my arrow deflected a few feet under the belly of the zebra hitting the water directly under his body. I had a lighted knock, and the arrow seemed to go in slow motion. Score was now zebra 1, Lee 0, but that is hunting. The single zebra exited quickly and stopped about 75 yards Behind me to the left for about 10 seconds trying to figure out what happened. I looked at him through my binos and all was well. He kept circling and met up with the other 6 out about 150 yards before running off. I thought about the .300 win mag sitting by my side but thought he earned his freedom. 30 mins later some blue wildebeest ran by 150 yards out in a hurry. Not sure what had startled them. That was it for the night except for this view of the sun going down over this location which proved to be a good spot.

Bill also took an Impala. I believe it was out of this elevated blind over the other good sized waterhole on this property.

Another good day in SA had come to an end

We had the usual good food, a fire and a lot of stories back at the lodge. A little BS also thrown in as well. As the temps dipped at night, one of our PH's, Johan would shovel a pile of hot coals from the fire under his chair. We all gave him a hard time until we tried it and found it quite effective at warming up the body.

We are lucky we didn't burn down a chair

 

[Lee M]

For all who have hunted with Paw Print in the last year here is a recent picture of PH Proppy. A striking resemblance to a certain animated movie actor.... LOL

In a seriousness a great PH and person who made the hunting, the breakfasts (did a lot of the am cooking), and the campfires a lot more entertaining!

 

[CAustin]

Good story my friend!

 

[billc]

Prop made the hunt for me. We had a blast from morning to the end of the night. He has some great storys and is a great ph for Pieter to have added to the paw print team. Plus by the end he knew to have my girlie drink ready at the campfire.

I wish we would have had 2 or 3 more days at the new area. The tracks showed the game was there we just needed more time to go find it. I hope to get back there one day.

 

[cpr0312]

Congrats on the ram!

 

[CAustin]

Prop could tell a story and make us all smile! Let us not forget the zombie monkey story!

 

[RBurg44]

Great report lee! Enjoyed meeting you pieter abd bill tonight! Gary and i cant wait to get over there!

 

[CAustin]

Great report lee! Enjoyed meeting you pieter abd bill tonight! Gary and i cant wait to get over there!

It's great hunting over there....enjoy!

 

[billc]

Was great to finally meet up after all the chats we have had. I hope after all the hunting talk both your list did not grow to bad. LOL Your going to have a great 10 hunting days with the paw print crew.

Looking forward to seeing some good pictures to.