Hutch01
AH enthusiast
- Joined
- Aug 16, 2014
- Messages
- 254
- Reaction score
- 444
- Location
- North Texas
- Media
- 33
- Member of
- Life Member DSC and SCI
- Hunted
- RSA East Cape 3X, NW Province, Mozambique, NZ 2X, Namibia 2X, Mongolia
My apologies for not posting this hunt report sooner. But it's Easter Sunday and I have some time. After my first PG safari in East Cape, May 2013, my hunt buddies started planning a Moz buffalo hunt for the next year. The appeal of this hunt was 'free range' and it was in every sense of the word. I don't usually mind the fences too much as long as we only see them entering and exiting and that was the case on my first hunt, but I wanted to experience both types of hunts. So the daily rates go from $350 to $1K which was hard to stomach. But after thinking it over I forwarded the deposit to JP Kleinhans bank contact in Missouri.
My first hunt was with his older brother Adolph near their home. Adolph insisted on accompanying us to Mahimba and only asked we pay his airfare.
On these 'big boy hunts', the daily rates are higher mainly because the outfit leases the concession from a government and this drives up the cost. Plus the logistics can be a nightmare. For instance, from Quelemaine, the Mahimba concession was a 7 hour cruiser ride, but a 12 minute charter flight.
After 36 hours of travel, we drive into camp and frankly I'm beside myself from all the travel and not sure what to expect. We had everything we needed. It was the perfect amount of primitive I suppose. The night before, Mahimba staff had discovered a large croc's drag marks that had visited camp. They like to hunt reed bucks at water holes during the night. So apparently the camp was on the way.
We woke at first light to corn muffins with peanut butter and Sanka coffee. Good enough for me. We usually came back in for brunch once it got too hot to hunt.
This hunt was planned at the end of their rainy season. The first four days of the ten days was high around 80, but the last days reached in the nineties. And of course not as pleasant, lying around in the heat of the day and then heading back out for evening hunt.
So we get our rifles and get shot in near the airstrip without issue. And I'm hunting with the third Kleinhans brother Mel, who is the youngest. Also along is Mel's boy Carlo who is about ten and delightful to have along on the truck everyday. BTW Carlo shoots a .375.
Reedbuck is first and not long after we get out of camp,we had collected a nice ram. We drove back to camp, dropped off the critter and had brunch and learned crocodile was scheduled for the afternoon.
Back track...On the way into camp, JP mentioned the staff had left the croc boat tethered to the bank. It was basic aluminum 17 foot but had a new Yamaha stick drive outboard, probably 50 HP. Some bull hippoes had been frolicking about and upset the boat, submerging the new engine. So we had to use the 'backup' engine. More on that later.
For the croc possie, there's three trackers, two apprentice PHs, me , Mel and Carlo. We load our gear down this rickety cat walk. I think the hippoes had smashed it also. This is quite possibly the nastiest river I've ever seen. So we get under way and look down river and two hippoes are trying to kill each other. It was one of those experiences you get for $1k daily rate! And was worth it. I couldn't believe what I was experiencing. The animals submerge after sensing us and we motor on by as close to the slimy clay mud bank as we could get as we were using the backup engine.
We motor along for hour or so, the river splits, we get out and throw a 12 foot wooden gang plank across the mud to the bank cuz the tides out. Sneak thru mosquito infest mangrove jungle few hundred yards and get set up on this monster lizard who Mel had spied off the tip of the panga. The beast looks to be sleeping off a hangover. I've got my 375 and I give Mel green light to back me up on report with his. We're about 80 yards out. So I'm sitting there in the mud, skeeters having a pic nic on my neck and temples, trying to get my breathing in order. So after quite some time, both of us arse in mud with big bores on sticks, Mel says to me..'so buddy, are you going to take the shot'? Keep in mind, I'm trying to hit an area the size of a pingpong ball at eighty yards. More later...
My first hunt was with his older brother Adolph near their home. Adolph insisted on accompanying us to Mahimba and only asked we pay his airfare.
On these 'big boy hunts', the daily rates are higher mainly because the outfit leases the concession from a government and this drives up the cost. Plus the logistics can be a nightmare. For instance, from Quelemaine, the Mahimba concession was a 7 hour cruiser ride, but a 12 minute charter flight.
After 36 hours of travel, we drive into camp and frankly I'm beside myself from all the travel and not sure what to expect. We had everything we needed. It was the perfect amount of primitive I suppose. The night before, Mahimba staff had discovered a large croc's drag marks that had visited camp. They like to hunt reed bucks at water holes during the night. So apparently the camp was on the way.
We woke at first light to corn muffins with peanut butter and Sanka coffee. Good enough for me. We usually came back in for brunch once it got too hot to hunt.
This hunt was planned at the end of their rainy season. The first four days of the ten days was high around 80, but the last days reached in the nineties. And of course not as pleasant, lying around in the heat of the day and then heading back out for evening hunt.
So we get our rifles and get shot in near the airstrip without issue. And I'm hunting with the third Kleinhans brother Mel, who is the youngest. Also along is Mel's boy Carlo who is about ten and delightful to have along on the truck everyday. BTW Carlo shoots a .375.
Reedbuck is first and not long after we get out of camp,we had collected a nice ram. We drove back to camp, dropped off the critter and had brunch and learned crocodile was scheduled for the afternoon.
Back track...On the way into camp, JP mentioned the staff had left the croc boat tethered to the bank. It was basic aluminum 17 foot but had a new Yamaha stick drive outboard, probably 50 HP. Some bull hippoes had been frolicking about and upset the boat, submerging the new engine. So we had to use the 'backup' engine. More on that later.
For the croc possie, there's three trackers, two apprentice PHs, me , Mel and Carlo. We load our gear down this rickety cat walk. I think the hippoes had smashed it also. This is quite possibly the nastiest river I've ever seen. So we get under way and look down river and two hippoes are trying to kill each other. It was one of those experiences you get for $1k daily rate! And was worth it. I couldn't believe what I was experiencing. The animals submerge after sensing us and we motor on by as close to the slimy clay mud bank as we could get as we were using the backup engine.
We motor along for hour or so, the river splits, we get out and throw a 12 foot wooden gang plank across the mud to the bank cuz the tides out. Sneak thru mosquito infest mangrove jungle few hundred yards and get set up on this monster lizard who Mel had spied off the tip of the panga. The beast looks to be sleeping off a hangover. I've got my 375 and I give Mel green light to back me up on report with his. We're about 80 yards out. So I'm sitting there in the mud, skeeters having a pic nic on my neck and temples, trying to get my breathing in order. So after quite some time, both of us arse in mud with big bores on sticks, Mel says to me..'so buddy, are you going to take the shot'? Keep in mind, I'm trying to hit an area the size of a pingpong ball at eighty yards. More later...
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