Recent content by chonk34

I wear the Kenetrek Everstep Orthopedics. I've had knee and ankle problems over the years and they seem to help keep me going. They are heavy, but if they keep me stable enough to keep hunting I think it's worth it to haul them around.

I reckon a full bag hunt in Tanzania would be my dream hunt.

My dad and I took our Russian brown bears with a .30-06. It was not our preferred caliber for such an endeavor, but it was the rifle that was available to us. The bullets were whatever the outfitter happened to have on hand. With proper shot placement all of the bears were clearly well-hurt with...

Yes, as I recall it was one of the questions on our visa applications, as well as something they asked about during the airport screening upon arrival in Yelizovo. The special investigators also interviewed my dad and I while we were in jail, but the questions were fairly surface-level. I got...

My Warthog is one of my favorite trophies from any hunt I've done. They seem surprisingly hard to come by for many hunters. I do regret not bringing a Springbok home. There is an empty spot on the wall next to my Impala and Blesbok where a Springbok should be. But I would still hunt a Warthog...

My Carpathian Chamois hunt in Romania in 2021 was a wonderful hunt, but the trophy is still with my dad (who lives in Romania) and we are unsure of how to get the mount back to me in the U.S. The scenery is breath-taking. The way the clouds roll in and out of the mountains looks like the world...

My spouse is happy when I have the opportunity to go on hunting trips. She doesn't want to be a part of it and the specifics of hunting bore her to tears. By the same token, when she goes to do something that speaks to her I am happy that she has the opportunity. Sometimes we travel together to...

I think that bullets and broadheads kill in different ways. An archery hunter with a strong enough bow, shooting the right arrow, within the right range, and hitting the right spot at an appropriate angle should be able to put down a buffalo. I would have to shoot many, many more arrows with my...

Got a text from my dad today that Yuri and Alexander have reached some sort of understanding. Of course it will still be some time before they complete the journey to us, but good to hear that there is progress.

We do not have our trophies yet. We do have recent photos of them in which they appear to still be in good condition. There are many complications in the process, compounded by the personalities involved. Alexander wants more money in order to ship the trophies, and lives in a rather remote...

Obviously the situation between the countries is pretty volatile, but I think if we'd gone with a more established outfitter we wouldn't have had any issues. Our guide seemed determined to antagonize everyone who would listen to him, and I think we paid the price for that. It is a pretty good...

We didn't have any problems with getting the trophies back to the US. It was a lot quicker than some of the other international hunts we've done. Having done a few international hunts, I think this is something that gets overlooked a lot. An outfit that is professional will have the logistics...

The world is a big place. It might be helpful in a forum focused on international hunting to know that in Kazakhstan it might be common to buy duty-free alcohol for the baggage handlers to ensure that your rifle case makes it through customs without issue.

I perhaps didn't share the full story in my original post because I was uncertain about the legal ramifications. We ultimately wound up shooting 5 bears in total, two in the 8-foot class and three in the 9-foot class. Because of arguments between Yuri (the outfitter) and Alexander (the guide)...

The interpreter for the Russian police asked us why we didn't just lie and say that Yuri shot the bears while we were on a simple sightseeing tour, but I guess our natural honesty and uncertainty about the situation led us to be truthful. Yuri gave us a lot of bad advice, and I think the police...