Where would you go for the biggest buffalo NOT bred in captivity

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Hornedfrogbbq

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I'm interested in folks' top 3 hunting areas/specific concessions for the biggest non-captisvity bred buffalo. For this question , if a buffalo herd is self-sustaining on enough land (call it 25,000 acres or more) they are "free-roaming" so a few South African hunting concessions might make the grade. I haven't spent time looking at the record books to see where the top animals were when shot but i thought i'd get a survey of "This is where you go to shoot a massive, massive mature (hard bossed) buffalo." To try and be specific, I'm defining massive by scores in the two respective organizations that do this sort of thing. Could be spread, could be boss and curl included.

What I don't want to discuss or consider would be Place and Take areas or folks that buy huge buffalo to be shot. I'd like them to have been bred NOT in a genetic game farm area.
 
I have never been to a rich Buffalo area, nor have I ever been to Tanzania. With that said…
I bet it would be Parts of central and western Tanzania.

My good friend hunted Maswa and shot a 43 inch buff.
The Rungwa area seems to have massive buffalo as well. Body size and horn width.
Harpreet Brars areas in souther massai land are where I would go!!
Here are some pics from Harpreets Instagram. He’s worth a follow.

I’m sure some more firsthand information will be posted! This is just what I had deducted from what little research I’ve done haha.
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Namibia's Waterberg Plateau Park has a reputation for outstanding buffalo. They are certainly priced at a premium too.
 
There are some specific areas around Kruger that deserve serious consideration. TZ is always mentioned for good reasons. Also, consider Uganda for the fact that you will see more buff than you can count and they are easier to observe there. That's where a lot of the scrum caps are coming from.
 
Although our group struggled with buffalo in the Rungwa region of Tanzania as they were widely scattered due to lots of late rain. That area is where I'd go. Some real monsters had been taken. The genetics are there.
 
I’d hunt the APNR reserves adjacent Kruger. I took my largest bull there. I expect it will remain my largest bull for the rest of my hunting career as well. I know other areas can produce mid-40s bulls but this is only area I’d consider if my primary goal was a big trophy. I’d hunt other areas for the experience hoping I could get a big bull. I wouldn’t consider any South African options behind a fence for a large bull. I would not trust how it came to be there.
 
dchum said:
I have never been to a rich Buffalo area, nor have I ever been to Tanzania. With that said…
I bet it would be Parts of central and western Tanzania.

My good friend hunted Maswa and shot a 43 inch buff.
The Rungwa area seems to have massive buffalo as well. Body size and horn width.
Harpreet Brars areas in souther massai land are where I would go!!
Here are some pics from Harpreets Instagram. He’s worth a follow.

I’m sure some more firsthand information will be posted! This is just what I had deducted from what little research I’ve done haha.
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Click to expand...
I shared a plane with Harpreet when we were both pretty young. I didn't know who I was talking to, and he soon blew me away with his notebook of pictures from Rungwa!!!
 
318AE said:
The largest buffalo used to be on the concessions on the eastern side of Tarangire NP in southern Maasailand. I would check to make sure that area is as good as it used to be.
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I hunted that area in May last year. I took a nice representative bull and unfortunately wounded a bigger bull. The area definitely has bulls, however it’s really really thick. It makes judging buffalo difficult and you have to get close. It’s a good buffalo hunt, but not necessarily an area you can look over a lot of buffalo to selectively take a big one.
 
The tricky part about this is that it really isn't a consideration of "over hunting" nor about "superior genetics" as much as it is about hunter's ethics.

I can tell you that in Zimbabwe, there has been a lot of forethought in hunting Dugga Boys and quite a bit of concern about hunting world-record quality buffalo that are too young and still part of the herd structure.

Long story short, you need to have a conversation with your Operator and PH about your goals to see whether they hunt buffalo herds, or only small bachelor herds of dugga boys. The former will likely hold better condition, larger horned Buffalos but they may not be hard bossed...yet.
 
375Fox said:
I hunted that area in May last year. I took a nice representative bull and unfortunately wounded a bigger bull. The area definitely has bulls, however it’s really really thick. It makes judging buffalo difficult and you have to get close. It’s a good buffalo hunt, but not necessarily an area you can look over a lot of buffalo to selectively take a big one.
Click to expand...
That’s good advice - any place that’s got good genetics, you still need to look over a lot of bulls and be able to be either very selective, or very, very lucky.

That area around Tarangire and Manyara had some really exceptional genetics
 
rookhawk said:
The tricky part about this is that it really isn't a consideration of "over hunting" nor about "superior genetics" as much as it is about hunter's ethics.

I can tell you that in Zimbabwe, there has been a lot of forethought in hunting Dugga Boys and quite a bit of concern about hunting world-record quality buffalo that are too young and still part of the herd structure.

Long story short, you need to have a conversation with your Operator and PH about your goals to see whether they hunt buffalo herds, or only small bachelor herds of dugga boys. The former will likely hold better condition, larger horned Buffalos but they may not be hard bossed...yet.
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I know this is the current dialogue, especially with the Rigby award, and I believe generally good for the sport. I myself prefer to take old bulls with a lot of character, and am not really a fan of either book to which the OP eludes.

However, there are bulls that score very, very well in bachelor herds especially in the RW method, often larger than the herd bull, which will simply be younger and physically stronger. The overall width doesn’t really get shorter with age, the boss doesn’t really shrink (as measure by SCI if I recall correctly) and in some areas the tips don’t broom down that much. The herd bulls will lose condition and cycle in and out of the bachelor herds to regain condition, while the old dugga boys will stay there.

This gets clearer in areas where you see bachelor herds of over a dozen bulls, vs the 2-4 that is common in some areas.

I’m a big fan and supportive of taking old, old bulls, but I don’t want to see a perception created that a bull that scores very well was likely an immature herd bull, as I don’t think that is necessarily true.
 
I ethically would only shoot a mature, hard bossed bull. I love old groomed down bulls and scrum caps and the like. I'd probably prefer hunting those to the actual original question i asked.

What I am definitely NOT talking about is a young, soft bossed bull nor an extradinary cow.
 
318AE said:
That’s good advice - any place that’s got good genetics, you still need to look over a lot of bulls and be able to be either very selective, or very, very lucky.

That area around Tarangire and Manyara had some really exceptional genetics
Click to expand...
As several of us are saying, this is really critical to knowing that you took the right bull after looking over an area with good genetics. If the bush is thick, it's just a matter of luck and you are not going to see as many of them as the more open areas. That's still a fun hunt and it doesn't really make it easier but you feel better about your decisions. There are many stories of taking something nice and then the big boy stands up afterwards to see what all the noise is about. Talk about having your heart drop!

It's really a combination of things...a PH that understands and will work for that goal...good genetics...an area that can be surveyed for best decisions...then it's up to you to do your part.
 
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