UGANDA: KOS Safaris 2026

This hunt report relates to my recently completed hunt in Uganda with KOS Safaris. Health warning: I do go on, so put away the Ambien and settle in.

My goal for 2026 was to finish the bushbuck species. This presented a problem since, according to Carten-Barber (2017), “[t]here are few, if any, species that have created as much controversy, at the subspecies level, as the Bushbuck. As recently as 2007, they were being divided into as many as 23 subspecies, but incredibly into two separate species.”

DNA studies have since contradicted this approach, and the bushbuck are now treated as one species, although there are still some differences of opinion as to exactly how many subspecies there are. Carte-Barber himself suggests that there are nine - harnessed, Abyssinian, Menelik’s, Nile, Somali, Masai, Chobe, Limpopo, and Cape.

Peter Flack (Hunting the Spiral Horns - Bushbuck (2014)) says there are only eight - the harnessed, Abyssinian, Menelik’s, Nile, Chobe, Limpopo, Cape, and East African, which some call Masai. The missing subspecies here is the Somali.

The SCI record book lists the same eight subspecies as Flack. I don’t know if this is because there is no hunting in Somalia, or if they don’t recognize the Somalian bushbuck (if it even exists as an separate subspecies), but a call had to be made, and, being experienced at making calls (especially those which favor me!), I decided to go with Flack (for whom I have a great deal of respect) and SCI.

So there are eight bushbuck subspecies. On previous hunts, I’d taken six of the eight, some in multiples and some in multiple locations. The missing two were the Nile and the East African. Uganda offered a chance to take the final two, so a couple of years ago, I booked a 2026 hunt with those two animals as the main targets. Of course, I added a few other animals, as you will see from the hunt report (if he ever gets there . . .).

Now, a few initial observations before I get to the hunt itself (feel free to skip):

Outfitter: Working with my usual booking agent, Dean Stobbs of Dean Stobbs Safaris, I booked with KOS Safaris, one of three (I think) outfitters operating in Uganda. KOS stands for Karimojong Overland Safaris, and they are based in the PianUpe Wildlife Reserve in the Karamoja region of Uganda, north of Kampala. The “boss” is Ade Langley, who has two other professional hunters on staff - Gareth Lecluse and Tom (aka Thompson or Bryan) Holloway. All three are licensed Zimbabwean PH’s (Zimbabwe as we know has the toughest licensing standards in Africa), and Dean, a Zim PH himself, was familiar with them and said we’d have a good hunt. Besides, I liked the idea of hunting the old stomping grounds of W.D.M (Karamojo) Bell.

Firearm: I brought my Martini Gunmakers .300 Win Mag and 60 rounds of 180 grain Barnes VOR-TX ammo. The rifle had a Swarovski 1.7-10x Z6i scope. I really can’t say enough about the illuminated reticle. Your eye quickly goes to the orange dot in the centre of the crosshairs and makes target acquisition easy and quick. This can make a huge difference, especially when you’re shooting in low light or at dark-coloured animals.

I gave KOS the details of the rifle far in advance to allow them to get the import permit for me. Unfortunately, I had a picture on my computer of an old passport, which I must have sent them by accident, so when I got the permit, about 10 days before departure, I noticed that it had the wrong (old) passport number. That led to some consternation and some favors being called in to get a new permit in time for my arrival.

The Canadian firearms permit (which is needed to take a firearm outside of Canada other than to the US) now must be filed entirely online, although nothing on the government website has changed to reflect that (or nothing I found at any rate). And the form itself hasn’t changed, including that part which says that you can fax a hard copy to the government. If you do that, as I did, you get an email back saying it all must be online. But once you file it online, the system takes over and before long, the permit appears in your inbox. Actually, quite simple.

Binos: I brought my Leica 10x42 Ultravid binos and a pair of 10x42 Geovids for Dean. He was transiting Ethiopia to get to Kampala, and had to spend a night in Addis. As a result, he would have had to get a permit for a pair of binos, and even with a permit, the authorities there can make life difficult. When I was last in Ethiopia, a couple of years ago, more attention was paid to my binos than to my rifle!

Hunting boots: I brought a new pair of New Balance hiking boots, which served me well. These are comfortable out of the box, as you’d expect, and you can replace them easily and at pretty low cost compared to the Russels I used to wear. The only negative of wearing these is that the soles are pretty easily pierced by thorns, but this can be addressed by using industrial protective insoles.

I also brought along a pair of Keen “river shoes” which proved very useful for hunting in the papyrus swamps. Equally comfortable out of the box.



Travel: I flew Air Canada to Toronto and Turkish Airlines (first time for me) from Toronto to Istanbul, and then a flight which stopped in Kigali before landing in Entebbe at about 4:45 a.m. The layover in Toronto is about 6 hours, and the layover in Istanbul is about 8 hours. Long layovers, but this was the only routing which got me to Entebbe early in the morning. All other flights got me there later in the day, and too late to get a charter to PianUpe. Without the charter, the drive would be about 9 hours, half of which would be on congested paved roads, and the balance on uncongested dirt roads. I chose the charter.

Turkish Airlines may have modern planes, but the one on the Toronto to Istanbul run isn’t one of those (an A-350). It’s an older plane, and the business class seats, while lie flat, are not pods, but regular seats, and the configuration is 2-3-2, so if you’re in the middle of the three, you have to step over someone to get out. If you’re on an aisle, someone must step over you to get out. One result of this is a lack of the privacy that you would normally see in a more modern business class arrangement. Having said that, the staff were very pleasant and did their best to please. Unlike many airlines, particularly North American ones, the staff actually seem happy to have you aboard.

The plane from Istanbul to Entebbe is more modern but much smaller - a 737 Max, and business class is 2-2, with ‘normal’ seats for a domestic flight. Not much recline, and the flight is about 7 1/2 hours.

The US and Israel attacked Iran while I was flying to Istanbul. This didn’t cause me any problems, but all flights to the Middle East/Gulf from Istanbul or from there were cancelled, and since Istanbul is a major hub, and many of the Middle East/Gulf airports are as well, that meant a lot of cancelled flights, with the result that the airport was rather chaotic. I was a little worried, since the flight path from Istanbul to Kigali flies over the eastern Mediterranean, a bit west of the coast of Lebanon and Israel, but I had no issues either going or returning. But others obviously did - Gulf airline planes were parked on the tarmac and didn’t look like they were going anywhere any time soon.

Firearms weren’t an issue for either Air Canada or Turkish. I filled out a form in Calgary for Air Canada and was called to the Turkish departure desk in Toronto where I added my email address and phone number to Turkish Airline’s form, and that was it.

Once at Entebbe, your firearm goes directly to the Aviation Police office. I was met in the luggage area by my PH, Ade Langley, and he took me to the office to retrieve the firearm. The process isn’t at all difficult, but it is involved. A total of five people must sign a form, and all need to see the firearm and match the serial number, as well as count the ammo. If one of those people is delayed (or in bed, as was the case with us), you sit and wait. The form you get back, signed by all of them, is more important than your import permit - you need it to leave. And from that point on, no one cares about the import permit.

Waiting turned out not to be a big problem, because our charter flight wouldn’t be ready until about 7 a.m., once the sun came up. So we left the baggage area and went to the departures area, with a nice policeman carrying the firearm and waiting with us (you aren’t allowed to touch your firearm in or near the airport). The policeman puts the firearm onto the charter plane and everyone signs papers, and you are good to go. Everyone was very friendly throughout, and there were no issues. So while it’s one of the more complex firearm entries I’ve had in Africa, everyone is cheerful and cooperates so it gets done. With perhaps more fuss than some places, but it does get done.

Uganda: Uganda is a smallish country, situated on the equator in central-eastern Africa. It’s bordered by Kenya, South Sudan, Rwanda, DRC (Congo) and Tanzania. Lake Victoria, the second largest freshwater lake in the world, is mostly located in Uganda. The population is about 45 million, many of whom live in poverty. There is no one majority ethnic group, and while English and Swahili are the official languages, most people grow up speaking their particular tribal language first. Having said that, everyone I met spoke and understood English, though they were not always easy to understand when they responded. All were very friendly though (a nice change from places like Ethiopia).

The politics of Uganda is, as in most of Africa, complicated, and I don’t propose to get into it here. I can say that those of a certain age, like me, can remember the days of Idi Amin, somebody missed by absolutely no one anywhere, but Uganda has clearly changed since those days. Still, Uganda, like most places, has its political challenges.

While many people visit Uganda to see the mountain gorillas, the US State Department lists Uganda as “Level 3 - Reconsider Travel” due to “crime, terrorism, unrest and laws targeting persons based on sexual orientation.” The Government of Canada has Uganda as yellow, which may mean essentially the same thing, but then goes on to say that the border areas with all of Uganda’s neighbors other than Tanzania are red, meaning “avoid all travel.”

In addition to those general warnings however, I noticed (only once I got home!) that the Government of Canada says “Avoid non-essential travel to Karamoja Province due to inter-communal violence and banditry. This advisory excludes visits to national parks when accompanied by a reputable guide and using well-travelled roads.” I wasn’t in a national park, and I wasn’t always on well-travelled roads, but I did have a reputable guide! As far as the warning for the Karamoja areas is concerned, I never saw anything which caused me concern and, in any event, the hunting camp is located about 1 minute from the local ranger station (with plenty of armed personnel) and about 6 minutes from an army ‘camp’ (a collection of huts housing an army detachment).

I can’t really comment on these warnings. I spent no time in Kampala - Entebbe is some distance from Kampala - and I never felt at risk in rural areas, although my risk tolerance may be greater than some. I can also say I wouldn’t hesitate to go back (and just might . . .).

Part 2 to come . . .

Got the reading chair ready to go!

I like your writing style. Looking forward to more installments and photos!

Looking forward to your review, One of two I am considering.

Always enjoy your reports and looking forward to your next installation. Thanks for taking the time to share your adventures with us-

With that rather prolix introduction, I can (finally) move on to Day 1 of my hunt.

Day 1 March 1

We left for PianUpe at around 7:45 am on March 1st. We had originally been scheduled to fly in a small (at least in my opinion), 3-seater Cessna 206, but that plane was apparently being serviced, so the charter company substituted a Cessna Caravan, which is a much bigger plane (seats around 10). It also has two pilots, which is double the 206!

Since we were taking a larger plane, and had room, we took Gareth and Tom, the other PHs, with us, saving them the long drive. The flight gave me a good view of how densely populated and developed much of Uganda is, as well as providing a view of the newly born Nile, which starts in Lake Victoria (with a nod to John Hanning Speke and apologies to Sir Richard Francis Burton).


The "big" plane


The newly born Nile - you can see how green the landscape is

Within less than 90 minutes we arrived at a gravel airstrip near PianUpe. A short 15-minute drive and we were in camp. My accommodations for our time there were more than adequate. I had a good size tent, an en- suite bathroom (with plenty of hot water) and a king size bed. Meals were first rate, generally including game, and there was always more than enough, which is saying something, given my experience with Zimbabwean appetites. The internet worked reasonably reliably, but didn’t reach as far as my tent. I unpacked and settled in.



PianUpe is in the Karamoja region of Uganda, traditional home to the Karamajong people and consists of about 645,000 acres (no fences). The Karamajong principally raise cattle, and have a somewhat warlike disposition. They and other local tribes, including some from Kenya such as the Turkana, are known as Nilotic tribes, and they have been in reasonably steady conflict for much of their history over grazing for cattle and cattle raiding. Both of these activities often descend into violence, with the result that the local people tend to be well armed. This distinction resulted in several generally unsuccessful disarmament campaigns by the national government, some of which also involved violence. This means that pretty much only the army can drive the cattle out of the reserve without worrying too much about the consequences.

This is important, because various groups do move their cattle into the wildlife reserve for grazing from time to time. We saw large herds of cattle as we drove the area - hundreds of cows if not more - but fortunately, this seems to have little if any impact on the wildlife.

Speaking of wildlife, after some days of driving the concession, I was impressed by the sheer density and variety of game. In fact, the closest comparison I can think of is some of the better run game farms in South Africa. We saw large herds (dozens of animals or more) of Jackson’s hartebeest, eland and even Sudan roan, most of which are seen in only small numbers elsewhere. Topi, while not as abundant, were relatively common, and as were some pretty substantial warthogs. Oribi are very common and herds of Defassa waterbuck can be found. Monkeys and olive baboons are also common, as well as a relatively uncommon race of maneless zebra - Equus quagga borensis (KOS expects to have a very small quota for these next year). We also saw a reasonable number of ostriches, but (fortunately for the ostrich) these are not under license. Had they been, you can rest assured an ostrich would have fallen victim to my views of the entire species. Other species, such as Nile buffalo and Guenther’s dik-dik, are found in other parts of the reserve.

We had a good lunch, some talk of what to expect over the next few days and and then a bit of a rest before heading out to sight in the rifle. (As an aside, if you ask nicely, Gareth will show you a short video which explains the scars on his right arm. Apparently, following up on a client’s wounded leopard can be dangerous . . . ).

After sighting in the rifle, we drove the concession, and as I mentioned, I was impressed by the sheer numbers of game. We say large herds of eland throughout the afternoon - more than I have ever seen together before. And these seemed to me to have bigger bodies and, in the case of the males, much darker skins than I have seen in southern Africa. These were the Patterson’s Eland (Taurotragus orxy pattersonianus), one of three subspecies of the common eland, named for Colonel Patterson, who was probably more famous for killing the man-eaters of Tsavo (and writing about it) than he is for these eland.

As we were returning to camp, with Ade driving and me in the passenger seat (it had been raining . . .!), Ade noticed a group of eland off the north side of the road. He decided to stop to get a better look, and we decided to see how close we could get. Ade identified a big, dark-skinned specimen with a huge dewlap and decided I should cut my teeth for this trip on him (most people do that with impala or warthog . . .). Ade knew how to get as close as possible without spooking the animals (about 180 yards as it turned out), and set up his sticks. I took a shot and hit the eland, which ran a few yards and then stopped, giving me a broadside presentation again. We quickly decided that a second shot might be called for, and I delivered it, dropping it on the spot.

I was more than a little tickled at this beautiful specimen. Big body, large dewlap, dark skin, huge mop and very old. Just what we were looking for. And, without thinking about it, I think I now had all three of the common eland sub-species!



A great way to start the hunt.

Fantastic eland. I am very interested in your pursuit of the bushbuck slam. That has to be one of the best "slams" available in all of Africa. I look forward to hearing about the rest of your trip. Thank you for taking the time to share.

Congrats on a nice eland and finishing the eland slam. The bushbuck slam is one that interests me a lot.

Fatback said:

Fantastic eland. I am very interested in your pursuit of the bushbuck slam. That has to be one of the best "slams" available in all of Africa. I look forward to hearing about the rest of your trip. Thank you for taking the time to share.

Click to expand...

I agree that the bushbuck 'slam" (I didn't really know there was one called that, but happy to hear it!) is one of the best, but I have to say that - just my opinion - the spiral horn 'slam' is the best of all the slams. While you have to travel more or less far and wide to collect the eight bushbuck, none of the locations are as difficult as the jungle, or the mountains of Ethiopia. Having said that, it was the bushbuck that got me going on the spiral horns, and it remains the prettiest of all of them for me.

Hank2211 said:

This hunt report relates to my recently completed hunt in Uganda with KOS Safaris. Health warning: I do go on, so put away the Ambien and settle in.

My goal for 2026 was to finish the bushbuck species. This presented a problem since, according to Carten-Barber (2017), “[t]here are few, if any, species that have created as much controversy, at the subspecies level, as the Bushbuck. As recently as 2007, they were being divided into as many as 23 subspecies, but incredibly into two separate species.”

DNA studies have since contradicted this approach, and the bushbuck are now treated as one species, although there are still some differences of opinion as to exactly how many subspecies there are. Carte-Barber himself suggests that there are nine - harnessed, Abyssinian, Menelik’s, Nile, Somali, Masai, Chobe, Limpopo, and Cape.

Peter Flack (Hunting the Spiral Horns - Bushbuck (2014)) says there are only eight - the harnessed, Abyssinian, Menelik’s, Nile, Chobe, Limpopo, Cape, and East African, which some call Masai. The missing subspecies here is the Somali.

The SCI record book lists the same eight subspecies as Flack. I don’t know if this is because there is no hunting in Somalia, or if they don’t recognize the Somalian bushbuck (if it even exists as an separate subspecies), but a call had to be made, and, being experienced at making calls (especially those which favor me!), I decided to go with Flack (for whom I have a great deal of respect) and SCI.

So there are eight bushbuck subspecies. On previous hunts, I’d taken six of the eight, some in multiples and some in multiple locations. The missing two were the Nile and the East African. Uganda offered a chance to take the final two, so a couple of years ago, I booked a 2026 hunt with those two animals as the main targets. Of course, I added a few other animals, as you will see from the hunt report (if he ever gets there . . .).

Now, a few initial observations before I get to the hunt itself (feel free to skip):

Outfitter: Working with my usual booking agent, Dean Stobbs of Dean Stobbs Safaris, I booked with KOS Safaris, one of three (I think) outfitters operating in Uganda. KOS stands for Karimojong Overland Safaris, and they are based in the PianUpe Wildlife Reserve in the Karamoja region of Uganda, north of Kampala. The “boss” is Ade Langley, who has two other professional hunters on staff - Gareth Lecluse and Tom (aka Thompson or Bryan) Holloway. All three are licensed Zimbabwean PH’s (Zimbabwe as we know has the toughest licensing standards in Africa), and Dean, a Zim PH himself, was familiar with them and said we’d have a good hunt. Besides, I liked the idea of hunting the old stomping grounds of W.D.M (Karamojo) Bell.

Firearm: I brought my Martini Gunmakers .300 Win Mag and 60 rounds of 180 grain Barnes VOR-TX ammo. The rifle had a Swarovski 1.7-10x Z6i scope. I really can’t say enough about the illuminated reticle. Your eye quickly goes to the orange dot in the centre of the crosshairs and makes target acquisition easy and quick. This can make a huge difference, especially when you’re shooting in low light or at dark-coloured animals.

I gave KOS the details of the rifle far in advance to allow them to get the import permit for me. Unfortunately, I had a picture on my computer of an old passport, which I must have sent them by accident, so when I got the permit, about 10 days before departure, I noticed that it had the wrong (old) passport number. That led to some consternation and some favors being called in to get a new permit in time for my arrival.

The Canadian firearms permit (which is needed to take a firearm outside of Canada other than to the US) now must be filed entirely online, although nothing on the government website has changed to reflect that (or nothing I found at any rate). And the form itself hasn’t changed, including that part which says that you can fax a hard copy to the government. If you do that, as I did, you get an email back saying it all must be online. But once you file it online, the system takes over and before long, the permit appears in your inbox. Actually, quite simple.

Binos: I brought my Leica 10x42 Ultravid binos and a pair of 10x42 Geovids for Dean. He was transiting Ethiopia to get to Kampala, and had to spend a night in Addis. As a result, he would have had to get a permit for a pair of binos, and even with a permit, the authorities there can make life difficult. When I was last in Ethiopia, a couple of years ago, more attention was paid to my binos than to my rifle!

Hunting boots: I brought a new pair of New Balance hiking boots, which served me well. These are comfortable out of the box, as you’d expect, and you can replace them easily and at pretty low cost compared to the Russels I used to wear. The only negative of wearing these is that the soles are pretty easily pierced by thorns, but this can be addressed by using industrial protective insoles.

I also brought along a pair of Keen “river shoes” which proved very useful for hunting in the papyrus swamps. Equally comfortable out of the box.

View attachment 756587

Travel: I flew Air Canada to Toronto and Turkish Airlines (first time for me) from Toronto to Istanbul, and then a flight which stopped in Kigali before landing in Entebbe at about 4:45 a.m. The layover in Toronto is about 6 hours, and the layover in Istanbul is about 8 hours. Long layovers, but this was the only routing which got me to Entebbe early in the morning. All other flights got me there later in the day, and too late to get a charter to PianUpe. Without the charter, the drive would be about 9 hours, half of which would be on congested paved roads, and the balance on uncongested dirt roads. I chose the charter.

Turkish Airlines may have modern planes, but the one on the Toronto to Istanbul run isn’t one of those (an A-350). It’s an older plane, and the business class seats, while lie flat, are not pods, but regular seats, and the configuration is 2-3-2, so if you’re in the middle of the three, you have to step over someone to get out. If you’re on an aisle, someone must step over you to get out. One result of this is a lack of the privacy that you would normally see in a more modern business class arrangement. Having said that, the staff were very pleasant and did their best to please. Unlike many airlines, particularly North American ones, the staff actually seem happy to have you aboard.

The plane from Istanbul to Entebbe is more modern but much smaller - a 737 Max, and business class is 2-2, with ‘normal’ seats for a domestic flight. Not much recline, and the flight is about 7 1/2 hours.

The US and Israel attacked Iran while I was flying to Istanbul. This didn’t cause me any problems, but all flights to the Middle East/Gulf from Istanbul or from there were cancelled, and since Istanbul is a major hub, and many of the Middle East/Gulf airports are as well, that meant a lot of cancelled flights, with the result that the airport was rather chaotic. I was a little worried, since the flight path from Istanbul to Kigali flies over the eastern Mediterranean, a bit west of the coast of Lebanon and Israel, but I had no issues either going or returning. But others obviously did - Gulf airline planes were parked on the tarmac and didn’t look like they were going anywhere any time soon.

Firearms weren’t an issue for either Air Canada or Turkish. I filled out a form in Calgary for Air Canada and was called to the Turkish departure desk in Toronto where I added my email address and phone number to Turkish Airline’s form, and that was it.

Once at Entebbe, your firearm goes directly to the Aviation Police office. I was met in the luggage area by my PH, Ade Langley, and he took me to the office to retrieve the firearm. The process isn’t at all difficult, but it is involved. A total of five people must sign a form, and all need to see the firearm and match the serial number, as well as count the ammo. If one of those people is delayed (or in bed, as was the case with us), you sit and wait. The form you get back, signed by all of them, is more important than your import permit - you need it to leave. And from that point on, no one cares about the import permit.

Waiting turned out not to be a big problem, because our charter flight wouldn’t be ready until about 7 a.m., once the sun came up. So we left the baggage area and went to the departures area, with a nice policeman carrying the firearm and waiting with us (you aren’t allowed to touch your firearm in or near the airport). The policeman puts the firearm onto the charter plane and everyone signs papers, and you are good to go. Everyone was very friendly throughout, and there were no issues. So while it’s one of the more complex firearm entries I’ve had in Africa, everyone is cheerful and cooperates so it gets done. With perhaps more fuss than some places, but it does get done.

Uganda: Uganda is a smallish country, situated on the equator in central-eastern Africa. It’s bordered by Kenya, South Sudan, Rwanda, DRC (Congo) and Tanzania. Lake Victoria, the second largest freshwater lake in the world, is mostly located in Uganda. The population is about 45 million, many of whom live in poverty. There is no one majority ethnic group, and while English and Swahili are the official languages, most people grow up speaking their particular tribal language first. Having said that, everyone I met spoke and understood English, though they were not always easy to understand when they responded. All were very friendly though (a nice change from places like Ethiopia).

The politics of Uganda is, as in most of Africa, complicated, and I don’t propose to get into it here. I can say that those of a certain age, like me, can remember the days of Idi Amin, somebody missed by absolutely no one anywhere, but Uganda has clearly changed since those days. Still, Uganda, like most places, has its political challenges.

While many people visit Uganda to see the mountain gorillas, the US State Department lists Uganda as “Level 3 - Reconsider Travel” due to “crime, terrorism, unrest and laws targeting persons based on sexual orientation.” The Government of Canada has Uganda as yellow, which may mean essentially the same thing, but then goes on to say that the border areas with all of Uganda’s neighbors other than Tanzania are red, meaning “avoid all travel.”

In addition to those general warnings however, I noticed (only once I got home!) that the Government of Canada says “Avoid non-essential travel to Karamoja Province due to inter-communal violence and banditry. This advisory excludes visits to national parks when accompanied by a reputable guide and using well-travelled roads.” I wasn’t in a national park, and I wasn’t always on well-travelled roads, but I did have a reputable guide! As far as the warning for the Karamoja areas is concerned, I never saw anything which caused me concern and, in any event, the hunting camp is located about 1 minute from the local ranger station (with plenty of armed personnel) and about 6 minutes from an army ‘camp’ (a collection of huts housing an army detachment).

I can’t really comment on these warnings. I spent no time in Kampala - Entebbe is some distance from Kampala - and I never felt at risk in rural areas, although my risk tolerance may be greater than some. I can also say I wouldn’t hesitate to go back (and just might . . .).

Part 2 to come . . .

Click to expand...

I like the information provided, and written in a good reading format. Looking forward to more!

Day 2 - March 2


It rained all night and into the early morning, delaying our start until about 9 a.m. This area has had a lot of rain over the last few weeks, which apparently is much earlier than usual - the rainy season doesn’t usually start until April. One result is that the area is very green - much greener than Africa (apart from the jungle) usually is during hunting season. For once, I can see the Green Hills of Africa, rather than the more usual Brown Hills of Africa (thank you Mr. Hemingway). But along with the green comes taller than normal grass and thicker than normal brush. Having said that, PianUpe tends to be quite open in the areas we’re hunting, with beautiful mountains and hills in the distance. (The Nile buffalo areas tend to be on the other side of the hills in thicker country.). As a result, shots tend towards somewhat longer - 150 - 200 yards is not uncommon, simply because there often isn’t enough cover to get any closer.

We spent the morning looking over hartebeest and topi, which seem to mix well together. Late in the morning Ade found a lone Topi male which he liked, so we jumped off the truck and began a stalk. The topi didn’t stand still, but he didn’t seem overly fussed either, so we quickly got into position and just as quickly I took the shot and missed. I think the topi was as surprised as I was by the miss, because he ran a bit then stopped and looked at me as if he didn’t have anything to worry about. I don’t (usually) miss twice, and I didn’t in this case either. The topi went down.



As if I didn’t have enough to deal with regarding bushbuck taxonomy, the topi presents similar, if not even more complex, issues. The topi and the tsessebe are both in the damaliscus family, and both are known as damaliscus lunatus. The taxonomy has been all over the map over the years, but currently, SCI recognizes four subspecies with the tsessebe being damaliscus lunatus lunatus (one of which I shot many years ago in South Africa) and the topi being damaliscus lunatus jimela. A major difference, of course, is that topi are not found in southern Africa.

The two animals are very similar, but the horns are different in terms of overall shape, with the tsessebe having more lyre-shaped horns than the topi, and the topi having a darker skin and black patches which the tsessebe lacks. Overall, I would say the topi is the more attractive animal of the two.

This afternoon we found an oribi with an unusual feature - ivory tipped horns. So we stalked it and brought it down. There is only one species of oribi, but since nothing is simple, there are up to 12 subspecies, separated mostly by geography. I have shot one in KZN (where oribi is a TOPs species and permits were, at least at that time, reasonably difficult to come by) and now, this oribi, which I am going to assume is the Nile subspecies. I think I also shot an oribi (the Western oribi) in Benin. Note that this is absolutely not the beginning of a new quest.



Day 3 - March 3

We had more rain overnight, which helped with the sleeping. It’s been some years since I’ve slept in a tent under rain, and I found the rain on the tent very soothing.

Once again, we got a later start, waiting for the rain to end. Once we got moving - after 9 am - we began looking at hartebeest. The local version is the Jackson’s hartebeest, and once again, taxonomy becomes complicated.



Carton-Barber suggests that there are two recognized hartebeest species: the common and the Lichenstein’s (Alcelaphus buselaphus and lichtenseinii, respectively). Others (including SCI) disagree, saying that there is only one species, the common hartebeest, and eight subspecies, of which the Lichtenstein is one (the others are the bubal (exinctextinct), red, Coke’s, western, Lelwel, Swayne’s and the tora (possibly extinct)). Things get more complicated from there.

The Jackson’s hartebeest isn’t, obviously, one of the eight subspecies I’ve just identified. Hartebeest are apparently not terribly picky in terms of choosing mates, so hybridization has occurred in areas of overlapping territory. This has resulted in three hybrids becoming common enough to be officially recognized: the Kenya highlands, the Neumann’s and the Jackson’s. The local version is the Jackson’s, which is a cross between the Coke’s and the Lelwel.

Ade is nothing if not particular about the animals I get to shoot. I told him at the start of our hunt that I wasn’t a stickler for horn length, but I was a stickler for age. Only old animals need apply. So we spent some hours looking closely at some hundreds (I do not exaggerate here) of hartebeest until, finally, one met Ade’s standards.

We made a short stalk, and then I set up on the sticks. There were lots of hartebeest in front of me, and while I knew which one we were after, it kept moving into and out of groups of other hartebeest. Finally, we had both agreed on which one we wanted, and where it was, but now, it was facing away from us, between two other hartebeest. Ade said I should shoot when I had a shot. There was no particular rush - the animals didn’t seem disturbed, but that state wouldn’t last forever. At one point the target looked back at me, causing me to think that if I could put a bullet on its right flank, it would go forward into the heart and lungs, exiting out the left shoulder. I felt steady, so I took the shot. The hartebeest ran a few yards with lung blood pouring out of its nose and mouth, and fell over dead. Not everyone agreed that it was a safe shot to take (you know who you are), but for once, the bullet went exactly where I wanted it to, and the result was what I wanted. I was very pleased with this fellow.





We set out again after lunch and a nap, and eventually found ourselves among large herds of cattle. We got past them (the herders - children - running away as fast as possible once they saw us) and came upon a herd of waterbuck. One old fellow stood out as having an impressive set of horns.

After a short stalk, Ade put up the sticks and I took the shot. A hit, and the waterbuck moved off slowly and lay down. I felt good about that shot. Until he got up again and began to wander. I put a second shot into him and down again. And up again, and more wandering. And then a third shot, which was out of frustration and a miss, and lastly a fourth shot (more calmly this time) which put it down for good. When we got to him, it was clear that any one of the three shots (which hit him) should have killed him, and quickly. But he just didn’t seem to be in a hurry to die.

I don’t usually measure the horns on animals I kill, but in this case, I did ask Ade to measure him. He came in at 33” per side, which is great for waterbuck, and exceeds my current best by a few inches.



This is the defassa waterbuck, which interbreeds easily with the common waterbuck. Initially thought to be two species, they are now treated as one, with a significant number of subspecies and an even greater number of variations based on coat color and size. I can only tell the defassa and common apart from the rear - the defassa lacks the white ring on its butt.



A good day, so I decided to allow my PHs to watch tv and the most boring sport ever invented by man . . . cricket. The World Cup or something similar. I have no idea who won.

Hank2211 said:

Day 2 - March 2

View attachment 756986
It rained all night and into the early morning, delaying our start until about 9 a.m. This area has had a lot of rain over the last few weeks, which apparently is much earlier than usual - the rainy season doesn’t usually start until April. One result is that the area is very green - much greener than Africa (apart from the jungle) usually is during hunting season. For once, I can see the Green Hills of Africa, rather than the more usual Brown Hills of Africa (thank you Mr. Hemingway). But along with the green comes taller than normal grass and thicker than normal brush. Having said that, PianUpe tends to be quite open in the areas we’re hunting, with beautiful mountains and hills in the distance. (The Nile buffalo areas tend to be on the other side of the hills in thicker country.). As a result, shots tend towards somewhat longer - 150 - 200 yards is not uncommon, simply because there often isn’t enough cover to get any closer.

We spent the morning looking over hartebeest and topi, which seem to mix well together. Late in the morning Ade found a lone Topi male which he liked, so we jumped off the truck and began a stalk. The topi didn’t stand still, but he didn’t seem overly fussed either, so we quickly got into position and just as quickly I took the shot and missed. I think the topi was as surprised as I was by the miss, because he ran a bit then stopped and looked at me as if he didn’t have anything to worry about. I don’t (usually) miss twice, and I didn’t in this case either. The topi went down.

View attachment 756988

As if I didn’t have enough to deal with regarding bushbuck taxonomy, the topi presents similar, if not even more complex, issues. The topi and the tsessebe are both in the damaliscus family, and both are known as damaliscus lunatus. The taxonomy has been all over the map over the years, but currently, SCI recognizes four subspecies with the tsessebe being damaliscus lunatus lunatus (one of which I shot many years ago in South Africa) and the topi being damaliscus lunatus jimela. A major difference, of course, is that topi are not found in southern Africa.

The two animals are very similar, but the horns are different in terms of overall shape, with the tsessebe having more lyre-shaped horns than the topi, and the topi having a darker skin and black patches which the tsessebe lacks. Overall, I would say the topi is the more attractive animal of the two.

This afternoon we found an oribi with an unusual feature - ivory tipped horns. So we stalked it and brought it down. There is only one species of oribi, but since nothing is simple, there are up to 12 subspecies, separated mostly by geography. I have shot one in KZN (where oribi is a TOPs species and permits were, at least at that time, reasonably difficult to come by) and now, this oribi, which I am going to assume is the Nile subspecies. I think I also shot an oribi (the Western oribi) in Benin. Note that this is absolutely not the beginning of a new quest.

View attachment 756989

Day 3 - March 3

View attachment 756990

We had more rain overnight, which helped with the sleeping. It’s been some years since I’ve slept in a tent under rain, and I found the rain on the tent very soothing.

Once again, we got a later start, waiting for the rain to end. Once we got moving - after 9 am - we began looking at hartebeest. The local version is the Jackson’s hartebeest, and once again, taxonomy becomes complicated.

View attachment 756991

Carton-Barber suggests that there are two recognized hartebeest species: the common and the Lichenstein’s (Alcelaphus buselaphus and lichtenseinii, respectively). Others (including SCI) disagree, saying that there is only one species, the common hartebeest, and eight subspecies, of which the Lichtenstein is one (the others are the bubal (exinctextinct), red, Coke’s, western, Lelwel, Swayne’s and the tora (possibly extinct)). Things get more complicated from there.

The Jackson’s hartebeest isn’t, obviously, one of the eight subspecies I’ve just identified. Hartebeest are apparently not terribly picky in terms of choosing mates, so hybridization has occurred in areas of overlapping territory. This has resulted in three hybrids becoming common enough to be officially recognized: the Kenya highlands, the Neumann’s and the Jackson’s. The local version is the Jackson’s, which is a cross between the Coke’s and the Lelwel.

Ade is nothing if not particular about the animals I get to shoot. I told him at the start of our hunt that I wasn’t a stickler for horn length, but I was a stickler for age. Only old animals need apply. So we spent some hours looking closely at some hundreds (I do not exaggerate here) of hartebeest until, finally, one met Ade’s standards.

We made a short stalk, and then I set up on the sticks. There were lots of hartebeest in front of me, and while I knew which one we were after, it kept moving into and out of groups of other hartebeest. Finally, we had both agreed on which one we wanted, and where it was, but now, it was facing away from us, between two other hartebeest. Ade said I should shoot when I had a shot. There was no particular rush - the animals didn’t seem disturbed, but that state wouldn’t last forever. At one point the target looked back at me, causing me to think that if I could put a bullet on its right flank, it would go forward into the heart and lungs, exiting out the left shoulder. I felt steady, so I took the shot. The hartebeest ran a few yards with lung blood pouring out of its nose and mouth, and fell over dead. Not everyone agreed that it was a safe shot to take (you know who you are), but for once, the bullet went exactly where I wanted it to, and the result was what I wanted. I was very pleased with this fellow.

View attachment 756993

View attachment 756992

We set out again after lunch and a nap, and eventually found ourselves among large herds of cattle. We got past them (the herders - children - running away as fast as possible once they saw us) and came upon a herd of waterbuck. One old fellow stood out as having an impressive set of horns.

After a short stalk, Ade put up the sticks and I took the shot. A hit, and the waterbuck moved off slowly and lay down. I felt good about that shot. Until he got up again and began to wander. I put a second shot into him and down again. And up again, and more wandering. And then a third shot, which was out of frustration and a miss, and lastly a fourth shot (more calmly this time) which put it down for good. When we got to him, it was clear that any one of the three shots (which hit him) should have killed him, and quickly. But he just didn’t seem to be in a hurry to die.

I don’t usually measure the horns on animals I kill, but in this case, I did ask Ade to measure him. He came in at 33” per side, which is great for waterbuck, and exceeds my current best by a few inches.

View attachment 756995

This is the defassa waterbuck, which interbreeds easily with the common waterbuck. Initially thought to be two species, they are now treated as one, with a significant number of subspecies and an even greater number of variations based on coat color and size. I can only tell the defassa and common apart from the rear - the defassa lacks the white ring on its butt.

View attachment 756996

A good day, so I decided to allow my PHs to watch tv and the most boring sport ever invented by man . . . cricket. The World Cup or something similar. I have no idea who won.

Click to expand...

Awesome report but you’re wrong on cricket. Fantastic game. Beats baseball by a hundred miles.

Russ16, I really don’t know what to say to that. Cricket beats baseball? I’m gobsmacked!

Love the report! Great animals and an unbelievable waterbuck!

Great Topi, on my list. Will be PMing you in a few days.

Hank always enjoy your reports....they are a very enjoyable read...however as I discovered your report just as I had situated myself on the throne, obviously time went out of the window...till I heard the madams voice asking if I had fallen asleep on the throne .....and hadn't even made it to the first days hunting post

Very detailed hunt report and well written.

The Eland and Waterbuck are both fantastic specimens. A well deserved congratulations are in order.

Love the long stories-you had a fantastic second day! I’m a sucker for big waterbuck and that one is awesome, all your animals are unique and impressive.

Fun read, and what a Hartebeest and Waterbuck! I had a similar, though even longer, experience with a Defassa on @spike.t 's place. I was using my .275 and there was some question whether the thing would expire before I completely ran out of ammunition.

Great report and some fine trophies! Congrats.