Get experience first? Or, hunt dangerous game right away?

VertigoBE said:

Whatever floats your boat. Go hunt a big bull elephant as your first african animal, like @Wahoo did. Or work your way from an impala/blesbok up.

What I can say, is that in most cases, your one and only safari will turn into a lifelong obsession. You will therefore at some point definitely go hunt DG. Perhaps there is something to be said, to take your time going up the summit, instead of starting at the summit.

Click to expand...

Betterinthebush said:

Your post is exactly where I sit. In fact, your analogy of a mountain is the precise language I think of where it concerns how I view the subject.

Click to expand...

I generally agree with what you are both saying. I also think our interactions on this forum skew our perception of reality when it comes to African hunting.

I can't find exact numbers but internet searches claims that about 1%-1.5% of American hunters will hunt Africa even once. I would say the average response when a person goes is that it is like an addiction and they are dying to go back. But for a lot of average people, it might not be feasible.

I grew up with hundreds of hunters all around me, and I only remember hearing of a couple people who had went to Africa and they had only gone once before eventually passing away. On this forum I have seen countless people talk about how they went to Africa for the first time when they were younger and they were dying to go back, but "life got in the way" and they didn't make it back for 15, 20, 30 years.

I say all that to say, a lot of people have a strong desire to go back many times, but that frequently doesn't translate to actually going back. So the taking your time and working up to the summit (if your main desire is DG, and you consider that the summit), might not be the best game plan for a lot of "average hunters".

I have been on a number of cull hunts...maybe ten.. everytime I learn more than the last. DG does not really interest me save for Ellie....Hippo would be nice....But enjoy Africa ......then take your DG. My two coins.....

I would also recommend that anyone wanting to hunt in Africa book a dangerous game hunt right away, because hunting in Africa is in my opinion primarily about hunting heavy dangerous game. Anyone passionate about hunting in general would maybe not find hunting plains game, species found all over the world in various area, all that exciting. Sure, the surrounding plays a role, but that feeling of environment can be arise in other regions of the world as well. For example, for some there is also a appeal to hunt in high mountain ranges and sleeping in a sleeping bag inside a tent. I know hunters who are passionate high-mountain hunters and have no interest to hunt in Africa. You need to be able to make comparisons, and unfortunately not everyone can hunt various game species in different countries worldwide.

Hunting in Africa has a strong tourism component, one that unfortunately attracts many hunters. It is marketed using images of enchanting landscapes, sunsets at the hunting camp, and so on. As a hunter, one must remain steadfast and view things realistically, rather than like tourists who are sold a vision of a world that no longer exists in reality.

grand veneur said:

Hunting in Africa has a strong tourism component, one that unfortunately attracts many hunters. It is marketed using images of enchanting landscapes, sunsets at the hunting camp, and so on. As a hunter, one must remain steadfast and view things realistically, rather than like tourists who are sold a vision of a world that no longer exists in reality.

Click to expand...

I’m not sure I understand your point. The places I hunt are nearly as important as what I hunt. I love the landscapes and am drawn to hunting many species because of the place they live.

If a hunter is interested and has some experience he should feel fine hunting dangerous game on his first African hunt. That’s what I did on my first African hunt back in 1983. I booked a 24-day full bag hunt in Zimbabwe that Included everything except a lion on license. I should have made the hunt 28-days as it would have then included lion and that would have been the first animal I shot in Africa. Our first afternoon in camp, we took a drive just to see what we could find and one of the first animals we found was a spectacular lion that we bumped into at about 25 yards. It would have been an easy shot, which I did take but with a camera instead of my rifle.

As it was, I took a 58 lb. elephant bull at 9 yards, my biggest leopard so far and a pair of big buffalo bulls. I shot the first buffalo at 13 yards as we were crawling up on a pair of bulls in thick bush, one turned and walked right across our front. Kneeling down with a buffalo looking right at you at such close range was pretty intense! One shot with my .458 Winchester and I had my first dangerous game animal, which was just the 2nd animal I’d shot in Africa.

That safari remains the very finest hunt of my life. It was an incredible experience for a 24-year old kid! I should have made it the full 28 days as I’d have taken the entire Big Four on my first hunt.

As said before in answer to another similar thread...go for it...first hunt I did in selous was 30 days..with my brother..a friend of his who was reason we went and a friend of his....every thing on license..from ele.lion..leopard..4 buff..hippo..croc.....and quite a few plains game with at least 2 on license for some...2 of us with same license..his friend was observer and my brother was mine.....biggest things I had shot up to them were rabbits and pheasants.....first thing I shot in selous was 44.5 inch buff.....2 hunts after that in zambia included buff and lion and leopard..and buff and lion....so yeah go for it....who knows what the fk will happen...

Russ16 said:

I’m not sure I understand your point. The places I hunt are nearly as important as what I hunt. I love the landscapes and am drawn to hunting many species because of the place they live.

Click to expand...

I do too, but I don't let myself be influenced by an advertisement. One has to admit that when it comes to hunting in Africa, the entire package, meaning the type of the accommodation, the catering, and all the surrounding, is portrayed a little bit differently than a hunt in the Siberian forests or the high mountains of Central Asia. None of this is meant negatively, it is more of an assessment and it is understandable that nice pictures appeals to many hunters and inspires dreams of hunting in Africa, regardless of whether it is about PG or DG hunting.

spike.t said:

2 hunts after that in zambia included buff and lion and leopard..and buff and lion....so yeah go for it....who knows what the fk will happen...

Click to expand...

My first/only hunt in Zambia was booked as a PG hunt. I ended up leaving with hippo, croc, and did several unsuccessful stalks on buffalo. One of greatest hunts I’ve still done to date. A lot of truth in your final statement. That was my first DG hunting and wasn’t planned. The opportunity just came up.

No issues with going for DG on your first hunt imo, though I do think "on paper" it makes sense to do some PG hunts first to get some experience. Given you cannot be 100% sure you will actually be able to take a second safari, the safest way to make sure you will hunt DG is to go for it the first time. Maybe you will go back, maybe you won't.

The experience of PG hunts would be good not only for the hunting experience, but also I think you will know what you want more in a DG hunt and how to shop for it, etc... As many have said, each safari you do learn things along the way.

As an aside, on my third trip to Africa for what was going to be my third PG hunt, at the last minute before I left for Africa the outfitter informed me there was a problem bull elephant that he had to take out. He then asked me if I was interested in hunting it down, for quite a discount as well. I took him up on the offer and killed a bull elephant. So boom, just like that I was hunting DG. Not how I had envisioned getting into DG hunting but it worked out fine (with a rented rifle too).

Cheers

Being a practiced shot, knowing how to effectively place shots and understanding the importance of shot selection, as well as taking instructions from your PH, should all be considered with safari hunting in general. If you've not shot a large bore rifle, then you will need to practice with it and appreciate the recoil and how that affects your shot.

I have not hunted enough DG to explain the big difference, except that awareness of the fact that Dangerous Game are most often shot at close distances and have the ability to injure or kill you if things go wrong. You will need to get your head round that prior to your DG hunt. Even though I only shot one Bull Buff, One Hippo, and One Crocodile, I made certain that I was a proficient shot with my 375H&H.

I'd lay it out as simple as if you've hunted before, 100% fine to book a DG on first trip. I did my first and only trip. Was 8 years ago and didn't know if I'd ever get to go back. Honestly. So I planned a proper buff hunt in a wild country. And if that was my only trip, it was well worth it.

If one knew they could go back multiple times, nothing wrong staggering the hunts or animals to work up towards something either.

A frien if mine decided he wanted to shoot a Lion, he was an experienced hunter in Spain, and 82 years of age.

So he shot a Lion, CBL in RSA, which charged from about 10 meters, all very exciting.

Just take it whichever way you like it.

I did the opposite, first plains game, on my third Safari, Buffalo.

From the dangerous-game side of the fence: there's no wrong answer, but the hunters who struggle on buffalo are almost never the first-timers who listened to their PH — they're the ones who couldn't make a calm, well-placed shot when it counted. A plains-game trip first is the cheapest, best way to learn to shoot African game off sticks, judge distance and handle the adrenaline. Do that, and buffalo first is completely reasonable with a good PH beside you. Fitness and a rifle you can shoot cold matter far more than a species checklist — the animal deserves a hunter who can put the first one where it belongs.

If you’re an experienced hunter, hunt what you want. If you’ve never shot a rifle, buffalo may not be the best place to start.

spike.t said:

As said before in answer to another similar thread...go for it...first hunt I did in selous was 30 days..with my brother..a friend of his who was reason we went and a friend of his....every thing on license..from ele.lion..leopard..4 buff..hippo..croc.....and quite a few plains game with at least 2 on license for some...2 of us with same license..his friend was observer and my brother was mine.....biggest things I had shot up to them were rabbits and pheasants.....first thing I shot in selous was 44.5 inch buff.....2 hunts after that in zambia included buff and lion and leopard..and buff and lion....so yeah go for it....who knows what the fk will happen...

Click to expand...

well said sir

i have hosted too many older gentlemen that then pass away before getting back to hunt again

dont wait, go and hunt whatever you like as soon as u can
stop making excuses and live life!!!

WAB said:

If you’re an experienced hunter, hunt what you want. If you’ve never shot a rifle, buffalo may not be the best place to start.

Click to expand...

My thoughts exactly.

My vote is Plains Game first. Here's why...

Africa is not North America, and North America is not Africa. The animals are different, the environment is different, the methods are different.

I consider myself an experienced North American hunter. That being said, I do not feel as though I would have been adequately prepared for Dangerous Game on my first trip because, again, it's just different. This is just my personal opinion and how my brain works, but I think having the opportunity to get that familiarization with African hunting has paid big dividends and will make a DG experience more fulfulling because I will have a better, more complete understanding of what's going on around me and how to hunt Africa.

Plus, knowing even before I went that it would not be a one-time thing, I will always have something "even bigger/better" to look forward to "next time". I feel like if I had gone to Africa and shot my coup de grace animal the very first time, then no other trip would ever live up to that experience. I have to imagine it would be kind of lackluster to go after impala after shooting a big buffalo on your very first trip. I would liken it to letting your kid's first deer be a Boone and Crockett buck that you shoot over a corn pile. How can anything else live up to that? Again, just the way my brain works. I like to leave something to work towards. But I realize that everyone is different, so to each their own.

Here is my suggestion of one way for a novice to get ready for a cape buffalo hunt. No big deal.
It's a fun way to prepare for the only cape buffalo shot that you may ever take.

1. Walk within 50 yds of the target.
2. Rest the rifle on the sticks, hold the crosshairs on the golf ball size spot on the target.
3. Focus on one thing only, the sights on the golf ball and the smooth trigger pull.
4. Press the trigger.

I say "golf ball size spot" as a virtual target that you visualize on the shoulder of the buffalo. In fact the actual heart/lung kill zone on a cape buffalo is the biggest 50 yard target most hunters will ever aim at in their entire hunting career. It's the size of a straw hat!



Practice that 10 times, once a week for 3 weeks with a medium bore rifle like a 30-06 and then 5 times with your buffalo rifle just before you go to Africa. That is a lot more practicing than I ever do and it has been many buffalo since I had to hit a cape buffalo twice. This is not a brag, it's a way of emphasizing how simple it is to kill a cape buffalo.

Many buffalo hunters can't even hit the buffalo's shoulder at 50 yards and it's the size of a garbage can! Why is that? It's the brief loss of focus. I am trying not to say "panic".

There are many buffalo hunting videos on YouTube showing cape buffalo hunters completely missing the whole damned shoulder at close range.

Here is where the problem is. The shooter loses concentration or focus, in the 3 seconds between getting on the sticks and squeezing the trigger. They move the sights and jerk the trigger because they are thinking too much. Shooting a big rifle at a dangerous animal is all mental. You must make the decision ahead of time that you will focus like a zen master on the shot and nothing else. Second guessing with a racing mind is you enemy.

On my first cape buffalo I was so scared I was was having a slow motion panic. I wanted to tell the PH that I couldn't do this and needed to wait until the afternoon! I was losing it.

The PH was a good man. He saw that I was a mess and he stopped the stalk for a moment and whispered to me, how did you kill that blu wildebeest yesterday at 70 meters with one shot?"
"I hit him in the heart." I blurted out.
"That is all you are about to do now." he smiled.

The way he said it, in is absolute Boar style, just smoothed me out enough so that I just simply focused on the shot and nothing else, no second guessing, no racing mind. I didn't flinch and jerk the trigger. I held the cross hairs on the imaginary golf ball and pressed the trigger. Same as the blu wildebeest, same a gopher in a cow pasture. That old bull was facing me at 22 paces and I threaded the needle through the centre of his chest to the top of heart. He was on the ground in 25 yards. That was 12 years and 19 cape buffalo ago.

Killing a cape buffalo safely and humanly is more of a mental task than an athletic task and it is much simpler than many posters make it out to be on these hunting forums. If you are a first timer in the bushveld and you want to hunt a cape buffalo, I say, "Go for it!"

I hunted buffalo on my first African hunt, with my .45-70 and my own handloads.

That said, I did not vote. To me there is no wrong answer. Plan properly and just hunt.