ZIMBABWE: Glamour Game Safari With Classic African Hunting

Zimbabwe: Glamour Game Safari with Classic African Hunting

Country: Zimbabwe
Dates: September 8–17, 2026
Type of Hunt: Glamour plains game (also had a buffalo tag)
Method of Hunting: Rifle – .338 Winchester Magnum and .416 Remington Magnum
Outfitter: Classic African Hunting
PH: Matt Stanton
Agent: @DAVE FREEBURN SAFARIS
Locations Hunted: Matetsi Unit 2
Species Hunted: Roan, sable, eland, waterbuck, etc.
Trophy Quality: Extremely high
Species Seen, Population and Quality of Game Observed: Honestly too numerous to report
Lodging: Private chalet with en suite bathroom
Food: Amazing
Activities: Day trip to Victoria Falls (my second)
Travel Methods: Delta Atlanta to Johannesburg, then Johannesburg to Victoria Falls; Cruiser 1.5 hours to camp

High Points: Number and species of game seen and taken; PH’s persistence; ease of booking with @DAVE FREEBURN SAFARIS
Low Points: Becoming too impatient/overconfident and rushing a shot on which I should have waited
Things to Improve: Nothing of significance, really
Overall Rating: 10/10
Would Recommend to a Friend? In a red-hot minute

I’m not writing a report like I normally do. I’m just getting home and have lots to catch up on, but I wanted to say a few nice things about the animals, the booking agent, the PH, the outfitter, and the area. This will mostly be a report of pictures.

Always making me jealous @JHT

We got to camp on the afternoon of the 7th. It was nice to get to camp before dark and be able to shoot the rifles without burning a morning of hunting.

I’ve hunted wild Africa enough to know that getting everything on a big list is a virtual impossibility, so you better have a couple of alternates picked out. My primaries for this trip were roan, sable, eland, and waterbuck. The alternates were reedbuck and zebra.

The first hunting day was the 8th. My PH was my old buddy Matt Stanton (more about that later). I shot a nice reedbuck that morning and a great waterbuck that afternoon. We’re off to a good start.

Nice! I saw that waterbuck about a week and a half before. I was in Matetsi 2 until the end of August. Wanna go back!

Had the reedbuck skinned for a full mount and the waterbuck for a shoulder, although he’s too wide (37”) to hang where I had picked out.

I also found out that Tapiwa, the lead tracker, snapped a picture of Matt and me formulating a plan for a stalk on the waterbuck (see below). The waterbuck was with a herd of roan that included a shooter bull, but Matt didn’t want me to shoot a roan on the first day. He felt we could top him, a decision I respected.

Looking forward to the rest of the story!

We started day 2 by glassing a beautiful spot. I’ve learned that glassing is a technique loved by PHs, but one I’ve never had a whole lot of luck doing. This morning was no exception, as we saw nothing of interest to follow.

Game numbers overall that day were plentiful, and I had already seen more game at this point than I had on my previous trips. We passed on multiple herds of zebra as we had already smelled gunpowder and bumped into a cheeky elephant. From the cruiser and at a distance, we saw a bachelor herd of sable bulls, but nothing worth pursuing on the second day. With game numbers what they were, I was excited to see what tomorrow would bring.

I know you had a great time on your safari. Matesi 2 is a special place for sure. Congrats

Day 3 began in the cruiser with plenty of animal sightings, including giraffe. Because my existing impala mount could be better, I told Matt that if I could best him, I might be interested in taking another one, unless he felt another hunter might need him for bait later in the season. He checked the quota and confirmed there were plenty left, so we began paying more attention to what I consider one of the best values in African hunting.

Just after lunch, we spotted a ram I believed was better than my existing one, and we made quick work of him with the .338.

Enough with the deviations. We shall go back to the script in the morrow—or at least, that’s the plan.

Day 4 was September 11th. Had someone not pointed it out, I may have forgotten. We had a somber talk that morning around the fire over coffee about where we were that day.

Late morning just before lunch, we encountered a roan herd with no shootable bull. Later that afternoon, we had a great stalk on a zebra herd that included a wonderful stallion. I’ve always wanted a rug of my own taking and was slated to do just that on a leopard hunt in 2023, but ended up shooting a leopard on my first sit over prebaited animals. I know. Poor me. So I left the zebra on that trip for someone who might need it.

On this trip, I had a buddy who was in need of bait, so it was an easy decision, and one I’m glad I made.

With four days behind me, one primary down (waterbuck), both alternates down (reedbuck and zebra), and whatever the heck the impala was down (greed), PH Darren Ellerman explained to me that I needed to be concentrating on sable.

“Sable are as rare as hen’s teeth here,” he told me.

I discussed this with Matt, and he agreed. The evening before, we had encountered a sable bull in a herd, and I had even looked at him through my scope but couldn’t get a clear shot.

We started Day 5 in the same general area, and it wasn’t long before we encountered the same herd. The problem was that they were pretty much out in the open. We got as close as we could and identified the bull. However, he was behind two trees and extremely quartering.

Now, here is where I messed up.

With the .338 making quick work of everything so far and the trackers calling me “Sniper” (insert your Bwana Moja jokes here), I overconfidently shot when I should have waited for a clearer shot with a better angle. The trackers said I missed, and I have no evidence to the contrary.

What I do have evidence of, however, is that he and the herd, obviously unable to ascertain where the shot came from, ran closer. Keyword being ran.

I fired twice more at the running bull, and wouldn’t you know it, he got just in front of us at 35 yards and stopped. The problem, though, was that the whole herd of cows was behind him, and I couldn’t ethically shoot because of the pass-through issue.

Matt said he saw a hole in his shoulder, albeit low, but believed we would find him.

We followed and followed and followed. For miles. With no blood. Not one drop.

Finally, we caught up with the herd, and they were close, but once again, the bull was in thick stuff. I fired my fourth shot at him, and he reared up, spun, and took off. Shot 5 dropped him, but he was quickly on his feet before I could put another one in him. We went to where he had been and finally found blood.

Not too much longer, we came upon him bedded, but he jumped up and took off, with me firing shots 6, 7, and 8.

I’m pretty much going to end the embarrassment here. But what I do want you to know is this: MATT STANTON WON’T QUIT.

After 11 miles, 8 hours, and 28,288 steps, we finally caught back up with him. Once in the vicinity of a road, we were able to call for the driver to bring the cruiser, where I changed shoes and rifles. After a short respite, I was able to finish him off with my .416, as I had run out of bullets for the .338. I also felt the .416 would be better in the thick stuff.

I have never seen an animal with a will to live like his and have no idea how the first hit did not kill him. It had to have been within an inch of his heart.

He and Matt Stanton have my respect. Matt never pointed out any mistakes I made and never made me feel bad for stepping on a stick, being loud, or tripping along the entire 11-mile trek. I was ready to write a check and cut my losses, but thankfully, he wouldn’t hear of it. I cannot say enough good things about him. I would never have this beautiful animal without him and his team.

I think it goes without saying that we took the rest of the day off, with the entire team enjoying a well-earned break.

Great report so far! Keep em coming!

Way to earn it, Brother Man!

Epic tracking job on the sable! A trophy well earned sir.

Is "Glamour Game Safari" a way of specifying speciality species or something? I haven't heard the term used before.

Great hunt! Thanks for sharing.

Fantastic trophies. A heck of a job on the sable.

JHT said:

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Hadn't heard that before. I have just always heard them grouped with other ringed-horn antelope.

I enjoyed reading your report, thanks!

Nice sable and congratz to you and the team for persevering till he was in the salt.

Waiting on the Roan adventure

We dropped the sable off with the skinner and went over the dorsal cuts of a full mount with him. I went with a dorsal cut because I’d like him rearing like the one below, as he did after shot #4.

Photo courtesy of Kanati Elite Taxidermy Studio

I had already surveyed the damage. He had two shots in his shoulder, one low in his shoulder below his heart, one in his neck, one in his ear (yes, ear), one in his leg (yes, leg), and one in his butt above his spine (yes, butt above his spine). I pretty much stopped counting after that.

I was also able to survey the damage to myself. I was pretty red-faced, and my legs were covered with scrapes, dirt, and soot. I peeked at my phone to get an idea of the mileage and got in the shower.


After that, it was back to the skinning shed to check on the hide.


Tomorrow, we’ll shoot the .338 just to be certain and climb back on the horse looking for his cousin, the roan.