MOZAMBIQUE: BOTSWANA: SOUTH AFRICA: Mozambique, Botswana, & South Africa - In Progress

Elephant spotted:

Just heard my first wild Elephant trumpet…

After we located the herd, George and a couple trackers go into the woods down wind and get up on a high rocky hill looking for good old mature shooter bulls. Out of a herd of 50 there were 2. One big old bull with heavy worn tusks and one with longer tusks that wasn’t as big a bull.

Henk and I stayed back at the truck by the radio along with the wildlife officer who rested in the shade of a nearby tree and we waited for instructions. I checked my gear, cleaned my scope lenses, cycled my bolt a couple times, and took a nap. Then went through my mental checklist. I wasn’t nervous or anxious…

George called on the radio after about an hour and confirmed 2 shooters. He said the elephants were starting to move towards the river, to cross the road, over the two veterinary fences to drink. That should be 100 yards from us on the road. At some point our camera guy went up and got some footage from the top of the rocky hill. He came back down and also confirmed those details.

George came down and said Elephant are moving towards us. Get ready.

Another tracker then went about 50 yards ahead of us, over the vet fence, and climbed up on a smaller rock hill to give us updates (hand signals) on the Ele as they march toward us.

We quickly got ready. I removed my rifle strap, put a couple rounds in my pocket, and fell in line behind George as we started walking towards where the Ele should come out of the woods and cross the road. We all walked (8 of us) single file near the edge of the of the woods just off the road. Hendru (Camera man) and Henk had cameras and Henk carried my SAKO .375H&H. Occasionally Geo looks over to confirm from “Giraffe” one of the trackers who is not only tall, but got his name from taking a Giraffe and getting in trouble for it. Evidently taking game here without a license or permission is an acceptable practice if you are feeding your family. Giraffe who’s nick name is pronounced with an extra “e” Giraffee, when pressed by authorities as to why he took a giraffe instead of a smaller animal, and the accusation being he was poaching for black market meat, when asked he told authorities that “ he had a big family!”,

As we closed the distance to where the herd should cross the road you can here brush be pushed over and branches breaking. Geo says quietly, “if he presents only a side brain, look for the slit in the ear and aim as we discussed depending on the angle”. “If he walks out and presents broadside, aim for the top of the crease and just behind the shoulder”.

To this point, I intentionally did not watch any elephant hunting videos, nor did I look at any shot placement diagrams or guides. I let Geo show me exactly what he needed and expected of me. So I came here with no pretense. I’ve shot my 450 Dakota and confirm it shoots well, I know I won’t flench, and wanted Geo to know that I take instruction well.

Geo also told me if I don’t like the shot, don’t shoot. Henk told him, at an earlier time, that I won’t shoot unless I’m certain I can make the shot and I won’t rush it. Easier said than done.

Now we are all lined up in a row. The first group of Ele pushes out of the trees and brush just 50 yards ahead. I get on the sticks and ready my rifle. Everyone is still and quiet. Geo says to wait, he will tell me which of the two he likes best as they appear. Cows and calf’s are first and they head straight for the two rows of fence across the road. The fence wire is close to 5’-0” high and the lead cow approaches and pushes the wire down a little with her trunk and puts the middle of her lead foot in the center of the wire and pushes it down and picks up her adjacent foot and steps over and the rest of her group follow.

Next group is more cows and now I’m on the sticks behind my scope for a while. Easily 15 minutes. Geo says get ready the younger bull is coming, the one with the longer tusks. He marked it by a cut and slit in the end of the ear. I’m ready, 50 yard shot, first bull is yet a smaller younger bull and well ahead of the next bull, so I track him and slightly adjust my scope zoom as I pick up the shoulder shot. He crosses and quickly makes it over the fence and heads toward the river. Geo whispers “be ready”, I am and take off my safety, trunk appears, tusks appear, now the ear with the slit at the end, Geo says “it’s him, shoot him if he stops” as the body appears I am focused on his shoulder and following him with each stride. I am waiting for him to stop, he doesn’t, pressure on the trigger, he doesn’t stop, he approaches the fence, my last opportunity, and I’m running out of angle on the quad sticks, he slows at the fence, and clears the fence… I don’t shoot!

I quickly tell Geo that I could have made that shot and he says ok, he understands and if the next one presents the same way, take it.

The old bull stays back feeding…

Oh boy you have me reading very intently, felt like I was there!

Now we are faced with a new reality. Several Elephant are back feeding in the woods 50 to 60 meters away, including the big old bull with worn tusks. He is the only other shooter bull.

At this point we are hunting hard. 6-8 hours each day driving, walking, and glassing dusk till dawn. Up at 2:30am and getting to bed at 10:00pm… I’m not sure if I can maintain this pace. And, I started feeling sick. Likely something I ate for lunch yesterday. Some kind of meat pie that turned my stomach and each burp tasted like sulfur or rotten eggs. It didn’t end well in the bush…

New plan, go into the bush and look for the big old bull. Great… The remaining Ele are only 30-40 yards away and they are breaking trees and ripping down branches! Stomachs growling, being vocal, and there are several. We have the downwind advantage and the sun at are backs, but it is setting fast. Tensions are high as every step I take is criticized with a “step lighter hand signal”! As we make are sneak towards what we think will be the big old bull.

Elephant are not easy to see through thick brush, bushes, and trees flush with green leaves. The thorns and stickers hook your clothes and poke you at every step and turn. Glad I wore pants today.

As we get closer, just inside the woods, one of the Ele makes a B line right towards us! I can hear it and it feels like it’s going to come out at our only exit location. Geo signals back, and we quickly retreat 30 yards to the outside edge of the road nearest the tree and brush line for more cover. Then a big cow pushes out another 20 yards up as she makes her own hole. I’m now back on the sticks. As the cow crosses the road on an angle back towards the vet fence, she stops and looks directly at us. Geo says “don’t move” and I get my head in the scope. I think I may need to shoot if she charges. Geo whispers, “I said not to move”… I comply. She stares. It feels like an eternity and I can now feel my heart beating a bit harder.

She slowly turns and heads over the fence.

Geo leads us back into the woods. Sun is almost down. We advance back to near our original position. More thorn and stickers to endure.

Bull and cow are still feeding. Geo can make out a big Ele, but has to get closer because we are still down hill. Another 40 yards away but still up wind is another big Ele feeding and breaking branches. It’s pretty loud when you are that close. One tracker behind me has the sticks. I’m being held to wait by a simple hand signal, but we move closer to get a better look. There is a unique timing that allows you to move when the elephant move, but when they are still, so do you need to be.

We move up to a point we are just about splitting the two Ele. We are still down wind and closer to about 30 yards of each one. Geo now sees the big old bull to our left is our shooter. We have been on this stalk for about an hour now. The other Ele to our right has its back to us. Geo signals to move closer to our bull. As we start to move to our left, we look over to see another young elephant 20 yards away with its back to us. My focus is on being ready. We get to within 20 yards. Sticks are set, as I’m getting my rifle set, Geo whispers it’s the second Ele in the back. It’s almost dark and it is hard to make out two Elephant!

I get my head in the scope. Geo whispers do you see the one in the back. I tell him to let me zoom and as I do, I can now see the bigger bull is in the back but just behind a big cow. Geo asks if I can see the ear slit and hole? As I zoom in slightly it becomes more clear. The Trijicon’s green dot focuses on the ear hole. Problem is, the ears moving! And, there is no sun now. I also determine the bull is quartering to us. I tell Geo I see the ear hole.

Everything is quiet now. I push the Dakota’s safety off, I pull pressure of the butt stock firmly into my shoulder but closer to my chest, firm my cheek against the stock. I’m actually calm now as I start to apply pressure to the trigger.

My right hand grips the stock with my lead finger hooked around the front of the quad stick. I shift my aim point more towards the indent in front of the ear hole and slit to allow for the quartering to angle.

I know I will shoot..

Tip of my finger and pad is applying more pressure, my aim is steady, and boom!

It’s a loud boom without earplugs!

The 500 grain SWIFT Break-Away finds its mark and the big bull goes down. I believe it was back legs first, but straight down and perfectly on to it’s old, thick, worn tusks. I drop the sticks as I reload. I’m ready to close the gap to make an insurance shot. Geo quickly says wait, accompanied by a familiar quick hand jester. Then he runs off the female with a commanding yell and mock charge of his own.

He signals me to come over for the insurance shot and we walk over together and we cautiously approach. The insurance shot from the 450 Dakota actually pushed that bulls shoulder in more and under him in a way that actually caused him to tilt slightly. I didn’t notice at first, but Geo pointed out that originally he fell squarely on all fours and square on his tusks and now the body and head are slightly tilted.

Everyone was excited. Geo turned with a big smile, followed by a firm hand shake, and said “well done, excellent shot”!

I wasn’t that excited, just more relieved that I made the shot I needed to and the result, even though dramatic, was comforting.

I’m not sure if I’ll publish the video’s once they are edited. After all, this has been a very personal journey and a dream of mine for over 20 years.

Henk of course was ecstatic. Many thanks, high fives, and hugs went out.

Geo later told me that in over 50 elephant hunted with clients, he would rank this shot in the top 5.

It’s 1:30 in the morning here.

More details to come…

Love those sunken temples. Congratulations sounds like a great hunt!

Outstanding!! Fabulous old bull, taking an elephant is a very personal and emotional event!
Congratulations

This is what I had to shoot through with a 500 Grain SWIFT Break-Away. Hand Loaded to 2,297 FPS with a 450 Dakota…




The 500 Grain Break-Away went through the brain and was found in the broken neck.

My follow up Insurance shot. Through the heart.

First Shot:

After being in Botswana for a few days and spending hundreds of miles daily driving, not only to the concession, but in the bush and woodlands, it was amazing to see so many pleasant people. Especially the small farm owners whom have very little. They get by on next to nothing, but always try to be helpful and are pleasant when greeting you. They raise goats, chickens, and cows, but not many animals.

Most in the concession are very thin and need protein and elephant will provide that. I’m told that the Ele is usually distributed to villagers and people nearest the kill location. A common method to preserve the meat is either drying or smoking it. I was given numbers of 150 to 250 people will be sustained on this meet for up to a month…

We got to the location of this majestic old bull’s final resting place. A small road was cleared and cut in by hand with saws and axes for 30 meters from the road. Then local people and trucks started showing up to help.





Everyone politely stayed back to wait for us to pay our respects to this mighty creature. The gravity of the situation started to sink in and new emotions began as we quickly moved away to allow everyone, who made the long trek in to this remote location, to start claiming their much needed protein.

The skinners used box cutters/utility knives to make the first cuts and several different knives to separate the skin from the flesh. There was a peaceful calm as the skinners started revealing openings to large sections of ribs, rump, and shoulders. A variety of knives from large to small, as well as axes and saws. There were at least 4 axes being used at any one time. A battery operated hand held grinder was used to sharpen knives and axes. As opportunity presented, people started carving off large pieces of meat. This coordinated effort of several experienced local men soon gave way to a very busy and productive process to strip away all the flesh, remove bone, and dissect the organs.

Everyone pitched in to fill buckets and bags. The larger pieces went into the back of several trucks. To the point where very little was left. A couple larger bones and that was it! No gut pile, and what is left, the dogs will be happy to eat!


I stayed the whole time to appreciate the entire experience. I took pictures and video, but tried my best to keep my distance. Many smiles and thanks were sent my way.

Congratulations on taking such a beautiful old bull. Well done! Any taxidermy plans?

Besides taking such a majestic animal, the smiles on the faces of the people this elephant will feed has to be the greatest feeling in the world. This is something those against hunting will never understand, or maybe they do not want to understand to continue to push their agenda.

Thursday 15th - Back to South Africa:

Up early for a proper English breakfast. Espresso, Bacon, Eggs, Sausage, Beans, and potatoes. After 2 days of hunting hard for Elephant, and a 3rd day to witness and participate in the celebration of the preparation and distribution of the Elephant to the local villagers, which was truly special we say goodbye to Botswana, George, and his Team of exceptional trackers and skinners of TG Safaris.

I can’t say enough about Geo’s approach and determination to locating, stalking, and setting up an opportunity to make a good shot on a special Bull Elephant; special because it was my first! I never doubted Geo’s abilities, character, and leadership because he did everything he said he would with a quite resolve steadfast determination. I was not pressured to shoot, which made things a lot easier for me! I’m certain I will Elephant hunt with Geo again…

As a side note: this was a management bull hunt and I was completely satisfied with the old bull. Geo mentioned to Henk and I that I was one of the only hunters in recent memory that didn’t ask him what the size of the tusks were and he knew right after the Elephant was down, and I had a look at him, that I was satisfied with the results!

Geo thought it may be 25lbs and possibly up to 30lbs based on the size and shape of the old bulls head and the amount of tusk that was likely in the skull. I listened intently.

In the evening after dinner, I told Henk that I hope it met the minimum requirement for exporting Ivory and that was based on something I read in the contract. Henk assured me and said not to worry.

Before breakfast this morning, Geo walked in and immediately apologized, said he was embarrassed and owed us an explanation. I’m sure I had a confused look on my face. He quickly got to the point and told us that initially when he picked up each tusk after they were cleaned, he thought they would be at a minimum of 25lbs, but possibly reach 30lbs. He said it’s not the case. I was already prepared and immediately thought, damn I hope they are at least 22lbs! He then said after they were cleaned up further and taken to the scales, the actual weight for each tusk was just over 36lbs… I then asked how that made him feel. He said (more or less) pleasantly surprised.

PARA45 said:

Congratulations on taking such a beautiful old bull. Well done! Any taxidermy plans?

Besides taking such a majestic animal, the smiles on the faces of the people this elephant will feed has to be the greatest feeling in the world. This is something those against hunting will never understand, or maybe they do not want to understand to continue to push their agenda.

Click to expand...

I think I have all the customary boxes ticked on the form… My hippo provided several items. 2 custom backpacks were very nice as well as a duffle bag, 6 belts, rifle slings, a few other cool items. I’ll get over to Bullseye tomorrow or Monday to go over some ideas. I have a lot of Buffalo leather items from my first Bull.

Back in South Africa:


Uneventful boarder crossing from Botswana back into South Africa and an easy ride back to Boseveld Jacobs Lodge in Vaalwater…

Some Hippo leather stuff.