I have been a lurker here for a long time and I want to give all of you folks a virtual handshake and lots of gratitude. I went on my first African hunting trip with Pieter and Pawprint Safaris! If you don't want to read the details, the summary is Pieter put together a successful cull hunt for me on short notice and accomodated my girlfriend/fiance (don't ask lol) for a very good price. Here are the details...
So, back in August of 2017, I booked a hunting trip to South Africa through John Martins for cape buffalo. That will occur this August. In order for me to feel comfortable booking, I asked for the name of the outfitter/PH. John told me it was Pawprint Safaris. I looked them up here and found every review to be outstanding. So, I booked. Now, in order for my lady to approve me going to South Africa by myself for 8 days, I said we could go on a trip of a lifetime... 15 day African trip to South Africa and Victoria Falls. I booked everything, then back in November, I saw that Pieter posted a cull hunt where a non-hunting partner could stay at the lodge for free. That made it about the same as the non-hunting safari lodge in which we were booked (at least that is before animals taken and taxidermy but I didn't want to tell her that lol). I had to promise to have one of our 3 full days there not be dedicated to hunting, but she agreed to it and Pieter gave me an AWESOME deal. We booked in December so I didn't have enough time to work on importing my rifle, so Pieter said I could use one of his free of charge. So, I took the plunge and went on my first African hunting safari.
We were in Joberg for 3 days and one of Pieter's associates, Quibbers, picked us up from the Genesis All Suites hotel. We had a nice ride asking Quibbers about politics and other topics. We arrived at Pieter's lodge and it was very nice. We had a nice large accomodation with a deck. Then, I changed clothes and we set out in short order for my first quarry... black wildebeest. Pieter gave me a good, quick lesson on shot placement during the drive which was very helpful; African antelope are not deer and the shot is dead on the shoulder and not behind. After a short drive, we arrived at a large farm. Within 30 minutes, Pieter and his assistant put me on a nice herd of Black wildebeest. We sat there about 100 yards away, patiently waiting on a shot. And finally Pieter found a nice old female and gave me the green light. One shot with Pieter's .243 and I put the 'beest in the dust! I hit it right through the heart and lungs. After pictures and the ride back, we were treated to a great dinner. Now, let me also be clear. I follow the paleo diet so I am not always easy to cook for. Plus, my girlfriend is picky and won't eat game or much red meat. Pieter was incredibly accommodating and advised his chef of our dietary restrictions. We had a good dinner and went to bed with hopes of getting a warthog in the morning.
The next morning we had a great, hearty breakfast and lounged around until we hit the mudhole blind on Pieter's property. I didn't realize warthogs were unlike American feral hogs and weren't nocturnal. But just like a big ol' tusker in the US, they head to a mudhole for water and to cool themselves during the day. We sat in a natural blind and enjoyed the nature but didn't get on any hogs. Oh well... I still had one more species I wanted to target on this hunt, so we packed up and went on the road to another location in the early evening searching for blesbok. We spotted some movement almost as soon as we got in the bush and Pieter saw that it was blesbok. The sun was in my eyes and there were some branches between me and Blessie, so I didn't take the shot. I must get some shooting sticks to practice though; I probably could have taken the shot if I didn't attempt it freehand. Anyway, Blessie went into the bush and we went on the search for more. Pieter was relentless and patient in his pursuit and finally, after about an hour and a half of searching, we ran across a couple of blesbok on a hill in tall grass about 150 yards away. We stopped and with the sun in my eyes, but no obstructions, I took a shot as Blessie quartered away. It immediately dropped and I thought I was good. Mind you, blesbok are smaller than black wildebeest, but they seem tougher! Pieter told me to reload and sure as the sun shines Blessie popped up and started to head off into the sunset. I hit it again from about 50 yards in the back and it dropped. We got up to it and this SOB was still clinging to life. We humanely put it down and got Blessie in the truck. It was a beauty too. When we headed back to the lodge we had a great meal of the tenderloin from the wildebeest I harvested the day before. I have had wildebeest before and found it gamey. This wildebeest tasted like a cross between farm-raised venison and excellent lean beef. Pieter's chef is truly amazing. We went to bed and prepared to go to the game reserve in the morning for my girlfriend’s hunt-free day.
Now, honestly, I enjoyed the hunting immensely, but that third day was even more impressive. Pieter and his lady friend Rindi took us for a private day tour of the Pilanesberg Game Reserve. There was an additional fee for this, but given the travel time, fuel, Pieter’s time and the food and drinks provided, the fee was quite reasonable. But more than that, Pieter and Rindi spent time joking with my girlfriend and making her feel comfortable. They took lots of pictures and were very informative. That day was one of the highlights of our entire trip! We came back and FEASTED on the blesbok which of course was amazing. Then we spent time around the firepit discussing African politics, culture and American vs. South African gun laws.The next morning, Quibbers gave us a ride to the Protea OR Tambo hotel as we continued our African vacation and Rindi provided us with a great video/photo montage of our visit. We had a great time and I am looking forward to bagging a cape buffalo, croc, warthog and maybe kudu upon my return.
So, back in August of 2017, I booked a hunting trip to South Africa through John Martins for cape buffalo. That will occur this August. In order for me to feel comfortable booking, I asked for the name of the outfitter/PH. John told me it was Pawprint Safaris. I looked them up here and found every review to be outstanding. So, I booked. Now, in order for my lady to approve me going to South Africa by myself for 8 days, I said we could go on a trip of a lifetime... 15 day African trip to South Africa and Victoria Falls. I booked everything, then back in November, I saw that Pieter posted a cull hunt where a non-hunting partner could stay at the lodge for free. That made it about the same as the non-hunting safari lodge in which we were booked (at least that is before animals taken and taxidermy but I didn't want to tell her that lol). I had to promise to have one of our 3 full days there not be dedicated to hunting, but she agreed to it and Pieter gave me an AWESOME deal. We booked in December so I didn't have enough time to work on importing my rifle, so Pieter said I could use one of his free of charge. So, I took the plunge and went on my first African hunting safari.
We were in Joberg for 3 days and one of Pieter's associates, Quibbers, picked us up from the Genesis All Suites hotel. We had a nice ride asking Quibbers about politics and other topics. We arrived at Pieter's lodge and it was very nice. We had a nice large accomodation with a deck. Then, I changed clothes and we set out in short order for my first quarry... black wildebeest. Pieter gave me a good, quick lesson on shot placement during the drive which was very helpful; African antelope are not deer and the shot is dead on the shoulder and not behind. After a short drive, we arrived at a large farm. Within 30 minutes, Pieter and his assistant put me on a nice herd of Black wildebeest. We sat there about 100 yards away, patiently waiting on a shot. And finally Pieter found a nice old female and gave me the green light. One shot with Pieter's .243 and I put the 'beest in the dust! I hit it right through the heart and lungs. After pictures and the ride back, we were treated to a great dinner. Now, let me also be clear. I follow the paleo diet so I am not always easy to cook for. Plus, my girlfriend is picky and won't eat game or much red meat. Pieter was incredibly accommodating and advised his chef of our dietary restrictions. We had a good dinner and went to bed with hopes of getting a warthog in the morning.
The next morning we had a great, hearty breakfast and lounged around until we hit the mudhole blind on Pieter's property. I didn't realize warthogs were unlike American feral hogs and weren't nocturnal. But just like a big ol' tusker in the US, they head to a mudhole for water and to cool themselves during the day. We sat in a natural blind and enjoyed the nature but didn't get on any hogs. Oh well... I still had one more species I wanted to target on this hunt, so we packed up and went on the road to another location in the early evening searching for blesbok. We spotted some movement almost as soon as we got in the bush and Pieter saw that it was blesbok. The sun was in my eyes and there were some branches between me and Blessie, so I didn't take the shot. I must get some shooting sticks to practice though; I probably could have taken the shot if I didn't attempt it freehand. Anyway, Blessie went into the bush and we went on the search for more. Pieter was relentless and patient in his pursuit and finally, after about an hour and a half of searching, we ran across a couple of blesbok on a hill in tall grass about 150 yards away. We stopped and with the sun in my eyes, but no obstructions, I took a shot as Blessie quartered away. It immediately dropped and I thought I was good. Mind you, blesbok are smaller than black wildebeest, but they seem tougher! Pieter told me to reload and sure as the sun shines Blessie popped up and started to head off into the sunset. I hit it again from about 50 yards in the back and it dropped. We got up to it and this SOB was still clinging to life. We humanely put it down and got Blessie in the truck. It was a beauty too. When we headed back to the lodge we had a great meal of the tenderloin from the wildebeest I harvested the day before. I have had wildebeest before and found it gamey. This wildebeest tasted like a cross between farm-raised venison and excellent lean beef. Pieter's chef is truly amazing. We went to bed and prepared to go to the game reserve in the morning for my girlfriend’s hunt-free day.
Now, honestly, I enjoyed the hunting immensely, but that third day was even more impressive. Pieter and his lady friend Rindi took us for a private day tour of the Pilanesberg Game Reserve. There was an additional fee for this, but given the travel time, fuel, Pieter’s time and the food and drinks provided, the fee was quite reasonable. But more than that, Pieter and Rindi spent time joking with my girlfriend and making her feel comfortable. They took lots of pictures and were very informative. That day was one of the highlights of our entire trip! We came back and FEASTED on the blesbok which of course was amazing. Then we spent time around the firepit discussing African politics, culture and American vs. South African gun laws.The next morning, Quibbers gave us a ride to the Protea OR Tambo hotel as we continued our African vacation and Rindi provided us with a great video/photo montage of our visit. We had a great time and I am looking forward to bagging a cape buffalo, croc, warthog and maybe kudu upon my return.
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