Hunting Gear - Combo Vic Falls/Plains Game Safari

Edge

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I've compiled a detailed clothing and gear list my wife and I used on our combo South African Plains Game hunt/Victoria falls adventure booked through @KMG Hunting Safaris

Here is a link to the hunting report: https://www.africahunting.com/threads/south-africa-kmg-safaris-rocks.39278/

Since this was a combo hunt/honeymoon we chose to wear earth tone colors instead of wearing camo clothing in/around Victoria Falls. We used a layering approach with wool and synthetics as the base layers and added fleece and heavier wool to mid and/or outer layers depending upon the weather conditions which varied from mid-80s to right around the freezing mark with lots of wind.

The majority of the time we used the following products and wore them on the plane, on the hunt and around Victoria falls. I am not affiliated with any of these companies, just wanted to post what worked for us as I spent a lot of time researching, ordering items, and sending them back.

Clothing

The Kuiu Peloton 130 shirt in both short and long sleeve in major brown, excellent shirts and highly recommended. My wife is wearing this shirt in the waterbuck photo and we are both wearing them in the last Kudu photo.
Peloton130LSCrewT_MB_FRnotag_1425x1825.jpg

http://www.kuiu.com/hunting-shirts/peloton-130-ls-crew-t/20025.html?cgid=shirts&dwvar_20025_color=MajorBrown#start=6



We also wore the Kuiu ultra merino short sleeve shirt in forest and black, great for base layer in the morning as well as alone in the warm afternoons. I’m wearing the merino shirt in the Waterbuck photo.

UltraMerino125SSCrewT2016_FB_FRnotag_1425x1825.jpg


http://www.kuiu.com/hunting-shirts/ultra-merino-125-ss-crew-t/20016.html?cgid=shirts&dwvar_20016_color=ForestBlack#start=4


As one of our mid to outer layers we used the Kuiu Peloton 240 grid fleece. This jacket is very thin, warm and also blocks the wind surprisingly well! Michelle is wearing hers in the first two blue wildebeest photos.

Peloton240FullZip_MB_FR_1425x1825-min.jpg


http://www.kuiu.com/hunting-jackets-vests/peloton-240-full-zip/20022.html?cgid=jackets-and-vests&dwvar_20022_color=VerdeCamo#start=1


We also packed a thin windstopper outer layer from Black Diamond, the Flow State jacket in TED color. This jacket will flat out stop the wind and was really nice on the cold windy mornings. We would wear a base layer, mid-layer and then the Flow State as the outer layer. Unfortunately, this model is no longer manufactured but you can still find some out there on the net if you do a bit of searching. My wife is wearing hers in the blesbok photo and we are both wearing the Flow State in the blue wildebeest photo of all three of us.

th[3].jpg


We also packed a heavy fleece jacket from REI in olive, you can’t beat this fleece for $40! We used it under the Flow State on the coldest windiest mornings or wore it as an outer layer when the sun warmed things up. Wearing the fleece in the first bushbuck photos and the first two Kudu photos.

REI fleece.png


https://www.rei.com/rei-garage/product/882212/rei-co-op-classic-fleece-jacket-mens


I also wore a Kuhl wool/fleece sweater on the coldest days, believe it is the model linked below but mine has more of a green color, I’m wearing it in the Blesbuck photos. I got it for ½ price on a sale rack at Summit Hut .

http://www.kuhl.com/kuhl/mens/fleece/thor-14-zip/


Trousers, we both used Vidda Pro trousers from Fjallraven. For cold windy days these pants are the bomb! Plenty of deep pockets to stash your phone, gloves, notepad, etc. They also contain a pocket over the knees to put in knee pads, saved my knees more than once! On the hottest days they were a bit warm when hiking up and down the Eastern Cape hills but kept the thorns and cactus from impaling us. They have built in snaps along the leg cuff that are adjustable to keep out unwanted dirt, twigs and seeds. We never did use the gaiters we purchased because of this feature.

F81760-633-633_Vidda-Pro-Trousers_7b638212-9570-4eee-884a-6056652756e1_grande[1].jpg


https://www.fjallraven.us/products/vidda-pro-trousers-hiking-pants


Fjallraven also sells another pant, Keb, that allows you to unzip the outside of the leg from the knee to the hip for additional cooling, my wife used a pair and really liked being able to let some hot air out! These are made up of more poly than cotton and were “stretchier” than the Vidda Pro. Both of these pants are expensive but they held up extremely well to the Eastern Cape thorns and cactus without showing any signs of wear.

https://www.fjallraven.us/products/keb-trousers-regular-mens-cargo-pants?variant=20758788037



Boots

My wife and I both wore Vasque St. Elias GTX Hiking Boots. These boots have a soft sole and gripped extremely well and were very comfortable. They run narrow, we ended up going with the wide width. Highly recommend these boots!

Vasque St. Elias.jpg


https://www.rei.com/product/855864/vasque-st-elias-gtx-hiking-boots-mens


Gloves:

We used merino wool gloves in dry earth color from First Lite to cover up the flash of our hands and to also ward off the chill of the early mornings. http://www.firstlite.com/aerowool-glove-liners.html?color=13


I also utilized a thin pair of Browning shooting gloves I’ve had for a few years, these are excellent gloves and held up well, were very stretchy and provided a strong grip on the rifle. No issues with finding the trigger with these gloves on, I think I’m going to order a second pair so I have them when I wear out the first pair!

cq5dam.web.835.835.jpg


http://www.browning.com/products/outdoor-clothing/shooting_clothing/shooting_clothing_gloves/trapper-creek-mesh-back-shooting-gloves.html

Hats: I usually wore a Kuhl renegade ball cap, it’s in many of my pictures.

http://www.kuhl.com/kuhl/mens/hats/renegade-cap/

On the coldest days we would use a thin balaclava and/or a stocking cap depending upon the temperature.


Socks: Last of the clothing comments but one of the most important items! Used wool 100% of the time while out hunting and would change at lunch time if the weather dictated or I had worked up too much of a sweat. We had light, medium and heavy wool socks of various brands and utilized them all depending on the conditions.

Camera Equipment: Since I was going to be hunting, my wife wanted to capture everything with a good camera. To keep things light and compact, we decided on the micro 4/3rds system by Olympus. These cameras and lenses are much smaller and lighter than full frame cameras but do give up some low light capability.

Excellent products and they are just the ticket for the outdoors being splashproof, dustproof and freezeproof. We experienced no issues other than operator error! Most of the photos in the hunt report were taken with this camera.

We used the OMD-EM5 Mark II

http://www.getolympus.com/us/en/digitalcameras/omd/e-m5-mark-ii.html

with a 12-40 Pro Lens for inside and close-up work:

http://www.getolympus.com/us/en/lenses/m-zuiko-digital-ed-12-40mm-f2-8-pro.html

and the 40-150 Pro Lens for outside pictures:

http://www.getolympus.com/us/en/lenses/m-zuiko-ed-40-150mm-f2-8-pro.html


We packed all the gear into a streamlined backpack from Hill People Gear, the Tarahumara, a very comfortable form fitting small pack. I wanted something that would not interfere with crawling through the Eastern Cape bush. Photo from the HPG site.

248_1000[1].jpg


http://www.hillpeoplegear.com/Products/CategoryID/3/ProductID/8

I also added the Tara PALS/Velcro field insert

IMG_6802_1000[1].jpg


https://hillpeoplegear.com/Products/CategoryID/6/ProductID/24

and added a Blue Force Tactical Gear Admin Dapper Pouch that has Velcro backing to attach to the Tara sheet. We placed small items in the pouch.

Admin-Pouch-Dapper-Velcro-Phone-Notepad-556-Mag-Pens-600x400[1].jpg


https://www.blueforcegear.com/Dapper-Admin-Pouch

With some Kifaru ultra light pull outs for the charger, cleaning brushes etc. We also used the larger pull-outs for separating our clothing in our suitcases. Great product!

https://store.kifaru.net/ultralight-pullouts-p22.aspx


The camera gear and pack:
IMG_5373.JPG


Binoculars/Optics:


I carried the Zeiss 8x42HT’s in an FHF bino carrier, link below. You can see it in some of the hunt photos, a good shot of the bino carrier in one of the Impala pictures. Overall I was very pleased with the FHF carrier but it is open on the top sides if you are in a very dusty environment, some dust may get in the case. I didn’t notice any and it was very dry while I was there.

The Zeiss 8x42 HTs are simply amazing.

http://fhfgear.com/hunting/bino-harness/


I used a Nikon 600 rangefinder but my PH Louw had a built in Laser Rangefinder in his binoculars. I may look into a combo bino/rangefinder to reduce the gear list at some future point in time.


Miscellaneous:

Notebook: Used the following kit and carried it with me in the Vidda Pro trouser front left hand pocket. I spent a lot of time jotting down notes whenever I had a chance.

71vmkLUYYgL._SL1000_.jpg


https://www.amazon.com/dp/B000ANJSBE/ref=twister_B06W5GNV6M?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1


If anyone has any questions or comments, fire away!


Edge
 
Excellent report sir. Thanks for the details.
 
This is probebly one of the best gear reports I have ever read. Thank You!
 
This is probebly one of the best gear reports I have ever read. Thank You!

+1 Great photos and links too. I've used a few Kuiu product and it is good stuff.
 
Thank you all and hope it helps someone out. The clothes I listed are high quality, start looking early and watch for sales or free shipping.

@375 Ruger Fan - Kuiu had the best earth tone colors. I actually prefer First Lite Merino wool but wasn't as impressed with the solids. I run ASAT camo here in the states.

Edge
 
I have a pair of Kuiu Attack pants in the solid grey (Phantom) and really like them. Have a few merino wool pull overs, also in solids. I am not a fan of Kuiu's camo patterns.

5.11 Tactical pants and shirt are some of my favorite hunting attire. The 5.11 Apex pants are great and a much lower price than Kuiu or sitka. http://www.511tactical.com/apex-pant.html

For Africa, the 5.11 Tactical pant in cotton works well, as do the shirts and shorts:
http://www.511tactical.com/511-tactical-pants-mens-cotton.html
http://www.511tactical.com/taclite-short-11-inch.html
 

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Great stuff, thanks @Edge
 
@375 Ruger Fan,

Thanks for those pics, I'll have to get a pair of those shorts and check them out.

Edge
 

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