Hello, I’m planning my first safari for 2018, and wanted to thank everyone for the great insights on this forum, this is a great community. I bought a new-to-me rifle today, so I’ll be heading over to the firearms page to share some photos and ask advice. Thanks!
Welcome to AH 686! Have you already booked your trip? Which country have you decided on and what's on your wish list?
Welcome to the forum. I learn something everyday from the members here. I don't think there is another web forum in existence whose members have the knowledge or experience found here- my rookie self excluded. I'm sure I drag the average down a couple points!!
Thanks for joining! I am sure you will appreciate the board more & more over time. A great resource and folks are very willing to share info. If I may ever be of service, please feel free to reach out to me.
Yes, I’ve booked for late July 2018, Limpopo province of RSA. I’m taking my father and a few friends with me, all first-timers as well. I’ll be looking for a mixed bag of PG; I would definitely like a nice warthog, gemsbok, and impala; then I plan on being more opportunistic for other really nice specimens that we come across (springbok, baboon, zebra, blue/black wildebeest, etc.). I’m not planning to target kudu or eland at this point, but if we happen upon a really high-end specimen that I know I’d have a hard time getting another chance at, I’d definitely go after it.
Welcome and best of luck on your hunt. I just returned from Limpopo. Make sure you share your experience with us.
Tell your group to all practice on sticks! Critical skill in Africa. The Limpopo province is quite diversified in terrain. You guys are going to have a great time I’m certain! Enjoy the planning as well as the trip. Jerome has some excellent info here from shot placement to tipping to timeline. Be sure to check it all out.
Yes, good advice. I got a gun support attachment I was going to use with a camera tripod. I plan on practicing with that, and making my group do the same. I’ll probably propose a little “shakedown” weekend maybe a month before the hunt where I get the guys out to our ranch and make them hike around with me for a couple hours and then shoot off the tripod.
Thanks. I grew up hunting with my dad, and always thought he was a very good hunter, but now that I’ve reached middle age, I realize that he would under-prepare for things a lot more than I would (at this point in my life). For example, he didn’t go dove hunting or shoot a shotgun for about 7-8 years, and then recently came dove hunting with me and was really frustrated that I was knocking down birds left and right with my 20ga 870, and he couldn’t hit anything with his high-end over/under 12 gauge. He kept saying something was wrong with his gun (lol). Half way through the hunt he asked me to trade guns with him, and of course I did, and the results stayed the exact same. He thought hunting skills were like “riding a bike”. I told him that it was because I shoot skeet the week before I dove hunt every year and get myself tuned up, whereas he hasn’t shot a shotgun in almost a decade. Luckily, he is starting to listen to me and hopefully will follow my lead on the prep for the trip. The last thing I want is to be on safari and have to hear any whining about “my sling hurts my shoulder, my boots hurt, etc.”
Welcome aboard 686. What part of Texas do "hail" from? Lots of Texans on AH. What kind and caliber rifles do you own? Do you reload? Re using a camera tripod, I think that is not the same as shooting off sticks. You can make your own rather inexpensively or buy a "bog pod." Hunting Africa is like nothing you've ever done. Planning is part of the fun, don't sell it short. Make sure your Dad is practicing off sticks. Tell him that using sticks is expected and that the old dog is going to have to learn some new tricks.
Central Texas. I grew up about an hour South of Austin, now I live about an hour North of Austin. I grew up shooting my grandfathers .30 Remington (pump) and then a 6mm Remington Model 700. Those guns sit in the safe mostly now. A Tikka T3 270 is my go-to deer rifle, but I do a fair amount of archery hunting as well. Dove hunting is probably my favorite shooting sport. I shoot a 28ga SxS and a 16ga 1100 mostly now, and have a 20ga 870 and 1100 that stay in the safe for the most part. I don’t currently reload, but have saved a bunch of brass and shells in anticipation of getting into it at some point.
Welcome. Your excellent posts already are positive additions to the AH community. Look forward to hearing more about your planning and prep for the safari. As others have said, very nice deer in your avatar!
