I have hunted both. Uganda is awesome. Cameroon is a longer story.
I hunted Uganda in 2024 with Abe Langley's KOS Safaris (Tom Holloway, PH). Abe runs an excellent operation. Here is a Hunt Report (story really) if you are interested.
Well, it all started (as it often does) at Dallas Safari Club. “What should we do this year?” I asked my lovely wife. “I think we should find an operator suffering from malaria, briefly talk to the other guy at his booth, bid on his DSC Auction hunt that we know nothing about, and then go to East Africa on a whim” she said. At least that’s how I remember it. That’s certainly how it worked out.
KOS Safari’s (Abe Langley – managing director) opened operations in the Pian Upe reserve hunting in eastern Uganda around 2012. KOS is 1 of the 4 operators in Uganda. Based on what I found, all 4...
After that hunt report was written, I went back to Uganda with Abe and Tom and also hunted a Sudanese Roan, Chandler's Mtn Reedbuck and what will likely be a new world record Bohor Reedbuck (if I ever get it officially scored).
Once you've hunted Africa a bit, I would highly recommend Uganda. Do a side trip to trek with the Mountain Gorilla's, consider some fishing and at least stop and have lunch overlooking the headwaters of the Nile.
Cameroon was less than great. I did a plains game hunt for the endemic species, which is within your price range. There are some pretty cool endemic species in Cameroon. Unfortunately, other than the species available to hunt, Cameroon is, well, it sucks. That is of course just an opinion.
The internal airlines only sort of work, and only when they can/want too. Many people are openly hostile to American's, and you really do not want to venture around outside of the hunting areas. In the savannah, which is where you can hunt the plains game, the camps are getting pretty beat up. Poaching is a serious issue/problem, and the lack of resources for infrastructure is readily apparent. Most of the plains game is really an add-on to the LDE hunts. You can do it (I did), but you really need to know what you are getting into.
Cameroon is also incredibly hot. During the plains game season, we consistently hunted in 112-115 degree temperatures and its not much better at night, especially without air conditioning (see lack of upkeep and infrastructure). Those are pretty normal temperatures and hunting conditions. It sounds like an adventure (and it is), but you really have to want it. You really need to go with a highly credible outfitter, and by that I mean an outfitter that has been vetted recently, and can provide references from very recent hunts. Do not rely on anyone's "long-standing reputation." Verify. Conditions change pretty quickly in Cameroon.
Jacques Spammer from JKO Safaris has been doing some LDE and forest hunts in Cameroon and their operation is highly recommended. Jacques was pretty helpful to my wife and I when we ran into a little trouble in Cameroon in 2024, and he did not have to help. I really appreciated his time. You need someone with a lot of Cameroon experience, and who is there and on the ground with you, to make those hunts successful - and safe.
There are a lot of interesting places in Africa. Once you have been on a safari of 2, you'll start to get your footing and then down the rabbit hole you'll likely go. And this forum is a good place to find some miscreant enablers willing to help you down that hole.
