SOUTH AFRICA: Bos en Dal SAFARIS June 6-28, 2021

[Mark Biggerstaff]

June 16
Today was normal day up and gone looking for what ever we could find that interested me. We saw lots of Impala, Kudu, Blue Wildebeest and other game. Just nothing bigger or interesting character that I was looking for. As I said earlier this is not a see how many animal trip I can take hunt. Just looking for extraordinary or unusual character animals. Around 4pm we headed off to a lake and corn fields for an afternoon goose hunt. What a fun hunt it was!
Nothing like the restrictions we have in the USA. No plugs in guns, lead shot, hunt till you can’t see anymore, no limits.
We managed to down a total of 16 Egyptian Geese. Here is a pic of my pile.

 

[Ridgewalker]

Magnificent pattern on your zebra! That is going to make an excellent rug!
Let us know how those Egyptian geese taste. Never had one.

 

[Jörg Krüger]

Thanks for sharing again Mark. That Buff sure is awesome.

 

[gesch]

W

June 14
Up early 4:30 am as need need to be on the road by 6am. It is about and hour drive to where we will be hunting Cape Buffalo.
This is the same property that I took my 2019 Bull at and also Dave @mdwest with Gerrit.
On this hunt it will be myself, PHs Gerrit, Frikkie, Louie and Francios. What better team could I ask for for backup and guidance.
We arrived about 7:15 am got loaded up in Gerrits truck and headed off up the mountain.
This is a mountainous area with rocks and deep valleys. The strategy here is to ride and glass the areas. No cutting tracks as it is 95% rock.
After about 2 hours we spotted the first herd of Buffalo. After getting to within about 500 yards and glassing them it was mostly cows with calves and young bulls. The biggest bull although good was still in his prime. We moved on and covered more ground glassing hill sides and ravines. Around 11 am we spotted a second herd on the opposite hill side.
We started moving slowly in there direction with the wind in our favor. We got to about 300 yards on foot from them to glass them over good. At first all we could see were cows and calves, about 35 total. Then the old man stepped out and decided to lay down and sun himself. He was a brute and old bull just what we were looking for. We got the wind right and started in slowly as we could. We got to about 80 yards and he was laying down with some cows and some milling around.
One old cow spotted us and alerted the group.
We were in a good position and the sticks went up. The bull rose to his feet and turned giving me a frontal shot. I was steady on the sticks and hit him center with a 500 grain Aframe from the 458 Lott. He bucked turned and ran behind brush, a couple of the cows bolted and started coming at us then stopped about 50 yards away and turned back to the herd.
We moved for a better position and saw him standing behind a tree. Shoulder was open and hit him with a second round and he started bulldozing dirt! Solid hit. Followed up and put 1 more insurance shot between the shoulders from the back.

What a bull he is! Just what I was looking for, old and with a lot of character.
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He only had two bottom teeth left!

Great hunt! How exciting. Twenty one days is a fantastic experience I would love to have. Way to go.

 

[kdenn]

Thanks for the hunt report and pictures. great trophies, buffalo is awesome!

 

[Mark Biggerstaff]

June 17
Usual start to the day. Left about 7:30 am and started out. Looking for what the bush had to offer. Late in the morning after seeing and passing several shooter animals ( I am being picky on this hunt). We found this nice Impala ram and put him in the salt.

In for quick lunch the back out. Saw a lot of animals, just nothing that interested me.

 

[Mark Biggerstaff]

June 18-19
Usual Days up at 6 am gone by 7am. Spent these days looking for whatever we could find that interested me. I can’t believe the number of animals I let walk as they were great animals but just didn’t tick that right interest. We saw And passed on several Blue Wildabeest in the 26-28 inch range. I’m looking for the odd ones.
Passed several Kudu in the 52-54 inch range and who knows how many Impala in the 22-23 inch range. All in all it was a great two days tho!!

 

[Mark Biggerstaff]

June 20
Another day in the Bush!
Gone by 7:30. Looking at a couple new areas we hadn’t been into yet on the Farm.
Found this old male White Blesbuck that Gerrit has been looking for to take out of the herd. We made a good stalk on him and in the salt!

We went in early as I started feeling ill. Was a cold and cloudy day and I was feeling rough.

 

[Mark Biggerstaff]

June 21
Just another great day to be in the bush. Today is a half day only hunt. We saw a lot of great animals. Kudu were out good today. Saw a great bull and put in a stalk on him early. But as the Grey Ghost does he disappeared before we could close the distance for a shot.

We had to take Marcel from African Safari Films to Tambo Airport after lunch and that was a 5 hour round trip. So no afternoon hunt.

June 22
Another great day to be here still.
We stared out and game was moving good. Put in some stalks on Kudu and Impala but no clean shots came about. The bush is thick green and the grass is tall from all the early rains they had. Making hunting more challenging. That is what makes this hunt even better. We spent a lot of time looking for one particular Kudu I have seen twice. I will continue looking for him! He is real narrow but has great depth to curls and super length.

Went on another afternoon goose hunt. Cold and windy. Birds not flying like the other day, still had a great time and managed to knock down a few!

 

[Ridgewalker]

So nice to not have to rush to take your animals. You are doing excellent! I’m enjoying the “leisurely“ hunt.
Have you eaten any of the geese yet?

 

[Mark Biggerstaff]

So nice to not have to rush to take your animals. You are doing excellent! I’m enjoying the “leisurely“ hunt.
Have you eaten any of the geese yet?

No we haven’t They were given to the farm workers. We have been eating well with the cook Gerrit has!!

 

[Ridgewalker]

No we haven’t They were given to the farm workers. We have been eating well with the cook Gerrit has!!View attachment 408620
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Mmmmmm! All looks delicious! I would probably founder after stuffing myself!

 

[Mark Biggerstaff]

June 23
A grand and great day! My 58th birthday and what a better place and way to spend it than in South Africa!

Today would be a special day! Gerrit told me the evening before that he had a Cape Buffalo Cow that needed hunting. This would be the First Cape Buffalo hunted on the main farm! What an honor it would be to hunt it I thought !
Gerrit introduced a self sustaining herd of 50-60 head about 3 years ago and said he had a cow or two that was old and not productive. The main camp is around 8000 acres and is mountainous with valleys and thick thick bush. The Buffalo have the entire run of the place. We have been seeing them anywhere from near camp to the very back mountain side. We have went 2-3 days without seeing them while I have been here. I knew it would be a challenging hunt.

So this morning myself, Gerrit and PH Louie loaded up and headed off. I pulled back out the 458 Lott for this hunt. We rode most of the morning looking for fresh sign and them. Tracking is almost impossible with all the rocks on this place. The herd is broken up into 3 smaller groups we had seen earlier in our hunting. A group of young’s bulls, small herd of 8-12 cows with calves and 1-2 bulls and the bigger herd of cows, calves and big herd bull with a couple of younger bulls.

About mid morning we came across the smaller herd in the very back valley. After stalking into them there was not any shooter cows in the group. They busted us and headed for thick cover. We moved on looking till noon went back camp for quick lunch and back at it. About 2:00 we found the bachelor bull group and about 4:00 came across a Kudu Bull I just had to try for! Well it didn’t go as planned and he vanished like the Grey Ghost does. Dark started setting in and we headed back to camp.

After arriving at camp I was told to freshen up as we were going to Gerrit’s parents house for a BBQ and birthday party for me.

It was a great surprise and wonderful time.


Note:
When we returned about 10:15 pm the big herd of Buffalo were feeding about 40 yards from camp!!!

 

[Ridgewalker]

HAPPY BIRTHDAY! It sounds like a fun time and who could ask for a better place to be on their BD?

 

[Mark Biggerstaff]

June 24

Up and headed out at 7:00 am

Since we knew the main group of Buffalo were close to camp last night we started tracking them and working a grid when tracks were lost.

About 8:30 am we found them!
Game on! After almost 3 hours of cat and mouse with them trying to play the wind and brush I had my chance at 110 yards.

The first Buffalo off the main Bos en Dal Camp was headed to cleaning shed.

Big old Buffalo Cow!

 

[jasyblood]

Belated Happy Birthday! Sounds like you're having a great time!

 

[jeff]

Great cow! Great report!

 

[R.M.C.]

Awesome!!! Congratulations!!!

 

[cpr0312]

Congrats on the cow.and what a cool opportunity!

 

[mdwest]

Loving this thread.. We're counting down the days.. just 22 more until we're boarding at DFW and headed to Bos en Dal..

the pics and the hunt updates have got everyone in my hunt party fired up and ready to go!