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SOUTH AFRICA: Waterberg SA Safari - Progress
- Thread starter NIGHTHAWK
- Start date
I shot a Bushpig with each one of them respectively… on 3 separate Safaris. Great guys, great PH’s, great company to be with. I’ll see them again soon!
The last time I hunted this beautiful mountain property these signs weren’t here and neither were the hippo. The hippo, even though they are nice to see, have changed the way the property is used and not for the better…
It took 4 nights of hunting and several different plans and blind set ups to get this shot. This included me saying no to 100 yard shot accross the damned section of the river. That would have taken place the first night and allowed me to hunt Serval and Civet 3 more nights as well as Steenbuck during the additional days. All which are important to me. Light condition on that side at 100 + yards was very poor with 1 light placed behind the salt lick and a small 1/2 barrel for lucerne used to feed Kudo, Nyala, and Impala. A great place for a temp blind for bow hunters. 100 yards broad side on a hippo seams like a chip shot, but not if you can’t get a cross hair exactly where you intend to have your most important shot. Even with an illuminated scope, I couldn’t see exactly where my shot would hit. The light was in the background and also slightly shinning in my scope… The shot had to wait and it was worth it! Not an easy decision when the pressure was on. Henk was very patient and understanding of my concern. He had already seen me take several much longer shots on PG and tricky shots on very small animals at night and was confident in my shot and decision making, so he and Riaan didn’t pressure me. The value in that alone makes me want to always trust them with future Safaris. A lot can happen when you say no to a shot that others would not. It’s my understanding, and experience, now that Hippo are very skittish and when bumped or pushed can leave and not come back for several days. This point was also a big concern when trying to get close for a better shot. They don’t see well, but thier hearing is ridiculously good. They can hear a piece of fruit drop off a tree at some distance and I had to wear shorts one night because my pants were loud enough to spoke them back to the water just because I made a slight adjustment in my stance! I wasn’t even walking. So, It wasn’t a matter of “aim for center mass and we’ll come fish them out the next day if you hit vitals” I had to either hit and break a shoulder and make a series of follow up shots or make a clean head shot. I’m glad I waited…
It took 4 nights of hunting and several different plans and blind set ups to get this shot. This included me saying no to 100 yard shot accross the damned section of the river. That would have taken place the first night and allowed me to hunt Serval and Civet 3 more nights as well as Steenbuck during the additional days. All which are important to me. Light condition on that side at 100 + yards was very poor with 1 light placed behind the salt lick and a small 1/2 barrel for lucerne used to feed Kudo, Nyala, and Impala. A great place for a temp blind for bow hunters. 100 yards broad side on a hippo seams like a chip shot, but not if you can’t get a cross hair exactly where you intend to have your most important shot. Even with an illuminated scope, I couldn’t see exactly where my shot would hit. The light was in the background and also slightly shinning in my scope… The shot had to wait and it was worth it! Not an easy decision when the pressure was on. Henk was very patient and understanding of my concern. He had already seen me take several much longer shots on PG and tricky shots on very small animals at night and was confident in my shot and decision making, so he and Riaan didn’t pressure me. The value in that alone makes me want to always trust them with future Safaris. A lot can happen when you say no to a shot that others would not. It’s my understanding, and experience, now that Hippo are very skittish and when bumped or pushed can leave and not come back for several days. This point was also a big concern when trying to get close for a better shot. They don’t see well, but thier hearing is ridiculously good. They can hear a piece of fruit drop off a tree at some distance and I had to wear shorts one night because my pants were loud enough to spoke them back to the water just because I made a slight adjustment in my stance! I wasn’t even walking. So, It wasn’t a matter of “aim for center mass and we’ll come fish them out the next day if you hit vitals” I had to either hit and break a shoulder and make a series of follow up shots or make a clean head shot. I’m glad I waited…
Last edited:
Hammergun
AH veteran
- Joined
- Jan 23, 2015
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Good on you. I hunted Bushpig one evening with Riaan and did not shoot because I just couldn't see well enough to accurately place my shot. One half moon just didn't give enough light. Riaan understood but no time to try again. BTW, I shot a nice Bushbuck on that same property.
Riaan and Henk are both great to spend time with, hunting or not.
Riaan and Henk are both great to spend time with, hunting or not.
Last edited:
Not settling for good enough.
This target was placed at 99 yards prior to our first day of hunting with it. I cleaned and defouled both my rifles before this trip. I took them both to the range 1 week prior to this trip and fouled them in and validated shot placement at 100 yards sea level. My gun club and range are on the San Francisco/San Pablo bay. My scopes were not changed since my last Waterberg hunt 2 years ago and those settings were for a 5,000 feet elevation +/-. My foul in at sea level showed my shots at predictably lower at sea level, and on the .375 slightly right. 4 shots got me comfortable. 2 were for the range master at 50 yards to prove my “sight in on paper was good”! The hole diameters are .375 +/-. The last time I shot my 375 prior to validating at the range was at this elevation two years ago on my last Safari in the Waterberg.
This black circle is pretty small at 100 yards, but good for me. My PH would have been happy with the first 2 lower right. I made slight elevation adjustments, slight wind age adjustments, and my final single shot to the left middle was after locking my turrets down and setting my zero stop. This is why I bring minimum of 40 rounds for my .375 H&H. my DOPE is in my RF Bino’s, so I dial for elevation which is important over 150 yards on my .375 H&H. I also have a cheat card for my DOPE, but I prefer the realtime ballistic solver in my Zeiss RF Bino’s for obvious reasons. I don’t like shooting at the range, or off a bench, but when I do I make sure my rifle is steady, I’m careful not to cant my rifle, and take my time. My scope is 2.5-10 x42. Not a classic DG scope, but I like it and it works well for me. **I will not use this scope on my 450 because I don’t plan on shooting it out to 200 yards or greater.
Getting the true validation and shot placement I want is critical for me and the way I decide to shoot animals. Circumstance notwithstanding.
To each their own..
This target was placed at 99 yards prior to our first day of hunting with it. I cleaned and defouled both my rifles before this trip. I took them both to the range 1 week prior to this trip and fouled them in and validated shot placement at 100 yards sea level. My gun club and range are on the San Francisco/San Pablo bay. My scopes were not changed since my last Waterberg hunt 2 years ago and those settings were for a 5,000 feet elevation +/-. My foul in at sea level showed my shots at predictably lower at sea level, and on the .375 slightly right. 4 shots got me comfortable. 2 were for the range master at 50 yards to prove my “sight in on paper was good”! The hole diameters are .375 +/-. The last time I shot my 375 prior to validating at the range was at this elevation two years ago on my last Safari in the Waterberg.
This black circle is pretty small at 100 yards, but good for me. My PH would have been happy with the first 2 lower right. I made slight elevation adjustments, slight wind age adjustments, and my final single shot to the left middle was after locking my turrets down and setting my zero stop. This is why I bring minimum of 40 rounds for my .375 H&H. my DOPE is in my RF Bino’s, so I dial for elevation which is important over 150 yards on my .375 H&H. I also have a cheat card for my DOPE, but I prefer the realtime ballistic solver in my Zeiss RF Bino’s for obvious reasons. I don’t like shooting at the range, or off a bench, but when I do I make sure my rifle is steady, I’m careful not to cant my rifle, and take my time. My scope is 2.5-10 x42. Not a classic DG scope, but I like it and it works well for me. **I will not use this scope on my 450 because I don’t plan on shooting it out to 200 yards or greater.
Getting the true validation and shot placement I want is critical for me and the way I decide to shoot animals. Circumstance notwithstanding.
To each their own..
The range was nice at this camp. Light was good. After each 2 shot group I walked down to look and measure changes and capture a picture for adjustments. It’s also good, in my opinion, to let your rifle cool a bit between shots. I knew I was likely to make a head shot on the Hippo.
That’s a special place! Where I shot my first Bushpig 10 years ago. Now, they seem to pop up every hunt! Ha! I don’t need 4… But they are special animals!
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