RolandtheHeadless
AH veteran
- Joined
- Sep 3, 2015
- Messages
- 204
- Reaction score
- 207
. . . before my wife and I leave on our first trip to Africa.
Africa! My dream, not my wife's; but she dutifully agreed to go along. It's actually to be our first two safaris. We'll be hunting a week in South Africa with Karoo Wild Safaris on the Eastern Cape, and then a week with Balla-Balla Safaris in Zambia.
Africa! They sure make you work hard to get there; they make you pay in time, effort, and money for every step closer to that mythical place. All the hoops they make you jump through just to transport yourself and your rifles halfway around the world. Here are all the hoops I've found so far, and the progress I've made. My wife accuses me of being a compulsive list maker, which is grossly unfair. I can't imagine why she would say such a thing. I just don't like forgetting something important.
1. Make sure passports are valid and have lots of empty pages. DONE!
2. Get airline expert Lori Spears at Travel Express to find us decent seats in coach roundtrip from Anchorage to South Africa and back. Pay for same. DONE!
3. Take rifles to US Customs and get Form 4457. This is the form where they certify the serial number of the gun you hand them is the same as on the form; and that someone, could be anyone, even the thief who jacked it out of your car, appears to be in possession of said firearm. So far as the official agency of the US government that signs and stamps the form is concerned, its only purpose is to list valuable items you're leaving the country with, so that Customs won't impose a duty on the item when you return with it. So much for the American firearms license. Firearms licenses? We don't need no stinking firearms licenses.
4. See doc for shots and Malarone. DONE! Some uncertainty about yellow fever, but we got the shots anyway.
5. Fill out SAPS 520. If you have to ask what a 520 is, you're not ready to go to Africa yet. You may think you are, but you're not. Not comprehending the labyrinthian form, with its blank pages at the front and end suggesting plenty of places to trap the unwary and give them reasons to reject the application. That 520 you may be holding in your hands, if you're serious about this Africa business, now, at the time of this writing, must be completed in black ink only. Blue ink, pencil, or other colored ink will lead to rejection. Pay close attention to the sections you are supposed to fill out, and treat each entry to be filled out a trap which leaves you with the last resort of relying on your ability to sweet-talk or bribe your way out of encounters with anal retentive or larcenous African officials, if you do any of it wrong.
6. Now that I've filled it out to the best of my ability, and got the necessary attachments, what shall I do with this SAPS 520? All I know is I want it out of my house as soon as possible. I could wait upon arrival in J-burg, paperwork in hand, wait in line, find out that I did something wrong, missed the paragraph were I was supposed to use yellow ink or something, then go back in line and start again. Or, it occurred to me, I could hire Henry at RiflePermits.com to review what I've submitted, let me know if it looks good, then submit it for me and have it waiting for me when I arrive. DONE! Now of course how do I get it to Henry? He suggested DHL,UPS, or Fed-Ex for delivery of the documents to him. I chose UPS; and they chose to charge me $121 US to delivery the small, thin packet to Henry's office in South Africa. So the delivery is as much as Henry's fee. Next time I'll shop around.
7. Send in application to transport firearms on Emirates Airlines. Several things required to be attached to the application, but just tonight I got it off. Another pain in the arse, but not quite so bad as the 520.
8. Improve physical conditioning. IN PROGRESS
9. Practice shooting, both rifle, offhand, off sticks, and seated. IN PROGRESS. Note: have enormous bruise on my shoulder and upper arm. Part of the cost of living on blood thinning medicine is that you bruise so damn easily. Should I shoot right up to departure, or let off a week or so beforehand to allow my shoulder to heal?
10. Line up housesitter. DONE! Daughter will do it with her dog.
11. Make a list of stuff to take. Done! Then cut it in half. Argh! Not done.
12. Make a list of stuff yet to do. Does anyone see anything I've left off this list?
Africa! My dream, not my wife's; but she dutifully agreed to go along. It's actually to be our first two safaris. We'll be hunting a week in South Africa with Karoo Wild Safaris on the Eastern Cape, and then a week with Balla-Balla Safaris in Zambia.
Africa! They sure make you work hard to get there; they make you pay in time, effort, and money for every step closer to that mythical place. All the hoops they make you jump through just to transport yourself and your rifles halfway around the world. Here are all the hoops I've found so far, and the progress I've made. My wife accuses me of being a compulsive list maker, which is grossly unfair. I can't imagine why she would say such a thing. I just don't like forgetting something important.
1. Make sure passports are valid and have lots of empty pages. DONE!
2. Get airline expert Lori Spears at Travel Express to find us decent seats in coach roundtrip from Anchorage to South Africa and back. Pay for same. DONE!
3. Take rifles to US Customs and get Form 4457. This is the form where they certify the serial number of the gun you hand them is the same as on the form; and that someone, could be anyone, even the thief who jacked it out of your car, appears to be in possession of said firearm. So far as the official agency of the US government that signs and stamps the form is concerned, its only purpose is to list valuable items you're leaving the country with, so that Customs won't impose a duty on the item when you return with it. So much for the American firearms license. Firearms licenses? We don't need no stinking firearms licenses.
4. See doc for shots and Malarone. DONE! Some uncertainty about yellow fever, but we got the shots anyway.
5. Fill out SAPS 520. If you have to ask what a 520 is, you're not ready to go to Africa yet. You may think you are, but you're not. Not comprehending the labyrinthian form, with its blank pages at the front and end suggesting plenty of places to trap the unwary and give them reasons to reject the application. That 520 you may be holding in your hands, if you're serious about this Africa business, now, at the time of this writing, must be completed in black ink only. Blue ink, pencil, or other colored ink will lead to rejection. Pay close attention to the sections you are supposed to fill out, and treat each entry to be filled out a trap which leaves you with the last resort of relying on your ability to sweet-talk or bribe your way out of encounters with anal retentive or larcenous African officials, if you do any of it wrong.
6. Now that I've filled it out to the best of my ability, and got the necessary attachments, what shall I do with this SAPS 520? All I know is I want it out of my house as soon as possible. I could wait upon arrival in J-burg, paperwork in hand, wait in line, find out that I did something wrong, missed the paragraph were I was supposed to use yellow ink or something, then go back in line and start again. Or, it occurred to me, I could hire Henry at RiflePermits.com to review what I've submitted, let me know if it looks good, then submit it for me and have it waiting for me when I arrive. DONE! Now of course how do I get it to Henry? He suggested DHL,UPS, or Fed-Ex for delivery of the documents to him. I chose UPS; and they chose to charge me $121 US to delivery the small, thin packet to Henry's office in South Africa. So the delivery is as much as Henry's fee. Next time I'll shop around.
7. Send in application to transport firearms on Emirates Airlines. Several things required to be attached to the application, but just tonight I got it off. Another pain in the arse, but not quite so bad as the 520.
8. Improve physical conditioning. IN PROGRESS
9. Practice shooting, both rifle, offhand, off sticks, and seated. IN PROGRESS. Note: have enormous bruise on my shoulder and upper arm. Part of the cost of living on blood thinning medicine is that you bruise so damn easily. Should I shoot right up to departure, or let off a week or so beforehand to allow my shoulder to heal?
10. Line up housesitter. DONE! Daughter will do it with her dog.
11. Make a list of stuff to take. Done! Then cut it in half. Argh! Not done.
12. Make a list of stuff yet to do. Does anyone see anything I've left off this list?
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...yup dont forget to go to the airport on the correct day and time.....
