TANZANIA: Back From The Selous

[Slickshooter]

I've been home for a couple days now and have time to write and share photos of my first experience in Africa, more specifically the Selous Game Reserve in Tanzania. As with many I've wanted to hunt Africa for many, many years and have planned this safari for the better part of the last five years. This forum has been a great source of information as well as motivation to finally book the trip. I have messaged many guys on here with questions and everybody I've reached out to has been of immense help. I came in knowing the absolute minimum of anything Africa other than a few animals I thought I would like to hunt, specifically the Cape buffalo. The amount of areas to hunt buff is staggering I soon found out, that's when my research kicked in. Over the years before actually settling in on an area I read reports here, emailed many outfitters, talked to a bunch of references, read the old classic African hunting books, watched and rewatched YouTube videos and basically dug up anything I could find regarding hunting Mbogo in Africa. I know most of you have been in this situation at some point regarding where and with whom to book your hunt with for whatever the target species is. Long story short my list of areas of interest got shorter and shorter the more I learned and thought about what exactly I wanted. And this was to experience wild and pristine Africa like the old days, without domestic cattle running around, without any paved roads or fences in sight in an area that is known for great dangerous game hunting. In the end I chose the Selous Game Reserve in Tanzania, now to find an outfitter. In a similar fashion as above I started reaching out to outfitters and after contacting and speaking to a few we (my wife, 11 year old son and I) committed to Heritage Safaris and Stephan Stamm in blocks LR1 and MS1. It would be me doing the shooting along with my wife and son as observers and Mr Kolby Edwards of Mutambo Films would also be with us to take pictures and video. Our safari took take place on August 10-21st 2025. We would fly from Calgary-Dallas-Qatar-Dar Es Salaam then spend a couple nights at the Seacliff Hotel in Dar before our charter into the Selous and follow up with 5 days in Zanzibar on the beach for a cool down of sorts after the hunting. I think moving forward what I'll do is post pictures followed by a short write up about the day. Not a gifted writer here fellas but I'll do my best Below is a pic of Omary, our expert driver to and from the airport in Dar along with myself, my wife and son. More to come...

 

[Rare Breed]

Really looking forward to your report!!!

 

[Slickshooter]

Aug 10. After surviving the insane driving thru Dar we met up with Kolby, boarded the charter and flew into the Selous. We were greeted at the airstrip by the trackers, other camp staff and our PH Stephan with beer and wine. After settling into camp we shot the rifles and had a delicious dinner of Hartebeest schnitzel, potatoes, salad and dessert. All served better than many fine restaurants. This was also our first experience with Africafe and it was more than good coffee...I'm sure my average was around 8 cups per day followed by a nice cigarette. A habit I like to indulge myself with only when hunting.
Aug 11. First day of hunting, Johnnie Walker as a customary toast to start the day, good thing as it settled my stomach from the side effects of the anti-malaria I was taking. Saw Impala, Zebra, Eland, Hartebeest, Wildebeest, Warthog, Buffalo, Baboons and a Black Mamba. Tracked 3 Buffalo bulls for a while only to get close and get busted by the wind. Stalked another lone buffalo bull later in the day, got really close but he ran off shortly after I had him in my sights. Allot to digest on my first day. I'm quite sure more experienced Buffalo hunters would have taken the shot but I just felt I needed another second or two and I didn't squeeze the trigger. The main dish at dinner was spagetti with Buffalo Bolognese sauce. My wife and son absolutely loved the day and the food, everybody in camp was professional, courteous and super friendly. Below is a pic of our tent and home for our time in the Selous

 

[Slickshooter]

Aug 12. I should mention that I didn't want to hunt dawn to dusk everyday as this wasn't going to work with my family along with. I told Stephan that we wanted to keep it fun for all, take time to enjoy the mornings, take pictures, enjoy the little things, spot a few birds etc. As the trackers would say in Swahili "Polle,Polle" which means slowly, slowly and this would became the motto for the whole safari. Left camp around 8 after our shot of Johnnie Walker, maybe 15 minutes of driving later a lone buffalo bull was spotted. We stalked him for around 800 yards I'd say in a large clearing. Once we got close my wife and son stayed back a ways for the final approach to him. Wind was good and we got within about 40 yards, I was so focused on making a good shot I didn't even notice what his horns looked like, I just remember thinking to myself "holy shit...stay cool, here we go". He was slightly quartering away but I could see his shoulder well and Stephan told me to shoot. I put one in his shoulder off the sticks with the 416 Rigby and followed by 3 more off hand as he ran into the bush and out of sight. Stephan, I and the trackers wait for a while before slowly making our way towards where they think he went in. They spot him facing us (again it didn't seem very far...30-40yds) I shoot again off the sticks in the chest, he runs and turns again toward us and I shoot again. He falls over and I put another one in him and he follows with a death bellow and was still. My first African animal and my dream animal to boot. High fives and hugs all around and another shot of Johnnie Walker. My wife and son were within earshot of all the gunshots as well as the death bellow. Such a special moment to touch his bosses with my wife and son there as well. Hard to put into words but I know you guys understand. We took the afternoon off to just enjoy the amazing experience that was had and simmer in our success. Gin and tonics in the hot afternoon after killing a buffalo tasted so good!

 

[Safari1]

Congratulations!

Did you see many elephants?

 

[Adam Stevens]

Nice to read the writeups after seeing the pictures of Instagram!

 

[Slickshooter]

Congratulations!

Did you see many elephants?

We seen allot of Elephant sign as there didn't seem to be any shortage of fuel for the Tsetse fly smolder in the back of the LC lol. We did see a cow and calf in an area we visited that Stephan had said was good for Elephants.

 

[Slickshooter]

Aug 13. Left camp around 8:30 after our normal breakfast of bacon and eggs followed by a fruit bowl, copious amounts of Africafe and a shot of JW. After some time driving we stopped to walk into a waterhole. Always seeing the regulars en route in Impala, Zebra, Wildebeest, Hartebeest and Warthogs. We walked into the first waterhole with several regulars in sight but the wind changed and all ran. Back to the LC and on to the next waterhole. Stephan and I had talked about hunting Hippo on land and I said if we found one on dry land I would be game to shoot. We parked the LC and walked into the second waterhole (maybe 80-100 yds in diameter). We immediately spotted a group of 6 bushpig, we got very close and just watched them for a while. Finally they noticed us and buggered off slowly. We continued to walk around the waterhole and seen many tracks including Elephant and some Hippo. In an instant one of the trackers says "Kiboko" and points off to the side in the bush. They maneuver to get a better look, Stephan grabs my arm and up goes the sticks after a short repositioning. "Shoot him" he says, again the Hippo was close (maybe 30 yds) and we were between him and his water. He was standing facing us and not moving in the bush but I had a clear shot. I had talked and been schooled by Stephan in the previous days on shot placement for these big animals. The inverted V on his head stood out clearly in my sights and I squeezed off a round again with the 416 Rigby, he dropped instantly. Stephan told me to shoot him a few more times to make sure but fortunately it wasn't a factor as the first shot brained him. Again hard to put into words all that happened in that span of time but man was it awesome! Walking up on Kiboko and touching his hide was simply amazing for both myself, my wife and son. I always expected to see a bunch of Hippo in one spot but he was a lone bull and had his little waterhole in this vast area. He was a very old bull with the longest tusk at 25.5". Again high fives and hugs all around, a shot of JW, lots of pics and we took the afternoon off again to relish our Kiboko success with a few Gin and Tonics. In camp my son and I would play around, visit the skinning shed, the chefs area and have good times with the staff and Stephan. I haven't mentioned Kolby much but he was a great to have with us, humble and a gentleman...not to mention a great photographer. Lunch was Buffalo tongue, appys were hippo chunks on toothpicks, dinner was Leek soup and Impala stew over rice. Desserts were fruit and ice cream.

 

[Slickshooter]

Aug 14. Left camp in morning at regular time with same routine as the other days. We drove for 30 min or so and spotted a nice Wildebeest they figured was good to take. Off we went and stalked to within about 80 yds, up goes the sticks and off goes the Wildebeest, wind changed on us again. Shortly after this we had another attempt at a different Wildebeest that also didn't work out. I still had another Buffalo on my licence and my son really wanted me to shoot a Warthog. Driving again we seen many Zebra, Hartebeest, Wildebeest and Impala. Stephan also showed us trees they had used in the past for Leopard hunts and explained the process. We seen Lion tracks fairly often but didn't see any. Stephan wanted to take us to a larger waterhole where we would again park the LC and walk into. On the walk in we ran into more Bushpigs at a smaller hole before reaching the larger one. Once we reached the much larger waterhole and large opening we spotted many Warthogs. One really nice one but unfortunately with a broken tusk, glassing around the large pan a Buffalo was spotted at the far end. After a quick inspection Stephan wanted to get me down there and try for a shot. We stalked our way around the water hole and the wind was good, unfortunately the Warthogs were running off spooked by us in the general direction of the buffalo. I thought it was over but the buffalo didn't budge and the wind was still ok. It took us a while to get down there as it was a fairly open area and we had to hug the edges by the bushes. We got to within 60-70yds and up went the sticks, he was broadside at this point and had his head up looking our direction. Stephan told me to shoot and I did on the shoulder off the sticks, I put another round in him offhand before he went out of sight. I felt good about the first shot and figured I hit him well. We wait a while before heading down to where he went into the trees. We get to where it gets more bushy and wait more and listen, moving slowly the trackers spot him and he is ready to charge, at my angle I can't see and Stephan puts a round from his 500 Jeffery in him. He then waves me over hurriedly and I put four more in him as he is struggling to maneuver on the ground, two of my shots were way too far back as I lost him partially thru the bush but I made the other two count, a few seconds later another death bellow and everyone is relieved. High fives and hugs once again, my wife and son stayed well back of the action but once again heard the death bellow of our quarry. I was sweating buckets at this point as seen in the pictures. Another shot of JW, lots of time to admire our buffalo and many pics. Back to camp in early afternoon for lunch and once again the rest of the day off for relaxing, good conversations, writings in the journal and G&Ts around the fire pit. Dinner main was Buffalo roast.

 

[DLSJR]

You enjoyed one hell of a wonderful safari. Both buffalo and that hippo are excellent, old bulls. It’s great that you had your wife and son along. Congratulations!

PS, I hunted one of the blocks right next to MS1 in 2023, on MA1. I can really appreciate what a wonderful time you enjoyed.

 

[Slickshooter]

Aug 15. The second Buffalo day took allot out of us as it was hot and I know I didn't drink enough water. I also decided to stop taking the anti-malaria pill as it didn't make me feel well either. I'm just not used to the heat and sweating so much, so we decide to go extra easy today. Drove a short 1.5 hour loop in the morning before heading back to camp for lunch and a siesta. Another short 1.5 hour loop in the afternoon in the LC looking for a good Warthog. Seen allot of animals but nothing that we needed to shoot. I was feeling a bit better by the evening. Picture below is of my wife and Kolby at the dinner table in the Luhombero camp.

 

[Frederik]

Wow Africa is giving you a very warm welcome those 3 animals are top trophies in anyone ones books.
Congrats can't to read what happens next.

 

[Slickshooter]

Aug 16. Left camp "Polle,Polle" at 9:30 in the morning. Headed to the Kimburu area, a longer drive. A beautiful open area with many elephant tracks. Checked out the giant termite mounds, trees and many birds. Many plains game around, ate lunch under a large tree and enjoyed the surroundings. Stalked a nice Hartebeest on the way back only to get busted at the last second. Pic below is of the game scouts, one accompanies us every day when hunting.

 

[Slickshooter]

Aug 17. Breakfast and stiff shot of JW as normal. Headed opposite direction of yesterday to more sandy and palm treed area, the name eludes me. Saw cow and calf elephant and lots of sign. Checked out the area, walked about a bit and enjoyed the morning drive. On way back to camp I shot an extremely old warthog! Short but fun stalk and instant kill, my boy was very happy. Back to camp for late lunch and we headed back out for a quick loop in the late afternoon to have a see what's around but didn't shoot anything.

 

[Slickshooter]

Aug 18. My wife and I's 26th wedding anniversary today. I told Stephan a few days earlier to see if we could do something special, I didn't tell my wife. The plan was to have the chef make a nice lunch meal out in the bush for us as a surprise. That morning before lunch we stalked and killed a really nice Impala ram out of a group of eight. We also saw a herd of 60 plus buffalo on our way to the surprise lunch. My wife loved it and the guys did a wonderful job making us feel special. We ate heart and liver from the Impala I shot as well as Impala ribs Maasai style cooked on a stick over coals followed by a homemade cake. Group pictures of all in a beautiful area that the buffalo frequented and a wonderful day all round. More to come tomorrow of the last few days...

 

[Tally-Ho HUNTING SAFARIS]

sounds absolutely fantastic

 

[Sideshow]

Ohoo yes Africafe or Afrocaff because it will straighten your hair and snaps your eyelids back. I’ve an empty tin of it on my gun bench which I keep my swabs in.
Loving your report!

 

[DieJager]

Hell of a start! Waidmannsheil on some great trophies. Keep um coming