The One Piece of Gear You Didn’t Know You’d Need in Africa

[steve white]

@Rare Breed mopani bees can be the most annoying thing with a pulse. I’ll take the tsetse fly bites over them in my eyes and nose

Could add wrap around sunglasses that help keep the Mopanies away from your eyes...they only want a little sip from right at the edge of your eyelid.
In the movie, "In the Blood" robin Hurt has mopanis going back and forth on the brim of his hat, but none around his eyes....did he smear something on the edge of the brim to keep them occupied and off his face?

 

[Razorback]

Dr Scholl’s moleskin roll.

 

[Mark Biggerstaff]

After a severe allergy attack on one trip that sent the PH scrambling and getting me to a hospital with swollen airway. I always take an epi pen and pocket inhalers now plus a portable nebulizer with drugs for it.
Haven’t had to use them last two trips but I have them incase. My Doc will prescribe anything he thinks I may need while I’m on safari

 

[Troubleshooter]

Medical sticking plasters, the antiseptic impregnated sort. Prevents minor wounds from becoming infected and creating issues. Put a few in your day kit.

Solid idea! I usually bring a small tube of antiseptic ointment, but one fellow didn't understand the concept and thought that I was "sealing his skin" with vaseline under the gauze bandage. I think using the type that you suggest (where the antiseptic is already on the pad) would have prevented that misunderstanding.

Another item: a Swiss Army Knife with tweezers worked well to remove a splinter from one of the trackers.

 

[Altitude sickness]

To save weight dry your wet wipes out. Then add water at your final destination.

 

[spike.t]

To save weight dry your wet wipes out. Then add water at your final destination.

That for real?......or am I being taken ....

 

[NIGHTHAWK]

“The One Piece of Gear You Didn’t Know You’d Need in Africa”​

I don’t know…

Probably more money to take more animals!

 

[Berettaco]

Individually wrapped Dude wipes as mentioned above. Those are in my pack wherever I hunt

 

[DonPablo]

An iPad. My PH had an iPhone and if not for the iPad I took (my phone's an android), I wouldn't have all the pictures he air dropped me. I just wished he'd used it to video instead of his little video camera. I never got copies of those videos.

 

[JG26Irish_2]

A fine makeup brush. What?, Why? would you need that in Africa on Safari? Simple - Most of Africa is dry where we hunt. The dust is everywhere. You ride around for hours every day in the Land Cruiser and get dust all over your rifle. The old Mauser type CRF action is fairly immune to dust but most other newer designs with tighter tolerances and push-feed plunger ejectors will eventually bind up from the gritty dust bath. After my 1st trip, I learned that a can of compressed air and a makeup brush were perfect for getting much of the dust out of the tight spots in the rifles and off the scope lenses without damaging the fragile surfaces.

Also learned to remove most all lube from the bolts and gun surfaces so the dust does not stick as much. This will not affect operation and the small amount of wear is negligible. You can wipe them down and lube them when you get home. Therefore, I bring a small very soft makeup brush in my gun cleaning kit to help maintain my rifles and I use it every day after the hunt. Plus, it is handy if you need to apply a little more blush to your cheeks before posing for trophy photos with the PH and that big Kudu.

 

[Betterinthebush]

-a set of eye glasses repair tools- (the screw came out on my left side on my good prescription glasses and had to tape them with electrical tape. Stereotypical dorky nerd at night in the bungalow. Was not a romantic look to my wife)

- Jase/Wellness Company, OTC meds and a trauma kit (as mentioned above by others)

-lip balm (as mentioned by others)

- not really something to bring for the hunt perse, but something I always do. I take pictures off the computer of the US embassy of the country I’m going to with the street address and a copy of my passport on waterproof paper. If something happens, I figure the cash in my pocket will bribe a taxi to get me there.

 

[Sideshow]

A fine makeup brush. What?, Why? would you need that in Africa on Safari? Simple - Most of Africa is dry where we hunt. The dust is everywhere. You ride around for hours every day in the Land Cruiser and get dust all over your rifle. The old Mauser type CRF action is fairly immune to dust but most other newer designs with tighter tolerances and push-feed plunger ejectors will eventually bind up from the gritty dust bath. After my 1st trip, I learned that a can of compressed air and a makeup brush were perfect for getting much of the dust out of the tight spots in the rifles and off the scope lenses without damaging the fragile surfaces.

Also learned to remove most all lube from the bolts and gun surfaces so the dust does not stick as much. This will not affect operation and the small amount of wear is negligible. You can wipe them down and lube them when you get home. Therefore, I bring a small very soft makeup brush in my gun cleaning kit to help maintain my rifles and I use it every day after the hunt. Plus, it is handy if you need to apply a little more blush to your cheeks before posing for trophy photos with the PH and that big Kudu.

Never tried this on a firearm. But I found tungsten dry lube was just the ticket for the padlocks on our overland trucks. They would get absolutely coated in dust. Any WD40 type stuff was a death ticket but that dry lube was the ducks nuts. Can see why it would not work on a rifle. I’ll ask my gunmaker what he thinks about the idea. Let you know. Cheers