ZIMBABWE: 2024 - My First Trip To Africa, Dalton & York

[deewayne2003]

This trip was more than a year and a half in the making and for the sake of brevity I will be splitting it up into two posts; one for the hunting and another later post for the lessons I learned along the way in planning and executing my first African hunt.

This being the hunting write up I'll start with the pertinent info....

Outfitter: Dalton & York Safaris
Area: Omay North
PH: Bruce Cronje

Weapons:
Sabatti .470 with Trijicon RMR 1 moa firing Woodleigh 500gr Hydro solids & Weldcore softs.
Ruger M77 MKII .300win Leupold Vari-XIII 4-14x40 firing hand loaded 200gr Partitions.

After many months of planning and twists and turns along the way I find myself at the Harare airport and with the loading of rifle cases, duffle bags and ourselves onto the charter plane we taxi and take off; as the tires leave the tarmac I can feel the anxiety and stress of travel melting away as I realize.... I'm on my first Safari!

A short 1 hour flight from Harare and we are landing on a dirt airstrip by the croc farm and I meet my PH for the trip Bruce Cronje. Communication being key to any trip I tell Bruce about my flat feet and lower back issues so my moto "Slow is smooth & smooth is fast" so we can both be on the same page and Bruce agrees. After arriving in camp and being greeted we are assigned our cabins/huts and stow our gear and headed to the rifle range, thankfully everyone's rifles made it intact with no need for adjustments and it's back to camp for drinks.

Old Fashioned being my cocktail of choice I break out the whiskey(Jamison Black Barrel) acquired at duty free and proceed - 2oz whiskey, 3 dashes bitters, 1 orange slice, 1 Cherry & 1/2tsb Raw sugar + over ice and shake well.

After arrival celebrations and libations the evening progresses into dinner and I will say D&Y have a GOOD cook
Camp manager Scott ensures everything runs like clockwork and it's off to bed for the first morning of the hunt.

Day 1: Into the Jess - Limbo from HELL
Bruce and I leave camp and within few hundred yards I see my first african buffalo in the wild, Bruce stops the truck as I take a couple of horrible pics and Bruce states "If you had a Buff on license we'd be hunting that one" as I look it over and we eventually proceed on only to see Pierre's Hilux parked beside the road as he and Todd are in pursuit of the Buff I was just taking pics of and Bruce and I look at each other with the same "hope we didn't screw that up!" look on our faces.

We continue on to Lake Kariba where we pick up our federal/parks ranger as well as our tribal ranger that we are required to have with us for the tuskless hunt, soon after Dalton arrives with Dan to pick up their rangers and we are greeted with the pleasant news ..... Todd put that buff in the salt despite our photo interruption!

Bruce and I breath a sye of relief on Todd's success and laugh about how things are off to a good start as we park beside a dry river bed to start our first hunt. My canvas Trader Keith belt loaded with 8 Hydro solids at my front and just incase something came along as a target of opportunity; 2 - 500gr Woodleigh weldcore softs in the last two loops on the opposite side.


I drop an additional two Hydros into the chambers and instantly remember the words of @Backyardsniper ......
"When you strap on that ammo belt and drop two .470NE into your double rifle for the first time, you know your really hunting now son!"

How true....

I can't help but giggle as we start our first stalk into the jess and within 25 paces I can already tell that being 6'3" is a handicap at this game and although I've read countless pages about it, you truly cannot grasp what the jess is until you've been there.... in a high stakes limbo from hell contest with the jess as you stalk on cornflake crunchy leaves within feet of elephants and if it wasn't for the cracking of branches you would never know a single elephant was near you let alone a full herd; my best barometer for elephant proximity is to watch the frequency at which Bruce uses the ash bottle as he and the tracker weave us in, out and around the jess looking at several small herds.

My first day in Africa and I've not only seen but been within shooting range of 27 elephant, including 1 small tuskless that was shootable, however I wanted a mature old cow and this wasn't it; I was relieved when Bruce suggested we pass and quickly agreed.

Be patient with the pics I'm having trouble uploading them......

 

[deewayne2003]

Having trouble uploading into the body first post so supplemental pics .....

A typical camp dinner

 

[Wishfulthinker580]

Can’t wait to hear the rest!

 

[deewayne2003]

Day 2 - Winds of Change & Full retreat!

We start the day by following up a tip from Todd & Pierre about a tuskless near another dry river bed and we spend the morning up and down hills into different sections of this riverbed only to figure out they had crossed into the park and back to the truck we go and have a quick lunch before heading back out to look for tracks when we pass by a fishing camp and the manager gives us a tip about a herd by the lake in a place called Tiger Bay and we're off.

We spot the herd moving to the lake and even at great distance there is one old cow that stands out as both big body and no tusks, the mad scramble to grab gun belts and rifles begins as we have the driver take off and we start the long dash to cover the distance to the intercept point where they would head into the jess again.

Note: It's illegal to kill elephant on the floodplain of lake Kariba which is down 45' because of dam maintenance, so we must kill her in the jess to abide by all the rules.

We make it into position by working the tree line and Bruce begins checking the wind every few seconds and I notice the frustration on his face as the wind shifts back and forth but the herd is coming directly for us as Bruce feverishly examines and reconfirms the tuskless old cow has no dependent calf with her and it's a green light if they come in range..... and oh do they come right up until their on top of us but my view is blocked by a tree until she's the 3rd elephant to walk within 10yds of me in passing and Bruce whispers "Taker her, SHOOT!"

She's standing quartering to me at 11yds when she clears the tree that was blocking my view and the .470 booms as I was a 3" tree limb near cut in half by the first hydro before it slammed into the point of her shoulder and she shuttered and never took another step and I fired the left barrel striking the sage point of aim but not clipping the limb as she was weakening starting to stagger/sway.

I open the Sabatti and both shells eject over my shoulder and two more Hydros are loaded from my belt and rifle back up and she is going down and never took a step after the first shot I put the dot on her forehead and broke the front trigger and with both eyes open I watch her hind legs collapse and her tail hit the ground before her trunk and upon landing rolled over on her left side against a tree..... It was over but not done, Bruce called for a full retreat to because at the time of shooting we had many elephant around us and we wanted to keep the wind and back out FAST>

We made quiet but QUICK retreat to allow for the herd to move on and gave it a half hour but the still wouldn't leave, we ultimately backed out to the truck and took our time driving in and hopefully scaring away any enraged members of the herd and there she lay......

My first every African animal killed on day two of my first Safari with a double rifle.

And the customary tail cutting....

After securing the scene and taking the tail with us we meet two men coming back from fishing who are walking and inform them that we have an elephant and to come in the morning if they want meat.

 

[Backyardsniper]

Awesome hunt! You can't describe the feeling of dropping those rounds in the tube until you've done it congrats on a great hunt and some excellent shooting. You practiced, trained, and prepared properly and the elephant gods rewarded you properly! Welcome to the club! I can't wait for my 2026 hunt. The training and preparation has already began.

 

[Altitude sickness]

Congrats !!

 

[revturbo9967]

Congratulations

 

[meigsbucks]

Getting your ele on day two! Congratulations. Your description of loading your double and ejecting the empties, is priceless.

 

[TTundra]

Congrats on a fine start to your hunt!

 

[Mark Biggerstaff]

Congrats! And on day two!

 

[Brent in Az]

She's a big one!

 

[LP67]

Day 2 - Winds of Change & Full retreat!

We start the day by following up a tip from Todd & Pierre about a tuskless near another dry river bed and we spend the morning up and down hills into different sections of this riverbed only to figure out they had crossed into the park and back to the truck we go and have a quick lunch before heading back out to look for tracks when we pass by a fishing camp and the manager gives us a tip about a herd by the lake in a place called Tiger Bay and we're off.

We spot the herd moving to the lake and even at great distance there is one old cow that stands out as both big body and no tusks, the mad scramble to grab gun belts and rifles begins as we have the driver take off and we start the long dash to cover the distance to the intercept point where they would head into the jess again.

Note: It's illegal to kill elephant on the floodplain of lake Kariba which is down 45' because of dam maintenance, so we must kill her in the jess to abide by all the rules.

We make it into position by working the tree line and Bruce begins checking the wind every few seconds and I notice the frustration on his face as the wind shifts back and forth but the herd is coming directly for us as Bruce feverishly examines and reconfirms the tuskless old cow has no dependent calf with her and it's a green light if they come in range..... and oh do they come right up until their on top of us but my view is blocked by a tree until she's the 3rd elephant to walk within 10yds of me in passing and Bruce whispers "Taker her, SHOOT!"

She's standing quartering to me at 11yds when she clears the tree that was blocking my view and the .470 booms as I was a 3" tree limb near cut in half by the first hydro before it slammed into the point of her shoulder and she shuttered and never took another step and I fired the left barrel striking the sage point of aim but not clipping the limb as she was weakening starting to stagger/sway.

I open the Sabatti and both shells eject over my shoulder and two more Hydros are loaded from my belt and rifle back up and she is going down and never took a step after the first shot I put the dot on her forehead and broke the front trigger and with both eyes open I watch her hind legs collapse and her tail hit the ground before her trunk and upon landing rolled over on her left side against a tree..... It was over but not done, Bruce called for a full retreat to because at the time of shooting we had many elephant around us and we wanted to keep the wind and back out FAST>

We made quiet but QUICK retreat to allow for the herd to move on and gave it a half hour but the still wouldn't leave, we ultimately backed out to the truck and took our time driving in and hopefully scaring away any enraged members of the herd and there she lay......

My first every African animal killed on day two of my first Safari with a double rifle.
View attachment 619686


And the customary tail cutting....
View attachment 619688

After securing the scene and taking the tail with us we meet two men coming back from fishing who are walking and inform them that we have an elephant and to come in the morning if they want meat.

Congrats!!! If you would post few picture of the camp , I was up there in '93 and wondering how it looks now, thanks!

 

[375 Ruger Fan]

An Old Fashion, shaken not stirred. Well done, congratulations on the elephant!

 

[264]

Ive been waiting for this report well done, Davin. Hydro's went well.
Cheers Mick

 

[TOBY458]

Great start to your hunt! D&Y will definitely put you on game! But you’re making me miss the Omay!

 

[deewayne2003]

Day 3 - Clean up

The following morning we wake up and head out after breakfast to begin the task of meat recovery, as we get closer I see the two fishermen we told the day before waiting at the bend in the road and they have another 5 men with them, we stop and give them more detailed directions on where to meet us at the carcass and continue on another 2.5mi to the carcass which we find just as we left it the day before.

we arrive at the carcass just before 8am and shortly after arrival both the group of fishermen from the road as well as several other men are ready to go, they start the work of skinning at 8am.

After 8am the crowd of onlookers grows exponentially until we have a full on crowd of people and it just continues to grow and grow as the skinning process continues.

Gentlemen - please bear with me as technical difficulties are preventing me from uploading pics and my bed is calling; I'll proceed in pieces and try again to upload pics tomorrow.

 

[Mtn_Infantry]

Congratulations on your first African Animal and first of what I hope are many more safaris

 

[Goat416]

Congratulations, you will never forget your first hunt with a double rifle.

 

[deewayne2003]

Day 3 continued.

The most fascinating part of the entire trip is watching the locals deal with a dead 7,000+lbs animal

8am the skinning begins

By 9am it's necessary to move the carcass away from the tree she fell next to, if you've never seen a Hilux pull a dead elephant with a rope it's a sight to behold; and at this point there are more than 100 people waiting for meat and more arriving by the minute.

10am and the carcass has been rolled over and skinning is complete and branches from trees have been laid out as a mat to roll the carcass onto so the other side can be accessed and meat can be cut into shareable pieces.

10:30am The constant WHACK WHACK of axes on bone has been heard for some time as the pile of boneless meat is well over 1,000lbs and growing by the minute and the Texan in me can't help but think..."Man I'd like to throw a rack of those ribs on a smoker with some pecan wood!"

10:45 I'm presented with 1 of the 3 Hydros I fired - I'm pretty sure this is shot #1 that went through a 3" tree branch before breaking her front shoulder, ribs, penetrates the heart and lodged on the opposite side under the skin after breaking a rib on the opposite side. Recovered weight of 494gr

11:00am All the meat is cut and people begin to divide as per the custom and meat distribution goes as follows....

1st - The 20 men who have been working non stop for 3 hours to break down the carcass are given meat first.

2nd - Pregnant and lactating women.

3rd - Elderly women followed by elderly men.

4th - Young women and men.

11:30am I've counted well over 300 people and the sharing of meat is going peacefully under the supervision of armed game scouts and D&Y employees until it becomes apparent that there is not enough for everyone and the crowd starts to encroach on the game rangers who start cutting sticks for crowd control but it's too late.

You have to understand that these people walked anywhere from 6.5-12+ miles to wait in line for meat and tensions are running high as the pile of meat shrinks and it turns into a free for all of people grabbing meat and running with it or throwing it to friends and relatives.

In the end it's a much more light hearted scenario than what it appears and friends and neighbors laugh at those who dive in and wrestle for what is left, and as quickly as the dog pile began.... it's suddenly over with nothing left but the stomach contents and last 3' of the colon.

I videoed this process and parts of it are not easy to watch, however I can't help but think of the motivation these people have to walk at least 6mi one way for a CHANCE of taking home a piece of meat and I have a new appreciation for my own life and will never complain about waiting in line at a grocery store ever again.

12:00 - We treat into the jess and have lunch, my first taste of elephant meat along with buffalo steaks, salad and Mealie Meal(spell check).

I've heard people say that elephant isn't worth eating... but I love it, and best describe it as having the texture of beef with the taste of lamb and enjoyed this Kabab immensely.

After lunch we loaded up and headed for the chiefs village to follow through with the local custom of giving the trunk and other meat to the chief; we are received by the chiefs wife and she is a pleasant and talkative woman; we are unable to meet chief Mola himself as there is a brand new Landcruiser parked in the compound with government plates and the chief is busy with his duties of meeting with and pacifying bureaucrats.

With our tribal custom duties completed we depart the chiefs compound and stop in Mola village proper for the trackers to pick up some fresh greens and corn they wanted. Word has spread far and wide about the elephant kill and we are continually asked for meat although we have none left except for half a grain sack that has been reserved for the trackers and rangers who are guarding it like a sack of money.

We depart Mola village and continue on to the local school and are surrounded by 100+ kids asking us about elephant meat and it was heartbreaking to watch that many children be disappointed that we had none left...... but that quickly changed as we brought out the air compressor and inflated the 6 soccer balls that I brought from America; It's my opinion that candy will make kids smile for a short time but giving them something they can play with and enjoy for months to come is a better than giving sugar to kids that rarely get dental care.

The school master hands the soccer balls one by one to the older girls at the school who depart to the barren play area and begin setting up sticks as goal posts and instantly you have 3 soccer matches started at once with kids smiling ear to ear as we depart for our hunting camp and a much needed cold drink.

End of day 3 - Only 7 more to go!

 

[Philip Glass]

Day 2 - Winds of Change & Full retreat!

We start the day by following up a tip from Todd & Pierre about a tuskless near another dry river bed and we spend the morning up and down hills into different sections of this riverbed only to figure out they had crossed into the park and back to the truck we go and have a quick lunch before heading back out to look for tracks when we pass by a fishing camp and the manager gives us a tip about a herd by the lake in a place called Tiger Bay and we're off.

We spot the herd moving to the lake and even at great distance there is one old cow that stands out as both big body and no tusks, the mad scramble to grab gun belts and rifles begins as we have the driver take off and we start the long dash to cover the distance to the intercept point where they would head into the jess again.

Note: It's illegal to kill elephant on the floodplain of lake Kariba which is down 45' because of dam maintenance, so we must kill her in the jess to abide by all the rules.

We make it into position by working the tree line and Bruce begins checking the wind every few seconds and I notice the frustration on his face as the wind shifts back and forth but the herd is coming directly for us as Bruce feverishly examines and reconfirms the tuskless old cow has no dependent calf with her and it's a green light if they come in range..... and oh do they come right up until their on top of us but my view is blocked by a tree until she's the 3rd elephant to walk within 10yds of me in passing and Bruce whispers "Taker her, SHOOT!"

She's standing quartering to me at 11yds when she clears the tree that was blocking my view and the .470 booms as I was a 3" tree limb near cut in half by the first hydro before it slammed into the point of her shoulder and she shuttered and never took another step and I fired the left barrel striking the sage point of aim but not clipping the limb as she was weakening starting to stagger/sway.

I open the Sabatti and both shells eject over my shoulder and two more Hydros are loaded from my belt and rifle back up and she is going down and never took a step after the first shot I put the dot on her forehead and broke the front trigger and with both eyes open I watch her hind legs collapse and her tail hit the ground before her trunk and upon landing rolled over on her left side against a tree..... It was over but not done, Bruce called for a full retreat to because at the time of shooting we had many elephant around us and we wanted to keep the wind and back out FAST>

We made quiet but QUICK retreat to allow for the herd to move on and gave it a half hour but the still wouldn't leave, we ultimately backed out to the truck and took our time driving in and hopefully scaring away any enraged members of the herd and there she lay......

My first every African animal killed on day two of my first Safari with a double rifle.
View attachment 619686


And the customary tail cutting....
View attachment 619688

After securing the scene and taking the tail with us we meet two men coming back from fishing who are walking and inform them that we have an elephant and to come in the morning if they want meat.

I can clearly hear Bruce's voice in your story! What a guy he is.