Gsxrmike
AH veteran
I just returned from an August safari with Chifuti Safaris at the Nuanetsi Conservancy.
We flew Delta from DFW to Atlanta then to Joberg. On the ATL-Joberg leg we had reserved the economy comfort seats. Well worth the additional $800 for the extra room. We spent the night at Africa Sky.
They also helped us with guns upon arrival then departure to Zim the following day.
Africa Sky is a nice way to rest before the next part of your journey. They are very close to the airport and a good bed and nice meals are welcome after a very long flight.
The next day we had a SAA fight to Harare that took about two hours. We were hassled by the airline employees about the weight of our bags so we had to play the game of removing gear just to put it back in later.
No real problems upon arrival in Harare other than the usual inefficiencies found in Africa like standing in a long line to pay your $30 visa fee then having to stand in a different line to get your mandatory receipt for the $30. We also had to check in our guns with an official then check them in again with a policeman in a different location at the airport.
Once we were free to go we took a two-hour charter flight to Nuanetsi on a Cessna 206.
At the airstrip at Nuanetsi we were met by our PH, Keith, and his trackers.
During the twenty minute drive to the camp we were stunned by the number of plains game we saw.
The Chifuti camp is located on a river and has individual chalets with showers and toilets. Early morning and evenings a generator supplies electricity. It is a beautiful location and camp.
The first morning of the hunt we started checking water holes for daggaboy tracks. Within the first two hours our trackers spotted a nice Kudu. I was able to take it with a shot from about 150 yards with my .375 H&H Winchester Model 70. The 300 grain Barnes TSX bullets performed perfectly as always.
It was a nice 52" bull.
After taking the Kudu back to camp we spent the rest of the day driving many miles and visiting many water holes. Late in the day our trackers found fresh tracks of several daggaboys. A plan was formed to return to that water hole early the next morning.
The next morning we started tracking. They spotted tracks of a large male lion but we never saw him.
We spooked a couple of Wildebeest and in their comical reaction one of them nearly ran head first into one of our trackers. That provoked much laughter from everyone and broke the tension of tracking buffalo in the bush.
We continued tracking our daggaboys. The temperature was pleasant but the wind kept changing direction which would complicate matters. We soon found the buffalo feeding but the bush was very thick and the wind changed again and we had to back out.
On our next approach some Impala alerted and we had to back out again and come in from a different direction. This happened several times but we eventually were able to come in within about 40 yards from a buffalo. One of the Wildebeest we spooked earlier was nearby and almost gave us away. We sat down on the ground for about 15 minutes.
Finally my PH, Keith, motioned for me to move into position where he had placed the sticks. I moved out from behind the bush and stood up behind the sticks. The buffalo was in full left profile. He looked in our direction so I quickly aimed for a heart shot and fired my .404 Jeffery CZ. The .400 grain Barnes X bullet was not deflected by the bush and the buffalo reacted to the hit. He ran about 30 yards and immediately collapsed.
I chambered a Hornady DGS solid and we approached the buffalo from the rear. My PH asked me to put a shot into the left hip to be certain. I did so but it was not necessary. My first shot had hit the center of the heart. A moment later my buffalo hunt was complete when we were rewarded with the distinctive death bellow. The buffalo was an old mature daggaboy. He was merely an average 36" spread but he was my first Cape Buffalo and the hunt was everything I had hoped for and had probably daydreamed about thousands of times since I was a boy.
I'll write more later but this was the highlight of my safari and the reason I had traveled 10,000 miles.
We flew Delta from DFW to Atlanta then to Joberg. On the ATL-Joberg leg we had reserved the economy comfort seats. Well worth the additional $800 for the extra room. We spent the night at Africa Sky.
They also helped us with guns upon arrival then departure to Zim the following day.
Africa Sky is a nice way to rest before the next part of your journey. They are very close to the airport and a good bed and nice meals are welcome after a very long flight.
The next day we had a SAA fight to Harare that took about two hours. We were hassled by the airline employees about the weight of our bags so we had to play the game of removing gear just to put it back in later.
No real problems upon arrival in Harare other than the usual inefficiencies found in Africa like standing in a long line to pay your $30 visa fee then having to stand in a different line to get your mandatory receipt for the $30. We also had to check in our guns with an official then check them in again with a policeman in a different location at the airport.
Once we were free to go we took a two-hour charter flight to Nuanetsi on a Cessna 206.
At the airstrip at Nuanetsi we were met by our PH, Keith, and his trackers.
During the twenty minute drive to the camp we were stunned by the number of plains game we saw.
The Chifuti camp is located on a river and has individual chalets with showers and toilets. Early morning and evenings a generator supplies electricity. It is a beautiful location and camp.
The first morning of the hunt we started checking water holes for daggaboy tracks. Within the first two hours our trackers spotted a nice Kudu. I was able to take it with a shot from about 150 yards with my .375 H&H Winchester Model 70. The 300 grain Barnes TSX bullets performed perfectly as always.
It was a nice 52" bull.
After taking the Kudu back to camp we spent the rest of the day driving many miles and visiting many water holes. Late in the day our trackers found fresh tracks of several daggaboys. A plan was formed to return to that water hole early the next morning.
The next morning we started tracking. They spotted tracks of a large male lion but we never saw him.
We spooked a couple of Wildebeest and in their comical reaction one of them nearly ran head first into one of our trackers. That provoked much laughter from everyone and broke the tension of tracking buffalo in the bush.
We continued tracking our daggaboys. The temperature was pleasant but the wind kept changing direction which would complicate matters. We soon found the buffalo feeding but the bush was very thick and the wind changed again and we had to back out.
On our next approach some Impala alerted and we had to back out again and come in from a different direction. This happened several times but we eventually were able to come in within about 40 yards from a buffalo. One of the Wildebeest we spooked earlier was nearby and almost gave us away. We sat down on the ground for about 15 minutes.
Finally my PH, Keith, motioned for me to move into position where he had placed the sticks. I moved out from behind the bush and stood up behind the sticks. The buffalo was in full left profile. He looked in our direction so I quickly aimed for a heart shot and fired my .404 Jeffery CZ. The .400 grain Barnes X bullet was not deflected by the bush and the buffalo reacted to the hit. He ran about 30 yards and immediately collapsed.
I chambered a Hornady DGS solid and we approached the buffalo from the rear. My PH asked me to put a shot into the left hip to be certain. I did so but it was not necessary. My first shot had hit the center of the heart. A moment later my buffalo hunt was complete when we were rewarded with the distinctive death bellow. The buffalo was an old mature daggaboy. He was merely an average 36" spread but he was my first Cape Buffalo and the hunt was everything I had hoped for and had probably daydreamed about thousands of times since I was a boy.
I'll write more later but this was the highlight of my safari and the reason I had traveled 10,000 miles.
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