Anyone for a cape buffalo hunt?

[shakari]

Any news or did the offer disappear?

 

Sooooooo can I take it my offer wasn't as expensive as your original comment suggested then?

[Jody]

Sorry I don't check this bit of the forum you should have pm me. I have a list of every animal on offer ill let you know prices by pm as they are not open to everyone. I can also get additional discounts on prices but that is only on hunts booked through me or hunters who come with me.

[shakari]

OK........ I'll look forward to seeing them.

[Jody]

PM sent Mate

[shakari]

And replied to. - look forward to hearing back from you.........

[Twistedsanity]

Seven Grand to shoot a cow, that's made my day !

[shakari]

Seven Grand to shoot a cow, that's made my day !

 

Mate, if you think hunting a cape buffalo has anything in common with a domestic cow you've got a shed load to learn about both African hunting in general and cape buffalo in particular........... they're not one of the Big 5 for nothing and if you ever get the chance to hunt one, I'll absolutely guarantee it'll be one of the most exciting and dangerous hunts you'll ever do in your life.

[Penelope]

One thing I liked to do. Always had a thing about buff.

Mate, if you think hunting a cape buffalo has anything in common with a domestic cow you've got a shed load to learn about both African hunting in general and cape buffalo in particular........... they're not one of the Big 5 for nothing and if you ever get the chance to hunt one, I'll absolutely guarantee it'll be one of the most exciting and dangerous hunts you'll ever do in your life.

[Twistedsanity]

 

Mate, if you think hunting a cape buffalo has anything in common with a domestic cow you've got a shed load to learn about both African hunting in general and cape buffalo in particular........... they're not one of the Big 5 for nothing and if you ever get the chance to hunt one, I'll absolutely guarantee it'll be one of the most exciting and dangerous hunts you'll ever do in your life.

I will more than happily admit I know ****** all about African hunting and I grew up on a dairy farm ,at the end of the day to me its still bovine , I have this picture in my head of somebody in a 4x4 with a big gun in their hand and a silly hat driving around and popping a bullet into what is effectively still a cow when all is said and done , can't help thinking that anybody who pays £7k to shoot a cow has way way more money than sense ! Do you get lunch thrown in with the deal?

[shakari]

Believe me, it's absolutely nothing like shooting a cow. A cape buff hunt will challenge your physical ability, hunting skills and shooting skills to the nth degree and I guarantee if you ever get the chance to hunt one, it'll be one of the most exciting experiences of your life and the memories will live with you for a lifetime.

 

I've had something like 33 years of hunting the plains and dangerous game of Africa and even now, if I knew I had one last day on earth and could choose how to spend that day, I'd spend it hunting one last buffalo.

 

Not only are they an incredibly challenging hunt they're also incredibly tough when it comes to the ability to absorb lead and also very often incredibly vindictive......... I've seen several that were hit badly on the first shot and then have taken over 12 more shots, any one of which should have killed it but collectively failed to and all the time that's going on, they just keep getting up and coming for you.

 

And in all of those 33 years, I think I can count on one hand the total number of bulls that have fallen over dead with the first shot.

 

Any hunter who thinks it's easy or not worth the money is talking out of his arze.

 

As for your last question, you get full board accommodation and booze in a luxury bush camp, services of a highly experienced PH, trackers, skinners, chef, waiters, mechanics etc plus licences, permits, dip and pack, laundry, 4x4 vehicle and the most exciting week of your life.

 

Doubt you'll get spam sandwiches though. LOL

[twitchynik]

As an aside and I'm happy to take this to PM...

 

Sounds like you know the land and therefore might know a few things about safaris without a gun in hand.

 

I'm planning a safari in Africa (primarily for elephant but typical Big 5 aspirations) and am researching places to go and when best to do it.

 

At the moment it's likely Februrary timing wise and places like Selous, Tarangire, Serengeti in Tanzania are looking favourite. North a bit busier than the south. A spot of scuba diving might be an option as well.

 

Long haul travel could be done to Jo'burg and then transfer from there or wrap it up with the tour operator.

 

Can you offer up any advice, tips or recommendations on locations, tour operators, do's/don'ts etc?

 

Cheers!

[Twistedsanity]

Sorry dudes, I'm not taking the mickey out of anyone personally or trying to be disrespectfull but to me it's a cow , I just can't see it ! its slow, it's got the IQ of an asda carrier bag and to coin a phrase from one of my favourite film scenes its not exactly what you would call inconfookinspiculase is it? I can see how springboks are fast and present a challenge with their ability to turn on a sixpence , or wild boar that are quick to dissapear into the undergrowth , and big cats are cunning and fast but I can't get my head round how you can define shooting a dumb animal the size of a 4x4 from the back of a land rover with a high powered hunting gun as exciting, maybe if they were painted in woodland camo and lived in a forest of 4x4 sized trees it would make more sense to me , As I said I know nothing about big game or bush hunting whatsoever and i have no doubt for some folk its a high point in their lives and a worthy trophy , please excuse my ignorance on this matter but I am still chuckling to myself as would my old man be if he were still here, I think ill stick to shooting bunny wabbits with my .177air rifle and leave the big game well alone , I wish you all the best with your hunt and maybe one day ill get it , but i think its unlikely

Regards

Paul

[Oli]

Sorry dudes, I'm not taking the mickey out of anyone personally or trying to be disrespectfull but to me it's a cow , I just can't see it ! its slow, it's got the IQ of an asda carrier bag and to coin a phrase from one of my favourite film scenes its not exactly what you would call inconfookinspiculase is it? I can see how springboks are fast and present a challenge with their ability to turn on a sixpence , or wild boar that are quick to dissapear into the undergrowth , and big cats are cunning and fast but I can't get my head round how you can define shooting a dumb animal the size of a 4x4 from the back of a land rover with a high powered hunting gun as exciting, maybe if they were painted in woodland camo and lived in a forest of 4x4 sized trees it would make more sense to me , As I said I know nothing about big game or bush hunting whatsoever and i have no doubt for some folk its a high point in their lives and a worthy trophy , please excuse my ignorance on this matter but I am still chuckling to myself as would my old man be if he were still here, I think ill stick to shooting bunny wabbits with my .177air rifle and leave the big game well alone , I wish you all the best with your hunt and maybe one day ill get it , but i think its unlikely

Regards

Paul

 

regardless of the topic that was quite a humorous post, good effort

[shakari]

Twitchynik

 

I'm retired now and the only connection I have with this hunt is that it's a good friend of mine who is offering it and will be the PH.

 

I was in the African hunting safari business for 33 years, have guided hunts in 7 African countries, co-wriiten one book, written another that is considered by many of my peers as the PHs handbook, lost count of the number of articles on African hunting I've written and am co-owner of the largest African hunting info site on the net. The site has about 700+ pages in total and can be found at www.shakariconnection.com.

 

I certainly don't consider myself an expert on anything and the para above isn't supposed to be a brag but it is the facts and I have been around the block a few times. LOL. - I'll be more than happy to offer you advice if you need it and feel free to PM me or email me at numzaan@zoho.com if I can be of help. If we do it by email, I can also send you pics and documents etc.

 

If you're thinking about Tanzania in February, you're at the end of the season and I'd suggest you avoid the Selous because (barring drought) the rains will be in by then and they make getting around very difficult. The truck will probably get bogged regularly and river levels will probably be high so fording them can be 'interesting' to say the very least.

 

Masailand however will be drier so would be a better option but you need to be very choosy about the areas up there. Mto Wa Mbu especially has had the shute kicked out of it in recent years......... the other thing with Tanzania is you'll need a 21 day licence if you want elephant and/or the big cats and that can them get expensive.......... but having said that, Tanzania is as you may well know the Mecca of African dangerous game hunting and although expensive, most (but not all) areas and companies are quite simply unbeatable.

 

Paul,

 

Cape buffalo are not at all slow, can turn on a sixpence, have reactions speeds second to none bar the big cats and are definitely very smart when they want to be.They can also get through the most impenetrable of thorn bush without slowing down.

 

I and many/most others would rate them as one of the most challenging and tough species to hunt anywhere in Africa and are nothing like a cow except perhaps in body shape and number of stomachs. Other than that, they're chalk and cheese in comparison.

 

As for use of a 4x4....... you'll almost certainly use one to get around the hunting area to look for recent tracks because the hunting areas are so large but you'll be climbing out and hoofing it as soon as you find spoor and it's not at all uncommon to walk for 8+ hours a day on the spoor before you even see so much as a square inch of buffalo skin........ Shhoting from the truck is illegal in most places in Africa. Oh and once they start a charge they'll ALWAYS but ALWAYS press it home & either the hunter & his PH drop it or the buff drops them. - There are no other options.

 

But hey, good luck with the bunny wabbits....... they can be a lot of fun and a helluva less hard work than a buffalo and sometimes there's something to be said for that.

Edited May 1, 2013 by shakari

[Dannyboy220]

http://www.theshootingshow.tv/

 

This weeks shooting show has a Buff hunt.

[shakari]

well http://www.theshootingshow.tv/

 

This weeks shooting show has a Buff hunt.

I've gotta say that video doesn't come close to doing a proper trophy buffalo hunt justice & depending on which province the hunt was conducted in, may very well raise issues of legality because most provincial game laws forbid shooting most game within around 200 metres of water.

[Dannyboy220]

These hunts will take place in the Limpopo or Mpumalanga provinces of South Africa:

 

From his website

[shakari]

I saw they had areas in both provinces but there are 9 provinces in RSA and each has it's own set of game laws and each waffles on forever so it's a real PITA to check but I'd expect both would have a prohibition on hunting within about 200 metres of water......... I'm not the internet police so won't go searching through the game acts for those provinces but if anyone wants to check, they can be found at www.phasa.co.za...... but be prepared for the fact that the guys who wrote the various acts almost certainly had English as their second language so some of the grammar is a tad quaint and they often labour the point in an attempt to ensure they get their intentions correct.

 

Most of my South African hunting was done in Zululand/KZN and it's their act I'm most familiar with so am not 110% sure about the two under discussion.

 

Another thing I noticed is they talk about a hard bossed immature animal (or some such phrase) and there's no such thing. A hard boss only develops with maturity and any young bull will, by it's very nature have a soft boss.

Edited May 1, 2013 by shakari

[Dannyboy220]

Is the "boss" the area where the horns come together on the skull?

[shakari]

Is the "boss" the area where the horns come together on the skull?

 

That's part of the boss but in it's entirety it could be described as the area that begins in line with the eye & runs from the front to the back of the boss & if any or all of that area is soft then it's a soft bossed bull.

 

Here's what a good quality hard bossed bull looks like & incidentally, IIRC, this one charged & we dropped it at about 6 yards in very thick bush.

 

Oh & before anyone nicks my pic, I reserve all publication rights etc

 

Edited May 1, 2013 by shakari

[welshwarrior]

Having worked on a concession and seem Buff hunts where the client freezes and can't shoot as well as the look on a PH face when he has to follow a wounded buff into cover I can assure anyone this is not the beef cattle of my family farm there is a malevolence to the Buff that has to been seen to be believed.

[shakari]

The moment when you have to step into the thick stuff to root out a wounded big 'n ugly is certainly an unforgettable feeling but that said, I always rather enjoyed it in many ways.

 

It becomes much easier and less of a worry if you have a reliable man beside you to lighten the load. The guy on the left of the pic is my old mate & fellow PH Colin Kirkham and we did that particular follow up together. We work well as a team and can do the job with just hand signals alone and I'll happily work alongside Colin any time he needs me.

[delburt0]

Didn't no the had bison in Leicester