While in India I was extremely fortunate to be invited to join in an elephant cull.

Two rogue elephants were stalking the jungle where we were camped and having destroyed many food plots and some village buildings, it was decided they had to go.

Hearing about this I immediately put my hand up, and amazingly got the job. Even better I was loaned a very nice Jeffrey (what else!) double in .450/.400 3". The only ammo was some vintage Kynoch solids which was a worry. Were they still good after all the decades?

We hunted them in the thick forests and jungle, tracking the crop raiders from their last scene of destruction. What a mess! Flattened wheat and mustard seed crops. Several farmers huts destroyed.

Concerned villagers gather at dawn after a night of mayhem.

We followed the tracks through the tall sal forest, through thick bamboo valley bottoms which was hairy, and finally spotted glimpses of them through the dim light of the forest. Circling around carefully the head shikar and myself worked our way into position.

BUT a sudden wind change, their trunks in their air, they knew something was wrong and crashed down the hillside. Running fast we caught up to them in the stream below and a quick left and right felled them.

Then I was asked "What did you do that for? They are in the water!"

I was a very unpopular fellow. Having shot the jumbos in the stream, it was going to make the recovery more difficult. The trackers are showing me their disgust.