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[QUOTE]Originally posted by fivebigbores:
Posted 17 August 2008 05:24
Hunter: frank stradling
Dates: Aug 1 – 10, 2008
Country: Botswana
Safari Company: Tholo Safaris
Booking Agent: Wendell Reich, Hunters Quest
PH: Joop Lewis
Animals Sought: the whole list
Animals Taken: Eland, Kudu, Wildebeest, Gemsbok, Impala, stein buck, duiker, zebra [2], red hartebeest, Ostrich, spring buck [2],
Rifle & Ammo: 7mm weatherby, Federal Premium 165 Grain trophy bonded bear claw
quantity 100 rounds

After the custom's 5744 paper, your ticket check in, the ATS inspection, and a good old body search -if diligent one can find the bar where folks wait to get on a plane that will take them halfway around the world. Now what is done is done so just buy your self a drink and forget about it by the time you get to here you have earned it. any way it will be 32 hours before you find out what you forgot so drink up and forget about it

Flight Gracy Travel

LAX TO FRANKFEURT 11 HR ABOUT 5,500 KT. MILES

13 HR LAYOVER

DAY ROOM AT AIRPORT ABOUT 280 US

10 1/2 HR FLIGHT

FRANKFEURT TO WINDHOOK

5,600 Knt, MILES

3 HR LAYOVER

ON TO MANN IN A BEACH 100 NICE FLIGHT

ABOUT 1 HR 40 MIN

TOTAL MILAGE ONE WAY 11,480 KnT. MILES

TIME IN TRANSET 37 HRS

RODE IN WITH OUTFITER ATKIN OF MONTANA AND HIS GROUP NICE FOLKS

added on a delta flight from Mann on the way home renting the 206 cessna scouting for a 2009 el trip I am planning flight cost about $400 us / hr Clive set it up from the ranch headquarters on the day of departure

THE DELTA WAS FILLING UP ON AUG 10TH SAW EL BUF AND STUFF WITH WET FEET THAT EAT GRASS

CHEIF ISLAND HAD VERY HEAVY EL USE

ROUTE MANN STANLY CHEIF ISLAND THE GAME TOWER AND SOUTH EL HUNTING GROUNDS BACK TO MANN

SPOILS OF THE HUNT - ZEBRA - OSTRICH - NOT SHOWN

I will be posting a hunt report on this trip. Adding photos As they trickle in from Africa !!

185 MILE ROAD TRIP WITH JOOP FROM MANN TO CAMP NICE DRIVE MOST ON OIL GOOD LOOK AT PEOPLE SMALL TOWNS STOPED AT THE HOOF AND MOUTH POST AND WASHED MY BOOTS ABOUT 3 HRS IN ALL FLASHED BY FAST

This Hunt was set up as a last minute trip and as such every thing was a little hectic, I found the contact info. on Wendell here on AR but had dropped by his booth in Reno in January. Have been planning a trip to Botswana Delta a Dream Elephant Safari but was not Quite up to the adventure this year and I could see that the hunting season was coming to an end fast as it was July 15 so I considered a package hunt for 2 with me and wife but as it was a spur of the moment affair and a desert planes game hunt and we live in a desert and she likes her daughters and that mean little dog but not so much me [when I go hunting], drink whisky, tell lies, and vacation in hot dry deserts. All the women went to girls camp and I went to Kalahari camp, as such great fun was had all round. Gracy travel booked the flight on one week notice and did a great job even getting it, [but they came through] so once the air tickets were in hand Wendell tied down the camp arrangements and I sent him a deposit for about 6 days of the day rate. Packed a bow and a light rifle and a bag of huntin stuff and changed my mind and left the bow home as the new camp I was hunting in turned out to not have many bow blinds and on short notice that was the camp that was available. Dropped by to run the plan by Butch S and he did know Clive and company and advised me that I just might have one hell of a hunt as according to him I was now hooked up with one of the big boys of Africa, well he was spot on it was nothing but first class,

OPERATIONS CENTER AND THE MAIN OLD RANCH HOUSE

yet these are cowboys to the man [they all have large cattle farms on the side, both the owners and PH,s alike, we call em a large desert cattle ranch over here ]. The staff knows how to make a large part of every day fun. Dick and Clive’s family has owned the land sence 52 and been in the safari business for 17 + years and as such now have a quite large property developed, well constructed facilities,
and enjoy the long term economic stability to have evolved a mature professional service at a competitive price.

MAIN HUNTING CAMP

PHOTO SAFARI ONLY CAMP

LANDING STRIP AT MAIN HEADQUARTERS TOTAL W OVER RUN 6,100 FT WORKING 5,000 FT

THIS BOX SHOWS THE GENERAL AREA WHICH IS ABOUT 30 BY 40 MILES OR APPROXIMATLY 700,000 ACRES WE HUNTED ON SAY 100,000 ACRES [IT WAS BIG ENOUGH] 3 GROUPS HUNTING IN THE AREA WHILE I WAS THERE A BOW HUNTER A FATHER AND SON AND ME SAW EM ALL 3 TIMES IN 10 DAYS

The game density was quite good and the trophy size very good as well. The country I hunted in was not so much cattle country as Kudu country and as such was infested with the things. I shot a 56 “kudu on the way to camp after begging Joop Lewis to let me get my gun out when we passed up a 54” set of horns and I lost the last chance at a big kudu in my life [and I was – well just sick about it] . Well I am not the first idiot he has dealt with, so we unpacked the rifle loaded it and fussed about and no more kudu, a quarter mile later the tracker the PH and me, in that order got another look at that head. He was standing in a bush about 75 yards out, the rifle cracked the Kudu dropped dead and Joop said well I guess you can shoot ok and by god that is a big old boy -so the boys load it up on last light. I prayed in silence HELLO AFRICA MISSED YA WHILE I WAS GONE

HOME FOR THE NEXT 10 DAYS

So off to camp we headed to un pack move in have dinner after which was required a generous quantity of the famous grouse from Scotland to toast the kudu, the desert, and commencement of the old mans Kalahari safari. As such my adventure was on in a bang up kinda way.

The Perfect Shot

After 3 days of chasing Eland dust the great white hunters [Joop Clive Steven and William] held conference. Never understood if the big boys just came out to drink up all the punch or make a plan but we had em so we used em. Counsel was healed in due time and the high judicial decided a sea change was in order. So we made a plan over dinner of spring buck liver and onions chased with something real men drink when they go a huntin and the rest of us use for avgas. By the time the plan was crafted the fire had burned down some and the whisky tasted pretty dam good. Next morning we changed country and headed out about 20 miles North West to eland grass certain to be a sweet spot. The good road we took about an hour before first light was not in quit as good shape as Mr. Steven had remembered while under the influence of the avgas but heeding the counsel of 3 great hunters and William the apprentice hunter how could things go wrong they did not. Just under a freezing hour later we cut track in early if not first light.

4 hours and 3 setups later we were grooved up to bush whack them as the fast moving herd crossed the 30’ wide road carved out of the stick your ass bloody if you touch me trees. The herd split I spun around saw the big bull the gun reported and there was noten but dust all in a new york second. About then it dawned on me that I was the dumb ass that fired that shot. Just as the now that was sloppy lit up in my head Joop slaps me on the back exclaiming you got a hold of him now we will get that big lazy xx!?* . Man was I glad to see him happy cause I was feeling the fool feeling and feeling it like stink on spoor. My fear let up a bit 2 hours later when I got aquatinted with the skill set of a couple of san trackers. On the sand the blood line was good and eland was hindquarters to us in a thick spot. Light him up Joop breaths so I do. Shooting an eland like that with a light varmint rifle makes him slow down little, leak some, and sneak a lot. We snuck around for about another hour and I added the third of a 10 inch group in the left quarter but it was good enough to make me feel we would get him at sunset or if not then shortly there after. I took a little leader ship on my self which is a more than hard around that kind of men, but I was firm and suggested the next time any one sighted the bastard he should shoot on sight. That changed our luck as I was walked out and young William now with the 7, Joop packing the 06. Later, never you mind how much later, he was discovered out 200 yards in a patch of grass head down and only capable of another 10 miles [ what I am saying here is dam near finished ] when Joop gave it a go. It was a lucky shot on his part what I mean by that, was that, is that he managed to put it more to the front - up by the light plant. The boys have a bottled beer over there called castle real good drinking on a hot desert day. We had a round loaded the thing and had one more round for good measure.

Our camp cook made eland steak for dinner perfect preparation, and the avgas softened it such that one could chew the occasional small bite, good thing we had an appetite and thank god for potatoes. Not my proudest day hunting but one I will never forget. I limp a little on the left side to this day

Next time I go eland hunting I think I am going to work on my Scope think what I will do is put the heavy rifle with the hard bullet under it

Breaking in the new guy

The first morning we started about 6-6:30 had a coffee by the camp fire egg and bacon breakfast was served in short order

the cavalry mounted up and we were rolling by the time big red edged up on the eastern skyline.

The mornings are sharp in early august over there so take a light jacket and the shooting gloves.

The hunting style is one land cruiser one PH one driver one mechanic AND two trackers.

The Camp if you can call it a camp is staffed with a cook ,camp manager, two ladies helpers to wash you shirt and clean the hotel room and help around the place, a skinner [you are going to need him ] and a young man to get the wood and do the odd job here and there. The count is then ten of them and one of me. We also had the pleasure of William a fine young educated Namibian PH in training. His job was to stay one step ahead of me anticipating my thoughts and providing all and every comfort. He knew how to do his job and he could shoot like a sniper, a jackal on the run is small fast and sneaky in the dark yet doomed when William is out and about. It was an absolute delight to have him along. Our first maneuver resulting in action was to collect the Zebra. My plan of attack was to check off what was available at this late date on the trophy list and take what came up on a day by day basis until I went broke or we got them all.

The zebra herd was encountered just about the time the winter sun lifted off the sky line. They were moving along at a country covering gallop when they crossed our trail. I lined up on a good hide moving along in the rear and knocked down a nice one added a short quick finishing shot and wished I had toned up my running shot practice as I had not had a chance to shoot like that since I quit the big old Arizona cattle ranch many years back. I had not had, nor had I expected to have that kind of fun, it took me many years back. It was just then that I knew that this was going to be a hunt worth the effort. It is the kind of thing that makes an old wore out man feel like William. Some hunts are just lucky and this was going to be one of them. The only thing that happened bad that morning is that I gave the trackers the impression that the old man could shoot. But not to worry I fixed that problem a day or two later. . Putting all that aside one thing was for certain I was out west, it was wild, free, and I was dam shore hooked up with cowboys, and by god the plan was simple, keep up!

Three runs at the Springbuck

After loading up a Zebra and doing a little eland scouting we headed in to make an appointment with the skinner, take lunch, nap off a little jet, lag bleed down the hot mid day sun and fortify the fragile client. In due course we headed out on a late afternoon expedition to sandy sinks predominant in the short grass favored by the spring buck of Kalahari vintage. about sundown we hit on a lucky streak and there before us was a stand of 6 bucks Joop counted to the forth and I shot the fifth, and well there was no going back, in a split second the 7 smashed the china cup. Making the best of an awkward moment that one was loaded and taken in a rather direct route to the table which made this young buck, all in all an outstanding salvage for the lack of attention. The spring buck is the favorite fair of most all old African salts. With a count of 12 sets of teeth in camp we would have been in even better fortune had I shot two of the youngens. It would be another two days before I had the chance to correct the error and harvest number four that’s him there in the picture.

A SHORT STALK AND A 200 YD SHOT DROPPED THE HARTABEAST

AFTER A QUARTER MILE STOCK THE IMPALA WAS SHOT AT 90 YDS ON THE 7TH DAY

AMAZIN THE THINGS ONE WILL SHOOT IN A PINCH

THIS IS THE ONE I WANTED BAD AND ONLY GOT ON THE FINAL DAY OUT, WE LOOKED AT 8 LESSER STINBUCK BEFORE TAKING THIS ONE

DROPED WIH ONE SHOT AT 240 YDS ON THE 4TH DAY

BEING THE NUMBER THREE MAN AIN'T ALL THAT BAD

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Your typical Puff Ader the original one shot onekill sniper consider this one the last trophy we took caus we did took it out of the gene pool[/QUOTE]