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I just got in and Jet Lag prevents me from sleeping so here is my report. Please keep in mind I AM NOT A TROPHY HUNTER. I have also posted this over on AHN and a short version on AR.

I started my split hunt with Andrew McLaren Safaris. I planned to hunt free range Springbok with Andrew but a lack of recent sightings and no spoor sign at their previous locations required a change in plans. I guess my own impatience played a part in things but I requested Andrew arrange a hunt on a 5,000 acre local game ranch. This property had recently turned from trophy hunting to meat hunting and Andrew secured a very good price for an older male.

We drove out with a very fine young P/H called Hannes Bekker (How Afrikanes is that name ?) to scope for a suitable animal. Hannes soon located one and it was off the truck and into stalk mode. One thing I like about Andrew is that he likes to 'walk it up' rather than shoot from a vehicle and Hannes had those clear instructions.

We slunk into some dead ground and worked parralel to the Springbok herd until we entered a small grove of trees. We placed these behind us and began the slow and painful crawl through the long grass to get closer to the herd. They must have sensed something as they started to graze off to our left. The range was approx 150 metres.

I was useing Andrews .308W Lyttleton (Musgrave) commercial mauser 98 with my 165 Woodleigh PPSN handloads left over from last year. The range stretched out past 200 metres as I struggled to calm my breathing for a sure shot. The range grew to 300+ and we new we would have to start over.

Back to the dead ground , up to and across the road and into the culvert on the other side. The Springbok had crossed the road and we duck walked up the culvert and out into longer grass. My breathing was steady and the Springbok were in range again.

I placed the 8x56 Zeiss cross hairs on the midline of the Lead Male Springbok and the instant he stopped grazing I let off the shot. For some reason I dropped my eyes from the scope as if in prayer, willing the round on to find it's target. I was rewarded with an almighty THWOCK and Hanness screaming 'you did it, great shot, magnificent shot'. We paced the distance at 220 paces. It was the end of a three year dream and the 13.5" Free State Springbok will be a shoulder mount above the TV I watch the Rugby on.

Hannes later said that he often spent all day with clients chaseing Springbok around the 5,000 acreas of Grassveldt as they constantly missed the target.

Our next hunt was for a herd management Black Wildebeast. We again left the Bukkie (ute) at the front gate and 'walked it up'. 9km later I was in range of an old female. Range was again 200+ and again I used Andrews .308 and my handloads. I pulled the shot too far right. The animal was quartering on to me and I did not hold far enough to the Left.

It took off at Warp Speed 10 and dissapeared with its herd over an escarpment. Andrew followed the spoor for another 3km before we lost it. No sight of the animal. The farm game scout was summoned and he too lost the spoor at the same spot Andrew did. We searched till dark and it was a very quiet night.

We were up before dawn and back on the property with additional help searching for a non-existant animal. I was glad that I was with the worker who found the animal just after lunch a bare 150 metres from where we had lost the spoor the previous day. Stiff as a board it had clearly expired before dark the previous day or we would have seen it. The Woodleigh took off the top of the Left lung, mashed the Liver, penetrated the complete stomach and was found in the meat of the groin.

..finally found it....

It was very cold on the Free State areas where Andrew hunts so we had to stay warm. I did a number on Andrew the last night with the best drink in the world.

Yes, Poofta Hill Rum had arrived in the Free State.

I then moved on to Chris Troskie Safari Africa. Chris's operation is near the town of Lephalale (the old Ellisras) in the Limpopo District and I was the first Australian hunter anybody had ever met. They had met heaps of Yanks, a few tolerable Spaniards and they all hated French hunters for some reason. I can say my shooting did not let me down. I don't know what they thought of me personally but I can confidently say I beleive I left a good impression of Australian hunters behind me when I left. That is a bit arrogant I know, but I met some great landholders and P'H's there and we had a great time.

Rifle is my custom FN Mauser 98 in 9.3x62 with 286 Woodleigh PPSN projectiles. I only recovered one projectile from game and consider this round far more than enough gun for plains game. Due to my age and lack of physical fitness I had previously asked Chris for a Spot and Stalk hunt. This involves driving around until game is spotted and then getting off to stalk and shoot the animal.

The Woodleighs did not regularly expand and I will post a ballistics report in the Handloading section later. All animals died so they did not fail.

We spotted some female Kudu (which were on my list) from the hunting truck and after getting off and setting up the sticks, up pops this male. What's a bloke to do ?

50" 1.5 curl Kudu. This big boy dressed out at 180kg (average is 140-170kg for a male) and was taken with a single shot at 237 yards (lasered) hitting both lungs. Dead after running 40 metres. So much for close-in Bushveldt shooting distances ! The woodleigh did not expand.

Chris's area is teeming with outstanding Warthog but I chose to shoot this fellow as a friend simply needed a set of tusks. 50 metres shot through both lungs, DRT. This was the only animal I shot from a vehicle the whole trip. The woodleigh did not expand either. Dressed this mature male weighed 35kg.

This was the culmination of my hunt with Chris. A 2.5 hour tracking job following a very wary and 'spooked' Eland. The whole thing was an amazing team effort.

We spotted four of these bulls together on a 1,000 hectare game ranch where the bush limited visibility to an average 10-15 metres. We immediately got off the truck and started to track them. 20 minutes later we caught up with one. Clearly surprised it peaked over a large bush/small tree to look at us. Before I could shoot it under the chin it was gone, straight into an 8' high game fence invisible to us in the excitement. I saw its rear legs go skywards as it thrashed through the fence and into the 'camp' next door.

The whole attitude of the hunt instantly changed. This was no longer just a trophy hunt, we had to get this animal before it went through any more fences and possibly into a neighbouring farm. It had got in with some very expensive breeding Gemsbok and was clearly agitated and totally on edge. We had lost any advantage we may have had.

Charles the tracker was (as my teenage kids would say) 'in the zone' tracking this animal for the next 2 hours without a break or stop. Chris helped find the spoor the three times we temporarily lost it. With eight minutes till darknes (and night does come quickly in Africa) we bumped the Eland and it was all over in about 3 seconds.

Charles came to a gentle glideing halt and calmly pointed at the Eland which saw us at the same time. Chris went into his characteristic 3/4 crouch and without looking sideways put the shooting sticks out for me to his right. The Eland took off to our left. I put my rifle on the sticks and the Eland changed direction back towards our right. I leveled the 9.3 and looked throught the customised Leupold 1-4x20 with #4 reticle just as the approx. 750kg beast dissappeared behind a bush. I started to swing to the right. Chris was shouting, 'shoot it, shoot it, shoot it'. The Eland came out like a rocket from behind the bush in that typical stiff legged trot they use to eat up ground. I continued to swing the Mauser left to right with the horizontal cross hair midline on the Eland's body. When the vertical cross hair came onto the front of the shoulder I fired off my shot. I must have continued my swing as the shot entered the neck. The huge animal half cartwheeled, half jack knifed over itself in a cloud of dust. It lay stiff as a board with its legs pointing towards us and its head faceing back the way it had come. DRT at a distance from us of 40 metres.

I was going to take no chances. I stepped left from the sticks shouting 'It's still alive' and placed another round, fired off hand, between the front legs which penetrated completely through the animal and exited between the shoulder blades. I knew then the 9.3 and 286 Woodleighs were more than enough gun for Eland.

None of these rounds expanded either and a Coupe-de-grace delivered at 1 metre (none of us were taking chances) behind the L. shoulder came to rest under the skin on the Right of the neck after also travelling the length of the chest. It had a deformed nose, but that is all.

We were all ecstatic at the culmination of the hunt and the animal dressed out at 385kg. It was 3/4 Livingstone Eland and the farm manger estimated its age at 7-8 years.

I also shot two herd management Kudu. No photos unfortunately and not much of a story. Neither got away and shots were at 161 yards and 200+. With a 9.3 FFS !

Our last two days were spent stalking Impala.

Texas heart shot on an old female Impala with very worn teeth and poor condition shot with express sights at 25 metres. Miss Walker the Jack Russell, followed her blood trail like a bullet out of a gun and took us straight to the animal who had been transfixed lengthwise by the Woodleigh but still managed to disappear into the Bush. This time the Woodleigh appeared to expand and exited from the front of the chest. This was the most satisfying shot of the trip and it took time to stalk close enough to Impala for me to feel confident of a killing shot. I love express sights and will use them more often.

SUMMARY

I luckily had no problems with any paperwork but it will now be quite some time before I can afford to return.

Customs at Sydney were really helpful. The sniffer dogs did not detect my rifle but the handlers were great guys with many questions about hunting etc.. The head customs guy treated the Warthog Tusks which I had with me, on the spot and I was right to go.

Go to Africa, you won't regret it.

Edited by tophet1 (15/06/09 01:54 AM)