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I have been fortunate enough to sample hunting alot of the animals on your list, including bull elephant.

For sheer fun and excitement, I have to rate tuskless cow elephant hunting as tops. They are more alert and more aggressive than bulls and they deserve their reputation for trouble. As a bonus, they are relatively economical to hunt, prices competative with a buff hunt, sometimes even lower. I find no comparisson to the hunts with the tuskless tremendously more exciting and rewarding than the buff. I'll warn that tuskless hunting is very addicting and trying just once will leave you yearning for more. In fact all elephant hunting shares this addictiveness, but it worst with tuskless.

I've hunted lion and leopard but not yet successfully. So these were my choices. I understand that hippo on land can be an extremely exciting hunt, especially when you place yourself between the hippo and his water. I will be trying hippo on land in a month.

Leopard hunting is a game of patience and of wits at times. I do not really enjoy every moment and at times it can be boring but when you've got a cat feeding it is great, even when its a female or too young male. I would prefer to hunt leopard by tracking - available only at great costs in few locations - or with dogs, but as an extra to an elephant or buff hunt the method is pretty fixed and that is baiting.

Lion hunting is similar, though tracking lions is extremely exciting, even when the cat makes his escape. You are on pins and needles the entire time you are on tracks, waiting for a glimpse and not certain if he or she will be going or coming. Seeing a lion on bait is fantastic, even when it isn't the right lion. Lion close are remarkably large, even when you've seen dozens at a distance. Its a wake up when you see one close up.

In a month I will be in Zimbabwe again. I have quota for two trophy bull elephants and a tuskless as well as a leopard and a hippo which we plan to take on land.

I'll also have quota for a selection of "plains game" including a couple of hyhenas and bushbuck. Both of which I have killed before. Hyhena hunting is quite enjoyable and its cheap. Call it leopard hunting light. You will be in a blind overlooking bait early and late. Its quite enjoyable and seeing and hearing the bush come alive in the dawn and hearing the change of gaurd as the sun sets. Leopard light becuase it light on costs and also not as much attention to detail needed. I would recomend it to anyone, and especially to those who might find a leopard hunt a financial reach. The skins make nice rugs or perhaps a full body mount, the skulls are very impressive.

Bushbuck hunting can be great fun as well, especially when it takes form as a slow walk and stalk along a river (ussually dry or all but dry) in the evening. All kinds of game is spotted and since you are in stealth mode much can be approached quite closely. The whole gamut of plains game may be seen as well as elephants, buff, occasional hippo or croc near deeper permanent pools. Even if you never pull a trigger it is a great way to spend a late afternoon into dusk.

I've never hunted nyala, but they are a close cousin to bushbuck and I've seen them while stalking bushbuck, but never had quota, so I would rank nyala right up with bushbuck amoungst my favorites.

JPK

EDIT: I'll add for double rifle afficianados that my experience teaches me that an express sighted, big bore double rifle really is the ultimate weapon for elephant hunting, with no other alternative as perfect a choice.

For buff, a scoped rifle is a more forgiving choice, whether the action type is double or bolt or whatever. But you can be entirely successful with an open sighted double if you are willing to forgo some shots and work for your buff.

For hippo on land I've been told that the open sighted double is by far the best choice, as for elephant.

JPK

Edited by JPK (31/03/08 05:22 AM)