A black wildebeest was my first plains game trophy.

I am strolling down Memory Lane again with a smile on my face. My six trophies just arrived this morning from my third hunting trip to Bergzicht Game Lodge in Namibia. Every year our house looks more and more like a hunting lodge. We like it that way. It has been a very gradual process. Our wall space and floor space are now so limited that we need to be creative on what we take down, what we put up, and how it is arranged. But let me back up a few decades.

I did not grow up in Africa, but it has always called to me. I still watch every BBC and National Geographic special on its lands, people and wildlife. It never grows old. I read Robert Ruark’s Horn of the Hunter before I even became a hunter. My Dad taught me to shoot as a young teen, but I became a huntress in the company of my husband and our friends when we were in college in the early 70s. For decades we hunted white-tailed and mule deer in several states for meat but not for trophies. One of our adages back then was, “you can’t eat antlers”.

We both got degrees in biology, and Ron was a self-employed professional taxidermist for over thirty years. Other people’s hunting trophies were therefore part of our income stream, but we did not personally engage in that aspect of hunting. Until we retired and moved to Montana in 2001, we did not even consider making trophy hunting for anything a priority in our lives. There were too many other things to see and do and places to go. Africa never called to Ron. He frequently said that if he could not go to Africa as it was in 1950, he wasn’t interested. Science Fiction time travel aside, that outlook made no sense to me. So, I went on my own. I took out a loan and did a photo safari in Kenya in 1992. That was well before digital cameras and smart phones, when the World Wide Web and personal computers were still technological babies.

By the time that I went on my second African photo safari to Zambia in 2014, I was at least in the digital age, and the experience was magical. So yes, wildlife photography also preceded trophy hunting. But I am inching closer to that transition.

We had our first trophy hunt in Austria in 2017. In May 2018, a couple of long-time bird- and deer- hunting friends were making a return trip to Bergzicht Game Lodge, and I tagged along with my old Nikon camera and my new 150-600 mm lens. I had no plan to hunt for anything. One of my friends was only after jackal and baboon on this trip, so I rode with the other fellow who had a longer list of desired plains game. On a hunting trip, a mere photographer accedes to the agenda of the hunter in the vehicle. That was OK too, but I saw so many things that I wanted to stop and photograph! One day I borrowed my friend’s rifle to shoot a red hartebeest that was causing problems by fighting through a fence with another bull. He was in a buffer strip between the hunting lands and the neighboring property that ran cattle. PH Steph Joubert put the range finder on him when he stopped running from us, and he was standing broadside about 300 yards away. Although we had all been instructed to hold in line with the front leg, I had hunted for over forty years holding just behind the front leg, and I defaulted to that automatically. It was OK. I took out both lungs and the cull animal died quickly. Steph and the tracker were both impressed with the shot. Now I had the itch to pull the trigger on trophies of my own. Years ago, I saw a quote about how everything in Africa bites, but the worst of all was the Safari Bug. It’s true. That is how it happened to me. I was still taking photos at every opportunity, but I also set my sights on shooting a black wildebeest and a nyala.

I know that many hunters go on and on about the make and caliber of their rifles and the particulars of the loads that they shoot, but to me a rifle is a tool. You just need the right one for the job, and the skill, judgment and patience to use it accurately. I have one rifle at home, a Browning .270 that was a gift from my father. I did not bring a rifle to Namibia, so on the sensibly obligatory trip to the rifle range, I was shooting a borrowed gun. I cannot even tell you what it was. I can only say that it was easy to use and did the job. It was time to hunt.

When we reached an open area with many black wildebeest in view, we left the vehicle behind and started walking single file through the short, dry grass. Steph went first with the shooting sticks, and I followed close behind with the rifle. I lost track of how many times I set the rifle on the shooting sticks only to have a solitary bull bound further away or into the herd, waving his glorious blonde tail and kicking up his heels. We would spot another loner and head in his direction, but I never had that extra fraction of a second to get the crosshairs on target and pull the trigger. Finally, there was a bull standing still and quartering toward us at about 250 yards. I held just right of center low on his chest to catch both heart and lungs and pulled the trigger. He did not go far, and I had my very first African trophy. That taxidermy mount now hangs in an upstairs bedroom. I give him a pat on the nose every now and then. A wildebeest in the bedroom? Remember, I told you we are very short on wall space.

Although eight hours a day might be spent hunting, that still left plenty of time to enjoy the meals and the ambience back at the lodge. Wild game featured heavily in the menu, and I loved that. We even had a chance to sample choice cuts from animals taken that week. For one dinner appetizer, Steph grilled blue wildebeest tenderloins over acacia coals, and they practically melted in your mouth. I also learned that he was quite a joker. He photo-bombed a picture that I was taking of my hunting partners at the dinner table before I even knew what that behavior was called. How was he as a PH? Great. He knew the property. He knew the wildlife and their behavior. He knew how to set up for a good shot. Experience counts, and he demonstrated that he had it in spades. I wish that he would write an article for AHG!

What I wanted next was a nyala. That species captivated me the first time that I ever saw one hanging on a friend’s wall…so beautiful. That herd was being built up at the time, and owner Hannes DuPlessis had very few that he was willing to have taken. He allotted two days for that hunt. We patrolled the hunting area in two vehicles, working to spot a suitable nyala or at least find a set of fresh tracks. That was also one of those times when a desired photo op flashed by before I could even say “stop, please”. We drove right by a pair of bat-eared foxes, the first ones that I had ever seen outside of a zoo. I was already thinking that I would have to come back some day, so I put bat-eared fox photos in my Bucket List. Before long Hannes radioed Steph to say that they were following a nice nyala that had just lost his status of herd bull that morning to a younger challenger. Once we were in the right area, we got fleeting glimpses of that bull, but he would disappear behind a screen of large shrubs before I could get the crosshairs on him. Eventually the trackers set out to follow him on foot, and we set up in what we hoped would be an intercept position. Suddenly there he was, walking in our direction. Steph wanted me to wait for a standing broadside shot, but there was no guarantee that it was going to happen. He could just as easily have slipped away in the cover once again. Lines of sight were very limited. As he kept walking, I put the crosshairs on his chest much as I had done for the black wildebeest, and I pulled the trigger. He dropped in his tracks. I was thrilled. As he was being set up for the customary photos of a successful hunt, I could not stop smiling. I was so grateful to the owner, my PH, and the trackers who had made that moment possible. I laid my hand on his forehead, a gesture of respect for the life that I had just taken. I stroked his side, admiring the markings. When Hannes checked his teeth, the wear on his lower incisors showed that he was an old guy. He had been in a lot of battles in his life. His hide was full of old scars plus the new marks from the fight that he had just lost. Back at the lodge, all of the guys kept asking me what I wanted to hunt next or offering suggestions for what they felt I should hunt. Kudu? No. I had too much affection for that regal antelope to kill one. Gemsbok? No. There was still the issue of mount size and wall space. Where could I put a big antelope with big horns? We had already been taking down artwork to make room for trophies from Austria. For the rest of my stay at Bergzicht I only took photos, but I knew that I had to come back some day. The Safari Bug had bitten me, and I was firmly under Africa’s spell.

I went back to Bergzicht by myself in both August 2021 and March 2024, hunting again with both camera and rifle, but those adventures and successes are a story for another time. I know that a lot of African hunters and guides frown upon hunting from a vehicle or within any size of enclosure delimited by fences. In my opinion and based upon my experiences, fair chase is not a “one size fits all” code of conduct. Is shooting a white-tailed deer from a hunting stand more ethical than taking an African antelope from a parked vehicle? That is a fine line. I do not condemn others for having different hunting goals or methods from mine. For me, hunting ethics have a core of following the law wherever you hunt, minimizing an animal’s suffering, and of making safety the top priority of every outing. One shot. One kill. It is not something that I have achieved every time that I seek to put meat in the freezer at home, or cross an ocean to hunt in another habitat, but it is true most of the time. Non-hunters don’t understand that the hunt is so much more than just the killing. It is the sights and sounds and smells and sensations that just make you feel more alive, and sharing it with folks who appreciate all of it as much as you do is integral to the whole experience. If I ever lose that twinge of regret when my quarry is lying dead at my feet, that animal that I both desire and respect, then it will be time to quit hunting. I am 74 and I have not reached that point yet. If only we had more wall space!

Hannes posed with me and my lovely old nyala.

This young kudu bull was heading for higher ground.

Silhouette of a secretary bird.

Written by Dustin Bomley

Africa has been a mystical dream since I was 15 and started hunting with my uncle’s hand-me-down recurve bow. As I grew older and began shooting in 3D archery tournaments around the region, I always most enjoyed shooting the exotic African replica foam targets. Fast forward to my 40s, travelling across states carting my son to his “A” level hockey team practices, another hockey dad and I begin talking about hunting and shooting. We instantly became friends, as not only were our sons teammates, but our interests were aligned. I told my new friend, Chad, that someday I would love to hunt Africa.

Chad’s response, “I know just the guy and outfitter to go with!”

The next day at practice Chad arrived sporting a memory book that he had made from his trip to South Africa just a few years previously, hunting with Mike Birch’s Hunt the Sun Safaris. While I thumbed through the pages Chad described the very aspects that draw many sportsmen to the Dark Continent!

I was sold! When do we go? This was February of 2021 and Chad got the wheels rolling. 

As we touched down in Johannesburg in late June 2022 my expectations were high, and I was absorbing everything I could. We lodged overnight at the Afton Safari Lodge, a transition spot for safari goers, and then were off on an early flight to Port Elizabeth the next morning. We didn’t arrive at our camp until the first evening, as we had to wait all day for a second flight from Joburg due to our rifle cases not arriving on our earlier flight. We rushed to get rifles shot while checking zero before dark so we could begin our hunt the next morning.

The first morning of my African safari was everything that I could have imagined! We made our way high onto a mountaintop in search of one of several target animals. My PH, James, and tracker Sperlo were glassing mountain reedbuck when I spotted a small group of kudu 800 yards away, making their way across an open area below and to the east of our position. Once it was determined that the bull was worth going after, we began our slow and methodical descent from our elevated perch. Moving into a good position and with a solid rest established, we waited as the kudu bull moved slowly into my predetermined shooting lane. The bull was 330 yards, and I squeezed the flat trigger on my custom 7mm SAUM to bag my very first African animal.

Little did I know that I had begun a quest—a quest that I would not completely realize until planning my second trip with Hunt the Sun Safaris.

The first trip to South Africa had been spectacular and I also had my then 16-year-old son in tow. We took a variety of animals during our trip, but not until a year and a half after returning home did I realize that I wanted to pursue what many call the Spiral Horn Slam which consists of African animals with horns that spiral from the base to the tip. The primary four in this “Slam” is the kudu also known as the Grey Ghost of Africa, eland, nyala and bushbuck. Each is entrenched in its own unique habitat, and as I began to study these wary animals, I learned each hunt would require its own strategy. 

Chad and I began discussions regarding our future goals and dreams for returning to Africa. As can be imagined, Cape buffalo entered the conversation! Chad and I both have this crazy disease (more of an addiction) to firearms. In our talks we decided that we should buy a pair of matching rifles for our next safari. Thinking along the lines of buffalo, we elected to go with the venerable .375 H&H Magnum.

We then had to decide what brand of rifle we wanted to purchase or have built. In my research I came across Parkwest Arms and immediately fell in love with the look and options available on the SD-76 model. After much research and banter, Chad and I both ordered our first Parkwest rifles. Mine was a splendid Savanna, including wood fine enough to drive any fine furniture maker crazy. Chad’s rifle was a Dark Continent with the fit and finish of a Rolls Royce and a walnut stock that will make any safari goer drool with envy.

Planning began, airline flights were booked, but Chad had a medical issue crop up out of nowhere. We were a few months from leaving on this much looked forward to safari with Hunt the Sun Safaris, when my hunting buddy was forced to bow out of the trip…

Scrambling, I assembled a fine group of friends to join me, and they were all greatly anticipating the journey, just as I had during my first trip. The only problem was that I didn’t want to hunt buffalo with the new Parkwest Savanna without Chad and his Dark Continent along. Shifting gears, I began to revisit the Spiral Horn Slam.

Day three of my second trip to RSA, with a few animals taken by my accompanying friends and a few failed stalks made on eland, I began to have doubts about my spiral-horn ambitions.

We were on our way back to the Arnotsdale Lodge following my friend Adam’s successful barbary sheep hunt when our PH Brenley stopped the Toyota Land Cruiser to look over a herd of springbok. Off to the left at about 100 yards stood a small herd of eland. Looking over them, Brenley said there was a big bull in the herd. After a bit of maneuvering and checking the wind, we made a short stalk. The eland bull stood sandwiched between a younger bull and a few cows as they became aware of our presence. With a nervous wander, the bull cleared itself from the others and offered a 211-yard shot. I quickly turned the turret of the Leupold VX6 1-6 and anchored myself on the shooting sticks. A well-placed 270-grain Barnes TSX from my Parkwest Savanna, and the bull stumbled and fell. I must admit, the size of the eland bull stunned me! They look large on the hoof, but walking up to him it blew my mind just how enormous the largest African antelope actually is!

Day six came with an early morning departure from the lodge as we were headed south to where my new PH, JJ, knew of an area that held a good quantity of nyala. Nyala like brush and cover and finding them wasn’t so much the issue as finding a good bull. Once in the area we began to see nyala ewes and some young bulls, but finding one that was mature was becoming increasingly difficult. We were supposed to be moving the entire camp from the Northern Cape on the edge of the Kalahari to the Eastern Cape in the Karoo, and my little impromptu nyala hunt had delayed our departure. JJ and I were ready to call it a morning and begin our move with the rest of the group, when he whispered from behind his binoculars, “There’s a good bull!”

My heart leapt and I quickly grabbed my Swarovski 10x42s to scan in the direction JJ was looking. There, about 350 yards away was the bull, walking and feeding with the sun behind him, his white mane glistening in the light, creating a glowing halo around his body. I immediately noticed his orange legs and his lofty spiral horns silhouetted in the blue sky. This was everything I imagined a nyala hunt would be! Once he made his way behind some thorn brush, JJ and I began working our way toward him with the wind in our favor. Keeping a small ridge between us we worked our way into an ambush position. We anticipated a 150-yard shot, but the bull instead appeared from behind a green hedge at just 90 yards. I was already on the sticks and pressed into a stable hold. With the crosshairs burned on his right shoulder, the shot broke and the magnificent bull lunged up and into the next hedge. JJ turned and high-fived me, but then said, “Get another round loaded, these critters are tough, and those horns are sharp and dangerous!”

We approached the downed nyala, both its shoulders broken from the Barnes TSX. JJ had me shoot once more for insurance. I had taken my top target animal and was overwhelmed. Such a beautiful creature!

On day eight we settled into a beautiful farmhouse named Whytebank in the Eastern Cape, about three hours outside of Port Elizabeth. The temperature was a frigid 26 degrees F and for the second time in 18 years (according to the farm owners) there was snow on the ground in the mountains surrounding us. I was back with my original PH, Brenley, and we were headed out to see what we could find. Adam was looking for bushbuck, mountain reedbuck or blesbok. I was focused on bushbuck, as that would complete my Spiral Horn Slam. We started out, heading south to an area that Brenley knew had some good mountain reedbuck, when the radio began to sputter. One of the other trackers, Albert, was on the radio with Brenley speaking one of the 11 official different languages used in RSA. I picked up enough to know there had been a bushbuck spotted and Albert knew that our Cruiser had the bushbuck guys in it. A quick U-turn to the north and an 80 kph ride on a dirt road, and we soon approached an area called Many Waters. As we were looking up the hill, our tracker Anton spotted a long-horned ram and ewe on the downhill side. Brenley glassed him over and decided he was a mature ram. A 239-yard shot delivered from my trusty Parkwest Savanna and my Spiral Horn Slam was complete!

It took me two trips to complete my slam. Today Chad is on the mend from his medical issue, and we are beginning the planning for our third trip. This foray will also be outfitted by Mike Birch, Hunt the Sun Safaris, but we will be going a different direction. The third trip will take place in the Timbavati area of South Africa, and we both will be targeting the elusive Cape buffalo on his home turf while toting Parkwest rifles!

A couple of pre-safari, 100-yard practice groups with the Parkwest SD-76 Savanna chambered in 375 H&H Magnum.

To be on the game-rich plains of Africa never joy, especially when with family, a fine rifle, and the opportunity to put said rifle to the test. This would be my third trip to Africa, and this safari was made all more special by the fact my daughter would not only be part of the journey but be hunting as well.

Just over a year ago, when I returned from the Northern Cape of South Africa, I began planning yet another African excursion for July and August of 2024. The plan was to meet up with my daughter in Atlanta and then fly together to Johannesburg and then on to Port Elizabeth in the Eastern Cape. From there we would be met by a representative of the well-known company, John X Safaris, and then on to their main lodge known as the Woodlands, near Grahamstown, South Africa.

Guns, Ammo and Optics

There was much to plan in the months between making hunt reservations and setting off for the airport. Although many safari companies now offer rifles and ammo for clients’ use, I enjoy testing rifles and calibers that may be of interest to other hunters and, therefore, took my own. So before discussing the hunt proper, here is a brief overview of the tools I selected. I feel it’s worthwhile to cover, as it may give readers who are planning their first African hunt ideas as to selection of rifles, ammunition, and other gear.

Although I took a Mossberg Patriot in .375 Ruger for a buffalo excursion in the Northern Cape after leaving John X Safari territory, a story in and of itself, my rifle for all plains game was the Christensen Ridgeline FFT in 7mm PRC.

Christensen Arms Ridgeline FFT

Christensen Arms is based in Gunnison Utah and has been around since in 1995. The company stands on its claim of always being made in America.

My first experience with Christensen Arms began in May of 2023 when I traveled to South Africa and put the Mesa FFT to the test in the Northern Cape with the well-proven .300 Win Mag cartridge. That rifle performed wonderfully as did the cartridge.

Electing this year to try out the Christensen Ridgeline FFT in 7mm PRC, I soon had the rifle in hand to begin prepping for our African plains game hunt in July of this year. FFT or “Flash Forged Technology” eliminates up to a full pound of unnecessary internal weight compared to traditionally manufactured carbon fiber composite rifle stocks. The Ridgeline FFT in 7mm PRC weighs just 5.5 pounds out of the box.

The Ridgeline FFT in 7mm PRC features a Christensen Arms 416R stainless 22-inch barrel with carbon-fiber wrap, threaded muzzle, side-baffle brake, and 1:8 twist. Accuracy is backed by a sub-MOA guarantee.

An enlarged ejection port allows for easy loading, and, unlike many of its competitors, the Ridgeline FFT comes with an internal box magazine that holds three rounds of 7mm PRC and has an FFT hinged floorplate. The bottom metal is made from billet aluminum, and the floorplate release lever is located within the trigger guard.

All Ridgeline FFT rifles use a flattened, skeletonized bolt handle and interchangeable FFT bolt knob along with dual lug spiral-fluted bolt. TriggerTech triggers are standard, and they offer a smooth, crisp break that complements accuracy. The 7mm PRC trigger broke at 3.2 pounds for an average of 10 presses as measured with a Lyman digital trigger gauge.

In a nutshell, Flash Forged Technology (FFT) allows Christensen Arms to build rifles that are significantly lighter than those made using traditional construction techniques. This rifle was a pleasure to carry in the field.

The Ammo

All of the pre-hunt range work with rifle and ammo was completed on my home range in New Mexico. This included a specific barrel break-in procedure consisting of a series of shooting and cleaning sequences that Christensen recommends. Accuracy improved with each series of shooting and cleaning until the process was complete.

Hornady ammunition company provided two variations of the 7mm PRC cartridge. Both of Hornady’s primary hunting loads for the 7mm PRC, the 160gr CX in the Hornady Outfitter line of ammo, and the 175gr ELD-X in the Hornady Precision Hunter line were put to the test.

While both Hornady loads performed wonderfully grouping in the 1MOA range or less, the most consistently accurate load proved to be the Hornady 175gr ELD-X bullet. The Hornady 175gr ELD-X consistently fired sub-MOA at 200 yards (under 2 inches at 200 yards). I had my range card built for out to 600 yards where I could consistently make hits on steel with the 175gr ELD-X.

Recoil experienced with the 7mm PRC cartridge in the Ridgeline was minimal despite the gun being so lightweight. All Christensen’s Ridgeline FFT rifles come standard with a removable stainless-steel side-baffle muzzle brake. Felt recoil, I would say, is no more than the .270 Winchester.

While there is an increased decibel level with the muzzle brake, while hunting I simply inserted quick ear plugs when about to shoot. Of course, the brake can be replaced with a suppressor if desired.

The Optics

In the challenge of pursuing game, a high-quality rifle can only perform as well as the optic it wears. Both this year and in 2023 I utilized the Lucid Optics model L5 4x-16x scope. It’s the exact same Lucid scope I made use of on the Christensen Arms Mesa FFT in .300 Win Mag when hunting the Kalahari Region of northern S outh Africa, and experienced excellent results. When something works, I tend to stick with it.

Binoculars I utilized for this safari also came from Lucid Optics. Their model B-8, with 8×42 magnification, allows for a wider field of view and weighs only 24 ounces. These are also the same binos utilized on last year’s safari as they continue to serve me well.

Hunting with John X Safaris

Plans for this safari really began in January of 2023 when I met with Carl Van Zyl of John X Safaris at the Houston Safari Club Convention in Houston, Texas. The company is owned and operated by Carl and Trish Van Zyl who have been running safaris in the Eastern Cape of South Africa for many years. The company was started by Carl’s father, Rick Van Zyl, whom we also had the pleasure of meeting at the Woodlands Lodge, the main camp for all their hunts.

Although plans and dates were amended a time or two, in the end it worked out perfectly for my daughter to accompany me and get to do some hunting herself…all the better.

John X Safaris enjoys an excellent reputation for providing a first-rate safari experience. Hunting with this company in late July of this year, the John X company actually exceeded my already high expectations. Though they serve clients from around the world, John X Safaris demonstrates a deep commitment to locals too. This is evident in their support of an area school by essentially remodeling an old police barracks and installing playground equipment, as well as providing a steady supply of hunter-provided meat used for students’ nourishment.

Their main camp, the Woodlands Lodge (and all their lodges for that matter) are run in a manner that would defy anyone’s expectations for comfort, cuisine, and atmosphere, combined with feeling at home away from home. The fire was going every evening when we arrived after a long day in the field, not just at the outside fire pit, but in the lodge, in the old-style safari bar and even in hunters’ personal rooms.

In the field, care was taken in finding not just quality game to hunt, but in selecting animals that were past their prime, animals that are on the downhill side of life, allowing other mature animals to carry on the cycle.

Our professional hunter (PH), Clayton Fletcher was methodical in observing hundreds of head of game via a quality spotting scope. He expertly put my daughter and me on just the right animals. I was impressed.

Over six to seven days afield, we made several moves between different hunting locations including one of their newer camps, Bankfontein. At this location my daughter was able to take two outstanding springbok, a common and a white. At least two of these areas were low fence, or free-range ranches, which made our hunt all the more interesting and enjoyable. An interesting sidenote: the view of the Milky Way Galaxy from this location was phenomenal.

The variety of terrain we were exposed to was impressive. We hunted open plains where one could see for miles, thick woodlands, higher mountains, and locations that combined all the above.

Our safari started each day with an early breakfast and then out to the field with our PH Clayton. Always accompanying us was Bull, our native tracker, and two friendly terriers, Scamp and Bean, in case the need arose to find a wounded animal. All hunting was done on foot after leaving the safari truck behind. Every animal taken was usually the result of lots of glassing and use of a spotting scope and the resulting stalk or wait for the animal to move into a position for a good shot. All shots were taken from a prone or kneeling/sitting/standing position with the use of provided shooting sticks or a mechanical tripod that was a real asset for longer shots.

My toughest shot was just over 300 yards, in an uphill sitting position, at a mountain reedbuck. The Christensen Ridgeline was spot-on and the 7mm PRC Precision Hunter ammo performed wonderfully. The reedbuck went down with a single shot. My daughter took her common springbok at nearly the same distance.

All told, we hunted five different areas in the Eastern Cape and took excellent animals. My daughter took blesbok, common springbok, white springbok, impala and, blue wildebeest. My list included Kalahari springbok, mountain reedbuck, common duiker, black wildebeest, impala, nyala and bushbuck.

Well done, John X Safaris!

Final Thoughts

The Christensen Ridgeline FFT performed beyond my expectations. The rifle is lightweight (a fact commented on many times by PHs and hunters alike), accurate, built tough, and just plain handsome with flawless performance.

Likewise, the Hornady 7mm PRC Precision Hunter, 175gr ELD-X performance was nothing short of outstanding. The 7MM PRC is one flat-shooting cartridge and one that I will continue to utilize for, hopefully, many hunts to come.

As was the case in the previous year’s safari in the Northern Cape, all Lucid Optics gear exceeded expectations and will continue to be integral to my hunting endeavors.

On the second half of my journey, to the Northern Cape, I also took red hartebeest, warthog, kudu, and steenbok with the Christensen, where again its performance was stellar.

My daughter and I shared a marvelous adventure in Africa and with John X Safaris. It was an experience that can never be replaced or forgotten. One cannot wish for more than that.

It was mid-morning on 14 May 1973, when the King Air carried my friends and fellow Michiganders, Joyce and Erwin Wilson, with all their gear, including hunting equipment and food. The plane landed on a dirt runway in Caprivi, the northeastern corner of Namibia. The pilot had deployed the reverse thrust levers a bit late after the nose wheel had already touched down. He then realized the aircraft was quickly running out of the runway, so he raised the thrust levers to the full upright position, putting the engines in maximum reverse thrust. That, coupled with his feathering the brakes with increasing pressure, stopped the King Air within 20 yards of the runway’s end.

Caprivi is a salient strip of land protruding from the northeastern corner of Namibia. Botswana surrounds it to the south, and Angola and Zambia to the north. Namibia, Botswana, and Zambia meet at a single point at the eastern tip, an area Erwin first hunted in the late 50s with his brother Ed.

Greeting them was a long-time friend and professional hunter Peter Becker with one of his MaYeyi trackers. There was no terminal, no petrol pump, and surprise – no help, and they transferred all the luggage and hunting gear into the Rover that Peter had driven to the plane. When everyone was seated, Peter handed Joyce and Erwin a Hansa pilsener, saying, “Karibu (Swahili for welcome). We now have a 10-kilometer drive to base camp over a very bumpy road that will make that landing you had a cakewalk.”

The previous day, Peter out scouting with his lead tracker, had seen fresh hoof prints of Cape buffalo, Snycerus caffer, close to a known watering hole, where they had set up base camp.

Once there and settled into their assigned tent, Joyce joked, “Well, not the Ritz, but It’s not bad. Where’s the shower?”

Erwin and the PH with his head tracker headed out later that afternoon to check if the herd was still there, approximately nine kilometers north and west of camp. On the drive back, as they crested a small hill, they spotted a group of cheetahs watching the grasslands, searching the horizon for prey.

Over a late meal with drinks, discussing the next day’s plan under a star-studded sky, Peter pointed out the constellation often seen in the Southern Hemisphere, known as the Southern Cross.

At 6:30 after onbyt (breakfast in Afrikaans), Peter and the Wilsons climbed into the Rover and, following the old Toyota truck with two of Peter’s trackers, drove several kilometers, scouting different sets of tracks before they located where the herd of buffalo had moved the previous evening. By the time they spotted them it was close to the day’s heat, so they let the herd bed down in some shade for a mid-day siesta.

Peter suggested they should not push the herd, but just find some shade themselves, and wait for the day’s heat to pass. They had located a herd, and, as Erwin had noted, “A meaningful male may well be amongst it.” It’s all about the size of the buffalo’s lethal horns and its age that is relevant. A herd of that size should have a couple of Dagga Boys peripheral to its location.

It was a beautiful time of day, the expansive views highlighting cirrus clouds over the surrounding savanna; a rolling grassland interspersed with the occasional baobab tree; elephant grass, and Acacia trees whose leaves are favored by giraffes, along with jackalberry, a large dioecious evergreen tree that frequently grows on termite mounds. After a three-hour break that included lunch and a nap for the hunters, the temperature started dropping and, more importantly, the wind was still in their faces, a necessity if their stalk was to be successful. After a short trek, they again spotted the herd. The animals had arisen and started moving.

Joyce, Erwin, Peter and the head tracker were downwind about 400 yards in some cover, but they needed to close the distance for a reliable shot. Finally, after what seemed like a long hour of painstaking, silent movement to check the wind and placement of the lumbering herd, Peter got Joyce and Erwin within 120 yards after spotting two old mature bulls with several tick birds on their rumps.

Peter had chosen a tiny patch where the grasses had parted so the five-foot-two Joyce could get a shot off the shooting sticks he had quickly put in place.

Peter and one of his trackers, noticing good blood on the ground, started to slowly follow the blood trail and move toward the sound of the groaning buffalo, with Joyce and Erwin following, all guns raised and in the ready in case of a sudden charge. The only other sound they heard was their beating hearts as they slowly and cautiously moved to the dying beast. Then they sighted him, down, and they waited as he expired.

His magnificent horns extended from a significant boss, slightly curving about seven inches above the big beast’s head. From point to point, there were just over 26 inches between those lethal points, as if the horns warned, “Lion beware.”

Before they returned to the vehicles, Peter and Erwin oversaw the big brute’s gralloching. Once gutted, they began trimming the backstrap and hind legs for their needs. On the return to camp, Joyce took a backward-facing seat, allowing a view of the Chobe River as the waning yellow sun highlighted its undulating flow. The drive back was, in some respects, a reflective journey. The thrill of a successful hunt, coupled with the challenge and teamwork between all, filled Joyce and Erwin with a deep appreciation of the vastness of Africa, and the fragile balance between nature, human encroachment, and the needs of the indigenous tribes.

Back at base camp, the hunters had welcome showers before sitting round the fire with their drink of choice and reminisced about the day’s events while waiting for dinner which started with a toast and a glass of celebratory champagne – a bottle of Veuve Clicquot Yellow Label that Erwin had brought on their flight, a favorite of Joyce.

The main meat dish was thin slices of backstrap from their buffalo, chicken fried with a dollop of Peco de Galloand, and cuts of guinea fowl. Afterwards they enjoyed nightcaps as they discussed the wonders of Africa and their privilege to have returned to the enchanted continent.

The hunt planned for the next day was for a greater kudu, Tragelaphus strepsiceros. Peter had heard from one of his trackers that kudu were spotted in bushveld lowlands south and west of their camp. So, at 6:30 a.m. the following morning, the PH, head tracker and the Wilsons, drove approximately 10 km to the area. They checked several tracks and finally located a small group 400 yards away, including a couple of males.

However, the two males seen were not trophy size, so Erwin declined. On the drive back, Erwin and Joyce bagged two warthogs, providing meat for the dedicated tribe members.

***

Erwin had taken his first big-game hunting trip in 1956, again with his brother Ed as his companion. Ed and Erwin traveled from Michigan to Kenya – no easy feat in those days, as traveling from London to Nairobi required a minimum of two fuel stops. The Wilson brothers had hired a rookie Kenyan PH named Peter Becker as their guide. Becker was even younger than 31-year-old Erwin at the time but had already started to gain a significant reputation as a tracker, thanks to his efforts during the Mau Mau rebellion a few years earlier. (In fact, Becker’s tracking talents were so impressive that he was presented with a medal from King George VI in England for services rendered to the Crown, shortly before the king’s death.) Erwin formed a fast friendship with Becker and would go on to hunt with him for decades after that first trip.

Erwin joined the Shikar Safari Club in 1964 after learning about the club and received an outstanding achievement award for a record book, Alaskan moose and caribou.

In September 1970, Safari Club members arranged a hunt on the Shah of Iran’s private hunting estate, where Erwin shot a sizeable Urial ram. Joyce noted that the hosted dinner that evening was a 5-star event, with caviar “to die for.”

Shikar Club members had set up another adventure with the U.S. State Department to bring American astronauts Jim Lovell and Stu Roosa (also a Shikar member) on a goodwill trip to the Central African Empire. The coordinated program was named the, “People to People Sports Program.” First Emperor Bokassa, head of the C.A.E., lavished his celebrity guests with gifts and remarkable local experiences. Then he took the entire group on a Cape buffalo hunt to show off his hunting prowess. Joyce diplomatically noted that, unfortunately, “His shooting wasn’t so great. However, the trip out and back was fantastic as were the gifts of precious stones.”

The highlight of a following trip to the C.A.E. resulted in Joyce bagging a trophy-sized Lord Darby eland Taurotragus derbianus.

Over the years, Joyce and Erwin had fallen deeply in love with Africa. In the early 1980s, they became some of the first homeowners in the new Sabie Park development on the western border of Kruger National Park,

Epilogue

In Erwin’s lifetime, he took over 37 individual trips to Africa, Asia, Europe, and South America, plus hunts to Alaska and northern Canada, too numerous to count. He was often a Weatherby Award candidate but was never awarded the trophy.

Joyce passed away in 2014. She was 91 years old.

Erwin passed away in 2019. He was 93 years old.

I have no question Erwin believed Theodore Roosevelt’s quote: “In a civilized and cultivated country, wild animals only continue to exist when preserved by sportsmen. The excellent people who protest against all hunting and consider sportsmen as enemies of wildlife are ignorant that, in reality, the genuine sportsman is, by all odds, the most important factor in keeping the larger and more valuable wild creatures from total extermination.”