1. sports
2. hunting and shooting

How To Become A Professional
Hunter In Africa
And Run A Successful Hunting Safari Company
By Steve Robinson, Professional Hunter
2nd Edition
Copyright © 2011 Steve Robinson
All rights reserved worldwide.
No part of this eBook may be reproduced, in whole or
in part, by any means, without permission.
Note from the Author
Thank you for purchasing 'How To Become A Professional Hunter In Africa'. I hope you find
everything you were expecting to learn and more.
This book is written in the hope that it will not only help you to become a Professional
Hunter in Africa but will also help you become a truly professional, Professional Hunter that
can make it to the very top of your chosen career.
Many people from the western world dream of becoming a Professional Hunter in Africa. A
very few manage to get into the industry and of the few that do, most struggle on for a year
or two and then fade from the scene. Once in a blue moon, one succeeds and is able to
make himself a new life here on the Dark Continent.
Many residents of Africa also want to get into the African hunting industry and although it‟s
slightly easier for them, most only manage to operate in their home country and often only
ever get to hunt plains game on local game farms.
This book is designed to help both types of people not only get into the African hunting
industry but also to learn the multitude of skills required for them to operate at the very
highest level of it and in the continent‟s finest true wilderness areas.
Getting started in the African hunting industry isn‟t easy for anyone, least of all someone
from overseas, but it‟s not impossible. If a very ordinary Englishman like me can do it, then
so can you but only if you‟re determined enough. With a combination of knowledge, good
guidance and dogged determination you too can make the grade and become a successful
top level Professional Hunter in Africa.
I read my first book about African hunting, „Hunting in Africa‟ by Frank C Hibben, when I was
just twelve years old and from that moment on, I was hooked. I dreamed of Africa every
minute of every day and I knew exactly what I wanted to do with my life.
When I was in my early twenties, through an amazing stroke of good fortune, I was invited
on my first African hunting safari. At the time, it was truly a life changing experience but
looking back, it was very small beer to what came after. I‟ll never forget that trip and will be
eternally grateful to those who made it all possible.
That first trip to South Africa got my African hunting career started, introduced me to the
people who were able to guide me in the right direction and advise me on what and who to
avoid and it led me to a life and a lifestyle that I could never have imagined in my wildest
dreams!
This book is intended to act as a guide to those local and overseas residents who have the
ambition to work as a top level Professional Hunter in Africa and build a successful career in
the industry but lack the knowledge of how to do it.
To Your Professional Hunting Success....
Steve Robinson
Table of Contents
CHAPTER 1 - How to Get Started
CHAPTER 2 - South African Professional Hunter Training Syllabus
CHAPTER 3 - Professional Hunter Training Advice
CHAPTER 4 - „Back to School - African Professional Hunter Training‟
CHAPTER 5 - Getting Your First Professional Hunting Licence
CHAPTER 6 - Hunting Legalities
CHAPTER 7 - Getting Operational
CHAPTER 8 - Firearms & Ammunition
CHAPTER 9 - Hunting Kit
CHAPTER 10 - Building Hunting Camps In African Wilderness Areas
CHAPTER 11 - Fly Camps
CHAPTER 12 - Developing a Hunting Area
CHAPTER 13 - Hunting Trucks
CHAPTER 14 - Hunt Marketing
CHAPTER 15 - Hunt Management
CHAPTER 16 - Taxidermy
CHAPTER 17 - Health
CHAPTER 18 - Top Tips and Handy Hints
Summary
Dedication
Acknowledgements
About The Author
Reading List
Useful Contacts
CHAPTER 1
How to Get Started
The very first thing you need to realize is that if you were not born in Africa, you are
already at a disadvantage as you take your first steps into the African hunting
industry.
If you were born in Africa, you‟ll still have an awful lot of competition. Therefore, in
either case, if you want the top jobs in the top areas, you need to make yourself
better than the competition.
Many aspiring Professional Hunters that were born and bred in Africa will be happy
to spend their career trotting round someone‟s game farm looking for plains game.
Your ambition must be to achieve considerably more than that. Remember that your
ultimate aim is to be able to work as a top class Professional Hunter anywhere on
the African continent.
So let’s first take a look at the way you can prepare yourself for the
first of what is going to be a great many challenges….
READ, READ, READ! It cannot be emphasized enough. Read anything and
everything about African hunting so that you develop an excellent general
knowledge of African wildlife, its hunting and as many related subjects as possible.
Just one part of the broad knowledge base you need to develop is a thorough
knowledge and understanding of everything that walks, flies, swims or grows in all
the areas you hope to operate in. You need to know both common and scientific
names, habits and habitat of everything that has a pulse and the common and
scientific names and medicinal qualities of every plant and tree that grows in the
African bush. This doesn‟t come easily or quickly and in fact, is a lifetime‟s study and
I‟m not ashamed to admit that even after 30 odd years of roaming Africa, I‟m still
learning these and other things.
Another useful study tool is good quality hunting and wildlife DVDs and TV
documentaries.
Whilst we‟re talking about hunting books & DVDs, some are considerably better
quality than others and amongst the very best of both are those by Craig Boddington
and you can find the Boddington products at www.craigboddington.com and also at
www.shakariconnection.com
You also need to develop a broad knowledge of global affairs. Being a good
Professional Hunter does not begin and end with hunting. You must be an
entertaining host who can talk confidently about a wide variety of topics of interest
with a diverse range of international hunting clients.
Professional Hunter Training in South Africa
The easiest, most effective and best value for money way of gaining your initial
African Professional Hunter training, knowledge and experience is to attend one of
the South African Professional Hunting academies.
These academies are scattered throughout South Africa and the stipulated course is
currently of 12 days duration. The average cost of attending, at the time of writing is
usually between US$1000 – US$1500 per person, depending on venue chosen and
exchange rate at the time of payment. By the way, no matter where you‟re from in
the world, get used to working in US dollars. As English is the lingua franca of
African hunting, so the US Dollar is the currency franca of the industry!
Before you even consider attending a Professional Hunter training course in South
Africa, you need to at least have some background knowledge of the basics such as
rifles, ballistics, a general knowledge of African animals and the methods of hunting
them. If you turn up not knowing a kudu from a 30.06, you‟ll be wasting your money
and everyone‟s time.
Even if you are a hunter who would simply like to sharpen your hunting skills and
learn more about African hunting but have no intention of ever operating
professionally, these courses are an excellent way to do that at a very reasonable
price. Be warned though - that was my original intention but I found that I loved
Africa and African hunting so much, it somehow became my entire life!
Possible Obstacles
It should be noted that at the time of writing, South Africa is considering revising
their Professional Hunter training and examination system. If this ever happens, the
course will become considerably longer and more expensive. The proposed new
syllabus currently looks like it will comprise of around 150+ unit standards and each
unit standard will equate to one day of work and/or study. I have to say though that I
don‟t see this happening any time soon and I wouldn‟t be at all surprised if it never
happens. However, simple logic would decree that the sooner you sign up for a
course, the more chance there is you won‟t be subjected to the possibility of having
to attend the longer and obviously considerably more expensive training course.
Non-residents of South Africa who hope to become Professional Hunters also need
to be aware that South Africa currently chooses to apply the Aliens Act 1937 to nonresidents. Whilst that Act allows overseas visitors to attend the Professional Hunter
training courses on an ordinary tourist visa, it no longer allows them to actually sit
the exams and qualify as a Professional Hunter. Although this will mean you cannot
operate as a Professional Hunter within the borders of South Africa itself, the
knowledge, experience and contacts you gain from attending a South African
Professional Hunting training course will be an immense advantage when seeking
work in the hunting industry elsewhere in Africa.
One of the first problems you will encounter is residency laws in the various African
countries where you may hope to eventually operate. Most of them have some kind
of requirement that Professional Hunters who operate in the country must be
residents of that country. Don‟t panic about this, because in the majority of African
hunting countries such as Tanzania, Mozambique, Uganda and Botswana, the
Government allows overseas residents to be issued with a Professional Hunters
licence and buy some kind of temporary work permit and/or temporary residence
permit. These are usually valid at least for the duration of the hunting season.
In many cases, the first Professional Hunter‟s licence issued is often dependent on
your either sitting an exam and/or providing proof of your African hunting
experience....... and of course, the inevitable payment of a fee of some kind!
As these things change from time to time in Africa, the best advice I can give you is
to say that you can cross these bridges when you come to them during your
Professional Hunting career. Other than South Africa and Zimbabwe, most other
African countries that permit sport hunting currently have a facility of some kind for
overseas residents to operate as Professional Hunters within their borders.
Advantages
By attending a South African Professional Hunter training course, you will gain an
immense amount of knowledge about all the different aspects of what the job entails
and how to do it in a professional manner in a relatively short period of time. Once
you have that background knowledge, you can go elsewhere in Africa and look for a
hunting safari company that will be prepared to take you on in some role. If you
impress them, they‟ll probably be willing to give you their backing and help you
obtain the relevant local Professional Hunting licence.
I struck lucky when I went along to undergo my first formal Professional Hunter
training and examination with Ian Goss of the Goss Estates Professional Hunting
Academy in Kwa-Zulu Natal. Ian really does talk the talk and really has walked the
walk. He is one of the most respected figures in the southern African hunting
industry and is well known as a tough „old school‟ hard taskmaster. He doesn‟t make
anything easy for his students but he does give a superb standard of training and
strict examination. Even now, when some PHs ask me where I got my initial PH
training and I tell them it was with Ian Goss, they‟ll often raise their eyebrows and
reply „well, if you trained with Ian, you must be good‟.
Other Ways to Get Started
If for some reason you prefer not to go the South African Professional Hunter‟s
academy route, there is another option open to you which is to first get yourself
some practical experience in such things as 4x4 maintenance and driving, GPS
navigation and the basics of camp building, electrics and basic plumbing. You will
find many of these subjects covered in later chapters.
Then put together as impressive a CV/resume for yourself as possible and email it
to as many good quality safari companies as you can find. Offer to work in exchange
for training and the opportunity to learn about the African hunting industry. Most
companies will turn you down flat but just occasionally, one will be willing to take you
on and give you a chance to prove your mettle.
Your first duties will probably be things such as assisting around camp, building
roads, fixing toilets and playing host but the experience gained from even the most
menial task will benefit you later on in your career, so never be too proud to take on
a job no matter how unimportant it might at first appear.
This route will be a much slower learning curve with regard to the more
„professional‟ aspects of Professional Hunting such as are taught on a formal PH
training course.
However, should you decide to take this alternative route, you will almost certainly
be working directly with an experienced Professional Hunter for a large part of the
time. Take every opportunity to watch and learn from him. Frankly, many
Professional Hunters take an awful lot of their knowledge for granted and it often
won‟t even occur to them to explain why they‟re doing something in a certain way.
So, if you don‟t understand the reason for something, just ask.
If you are serious about becoming a good Professional Hunter rather than just
wanting to spend a season or two in the bush prior to getting a „proper job‟, it is, in
my opinion, almost certainly a better idea to complete a formal South African
Professional Hunter training course.
CHAPTER 2
South African Professional Hunter Training Syllabus
Duration
12 days of which 10 days are lectures and practical sessions. The remaining days
are practical examinations, evaluations and general theory and legal exams set by
the Game Departments. Training is held in a hunting camp.
Costs
This includes accommodation, meals and tuition. A deposit is required as
confirmation of your booking and the final amount to be paid one month before the
course date. In the event of cancellation and if a replacement student cannot be
found, the deposit will be forfeited.
Pre-Course Compulsory Reading
1) Game Ordinance - for whichever South African province in which you wish to
hunt professionally. These can be obtained in advance from the applicable wildlife
authority. Contact details are in the appendix at the end of this book.
2) Rowland Ward’s Sportsman’s Handbook - The current edition may be obtained
from Rowland Ward Publishing Tel: +27 11 728252 or from their website at
www.rowlandward.com
3) A Hunter’s Handbook & The CHASA Senior Hunters Manual - These may be
obtained from KZN Hunters Association Tel: +27 31 7093904 or from their website
at www.kznhunters.co.za
As an overseas student, you won‟t be sitting the exams, so the game ordinance is
not as important to learn as it is for a local student. However, it helps if you‟re
reasonably familiar with the general hunting laws.
Prospective students must learn the Game Ordinance and Rowland Ward and SCI
minimum trophy measurements before attending the course! Trophy skinning,
particularly the caping of heads must also be practised before the course, as this will
allow time to be spent concentrating on other subjects.
Professional Hunters Course Syllabus
1) Firearms Topics
Firearm handling and safety
Sighting in - telescopic and open sights
Practical shooting at 10cm targets, staggered at 30, 20 & 10m within 15 seconds
Shooting from a tripod and/or bipod
Firearm legislation in RSA
Bore sighting practical
Client and firearm handling
Repair and maintenance of firearms
Shotguns and handguns
General knowledge of firearms & ballistics
2) Hunting Skills
Tracking - animal identification and blood trails
Wind direction and use of cover
Distance estimation
Trophy estimation
3) Assistance to Client
When to give back-up
Shot placement on African animals
Effective use of binoculars/scopes
Communication with clients during hunt
4) Dangerous Game Hunting
Shot placement for dangerous game
Use of baits in hunting predators
Use of blinds
5) Assessment and Measuring of Trophies
Field assessment
Assessment of trophies and skulls
Knowledge of RW and SCI minimums for Southern African species
6) Trophy Handling
Photography and traditions
Loading and transport of trophies
Skinning and caping
Trophy treatment and dispatching
7) Bow Hunting
Types of bows and terminology
Hunting methods, use of blinds
8) Bird Hunting
Shotgun types and game birds
Hunting methods and use of dogs
9) Liaison and Relations with Clients
Information to clients
Administrative information, airport procedure
Planning a hunt
Client relations - integrity, honesty, business ethics and conduct of a host
10) Marketing and Advertising
Outfitting, brochures and attending conventions
11) Hunting Ethics and Tradition
Local and foreign
Approaches to improvement of the hunt
Conduct after the hunt
Unacceptable practices
12) Provincial Game Laws and CITES
Hunting registers, permits, licenses
13) Hunt Facilities
Hunting vehicle requirements and maintenance
Accommodation - legal requirements and norms
Slaughtering and trophy facilities norms and standards
14) Catering
Planning and control
15) First Aid
Basic requirements
16) General Knowledge
Fauna - Working knowledge of animal behaviour, distribution and game
management. Knowledge of foreign animals hunted.
Flora - General knowledge of SA trees, grasses and shrubs
South African general knowledge – history of SA, history of hunting, politics,
astronomy, agriculture, tourism.
Things to Bring on PH Training Course
Certified copies of identity document x 2
Certified copies of current firearm licenses x 1
Black pen, clipboard and a ring-file
Suitable hunting clothes
Rifle and 60 rounds of ammunition
Ear defenders
Binoculars
Knives and sharpener
Measuring tapes
Water bottles
Personal toiletries
Own liquor/soft drinks
Cane knife (machete) for hide building
Tripod/bipod for 100 meter shooting test (decent shooting sticks)
South Africa has very stringent firearms import requirements and as these things
are liable to change from time to time, I won‟t quote them here but I do recommend
you consult with the PH Academy of your choice to get all your firearms import
permits issued in advance of your arrival. With their help, you should be able to
breeze through the process.
My sincere thanks go to Mr Ian Goss for his kind permission to reproduce his
Professional Hunters Academy syllabus here.
This is the most comprehensive and thorough hunt training syllabus available in
South Africa.
From Ian Goss, Goss Estates Professional Hunting Academy
“We consider that, contrary to general opinion, professional hunting involves more
than picking up a rifle and locating a suitable animal for a client. The operative word
is „professional‟ – and that says it all. A good PH is a jack of all trades and master of
most.
His/her conduct, from meeting his clients through to the final farewells after a
successful hunt, must be beyond reproach. To obtain this standard and to hunt
legally, a professional hunters‟ course must be attended. The course will take each
student through the various subjects that are required to become licensed
provincially and provide a sound base from which to build a successful career.
Our course begins with the tools of the trade; rifles and shotguns are discussed in
detail, from government legislation and basic gunsmithing to ballistics and various
makes. From here, hunting skills and facts such as tracking, use of cover, trophy
estimation and animal behaviour assessment are covered.
Tying in with animal behaviour are additional talks on hunting methods and shot
placement on dangerous game. Hides are also built as a practical for leopard
hunting.
Throughout our course, attention is given to liaison and relations with clients and
attention to detail on camp life. This includes marketing as an outfitter, assisting
clients during hunts, camp management (slaughter and skinning facilities, vehicle
maintenance, catering, etc.), general ethics and hunting traditions. Many of these
topics are again brought up when lecturing on the game ordinance. Here, all the
legal „do‟s and don‟ts‟ of the industry are covered.
A basic first aid lecture, relating to hunting is given by a medical doctor. Apart from
rifle hunting, there are lectures on bow hunting and bird shooting. Then skinning,
caping and preparation of all trophy types are discussed and each student capes an
animal.
Time is spent in the field hunting up to animals and putting into practice as much of
the practical side of the course as possible. Students are expected to have a sound
knowledge of fauna and flora, especially those aspects relating to the profession.
Animal species, both African and foreign, are discussed throughout the course and
talks are given on game management. A general knowledge of various topics that
are regularly queried by clients, such as South African history, agriculture, SA
tourism, foreign hunting etc. are topics discussed at a group level. Overall, a
multitude of subjects are integrated into our comprehensive 11 day course.”
Ian Goss
Goss Estates Professional Hunting Academy
CHAPTER 3
Professional Hunter Training Advice
Advice and tips on some of the topics covered in the South African Professional
Hunters Training course.
1) Shooting Practical
10cm targets, staggered at 30, 20 & 10m within 15 seconds
A lot of people think this shooting test will be relatively easy but remember the target
is only about the size of a cigarette packet and you have the entire class of students
and your instructors standing behind you watching and that adds a considerable
degree of mental pressure to the shooter.
This is deliberate and is intended to simulate the pressure you will be under when
facing a charging and irate animal. Get used to such pressures because sooner or
later, you‟re going to face the real thing and you have to come out the winner each
and every time. I‟d recommend you practice this exercise as often as possible
before attending the course.
While on the subject of dangerous game charging, here is an
article on how to read the body language of an animal which may
imminently charge and what to do about it if they do:
Hunting Africa Free Of Charge
It is usually a mistake to make generalizations about Africa or anything African – but
if there‟s one truism about the Dark Continent, it‟s that you should „never say never‟
and „never say always‟.
Animals being animals and not having the same thought processes as we humans
are to the uninitiated, usually extremely unpredictable……. However there are, if
you‟ll forgive the pun, certain „tell-tale‟ signs in their body language that can help us
predict (amongst other things) alarm and often aggressive intention. We also need
to remember that animals can have good and bad days and can change their minds
at very short notice. Hopefully this article will, in some small way, help some readers
who are lucky enough to visit and hunt that paradise we know as Africa.
The Big Five consist of elephant, lion, leopard, buffalo and rhino and are so called
because these are the species that really epitomize African wildlife. For hunters,
successfully taking these animals is the crowning glory of their hunting career and
trophy room. However, they are also the animals most likely to try to kill you in the
African bush and many generations of hunters have had no end of meaningful
discussions around the camp-fires as to which of the Big Five is the most
dangerous. The truth of it is that any one of them can kill you and there are no
degrees of dead.
Elephant and lion especially are prone to staging mock charges. As I said, they can
and often do, change what begins as a mock charge into a full blown charge at any
time. For the purposes of this article, I‟m going to ignore the mock charge situation
and assume that all charges are begun with intent to kill on the part of the animal
concerned. The differences in body language between a mock and real charge can
be very subtle and your Professional Hunter, if he‟s worth his salt, will know the
difference and react accordingly.
For the purposes of this article, animal behaviour may be divided into three zones,
known in my neck of the woods, as the sight, flight and fight zones.
The sight zone may be defined as when the animal sees you and it will usually turn
to face you, its head will come up and the ears prick forward. Elephant, buffalo and
rhino may raise their tails. Buffalo may also stamp a hoof. Lions will often just show
their usual feline disdain and stay put – it often takes more than a sighting of a mere
human to shift a lion from where he wants to be, unless of course he is hungry or
just plain curious, when he just might come to investigate you. Leopards will
habitually slink away and lose themselves in deep cover – you‟ll probably never
even know you‟ve been observed by a leopard. Vocal alarm „calls‟, often common in
antelope species and zebra, are limited to snorts, huffs, puffs and the odd trumpet
from a twitchy elephant. This initially means the animal has identified you as a
potential danger but is unsure of what further action to take.
The flight zone may be defined as when you cross that invisible line the animal has
decided upon and it will then turn and flee. Elephant, buffalo and rhino may raise
their tails further and run back into the sight zone where they will often stop and
reassess the situation. In areas such as the Zambezi Valley in Mozambique and
Zimbabwe, where these animals are particularly under pressure, they will not bother
to stop and reassess, but will instead head straight for the hills. Leopards, as I said,
will usually bolt away and not look back at all and the lion may well disguise his
anxiety and stroll nonchalantly away, often stopping to look back with an expression
of utter derision on his face. Whether or not, he has food nearby, he probably won‟t
go far – a case of pride coming before a fall has caused many a lion‟s demise!
Then there‟s the fight zone. Action of the lethal kind is most commonly caused
when humans and animals unwittingly closely invade each other‟s space – such as
a hunter stalking his quarry and bumping into a dozing elephant or lion en route. The
animal judges that he has no time to make an escape, so turns on the interloper with
enough aggression to frighten him away or incapacitate him with tooth, claw, horn or
tusk.
The fight zone may be increased in a case of a previously wounded animal or with
one carrying an old painful injury. In these cases, flight may not be an option, so an
animal will attack the threat with all the considerable strength he can muster. Of
course, the case of nervous mothers defending their young is another well known
reason for attack and you may never see the young animal she is fighting for. A
good rule of thumb would be to approach females with even more caution. As Mr
Kipling said, the female of the species is more deadly than the male….
So let‟s look at what is most likely to happen with these animals. Remember
however, that you have to see the animal in the first place and then you have to
identify the signs of alarm and aggression. Anyone, no matter how experienced can
get blind-sided, and many even very experienced Africa hands have been killed in
just that way.
Elephant
There‟s often more warning with an elephant than the other species. The animal will
draw itself up to its fullest height to intimidate you, the ears will spread and the trunk
will often rise to gather scent. Also watch for tail movement if you can see it. The tail
is a really good indicator of level of alarm. The higher it is, the more alarmed the
animal. When it curls up over the back then the alarm level is very high indeed. Also
(if you get time – and you probably won‟t!) watch the tail as it‟ll turn like a boat‟s
rudder and will give you a very little warning of which direction the animal will turn.
When the elephant charges in earnest, it‟s trunk will typically come down from the
elevated position and tuck under the chest, ears will usually fold back against the
neck, it will usually drop it‟s shoulders, and make itself as small possible and at the
last moment the trunk will often reach out to grab you. Oh yes, and those beady little
eyes will burn red with rage.
You need to get a bullet into the brain to drop a charging elephant and to do that,
you need a bullet that will penetrate a number of feet. Large calibres and solids preferably monolithic solids are the answer. Don‟t try to pick an aiming spot on the
outside of the head here, as the angle it‟s held in relation to the body will probably
mean you‟ll miss the brain. The answer is to imagine a broomstick shoved between
the ear holes. Then aim to break the broomstick in the centre of the head. If your
bullet hits the brain, the animal will collapse immediately with the rear legs giving
way first. Then the head comes up and the front of the animal goes down. Even a
close miss with a large calibre will probably stun the animal for long enough for you
to get behind the head and put an insurance shot into the brain pan from behind.
Elephant Bullet Placement. Selous Game Reserve, Tanzania. Photograph: Steve Robinson
The above picture shows a good example of why you should never pick a spot on
the outside of the animal to place a shot. Both shots broke the broomstick and were
both killing shots – however, the angle of the head had changed in the split second
time difference between the two shots.
Lion
You can learn a lot about the big cats by studying your domestic kitten at play. A lion
can hide behind a single blade of grass, so hope you see it early. Before it charges,
it will wave it‟s tail and move it‟s feet around to make sure it has the best possible
purchase to minimize „wheel spin‟ on take-off. The head will usually be held fairly
low and the ears will be flattened back against the head, as I said, just like a playful
kitten, but a lot more dangerous. Keep watching that tail – just before the animal
comes for you, it‟ll stiffen like a broomstick and go upright. A split second later, the
charge is launched – and I really do mean launched!
When the animal comes for you, it will probably be making short deep grunts of rage
and will come with the head and body held low to the ground and he‟ll come in large
bounds. The mane and tail hair will all be standing on end. If you have time and the
terrain is suitable, try to kneel down to bring your shot as close to the lion‟s level as
you can. That way, you‟re increasing your chance of a killing shot dramatically. If
you miss, you‟re also in the right position to bend down and kiss your ass goodbye!
Aim for the eye region if you can and the bullet will pass through the brain and
penetrate though into the body cavity.
In Full Charge! Photograph: Steve Robinson
Lion Bullet Placement. Selous Game Reserve, Tanzania Photograph: Steve Robinson
Leopard
If you think a lion is fast in a charge, a leopard really introduces a new dimension.
He‟s like greased lightning and it‟s highly unlikely you‟ll see the charge begin, but if
you do, it will be similar to a lion‟s body movements. There‟s not usually any vocal
warning and if you‟re lucky, the first thing you‟ll see with this species is when the
animal is in the air and about to hit you. Don‟t even think you‟ll have time to pick
your shot. It‟ll all be instinct shooting. The good news, if it is good news, is that a
leopard is more likely to get in amongst the crowd, beat everyone up and then bale
out, whereas a lion will usually target one individual and try his hardest to kill him.
Leopard Bullet Placement. The cat has its head outstretched when charging.
Irikishibor, Masailand, Tanzania. Photograph: Steve Robinson.
The cat in the above picture was shot in the face in full charge and died just six
yards from me.
Cape Buffalo
Sometimes called Mbogo or Nyati, this species is tougher than all hell. Once that big
heart starts to pump adrenaline to the brain, you can shoot him full of holes and he‟ll
just keep coming. Even if you can knock him down time after time, he‟ll just get up
again and once he‟s started his charge he won‟t ever turn from it. There‟s absolutely
no doubt that if you don‟t kill him, he‟ll try his hardest to kill you. My advice would be,
as with all charging dangerous game, to shoot for the central nervous system.
If his head is held high, as it will be during the earlier stages of the charge, aim for
the nostrils or the eyes depending on the angle of the head – aim to get a bullet into
the brain. At the last moment, he will drop his head to put his horns to good use. If
you have time and the presence of mind, a bullet through the spine from above will
drop him like a sack of spuds. Even if you get this shot right, he‟s going to be right in
your lap though so try to be ready to move backwards with a great deal of speed. To
give you an idea of how tough these animals really are, I hunted a buffalo with a
client in 2007 and it took no less than 14 shots to put the lights out on that big old
bull. The client shot out of ammo and with a cheery and very sensible „f**k you -
send me a post card‟, headed for the nearest anthill, leaving me to administer 500
grains and 7000 foot pounds of coup de grace at point blank range.
Buffalo Bullet Placement – This one entered just above the eye and exited through the opposite
haunch. Selous Game Reserve, Tanzania. Photograph: Steve Robinson
The above buffalo was stopped at seven yards in thick cover – note the bullet hole
just above the eye and the thickness of the bush in the background.
Rhino
Now these animals really are as dumb as a sack of spanners and even less
predictable than the previously mentioned animals. Watch for the tail as an indicator
of alarm level – the higher it‟s held, the higher the alarm level. If it‟s rolled right back
over the spine then they‟re seriously concerned. When one of these animals
charges you, it‟s sometimes possible to dodge behind or climb a tree and he‟ll just
go thundering straight past. In these cases, he‟s not even sure where you are probably because his eye sight is so bad. If you have to shoot him then it‟s not easy
- the horns get in the way until he drops his head at the last moment, which is the
time you‟re offered the best opportunity of a killing shot into the spine.
As you‟ll appreciate, a lot of the skill in this kind of situation is in your snap shooting
skills and sharpening these is always very difficult. Some hunters go as far as
making all kinds of weird contraptions to simulate charges, others have a friend roll
a tyre down a hill but I‟m sorry to tell you that none of this will really help you when
the brown stuff hits the fan. At that moment it‟s all down to snap reactions but
choosing the right tool for the job will help you dramatically. Try to use a rifle of
sufficient calibre for the job. 375 H&H Magnum is usually the minimum permitted for
most dangerous game species in most African countries – but that‟s a minimum that
can be used to hunt these species – It‟s not the calibre most suitable for stopping a
charge. If you can shoot a larger calibre competently and comfortably then go for
something bigger. In my opinion, real charge stoppers begin at .458. Short barrels
are a good idea as they give faster pointability and if you fit a scope to your chosen
rifle, make sure it‟s fitted with QD scope mounts. A scope on a rifle in a close charge
situation is a very serious disadvantage. As to your choice of open sights, this
particular Professional Hunter likes a shallow vee rearsight and one of those
wonderful, large red fibre optic foresights. My advice however, would be to stick with
what you know and like. If you‟re used to a peep sight then stick with it.
We‟ve only discussed the Big Five so far, but there are plenty of other animals in the
African bush that can and will try to do you serious harm if given half a chance.
Hippo are formidable animals and whilst not particularly aggressive if left alone, will
come right through you if they feel the need or if you unintentionally disturb a mother
and calf, often to be found nesting in thick riverine bush. They also get extremely
aggressive if you cut off their escape route back to water. If this happens, don‟t do
as a game guard once did to me a few years ago which was to run and hide behind
the Professional Hunter! Instead, try to put a bullet in the nose of the animal or if its
mouth is open, straight into that famous gape – and the bullet will go straight down
the gullet and drop the animal like a sack of spuds.
Warning shots
In some cases, it‟s possible to turn a charging animal with a warning shot either into
the air or into the ground in front of them. This should only be considered if there will
still be time to reload and take a killing shot should it be necessary. One trick worth
remembering with elephant is putting a shot through the outside edge of the ear. I
guess it must sound like a clap of thunder to them. If anything is going to persuade
an elephant to turn off of a charge, it‟s this. Another piece of advice worth
remembering with any African game, but especially dangerous game is never, but
never, turn or run away from them. They have more legs than you do and can
always run and turn faster than you can ever hope to. Anyone who escapes any
African dangerous game animal by running away from it is a very lucky man indeed!
I should say that I appreciate some people do sometimes run from charging
animals, especially elephants in areas such as the thick jesse of the Zambezi Valley
but all I can say about that is rather them than me!
Even the smaller antelope can be aggressive at times. The diminutive bushbuck for
example has sharp horns and stands at groin level. One sweep of those pointy
horns and bang goes your femoral artery, and you‟re just as dead as if the biggest
elephant in Africa had stamped all over you. Admittedly, death by bushbuck lacks
something in the glamour department, but you‟re just as dead – perhaps an elegant
body piercing by oryx or sable may be the answer. These antelope can valiantly
defend themselves against lion and anything else for that matter - and win.
If you shoot straight in the first place, and follow your Professional Hunter‟s advice
then these situations will be kept to a minimum. Once your animal is down, don‟t
think it‟s all over and don‟t try to grandstand by approaching the downed animal from
the front. You should always approach any „dead‟ animal from behind and with a
great deal of caution. Remember, it‟s the „dead‟ ones that get up and kill you. Once
you‟re within a few yards, and with your rifle all ready to rock and roll, have the
tracker throw a couple of rocks at the animals back end while you‟re slightly off to
one side – a catapult/slingshot is ideal for this. Then if there‟s no reaction, approach
closer and a try a kick or two. If there‟s still no reaction, move forward again and
touch your rifle barrel against the eye of the animal. If you still get no reaction, then
it‟s time for the pictures and then butchering the animal.
Only once that job is finished can you be pretty sure the animal is dead! Hunting
dangerous game in Africa is one of the biggest thrills in the world and I love it dearly,
but always remember that they‟re called dangerous game for a very good reason.
You are, after all, visiting their world for an adventure, so try to ensure you know
how to stay safe. Gain your cuts from thorns, your bruises from falling down a
warthog burrow and your bleeding knees from leopard crawling and enjoy every
minute and who knows, maybe we‟ll get to share a camp-fire together sometime
down the road.
Back to the South African Professional Hunters Training course….
2) Shooting from a tripod and/or bipod
Shooting from sticks is very common in Africa and if used correctly, shooting sticks
can provide a very stable shooting platform. Using them properly is all about angles,
or more precisely, triangles. The more triangles the shooter can form with his body,
the sticks and a combination of both, the more stable the shooting platform.
If using a bipod, the sticks need to lean towards the shooter and he can alter the
height of the sticks by moving slightly backwards or forwards. He should have his
fore-end hand or the rifle fore-end in the vee of the sticks.
If the barrel rests direct in the vee of the sticks, the shot will be a flyer and he‟ll either
miss or wound the animal. His feet need to be in the stance of a boxer or a shotgun
shooter with his weight lightly on his front foot. He must hold his rifle with a firm grip
and ideally raise his elbows to approximately shoulder height.
With a set of tripod sticks, the height must be adjusted by the tracker but, other than
that, the same basic rules apply.
In either case, if the client looks a bit wobbly on the sticks, you can put the front of
your shoulder against the back of his and lean into him slightly to give him a bit of
additional stability.
Many hunters will bring their own shooting sticks and most nowadays are made of
fancy telescopic aluminium poles. In addition to that, you‟ll usually find a few sets of
the African version made of wood in camp.
If you want to make your own: Take two or three (depending on if you want bipod
or tripod) wood, light metal or bamboo poles of an appropriate thickness and length.
About six inches down from one end, cross bind them together with a long strip of
inner tube rubber (about one inch wide) pulling the rubber taut as you go. If you
don‟t have access to old inner tube rubber, you can use a rubber drive belt from
suction cleaner as another good option.
With the bipod version, you can also use the alternative method of drilling through
the two poles about six inches from one end and holding them together with a nut
and bolt. Either put a second nut on and tighten both nuts against each other or add
a dab of loctite glue to the thread for the obvious reason. I like to add a leather strap
in which to rest the rifle and this also prevents the shooting sticks sliding open in
loose sand at inconvenient moments.
If you intend the shooting sticks to be used by clients, I‟d suggest you make the
poles slightly too long, rather than too short just in case you get an overly tall client.
The poles need to be at least six foot long and preferably a little more. The
circumference of the poles needs to be strong enough for them to be fairly rigid and
that will obviously be dependent on the type of material you use but you need similar
rigidity to a broom handle, which incidentally, has a circumference of about two and
a half inches.
Shooting from a Bipod. South Africa. Photograph: Susan Robertson
3) Firearm Legislation in RSA
As you won‟t be sitting the exams, the SA firearms laws are not as important to learn
as it is for a local student. However, it helps if you‟re familiar with the general current
requirements but you don‟t need to learn the act verbatim.
4) Bore Sighting Practical
If done incorrectly, sighting-in can be an awful waste of ammunition, and in Africa,
the nearest source of additional ammo can sometimes be in the next country, so it‟s
a good idea to get into the habit of doing it with as few rounds as possible.
With a scoped bolt action rifle, as soon as you realize there‟s a problem with the set
up, STOP SHOOTING and then do the following:
a) Check that all screws are tight and undamaged and nothing is loose.
b) If the rifle has a free floating barrel, take a banknote or a piece of fishing line and
run it down between the fore-end and barrel to check they are not touching each
other for any reason. If there is contact, remove the stock and investigate and/or fix.
c) Remove the bolt from the rifle, dry clean the barrel and put up an aiming spot
such as a target or even a small piece of tape on a piece of blank paper 10 yards or
so away from the muzzle.
d) Look through the bore and move the rifle around until you can see the marked
target in the absolute centre of the bore. Then gently secure the rifle so that it
cannot be moved.
e) Check the bore again to ensure it‟s still lined up with the target spot and correct if
necessary.
f) Without actually touching the rifle, look through the scope and see if the crosshairs line up with the same target spot that you see through the bore of the rifle. If it
doesn‟t, move the cross-hairs until it does.... and don‟t forget the give the scope a
few taps with your hand or an empty cartridge case in case the cross-hairs need a
bit of encouragement to move.
g) Look through the bore again to check the rifle is still lined up correctly and repeat
the exercise until you are 110% sure that both views give you exactly the same sight
picture.
Test shoot the rifle at 25 yards and make any minor correction if necessary.
Then test shoot again at 50 yards and then 100 yards. If you‟ve done it correctly,
you should be able to get the rifle shooting bang on target with no more 3 or 4
rounds.
With open sights, follow the same rules but obviously move the sights. Remember
that to correct error on open sights, move the foresight into the error and/or the rearsight away from the error.
I appreciate it goes against the grain for a rifleman to change a perfectly well-zeroed
rifle, but I‟d strongly recommend you practice this exercise on your own rifles a few
times before you attend the course.
5) Client and Firearm Handling
You probably think that any hunter experienced enough to book an African hunting
safari would know the firearms safety rules, backwards, forwards and sideways, but
this isn‟t always the case. The client may well be the safest firearms handler in the
world when he‟s at home but jet lag, nervousness, some anti-malarial drugs such as
Lariam and other factors can sometimes cloud the mind. It only takes a millisecond
for things to go wrong and once a bullet has been sent on it‟s way, there‟s no
bringing it back, so be aware of your own and the client‟s gun safety at all times.
The first thing to look out for with any new client is to watch how he handles his rifle.
As soon as he arrives in camp, he will invariably want to show you his rifle and this
should be encouraged. Watch how he takes the rifle out of the rifle case or slip and
watch carefully how he handles it. If he‟s familiar and confident with the firearm and
doesn‟t have to look where he‟s putting his hands to locate bolt, safety catch and
trigger, he‟s almost certainly going to be an experienced rifleman. If he handles the
rifle as though he‟s afraid it‟s going to bite him at any second, you need to expect
him to lack experience. He will therefore need closer watching and probably more
help, especially in those vital moments leading up to the shot.
A very common error is for a client to take a shot, reload, forget to apply the safety
catch and then move forward to either approach the animal or to get a better view
etc. Factor in the element that you and/or the tracker may well be beside or in front
of him and if that safety catch has not been applied, you have a serious accident
waiting to happen. You will need to watch the client at all times, especially after the
shot to make sure he does everything correctly.
Another thing to watch out for is the „dicky bird syndrome‟ where if one runs, they all
run. A badly trained tracker can take off like greyhound at an inconvenient moment
(usually just after the shot) and this may often lead the client to take off right behind
him.... sometimes with that loaded chamber and the safety in the off position.
If you have an unknown tracker with you, always be ready to grab him by the collar
and pull back so he lands on his backside. He‟ll only make the mistake once and
you‟ll be surprised at how adept you can get at this manoeuvre with a little practice!
6) Rifle Repair and Maintenance
It‟s amazing how much you can achieve by way of bush gunsmithing with a bit of
overall general knowledge of rifle construction and maintenance. If you don‟t know
the basics of how to strip a rifle to its basic components and/or
disassemble/reassemble a bolt, take a trip down to a local gun shop and ask their
gunsmith to run you through the basics.
7) Shotguns and Handguns & Firearm General knowledge ballistics, calibres, makes and various actions
As an experienced hunter, you should already have a reasonably good knowledge
of these subjects. If you don‟t, it will help a great deal if you learn the basics before
attending the course. If you feel you don‟t know as much as you should about
firearms and ballistics or if you‟re just a firearms nut like I am, you might like to own
a copy the of the Firearms Multimedia Guide
If you prefer a book to a DVD, you should buy „African Dangerous Game Cartridges‟
by Pierre van der Walt which I consider to be the finest book on that subject ever
written.
8) Hunting Skills and Tracking - Animal Identification and Blood
Trails
Tracking falls into two basic categories. The first you will come across is tracking
unwounded game and the second wounded game. You need to start somewhere on
this difficult subject and although there have been many good books written on the
subject, one of the best is „Tracks and Signs of Southern and East African Wildlife‟
by Chris Stuart which you can find in the reading list.
Tracking Unwounded Game
The only way you can effectively learn one species from the other is to study them in
the bush and compare what you see to pictures or what you‟re told from your
trackers and fellow Professional Hunters. There really are no short cuts to this.
However, there are a few tips that you might not find in many books…..
The ant lion which is actually neither an ant nor a lion but the larvae stage of an
insect moves at night and in the early hours of the morning. It will make what looks
like a small volcano caldera in the sand where he waits at the bottom for prey
insects to pass by. If you look to see whether the animal you are tracking has
stepped on top of the ant lion hole or if the ant lion hole has been made over the top
of the animals track, you will know if the animal passed by in the morning or
evening. Other similar give-aways are spider webs and tracks of nocturnal species
such as hyena and leopard.
Another give away to how long ago the animal you are tracking passed by is to look
closely at the edges of the track. If the tracks are fresh, the edges of the spoor will
be clean cut. If older, the wind will have begun to blow particles of sand into the
spoor and to erode the sharp edges.
Look also for small leaves that the animal might have trodden on as it passes. Turn
the leaf over and compare the moistness of the soil underneath the leaf to the soil
around it.
Don‟t just look at the ground. Look also for foliage that might have been broken or
partially broken as the animal passed by or if it‟s a herbivore might have partly
eaten. If the animal passed by some time ago, that foliage will be limp and possibly
turning darker in colour. If it is fresh, it will look like the same foliage that is still
growing. This principle is often a good give away when tracking elephant as they
often chew the bark off of twigs and then drop the inner core. If that inner core is still
wet and slippery then you are not far behind your quarry. If dry and brittle, then he
dropped it some time ago. It must be said though that even if he did drop it a while
ago, that doesn‟t necessarily mean he‟s a long way from you. He just might have
dropped it and then stopped behind the next tree for a snooze.
Faecal droppings and urine are other good indicators of how long ago the animal
passed by. Don‟t be afraid to get your hands dirty by feeling the heat of the
droppings. With buffalo and elephant, slide your hand under the dropping or stick
your finger into the dropping to feel for temperature. Look also for colour because as
it gets older, the dropping will darken and (especially with buffalo) form a hard crust.
With buffalo, you can, with practice, also test the thickness of that crust by placing
the toe of your boot onto the dropping and pulling backwards. Urine soaks into the
ground quickly dries into a hard crust. If the urine is still evident and wet you will
surely be close behind the animals you are tracking.
Tracking Wounded Game
The most important thing to remember, especially when following dangerous game,
is to let the tracker track whilst you watch the larger picture. Because sometimes,
the animal you‟re seeking might be closer than you think and they can come you
very quickly in even the thickest of bush. Your job is to look further out into the bush
to spot the wounded animal as early as possible and stop the charge.
If you see the animal, you must either get the client in a position for another shot, or
failing that, do it yourself.
You will of course quickly glance down at the spoor from time to time and the sort of
thing you need to look out for is the colour of the blood which will indicate the type of
wound.
Bright red with no air bubbles indicates arterial blood (good news).
Deep red blood with lots of air bubbles, sometimes mixed with pieces of lung
tissue will be a lung wound. (Not such good news)
Watery blood often mixed with green liquid, stomach contents or dung is a gut
wound. (Very bad news)
The animal‟s behaviour immediately after the shot is also a good indicator of where
the bullet went.
A good heart shot is usually indicated by the animal dropping its head and making a
fairly straight dash forward. It will usually drop within a few hundred yards at most.
The furthest run of this type I‟ve seen was about 700 yards.
A gut shot animal will usually hunch up and possibly jump before running. On these
occasions, they will often run in a zigzag and often follow game trails or paths of
least resistance. You can expect animals hit like this to separate from the herd
immediately afterwards but possibly join up again at a later time. If you can‟t find the
animal, you will often re-locate him by checking the local water sources a few hours
later as this type of wound makes them thirsty and they won‟t usually be far from
water with this type of wound.
A lung shot animal should be relatively easy to find (at least in theory) because
they‟ll find it hard to breath and should be ejecting blood and probably lung tissue
from the wound but no-one appears to have told the animals that, especially zebra
and wildebeest. All African animals are considerably tougher than their counterparts
elsewhere in the world but zebra and wildebeest must take the crown for toughness
in the plains game stakes. As an example of how tough they can be. I‟ve had many
occasions where I‟ve had to track lung shot zebra or wildebeest for 2-3 days before
finding them still alive.
When the bullet impacts the animal, he will usually run and I strongly recommend
you not be in too much of a hurry to chase after him. If you go charging after him like
an amateur, not only will he keep running, which means a longer follow-up, more
importantly, you might be running into trouble. This could be in the form of the
wounded animal turning on you or even an unexpected encounter with a pride of
lions or other dangerous game species.
If you stay in cover and wait quietly after the shot, the animal will almost certainly
run a short distance, turn to look back from where he came from and if he sees no
further danger, will usually lie down in the shade to rest. All the time he‟s lying down,
he‟s bleeding out, stiffening up and getting weaker. If you give him at least fifteen or
twenty minutes, and then begin a slow, quiet and cautious follow up, you will usually
find him within a relatively short distance.
When you do see him, no matter what the species or how dead he looks, don‟t be
afraid to have the client put in an insurance shot if you think the animal shows any
sign of life whatsoever and always make a point of approaching the animal
cautiously from behind.
With the client a few paces to one side of you and slightly behind, slowly approach
the animal with your rifle loaded, the safety catch off, your finger lightly on the trigger
and pointed towards an appropriate target zone on the animal. Either have the
tracker use a slingshot to whack the animal with a small stone (my preferred
method) or give him a nudge with the toe of your boot as you hold your rifle ready to
shoot him again if he so much as twitches. If there‟s no movement, go forward
again, and touch him several times in the eye with the muzzle of your rifle to check
for eye reflex. If there‟s no eye reflex reaction, check it again with your finger, if still
no reaction, then the animal is dead. At this point, don‟t forget to clear your own rifle
and make sure all other rifles are also made safe.
To give you an example of how cautious you must be on these approaches. Some
years ago, I was hunting lion with a client and after the shot; the lion went down in
full view of us. I brought the client round behind the lion and had him put in the
insurance shot. Then I had the tracker use the slingshot and got no reaction. I then
walked up behind the lion, touched him with my foot and then advanced again,
checked the eye reflex and got no reaction.
The lion appeared to be as dead as charity, so I called the client over, shook his
hand and congratulated him. I‟ve no idea why I did it, but I then crouched down in
front of the lion and lifted his eyelid. As the eye opened, I saw his eye absolutely
blaze with fury and felt his whole body tense. A heartbeat later, the light in his eyes
died and his body slowly relaxed, but just for that moment, I thought I was a goner.
So be warned!
One view of a lion you don't ever want to see! Photograph: Steve Robinson.
(And yes, it was a live lion!)
9) Wind Direction and Use of Cover
I won‟t go into these subjects because if you want to become a Professional Hunter,
you should already know how to hunt. The only thing I‟ll suggest is that you make or
get yourself an ash bag and get into the habit of using it when hunting. Ash bags are
often considered slightly „old school‟ nowadays but I consider them vital on final
approaches to all game and especially all dangerous game.
The ash bag should be made of cotton and be of darkish colour, about 7 inches by 4
inches and have a drawstring at the top. If you tie a monkey fist knot in the
drawstring, you will find you can just tuck the knot into your belt when you don‟t
need it and it won‟t come out until you pull it out.
If you don‟t know how to tie a monkey fist knot, it‟s not as complicated as it first
sounds. All you do is wrap three complete turns around your fingers and then pass
the end of the cord through the middle of the knot. Then make three complete turns
round the first turns. Pass the end through the middle. Then make three more turns
locking the previous turns. Knot the end, tuck it in, and tighten the rope until all turns
are neat. If you want a heavy knot, just tuck a suitably sized ball bearing or a small
round stone into the centre of the knot before you tighten it.
When in use, slip the loop of the drawstring over the wrist of whichever hand holds
the fore-end of your rifle and you can take the bag in your fingers when you need it.
When you have to get your rifle into action, you just release the bag and it will swing
back out of the way.
A handy little hint is to put 2 or 3 smallish pebbles in with the wood ash to prevent
any lumps forming. African tradition decrees the pebbles should come from a
crocodile‟s stomach because they bring the owner protection from dangerous
animals, but they all do the same job.
10) Distance Estimation
I practice this constantly when I‟m hunting and would urge you to do the same to
ensure you keep your eye in. As you walk, pick a tree or other landmark that‟s
ahead of you, estimate the distance and count your paces as you go. If you‟re tall,
count each pace as a metre and if a „shorty‟ as I am, count in yards.
11) Trophy Estimation
This largely comes with experience. Don‟t just look for length of horn or tusk
because some animals with the even the longest trophies might have potential to
grow more. Therefore, also look for signs of old age on the animal in question.
The spiral horned antelopes such as kudu, nyala and bushbuck develop white tips,
known colloquially as ivory tips, when they grow old. Look also for baldness on the
neck, and prominent hip bones.
Buffalo will develop an almost solid boss and more drop on the horns as they grow
older. Look also for bald patches and prominent hip bones.
Elephants go through six sets of molars in their lives and when that sixth set wears
out, they slowly starve to death. Consequently, as well as large tusks an ideal
elephant to take will have very prominent hip bones and backbone showing and
usually a sunken forehead. Such features will indicate the animal is on his last set of
well worn teeth and worthy of being taken out. These animals are often found in
thick riverine habitat where they are eating the succulent and more easily digestible
food that occurs in those areas. Look for signs of increased amounts of coarse
undigested plant matter when tracking, what you hope is, an old elephant. Also
spoor showing smooth feet with fewer cracks in the sole.
Lion ages can be estimated by a variety of factors. A young lion will have an „Elvis
Presley‟ hairstyle, a narrow head, spots and will lack scars. Mane development
varies from area to area. Older lions will have the hair on top of the head growing
across the forehead, a wider skull, no spots, scars from fighting to protect his ladies,
heavier musculature and usually more mane development. There‟s a lot of talk
nowadays about the black nose theory as developed by Dr Craig Packer. He says
that a mature lion will have a fully black nose. There is a lot of sense in this
argument but I‟d recommend you use the theory as an indicator and not as the be all
and end all of aging a lion. In the real world of Professional hunting, the lion‟s noses
are often covered in blood and gore and also often covered in scabs from fighting.
Those two things mean it‟s never easy to check the nose out properly...... especially
if you‟re looking at it in anything other than full sunlight.
It should be noted that there are parts of Africa, notably the Selous Game Reserve
in Tanzania where well-maned Lions are extremely rare. They do occur occasionally
but you should consider yourself very lucky to even see a lion with a good mane in
many parts of Tanzania, let alone have a client take one.
12) Assistance to Client - When to give Back-up
It is essential you make a point of discussing this with every client before he goes
hunting with you. Some clients will ask you to put in a back up shot if you think it
necessary, some will tell you they don‟t want you to shoot under any circumstances
and a few might ask you to shoot on report, which is when you shoot as soon as you
hear the client‟s rifle shot.
My advice would be that unless the client specifically asks you to do so or you have
previously agreed when you will and will not shoot, you should let the client do as
much of the shooting as possible as it is (to say the least) very bad form to shoot the
client‟s animals for him.
The only exceptions to this should be:
a) If you feel that human life may be endangered if you don‟t shoot.
b) If you have absolutely no choice for reasons of humane dispatch.
c) If a wounded animal is liable to cross a nearby boundary where you cannot legally
enter to follow it.
Most African countries that allow sport hunting, stipulate in their game laws that the
Professional Hunter is actually required to shoot under those circumstances by law,
whether the client likes it or not!
13) Shot Placement on African Animals
African Hunter Magazine publishes a great book on this topic and you can find
details at: www.shakariconnection.com/african-hunter-shot-placement.html
14) Effective use of Binoculars/Scopes
There is a lot more to using scopes and binos correctly than first appears. With
binos, one tip is to get them focused correctly for your own use and then tape the
focus ring so it can‟t get moved accidentally. Another good tip is to train yourself to
hold the binos in the palms of your hands with one index finger curled around one
tube and use your middle finger to adjust focus. At the same time, extend both
thumbs to rest against your temples to brace the binos. This will give you a
considerably more stable viewing platform than just gripping them like they do in the
movies.
Where clients are concerned, you‟ll notice that many are in the habit of using the
wrong thing at the wrong time. When you want them to be getting their rifle on the
sticks and ready to shoot, they‟ll invariably be looking through their binos. When you
want them to be looking through their binos, so you can explain which animal they
need to be looking at, they‟ll be waving their rifle around and looking through their
scope. This is just another factor you need to watch out for and control at the
appropriate moments.
If you find you have a client that consistently looks through his binos when you feel
he should be getting ready for the shot, it‟s useful to have the tracker ask to borrow
the client‟s binos so he then has no choice but to use the scope.
With scopes, you might possibly need to consider the issues of parallax, especially
when it comes to close shooting such as when hunting the cats. The way to check if
this will be an issue is to rehearse the shot as described in the later article „Hunting
Mr Spots‟.
If you are unsure of what parallax is and how it can affect
shooting……
Parallax is an apparent displacement or difference in the apparent position of an
object viewed along two different lines of sight, and is measured by the angle or
semi-angle of inclination between those two lines. The term is derived from the
Greek parallaxis, meaning „alteration‟. Nearby objects have a larger parallax than
more distant objects when observed from different positions, so parallax can be
used to determine distance. Astronomers use the principle of parallax to measure
distances to objects (typically stars) beyond the Solar System.
Parallax also affects optical instruments such as binoculars, microscopes, and twinlens reflex cameras that view objects from slightly different angles. Many animals,
including humans, have two eyes with overlapping visual fields to use parallax to
gain depth perception; this process is known as „stereopsis‟.
Illuminated scopes are very popular nowadays and if set right, work brilliantly but it‟s
not at all uncommon for clients to forget to switch them off or for them to get
accidentally switched on. In either case, the battery goes flat very quickly and you
need to point those possibilities out to the client. If you have contact with the client
before he comes and you know he‟s going to be using an illuminated scope, you
might suggest he brings a few spare batteries with him.
15) Communication with Clients during Hunt
You need to establish ground rules of the hunt with the client before you take him
hunting and part of that should be that he understands things such as the hand
signals you‟ll use and what to do on final approaches. One useful tip is to explain to
the client that he should try not to point at game with his full arm‟s length.
Westerners have this habit deeply ingrained in them and find it hard to break. At
best, it‟s needless movement and noise and at worst it might easily be enough to
instigate a charge.
16) Dangerous Game
Shot Placement on Dangerous Game
As previously mentioned, African Hunter Magazine does a great book on this topic
and you can find details here: www.shakariconnection.com/african-hunter-shotplacement.html
Use of Baits in Hunting Predators
Hunting cats with bait and blind techniques is an art in its own right and you simply
have to learn a lot of it by trial and error and hands on experience, preferably by
working alongside someone who knows this art.
On the subject of baits, the best bait to use is whatever the cat you are hunting is in
the habit of eating. If he‟s eating goat or donkey, try giving him goat or donkey. If
you do need to use such animals, it‟s only fair that they be dispatched in as humane
a manner as they would get in an abattoir. The way to do this is to draw an
imaginary line between the eye of the animal and the base of the opposite ear and
repeat the process on the other side. Where those two lines cross each other is
where you need to place your shot to achieve instant brain death. This rule works on
all mammals.
If in an area with little or no human habitation such as the Selous Reserve in
Tanzania, the cat will be taking wild game such as impala and warthog. I personally
find these to be two of the very best leopard baits and if you need to get multiple
baits out, a zebra is also good and just the right size to give you at least five good
sized leopard baits. Buffalo also can be used but make sure the piece you‟re using
is light enough for a leopard to lift easily.
Despite what it says in some books, from my experience one of the worst animals to
use as bait is baboon because it‟s too small. Leopard will surely eat baboon but
they‟ll eat the entire animal at the first sitting. So when he leaves, he thinks there‟s
nothing left and is less likely to come back for another meal. If you can get him
feeding on bigger bait and thinking that there‟s still meat left, he‟ll usually return.
Lion baits obviously need to be considerably bigger and I recommend either at least
half a zebra, a quarter of buffalo or a similar sized hunk of hippo. Lion baits need to
be at least a good six feet off the ground. If you hang them below that height, hyena
will quickly strip the bait. Believe it or not, a hyena will jump in the air, grab a
mouthful of meat and then hang there until it tears away!
With all baits, in most areas, it‟s vitally important to cover them well with branches or
grass to keep the vultures from stripping the bait as soon as you walk away. If you
fail to do so, the vultures can strip even lion bait to bare bones in less than thirty
minutes.
A good tip for all cat hunting is to have on the truck, a dustbin sized container with a
tight fitting lid which you can use as the gut bucket. You need a fair amount of blood
and guts during a cat hunt to disguise human scent and help bring the cats in with
scent trails and it‟s not pleasant to have to have to tolerate the stink of them for
hours on end as you drive round checking and refreshing baits. So, a good tight lid
not only seals in the stink but also stops any liquid splashing out and discourages
flies.
Another tip is to have soap, water, nail brush and a gallon or two of water on board
so you can wash your hands regularly after you have handled baits and bloody
ropes etc. All you have to do is put a bloody hand to your mouth just once and you
can give yourself a very bad stomach upset and that‟s the last thing you need when
you might have to sit in a blind for several hours!
Note: Do not wash your hands anywhere near the bait site as the smell of soap will
immediately discourage the cat. Wait until you‟re at least a kilometre away from the
bait before cleaning yourself up.
Use of Blinds
Some people use those smart pop up bow hunting blinds and others build a blind
out of whatever materials are available in the area. Both are good but whichever
option you use, it‟s imperative that the blind be positioned in such a way as to not
only give you a good shot at the place where you expect the cat to be but also that it
blends into the background as much as possible. If you can see the blind easily as
you approach it, rather than have to look for it, then something is wrong with the
construction and/or location.
Always make a point of putting a roof on your blind, because if you don‟t, even the
slightest starlight will let the animal see straight through the blind walls and pick up
any movement and always make a point of having the path to the blind swept clean
of leaves, twigs and anything else that might make a noise as you approach the
blind.
Take time to equip your blind properly. The more comfortable the client is and the
more solid his rifle rest, the more chance there is that he‟ll get his shot right. Also
make sure that both you and the client are completely familiar with the location of
every single item in the blind. Don‟t forget that you‟ll be sitting in complete darkness
and you need to be able to reach out and put your hand on exactly what you need at
all times.
Leopard Blind Interior. Tuli Block, Botswana. Photograph: Bob Mitcham
In the above picture of a part-built leopard blind, the rifle rest set up looks untidy
because the ends of the ladder straps have yet to be cut off. However the rifle rest is
good and strong and the rifle will point directly at the bait without having to be held
or moved into place. All the client has to do is lean forward and look through the
scope. The blanket you see on the floor is for the client to sit on and will prevent the
chair creaking.
Incidentally, one of the most useful items you can have in a cat blind at night is a
tritium faced watch. These little chaps allow you to see the time without having to
push buttons or do anything else to see what the time is. I like to strap mine onto a
piece of timber just below the observation/shooting hole right in front of me and then
I cover it over with a handkerchief. Then all I have to do is reach forward and move
the „curtain‟ aside when I need to know the time.
My own preferred make is the Military Watch Company but others, including Invicta
and Smith and Wesson also make similar products.
Leopard taken by Bob Mitcham from the same blind a few hours later.
Tuli Block, Botswana. Photograph: Bob Mitcham
The following article might also be of help when studying leopard hunting…..
Hunting Mr Spots
Every Professional Hunter has his own way of hunting leopards and this article is
about how I like to do it, and if your PH has his own set of tricks, please don‟t think
he‟s doing it the wrong way – he is just doing it his way.
I‟m a perfectionist when it comes to hunting leopards and the reason for that is
because they‟re just so incredibly wary and clever creatures. Because of that we
need to think like a leopard to bring a suitable trophy animal to the bait.
We‟ll first need to find at least one perfect „leopardy‟ tree and location to hang the
bait. If we can find three or four such trees, then so much the better. In an ideal
world, the bait tree will be reasonably close to a good water source because „old
spots‟ likes to have drink after he‟s eaten. If there‟s no water nearby and/or if it‟s in a
particularly dry area, you can always sink a bucket into the ground nearby and fill
that with water. If you do go this option, it‟s a good idea to sweep the ground a few
yards around the bucket so you can see the size of the cat‟s paw prints when he
comes to drink. – You can also use that same trick around the base of the bait tree.
The tree itself needs to be fairly big with nice wide spreading limbs, not too many
thorns and have some but not too much undergrowth growing at its base. This is to
allow the cat somewhere to hide until he feels secure before he actually goes up the
tree. It also helps to have a little bit of cover above the bait branch if possible – you
can always trim this as necessary, once the cat starts feeding If the main trunk is
slightly angled, then we have an added advantage as we want to make everything
as easy as possible for the leopard to gain access to the bait. However, it mustn‟t be
so easy that other predators such as hyena and lion can get to it. What‟s that I hear
you mumble? Someone told you lions don‟t climb trees? Don‟t you believe it!
We want the tree to have a fairly open area all around it to allow us a safer follow up
if it becomes necessary and we also would prefer at least a small tree or bush within
30 – 50 yards of the bait tree which we can incorporate as a natural location for a
blind.
The blind location should give us a good view and sight picture of where the leopard
will be laying as he eats the bait. When I‟m choosing my blind site, I like if possible
to locate it amongst some natural foliage and I like to take my time testing the winds
by lighting a few dry elephant droppings and leaving them to smoulder in various
positions. I find this helps me a lot in selecting the perfect blind site(s). Incidentally, if
you have a swirling wind, I‟ve also used these same „smoke bombs‟ when we
actually sit for the cat, as a precaution to mask our human scent. Sounds crazy, but
it‟s worked for me a few times.
View from Blind to Tree. Irikishibor, Masailand, Tanzania. Photograph: Steve Robinson
Bait Tree. Note the 2 sets of orange reflective sizing markers. Irikishibor, Masailand Tanzania.
Photograph: Steve Robinson
We also want this tree to be near some sand roads and/or dry river beds, so the cat
is comfortable when he walks. Just like your domestic cat, leopards are lazy and
like an easy life. Now we tie a feather or two to short pieces of fishing line in suitable
places to use as wind indicators and also sweep a few nearby areas to make it easy
for us to check the size of the paw prints. If necessary, we‟ll place a few obstructions
in appropriate places to guide our quarry onto these swept areas.
Finding two places on opposite sides and equidistant to the bait tree where we can
locate the blind is also an advantage. There is usually a prevailing wind of some
kind and we‟ll site the blinds to suit these winds but winds can change which is why I
try to have two blinds to each bait tree if possible. I like to have the blind sited
across the wind rather than facing into it as there‟s nothing worse than sitting for
hours and having the stink of a half rotten bait blowing right into your face.
Once we‟ve located a suitable tree or even better, trees, we‟ll shoot a bait animal.
Zebra are often particularly favoured by leopard and one animal can easily provide
five baits to hang from the most suitable branches at various locations.
Mark the branch with two small pieces of reflective tape 1.3 meters apart to use as a
measuring aid for the size of the leopard. Use some of the stomach contents of our
bait animal to spread around the tree limb and trunk. This not only eliminates our
scent it also makes the tree very attractive to the leopard.
Using the stomach and intestines from the bait animal(s), make drags from the bait
tree to the nearest road(s) and/or dry river beds, continuing for at least a mile. If at
all possible, these drags will be in at least two or three separate directions to
maximize our chances of a passing leopard walking into the scent lines. I like to
refresh these drags on a daily basis if possible or every other day at least.
So now we‟re pretty much ready for step two of the leopard hunt which happens to
be the one that drives me crazy……. We wait for Mr Spots to pass by, give his
approval and start feeding. If after a few days, we‟ve found his tracks near our baits
but he‟s ignoring them, we might consider moving the bait to a different nearby tree
and if that doesn‟t work, we‟ll try something like taking a freshly killed guinea fowl
and tying it to twigs so it looks like it‟s flying. Then using a piece of fishing line, we‟ll
suspend that (right side up!) from a branch just above the bait branch so as it blows
about in the wind, it looks like a bird going into roost. This will often be enough to
entice a wary or well educated leopard onto the bait.
If that doesn‟t work a little bit if the dried herb „catnip‟ that you can buy in pet shops
wiped over the bait with do the trick. As unlikely as that one sounds, it really does
work and if want to see how effective it is with any/all cats, just let a domestic cat
smell the stuff and you‟ll see how silly it makes them!
If we get a strike or strikes, we‟ll assess the size of the tracks and decide if we might
have a cat of a shootable size. If we do, then we‟ll attach a trail timer to the bait to
see what time the cat feeds and then we wait another day or two (if time allows) to
give the cat time to get really comfortable. Cats are creatures of habit and will
almost certainly come to feed at much the same time every night. When we have
established his feeding pattern, we‟ll build the blind(s) which are about three metres
square, made of grass and poles and even if there is no moon at all, we‟ll put a good
thick roof on it as well. Even starlight coming into the blind is enough to give the
game away to our spotty friend.
On the subject of the moon, a lot of people claim a full moon or near full moon is a
problem for leopard hunting. From my experience, if you set everything up the right
way, the moon phase doesn‟t matter at all. I‟d say that close to 50% of the leopards
I‟ve taken, have been at, or close to the full moon. In fact, I‟ve always found a full or
near to full moon, actually makes a leopard rather more helpful to us hunters. He‟ll
usually want to dine earlier and come to bait before moon rise.
All four sides of the blind should have shooting and observation holes. Most
Professional Hunters only put these in the front of the blind, but I learned my lesson
a couple of years ago when I had two lions fighting just one yard from the side of my
blind. To add insult to injury, the winner then mated with one of his girlfriends‟ right
in the same spot. During all this time, we couldn‟t even see them and had to wait
another two hours before we could get a shot at the lion! So now I put holes on
every side of the blind and then put „curtains‟ over all but the front holes.
After we‟ve built the blind we‟ll then place a movement detector above the bait and
the receiver in the blind and also place two or three small red LED lights around the
branches to give us a little illumination. We switch these on sometime during the day
preceding the evening or morning before we‟re scheduled to sit in the blind. Cats
incidentally, have trouble seeing red light because of the rods and cones set up in
their eyes and from my experience, will, like Johannesburg drivers, pretty much
always ignore a red light. So the only things left to do is build the rifle supports into
the blind and equip it with those plastic garden chairs that don‟t squeak, blankets to
sit on for the sake of comfort and silence and more blankets if it looks like getting
cold, spotting scope for the PH, red spotlight, torches/flashlights and two way radio
(turned off until we need to use it) so as to allow us to call in the truck when we want
it and rifles.
On the subject of rifles, the client ideally needs something in .30 calibre or larger
and fast expanding, soft point bullets. This rifle should be equipped with a scope of 4
or 6 power with a large light gathering aperture at the business end. Once
everything is all set up and ready, we‟ll use the range-finders to zap the exact
distance from blind to bait and measure height from bait to ground and then go
elsewhere and set the clients rifle up to shoot „bang on‟ at that exact range and
height.
I don‟t just set a target up for this. Nowadays, I like to take a long cardboard box and
draw a life size outline of a Leopard on it and then I fix a small plastic bottle of water
inside, where the cat‟s heart would be. Then I‟ll sit you down in a chair and set you
up just as you‟ll be in the bind. Then all you have to do is put three consecutive
shots through the bottle of water. Only then are you ready to sit for the cat. If you
can‟t make those three consecutive shots on the target, then it‟s not a
problem……we‟ll just practice until you can.
When we go into the blind, the clients rifle will be placed in the rifle support with a
round in the chamber and the safety catch ON. The supports will have been
positioned in such a way that the client just leans forward into it, looks through the
scope and will see the leopard.
Once everything is set up to my complete satisfaction and a couple of hours before
the cat is due to arrive, or just before dark (whichever comes first) we‟ll go into the
blind and sit and wait quietly/read/doze. We‟ll probably get some kind of audible
warning of the cat‟s approach. The birds and monkeys usually go crazy with alarm
calls as the leopard passes and it‟s usually possible to mark the cat‟s progress
through the bush. When that wonderful movement detector lights up, it means we
have something on the branch. I‟ll peep through the observation hole for a first look.
We won‟t rush things (so please try not to get excited) and we‟ll give Mr Spots plenty
of time to get comfortable. Then I‟ll take a look through the spotting scope to see if
we have a shootable male leopard on the branch and (if it‟s dark) I‟ll put a red
spotlight into the trees and then move it down onto the cat. Don‟t get impatient if I
take my time checking the cat out at this point. It‟s imperative that I get a good look
to see his testicles that stick out the back so we are 110% sure we have a male cat
there and I also need to check him against those sizing markers to see if he‟s not
just beyond the legal minimum size but also a really good trophy.
If he‟s shootable, I‟ll reach out and squeeze your knee. This will mean you‟re to get
yourself comfortable and ready for the shot. IT DOESN‟T MEAN SHOOT! I‟ll then
give you‟re knee another squeeze and then remove my hand. When that happens,
you can shoot any time you like. There‟s no rush, so don‟t feel you have to feel
hurried at all. It‟s far more important that you shoot accurately rather than quickly.
Please remember that you‟re shooting uphill and into a three dimensional target.
Imagine the skin of the animal as a glass container with the heart in the centre of
that container. Aim slightly low to allow for the uphill shooting, and shoot for the
heart - remember all that practice at the range. If you‟ve got it right, then the next
thing we‟ll hear after the shot is a soggy plop as a dead leopard hits the ground. If
we hear an angry growl, then it probably means we‟ve got problems and may have
to do a follow up. If the leopard charges then it has to be stopped at close range. If
you come along on this, make sure you remove your scope beforehand. I did a
follow up a while ago and shot the cat in mid air and in mid charge just seven yards
from me.
The above picture shows me kneeling where the cat fell and was taken from where I shot. Now
imagine it in complete darkness except for the light from a head torch. If possible, I‟d like to avoid
the experience again. Irikishibor, Masailand, Tanzania Photograph: Steve Robinson
After the shot, keep quiet and if you can still see the leopard, then try to get another
bullet into him if you can. About this time, I‟ll ask you how you felt about the shot and
we‟ll try to work out what we think happened. Then we‟ll call the hunting truck on the
radio and tell it we‟ve shot a leopard but they should wait until we call them back
before coming in. After 20-30 minutes, if nothing else happens, we‟ll whistle up the
truck and have them drive right up to the blind where we step quickly and quietly into
it. Then we‟ll drive to the bait tree and look for blood spoor or hopefully a dead
leopard. If we can see the cat and he looks dead, we‟ll have the tracker use a
slingshot to fire a couple of stones at it. If there‟s any response at all, the cat gets
shot again immediately. If there‟s no response, then I‟ll climb down from the truck
whilst the client covers me with his rifle. Once I‟m certain the cat is dead, everyone
can get down from the truck for photographs.
If there‟s any „trouble‟ and I end up having a tussle with Mr Spots, please don‟t try to
shoot him from the truck as if you do, you‟ll probably shoot me as well. Rather get
down and get as close to the cat as you can and kill him – but please remember to
try not to shoot me as well!
If we end up with a wounded cat on our hands then I or possibly we will conduct a
follow up tracking job in an appropriate manner – but we won‟t go into that too much
here as I‟m sure you‟ll get it right the first time anyway!
So now you have some idea of how the hunting strategy will planned on your
leopard hunt and by doing so, I hope you‟ll get even more pleasure from it than just
being the trigger man while a bunch of strange things go on all around you. If you
have any new ideas that you think might work, don‟t hesitate to let me know. I‟m
always willing to try something new and as it‟s your leopard hunt and not mine, I‟m
always more than happy to try things your way. In closing, please remember the
shot at your leopard will probably be the easiest shot of your safari – but it‟s also the
most important shot of your safari. So take your time, don‟t get excited, pick out a
rosette at which you‟re going to and make sure you hit the cat in exactly the right
spot…….
.500 Calibre Hole In Face Was Due To Charge. Irikishibor, Masailand, Tanzania.
Photograph: Steve Robinson
16) Assessment and Measuring of Trophies
Trophy Field Assessment
There‟s no real way to do this until you can look at live animals and hunted trophies
but there are a few tricks of the trade that you‟ll learn as you go along. However,
remember that there are always exceptions to the rule, so never hurry your
assessment.
Each species is obviously different and you‟ll learn that distance between top of ear
and tip of horn are one important give away. With impala and nyala, a youngster will
have it‟s horn tips pointing towards each other, a good representative of the species
will have the horn tips pointing straight upwards and if the tips of the horns point
outwards, then it‟s going to be an exceptional trophy.
With both lesser and greater kudu, look especially for depth of curl because it‟s this
that gives those vital extra inches that many clients are so keen to obtain. Some
people claim that the tips of a mature kudu will always point in a certain direction. I
personally think that‟s a load of old tosh as horns grow from the bottom just as
human hair does and not from the top.
Assessment of Trophies and Skulls
Be prepared to work extra hard on this subject during the course. It‟s not easy and
can only be learned by practical experience. By the end of the course, you will be
expected to be able to judge every trophy shown to you to within an inch or so.
Knowledge of RW and SCI minimums for Southern African species
Rowland Ward and Safari Club International are the two most popular record books
in the African hunting safari world and each has differing trophy measurement
methods for most species. Rowland Ward originated in the United Kingdom and
Safari Club International in the USA.
Other than the differing measurement methods, the most practical and obvious
difference between the two publications is that Rowland Ward have higher
standards and free entry whilst Safari Club International take a more businesslike
approach and have lower standards and a hefty fee for entry in their book.
One of the few things that Rowland Ward and SCI do agree on is the measurement
method for big cats which is the length of the skull added to the width of the skull
across the zygomatic arches. Many hunters talk about cats (especially leopards) in
body weight. Don‟t be fooled by this because it means absolutely nothing as body
weight can vary as much as something like 30% depending on a number of factors,
the most common being on when the animal last fed and if he‟s been breeding
recently. Any PH who talks about body weight as a guide to trophy quality is doing it
because he‟s fond of sales/marketing hyperbole and any client who does it doesn‟t
know what he‟s talking about.
You also need to bear in mind that most quoted cat body weights are estimations…..
usually, over estimations!
17) Trophy Handling
Photography and Traditions
Mozambique. Photograph: Walter Enslin of Kwan Safaris
Always make a point of looking very carefully indeed for those little mistakes that
could either cause some poor soul a laugh or a red face at a later date. Well, at
least, in the photo above, the guy had somewhere to hang his hat! I highly
recommend you spend plenty of time on the trophy photography. Pose the animal
nicely and try to skyline the horns if at all possible. Clean off all blood and gore, tuck
the tongue back in the mouth or cut it out (if it‟s a buffalo, keep the tongue as it‟s
great eating) and completely clear the grass in front of the animal. If there‟s blood on
the ground, either move the animal to another location or cover the blood with soil.
Make sure no-one is directly behind the animal‟s horns that might prevent them
being sky-lined.
On the subject of posing the animal and client correctly, always make a point of
looking very carefully indeed for those little mistakes that could either cause some
poor soul a laugh or a red face at a later date.
Take too many photographs rather than too few and with as many cameras as you
have available. With most animals, you will get the best shots from having the
camera as low as possible and shooting upwards.
Try not to zoom in too closely as you can crop an image later with Photoshop but
you can never add a piece on. One of the most difficult animals to photograph is
elephant. If they fall in fairly open ground, they can be turned over but if they fall
close to large trees, you just have to settle for what you have.
If you feel your photographic skills might need further improvement, you might also
like to consider signing up for a digital photography course at your local night school.
77 lbs a side elephant bull. Mozambique.
Photograph: Jason van Aarde of Tomkinson Hunting Safaris
My good friend and colleague Wikus Groenewald is a professional
photographer as well as Professional Hunter. And here’s what he has to say
on the subject…..
Equipment
For good African trophy photography, you need the right equipment. The wider
(35mm) the angle of the lens, the better the trophy photograph. The wide angle
facility will allow you to get really close to your trophy and still get the whole trophy
with the hunter inside the frame. A wide angle lens also captures a lot of additional
detail that telephoto lenses will not do. This is because a wide angle lens allows a lot
more additional light through. This also makes it ideal for taking photos under poor
light conditions.
In the digital world of today and with the wonders of Photoshop, you can almost
work magic on your images. A digital SLR camera will be ideal for taking good
trophy photos with its interchangeable lenses. A normal digital camera with a fixed
lens will also do the job but there will be a clear visible difference when you take a
photo with a digital SLR. Cameras get cheaper by the day so try to stick to good
brand names like Nikon, Canon, Sony, Pentax etc.
Trophy Positioning
After your trophy animal is down, you will need to try to take the pictures as quickly
as possible, so get the animal into the preferred position for your picture as soon as
you can. By doing this the animal will still be in its natural form - it does not look so
nice in pictures if your trophy animal is already stiff and bloated. The position you set
your trophy in depends on personal preference. Sometimes the area and position
the animal has gone down in can make the setup for your pictures very difficult. If it
is a small animal you can move it to a better spot, but when it comes to buffalo,
elephant or something that weighty, you are pretty much stuck and just have to do
the best with what you have.
Position your trophy so that the sun is shining on it. In other words, the sun will be at
the photographers back when taking the pictures. After that, clear the area around
your trophy animal carefully and make sure that there is no grass in front of your
animal or in front of your camera lens. Back in the old days of film cameras, that
would be a very expensive mistake. With modern digital cameras and the aid of
Photoshop you can eliminate this mistake easily, but you will be surprised to see
how many trophy hunters still make this error.
After finally positioning the animal, wipe away any traces of blood and make sure
the tongue remains in the mouth, rather than leave it hanging out.
If possible try to get the horns of your trophy animal in blue or clear sky. That will
bring out the size and shape of your trophy. Never put the hunter behind the horns
of the trophy animal unless it makes a really nice picture and it does not create a
messy background.
Get as low as possible when taking a trophy photograph even if you have to lie on
your stomach. You won't regret it. By doing this it will put your whole picture into
perspective. A lot of Professional Hunters or trophy hunters when taking a picture,
put the hunter far behind the animal to make it look bigger. Personally, I don‟t like
doing this as it feels like cheating to me.
Encourage the hunter to touch or put his hand on the trophy animal so that you can
see it on the photo. This will give the scale of the picture as well as being a nice
personal touch.
By using the above mentioned tips your photograph will look great and as Jack
O'Connor said "the big ones look big" even if it is in a picture.
Fill-In Flash
The time of day will determine the quality of your African trophy photographs. This is
where a flash comes in handy. Early morning and late afternoon are the best times
for taking photographs as the light is softer then.
In the harsh sunlight of midday, flash would not normally be necessary. When taking
trophy photos at this time, there are a few things you can do to take a great picture.
Use the flash to get rid of dark areas and shadows like under a hat. Don‟t go too
close to the trophy because the power of the flash will cause the picture to appear
white or greyish. Test the distance you need to be from the animal by taking a
couple of pictures at different distances with the flash on. This will only take a minute
to do and will be well worth spending the time on. When you are happy with you
distance and flash quality you can use a zoom lens to bring the picture closer so that
it fills the frame. By doing this you will get brilliant pictures even in midday
conditions.
Other Tips
When taking the picture make sure that everything fits in the frame. Make sure you
don't cut off horns or heads, tails, feet or anything else.
Remember, once that animal gets skinned, it's over and you will not have the
opportunity to take further field photographs.
Don't rush take photos from lots of different angles. With a digital camera you can
take a lot of pictures, so do it - you will not regret it.
The pictures from your safari and your trophies in the field will be all you have
besides your memories, so take the best photographs you can.
Examples of good and bad African trophy photography all
provided by Wikus Groenewald:
Everything fits inside the picture frame.
The area around the trophy animal is clean
The camera could have been lower to the ground
The fill in flash is doing an amazing job
There is a slight interference with the horns
Trophy size & scale is clear because the hunter is touching the animal
This is an amazing trophy photo!
Everything fits well into the picture frame
No heads, horns or rifles are cut off
The area is clean around the trophy animal
The camera is very low to the ground
Blue sky background behind the horns
No obstacles behind the horns
Flash was used to take out shadows around the human eyes but it reflects on the
eye of the animal - correct with Photoshop
This is a poor trophy photo!
Shadow covers the animal and the hunters - flash could have improved the image
The hunter is sitting behind the trophy so you can really see the size of this crocodile
The angle of this photo makes it difficult to determine the length of the trophy
Blue sky behind the mouth of this crocodile would have given a better effect
The area around the trophy animal is clean and the camera is low to the ground
This is an average picture
Flash makes it bright and lots of detail can be seen
The camera could have been lower
Background is not ideal but it gives a feel of the surroundings and where this croc
was shot
Hunter behind the trophy animal gives good scale to this picture
Even though the animal 'is cut in half' in this photograph you can still get a feeling of
its size
Area is clean around animal
This is a great example of how not to take a trophy photo
The background is messy
The camera was too high when this picture was taken
Flash would have taken out the shadows under the caps of the hunters
The hunter is right behind the horns which make it difficult to see the trophy
The area around this animal could have been cleaner
This animal should have been moved to a better spot to take pictures
This is an average picture
Everything fits well into the frame
The angle of this picture makes it unusual
Notice the nice blue sky behind the horns
The hunter is not sitting behind the horns
The hunter is holding the rifle in front of the animal, giving a true scale of the picture
The area around the animal is clean
Fill-in flash would make this photo great
This is a great photo!
The hunter is sitting behind the horns but it actually adds value to the picture
Everything is perfect inside the frame
The background in this picture is great and makes this subject truly visible and
clear
The fill-in flash eliminates all shadows
The hunter is sitting exactly in the right spot and is holding the impala's head
exactly right, pushing the ears up with his thumbs
There is great scale to the picture
Loading and Transport of Trophies
Trophies need careful handling from the moment they hit the ground to the
moment they get to the skinning shed. Make a point of opening the animal and
removing the intestines as soon as possible to assist cooling. Always lift the
animal rather than drag it. Always get into the habit of putting a good layer of
grass or leaves onto the load bed before loading the animal.
Some species such as klipspringer and gemsbuck have hollow hair to assist
them in staying cool and these animals need to be treated with even more
consideration.
Loading a large animal such as a cape buffalo or an eland and the truck
doesn’t have a winch facility…..
Assuming the client doesn‟t want a full mount trophy. Cut the animal in two,
remove the intestines and cut a couple of slits or handholds in the skin close to
the back of the ribs. Stand the front half up on it‟s ribcage with the head in the air
and facing the truck. Back the truck up to the animal and then all you do is tip the
animal forward on to its chin then on to the load bed of the truck. Pick the other
end up by the handholds and slide the animal forward onto the truck. Repeat the
same exercise with the back half.
If the client does want a full mount, you obviously can‟t cut the animal in two. So
cut two strong poles about the same length as the truck is wide. Position the
dead animal close to a biggish tree and with the head closest to the truck. Take a
strong rope and tie one end around the base of the tree, over the forward roll bar
of the truck, back down to the animal and tie off firmly around the horns. (Make
sure the rope is positioned so that you won‟t cause damage to the trophy). Then
drive the truck slowly forward and the animal will be drawn into the truck load
bed. Position the poles under the animal with a guy on each end and use them to
help position and lift the animal as it‟s drawn forward into the truck.
In either case, you can make the job even easier by digging a couple of sloping
trenches in line with the wheels of the truck so as to lower the distance between
the ground and the load bed if necessary.
Loading an elephant head can also be a lot of hard work and a real drama.
Assuming the client doesn‟t want a shoulder mount….
If the dead elephant hasn‟t fallen on his chest, you need to get him in that
position. This is easier than you think. Cut a hole in the skin on the ground side of
the animal, close to the spine. Hook the winch hook into it, and (depending on
the pull rating of the winch), either winch it slowly onto his chest or reverse the
truck to pull him onto his chest. You may need to move the „sky side‟ legs to
achieve stability. Try to do this process as slowly as possible because if you
overdo it, you‟ll end up pulling the animal too far and he‟ll end up lying on his
other side!
Then cut the ears off and sever the trunk, both as close to the skull as possible.
Trim off as much skin and meat as you can to reduce weight and then cut
through the meat at the back, sides and beneath the neck as close to the skull as
you can. Then sever the spinal column. At this point, the skull should be
separated from the rest of the carcass but propped up against it.
Back the truck up to a suitable location (dig those sloping trenches to lower the
load bed if necessary). Tip the skull forward onto the load bed, and then use the
tusks like handles of a wheelbarrow to lift and push the skull forward.
If you have sufficient manpower (and you usually will) and the ground is
reasonably soft/sandy, you can turn the skull around by walking it on the tusks
and then loading it so the back of the skull is loaded first. This means the tips of
the tusks point upwards instead of downwards and so stand less chance of being
damaged during transportation back to the skinning sheds.
Skinning and Caping
Learning beforehand how to skin an animal is very important. Taking the skin off
the shoulders and flanks isn‟t too difficult, but you also need to learn how to take
the face off, invert the ears, split the eyelids and lips and how to remove leg skin,
meat, bone and muscle from the hooves.
If you have plenty of hunting opportunities in your home country, this should be
relatively easy as you can practice at home, but if you have limited hunting
opportunities, you need to find another way to get this experience.
You might like to consider such options as visiting a local abattoir to buy an
occasional sheep‟s or cow‟s head and bottom part of the leg and hoof and/or
trying to spend some time in a hunting camp as an unpaid volunteer. Useful tools
to assist with this are an ordinary skinning knife, a small lock knife or a scalpel,
wire brush and a few of those blunt wooden shaping tools used by potters.
You might also like to invest US$35 of your hard-earned money in buying a copy
of the DVD Hunting Trophies made by taxidermist Kruger Human. This DVD
covers every aspect of taxidermy that a Professional Hunter will ever need to
know about and is truly superb. It‟s a 2 CD set and has a play length of about 90
minutes and the knowledge you gain from it will be priceless both at the PH
Training Academy and in your later life as a Professional Hunter. You can buy
this from our website at www.shakariconnection.com
Trophy Treatment and Dispatching
Although you will have a full time skinner, as with all parts of the hunting
operation, ultimate responsibility lies with you and you need to become a regular
visitor to the skinning shed to check on the standard of work being done there
and the storage conditions of salted trophies and cleaned skulls.
It‟s important to use fresh, good-quality salt on the skins and not to recycle salt.
Botswana salt is notoriously bad and if you hunt in that country, either import a
few sacks of salt from South Africa and/or make a point of checking the salt in
the skinning shed on a regular basis. Don‟t be afraid of throwing sub-standard
salt away and always remember that the client has paid an immense amount of
money for his safari and the costs of a few additional sacks of salt are
infinitesimal when compared to the cost of his hunt and the memories his
trophies are going to give him.
Most taxidermists, including Kruger Human will tell you to avoid iodated salt at all
costs because it makes the skins go rubbery. My recommendation is to follow
that advice, especially with fragile skins such as the small antelope and cats.
Before any and all items go into the storage area you must ensure that every
item is correctly tagged and labelled with the trophy item, clients name and the
delivery address. Also fill in the taxidermy register as you go along. Do not under
any circumstances leave the register until the end of the hunt.
When the trophies are ready for dispatch from the hunting camp and delivery to a
local taxidermist for either dip and pack or full taxidermy, they must be carefully
packed into the truck in such a way as they will not be damaged in transit. Under
no circumstances, pack them on top of or cover them over with plastic sheeting
of any kind as it may easily cause the skins to sweat, warm and slip hair. If you
need to cover them with anything, use canvas sheeting or cardboard.
18) Bow Hunting
Types of Bows and Terminology
Bow hunting tends to be a specialist part of Professional Hunting but it is a part of
it and in some African countries even the biggest of animals may be hunted with
a bow. Before the hunter is let loose on any of the „big „n uglies‟ of African game,
I suggest you ensure he can pull at least 60 lbs and preferably 70 lbs. Also bear
in mind that some African countries have minimum draws for certain species and
as with all game laws, you need to bear them in mind.
Hunting Methods & Use of Blinds
Many of the rules that apply to hunting leopard from a blind also apply to bow
hunting blinds. Unless you‟re using a permanent blind you need to place and
build your blind in as unobtrusive way as possible and don‟t forget to make the
walls good and thick and to put the roof on it, because if you don‟t, the animals
will see probably right through it and will give you a very wide berth.
19) Bird Hunting
Shotgun Types and Game Birds
You should already know the basics of shotgun types so I won‟t waste your time
writing about those as such. You do need to know that in most parts of Africa, all
pump action, auto and semi auto are not permitted to be used for hunting. As a
rule of thumb, heavy shot and tight chokes are the order of the day for African
wing shooting.
Hunting Methods and Use of Dogs
African wing shooting is a lot of fun but very different to other wing shooting I‟ve
ever seen or done elsewhere in the world. It can vary from shooting doves over
sunflowers to flighting ducks and geese, to shooting over pointers to driving or
walking up guinea fowl. I appreciate that all those things sound fairly familiar to
you but Africa being Africa, puts a new twist on most things.
All the birds need a good deal heavier shot than you‟ll be used to, decoys may be
anything up to six foot high and in some places, beating teams may be anything
up to several hundred strong.
Nothing attracts local Africans more than heavy gunfire from a wing shooting
party (except perhaps an elephant hunting party) and don‟t be at all surprised if
after a half hour‟s shooting or so, you see every bush has a little African child in it
who is looking out for fallen birds he can take home for dinner. Both you and your
clients need to bear that in mind when considering the safety aspects of your
shooting!
Most of the gun-dog breeds you see in the western world are also in use in Africa
but the most common are the German HPR (hunt, point & retrieve) breeds.
Generally speaking, it‟s relatively unusual to see these dogs trained to the whistle
and hand signals as is done in the US, UK & Europe.
In many true wilderness areas, dogs and other domestic animals are not
permitted and the locals usually take the place of dogs in these circumstances. If
you do have dogs you need to make a point of giving them plenty of water
because of the heat and also bear in mind the dangers of snakes and predatory
animals that like to eat them. Two of the keenest dog eaters are baboons and
leopards.
So all in all, it‟s well worth paying close attention to this part of the course and not
approaching the subject with your own western pre-conceptions.
20) Liaison & Relations with Clients
Information to Clients
You will often meet the client face to face for the first time in a hotel or in camp
and it‟s vital that right from the start you give him all the information he may
possibly need to know. Make a point of introducing him to everyone in camp and
explaining their roles. Explain the safety rules and hunting methods, discuss
issues such as follow up shots and trophy expectations and ask if he has any
questions. Never assume anything with a new client except that he needs to be
told everything.
Clients vary immensely when in the field. Some have no interest in the bush
around them and others want to know the name and gestation period of every
animal and the name and medicinal uses of every tree they see. You therefore
need to know that information. If they don‟t want to know it, you should try not to
force feed it to them but if they do want to know, then you must be able to tell it to
them. If you don‟t know the answer to their question, make a point of looking it up
when you get back to camp and then give them the answer over dinner or at any
convenient moment. I personally have a deep interest in the bush and it‟s always
an immense pleasure for me to hunt with a client who is also curious about these
things.
Administrative Information & Airport Procedures
These will obviously vary from country to country and each country will change
their rules from time to time so you need to keep on top of current rules as your
career progresses.
You must know all information pertaining to your client regarding firearm import
regulations, hunting licences, trophy documentation and export and PH registers.
At the airport, both for client arrival and departure, there is no excuse for turning
up late and not looking smart. There is nothing worse than a client having to wait
around for his PH to arrive and meet him.
If you‟re marketing your own African hunting safaris, you‟ll be doing a great deal
of pre-arrival communications with the clients and as part of that, you‟ll need to
be able to give them the relevant up to date information on such things as the
requirements of the individual airline and international requirements for travel
with firearms, firearm import/export regulations and where to get up to date
application forms.
This can be a real nightmare because some airlines and indeed Governments
change their requirement on an almost weekly basis. Therefore anything I write
now might easily be out of date by the time you read this, so the key is to check
and check again.
Don‟t panic though. We have made sure that you can obtain all current
regulations and download all application forms for the major African hunting
countries at www.shakariconnection.com. There‟s no charge for this service and
we do our very best to keep everything up to date and current.
Planning a Hunt
This section of the course is vitally important but sadly, one of the most neglected
aspects of the safari business. It‟s very common to bump into confused hunters
at airports and the reason they are confused is usually because someone in the
safari business has either given them the wrong information or no information at
all on some vital part of their trip.
This process will start with the first tentative enquiry from a potential client and
right from the start, you must never misrepresent yourself or your operation. If
you do, it will eventually become apparent to the client and you instantly have a
reputation as a dodgy dealer that might take years to lose…… if you ever do!
As you want the client to not only book with you once but repeatedly and of
course, simply because it‟s the right thing to do, you must always ensure you
stick to the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth.
The first thing you need to do when you start the planning process is remember
that the client is spending an immense amount of money and you need to get it
absolutely right for him. Ask him for a desired trophy list with quarry priority and
trophy expectations. If for example, he only wants top ten trophy book animals,
you‟re usual areas might not be suitable and then you need to make suggestions
for other areas. Also make a point of asking about his physical limitations. If for
example, he‟s 75 years old with dodgy hips, a chronic heart condition and only
one lung, you don‟t want to take him hunting in the mountains. You must also
enquire about his camp preferences. Camps vary from the very basic tents with
long drop toilets and tin plates and cups to Persian carpets on the floor and silver
service dining. Giving the clients the camp standards they expect is equally
important as the other aspects of the safari.
The next step is to plan the client‟s travel itinerary. If you know the client and you
know he‟s an old Africa hand, you can assume he already knows the basics, but
if not, you must assume they know nothing about African hunting safaris or
anything related to African safaris, including air travel. It‟s always better to give
them too much information rather than too little and don‟t forget to give them the
relevant information about such things as travel with firearms, inoculations and
suggested anti-malaria prophylaxis.
When planning the safari, it‟s wise to include the travel schedule they need to
follow, so you must check flight schedules and while you‟re about, check that the
particular aircraft type that will be flying on that particular day, can take firearms.
As a rule of thumb, commercial aircraft that allow access between passenger
cabin and baggage hold whilst in flight do not allow firearms to be carried. If you
are going to have someone meet the clients at the airport (and you probably will)
make sure they have full details of the client, including a recent photograph of
him, so they know what he looks like.
You now need to start working on the nuts and bolts of the safari. You need to
ensure you will have suitable vehicles, staff and general infrastructure and then
you need to recheck everything. Make a point of staying in regular touch with the
client, even if you don‟t have much to tell him. It‟s important that you don‟t let him
think you‟re ignoring him.
It must be said that many of the people who can afford an African hunting safari
are very busy people and some don‟t have the time or inclination to read
everything you send them. Consequently, I‟d recommend you keep a hard copy
of every email and piece of information you send them. That way, if something
goes wrong and they complain that you didn‟t tell them something. All you have
to do is whip out the right piece of paper and show it to them.
21) Client Relations - Integrity, Honesty, Business Ethics and
Conduct of a Host
Client relations and communications are one of the most important aspects of
operating in the African Professional Hunting industry and I advise you to pay
very close attention to this subject. Veer from the truthful and honest at all and I
guarantee that sooner or later, it will come back to haunt you.
It‟s not at all uncommon for client and Professional hunter to become good
friends on a safari and that‟s one of the best parts of the job. However, you need
to remember that any confidences the client chooses to share with you must
remain just that, confidences. Never gossip about a client, especially to another
client.
Another important part of the job is playing host. Never get drunk in front of a
client, never make a risqué comment to a client‟s female companions, let alone
make a pass at them and in the evenings, ensure they want for nothing. If you
see a glass or a plate becoming empty and the waiter isn‟t around, get up on
your feet and attend to it yourself. If the fire is burning down, go and put a log on
it. In other words, every aspect of every minute of every safari is your ultimate
responsibility.
22) Marketing and Advertising - Outfitting, Brochures and
attending Conventions
This important topic is covered extensively in Chapter 14.
23) Hunting Ethics and Tradition
Local and Foreign
It is vitally important to learn as much about these subjects as you possibly can.
The Europeans are especially big on what happens after the kill and some will be
offended if you do the wrong thing. You also need to make sure all your local
staff is also aware of these peculiarities. One big no-no with many European and
British hunters is to sit on or put your foot up on the dead animal as they feel it
demeans their quarry.
Many Europeans and almost all aristocracy also often have a hunting „hierarchy‟
in that it‟s considered bad form for the son or junior ranking member of the
hunting party to shoot a larger trophy of the same species than his father or a
more senior member of the hunting party.
German hunting traditions are especially complex and start with the morning
greeting of "Weidman's Heil" (Hunter's fortune). When an animal is down, their
tradition is to take the hunters knife and place some of whatever the animal had
been eating and then present it to the hunter. In their own country, German
hunters often blow horns over the slain animal and even have a different tune for
each species. It doesn‟t often happen in Africa but it‟s not unheard of for a group
of German hunters to bring a few horns out with them on safari. If this ever
happens to you, I‟d strongly encourage you to ask them to explain and
demonstrate the tunes for the different species. I‟ve only had that opportunity a
couple of time in my life and I enjoyed it immensely and still remember those
evenings.
Russians and some other former eastern block hunters like to drink a small
vodka toast to the game first thing in the morning. Frankly, the last thing I want to
drink at 0500 hours is vodka, so I usually just do it with a splash of water.
If you‟re unsure of a nation‟s hunting traditions and have a client of that
nationality coming in, I suggest you either research the subject beforehand if you
can and if you can‟t, just ask the client to explain them to you as you sit at the
camp-fire on the first night of his hunt. I guarantee he‟ll be very happy to explain
them to you.
Approaches to Improvement of the Hunt
Always keep an open mind when hunting and never think you know it all. I‟m still
learning even after hunting Africa for over 3 decades.
Also try to involve the hunting client in as many aspects of the hunt as you can.
The vast majority will appreciate not being treated as nothing more than the
„trigger man‟ and often come up with good ideas.
Conduct after the Hunt
Once the animal is down and verified as dead, you need to make a strict point of
treating it with respect. In Tanzania, they have a habit of gently putting a hand on
the animal and saying „pole sana‟ which means „very sorry‟. I don‟t know when I
adopted the practice but when I think about it, I must have been doing the same
thing for many years.
Part of that respect paid to the animal should be to discourage things like putting
feet up on the animal or sitting on it. There‟s also a practical reason - ticks will
bale off of a dead animal and look for a live one and a person sitting on a dead
animal is the ideal target.
Unacceptable Practices
This is closely related to the subject above. You must never allow a situation to
occur where animal or animal parts are treated with disrespect and especially
where a camera is in the vicinity. What might appear funny at one moment, most
certainly won‟t appear quite as funny if the wrong person gets hold of the story or
pictures. If that happens, it can also do immense damage to your reputation in
the industry and cost you business in the long run. Always remember that every
animal, whether live or dead, deserves to be treated with the utmost respect at all
times.
Other unacceptable practices are such things as unethical hunting of any kind.
These include but are not restricted to canned hunting practices. Such things as
allowing the client to shoot animals in the vicinity of the camp and providing a
feeding trough to attract animals to a specific area are all deplorable „hunting‟
practices.
Admittedly there‟s the old saying of „what happens in the bush, stays in the bush‟
but my advice would be to respect that saying but don‟t under any
circumstances, abuse it.
24) Provincial Game Laws and CITES
Hunting Registers, Permits & Licenses
Every job has its fair share of paperwork and African hunting is no different in
that respect. Exact requirements will vary from country to country. If you‟re
working through an outfitter he will usually take care of a lot of it. However, it will
be your responsibility to check such things as whether hunting licenses and
permits are correctly issued and completed.
Most, but not all countries, require the Professional Hunter to maintain a hunting
register and a taxidermy instruction register. Some countries such as South
Africa make it possible for you to buy such registers from PHASA (Professional
Hunters Association of South Africa) whilst others, leave it to you to make your
own.
Most countries that require hunting registers need them to be completed in
quintuplicate with copies for you, the client, the taxidermist, the outfitter and the
game department. I developed my own register (below) for all countries I hunt in
except South Africa (where I use the official one from PHASA).
CITES stands for Confederation of International Trade in
Endangered Species.
The correct way to deal with the import of a CITES I animal trophy is for the client to
obtain his CITES import permit from his country of origin before he comes on safari.
There are various reasons for this. Firstly because that import permit starts the
paper trail for the animal and until a copy of that import permit can be presented to
the game department of the country it will be hunted in, the export permit cannot be
issued. And of course, the longer a salted trophy sits around, the more chance there
is of it being damaged. So the sooner you get it moving, the better.
Another reason for having the import permit beforehand is that if the client waits until
he has taken the animal, someone might have moved the goalposts with respect to
quota and hunting permits as happened with leopards in Namibia in 2009. Any
hunters that waited until they had taken their animal before applying for their import
permit could have then found they were unable to import the trophy because the
country had unexpectedly ceased issuing quota and export permits.
You also need to know that some species fall into different categories in different
countries and also that some countries have a set quota for some species and after
that quota has been filled, the species concerned may then change category.
Therefore it is important that you always know the current CITES regulations,
backwards, forwards and sideways!
An easy source of up to date permit application forms, species listings, quotas and
current information can be found at www.shakariconnection.com
25) Hunt Facilities
Hunting vehicle requirements and maintenance
It will help you if you already know the basics of both gasoline and diesel engine 4x4
vehicle servicing and maintenance and 4x4 driving before you arrive. More on this
important topic in Chapter 13.
Accommodation - Legal Requirements and Norms
Camp standards vary enormously and some countries such as South Africa have
legal minimum standards with which outfitters must comply. Even in true wilderness
area camps, it‟s important to make clients as comfortable as possible and
knowledge of the South African minimum standards can be applied elsewhere in
Africa.
In South Africa the requirements for accommodation are as follows:
A minimum of two rooms or quadrangular tents of which one shall be used as a
bedroom and the other as a sitting and dining room.
The following shall be provided in a room or tent which is used as a bedroom:
One or two beds with inner spring or foam rubber mattresses, each with two clean
sheets and pillows and the number of blankets the client requires.
A non-slip bedside rug in front of every bed and in the case of a tent, a canvas
covering the full floor space of the tent.
A lockable wardrobe with drawers, two chairs, a bedside table, writing table and
waste paper basket.
A washbasin with running cold and hot water available at all times, in the case of a
room and a wash bowl with cold and hot water on demand in the case of a tent.
An electric light or gas lamp.
Sufficient bathing, showering and toilet conveniences shall be provided separately
for clients and staff.
Odourless flush, pit or chemical toilets shall be provided.
All bathing, showering and toilet facilities shall be in a hygienic condition.
The following shall be provided in a room or tent which is as a sitting and dining
room:
A dining table with two chairs.
A dinner wagon or buffet.
An electric light or gas lamp.
Sufficient facilities for washing, drying and ironing of clothes shall be provided at a
separate place.
A sufficient quantity of water fit for human consumption shall be available for
drinking purposes.
Slaughtering and Trophy Facilities Norms and Standards
Required standards for these vary from country to country but the South African
ones are a good standard for which to aim. The basic standards you need to obtain
are good hygiene for the obvious reasons and good organization to ensure there is
no confusion of trophies.
The South African standards stipulate:
Trophies shall be skinned and handled under hygienic conditions at a cool place
away from a hunting camp.
Cross beams from which trophies can be hung as well as shelves on which trophies
can be dried, shall be provided.
Precautions shall be taken to keep dogs, predators and other animals away from
trophies.
All these requirements are very basic and logical and if you apply the same
standards even to the true wilderness areas you will be achieving the necessary
standards.
The only difference in this regard between most southern African areas and wilder
areas such as Tanzania, Mozambique and Uganda is that the former will almost
certainly have cold room facilities for meat storage and the latter will not.
In the case of wilderness areas, the fresh meat for the clients‟ meals will be cut,
refrigerated and used as soon as possible. The staff will also hang meat to dry,
making it into biltong.
26) Catering - Planning and Control
You probably wonder why on earth you need to know this but if your cook gets sick,
drunk or goes walkabout one night and you suddenly need to whip up a decent meal
for some hungry clients with no help, it suddenly becomes very apparent why you
need to know the basics.
Unless you plan to have a camp manager for your entire hunting career, you also
need to know how to keep tabs on supplies and how to plan ahead so you don‟t run
out of any of the necessities. Sometimes in Africa, your nearest supermarket might
easily be a 12 hour drive away!
27) First Aid - Basic Requirements
You might like to sign up for a short first aid course in your country of residence
before you attend the PH course. It won‟t teach you everything you need to know for
the course, but it will help.
28) General Knowledge
Fauna & Fauna
You need a working knowledge of African animal behaviour, distribution and game
management. Also knowledge of foreign animals hunted is required.
You need a general knowledge of southern African trees, grasses and shrubs.
Not only vitally important to your work as a Professional Hunter but also very
interesting in it‟s own right and I guarantee that your mammal, tree and bird books
will go with you on every safari you ever conduct!
South African General Knowledge
You will need to know South African history and the history of hunting, politics,
astronomy, agriculture, tourism.
Although you probably won‟t be operating in South Africa, the nation and its history
have moulded the history and attitudes of the entire continent and if you want to
understand Africa, you need to know and understand these subjects.
CHAPTER 4
The following is an article written by my Australian friend John Wilkes who recently
attended the Goss Professional Hunting Academy.
‘Back to School’
African Professional Hunter Training
By John Wilkes
For many people their impression of the African Professional Hunter or White
Hunter, as they were known in former days, was forged in the flames of Hollywood
1950s blockbusters such as “Mogambo” “The Macomber Affair” and “King
Solomon‟s Mines.” Add to these, subsequent films such as “Out of Africa” and the
entertaining but inaccurate (in so many senses) “Ghost and the Darkness”. Throw in
the writings of Ruark et al and we have a potent and romantic brew.
All have contributed to the myth of the hairy-chested, leopard hat band wearing,
steel eyed iconoclast who, carrying a lonely secret is driven to tackle the wilds of
Africa, careless of the risk from savage beast and restless natives.
Well it‟s a nice story, I guess, but like so much portrayed in fiction, rather far from the
truth. Now pass me the grease gun, find the tent pegs, fix the toilet, check the
kitchen supplies and pacify our belligerent client, fill in a myriad of Government
forms and don‟t forget that waterbuck that needs skinning and I‟ll tell you the truth.
In reality African PHs are as varied as people in any other walk of life. True most are
Africa born, the majority male. But, like all generalisations that‟s where it ends.
There are PHs across Africa of every race, creed and colour. Ages range from late
teens to past seventy years (African hunting legend Harry Selby was well into his
eighties when he retired). The sun bronzed, strapping bush veldt born Adonis is
certainly there but so is the elegant Scandinavian heiress, the one time American
entrepreneur, the gregarious and witty Englishman, the former engineer from
France, the solid Afrikaner farmer and the list goes on. A friend of mine and a total
professional is a petite, elegant lady of German extraction, a qualified scientist,
gifted linguist and recent winner of the annual shooting match held by the
Professional Hunters Association of South Africa. By her own admission, clients
sometimes look a little taken aback when introduced to their PH, but they soon find
out that Kipling was right when he said “the female of the species must be deadlier
than the male”.
The business of Professional Hunting is just that, a business, and a damned serious
one at that. Those who think it is merely a matter of lurching across the veldt in a
stripped down Land Rover and shooting all day in the company of a wealthy and
adoring client are in for something of a surprise. Likewise anyone who thinks they
are going to become financially wealthy should think again.
So how does one start out as PH? Well one of the most effective ways is to attend a
South African Professional Hunter Training School. There are a number of these
across South Africa, each one registered with their provincial game departments as
training facilities. Courses run for twelve days and cost between US$1000 US$1500 and are generally limited to ten to twelve students.
Before even considering attending, considerable research, experience and prior
study is required. All animals are equal, but some are more equal than others” said
George Orwell and as it was true of his characters in “Animal Farm” so is it of most
things in life, including training establishments. It is highly recommended that you
check out the schools to find not only what will suit you, but one that has an
impeccable track record. You will be expected to have a sound knowledge of
ballistics, firearm handling and safety, trophy preparation and care, a general
knowledge of mammal and bird species, botany, game management and African
politics and culture. The minimum prior learning also includes the relevant Game
Ordinance, firearm laws, CITIES provisions and the SCI and Rowland Ward
minimum measurements and methods. Caping of heads should also be practised
prior to the course. If you don‟t know a reedbuck from a rondavel you are going to
struggle, waste your money, your time and everybody else‟s. The South African
Government will not permit a non-citizen or non-permanent resident to hold a
licence in South Africa. However this does not preclude you from attending the
courses and becoming certified and working elsewhere subject to varying laws in
other African nations. Currently the South African Government is looking into a
revision of the system which will extend the course duration (possibly to one
hundred and fifty days) and at an obviously greater cost. Opinion is divided as to the
merits of this revision and if and when it will occur.
A word of warning; things change quickly in Africa and sometimes in ways that
outsiders will find hard to fathom. Going down this path is not for the uncommitted or
unwary. I suggest that anyone interested should become an ardent “Africa Watcher”
not just in terms of hunting and related activities but politics and current events.
Among the many excellent resources available now I highly recommend
www.shakariconnection.com as a good information resource. It contains a wealth of
knowledge for prospective PH, client and Africa enthusiast. There are a number of
non-Africa born PHs operating across the continent, it is not easy, but it can be
done.
So what does a PH training school entail? In late 2009 I attended the Goss Estates
Professional Hunter Academy, near Pongola in Kwa-Zulu Natal run by the
redoubtable Ian Goss. From his time as an apprentice PH in Botswana and the
former Rhodesia in the mid/late 1960s, Ian has been committed to and remains
deeply passionate about his industry, his country, its wildlife and people.
Mr Ian Goss & student examining the quality of tanned skins. Photograph: John Wilkes
A former president of the Professional Hunters Association of South Africa (PHASA)
(2002-2003) and twice vice president and now a member of the PHASA disciplinary
committee (“The Dugga Boys”), Ian is the senior examiner and testing team leader
in Kwa-Zulu Natal. Approved by the nine Provincial Game Authorities, he has been
conducting training courses for over twenty years. An “old school” professional he
sets very high standards for himself and his students. This is in no way a „pay and
play‟ situation, the course is composed of a series of modules with ongoing
assessment as per the Game Ordinance. Accommodation was in very comfortable
thatched houses with separate dining and kitchen facilities decorated in traditional
style and overseen by Carol Goss and her superb team of African staff, whose
cooking was superb.
Our days officially commenced with lectures at 7.00am (or as Ian put it “7.00am by
my watch” so you had to be on your toes). We soon realised that to get in study time
we needed to be up way earlier! Breakfast at 8.00 am back to the classroom. Dinner
was at 6.00pm and then it was back to the study. That is if you wanted to pass. As
mentioned, the marking is based on ongoing practical assessment and two final
written exams all with a seventy percent pass mark.
Mr Ian Goss. Chief Examiner of Professional Hunters Kwa-Zulu Natal.
Photograph: John Wilkes
Photograph: John Wilkes
The practicals included a shooting test comprised of 100 yard three shot test off
sticks, a timed fifteen second thirty metre, ten metre, twenty metre speed shoot, all
at ten centimetre targets. This is followed by a bore sighting exercise, where ones
scope is “adjusted” by the examiner and the student has three rounds to get it back
on zero. Firearms safety is constantly assessed and breaches are definite causes of
failure.
A caping and skinning assessment is conducted and students must cape a head
and prepare a hoof and lower leg. The skins must be prepared to a standard where
they would not only be acceptable to the client and his taxidermist but also meet
export requirements.
Other practicals include trophy photography, camp logistics, blind building, vehicles,
anatomy/shot placement and trophy measuring and judging. For those not familiar
with the African species (and even for some who are!) this is probably one of the
more taxing modules. For the examination twelve different heads are held up at a
distance of one hundred metres for thirty seconds each. Students are required to
identify the species, the sex, give the SCI and Rowland Ward minimums and
estimation on the score by both systems for the trophy. The heads are then taken to
the skinning shed and measuring conducted before the examiners by each student.
Each afternoon the students are dropped out in the bush in pairs, where they must
practice for their hunt practical. One student takes the role of PH the other of client
and they then swap over halfway through. On return to camp each must submit a
written report. The actual exam is conducted by a testing team composed of
professional hunters. Each PH places his name on a slip of paper into a hat and
students draw their examiner. They must then treat that examiner as a client and
guide him into position on an animal. No animals are taken during this exercise the
object being to test stalking, tracking, bush skills and client handling. Much to the
amusement of my classmates I drew Ian! Luckily for me all went well and “client”
and PH survived the day.
Africa can be a dangerous place and once away from major cities is not exactly over
serviced with medical facilities. Our first aid component certainly went outside the
realms of anything one might learn in Australia and for good reason; Malaria is still
common in many countries along with Yellow fever and various other assorted
nasties. HIV/AIDS is a very real part of African life and so the greatest care must be
taken where human blood or other excretions or secretions are concerned. On this
point a senior first aid certificate should be a minimum for anyone contemplating
being a PH as you are not only responsible for your client but your safari team as
well.
Looking after the client and his requirements in the veldt, in camp and to and from
the safari, is the name of the game. This is no place for ill mannered louts, want-tobe-tough guys, primadonnas, the socially ungifted or emotionally unintelligent. To
this end each day a student is rostered as duty PH and must in addition to his
course work ensure that the others and lecture staff and guests are looked after at
mealtimes and supplied with their needs during the day all under the eagle of eye of
Ian and his staff.
The written examination conducted on the final day consists of two papers, one
being on the Game Ordinance (statute) for a given province and the other a general
paper that tests knowledge on everything from CITIES provisions, firearms law to
the feeding habits of antelope, ballistics, botany and bird life.
A PH training course does not, in any sense, make you a top notch Professional
Hunter.
After over twenty years as a PH Steve Robinson of Kuduland Safaris (Africa) Ltd
recounts his graduation from Ian‟s school and what he cites as the most valuable
advice he has had in the business.
“Steve, don‟t for a moment think I‟ve made you into a good Professional Hunter. I
haven‟t, but I have put you on the path to becoming one and as you take your first
steps down that road, you‟ll learn something new every day.” Steve states that this
rings as true today as then and that he has never regretted a moment.
Perhaps the writer Peter Hathaway Capstick put it best when he said:
“WANTED: Young active man interested in low and infrequent pay to play bwana in remote
bush veldt. Must be proven raconteur and socialite without liver trouble, expert card player,
bartender, caterer, barbecuer, philosopher, African historian. Experience in sanitary
engineering, local architecture, labour relations, navigation, medicine and pharmacology,
botany, zoology, ichthyology, mineralogy, entomology, butcher, taxidermist, dietetics, optics,
photography and radio navigation essential. Applicant should speak at least two black
African languages fluently as well as one other modern European tongue. A knowledge of
mechanics, driving, gunsmithing, toxicology, ballistics, tracking, marksmanship, hand
loading, and experience as a bodyguard are required. Benefits are a twenty four hour day,
unlimited fresh air, including rain, sun and dust, no medical dental or life insurance and no
retirement benefits. Applicant should supply his own rifles. Vehicles on a per diem basis.
The duties of a Professional Hunter on safari are essentially the same as those of a ship's
captain and with the same responsibilities. He's everything from the social director to the
ship's surgeon, if needed. He's the author of the strategy of the hunting plan, but also the
tactician as to make each stalk. He keeps the peace among the staff, oversees the food and
drink, translates and interprets, sees that the trophies are properly handled and is shooting
coach, gunsmith, stand up comedian and diplomat any time he is called on to be so. A
Professional Hunter is perhaps best summed up in the observation that he is the social
equal of anybody while on safari, up to and including a duke."
An addendum from Ian Goss, "All of the above implies and demands that every part
of your behaviour has to be highly professional, your skill exceptional, your integrity
and honesty of the highest standard, and your business ethics above reproach."
So, you still want to be a PH?
© John Wilkes 2009
What Capstick forgot to mention....
Peter Hathaway Capstick‟s job description for a Professional Hunter is not an
exaggeration. You need to be pretty expert in a wide variety of different jobs. One
thing he doesn‟t mention in his job description is aviation. If you ever get to hunt a
true wilderness area and I hope you do, you will, from time to time find yourself
having to use charter aircraft.
I‟d strongly recommend that any aspiring Professional Hunter at least learn the
basics of piloting a light aircraft. You don‟t need to get your private pilot‟s licence if
you don‟t want to, but if you know the basics of how to do a pre-flight inspection,
taxi, fly and (most importantly) land a light aircraft, it just might come in very handy
one day.
Once you have those skills, you should always take the co-pilots seat if it‟s vacant.
It‟s always a good move to have that seat occupied by someone who has flight
experience rather than someone who doesn‟t and in an emergency; your help just
might make the difference between life and death.
I‟ve had several occasions over the years when I‟ve had to take the controls of the
aircraft for a period of time to enable the pilot in command to do other things such as
check emergency manuals or try to manually drop a stuck undercarriage.
By the grace of God or a lot of luck, everyone survived this crash. Had the co-pilot‟s seat been
occupied by an experienced flier who knew how to operate toe brakes and rudder, the pile up
may well never have happened. (It should be noted that the author was NOT involved in this
incident!) Selous Game Reserve, Tanzania.
CHAPTER 5
Getting your first Professional Hunting Licence
This is a big challenge but as you will have gathered by now, you need to get used
to big challenges because the world of Professional Hunting really is filled with them.
Your early experiences and behaviour will shape your reputation for the rest of your
hunting career and consequently it‟s highly advisable to only become involved with
reputable companies and Professional Hunters. Mud sticks forever in this industry
and if your early reputation is even slightly tainted by scandal, it will always be with
you.
Before you formally take on the role of a Professional Hunter, you need to bear in
mind that the job is an extremely responsible one. You will be guide and host to
clients from overseas who have paid a lot of money for their safaris and in their eyes
you are, quite rightly expected to deliver the goods in a professional and ethical
manner. However, your role is considerably more than that.
The client‟s life is in your hands every minute of every day of the hunt and things
can go wrong in a heartbeat at any time. You must have the knowledge, experience
and ability to always keep not only the client but the entire hunting party safe.
There‟s an old saying of „you‟re always alone when you face your bull‟ and it‟s
imperative that you have the competency to stay on top of all situations at all times.
Don‟t for a moment think that your role is going to be that of a modern day Stewart
Granger in the movie „King Solomon‟s Mines‟. Nothing could be further from the
truth!
Even with the experience of having attended a PH academy or having gone the
other route, you now need to get practical experience in the field of Professional
Hunting. The way to do that is to go out as an apprentice Professional Hunter or a
second Professional Hunter.
You either need to find a safari company that will let you go along with their clients
and PHs. Or more realistically, find your own clients; book them with a safari
company and you accompany them as an observer but carry your own rifle and
agree that whilst the company‟s PH will conduct the safari, you will follow along in
the back and look, listen and learn.
This practice is called „cover hunting‟ and as you gain experience, you can
take over an ever increasing role in conducting the hunts.
Cover hunting has both good and bad aspects to it. If both you and the
locally licensed PH can co-operate in a professional manner, it can work
perfectly well but if you can‟t, or if the local man wants to take over the safari
completely, it can cause a great deal of friction that really needs to be avoided
(especially in front of the clients).
The nitty gritty of the problem is that whilst you‟re learning the skills of the trade, you
need to learn from the PH whose name is on the hunting licence and in those
respects, he has to be in charge and make the final decisions.
However, as your skills grow, then you will want to take an increasingly leading role
in the hunt but at the same time, you must always appreciate that the penalties for
an error are in his name and not yours.
Having said that, cover hunting is perfectly legitimate and completely acceptable in
most parts of Africa and is practised regularly by many of even the most well-known
and respected PHs.
.
When it comes to reversing the situation and you are the legally appointed
Professional Hunter and someone else is cover hunting on your licence, you need to
watch the other (cover) PH carefully and make your own assessment of how
professional he is. If he walks the walk as well as talks the talk, that‟s fine and you
can just cruise along in the background with your eyes open and your mouth shut
for most parts of the hunt.
If he talks the talk but doesn‟t walk the walk, you first need to have a
discreet word with him and suggest that maybe you play a larger role in
whatever part of the hunt is needed. If you can see he‟s doing something
wrong, especially on a cat hunt, try to make diplomatic suggestions such as „how
about trying this, because I reckon it might work out rather well.
If you‟re hunting an area such as Tanzania that has legally defined trophy
minimums, you need to watch him very carefully indeed when hunting the key
species. If he lets the client shoot a trophy that is below the minimum standard or
contravenes the game laws in other ways (such as the animal is the wrong sex), the
black mark and the penalties, (which can be anything up to fine of 3 times the trophy
fee, confiscation of the trophies and suspension or permanent revocation of the
Professional Hunter‟s licence) are applied to you and not to him. My advice would
be that you agree beforehand that you and not he will have the final say in such
issues.
Most companies will expect you to make at least some financial contribution to your
keep and/or may expect you to pay the normal non-hunting observer rate on these
occasions. So unless you can manage to book big hunting parties so that your
commission at least pays all your expenses, you need to get used to the fact that
this part of your career may cost you money or at the very least, not make you any. I
suggest you try to look at it as a loss leader and that you‟ll make the money back
later in your career and once you‟ve got the experience, you can‟t lose it! The more
hunts you can do on this basis, the better.
You should make a point of taking as many photographs of as many (hunted)
animals as you can with both yourself and the client together in the frame. Also ask
every client, PH and Safari Company you work with to give you written references
as to your performance and professionalism during the hunt.
You‟ll start this exercise with plains game hunting and then move onto dangerous
game hunting. I bet you‟re thinking that this part of the exercise is difficult, expensive
and time consuming? You‟re right, it is, but nevertheless that‟s what you have to do
and believe me, it‟s not impossible! If you‟re finding it impossible, the truth is that
you‟re not trying hard enough.
When you have sufficient experience, photographs and references, you can
consider applying for your first PH licence. Every African country has its own criteria
for issuing PH licenses to non-residents. Some will ask for a previously issued
Professional Hunting licence from elsewhere in Africa and all will ask for evidence of
previous experience. Hence all those photographs and references you have so
painstakingly collected. The more you have, the more inclined they will be to grant
your initial licence and of course, once you have your first one, you can then go
back to apply to those countries that require you to already have a Professional
Hunting licence from another African country.
As mentioned previously, African countries change their rules from time to time so if
I named countries now as good for your first PH licence, they might well have
changed the rules by the time you are ready to apply. When that time arrives, you
will probably have developed your own contacts and intelligence network that will tell
you which countries are most suitable for your needs.
If you do need advice when that time comes, feel free to contact me at
[email protected] and I‟ll do my best to be of help with relevant advice. For
what it‟s worth, at the time of writing the countries that are most likely to permit this
route to the non-resident aspiring Professional Hunters are Mozambique, Tanzania
and the newly-opened Uganda. All of these countries demand what might be
described as very much „big boy‟s hunting‟ and I strongly recommend you don‟t
even consider operating in these areas unless and until you truly have the
experience and ability to operate safely, confidently and competently.
In the case of Tanzania for example, you are required to sit a written exam (based
on the Tanzanian Tourist Hunting Regulations) and then attend an intensive
interview with a board of examiners made up of senior game department staff and/or
senior Professional Hunters and outfitters from the region. Other requirements are
photographic proof of your African dangerous game hunting experience, 3 written
references from PHs who operate inside Tanzania, 3 more from PHs who operate
outside Tanzania and 6 written references from clients with whom you have hunted
African dangerous game. Hence all those references you have so carefully
collected.
There are also fees to be paid when getting your first Tanzanian PH licence and for
annual renewal thereafter. Total cost is currently approximately US$6000 per year
including a temporary work permit.
The good news is that costs for PH licensing in Mozambique, Uganda and most
other African countries are generally considerably less at just a few hundred US
dollars per year. At the time of writing, Uganda is charging US$1500 per year.
You should bear in mind that, although it‟s usually denied, most of the senior game
department staff throughout Africa know each other and are in regular
communication. Therefore, whether you know it or like it, or not, your reputation will
always precede you. If you build a good reputation, you will find things such as the
issuing of licenses, permits and game dept co-operation considerably easier than if
you get yourself a bad reputation. If you get yourself a really bad reputation, you‟ll
almost be deafened by the noise of doors slamming in your face!
Every Professional Hunter owes it to himself to hunt the Selous Game Reserve at
least once in his life and I‟d encourage you to try to get there sometime but until you
manage to get up there, here‟s an article on the subject…….
Hunting the Selous Game Reserve
The Selous Game Reserve is a massive 5 million acres in extent and has a further 2
million acres of buffer zone surrounding it. The reserve supports the largest
populations of African game animals in one reserve anywhere on the continent – At
the last count, the figures were: 30,000 elephants, 200,000 Cape buffalo and 80,000
wildebeest and significant populations of many other species of African mammals.
Although there are a very few exceptions, the buffer zones tend to hold far fewer
head of game per square kilometre than the Selous Reserve proper. This is mostly
due to the fact that unlike the Selous itself, the buffer zones permit human habitation
and therefore suffer from a degree of poaching – mostly subsistence poaching. The
Selous is the largest game reserve in the world is entirely unfenced and can be
classified as one of the very few remaining pristine true wilderness areas in
existence.
The reserve is split into approximately 40 hunting concessions and leased on five
year terms, to a variety of safari companies. These concession blocks are labelled
by letters and numbers. The letter(s) refers to the first letter(s) of the name(s) of the
river boundaries and the number refers to the exact location. For example, K2 refers
to the second concession on the Kilombero River. If the area is referred to by a
name such as Gonabisi it is a buffer zone and not part of the Selous Reserve. There
are no exceptions to this rule.
In order to protect this pristine environment and its wildlife, the Tanzanian Game
Department doesn‟t make the hunting experience cheap for the client. The presence
of hunters has a low negative impact on the environment and expensive
Government fees provide a consequent high financial income, which is the reverse
of the photographic tourist situation. The Tanzanian Game Department offer a
selection of 10, 16 and 21 day licences. Each licence allows the named hunter to
take a specific number of specified animals and the longer the licence, the more
animals and species are allowed to be hunted. It‟s also possible to hunt additional
days on any licence. For example, a 21 day licence may be extended to 28 days if
the client wishes.
The Game Department ensure the well being of the reserve and it‟s game
populations by limiting the number of animals taken by means of the licensing
system and strict quotas on all the key species. Thus with a few exceptions, each
area is only allowed an annual quota of 4 Lions, 4 Leopards and 4 Elephants. They
also strictly enforce defined trophy minimums for these same key species. The
various game acts forbid the taking of females and young of any and all species,
although they do cut the PHs some slack with crocodile and hyena which cannot be
visually sexed. There is no way other than in defence of human life that a hunter
may take an animal that is not specified on his hunting licence. Even then, you‟d
better be sure you can prove your actions were justified.
There are no permanent buildings or human habitation allowed in the Selous itself
and at the end of the hunting season every area must be vacated by the
leaseholders and all traces of human habitation removed. Accommodation is in
what‟s generally referred to as „traditional east African‟ tents. This means large
canvas tents usually equipped with twin single beds, wardrobes, safari chairs and
en-suite bathrooms containing toilet, basin and shower. The en-suite bathrooms are
not just there for the hunter‟s convenience, they‟re there to keep him or her safe as
well. The tents themselves are usually insect proof with mesh windows and
equipped with cans of fly killer. Mains electricity at 240 volts 50 hertz is provided by
a generator. Plug fittings are of the square 13 amp variety such as found in the UK.
Daytime temperatures can easily hit the mid to high thirties centigrade (100 degrees
Fahrenheit plus) and humidity is usually very high. The same game conservation
acts forbid the growing of any non- indigenous plants, so all fruit and vegetables
have to be flown in by charter planes or bought in by vehicle. The camps are staffed
by a multitude of highly competent Tanzanians. These staff consists of trackers,
gunbearers, cooks, laundry staff, hot water carriers, mechanics, skinners night
watchmen, tent staff, waiters and general workers.
Selous camp dining. Photograph: Steve Robinson
Typical Selous Tented Accommodation. Photograph: Steve Robinson
„Standard issue‟ hunting camps are designed to be extremely comfortable and
functional with excellent cuisine and service. For those clients (or their partners) who
prefer to live in the lap of pampered luxury complete with Persian carpets and haute
cuisine dining, these options are also available – at a price and usually only on 21
day licences. It cannot be denied that these top quality hunting safari camps are an
expensive option, but this is justified by the added luxury and style of camp and by
the fact that although the safari company pays for the entire Government quota, they
habitually limit the number of animals taken in these areas to well below that
Government quota and thus maintain an even higher trophy quality than elsewhere
in the Selous. They also pay a much higher percentage of Community Development
Fee than usual in these areas.
Luxury Selous Dining
The terrain in the Selous varies from mountainous to rolling hills and is generally
thickly wooded with a variety of predominantly acacia and miombo trees.
Interspersed with this are areas of high grassland, mixed with water/mud holes,
rivers and streams. Other than the hunting safari company and Game Department
staff, there is no human habitation allowed in the Selous and no permanent human
habitation whatsoever.
Tanzania really is the finest African destination for dangerous game hunting and, as
an example, has more cape buffalo than all the other southern and east African
countries combined. It‟s also fortunate to be host to species in the northern areas
such as gerenuk, lesser kudu, fringe eared oryx and the Thompson‟s and Grant‟s
gazelle. With very few exceptions, the Professional Hunters who operate in
Tanzania are extremely good at what they do – if you book a hunt in Tanzania, you‟ll
almost certainly be hunting with some of the most competent, experienced and
consistently successful Professional Hunters in the industry
The Selous Game Reserve has the largest single Cape buffalo population anywhere
in Africa and as there are absolutely no fences of any kind, the game populations
are free to follow the most recent rains and the best grazing. There is no human
interference or intervention permitted whatsoever to attract game to a particular
area. The hunting season runs from July 1st to 31st March and the peak is around
September, October and November. The long rains usually arrive around the end of
November and consequently most safari companies try to vacate the Selous by
then.
Your hunting team will usually consist of an experienced 4x4 driver and a
Government game guard sitting up front, the hunting client(s) and Professional
Hunter sitting in the hunting seat on the back of the truck and two or three
trackers/gun bearers in the back of the truck.
The hunting day will usually start before first light and you‟ll always take a „chop box‟
with you so that you can have lunch in the bush if necessary to ensure you don‟t
waste any valuable hunting time. You‟ll also have a cool box of cold drinks on board
and water bottles for any long walks. You‟ll usually arrive back in camp around 7 or
8 pm for showers, drinks and dinner.
Tanzania has a tradition of „kabubi‟ when an elephant, lion or leopard is taken.
When the client takes one of these species, the vehicle will stop a mile or so from
camp and the hunting team will decorate the vehicle with freshly cut branches and
the client with about a mile of toilet paper or whatever else is handy around his
head, waist and shoulders. Other branches will be cut for the hunting staff to wave
about. Then the vehicle moves off again.
When two or three hundred yards from camp, the vehicle stops again, the client or
PH will fire a volley of shots and then the vehicle moves off again but with flashing
lights and tooting horns. At this point the hunting team all start to sing the KABUBE!
Song, which translated, tells the story of how the animal was shot, how big he is and
who shot him.
As the vehicle nears camp, all the staff rush out to join in the singing and partying
and when the vehicle reaches camp, the client is lifted out onto the staff‟s shoulders
(if he‟s light enough) and carried around the camp.
That‟s just the beginning of the party. After this, everyone in camp gets a drink or
two (soft drinks for the Muslims and beer for everyone else) and the party continues
well into the night.
It‟s also not unusual for the client to pass a few dollars of luck money out to every
staff member and for a celebratory cake to appear in many camps.
CHAPTER 6
Hunting Legalities
Professional Hunting registers and CITES hunting requirements have been
addressed in „Provincial Game Laws and CITES‟ section of the training syllabus in
Chapter 3. There are a just a few further legal topics a Professional Hunter should
be aware of……
US Fish & Wildlife Services
This is the organization that issues CITES import permits for the USA and they are a
rule unto themselves. It is imperative that you understand their rules as well as
CITES if you expect to have American clients.
An example of how awkward USF&WS can be is their refusal to recognise perfectly
legitimate CITES quota of elephant products from Mozambique. Their excuse is that
they don‟t consider Mozambique to have a properly organised elephant
management plan and therefore will not permit any Mozambican elephant products.
This policy has been in place since 1989 when the original trade ban was instigated
and to date, USF&WS show no sign whatsoever of softening that attitude. John
Jackson of Conservation Force has been fighting USF&WS in the American courts
for many years over this issue and I dearly hope that he‟ll eventually manage to win.
– I won‟t hold my breath on that though!
Lacey Act & Trespass
In the old days, the safari business was to some extent a fairly relaxed and freewheeling industry. Hunting parties could roam widely during their hunting. However,
those days are now well and truly over and this chapter would not be complete
without looking at the issue of trespass and its deeper implications.
If you‟re hunting in a fenced area, no matter how large it is, the boundaries are
obvious. Even if you are not 100% sure of the borders, your trackers will be, so it‟s
highly unlikely you can go wrong. If however, you‟re hunting in a true wilderness
area you must be absolutely sure that you never wittingly or unwittingly cross over
into another area or even worse, into another country. If you do, you just might find
that the entire hunting party could be in BIG trouble.
Let me paint you a possible scenario. You‟re hunting in one country with an
American client close to the border of the adjoining country when you see a dream
elephant dozing under a tree just a mile or two away. You think the animal is still on
your side of the border but are not 100% sure. However, there‟s no one around,
you‟re a long way from camp or anywhere else and the client is eager to take a big
tusker. So you decide, to heck with it, even if it is over the border, it‟s only just over
the border and you‟ll be in and out quickly. So you decide to go for it.
The stalk goes well, the client takes a brain shot and the elephant goes straight
down. Handshakes and back slaps all round. Lots of pictures get taken as does the
GPS location for your register and the game scout‟s records. The truck comes
forward, trophies are loaded and away you go back to camp.
Firstly, what would have happened if you had crossed the border and just after the
client dropped Mr. Big Ears, the local game department anti- poaching patrol pitched
up and asked you what you were doing? How would you explain to the client that his
next accommodation was going to be an African jail cell?
Ah you think, that won‟t happen to me, and maybe it doesn‟t. So let‟s assume you
then go back to camp without any problems. The client goes home and in due time,
his trophies are shipped back to his address in the USA.
I bet you think no one has anything to worry about. Well, you‟re wrong. If for any
reason, the location of where the elephant was shot is checked, the client can face a
plethora of charges both at home in the USA and also in at least the two African
countries that were concerned.
The offences committed were:

Exiting one African country with firearms without passing through passport
control or Customs.

Entering another African country with firearms without passing through
passport control or Customs.

Shooting a CITES animal without a permit from the country it was in at the
time.

Hunting without a licence in the country in which the elephant was shot.

Hunting with an unlicensed Professional Hunter in which the elephant was
shot.

Smuggling the trophies of a CITES animal out of the country in which it was
illegally shot.

Smuggling the trophies of a CITES animal into a country in which it was not
shot.

Exiting one African country with firearms without passing through passport
control or Customs.

Entering another African country with firearms without passing through
passport control or Customs.

Fraudulently writing the elephant up as coming from a different country to
where it actually came from.

Fraudulently exporting an illegally shot CITES animal out of an African
country.

Fraudulently importing an illegally shot CITES animal into the USA.
These offences lay both you and the American client open to prosecution in Africa
for firearms, immigration and CITES violations and in addition, the American client
can, and probably will, face prosecution under the Lacey Act. All of which could cost
him many years in a federal jail and immense fines. At best, it will also bar you from
ever entering the USA and at worst, could also put you in a federal jail right
alongside him.
I highly recommend you make a strong point of always knowing exactly where you
are, where your boundaries and borders are and never cross them under any
circumstances whatsoever!
In Africa the international border might be even less evident than this.
Selous Game Reserve, Tanzania. Photograph: Steve Robinson.
CHAPTER 7
Getting Operational
Now that you have your first Professional Hunting licence, you will be faced with the
choice of quite how to operate in your new profession.
It should be noted that in most countries there is a legal difference between
Professional Hunter and Outfitter. Each requires a separate licence from the
Government and my advice to any aspiring PH from overseas is not to get involved
in the licensing issues of becoming a registered outfitter because it really isn‟t worth
all the hassle. It‟s much better just to work through someone who is already an
outfitter and let him deal with all the outfitting paperwork. So let‟s take a closer look
at the options you have to become an operational Professional Hunter.
Your options are:

Get a job as a PH with a safari company as an employee.

Find your own clients, buy hunting time from an outfitter and use his area and
facilities for the duration of the hunt(s).

Work as a freelance contractor.

Invest in your own vehicles and area.
Working as an employee
Your first step should be to update your CV/resume with details both your hunting
and other qualifications and all relevant experiences to date. Then get on the
internet again to research good quality and reputable safari companies that operate
in the country you are now licensed in and apply to them for a position either as a
Professional Hunter or as an apprentice Professional Hunter.
You might also consider joining the Professional Hunter‟s Association of the relevant
country and placing an ad in their magazine asking for work.
Don‟t expect to get rich as an employee. Most safari companies currently pay their
PHs something in the region of US$100–US$300 per day depending on where and
what you‟re hunting, your experience, ability, track record and reputation. They also
usually only pay you for the days you‟re actually hunting. A top-ranking PH with lots
of experience will find himself earning anything up to US$500 per day but usually
only when he‟s working.
Remember that even if you offer to work as an apprentice PH for your keep and tips
only (and it‟s not unheard of at first!), it still costs the safari company a great deal of
money to keep you in camp, feed and train you. Your ability and past experiences
are both vital and the competition for these jobs is always very stiff.
Freelancing
It won‟t happen much at first but as you gain experience and reputation and
especially if you become successful in a specialist species such as the cats, you
may well be approached by safari companies to conduct those types of hunt on a
freelance basis.
You‟ll be asked to name a price for which you‟re willing to work and some
negotiation may take place on that but only you can decide what you think your time,
effort and safety is worth. When deciding that, you need to take into consideration
how much you want to do the hunt and also how much it‟s going to cost you to get to
the location and other ancillary costs such as do you need to get yourself a PH
licence to operate in that area/country.
When I‟m asked to conduct a freelance hunt, I always make a point of agreeing
everything with a written contract that details all requirements and getting full
payment up front. I also recommend you only ever freelance for companies you
know to be of good repute because, for example, if you and the client arrive in camp
and find facilities not to be as were described to the client, he may well hold you at
least partially responsible and no matter how much you tell him you‟re just the hired
help, he‟ll still find it hard to make allowance for that. As he will see it, you are the
company representative present and therefore it‟s your fault.
Buying Hunting Time
This is one of the most popular and profitable options for small to medium hunting
safari companies and is very popular with many PHs. Especially when they have
regular clients who want to continue hunting with him but either want to hunt a
different area for a change of scenery or want to hunt different species.
You go to a safari company or outfitter and agree prices and facilities for you to
bring your clients into his area. He provides you with camp facilities, staff, and
(possibly) hunting vehicle(s). It‟s highly advisable to get exactly what is and what
isn‟t supplied in the cost and the trophy fees prices agreed in writing and preferably
in a formal contract signed by both parties. Only do this with reputable companies
and/or people as this kind of deal with a dodgy set up is never going to give
customer satisfaction – so do your research very carefully!
Reputation is always a great help here. If you‟re known as a fair and honest man
and a good, ethical hunter then the safari company/outfitter will be considerably
more willing to trust and do business with you.
Getting Your Own Hunting Area
This requires a very considerable capital investment. In the countries that permit
private ownership of hunting areas, you either need to buy or take a long term lease,
buy, equip and maintain vehicles, recruit staff and manage all aspects of the area
and operation yourself. The management of such an operation is a full time job.
In the countries such as Tanzania, Mozambique and many parts of Uganda, that do
not allow private ownership of hunting areas, concessions are leased on a 5 (or so)
year lease and that lease can be revoked at the end of any season if you have not
paid all the Government fees and/or have been found to be in breach of game laws.
Many of these countries will only grant a lease if you have a local partner or are a
permanent resident of the country. One way to get over this is to sub-lease an area
from a local company.
This is obviously more expensive but it does put you in full control of the area, which
means you can run your entire hunting operation yourself. Not an easy thing to do
but it does mean you‟re not reliant on a third party for anything. Realistically, taking
your own area is only practical once you have a great deal of experience in the
industry simply because of the logistics and paperwork involved. The downside is
that is obviously the cost and also you tend to be locked into your own area and you
are unable to take a client elsewhere for a change of scenery or other species on
subsequent hunts.
Tips
However you operate, most, but not all, clients will tip at the end of the hunt. This
can make a considerable difference to your income, especially if you are working as
an employee for a daily wage or no wage at all!
There are some clients that don‟t give any tips at all, simply because it‟s not in their
national culture to do so. Some will tip just a small gift such as a bottle of whisky or a
camera. Others will give one or two hundred dollars a day, and a very few,
considerably more. My advice would be never to take a tip of any kind for granted. If
a tip is given, treat it as an unexpected bonus and certainly don‟t ever resent
someone for not tipping at all.
CHAPTER 8
Firearms and Ammunition
All hunters love firearms and ammo and these are always two of the most hotly
debated subjects around a camp-fire, in a bar or on an internet forum.
I personally believe in the KISS principle of „Keep It Simple Stupid‟. A Professional
Hunter should always „use enough gun‟. If you‟re hunting in an area that contains
dangerous game or even in an area that has dangerous game nearby, you should
always be carrying a rifle that can deal with whatever might come your way.
It is no excuse at all to say to a grieving relative or the game department, „I knew
there were elephants next door but as this area only has plains game on it, I wasn‟t
expecting to see an elephant here. This is why I only had my 30.06 with me and
couldn‟t stop my client being stamped on‟. That excuse doesn‟t wash with them or
with your own conscience at all.
A professional, Professional Hunter will always carry a rifle that can deal with all
contingencies. He needs a rifle that will stop ANY animal dead in its tracks,
INSTANTLY. He also needs the ability to achieve those stopping shots. As
mentioned earlier, you‟re always alone when you face your bull!
I appreciate there are guys out there that regularly take big animals with small
calibres and I appreciate that most game acts have a minimum calibre for certain
species. I also even appreciate that the .375 H&H magnum has probably killed more
game in Africa (and elsewhere) than all the other calibres put together....... but that
doesn‟t mean a 375 H&H is going to be enough rifle for even a good Professional
Hunter to stop a charging big „n ugly every time.
My personal belief is that proper charge stopping calibres begin at .458 and that,
within reason, bigger is always better. My own charge stopper is a custom built .500
Jeffery made by Sabi Rifles in Nelspruit South Africa. It has a left handed
Weatherby action with 19 inch barrel, extended magazine, shallow vee rearsight,
red fibre-optic foresight and mercury tube recoil arrestor in the stock.
This rifle handles like a skeet shotgun and gets on target very quickly indeed. I‟ve
never thought myself over gunned and I‟d highly recommend a similar specification
of rifle to any would-be Professional Hunter. Whether you choose a push feed or a
controlled feed action is entirely your choice. Many people claim a controlled feed is
the only way to go, but I‟ve been using my push feed rifle for well over 20 years and
have never had a single problem with it and I‟ve never wished I had a CRF rifle.
Author's left-handed .500 Jeffery by Sabi Rifles. Extended magazine built by his old friend and
hunting buddy Peter Lang. Photograph: Steve Robinson.
Red Fibre-optic foresight. Photograph by Steve Robinson
A good double rifle is a thing of beauty and often an object of desire to Professional
Hunters. If you want one and can afford one, I‟d say go for it, but I‟d strongly
recommend you opt for one with a traditional safety catch rather than one with a
cocking lever.
The cocking lever doubles must either be carried in a de-cocked condition or cocked
and ready to shoot with nothing more than a light pressure of the triggers. In my
opinion, unless you can learn to operate the cocking lever incredibly quickly, neither
of these options is a good idea in the African bush, especially when following up
wounded game.
Every hunter will have his own opinions on bullet choice so I see no point in
debating that here, except to say that I personally believe and recommend that a
Professional Hunter will load a good monolithic solid at all times except when
hunting cats. He should also have a few good quality soft points handy in the event
of encountering lions during the hunt.
My own choice is GS Custom flat nosed monolithic solids and Woodleigh soft points
for cats - NOT protected soft points. Incidentally, the Woodleigh SP bullets are also
very useful indeed if you need to perform a coup de grace shot on an anchored
animal such as buffalo or hippo. Get up as close as possible and put the shot in the
back, through the spine and into the heart....... but before you do, make very sure
indeed that he is properly anchored and not just temporarily paralysed!
I don‟t consider any FMJ bullet to be as good a quality as any monolithic solid
because I don‟t believe there‟s such a thing as a bullet made of two separate metals
that will be guaranteed to stay together under all circumstances. I recommend the
use of FMJ bullets be avoided if at all possible.
A useful tip where rifles and Africa is concerned is that you make a point of taping
over the muzzle of your rifle with a small piece of dark coloured insulation tape to
keep dust and nesting insects out of the bore.
L to R - Woodleigh soft point & GS Custom monolithic solids x 2. Photograph: Steve Robinson
The Woodleigh soft point in the above picture was used for a coupé de grace on
Cape buffalo at point blank range. The other two GS Custom monolithic solids were
used for Texas heart shots at fleeing, wounded buffalo. Both bullets penetrated the
entire length of the animal and dropped them like sacks of spuds.
The following images are a selection of reasons why I don’t like
FMJ bullets….
Shattered .375 FMJ bullet. Photograph: John Harris, Southern African Safaris
The shattered .375 FMJ bullet on the above right was from a client‟s rifle that failed
to penetrate an elephant‟s skull.
I hope I‟ve made my point!
One of he most experienced and expert writer on bullet and ballistic related subjects
in the world is my friend and colleague Pierre van der Walt and I twisted his arm to
write a short piece on the subject for this book.
Bullets for Africa
By Pierre van der Walt
The easiest way for me to structure bullet application is to divide bullets into a
number of classes. Insofar as it concerns the modern hunting bullet I categorize
bullets in three groups, namely:
4th Generation Bullets:
Traditional bullets with a lead, nickel and antimony alloy core wrapped in a gilding
metal or zinc jacket. These can be soft points or solids. Typical examples are
Hornady, Sierra and Speer
5th Generation Bullets:
Essentially 4th Generation bullets but with some features to improve terminal
performance. This improvement feature can be a partition, a solid base or core
bonding and these are often referred to as „premium‟ bullets. Typical examples are
North Fork, Swift-A Frame and Trophy Bonded Bear Claw. There also is the
excellent South African Rhino bullet.
6th Generation Bullets:
Bullets made from a single metal or alloy such as copper or marine brass. Quality
examples are those manufactured by Barnes (X-Bullet) and the South African GS
Custom versions.
4TH GENERATION BULLETS
These bullets have worked for generations and are quite suited to smaller African
plains game hunting. By smaller I refer to species lighter than kudu. It does not
mean that these bullets suddenly fail when you shoot something bigger, but large
animals like giraffe have surprisingly thick skins and I am simply erring on the safe
side here.
The advantage of 4th Generation bullets are that they are relatively affordable and
therefore excellent for initial load development, sighting and practice. They also
perform satisfactory at moderate, or so-called Green Band impact velocities. The
Green-Band is an impact velocity range between 2,600 fps and 2,200 fps and if a
4th Generation bullet impacts a soft skinned plains game animal within this velocity
spectrum, it generally performs quite well. The faster impact velocities go above
2,600 fps, the more the 4th Generation bullets tend to fragment or lose weight upon
impact and the sturdier the animal is, the more likely it becomes. The slower they go
below 2,200 fps, the poorer the expansion.
5TH GENERATION BULLETS
As the velocity and kinetic energy crazes took hold, hunters found that 4th
Generation bullets did not hold up at high impact velocity. They did however feel the
need to dispense high doses of kinetic energy in the belief that it equates to killing
power and they wanted high velocity for the convenience of flat trajectories. Africa
lags behind in this as our shooting ranges generally are surprisingly short on most
species. There are a few exceptions of course.
The only way to counter bullet fragmentation at high impact velocities was to make
sturdier bullets. Initially this was only done by making the jackets thicker and it
worked to some extent, but then men like Bill Steigers (Bitterroot) popularized the
fusing of core and jacket through core bonding. Other designers like Fred Barnes
and John Nosler tinkered with the solid base concept. The latter eventually settled
on the partition. Other designers went further and incorporated several features
such as partitions, solid bases and the like with core bonding. The results were
bullets that perform best at considerably higher impact velocities than 4th
Generation bullets. They have to a large extent become the state of the art and the
norm for high velocity cartridges in the African game fields.
A word of caution here. A bullet is not a quality bullet or a premium bullet simply
because it sports any or several of these features. A bullet is only a quality bullet if it
is designed and manufactured to be a quality bullet without these additional
features. Core bonding for example only helps to hold an otherwise quality bullet
together.
There also are misconceptions in that once a bullet contains a premium feature such
as core bonding, it can automatically withstand high impact velocity.
Nothing is further from the truth. A great example is the excellent Australian-made
Woodleigh. These are bonded core bullets, but their design is purpose specific. In
most instances they are shaped to duplicate regulation in double rifles and the
jacket designed to offer maximum expansion at old express rifle velocities. The
bonded core is just a great bonus preventing core and jacket separation. Woodleigh
clearly states the recommended impact velocities for its bullets on its website and it
is a fact of life that those bullets perform marvellously when applied accordingly. You
will be disappointed if you apply them differently.
American bonded core bullets such as the Bitterroots, North Forks and Swift AFrames generally are designed for use in American high velocity bolt action
cartridges and consequently to only expand optimally at much higher velocity. If you
put them into animals at snail‟s pace, you may be disappointed with expansion and
target trauma. The South African made Rhino bullets are generally made more
cartridge specific and because they are not only bonded core, but also of solid base
configuration, expansion is halted at a given level. They can therefore be made to
expand at moderate impact velocity without over expanding at very high velocities.
Their bonded core component also prevents fragmentation and weight loss. They
are excellent terminal performers.
Bullets in this class generally perform best at impact velocities in excess of 2,600 fps
and often even in excess of 3,000 fps. These bullets are very well suited to the
larger soft skinned plains game species such as eland, zebra, giraffe, sable and
roan. These softs also perform very well on all dangerous game bar elephant for
which only solids are recommended.
One important difference to take note of is that some of these bullets are made to
expand into petals. An example is the Rhino, while the others mentioned expand
into a solid mushroom. It is a matter of personal preference as I can honestly not
say a difference is measurable, but I apply them differently. The petal type offers
deep penetration and the solid type massive trauma and tissue displacement. For
that reason I like the petal type for animals such as buffalo and eland where
penetration can be an issue of secondary shots are required, whereas I prefer the
solid mushroom type for maximum effect on the sensitive nervous systems of the
cats.
6TH GENERATION BULLETS
Although they are a higher numbered generation it is a consequence of their
introduction time line rather than superiority over earlier designs.
I was not impressed with the early monometal solids as I found the reloading
disadvantages disproportionate to any other benefits. I disliked the excessive barrel
fouling. In my experience they also shed their petals at velocities in excess of 2,700
fps. Very often, due to the limited expansion they remained very long during the
terminal phase and therefore prone to flipping over and travelling base first. Flipping
over or tumbling of any bullet very often results in crooked penetration. It is not all
that important in a small animal as it has generally passed the vitals and done the
damage by then, but on big animals that may not be the case and it can result in
wounding despite proper shot placement.
The leader in resolving the shortcomings of monometal expanders undoubtedly is
GS Custom in South Africa. This firm overcame the propensity to pressure spiking
upon the bullet hitting the rifling by making the bullet shank approximately bore size,
leaving artillery style narrow driving bands of near groove size on the shank to seal
the barrel. This approach required very little engraving and material displacement
and „softened‟ the engagement between bullet and rifling – largely eliminating the
monometal bullet propensity to give pressure spikes. Since it also created a lot of
space for the bullet metal displaced by the rifling to flow into, barrel fouling was
considerably reduced.
Other makers such as Barnes adopted a similar concept, but simply cut grooves into
the bullet shank to provide space for displaced material. The result effectively is the
same and today expanding monometal bullets are excellent and can be used with
confidence on any African game bar elephant.
Some double rifle manufacturers apparently warn against the use of monometal
bullets in double rifles. I would go with heeding that as far as old style, smooth
shank monometal bullets are concerned. I am not convinced that it should be the
case with the more modern driving band or grooved shank bullets are concerned,
but I have to add an important rider. A lot of dimensional variation exists in the
barrels of older doubles in particular. Some are larger in bore and groove diameter
than one expects them to be, while others are smaller. If full sized monometal
bullets are fired in an undersize barrel, disaster is sure to follow. So, before you fire
any such bullets in your beloved double, make sure you have the barrels slugged. If
they are undersize – stay away from monometal bullets.
About Pierre van der Walt
A former Captain in the SA military, a qualified professional hunter, conservation
lawyer, firearm and hunting lobbyist, rifle handgun shotgun and assault rifle
instructor, one of the most accoladed gunwriters in Africa, ad hoc lecturer at
Professional Hunting academies and post-graduate wildlife management schools.
Conceiver and organiser of the official South African firearm and hunting expo.
Founding editor of Safari Times Africa, PHASA News and the Big Bore Journal
publications. Leading big bore reloading expert. Author of: 'International Big Bore
Cartridge Load Data Collection‟ 'African Dangerous Game Cartridges' and „African
Dangerous Game Cartridges‟
CHAPTER 9
Hunting Kit
We all love hunting kit because it‟s a man thing but it should be noted that it‟s easy
to overdo this aspect. Remember that the more kit you have, the more you have to
drag around - not only in the bush but also around airports. It‟s also advisable to
look after your kit because no matter whether it‟s big or small kit, it can very easily
get lost or damaged - sometimes in the most unexpected of ways.
Motion detector damaged by hyenas in the Selous Game Reserve, Tanzania.
Photograph: Steve Robinson
We‟ve already discussed rifles so we‟ll now look quickly at what else is necessary
for you to operate in a professional manner. Rather than recommend individual
products, I‟ll just say that generally, you need to buy the most expensive/good
quality kit you can afford as whatever you buy will have a hard life.
Hats
I suggest you opt for a wide brimmed hat rather than a baseball cap because the
African sun can be fierce and a cap won‟t give you any protection to the tops of your
ears. If they burn, it‟s going to hurt like hell! I personally prefer a cotton canvas hat
over the more usual wool/rabbit fur such as found with the more common Stetson or
Akubra hats which I find tend to be itchy and hot.
Navigation
A good, but not too complicated, hand-held GPS is vital. It‟s not only convenient but
also an important safety measure in the event of vehicle breakdown or other
emergency. I‟d strongly recommend this be one of your first purchases if you don‟t
have one already.
Radios
A decent pair of long range two way radios where you can leave one in the truck but
don‟t forget to make sure the driver knows how to use it and the other in your pocket
or „possibles bag‟ is another very useful item. You can get away without them but if
you do have them, it‟ll save you some very long walks!
Water bottle
I‟d suggest a good flexible water bottle rather than a hard one. The idea of the soft
version is that you can squeeze it so the level is up to the top and then put the lid
on. This means the bottle is silent when you move. A hard water bottle will gurgle
with every movement as soon as the water level drops. If you can manage it, try to
get one similar to those issued to the US Special Forces because they simply are
the very best.
Footwear
Good footwear – exactly what you wear will depend on the terrain you‟ll be hunting.
African terrain ranges from deserts to mountains to swamps so whilst low ankle
boots with smooth soles will be great for the deserts, don‟t expect them to work quite
as well if you have to climb a mountain or go paddling. Soles should always be as
soft and as quiet as possible.
It goes without saying that your boots should be well worn in and a good fit before
you start using them for any long walks.
Binoculars
A lot of Professional Hunters prefer the Swarovski 8x42 SLC which are excellent
binos. Swarovski also make a 8x42 EL model which although less expensive, are
less robust. I‟d suggest you avoid these as they tend not to stand up to the
punishment they are liable to get from the rigours of life with a Professional Hunter.
The 8x42 SLC are a bit heavy for my tastes and my personal choice is the smaller,
lighter Leica 10x25 that fits neatly into my shirt pocket. The slightly increased
magnification also helps with trophy estimation. The disadvantage of these is that
the smaller size means less light gathering and not quite so good vision in low light.
Whatever binoculars you buy, my advice would be to buy as good a quality as you
can afford.
Range-finders
I‟ve got mixed feelings about these things. I do own a set but rarely use them and a
good PH should be able to judge most ranges accurately without them. Just
occasionally, such as when setting up a cat blind, a croc hunt or in areas such as
the Kalahari or Masailand, where long range shooting is going to be the order of the
day, they‟re invaluable.
Before you do buy, check carefully the width of the laser beam. Many of even the
most expensive versions will work great on a barn at fifty yards or the shop across
the street from where you‟re buying the range-finders. Yet are often hopeless on
something the size of a Thompson‟s Gazelle or a springbuck at 250 yards!
The best way to check this is to try them on a small target such as a child‟s head
further up the street.
Satellite Phone
These are worth their weight in gold if you‟re going to be operating in true wilderness
areas such as Mozambique or Tanzania. If you are only hunting areas with cell
phone coverage, you obviously don‟t need one. They are an expensive item to buy
and run, so choose carefully and check the one you buy has coverage in all the
areas you might be operating in. It should be noted that increasing parts of wild
Africa are getting cell phone coverage now. The Karamoja region of Uganda in
immense and incredibly wild but now has fantastic cell phone coverage.
Satellite Internet Connection
These are relatively cheap to buy but expensive to run. Although not strictly
necessary, they are very useful on occasion. The only problem with them is that as
soon as a client finds out there‟s one in camp, he‟ll want to use it from time to time.
That‟s fine but make sure you keep a record of his usage so you can charge him at
the end of the safari.
If you don‟t do this, it‟ll end up costing you a small fortune by the end of your hunting
season! A big advantage of one of these items is that the client can use it to make
an internet transfer into your account to pay for trophy and other outstanding fees
before he leaves camp.
You can reduce your operating costs by making sure all those sneaky automatic
updates on your laptop are switched off.
Knives
Every PH needs a good knife on occasion and although I love those beautiful
handmade knives that cost a fortune, I use a Buck knife. I‟d strongly advise you not
to lend a knife to anyone, as when it comes back to you, its edge at the very least, is
almost guaranteed to be ruined.
Pocket Tools
These are great little items and no PH should be without one on his belt. My
preference is for the Gerber range but the Leatherman runs it a close second.
Whichever you buy, opt for a good strong one rather than the cheapest.
Cane Knife/Machete/Simi
Most hunting trucks will have one of these tucked behind the seats but I have a 21
inch (overall) 15 inch (blade) Masai long-knife, properly called a 'simi' that I keep
strapped to the outside of my possibles bag and it‟s unbelievably useful for jobs
such as chopping down branches that overhang roads.
The Author‟s Masai Simi. Most are made from scrap car springs. Photograph: Steve Robinson
Some companies make folding axes nowadays. I‟d recommend you avoid these as
the look to me like an accident waiting to happen and an accident with a folding axe
is going to be really bad news when the nearest hospital might be at least several
hours drive away.
Torches/Flash-lights
A collection of these is imperative for a Professional Hunter who may spend weeks
or months at a time in the African wilderness. I keep a couple of small headlamp
LED ones for night-time reading, a Surefire or two for when I need a bright light and
a Surefire Kroma for following blood-spoor at night. These Kroma lights cost a
fortune but are worth their weight in gold if you have to follow a wounded cat at night
because the blue light function makes every pinhead of blood shine back at you like
a miniature spotlight.
Cameras
The digital age has been an absolute revolution for us Professional Hunters. Try to
have two digital cameras in your bag - one for main use and a smaller camera as a
back up. A wide angle lens is extremely useful for making the trophies look their
best!
Shooting Sticks
Every hunting camp you‟ll ever come across will have a few pairs of these laying
around, so it‟s not essential to have your own factory bought set, but they‟re light
enough and pack small, so if you want a set, go for it.
Spotting Scope
Not many PHs use these and they‟re not strictly necessary but are very useful for
spotting and/or sexing game from a distance and they make life so much easier
when sexing a leopard from a blind.
Tripod
A lightweight photographic tripod for trophy photography and the spotting scope, if
used.
‘Possibles’ Bag
Peter Hathaway Capstick coined this phrase originally and it‟s a perfect description
for what you use to carry all the odds and ends you might possibly need. Mine is a
Lowepro padded camera bag and has lasted me something like 25 years. With the
exception of fading from jet black to light grey in the sun, it‟s still as good as new.
The padding offers a degree of protection to the contents and the water repellent
material gives a degree of protection from the occasional rainstorm.
Everyone has their own idea of what goes in their possibles bag, but mine
contains the following:

Notepad & pen

3 pairs of yellow safety glasses for long rides back to camp in the dark. They
help in the case of getting hit in the face by an unseen, overhanging branch.
You may be thinking 3 pairs is a little excessive but I lend them to clients to
wear.

Spare pair of sunglasses

2 cameras

2 knives

1 knife sharpener

3 rain ponchos – 1 for me and 1 each for the clients

Satellite phone

Spare batteries for GPS and radios

Spare ammo

Mammal, bird and tree books

Cigarette lighter

2 Flash-lights/torches

A couple of packets of sweets in case anyone gets hypoglycaemic

Roll of toilet paper

Packet of wet wipes

A very comprehensive, compact first aid kit
Cat Kit
I do quite a lot of cat hunting and always keep a cat kit all together in one box
and contents are as follows:

Spare fuses for lamps

Pipe cleaners and a selection of different sized ladder straps

Selection of spare batteries & bulbs to fit every battery powered item that
might be used

Selection of fishing swivels as a „just in case‟ item

12 trail timers

Spool of light fishing line to go between trail timers and bait

2 movement detectors/receiver units

Spool of thin para cord as a „just in case‟ item

Cigarette lighter to light dry Elephant dung to help work out wind patterns

Packet of throat lozenges with anaesthetic in case anyone starts to cough in
the blind

4 small LED headlamp torches with red light facility for placing around the
bait

Surefire Kroma torch for the tracker to use on any night time follow up

Large, bright head torch for any night time follow up

Small Surefire torch to tape to my rifle for any night time follow up

A collection of rubber strips made from tyre inner tubes, to wind round the
tree branch

Sticky-backed orange reflective tape for placing sizing marks where the cat
will sit as he feeds. Stick this onto the rubber inner tubes

2 rolls of black insulation tape

2 small wind-up torches

High powered spotlight with red filter

Small packet of dried catnip for those very educated cats that might need a
bit of extra encouragement to come to bait

A thick shemagh scarf to wind round my neck in case of any night time
follow-up

A length of camouflage material in case I find any thin bits in the blind while
we‟re waiting for the cat(s) to arrive
I also like to wear a leather motorcycle jacket for my follow-ups. I appreciate you see
a lot of guys on DVD doing their follow ups in cotton shorts and shirt but all I can say
is that they either haven‟t ever been scratched by a leopard or they‟re braver men
than I am. It won‟t give you 100% protection but it will give you considerably more
protection than a light cotton shirt.
CHAPTER 10
Building a Camp in a Wilderness Area
Building a camp in a true wilderness area is an art, but very little has been written on
the subject. Camps built by an expert can be stunningly elegant and you will learn
many tricks of the trade as you go along, but for now let‟s take a quick look at the
basic principles.
An example of an elegant bush camp in the Selous Game Reserve, Tanzania.
Before we start, you need to realize that you will usually have a reasonable amount
of African labour around to help you with the donkey work.
Should you ever run out of twine or light string, look around you in the bush for a
natural supply. The inner bark of the miombo tree and a few others make excellent
substitutes.
As part of camp building, you‟ll do well to save yourself a lot of work and heart break
by learning how to tie good tight lashings. They‟re not that difficult to do once you
get the hang of it but the key is that practice makes perfect.
My thanks to http://www.pioneeringmasters.org for their kind
permission to use their lashing diagrams.
The Square Lash
The Square lash is probably the most common lash you‟ll use in camp building and
can often be used instead of a diagonal lash. When tying the square lash you need
to remember that you only need three lays and two fraps. Any more than that is a
waste of rope and weakens the lash.
A square lash has several components:




The starting hitch
The Rope lays
The Fraps
The finishing hitch
The square lash is used to fasten together two poles at 90 degrees to each other.
First make a clove hitch and make a point of pulling the rope in the opposite
direction of the clove hitch to get the clove to pull tight.
After you get your starting hitch/knot tied, wrap the rope under the lower spar and
back over the higher spar. Continue this until you have three lays of rope around
each of the spars.
Now frap the lash by wrapping the rope around the lays so as to pull them into each
other. Frap only twice. Finish off the lash with another clove hitch by tying two half
hitches as close to the center fraps as possible.
Keep all of your lays pulled in closely to the center of the lash. If you get untidy or
the rope loosens, then one lay will become loose and the whole lash will lose all its
strength and become ineffective.
Extra rope can be wrapped around the spar and then half hitched to lose any excess
length you might have. If the poles move against each other, then you need to
loosen the fraps and pull the lash tight again. Don't be afraid to use a degree of
strength in this process. The tighter you make the fraps, the tighter and stronger the
lash will be.
The Diagonal Lash
The Diagonal Lash is used when two poles at extreme angles need to be pulled
together. Under no circumstance should you use the diagonal lash to support weight
because they don‟t work for that.
You start the diagonal lash with a timber hitch pulled in the opposite direction of the
winds. Three lays around the poles and then change direction for three more in the
opposite direction. Frap twice and pull the fraps tight. The lash will be useless if the
fraps are not pulled absolutely tight. Finish the lash off with a clove hitch using the
two half hitch method explained in the square lash instructions.
The Shear Lash and Tripod Lash
The shear lash is the most versatile of all the lashes. Variations of the shear lash
create tripod lashes, quad lashes and lashings that are used to hold tepee poles
together at the top.
The shear lash is basically several wraps around your poles and then frapping in
between them. A variation of the shear lash is the tripod lash. Whilst the two lashes
appear different, they are basically just two variations on the theme of a shear lash.
Which lash to use really depends on what you want to hold and how many poles
there are involved and how much strength is needed in the structure.
The Strop Lash
The strop lash is used for binding two structural poles together where a strong but
easy to tie lashing is required. A strop lash is nothing more than a round lash and
tied off with a square knot. The amount of lays depends on how much strength you
need for the lash. This lash is especially useful for the peak of A-frame
constructions. The Strop lash does an excellent job of holding the base of the
trusses together while weight is being put on them. It‟s possible to use a modified
strop lash where you do the wraps but then frap between the poles and lock the
fraps with a series of half hitches.
After reading that little lot, I‟m willing to bet you wish you‟d paid more attention to
your scout master!
Building materials
Some of your materials such as bags of cement, electrical cables, ties, wire, screws
& nails will have to be bought into the area from outside but the more you bring in,
the more time and fuel it costs, so the more you can source from the immediate area
the better and cheaper it will be for you.
You can almost certainly find sand and with luck, also gravel and rocks for your
building work and paths from the nearest dry river bed. Poles can usually be
sourced from the bush, and ideally, you should try to give them at least some drying
out time between cutting and building.
Poles, especially mopane poles can be stripped of bark and then lightly scorched
over a hot fire. This hardens the outside of the poles and makes them considerably
more resistant to termites and wood borers etc.
Vertical poles will be first sunk into holes and the soil then put back around them
and tamped down. How far you sink them is obviously dependent upon the size of
the pole and the use to which it will be put. Always remember it‟s better to sink the
poles too deeply rather than not deeply enough.
If possible, try to treat the poles that go into the ground with either old engine oil or
wood preservative. If you don‟t have any of that, be very sure to scorch the pole as
mentioned above.
Bamboo
Bamboo is a fantastic building material but for some strange reason, not used
anywhere near as much as it could be. It grows wild in most parts of Africa, so it‟s
free and if treated correctly, it can be used for a very wide variety of projects. It
should be noted that some types of bamboo are far better than others but the reality
is you‟ll have to use whatever type is readily available.
Whilst old bamboo doesn‟t look as good or as smart as new, green bamboo it‟s
considerably better for building purposes. You should cut your bamboo poles in a
variety of thicknesses, split some and leave some whole for whatever purpose you
need to use it for and then allow it to dry for a week or so.
While your first lot of bamboo is drying, dig a large shallow pit that you then lay a
large plastic tarpaulin over, fill it with water and throw in a few sacks of salt (mix it
well) to create a large, strong saline bath.
Karamoja Uganda. Photograph: Steve Robinson
Whilst the water will evaporate, the salt remains. We‟ll add more water to cover the
bamboo and leave for a week or so.
At the end of the week of drying, the bamboo should be submerged in the saline
bath for between 4 – 7 days dependent on the thickness of the poles. This saline
solution kills all the wood boring insects in the poles and prevents others getting into
it in the future. Then remove the poles and leave to dry for a week or so.
Drying bamboo. Karamoja, Uganda. Photograph: Steve Robinson
Now our poles are ready and construction can begin. Bamboo is very light and
strong and when fastened into A-Frames etc, incredibly strong and can be used for
normal building methods and either on its own or with other wood poles.
Peak of an inverted A-Frame joining onto a horizontal wall top. Karamoja, Uganda.
Photograph: Steve Robinson
Bamboo at work. The side walls and doors will be made from split bamboo. Karamoja, Uganda.
Photograph: Steve Robinson
Split bamboo side walls viewed from above. Karamoja, Uganda. Photograph: Steve Robinson
Another good thing about properly pre-treated bamboo is that it can be fixed
together with anything from wire to cord to screws and that after a quick coat of
varnish; it‟s more or less immune from insect attack for at least several years.
Wall and window frame. Karamoja, Uganda. Photograph: Steve Robinson
Roofing
If you have to put a roof of some kind onto any structure, especially a structure that
will be used by the clients, the rules are very simple. Use whatever materials you
have to hand, whether it be reeds from the river or good grass such as elephant
grass.
The two most important rules are to get the pitch of the roof right so that the rain
runs straight off rather than soaks through the roofing material and causing it to rot.
The optimum angle is about 45 degrees and if you stick close to that pitch, you won‟t
have any problems.
The other important rule is to hire a good thatcher to put the thatch on the roof. The
sheaves of thatch must be good and tight and the more uniform the length, the
easier it is to work with and the better it will keep the rain off.
Choosing a Campsite
Camps in true wilderness areas need easy access to water and excluding very dry
areas such as Masailand where you might need to get use of a village borehole, the
easiest and usual way to access water is to build your camp next to a largish
perennial river.
Look for a site with high, steep banks to avoid flooding and that large animals such
as hippo can‟t climb. If you see hippo or elephant paths going from your potential
camp-site down to the river, save yourself a lot of trouble and go to look for another
location. If you don‟t, sooner or later you will have unwelcome visitors in camp.
Incidentally, if you ever need to know the difference between a hippo and an
elephant path, look closely at it. A hippo path has two lanes to it like a dual lane
highway because it walks with its feet apart. An elephant puts one foot in front of the
other and the path only has one lane. Elephant droppings are also considerably
coarser than hippo droppings.
A colleague of mine once made the mistake of building his camp on a hippo path.
Just as his new camp was fully finished and with his first clients of the season due in
the next morning, a hippo came into camp in the night, followed the smell of fresh
vegetables and wedged himself tightly into the newly built kitchen.
The only solution was to shoot the hippo where he stood and then to knock down
the entire structure to remove the carcass! By the time he was finished, not only did
he need a new kitchen but also a whole bunch of new crockery and glassware and
the nearest supply of that was an eight hour drive away. So be warned!
The elevated location will also mean you will get a nice cooling breeze blowing up or
down the river which as a side benefit will also make for less insect life in the
immediate vicinity.
Ideally, your camp will have an east or west facing view of the river so that the
clients also get the added benefit of a good view of the sunrise or sunset over the
river.
Look for a fairly flat area with large shade trees that are not of any of the varieties
such as tamboti or euphorbia with troublesome resins. Baobab or sausage trees
may also be a bit hazardous if the heavy seed pods drop on people or equipment
and can easily crack the windscreen of a carelessly parked hunting truck.
Try to site your camp on a straight stretch or the inside bend of the river, so that
when the river floods in the rainy/closed season, the camp area is less likely to be
damaged or washed away by flood water. If you site your camp on the outside bend
of a river, sooner or later, (unless you‟re very lucky indeed) erosion of the banks will
mean you have to relocate.
Layout
This is often overlooked by inexperienced camp builders. For hygiene reasons, you
need to place your client accommodation at the upstream end of the camp. After
which comes the dining area, kitchen, storage areas, staff accommodation and then
a nice long gap of at least 100 yards, the skinning sheds.
This layout might make for a long walk for the PH when he wants to go from the
client accommodation to the skinning sheds but the PH should be used to walking
and this set-up keeps everyone as safe and healthy as possible.
An alternative location for the skinning sheds is further behind the rest of the camp
and back from the river. Should you opt for this alternative, one needs to be cautious
of prevailing winds because there‟s nothing worse for the client than to lie in bed and
have to breathe in the stink of the skinning sheds all night! It also means the skinner
has to go further for his water and may be tempted not to wash skins and floors
quite as thoroughly or as often as necessary. For those reasons, I don‟t recommend
this option.
Client Accommodation
A typical average tent for a client with en suite bathroom behind. Irikishibor, Masailand, Tanzania.
Photograph: Steve Robinson
Numbers of tents vary from camp to camp. An average is something in the region of
4 client tents and 2 PH tents. Sometimes the PH accommodation is slightly less
comfortable than the client accommodation.
Top of the range client tent. TGTS, Tanzania
When building camps in a true wilderness area, you need to adapt your building
techniques to whatever you have to hand. Some camp builders will fabricate shower
trays as part of the cement floor whilst others will use proper shower trays. It‟s not
uncommon for items such as toilets, cisterns, wash-hand basins and shower trays to
be made of fibreglass or plastic rather than the more traditional ceramic-ware
because they‟re cheaper and less likely to get broken during transportation.
Sewage pipes are usually of the standard plastic variety and other plumbing is
usually flexible hosepipe and connections made with jubilee clips. When these run
out, twisted galvanized wire and/or plastic ladder straps are used. Toilet seals are
usually made with cement, silicon or acrylic sealant. If you‟re able to source some of
that self-amalgamating black rubber tape, it‟s always going to be useful for sealing
some of those more difficult to fix leaks.
Once you have located a suitable camp location, all the grass, undergrowth and low,
overhanging branches should be cleared. Then the exact sites for your client tents
must be planned. These need to be in spots where the ground is relatively flat; they
must have at least some shade, be separated from each other to give the occupants
a degree of privacy (10 yards at least if possible) and preferably each should have a
nice view of the river. Also bear in mind that if the camp, especially the guest
accommodation is too spread out, it can then become more difficult to keep secure.
Mark out the ground for the size of the tent and overhanging flysheets plus a few
inches either side. An appropriately sized bathroom area at the back of the tent
should also be marked out. The bathroom is usually the width of the tent by 2-3
yards or so. The bigger the bath room, the more cement you need to lay for the
floor. It needs to be big enough to be comfortable but no more than that.
Dig out the marked areas to a depth of 2-4 inches and, if necessary, compact the
soil in that area. An alternative to this is to use shuttering and lay the floor on the
natural soil surface but this can only be done if the soil is very well compacted and
solid. Use shuttering on a sandy soil and the floor will break up as the sand moves
beneath it.
Wetting the soil as you go, lay a cement skim over the area and leave it to dry. You
need to keep an eye on the drying process - if it dries too quickly, the cement will
crack. The way you avoid this is to lightly wet the drying cement occasionally. A
squirt of washing-up liquid mixed into the wet cement will make the mix much easier
to work smoothly.
Once the cement floor is properly dry, erect the tent and then place the toilet,
cistern, shower tray, wash-hand basin, ancillaries and tools in the bathroom area.
Start building the bathroom walls. Make sure there is no gap between the corner of
the tent and the edge of the bathroom wall for privacy reasons.
The bathroom walls can be made of sturdy, cut poles and grass from the bush or
from poles and heavy canvas or plastic sheeting. Make sure the poles supporting
the wash hand basin and cistern are strong enough to bear the weight of the
equipment with ease and are cross braced in appropriate locations. Bearing in mind
that people tend to lean on wash hand basins, fix everything into place.
Don‟t forget to mount the mirror above the basin and put in shelves close to shower
and basin. If you don‟t have sawn planks for shelving, you can lash and cross brace
some thin poles together as a good substitute. Waste pipes should go out through
the bathroom wall and into the nearby French drain.
A good example of a client tent interior. Pelandaba Safaris, Zimbabwe
French Drain Construction
French drains are the simplest and most eco-friendly way to get rid of sewage and
dirty water and there are many variations on the theme.
Partially built bathroom & French drain. Selous Reserve, Tanzania. Photograph: Steve Robinson
You can either give each tent it‟s own drain or you can share one drain between two
tents but which of those options you choose, will depend on how far apart the tents
are, how much waste pipe you have to hand and the practicalities of arranging
enough fall on the waste pipes. It‟s usually easier to build one French drain for each
tent in most places as it uses more labour, which is plentiful, less hard to get
materials and causes fewer problems if one has to be repaired.
The drain needs to be at least 2-3 feet away from and behind the bathroom and you
start by marking an area about 6 feet by 6 feet and dig that out to a depth of around
1 foot and then within that area, mark a smaller square of about 5 foot by 5 foot and
in the centre of the larger square. Then dig down about another 4- 5 feet.
At this point, you have a few options. You can either leave the hole empty or you
can, preferably, throw in a layer of large rocks, followed by a layer of smaller rocks,
followed by a layer of gravel. I‟d also recommend you add a few lumps of rotting
meat that has been left out for a few days for the maggots to get going. The idea of
the maggots is to assist with the degradation of the solid waste. This isn‟t strictly
necessary but it does help speed up the degradation and reduce the smell. If you do
go for the meat and maggot option, you need to make sure no-one ever tips any
bleach based products down the toilet as it will probably kill the maggots. If that
does happen and if you want to restart the process, just wait a few days for the
bleach to soak away and then flush some small maggot infested pieces of meat
down the toilet. The best way to prevent anyone accidentally tipping bleach based
products down the toilet is obviously not to have any in camp.
Lay your waste pipes to discharge into the hole, making sure the pipes hang over
the hole by at least 12 inches and they have sufficient fall for efficient drainage.
The next step is to cut strong poles of around 10-12 inches in circumference and
long enough to cover the hole and fit tightly in the lip of the hole. Lay one layer of
poles to completely cover the hole and then a layer or two of strong plastic sheeting
that covers not only the hole but also the overhang, and then another layer of poles
going in the opposite direction. Then cover the poles with soil and tamp down. The
reason for the plastic sheeting is to keep out any rainwater so the hole cannot flood
and send sewage washing all over camp.
If there might be a chance of wandering clients finding their way to the drain area,
you might like to put a low fence or poles and rope around the perimeter to ensure
no-one walks directly over it. The poles should be easily strong enough to support
the weight of a man but could easily get weakened by termites at some stage and
the last thing you want is for anyone, especially a client to fall through into a sewage
filled hole!
Water supply
Water for the bathroom is usually supplied via half a 50 gallon drum fixed into a
nearby tree. It‟s a good idea to fix a piece of mesh over the opening to filter the
water as it‟s added and also to have a cover over that, to keep out falling leaves and
wandering snakes. You also need to build a ladder up to every water storage drum
so (assuming you‟re not using a hot water donkey system) the water carrier can get
up there safely and easily.
It‟s important to try to site these drums and ladders in such a place that the guy
filling them cannot see into the bathroom whilst he‟s doing it. This is especially
important if you might have women in camp!
The drums should be filled with heated water as required by the member of staff
responsible for water - usually every morning and evening. Heating the water is not
just for the comfort of the clients, it also kills the bilharzia parasites and other
possible contaminants.
Remember that plumbing is most commonly done with plastic hosepipe so avoid
sharp bends, kinks and high or low points that may restrict the water flow or cause
airlocks. Also make a point of firmly fixing the hosepipe to the structure so it can‟t fall
down and cause problems at a later date.
As mentioned at the beginning of the chapter, the vast majority of camps will source
their water supply from the river. Nowadays, this is usually pumped up by an electric
or petrol powered pump but some camps, especially smaller camps will use the
more traditional method of having the staff carry buckets from river to camp. If you
go this option, try to find or create an area where the staff will be safe from
crocodiles because it‟s not uncommon for people to be taken whilst collecting water.
Also make a point of regularly checking that croc proof area is used and maintained
properly.
Fences
Fences are an important part of camp building. Perimeter fences behind the camp
are usually about 6 feet high and made of grass and poles. They are there not only
to look nice, but also to act as a natural barrier to keep out such things as wandering
elephants, hippos and lions. They won‟t stop a determined animal getting into the
camp area but are usually more than enough to make most of these wanderers stay
out of camp.
Low fences demarcating paths between tents and dining area. Selous Game Reserve, Tanzania
Photograph: Steve Robinson
It‟s also advisable to have a low fence each side of the paths to individual tents and
dining area. These can be made of poles and grass, poles alone or poles and rope.
If you prefer not to have low fences along the paths, a good alternative is white
painted rocks.
Also make a point of having a fence between camp and that high river bank you so
carefully sought out. The fence needs to be low enough not to obstruct the
magnificent view that we‟ve so carefully found for the client. It must also be
sufficiently high to stop him walking or falling over the edge when he‟s walking back
to his tent at bedtime.
With any fence made of poles and grass, it‟s important to trim the tops straight and
to do that, you can pull a string taut between the two fence poles and trim to that
line. Another finishing touch is if you have white river sand nearby and you probably
will if your camp is near a river, have a few truckloads bought up to camp and
spread along the paths between guest tents and dining area/mess. This not only
looks nice and smart but also has the practical advantage of helping the clients see
where the paths are at night and finding their way to their tents.
Night Watchman’s Crow’s Nest
This needs to be in an elevated position from where most of the client part of the
camp can be seen but not in a location where clients lose their bathroom privacy.
Ensure it‟s not so large the night watchman can lay down for the obvious reason and
it must have a good strong ladder so he can get up there in a hurry if necessary.
Dining room
The most common set up is with thick pole framework for uprights and A-frame roof
timbers, grass thatched roof and grass walls. In areas such as the Selous Reserve
where it‟s usually hot, some or all of the walls will stop at waist level and in cooler
areas such as Masailand, they might be full height. The roof will overhang the walls
by at least 18 inches for protection against sun and rain. The cement floor is laid in
exactly the same way as with the tents.
At least two and preferably three, entrances/exits are to be recommended. This is
because should a lion or other dangerous animal walks in one doorway, everyone
can get out of the other doorway(s). You might think that scenario is unlikely but it‟s
happened to me on three separate occasions over the years. It's also the reason
you should always take your rifle to meals with you!
A simple but pleasant dining room. Selous Game Reserve, Tanzania
Photograph: Steve Robinson
Some safari companies now use a large dining tent as an alternative. These can
work very well and a well set up dining/mess tent can be made to look very elegant.
Clients sometimes appreciate a change of scenery and an occasional night of dining
under the stars is often greatly appreciated. A lot of effect can often be achieved
with relatively little effort. It‟s advisable to know the area around camp so you can
make the necessary arrangements in plenty of time.
Very elegant dining tent - TGTS, Tanzania
Starlight dining. TGTS, Tanzania
Rifle Racks
These are often absent from hunting camps. If you bear in mind that some client‟s
rifles could easily be worth upwards of US$50K each, it is not unreasonable for him
to expect that he should be able to put his rifle(s) somewhere safe where they won‟t
fall over and get damaged. Rifle racks don‟t have to be too technical and can easily
be made out of a few short poles lashed together in the form of a steep A-frame with
the appropriate notches cut out. Each client tent should be equipped with a 3 - 4 gun
rack. The dining room/mess should have a larger 7-10 gun rack. The dining
room/mess rifle rack can be built into the pole-work of the wall if necessary but
needs to be located in an area that won‟t get wet in the event of rain.
Office
Some camps nowadays also have a small office area. This needs to be far enough
away from client accommodation areas to give whoever is using the office a degree
of privacy but close enough to those areas for clients to visit to sign and complete
any necessary paperwork.
Note the office light needs to be located behind the desk but not directly above the
office chairs to reduce the insect numbers bothering whoever is in the office during
the hours of darkness. The best place to site the light is close to the eaves where
wall and roof meet. Ideally the office should be equipped with at least four power
outlets for laptop computer, satellite internet, printer and satellite phone and other
chargers.
A well-located and simple office. Selous Game Reserve, Tanzania
Photograph: Steve Robinson
Kitchen and Store Room
Ideally, these two will be separated from each other by at least 10 yards and from
the client accommodation and dining area/mess camp by at least 20 yards in case
of fire. They will usually be made of a similar structure as the dining area/mess.
Typical bush kitchen. Selous Game Reserve, Tanzania. Photograph: Steve Robinson
Traditionally, the stove is made by the cook and his assistant. The top usually
consists of 3 or 4 hollows of different sizes, into which are put varying amounts of
glowing fire embers to give the cook differing heat levels to work with. There is
usually a Dutch oven of some sort below or adjacent to the stove. Nowadays, it‟s not
uncommon to see steel or cast iron versions of this set up.
Typical kitchen store room. Selous Game Reserve, Tanzania. Photograph: Steve Robinson
A well-stocked & well-built store room. TGTS, Tanzania
Smoker
Smokers are not particularly common in hunting camps but they are a very good
idea for a variety of reasons. Firstly, a camp in a true wilderness area will rarely, if
ever have much in the way of cold room facilities. So it‟s a great advantage if you
can preserve some of the meat by smoking it.
Secondly, hunting camps invariably get through a lot of bacon and it‟s often the first
commodity to run out. Although bacon made from a young warthog or bushpig isn‟t
as nice as shop bought bacon because of its lower fat content, it surely beats the
heck out of no bacon at all. Of the two types of bush bacon, I recommend a young
bushpig as the best eating.
Your smoker needs to be well removed and always downwind of the client
accommodation.
An easy way to make a small smoker is with a well cleaned, steel, fifty five gallon
drum with the meat hook fixed onto the bottom of the removable lid. The smoke will
enter the drum via a hole cut into the side of the drum towards the bottom of it. If you
do not have a spare fifty five gallon drum, you can make the smoke house with
cross laid poles and a separate door.
You also need to make a small firebox with a cover to enable you to ensure the fire
smoulders rather than burns. This can either be made with flat stones and cement or
a steel box. Alternatively you can chop out the interior of an extinct termite mound
and use a flat rock for the door. Use a 2-3 yard heat resistant pipe to connect the
two. If you don‟t have pipe, use flat rocks cemented together. Then all you need is a
few meat hooks or pieces of wire to hang the meat from and you‟re done.
It is imperative to ensure that whoever builds and/or is in charge of the smoker
doesn‟t use certain trees in the construction or fire of your smoker. Use poles or
wood chips from trees such as tamboti and anyone who eats the tainted food can
expect the stomach upset to beat all stomach upsets. The good news is that any
staff member who works in a hunting camp will know the trees to avoid - as should
you!
Skinning Shed
These are usually made by the skinners to their own preferences. Walls and roof are
usually made of stout poles sometimes with cross-bracing and a thatched roof
covering. Floor is the usual cement skim.
Typical skinning shed. Selous Reserve, Tanzania. Photograph: Steve Robinson
There will usually be an open or semi open skinning area, drying racks, drums for
washing skins and a separated, fully enclosed storage area with shelving for folded
and salted skins and skulls and horns.
Skinning sheds should always be sited at least 100 yards from the client
accommodation and never upwind of it for reasons such as flies, smells, hygiene
and of course, safety from wandering predators and/or scavengers that might be
attracted by the scent of meat.
Staff Accommodation
Most of the staff will have tents supplied and it is important to build sufficient
showers and either flushing or long drop toilets. If you go the long drop option, I
suggest you find a plentiful supply of loose expanded polystyrene beads and add a
generous amount regularly. This will form a layer over the liquid at the bottom of the
long drop and will prevent mosquitoes breeding there, thus greatly reducing the risk
of malaria for everyone in the vicinity.
If you‟re staff get seriously sick, they can‟t work and that reduces the efficiency of
your operation, so it‟s in your own interests to keep them all as healthy as possible.
Hot Water
Every camp needs hot water for showers, washing facilities and laundry etc and this
can be done by either using an old, cleaned 45 gallon drum, on a low stand with a
fire beneath it and a member of staff moving it around with buckets and „handraulics‟
(there‟s a joke there if you look for it!) or you can build what‟s commonly known as a
hot water donkey.
The simplest version of the donkey is a large metal container; usually a 45 gallon
drum laid on its side and mounted on a low steel framework that mounts the bottom
of the drum a few feet above the ground.
The cold water supply is plumbed in at the bottom of the drum and the hot water
exits via the plumbing at the top of the drum and obviously goes to wherever the hot
water is needed.
The important thing is to add a pressure release valve in the form of a vertical steel
pipe welded into the top of the drum with the height of that pipe higher than the
water pressure of the incoming water supply to prevent water running out when all
the taps are turned off.
Obviously the entire system should operate at low pressure - ideally only about 0.5
bar.
Then a small fire is maintained beneath the donkey and within a few hours, the
camp has piping hot water. With careful fire maintenance the water will still stay hot
overnight.
A simple but effective hot water donkey. Photograph: Wikus Groenewald
Electrics
Most true wilderness area camps will have a resident „fundi sparks‟ which means
expert electrician but you need to take that title with a small pinch of salt. These
guys will usually know the basics of electrical circuitry but not much else.
The aspiring student Professional Hunter will need to know the basics of safety,
circuitry, earthing, volt drop, cable rating and power ratings/consumption. If you feel
you don‟t know enough about these subjects, go to night school and learn the
basics.
To give you a start, the way you work out the power required for a generator to
safely supply a camp‟s consumption is the old rule you probably learnt at school.
Watts = Amps X Volts so, transposing that, gives: Amps = Watts/Volts
OK, so you‟ve forgotten what that means. All you do is add up the total power
ratings of all electrical equipment in camp in watts, divide the output voltage of the
generator into that figure and you have the total power consumption in amperes.
Here‟s an example:
Client tent lighting: 1000 watts.
Staff lighting: 800 watts.
Skinning shed lighting: 300 watts.
Other lighting: 700 watts.
Fridges/freezers: 800 watts.
Plugs for chargers: 400 watts (estimate).
TOTAL: 4000 watts.
Most parts of Africa work on a 250 volt system at 50 cps/hertz.
4000 divided by 250 = 16. Therefore the power consumption of the camp and
therefore the absolute minimum output required from the generator is 16 Amperes.
Safety and logic decree that you should increase that to around 20 amperes. Safety
and logic also decree that you must be 110% sure that the earthing system is
absolutely perfect and I do mean, perfect.
Africa being Africa will mean that if the generator is too small, you probably won‟t
have a larger one conveniently available so you need then to find a way to reduce
the power consumption. The way to do this is either only run the fridge & freezer
during the day when the lighting is off or to reduce the number of lights in the staff
areas and paths.
The one thing you must not do unless you can possibly avoid it is to reduce lighting
in dining room/mess, client tents or the skinning sheds.
Lighting
The most important areas to be well lit are the client and PH tents, the office and the
dining room/mess. The best way to light these areas are with small fluorescent
lights. 2 or 3 feet fittings are more than sufficient. Fluorescents are cold light, hence
reduced fire risk, nice and bright and once running, low power consumption.
Ideally, each client tent will have one light fixed to the central ridge pole with either a
pull switch or a rocker switch conveniently located near the head of the bed(s). If
possible site the bathroom light to best light the mirror area. If you can do this, you
get the double benefit of good lighting in the mirror (especially important for lady
clients) and reflected light into other areas from the mirror.
The dining room/mess is also best lit with fluorescent lighting. However, try not to
site the lights directly above the dining table because if you do, you‟ll have a million
and one insects dropping onto the table and into the food whenever the lights are
on.
The best location for dining room lighting is close, but not too close, to the eaves of
the building where roof and walls meet. Do this right and you‟ll have insect free
dining throughout the season, even if you do have a few shadows to contend with.
Other areas you need to consider lighting, if you have the facilities and generator
capability, are the paths between client and PH tents to the dining room and, of
course, the staff areas and paths between. These don‟t have to be bright but it is
nice if there‟s sufficient light for people to see wandering animals and dozy snakes.
If you don‟t have lighting facilities and/or generator capabilities for these areas, you
can consider using a few oil lanterns which will always be available from the nearest
village you use for buying other supplies.
You might also consider giving each client and PH tent a power outlet. This is
convenient for the client but does use a lot of additional cable that you might not
have available and it‟s most common just to put these in a corner of the dining room.
Don‟t forget that wherever you put the power outlets you also need to provide a
table for chargers and other small items.
In the office the same rule for light location as the dining room/mess area applies.
The office also ideally needs at least four power outlets for laptop computer, satellite
internet, printer and satellite phone charger.
Generators
The market is seeing an increasing number of silent (often diesel powered)
generators nowadays. If you have the noisy variety, try to site the generator in a
place where the noise will be as unobtrusive as possible. Dry riverbeds are popular
locations but make sure they stay dry or alternatively try to build some kind of wall
between generator and camp.
Solar Power
A few years ago, we wouldn‟t have even considered this option because panels
were too delicate to withstand the rigours of being transported long distances on
African roads and batteries were too heavy and numerous to transport. Times are
changing though and I know of one camp in Uganda that uses solar power very
effectively. They take longer to set up than a generator and are more expensive to
buy initially but they also have the double benefit of being completely silent and not
requiring any fuel to run.
Vulture Restaurant
The vulture restaurant is the area you use to dump unwanted carcasses and bones
and every camp needs one of these. The area should be located at a convenient
distance from camp but not so close for the related stink to waft into camp. Ideally, it
should be sited about half a mile from camp (or maybe a little more) and just off the
road that takes you into and out of camp.
An added advantage of a well placed vulture restaurant is that it‟s often a good
place to shoot a hyena when clients want one. The added benefit is that if you do
shoot the hyena here, you don‟t have to sit in the truck with a stinking hyena carcass
too long before you can drop it off at the skinning sheds. Nothing smells quite as
badly as a hyena and, take it from me, the less time it has to lie in the truck and you
have to breathe in the stink of it, the better!
Drop-off Area
Ideally, this will be between the client accommodation and the dining area and will
be large enough for a truck to easily turn around. Close to the dining room should be
hand-washing facilities and a small table for the clients to put their odds and ends
while they wash their hands or maybe grab a beer prior to hitting the showers.
This is also a good place to keep a few of your company brochures because the
client will often want something to leaf through whilst he‟s waiting for a beer or for a
meal to be served.
The Camp-fire
The beating heart of the camp. Bahati Safaris, Mozambique
The camp-fire is also known as the African TV. It needs to be close to the dining
room and have a nice view of the river. Ideally the fire pit will be a foot or so deep
with a ring of stones around it or have a cement bowl as a base, have camp chairs
set around the fire and possibly with a fairly low fence around it.
Try to keep a limited amount of spare firewood close by so the fire can be fed but
remember if you have a large amount within easy reach, some clients will build up a
big fire, which consumes a lot of wood and you then have to send staff and a truck
out to gather more... and that costs time, fuel and money. An experienced Africa
hand will always maintain a small evening camp fire and an inexperienced one will
want to build a bonfire big enough to toast Guy Fawkes.
A small drinks table beside every chair is always useful. If you‟re short of small
drinks tables, a good and very African alternative is old elephant and/or hippo skulls
that are often found around camp and/or hunting areas. These also have the added
advantage of you being able to use them to explain shot placement for head shots
on these species.
CHAPTER 11
Fly Camps
Fly camps are going increasingly out of fashion in many parts of Africa nowadays
but they can be a very useful tool when hunting large areas. Some areas such as
the newly-opened Karamoja region of Uganda are immense and without a simple
but efficient fly camp you will often only be able to hunt a relatively small portion of
the land available to you.
A simple fly camp can function comfortably with a handful of well trained and
motivated staff such as 1 x cook, 1 x tracker/skinner, 1 x driver and a couple of
general workers.
It‟s important that you pick the right site for your camp. You obviously want to avoid
pitching camp on elephant or hippo paths etc and bad news locations such as dry
river beds. If you have two or more vehicles you can use one for hunting and the
other(s) can break, move and pitch camp so that the new camp is up and ready for
the hunters when they return to the new location at the end of their hunting day.
I‟d recommend you try to site your fly camp in an elevated position which will give
you cooling breezes, less insect life and of course, a nice view. If you need to
source water from a river then you need to be reasonably close to that but try not to
be right beside it because of the aforementioned insect life. If you do camp beside a
river, try to find a fairly open area with an elevated position. It‟s important to avoid
black cotton soil because it‟ll turn into a swamp as soon as it rains.
So let‟s look at what basic equipment you need to make a small but serviceable fly
camp.
Client tent for fly camping. Still awaiting the fly sheet to be fixed down. Karamoja,Uganda.
Photograph:Steve Robinson
Tents
Modern dome tents might not look very traditional but they are insect proof, light and
pack down small. Try to have a separate tent for each client and each PH if at all
possible. A large dome tent doesn‟t take up much more room in the truck than a
small one and I‟d suggest you go large when buying your client tents at least. The
reason for this is a larger tent will have a fully enclosed sleeping compartment with
groundsheet, a similar sized semi-enclosed compartment without groundsheet and
an open sided, roofed area to provide shade. The big advantage of these designs is
that you can eat and shelter in comfort in the middle compartment if it rains. Without
this facility, you either get wet if it rains at lunch time or in the evenings or you have
to provide a separate dining tent which takes up room on the truck and takes time to
erect and/or dismantle. Take my word for it; a dining tent in a fly camp is usually a
major inconvenience, to say the least! Staff can easily make do with simple 2 man
pup tents.
PH tent for fly camping. Karamoja,Uganda. Photograph: Steve Robinson
Beds
You need to give the clients and PHs something to sleep on. I‟d suggest foam
mattresses, neoprene sleeping mats or air mattresses plus a pillow each and either
a sleeping bag or sheets and blankets per person. You also need to equip each tent
with a can of fly spray for them to use just before going to bed.
Some fly camps give their clients, and their PHs, stretchers or fold up beds to sleep
on but I don‟t recommend these as they will tear holes in the tent groundsheets.
Beds and stretchers are fine when your tents sit on a cement floor that offer good
support to the pressure points on the ground but will ruin the groundsheet if the tent
is on a sandy or other soft base.
Toilet Tent
You can either buy a custom made toilet tent or use wood from the bush or tent
poles to make the frame plus a simple tarpaulin. At a push, you can even make
walls with grass and wood poles in the same way as you would make walls for a lion
or leopard blind.
Toilet
There are lots of options here. At one end of the scale you can use a camping style
chemical toilet, a chair with the seat replaced by a toilet seat or a simple crossbeam
pole to sit on. If you go for the crossbeam option, another crossbeam or a
conveniently sited sturdy tree as a back support is of great help for added comfort.
At a push, you can even use an upturned lower jaw bone from an old elephant or
hippo skull if you have or can find one.
In the case of anything except the chemical toilet option, have the staff dig a suitably
sized hole in the appropriate place and if possible, mix wood ash with the sand or
soil taken from the hole. This can be used to cover the waste, assist the degradation
process and eliminate smell and the presence of flies. (Don‟t forget to leave a spade
or trowel handy for this purpose). This set up is commonly known as an earth closet
and man has used this system since time immemorial.
You need to add a roll or two of toilet paper or even better, a packet or two of wet
wipes or baby wipes. The advantage of these over the more traditional toilet paper is
that if they get wet, the wipes are undamaged whereas toilet paper falls apart. Don‟t
forget to add nearby hand washing facilities (with soap and towel) that allows used
water to be tipped away after use for hygiene‟s sake. Washing hands in water that
has been used before is a guaranteed recipe for a serious stomach upset and that‟s
the last thing you want in a fly camp! If for any reason you can‟t supply good hand
washing facilities here, you can use a plentiful supply of antiseptic hand wipes as an
alternative. In fact, I‟d recommend these as a good standby for a number of uses.
It‟s always a good idea to protect such things as soap and toilet rolls from hyenas,
monkeys and baboons etc. Either put them in a bag and tie it to a whippy branch of
a tree or cover them over with a bucket with a fairly heavy rock on top of it.
Rubber mat made from old tyre linings. Photograph: Steve Robinson
Shower Tent
The tent can be made in exactly the same way as the toilet tent. If you use a
tarpaulin for the walls, try to site the shower next to a large rock or tree that can be
used as a shelf for items such as shower gel and towels. A waterproof shower mat
will help keep newly washed feet clean and good options for this item can usually be
bought for a dollar or two in local African markets. The most popular are made from
the woven inside lining of car tyres and/or woven from old plastic supermarket bags.
The tyre ones are heavier and bulkier but give better grip and the plastic ones are
lighter and less bulky but give far less grip to wet feet.
Shower
You have a variety of choices for the shower itself. In the most basic form, you can
use a simple bowl just to wash yourself down, the next choice is a custom made
canvas or shower container with a shower head that‟s pulled up on the branch of a
tree with a rope and yet another choice is an electric shower pump powered from
the truck cigarette lighter. This option needs a water container and we use a black
plastic dustbin which will easily provide enough water for four showers. The staff
may fill it with water in the morning and leave it out in the sun with the lid on all day
to get warm or, if the water has come from an unclean source such as a river rather
than clean source such as a borehole, heat the water in a metal container on the fire
before use.
Laundry
If camp is already set up, this can be done by one of the general workers whilst in
camp. If being done on a travelling day, the dirty laundry can be put into a tightly
lidded plastic container half filled with soapy water and suspended from ropes in the
back of the truck. The movement of the vehicle on the road as its travelling will do
the rest. Change the water after an hour or two for the first and subsequent rinses.
Drying can be done as soon as the vehicle stops to pitch camp and ironing is done
with the aid of a (locally bought) coal iron on any convenient flat surface.
Towels
These are very useful items for padding delicate items so don‟t be afraid to pack
plenty.
Cooking Utensils
A sturdy metal barbecue grill with legs to sit above the fire is the first thing with a
selection of pots, pans, cutlery, tin and bottle opener from your main camp can be
used. Plates, mugs and glasses should (if at all possible) be of the unbreakable
variety. Don‟t forget to add two very large metal cooking pots to the list. One will be
used for heating shower water and the other will be used by the skinner for cooking
trophies. The best material for these items is stainless steel or aluminium. Try to get
two that will fit into each other for ease of packing.
Lighting
This can be provided either by oil lamps or solar charged, battery-powered lights. If
you go for oil lamps, I suggest you discourage their being used inside the tents for
fire and health reasons.
A comfortable fly camp. Karamoja, Uganda. Photograph: Steve Robinson
Table and Chairs
The table can be made of plastic and collapsible as per the normal camping style. I
like to use a coloured table cloth for the sake of appearance but this is not strictly
necessary. You may also need suitable bulldog clips to hold the tablecloth in place
in windy conditions.
I suggest you try to use the same set of lightweight, collapsible chairs for dining and
sitting round the campfire etc. We usually carry one more chair than are in the
hunting party in case one breaks or gets eaten by hyenas etc. The chairs can be
packed into the hunting truck during hunting days for a more comfortable lunch
break.
Paper table napkins are also a nice touch and in most parts of Africa are usually
available with African themes such as lions printed on them. That might sound a tad
picky but, believe me, the clients will always comment on how nice they look. Some
will even want to take a few home with them.
Keeping Cool
Sometimes it‟s nice to be able to have a cold, or even cool, drink or you might need
to keep small items such as beer, coke or butter cool. Ideally, one would have a
small electric fridge in the hunting truck but these are expensive, flatten batteries
and take up room. Another good but very old fashioned solution is the old style
condensation bags. All you do is have made up some suitably sized canvas bags
with some kind of top closure and strong handles. Then you part fill them with water,
put your drinks or whatever you want to keep cool inside, fasten the top and hang
from a wing mirror or roof rack so it gets a flow of air over it as you travel.
Condensation will do the rest. It won‟t give you an ice cold beer or make ice but it
will lower the temperature of the contents considerably.
Water
Where you source your water, for washing, laundry, etc will vary from area to area.
Sometimes you‟ll have access to boreholes or rivers and in some countries such as
Uganda, you‟ll be lucky enough to find some kind soul such as the UN has
thoughtfully provided boreholes and hand pumps every few miles. You‟ll obviously
need to make sure there are a few 5 gallon jerry cans especially dedicated to water
on the trucks.
Pests
With a fly camp, it‟s imperative you make the camp as safe against wandering
animals as possible. Ensure that you put small, but important, items such as soap,
tin openers and bottle openers somewhere safe so they can‟t be snatched by
baboons or other small animals and try not to leave meat, fruit or vegetables in
situations where they might get eaten by hyena or elephants, etc.
Food & Supplies
Now let‟s look at how to cater a basic fly camp for a typical 14 day hunt in a true
wilderness area. To make things more realistic for the reader, I have used notes
from a recent fly camp safari I‟ve just conducted in the newly opened region of
Karamoja in Uganda.
Per person
14 day hunt of which 4 days/2-3 nights are travelling/hotel accommodation =
supplies for 10 days + 2 days in reserve.
Breakfast
Cereal/muesli, (long life) milk, tea, coffee & toast from previous day‟s bread with
butter/butter substitute/margarine or eggs or hash browns.
Lunch (packed)
Sandwiches, cold game meat, or canned ham with mustard, hard boiled eggs,
banana or nut cake/bread & 1-2 x cans of soft drinks and fresh or canned fruit for
dessert.
Pre- Dinner Snacks
Crisps (use first before they get broken!) or nuts or game meat kebabs or
canned/smoked clams on salted biscuits or cheese/sliced pickles on salted biscuits
or sweet corn fritters.
Dinner
Packet soup or tinned asparagus followed by Pasta with onion and/or nuts or fried
pine nuts in packet sauce (one night in 3 or 4 or on nights when no game meat is
available), other nights, fresh game meat or guinea fowl/francolin with tinned
veggies and/or rice. Packet pudding or fresh fruit.
Booze/Drinks
2 soft drinks plus 2 litres of water per person per day, 3 beers or 3 glasses wine +
one or two bottles of whisky or spirit of client‟s choice.
Supply List

2 x large packets (750 g) breakfast cereal or muesli. Muesli will stay together
better than most cereals.

18 x cartons long life milk.

1 x tin dried milk as standby.

4 x jars good instant coffee. If the client‟s are American, use ground coffee
and a percolator.

3 x packets tea bags.

2 x bags sugar.

4 x bags flour for making bread and cakes.

12 x packets dried yeast for making bread.

Salt & pepper.

1 x bag potatoes (use early in the safari)

4 x kgs rice.

2 x bottles vegetable cooking oil (pack in two separate locations to reduce
chance of breaking both)

2 x margarine.

2 x packets dried eggs if available.

1 x bag apples OR oranges (use early in safari)

Bananas (bought as required en route)

1 dozen eggs (bought as required en route)

1 x case Cokes.

1 x case ginger beer or Fanta (This PH likes Stoney‟s Ginger Beer!)

2 x cases beer.

2-3 x bottles blended whisky or 1-2 x whisky and 1 x other spirit of client‟s
choice. (Mixers such as tonic might be required and tins travel better than
bottles)

1 x bottle of any kind of cream liqueur for adding to baked banana pudding or
pancakes.

1 x box white wine. (This rarely gets consumed as it can‟t be served cold)

2 x boxes red wine. (Most people prefer red wine in a fly camp because it‟s
usually drunk at room temperature).

3-4 x boxes bottled water.

3 x tins canned ham.

3 x tins corned beef.

1 x bottle Worcestershire sauce. (American readers please note the correct
pronunciation of this is Wooster sauce!)

1 x bag onions.

2 x bags fresh garlic or 1 x large jar grated garlic.

1 x tin dried or wet mustard.

3 x large packets non-delicate crisps (use early in safari)

3 x large bags peanuts.

2 x large bags cashew nuts.

3 x packets of non-delicate salted biscuits.

6 x tins smoked clams (clams are much cheaper than oysters and most
people can‟t tell the difference).

1 x large jar of pickled gherkins or pickled onions.

50 x assorted cans of vegetables and/or beans. This should include sweet
corn & asparagus for snacks/starters etc.

10 x packets dried soup some of which should be either beef or ox tail soup
to use as part of buffalo tail soup.

2 x packets pine nuts.

6 x packets pasta sauces.

12 x packets dried mashed potato.

3 x jars gravy powder. (This is used by both hunting party and staff so more
is used than one would imagine)

3 x bags dried pasta.

1 x bag of fresh chillies and assorted herbs and spices.

12 x packets dried puddings.

1 x large packet toilet rolls.

6 x packets baby wipes.

2 x packets antiseptic wipes.

4 x rolls silver foil.

4 x bars of soap in plastic soap boxes. (1 for each vehicle, 1 for toilet and 1
spare).

20-25 kgs non-iodated coarse salt for skins. Coarse salt is better for skins
and slightly less likely to be sold off to locals than fine salt.

12 x Cans of insect spray.
Staff Supplies
Sufficient beans, rice and mealie meal. You can always buy more en route if
necessary.
And that little lot, plus tents, camp gear, personal kit, rifles and ammo all have to be
packed into two trucks and trailers. Don‟t forget to pack the fragile items in the
vehicles and not in the trailers because trailers bounce and fragile items break!
Staff
1 x Cook
1 x Tracker/skinner
1 x Driver/mechanic
2 -3 x General workers/learners.
Staff Duties
Normal hunting duties such as tracking, skinning and driving plus set up/break
camp, cook/wash up, dig toilet pit, tidy camp, set up shower & toilet tents, wash &
iron laundry, burn/bury rubbish.
General Points
You should be able to buy bananas and eggs etc as you travel. It might be an idea
to have powdered eggs as a standby, if available.
The camp vehicle can go on ahead to locate a suitable campsite or to a prearranged location and set up camp whilst hunting party hunts. The camp party can
SMS or radio camp GPS co-ordinates to the hunting vehicle who can locate
campsite with GPS if necessary. (Staff might need training on how to do this).
When the staff is not busy with their own duties they will pitch in with whatever else
needs doing.
There will probably be one or two game scouts along who will also need to be
housed and fed. Part of the cook‟s duties will also be to prepare staff/game scout
food.
CHAPTER 12
Developing a Hunting Area
Many years ago, I knew an old Professional Hunter in Tanzania who was known far
and wide as Mad Bob. He was one of the most charming but unreliable people you‟d
ever meet, an alcoholic of note and his name fitted him absolutely perfectly. When
Bob was in his cups, and he usually was, you never knew what he was going to do
next.
Some years after I first met Mad Bob, I hunted an area in the Selous Game Reserve
where, some years previously, he‟d developed the road network.
The following story is no exaggeration!
The morning after my first arrival in the area, the game scout, client and I walked the
river from camp and an hour later, shot a nice bull hippo. I radioed back to camp to
send the vehicle and some staff so that we could get the animal back to camp and it
took a full three and a half hours for the vehicle to arrive.
I didn‟t query the delay at that point but as we were driving back to camp, my sense
of direction was shouting to me that something was wrong. Eventually, I booted up
my GPS and saw that although we were sometimes within just a few hundred yards
of camp, we never seemed to get there. Our journey seemed interminable and
eventually, I stopped the truck and with the aid of my GPS, walked back to camp
with my client and left the truck to find it‟s own way home. We arrived just ten
minutes after setting off and it took the truck at least another hour to arrive.
Just about then I realised that I‟d been Mad Bobbed and to work out that he must
have laid out the road network when he was less than sober and that it was, as to
be expected, a complete dog‟s breakfast.
So let‟s take a look at what you need to do to properly develop a really good road
network and why it‟s so vitally important if you are to make full use of your hunting
area.
Most hunting areas you‟ll come across in your hunting career will already be
developed, but it‟s not impossible that you might one day get the opportunity to open
up a completely undeveloped area. Even areas that have been used for hunting for
decades can often be improved.
In these cases, you‟ll find that a lot of the same rules can be applied to those areas.
You need to identify areas such as:

Water sources such as rivers, permanent waterholes and springs.

Larger mud wallows.

Areas with especially good grazing or browsing.

Areas that are especially suited to particular species.

Human habitation.

Mountains.

Valleys.

Dry river beds.
In an ideal world, you‟ll have access to a light aircraft to make identifying these key
features a lot easier but if you don‟t, and you usually won‟t, then the only way to get
it right is with feet on the ground and if you‟re lucky, some local knowledge from your
trackers.
As we all know, most game need to drink at least once a day and the water sources
are your most important game magnets. Ideally, you will build roads that parallel the
rivers and travels from water hole to waterhole.
It‟s a good idea to locate an occasional spot that might overlook the water from a
distance and I‟d recommend you create fairly regular loops in the road that take you
to one or two particularly nice picnic spots where you can stop off for lunch and
maybe a bit of leisurely fishing.
It‟s advisable to have the road somewhat removed (200-300 yards) from the water
sources so that you can creep in at suitable locations to see what has been there
and when. Your roads will also show you the tracks of what animals are crossing
between feeding and drinking areas, when they‟re crossing and where they‟re
coming from and going to. This will help you work out where and when the game is
moving and can save you an awful lot of fruitless walking.
You need to accept the fact that dry joining rivers will probably mean your roads will
need to swing further away from the rivers from time to time but this can be a bonus
rather than a problem because you then also have access to the dry river beds to
check for cat tracks and possible elephant movement etc.
Your road system should wherever possible be laid out on the interconnected ring
road principle so that you can make the optimal use of your hunting time. Ideally,
you will always be able to drive from point A to point B to point C. If you have to
drive from point A to point C and then back to point A before you can get to point D,
then you still need to develop the road network further.
These roads must never be overly straight, because if they are straight, then both
game and poachers will see and/or hear you coming from a distance. Better to make
the roads winding for those reasons.
Roads should also if at all possible avoid areas such as black cotton soil and
swamps etc to avoid the vehicles needlessly bogging down and valuable hunting
time wasted recovering the vehicle.
Now let‟s look at the most basic of basics of road building. You‟ll need a GPS to first
identify the key features and to help you navigate between them. You‟ll also need
about half a dozen staff who should be equipped with pangas, simis or cane knives,
pickaxes and shovels.
You‟ll begin at your starting point and set your GPS to where you want to end up.
Then using the „Go To‟ feature of the GPS, you walk the route and cut blazes in the
trees as you go. Common sense will tell you to avoid cutting any more of the large
and/or slow growing trees and this of course, will add to the long and winding road
effect that is so desirable.
I should say at this point, that you should always try to restrict yourself to blazing (let
alone cutting) fast growing trees only, rather than slow growing trees such as
leadwoods because the only thing that looks uglier than a beautiful slow growing
tree with a blaze, is one that some moron has carved his initials into...... and if you
do that or allow anyone else to do that, be sure that I‟ll one day come back to haunt
you! The staff will follow up and cut the trees and undergrowth between the blazes.
From time to time, you‟ll come across valleys and/or joining (usually dry) rivers that
you have to cross and that‟s where the entire operation often slows down. You need
to walk the banks etc to find the most suitable crossing spots and then take the
greatest advantage of them that you can. Remember, if you‟re not absolutely sure
the vehicle can make safe descents and ascents, then you need to keep looking. If
you come across large obstructions such as wide, perennial rivers or other uncrossable terrain etc, then you obviously need to make the most of the situation and
go around them.
NEVER take your new road through or even close to any local habitation unless you
can possibly avoid it. Not only is it rude to put a disturbance through a such an area
but there are other issues to consider as game, especially predators which might
possibly get in the habit of passing uncomfortably close to those that live there.
Rainwater erosion at work in Karamoja, Uganda. The tree root at the bottom of the picture has
caused turbulence that immediately downstream of it has then scooped out a deep hole
immediately behind the root. Cutting out the tree root will reduce the water turbulence and reduce
the erosion in that immediate area. Photograph: Steve Robinson
If the area suffers at all from heavy rainfall and/or if you hope the road will last more
than a year or so without serious maintenance, you should make a point of
considering the erosion that heavy rains can cause. The most common way to
prevent erosion is to create angled run-off humps that just like the speed bumps
they have at home. It only takes a bit of common sense to work out where these
need to go and you need to make then about a foot high and about a yard wide to
ensure comfort when crossing them in a vehicle and to stop them being washed
away. These should never cross the road at right angles but rather at an oblique
angle to improve water runoff and to give greater comfort when crossing them in the
vehicles. Look out also for large rocks that if the road itself erodes away due to wind
and/or rain, could at some time in the future, possibly damage the sump or other
important parts of passing vehicles.
There should always be at least two roads to/from camp if at all possible because if
there is only one and it gets washed away or blocked for any reason, then you‟re
stuck there until the problem can be fixed.
The final thing you need to do is to name the roads and landmarks so that everyone
is on the same page when you‟re discussing a route. Rather than having to say the
waterhole beside the baobab trees that straddle the road, you might like to christen
the waterhole something like „simba maji‟ (lion water, so named because you saw
that magnificent lion there once) or the baobab trees „Boaz and Joachim‟ (from the
two pillars at the entrance of King Solomon‟s Temple. Roads could also be named
after an outstanding feature or a person who was involved in the building of the
road.
Don‟t expect to be able to develop an efficient road network in a number of weeks or
even months. It‟ll usually take years to get it absolutely right so you can exploit the
area to it‟s fullest potential and even when you do think it‟s finished, never be afraid
to consider new additions and/or improvements to the area.
Always remember that you can only hunt the game if you can find it and the only
way you can be reasonably sure of finding it is with a properly developed road
network that allows access to most of the hunting area.
Another important part of area development is how when and where to burn the old
grass and this varies from area to area and country to country.
The reason for burning is to get rid of the old, coarse grass which then allows tender
new grass to grow in its place. This then acts as a game magnet and although it‟s
hard to believe, once the old grass is burned off, the game will usually appear in
those areas within just 2 or 3 days and at that point, you‟ll have to look hard to even
see the new grass shoots.
In areas such as the Selous Game Reserve of Tanzania burning is conducted on an
ad-hoc and uncontrolled basis. That means, you set the fire and walk away and it
burns as it will. You should usually set the fires as soon as the old grass is dry
enough to give a clean burn. Some fires, once set, will burn for just a few yards.
Others will burn for tens of kilometers. If set properly at the right time, in the right
weather conditions, the fires will be low grade, low temperature and usually burn at
about a walking pace. If set wrong, they can go considerably faster and burn hotter.
When the fires reach old/dead trees, they‟ll often slowly burn or smolder for several
days and it‟s not unusual to see a line of soft white wood ash where something like a
dead leadwood tree has been consumed. This soft, white, leadwood ash is
incidentally the very best ash for your ash bag.
If burning in an area with local populations in it, you need to be considerably more
careful and use local knowledge if necessary. The last thing you want to do is burn
down a local village!
Unless you‟re working for an employer in a fenced area, it‟s highly unlikely you‟ll
ever be asked to burn in a fenced area but if you ever do, make very sure that you
exactly what you‟re doing and have enough staff to control the fire properly. Fires in
fenced areas, no matter how large they are MUST always be very carefully
controlled.
It should be noted that some countries such as Botswana strictly forbid deliberate
bush burning.
Always remember that with all bush fires, safety is of paramount importance. Never
set a fire unless you‟re 110% sure that no-one can be injured.
Always remember that safety is of paramount importance. Some unknown clown set this fire in
the Zambezi Valley of Mozambique and walked away. Days later, it very nearly killed me and my
entire staff (c.1982). Photograph: Steve Robinson
If you do ever find yourself in the way of an controlled fire that you can‟t escape, pull
away from it, burn as large an area as possible and then get your vehicle, your staff
and yourself into the centre of the burned area and wait for the fire to burn past. If
you have water, wet the tyres of the truck and everyone down. If you have a blanket
in the truck, soak it and get everyone underneath it and as low to the ground as
possible. If you think your truck might burn, keep away from it.
If you need to know more about bush fires, you might like to read „Four Fires‟ by
Bryce Courtenay. Although the book is a novel, the fire information is spot on.
CHAPTER 13
Hunting Trucks
A well-equipped Toyota Landcruiser hunting truck. Photograph: Wikus Groenewald
Unless you get to live in Africa, you‟ll probably spend your hunting career using
other people‟s hunting vehicles and quite frankly, there‟s a lot to be said for that
because it‟s a lot cheaper!
Hunting vehicles are horrendously expensive to buy in Africa, difficult and expensive
to equip and expensive to maintain because they work so hard. I recommend you
pay very close attention to the recommended service periods so you get the best
possible return on your investment.
Now let‟s take a look at what a dream hunting vehicle could, should and can be and
what you can do to protect the investment you make in such a vehicle.
Most African hunting trucks at the dawning of the 21st century are the Toyota
Landcruiser pick-up truck. The Australians are blessed with a V8 diesel engine
version but Toyota in their apparent wisdom gave Africa a straight six diesel 4.2 or a
straight six 4.2 gasoline version. The gasoline Landcruiser is faster but lacks the
torque of the diesel and whilst most hunting operations will keep a store of diesel,
few will keep gasoline because of the fire risk. Therefore the diesel Landcruiser is
the vehicle of choice for the vast majority of hunting operations nowadays.
In about 2008 the Landcruiser got a make over and the manufacturer added a
secondary fuel tank, a much needed diff lock and a few other odds and ends such
as central locking and air conditioning.
Your first step will be to add a key lock in the cab so that you can lock the air
conditioning in the off position. This is to ensure your staff don‟t waste the additional
fuel used to run the air con in a true wilderness area. You may at first think this is
mean but air con uses a fair amount of fuel over the season and your fuel supply is
a finite resource and may well have to be trucked in from many hours away. If you‟re
happy for the staff to use the air con or if you want to use it yourself, you can always
use your key to turn it on when you want to.
Next job is to add a double, heavy duty cigarette lighter extension from the cab to
where the gun rack will be. This is useful for such things as recharging satellite
phone and camera batteries. Also bring a suitably sized cable from either the fuse
box or battery to the gun rack with one of those waterproof boat plugs to provide
power for a hand held spotlight in the event you need to use the truck to go look for
a wounded leopard or other dangerous animal at night. These are also sometimes
useful on those long night drives back to camp if you want to entertain your client
with a bit of nocturnal game viewing.
Note: If you do this, either fit a red light to the lamp or avoid shining the light directly
into the animal‟s eyes. If you destroy their night vision it‟s lost for a considerable
time which means the predators will find them easy prey.
Now you need to fit a strong bull bar which can either be manufactured to your own
design or bought off the shelf. You need it to be able to add a good quality winch
and spotlights to this. I‟d recommend you don‟t go for the wrap round bull bar. Sure
they look nicer but the piece that wraps around the wing is unnecessary and will
bend into the wing if an impact occurs. Between the bull bar and the radiator grill,
you should fit a piece of removable plastic fly screen material to keep grass, grass
seeds and twigs out of the radiator cooling fins. If these get blocked, the vehicle will
overheat and you‟ll need to take the radiator out and wash all the crud out in the
river.
Next job is the steelwork of the hunting seat, gun rack and hunting rack. Unless
you‟re exceptionally talented and have access to good equipment, you need to go to
a specialist engineering company for this. I strongly suggest you work alongside the
guys doing it to ensure everything is to your exact specification. Non-heavy loadbearing items such as gun racks can be made with exhaust pipe thickness steel
tube.
The gun rack needs to be mounted immediately behind the cab in the load area and
should be able to take three or four rifles mounted horizontally. Don‟t forget that your
clients rifles will probably be very expensive items so if the rifle holders are metal,
you need to cover them with soft plastic such as hosepipe, neoprene or wind them
with a thick layer of inner tube rubber strips. Spend as much time on this as you
need to as if something like a Holland and Holland double rifle gets a ding in the
stock because the gun racks weren‟t up to scratch, you may never hear the end of it!
Well-built gun rack. Note the two side mounted racks. Photograph: Wikus Groenewald
It‟s advisable to fit a piece of weld-mesh behind the gun rack that runs from the
bottom of it to the floor of the load bed. Alternatively run a couple of pipes across the
bottom on the gun rack a few inches apart. Human nature means that anyone sitting
in the hunting seat will want to put his feet somewhere and if the trucks paintwork is
exposed it‟s going to get seriously damaged by the feet of whoever sits there.
Fit a sturdy roof rack with sides about 5 - 6 inches high. Sides and bottom of the roof
rack can be fitted with weld-mesh to stop small items such as binos and cameras
bouncing out. The front of the roof rack will be supported by two tubes running down
to the bull bar. These need to be in line with the front pillars of the vehicle and in
such a position so as not to obscure the drivers view. These tubes will also prevent
overhanging bush damaging the pillars and windscreen. You can also add additional
single gun racks on each side of the roof rack where the rifle will obviously point
forward. That additional gun rack is very handy indeed in the event of the PH
needing to get his rifle into action quickly. Incidentally, the Professional Hunter will
always sit on the driver‟s side of the hunting seat so he can talk to the driver when
necessary.
Another useful addition are three rings on the inside edge of the roof rack closest to
the hunting seat and of suitable size to hold a soft drink can securely.
It should be noted that some hunters cherish their firearms so much they are averse
to using any gun rack, no matter how well built it is. So it‟s a good idea to have a few
of those stretchy bungee straps so they can put their rifles and rifle slips on the roof
rack and make them secure.
Most African hunting vehicles have a fixed hunting seat with the base and back
being made of wood covered in dense sponge and canvas. If you go for this option,
you need to make very sure you have the angle and location of the back support of
the seat absolutely correct. There‟s nothing worse than having to spend endless
hours over the duration of the hunting season in a back breaking hunting seat. It
also doesn‟t do much to endear you to the clients!
A good alternative to the more usual fixed hunting seat is to find an appropriately
sized folding rear seat from a luxury car and re-cover that in heavy canvas. These
seats are not only considerably more comfortable than the other option but can also
be folded forward and down out of the way when not in use.
Whichever option you decide to go for, don‟t forget to add sturdy and padded arm
rests on each side. These not only make for a considerable degree of added comfort
but they also stop anyone falling out if they doze off from jet lag.
The most usual way to access the hunting seat from the ground is to fit a short two
or three step ladder from the hunting rack and coming down outside the vehicle. If
you feel it necessary, these can be hinged on two bolts so they fold up and into the
truck when not in use. Make sure the space between ladder and vehicle is deep
enough for the person using it not to have his foot slip off. It‟s also wise to fit either a
piece of light checker-plate or weld-mesh behind the step to ensure the person
using the ladder doesn‟t scratch the paintwork with the toe of his boots as he climbs
into the truck.
The hunting seat will usually be relatively high, so you need to fit a steel or wooden
box behind the rifle rack to give the clients something to rest their feet and stand on.
This needs to run the entire width of the load bed and makes a perfect tool and kit
storage locker.
From the seat framework, you must run the sides of the hunting rack. This must be
able to accommodate two spare (split rim) wheels and preferably two high lift jacks
that can all be accessed from the outside of the vehicle and once fitted, the spare
wheels and jacks will be bolted in place or locked in place with padlocks or locking
wheel nuts. These need really only be locked in place when the vehicle is going to
town. A good alternative location to store the high lift jack(s) is on the bull-bar.
If you run a pipe from the bull-bar back to the hunting rack at the approximate level
of the sills, you can use it as a side step for the driver, a first step for anyone getting
into the hunting seats and as an added bonus, protection against rocks at the side of
the road.
Another option is to remove the tail gate of the truck and replace it with a quickly
removable, higher version made with more steel tubing. If you fit those rollers you
see on boat trailers in appropriate locations, it can make the loading of heavy
animals so much easier.
Now we have to look at ancillary items:
A good winch on the front is an excellent and almost essential option. If you add
cable rollers in suitable locations, you can take the winch cable over the top of the
truck and use it to assist you in loading heavy animals such as eland and buffalo.
Another alternative to help with this is a smaller electric or hand winch in the load
bed of the vehicle. This should either be removable or in such a location as not to
get in the way of anyone using the hunting seat
A good quality two way radio that is capable of communicating with your hand held
radios and if possible, also with camp.
Long range fuel tanks are a popular option for hunting trucks and indeed the new
Landcruiser fits them as standard but the drawback of these are if the fuel transfer
requires an electric pump and that pump stops working, the fuel in the secondary
tank is next to useless and if the fuel tank gets a hole in it, you lose all the fuel you
have. If the two tanks are gravity linked, the pipe between can easily get damaged
and dump all your fuel on the ground. I personally prefer a few jerry cans of fuel in
the back of the truck as a much safer though less technical and convenient option.
Water tanks for hand washing and occasional emergencies are sometimes fitted to
hunting trucks but I see this as unnecessary weight and prefer to just have a plastic
five gallon container secured somewhere in the back of the truck.
Hunting trucks obviously, regularly end up with blood running about in the bottom of
the load bed and this can cause nasty smells and bad corrosion. I‟d recommend you
have the entire load bed rubber sealed by one of the specialist companies so that it
can be regularly and easily cleaned. This should be one of the daily duties of your
driver.
Tools and Spares
Sometimes in the African bush you can easily be a day‟s drive away from the
nearest spares stockist or workshop, so you need to carry an extensive collection of
tools, spares and service items with you. These can all be stored in the tool locker
you built for the clients to rest their feet on.
I suggest you keep and carry the following:









Comprehensive tool kit
Puncture repair kit x 4
Spare inner tubes x 4
Fuel tank repair kit x 2
Oil, fuel and air filter x 2
Spare set of drive belts x 2
Spare set of hoses x 2
2 x gallons of engine oil
Spare water pump














Spare fuel pump
Spare alternator
20+ yards of strong rope
Snatch recovery kit
Snatch block
Tree strop
5 yards of strong chain
Collapsible/fold away ground anchor
A selection of various sized shackles
Spare wire, spade and screw connectors
Electrical multi tester
Spools of plastic insulation tape x 4
Spools of rubber self amalgamating tape x 4
First aid kit
It‟s also a good idea to make your driver, who should have a good mechanical
knowledge, get into good maintenance habits.
Rather than sit in the truck for hours on end waiting for you to return or call him on
the radio, he should spend some of that time under the truck checking for such
things as loose bolts and dodgy hose connections etc.
If you still have room in the box or behind the seats, you might also throw in three
mesh hammocks for those lunchtime snoozes under the shady trees.
Your driver should also be in the habit of checking oil and water levels and for loose
belts every morning before he starts the vehicle.
CHAPTER 14
Marketing your Hunting Safaris
Getting your first clients can sometimes be quite a challenge but if it‟s any
consolation, it‟s a challenge every Professional Hunter in Africa has had to meet.
Once you have a few satisfied clients and have got the ball rolling, things get a lot
easier.
Hunting Conventions
The standard of booths is high and you need to match it. Photograph: Hendrik Venter
The most popular marketing option by a long chalk is to attend the hunting
conventions such Safari Club International and Dallas Safari Club in the USA.
Running a booth at these conventions is extremely expensive. On top of the cost for
the booth space, you then pay additional costs for individual facilities such as
electricity, furniture, carpets and cleaning. You have to equip and decorate your
booth and provide promotional sales literature. The standard of presentation at
these shows is simply phenomenal. The booths of experienced exhibitors look
stunning and trying to match that is quite honestly, going to cost you a fortune!
Some conventions, notably SCI, then require you to make a donation to the
organization. The minimum donation is currently US$600 and will get you a booth
and a free key ring if you‟re lucky but not much else. The more you donate, the
better your location and the cold hard truth is that if you don‟t want to find you have
a booth next to the public toilets right at the back of the hall, you need to donate at
least an entire hunt. This of course means that by doing so, not only have you lost a
hunt but you have also lost the client who buys the hunt from SCI because if he had
not bought it from them, he would have bought it from you.
Effectively, the show donation is costing you not one but two hunts. Those donated
hunts incidentally, sell for a fraction of their retail price. In 2011, one donated
crocodile hunt sold for just US$500.
You also need to factor in your travel, accommodation and hospitality costs which
are a large additional expense.
The other drawback of attending the conventions is that you are at the mercy of
outside influences. If for example, an incident similar to 9/11 or a sudden financial
crisis hits the world, all the hunters instantly pull their horns in and sales collapse.
You‟ve still had to pay the costs of attending and exhibiting at the convention a year
ahead of time, and there you sit with money haemorrhaging from your account and
no bookings coming in.
You should also resign yourself to the fact that the vast majority of those that attend
the shows are a fairly conservative bunch. Most will prefer to buy safaris from
companies that attend the conventions every year and will prefer to see you there
for a few years before they commit to buying a safari from you.
This form of marketing is extremely expensive and time consuming, but in fairness,
it is the most popular by far with most safari companies because sales are usually
very good indeed. The conventions are, undoubtedly, also a whole lot of fun and if
only for that reason, you should go at least once in your life!
Magazines
Magazine advertising isn‟t cheap by any means but it is considerably cheaper than
the cost of attending the conventions.
The key here is to identify the magazine that will be most popular with the type of
client you hope to attract. There‟s no point running an ad in a magazine that has a
low income readership when you‟re trying to sell expensive, luxury hunts. Sure,
you‟ll probably get lots of enquiries, because the world is full of tyre-kickers and
everyone likes to dream about an African hunting safari, but those enquiries won‟t
translate into many, if any actual bookings.
If you do go this route, my advice would be to go for as big an ad as your budget
allows and run the ad for at least 6 issues. Also remember that old adage of a
picture being worth a thousand words. Research tells us that magazine readers
quickly get accustomed to seeing the same advert in the same location and then
blindly skim over it. Ideally, you need to change the format, pictures and page
location of your ads on a regular basis.
One way of getting free advertising in magazines is to write articles for them but
remember that whatever you write, it needs to be entirely accurate and of top
quality. Articles fall into two basic types. There are „how to‟ articles and „chest
thumpers‟ where you write about sweat dripping, heart thumping and enraged
charging beasts.
If you‟re going to write a „how to‟ article, you need to write about a subject you know
intimately and of which you have practical experience. Get your facts wrong and you
will be shooting yourself in the foot, because you can bet your life some reader will
know better and write to the editor to correct you in front of the entire readership. If
you opt to write the „chest thumper‟ style of article you also need to do that very well
indeed, because the readers out there have all read Capstick‟s work and no-one
thumps chest better than good old Peter Capstick!
Websites
Pretty much everyone has a website nowadays and they‟re easy to build but they‟re
not so easy to build well. If you don‟t get your key wording, pre-selling and
everything else set up perfectly, then your website will effectively be lost in the zillion
and one other websites out there.
A good website can and should be your most effective marketing tool of all. This
however, will only happen if it can be found by visitors.
If you decide to build your own website rather than going to a professional web
building company, you need to look very carefully at the program you decide to use.
There are a lot of packages out there that promise you a site in a few hours or days
and that promise usually stands up. What they don‟t tell you is that they offer
minimal or zero support in helping you get your site high in the search engine
rankings and without that, there is no point at all in having a website - because noone ever manages to find it.
Internet Hunting Forums
There are good and bad aspects to the forums and there are good and bad forums.
The best and most visited hunting forum by a mile is to be found at
www.accuratereloading.com
The owner is an extremely nice and generous guy who very kindly allows free
advertising. If you join this one, the first thing you should do is get your name,
company name and website address in your signature line, because the more times
you can get that information onto the internet, the more times it will be crawled by
the search engine spiders and the higher your website ratings climb.
Most other forums are commercial and do not permit any commercial postings
unless you pay them an annual fee (usually around US$500 per year). You can still
post on these and can still put your name in your signature line and also your web
address in your profile but you tread a fine line between being informative to the
other visitors and being seen as commercially active on the site by the owners. If
they do believe you to be commercially active on the site, they will simply delete
your posts and eventually ban you.
The best way to decide what is a good or a bad forum is to spend some time
watching the site and the quality of the posts made, especially by the „resident
experts‟ and then decide. Things to look out for are whether the members are
friendly and well informed or do they spend all their time sniping at each other? Also
look at content accuracy in any articles that may be published there. If a lot of that is
incorrect, it‟s probably best to either keep your contribution to the site minimal or just
not post there at all.
Recommendations & Repeat Bookings
If clients are coming to you through recommendation and repeat bookings, it means
you‟re getting an awful lot right but it might not mean you‟re getting everything right.
Never be completely satisfied with the standard of your operation. Always look for
ways to improve your product and the more you do can that, the more
recommendations and repeat bookings you will get.
This tends to be a slow process, especially at first, but the more clients you get and
send home with a smile on their face, the more recommendations and repeat
bookings you‟ll get.
Hunting Agents: The good, the bad and the ugly!
There are all types of hunting agent out there and sometimes telling the difference
between the three types isn‟t easy, especially when you‟re doing it from a distance.
All it takes for someone to become an agent is the ability to set up a website which
in some cases can be done in just a few hours and it‟s not at all uncommon for
someone to come on his first ever African hunting safari, then go home and spend a
few hours building a cheap website and hey presto, he‟s an instant agent for his new
best friend in Africa!
The way to tell the difference between the various types is to do a lot of research,
ask for contact details of his previous clients. Check with them if his service was up
to scratch and his promises kept. Check his website for accuracy of the information
contained and look for other companies he represents and go to them for their
opinion of his services and number of clients he sends.
So let’s look at the 3 different categories of hunting agent:
The Good
These are relatively rare, usually work at their business full time, are very well
established and know the African hunting business intimately. If you can find one of
these good agents and convince him to represent you, he can bring you a fair
amount of business. You can expect him to cream off something like 15% off the top
of at least the daily rate prices as his pound of flesh.
The Bad
These are usually part timers who may have had a few trips to Africa under their belt
but don‟t have a particularly thorough knowledge of the business. They will
consequently pester you with questions they should already know the answer to.
Sure, he‟s not a bad guy and will probably send you an occasional client but he‟s
also the type of guy that will want to get a cheap hunt out of you...... and whilst
cheap hunts might keep you busy, and him happy, they surely don‟t pay the bills!
I know of several PHs who in their early years have given so called agents heavily
discounted lion and/or elephant hunts and then heard no more from their so called
„agent‟.
The Ugly
These are the worst type of instant agents. They will make unreasonable promises
to clients that you then have to try to keep, give misleading info to anyone who will
listen, constantly bluff, bluster and BS and probably the only thing he‟ll get you is a
bad reputation. At worst, he‟s liable to trade on your good name. Take deposits and
then promptly disappear, leaving you and/or the hunter in the lurch.
CHAPTER 15
Management
Managing a safari company of your own is, in some ways, very similar to running
any other company. You need to keep a very close eye and tight control on such
things as ancillary costs, bottom lines and theft, maintain a good working
relationship with your staff and clients and make sure all equipment is properly
looked after and serviced.
The more unusual aspects are the care one has to take in the minutiae of the
business. I‟d strongly recommend you make a strict point of always having a
detailed and fully comprehensive contract between you and the client and just as
importantly, between you and the outfitter.
This contract needs to detail every single cost and every single service that is
provided by the various parties involved. By doing this, even if you‟re the biggest
buddy in the world with the guy you are doing business with; there can be absolutely
no confusion about who pays for what or who is responsible for anything.
Below are good examples of fair but comprehensive contracts between you and the
hunting client, you and the landowner or leaseholder, cancellation policies and
indemnity forms. If you need copies to adapt for your own use, you can either copy
them from here or if you prefer, you can download them from our website at
www.shakariconnection.com.
All contracts should also detail all cancellation policies between all parties.
Cancellations rarely happen but they can be a big problem if there‟s nothing in
writing about who gets what and from whom.
A good indemnity form is also essential in case anyone gets injured, ill or suffers
problems of some kind. Generally speaking, clients only very rarely get injured, ill or
have problems and although it‟s never happened to any of our clients, sadly, it does
happen to the occasional poor soul and if he happens to be an unreasonable and/or
litigious poor soul, he just might get it into his head to sue you.
Here’s an example of a good indemnity document:
If you are buying time from an outfitter, you also need to have a contract
between your two companies.
It‟s also important that you know as much about the new client as possible before he
arrives. Part of that is asking him for details of such things as food preferences,
medical and dietary requirements but you can take it a step further by running a
Google search on the client‟s name.
That has two major advantages. Firstly you will know a little about such things as the
business he‟s in which can make conversation flow easier around the dinner table or
camp-fire and it just might help you discover if he‟s been involved in any controversy
of any kind beforehand so that you know what subjects to avoid in those same
conversations.
Here’s a sample of a good client information form:
Staff Management
Although the Professional Hunter might be considered the „front man‟ of the hunting
operation, the cold, hard truth of the matter, is that he‟s a part of a team and as with
any team, it‟s only ever as strong as it‟s weakest link.
How you manage your staff is ultimately up to you but it should be remembered that
the African bush is a great leveller. Lives can depend on the professionalism of
every man in the hunting team no matter what the colour of his skin or his level of
education. That Zulu or Masai tracker might sometimes stink a bit but he just might
have your life in his hands or vice versa someday, so my advice would be to treat
everyone with the respect they deserve.
I‟ve personally found the way to get the best from staff is although we all have
separate roles in the operation, where possible to work alongside them as an equal.
When it comes to joint efforts such as loading a buffalo into the truck, pitch in and
don‟t forget basic manners and humour which always helps bond a group of
individuals into a team.
I‟d also suggest you go out of your way to look after the staff‟s health. If one gets
sick, don‟t be reluctant to give him a painkiller. If one gets seriously sick, send him to
town to the clinic. If one gets injured, clean the wound up, slap on a bandage, give
him a painkiller and send him to the town clinic if you think it necessary. All these
things cost little but the more you are prepared to do for them, the more they‟ll be
prepared to do for you in return.
If you treat the staff fairly but firmly you‟ll get them on your side and once you‟ve
achieved that, they‟ll do anything for you. Consequently, your job then becomes
easier and the end product that you and your team deliver to the client also
becomes better.
Happy staff are good staff. (The trumpet on the right is a lion caller). Irikishibor, Masailand,
Tanzania. Photograph: Susan Robertson
My other half, Susan, mocks me for this one and tells me it‟s so corny it makes her
toes curl. Corny or not, it works for me. If I have new staff, I often wait until I‟m
watching some zebra with the new staff and then ask them if they‟ve noticed that no
matter how tough or dry things get in the bush, the zebras always look fine, fit and
fat. They always agree with that statement. I then go on to explain that I believe it‟s
because their black and white colouring works together for them to succeed and that
a good hunting team that works together the same way will also be equally
successful. Most see my point...... and it‟s not unusual for some to ask for a
photograph to illustrate the point.
The author with Masai trackers, Mweni & Kindiki. Irikishibor, Masailand.
Photograph: Steve Robinson
Client Management
Clients come in all shapes, sizes, attitudes and hunting abilities. Some are true
hunters. Some are there to get their name in the record books. Some hunt so they
can gain bragging rights over their friends and believe it not, some are there just to
collect interior décor for their home or office.
Each type of client needs to be treated slightly differently and as you progress
through your Professional Hunting career, you‟ll soon discover for yourself the best
way to deal with the various types of client.
A bit of diplomatic questioning can tell you a lot about what kind of a hunter your
client will turn out to be. Whatever kind of client he is, it‟s your job to manage and
relate to him in a professional manner. Yet at the same time establish a friendly
relationship. Sometimes that‟s an absolute doddle but just occasionally, it takes the
patience of a saint.
A friendly & professional relationship even when client pinches your spare Masai scarf!
Irikishibor, Masailand, Tanzania. Photograph: Susan Robertson
The thing to remember about pretty much all hunting clients is that they usually have
to be pretty successful at whatever they do to be able to afford an African hunting
safari in the first place. Even, or perhaps especially, if they rely on inherited wealth,
rather than working for a living, they‟ll be very used to getting their own way and not
used to being corrected or told what to do.
They often fail to recognize that, when they leave their particular jungle and come
into yours, the perils of the jungle might have changed. The best thing you can do
with that situation is remain diplomatic and try to explain or physically point out some
of the unseen dangers that occur in the African bush. They‟ll usually quickly realize
that there may be times when it is a good idea to take your advice. I‟m not
suggesting you need to order the clients around but you do need to be the architect
of the hunt and therefore will, on occasion, need to give advice or instruction to
clients.
Don Hooker. A dream client, a hard hunter, a good friend and tough as nails.
Photograph: Steve Robinson
At one end of the scale you‟ll meet dedicated, hard hunters who are easy to get
along with and hunt for the real joy and thrill of hunting. These hunters are a PHs
dream client. I‟ve been blessed with many of these over the years and I am proud to
say, I can still count many of them as my very good friends.
In the middle of the scale, you have those who have been on a few safaris and are a
little choosy about trophy quality but these ones are also usually a pleasure to hunt
with.
Moving on, you get the guys who are record book freaks and for example, are only
willing to take animals that are in the top 10 of their favourite record book. If these
guys tell you they have that requirement before they book, then you can discuss
their requirements and the limitations of the hunting area beforehand. You can then
suggest an alternative venue as being more suitable if necessary.
What you must never do with any clients, but especially these ones, is make
promises you can‟t keep or give way to whatever pressure he might put you under in
his pursuit of trophy quality.
For example, if you have a client „on the sticks‟ and looking at an animal through his
scope and he says something like, „I only want it if it‟s xyz inches, is it xyz inches?‟
Unless you‟re absolutely 110% sure it is that size or above, you should never lie to
him. Instead, tell him something like, „it looks to me like it‟s around xyz inches but
I‟m not absolutely sure. If you don‟t want him, don‟t take him and we‟ll try to find you
another one. If you do want him, then take him‟. That way, he can‟t blame you if the
animal isn‟t to his satisfaction and equally importantly, he can‟t give you any
problems about paying the trophy fee.
Incidentally, a similar thing often happens in a leopard blind when a nervous client
will be whispering something like, „I can see him, shall I take him? Shall I take him?‟
Again, don‟t be panicked or bullied into saying something you might regret later or
have to apologize for. Take your time to check out thoroughly if it‟s a shooter or not
and only tell him to shoot when you‟re absolutely, 100% satisfied it is a shootable
animal.
Very occasionally, you might get a client who arrives with the attitude that he doesn‟t
want the PH to shoot under any circumstances and there‟s a variety of ways to deal
with that one. The easiest way is to explain that whilst you much prefer the client to
do all his own shooting, the game laws stipulate that the PH is compelled by law to
shoot if he considers human life to be in immediate danger or if he considers the
animal needs to be dispatched for humane reasons.
Just sometimes, you might come across a flaky client. They don‟t come along often,
but they do seem to come along more often than they used to in the old days. I
suggest you try to develop a sense for these rarities. A common modus operandi for
these guys is sometimes to pretend to be dissatisfied with some minor aspect of his
trip. He will then use that as an attempt to either get a discounted hunt in the future
or a cash refund of some kind. Other tricks might include, but not be restricted to,
giving personal or travellers cheques, which he will then cancel or report stolen (by
doing this, he is committing fraud) or untruthfully claiming property has been stolen
in camp and demanding compensation.
Detecting the flaky clients is always extremely difficult but it can be done. The fact
that the good guys in the industry stick together helps a great deal as the names of
flaky clients usually get passed around. Of course, there might be a client who
genuinely feels he does have a grievance and you need to be able to tell the
difference between the genuinely aggrieved client and a flaky one. With a genuinely
aggrieved client, you have to try to work something out with him. If the problem was
of your making, you might need to compensate him in some way and try to make
sure the problem can never arise again.
One rule you need to adhere to at all times is never to take cheques, traveller‟s
cheques or promise of later payment from anyone at all. Accept only cash or internet
money transfer made from camp as your only payment options. There was a time
that all of the payment methods I‟ve just mentioned were perfectly acceptable but
the slowly increasing incidence of flaky clients and other factors now mean that it‟s
inadvisable to accept anything other than completely assured payment options.
Also bear in mind that if you do accept such things as promises of later payment and
the client drops dead on his way home or gets home to find his wife has cleared out
his house and bank accounts, you‟re not going to get paid in a timely manner, if at
all. Don‟t think these things don‟t happen or won‟t happen to you because I can
assure you that sooner or later, they will happen to you if you don‟t take steps to
avoid it.
Just occasionally, you might come across a client who can‟t control themselves
when they get a rifle in their hands, or are complete amateurs and forget one or
more of the safety rules and become a sudden danger. These clients are very rare
indeed and you need to be ultra cautious of them. I‟ve seen one client who was
hunting with a friend of mine who despite being repeatedly told not to shoot until the
animal was stationary and told to shoot by the PH, would just up and bang away in
the general direction as soon as he saw an animal....... any animal. I‟ve also on
several occasions seen guys shoot dangerously close to their PHs and one of those
occasions cost me a large part of my hearing in my left ear.
My advice with these clients is to warn the hunting staff to watch the client like a
hawk. They must never, ever put themselves directly in front of him when he has a
rifle in his hands and as soon as you see a single episode that you consider unsafe,
take him aside and politely explain the situation. If you see a second example of
unsafe gun handling, take his rifle from him and give it to a tracker to carry, at least
for the remainder of the day. Explain to him that the lives of you and your staff are
considerably more important to you than his pride.
If things get really difficult, your ultimate solution to a truly impossible client is to give
him the option of changing his behaviour or you‟ll cancel the safari, take him to the
airport and then he‟s on his own. Doing this will obviously cost you money for the
unused part of the safari (at least!) but if you‟re willing to accept that, it is the
ultimate solution. I should say that this last scenario is extremely rare and has only
happened to me once or twice in over 30 years of working in the African hunting
industry.
One thing that only you can decide about is the rules you want to set about having
booze on the hunting truck. Some guys are happy to have a few beers in the cool
box, some don‟t object to a bottle of the hard stuff on board and some simply prefer
to say no booze on the hunting truck.
If the client insists on having some there, you then have to be prepared to explain to
him that you need to set a limit where serious drinking begins and hunting stops.
Clients from the former eastern bloc are often big drinkers and you can sometimes
expect to have to explain that alcohol and gunpowder don‟t mix. You need to be as
discreet and polite about this as possible but you also need to be unwavering in your
policy. Remember if there is a shooting accident as a result of this issue, it will be
your fault and no-one else‟s.
As mentioned previously, it‟s a very good idea to keep a detailed daily diary of all the
hunts. This is not only useful if you might perhaps want to write about your
experiences at some time in the future, but it‟s also a great help to recall details
should a client call you up some months after the hunt and ask something like, „what
was the GPS location of where I shot that buffalo or elephant?
Clients with Unreasonable Requests
Occasionally, a client will make an unreasonable request. Some of these are easily
dealt with logical explanation of the practicalities which he had not considered.
Decide each one on its own merits. Sometimes that isn‟t easy, especially when you
need to decide where your responsibilities begin and end - another good reason to
have a detailed contract.
Part of being a professional is to keep a „professional distance‟ from the client. Do
not get over-involved in his life. Some clients view their PH as their new best friend.
An experienced PH will tactfully disengage himself from any personal involvement
other than the hunting. Some green PHs might feel flattered and avail themselves of
the hospitality and any other „promises‟ from the client.
CHAPTER 16
Taxidermy
A lot of PHs, especially inexperienced ones, do not give this subject much thought.
They drop the animal at the skinning sheds and then probably only ever see it once
more when it‟s dried and salted. This is a big mistake. Your skinner needs to be a
good friend who wants to look out for your interests. Head skinners almost invariably
know their job well but you need to keep an eye on the skinning standards just to be
sure.
Make a point of becoming a regular visitor to the skinning shed and don‟t be afraid
to get your hands dirty by helping out when the work load gets heavy or of taking a
look at the standard of work that‟s being done there. Double check that all the meat
is cleaned off properly and the skins are washed, dried and salted properly and most
importantly, tagged properly.
A good skinner will also be able to make such mementos as hand tied elephant hair
bracelets and bracelets made from the thick skin or foot pad of hippo or elephant.
The way they make these is to trim off all meat and outside skin until that‟s left is the
subcutaneous layer of hide or soft bone if taken from the base of a foot. He then
uses the base of a wine bottle or tin can (depending on size required). Then he cuts
out the bangle and rounds off the sharp edges. Then all he has to do is leave them
somewhere safe for a week or two to dry. Both types of bangles are very popular
with clients but it should be noted that technically, the client should not be allowed to
take them from camp as he would be in breach of CITES and other regulations. The
correct way to do it is to send them to the taxidermist along with the rest of the
trophies so they can be forwarded to the client with the rest of his consignment.
Hippo hide bangle, Masai bead bracelet & elephant hair watch strap.
Photograph: Steve Robinson
The only 'treble' elephant hair bracelet I‟ve ever seen. I treasure this greatly!
Photograph: Steve Robinson
Elephant feet bangles. Photograph: Steve Robinson
Most taxidermists nowadays will supply you with virtually indestructible paper tags
that can be affixed to trophies with plastic ladder straps. Make a point of writing out
tags as each animal is taken and then fix a tag to every item as soon as it‟s ready
and before it goes into the storage section of the skinning shed.
Also keep a taxidermy register where every item is detailed in writing and have the
client sign every page before he departs camp. This register can either be bought
from PHASA, donated by your favourite taxidermist or generated with the aid of a
computer and printer but wherever it comes from, needs to contain the following
information:
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Client‟s name.
Client‟s address.
Client‟s phone number.
Client‟s email address.
Outfitter‟s name.
Outfitter‟s address.
Outfitter‟s phone number.
Outfitter‟s email address.
Taxidermist‟s name.
Taxidermist‟s address.
Taxidermist‟s phone number.
Taxidermist‟s email address.
Consignment address.
Professional Hunter‟s name.
Professional Hunter‟s address
Professional Hunter‟s phone number.
Professional Hunter‟s email address.
Professional Hunter‟s PH licence number.
Order number (if applicable).
Followed by sections for:
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Cites or other tag number.
Species
Horn Measurement, tusk weight or overall length (if applicable)
Item (as in cape, back-skin or skull & horns)
Instruction (as in shoulder mount/head left or right)
Taxidermy is as much as art as it a craft and you need to encourage the client to
choose his taxidermist by quality rather than cost or friendship. You also need to
remember that most clients, in all honesty, wouldn‟t know a good trophy from a bad
one because they haven‟t seen enough African animals in the wild to know what
they should look like.
The best way to tell the good from the bad when it comes to taxidermy is to look at
his cats, especially leopards. They‟re the easiest to get wrong and the hardest to get
right and if a taxidermist can make a cat, especially a leopard look realistic, then
he‟s at the top of his own particular tree. The best taxidermy studio I know of in
Africa is Lifeform Taxidermy in my home town of White River Mpumalanga and if
you ever find yourself in the vicinity, I‟d recommend you drop in there and ask for a
tour of their operation. I promise you won‟t be disappointed!
The key to good finished trophies is in their care and preparation from the moment
the animal hits the ground and these aspects should never be ignored. Even a
single incorrect cut can destroy the trophy completely and for ever.
If you have a preferred taxidermist, make a point of keeping a large store of his tags
and ladder straps available. If the client wants to use a different taxidermist, ask him
to make sure he brings the appropriate taxidermy tags with him.
As mentioned previously, the DVD „Hunting Trophies‟ made by taxidermist Kruger
Human is extremely informative and practical. In fact, in my opinion, every PH and
student PH should own a copy and you can buy it at www.shakariconnection.com
CHAPTER 17
Health
It is imperative that the PH remains healthy and fit at all times and I‟d recommend
you make a point of maintaining a good regime of anti-malarial treatment and other
precautionary measures.
Ignore the stories from some PHs who swear never to use anti-malarial drugs and
have survived numerous doses of the disease. A client, though sympathetic, may
ultimately take a dim view of losing expensive hunting days because you are
confined to your tent for some reason. To say nothing of the fact that malaria can kill
you very quickly. Only a fool has access to anti-malarial prophylaxis and chooses
not to use it.
Africa is full of ticks and incorrect removal will cause tick bite fever which will make
you feel like you‟ve been hit by a train for a week or so. A good trick is to use dog
tick and flea shampoo instead of shower gel. Make a point of going over every inch
of your body and waiting a few minutes before rinsing off.
You must be aware of all the potential health hazards Africa offers and learn to
recognise symptoms in yourself and your client. A client may be the type to suffer in
silence, so encourage them to tell you if they are feeling unwell.
Learn about the basic remedies for aches & pains, diarrhoea, insect bites, sunburn
etc. If necessary keep a list of what tablets are for what in your first aid kit - you may
need to advise a client what he should take. If you do give clients any drugs
whatsoever from your own first aid kit, be very sure to ask him if he has any drug
allergies before you do. If there is the slightest doubt about what you want to give
him, don‟t give him anything at all.
Although it‟s relatively rare, just occasionally someone might get seriously ill or
injured and it‟s advisable for everyone in the hunting party, including the
Professional Hunter to have good medical and medivac (medical evacuation) cover.
You must know how to summon help via a radio or satellite phone
I highly recommend Global Rescue as the very best medivac and emergency
evacuation cover available.
Here is a list of the more common diseases you need to be aware of for the sake of
yourself, your client and your staff:
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Polio
Tetanus
Diphtheria
Tuberculosis
Measles
Yellow Fever
Typhoid
Meningitis
Hepatitis
Rabies
Cholera
Schistosomiasis (aka bilharzia)
Malaria
Tick Bite Fever
Sleeping sickness
I won‟t encourage you to try to diagnose these diseases yourself and deliberately
haven‟t gone into the symptoms of each. Suffice to say that if you suspect anyone of
having caught any of the serious diseases, you get on the radio or satellite phone
and whistle up a medivac for them.
CHAPTER 18
Top Tips & Handy Hints
Any fool can drive a 4x4 but driving a 4x4 well is a real art. Even if you have a driver,
it pays to know a few little tricks for yourself. If you don‟t have much experience, you
should maybe consider a 4x4 training course. If you ever get stuck in mud or sand
and you don‟t have any big trees handy to put a tree strop around to pull yourself out
with, take one of your spare wheels and use it as a ground anchor. Just pull your
winch cable out as far as necessary, clip the hook onto the spare wheel and bury
the wheel fairly deeply. Then use the combined power of winch and engine to slowly
pull the truck out.
If you don‟t have a winch on the truck, you can usually get away with doing a similar
thing by using a long, strong rope and taking a few turns around one of the front
tyres.
High lift jacks are a real pain in the neck to use but, despite that, they get the job
done when nothing else will. Not only can you use them as a jack to change a
wheel, if you have two, you can use them together to jack up one end of a bogged
down vehicle. Then drive the vehicle off the jacks to make slow but steady forward
or backward progress. This method is especially useful should you get bogged down
in black cotton soil.
With the aid of good, strong shackles and ropes or chains, you can also use them as
an alternative to a winch to either pull something into a vehicle or to pull a bogged
down vehicle out. As awkward as they are, sometimes, they‟re the only practical
solution.
In case you haven‟t used a high lift jack before, you need to control both the upward
and the downward stroke of the handle at all times, because if you don‟t, you just
might end up with a badly broken nose.
If you or the client gets thirsty or jaded on those long walks after buffalo and if it‟s
convenient, the bush is full of refreshing fruits. So it pays to learn your trees and
shrubs to make the most of this. The pulp from inside a baobab seed pod, a few wild
chilies, some marula fruits (if you can get to them before the elephants do!) or the
tiny fruit from a Zulu milk berry bush are and a whole lot of others can make those
long walks not only a lot more interesting for the client but also a lot more
comfortable for everyone.
Bush lunches are a necessity in many parts of Africa and finding the right location to
enjoy them can make all the difference. Look for a big shade tree in a relatively open
area so that the tsetse flies and other troublesome insects are kept to a minimum
(they can‟t travel across long open distances). Look also for resting wildebeest as
you can bet your life, they‟ll have found the most comfortable spot for miles to while
away the hot midday hours. Once you see them under a tree, just drive towards
them and they‟ll politely vacate the property for you to enjoy.
Riverbanks are also a good option for picnic sites but try to find a nice high bank so
you avoid insect life and to ensure the clients are not tempted to stand at the water‟s
edge where there might be a risk of crocodiles. If you decide to settle on a low
riverbank, be sure to warn the clients of the dangers of crocodiles and hippos and
tell them they need to stay well back from the water‟s edge at all times.
If you‟re flying with firearms, don‟t put your faith in ordinary baggage tags and
luggage labels. Glue at least one, and preferably two hard white or light coloured
pieces of plastic about 8 inches x 4 inches onto the sides of your rifle case. Then
use an indelible pen to write your name and all flight details onto them. When you
get home, just wipe it off with a clean rag and a splash of gasoline and it‟s ready for
next time.
Ideally, all hippos would be shot when they‟re on dry land because it‟s a more
exciting hunt and a lot safer and easier to recover the carcass that way. The truth is
that often they need to be taken when they‟re in the water and there‟s no doubt that
you as a Professional Hunter will sometimes have clients take hippos this way. The
shot is usually relatively easy but the true skill is in finding a suitable hippo in a
convenient location.
Look for a location where water flow is not too fast and not too deep where the
current will wash the animal towards the bank rather than out into midstream where
it will become more difficult or even impossible to recover. Bear in mind that you and
your hunting staff will almost certainly have to go into the water as part of the
recovery operation. Try to time the shot towards the hottest part of the day when
most of the crocodiles are busy sunbathing on the banks, rather than in the water
hunting.
Sexing a hippo, especially when it‟s in the water isn‟t easy but with a little practice,
isn‟t impossible. The bulls are larger, have hooded eyes with overhanging eyebrows
and usually show a lot of battle damage such as scars and bitten off ears and/or tail.
Cows are usually smaller, look like they are wearing pink rimmed spectacles and
have slightly popping out eyes with a slightly startled look as though someone has
just pinched their bum in church.
In the good old days, when cars had metal hubcaps, every hunting truck would have
one on board and it was common to sit it on the roof rack or in the load bed of the
hunting truck and drop a smouldering piece of dried elephant dung into it. This
works a treat as an insect repellent and will even keep the dreaded tsetse flies
away. Each dung ball lasts for an hour or two and you can ask your driver to make
sure he keeps a small sack of spares in the truck somewhere. You can use the
same trick if you have to wait in the bush for a while beside a dead animal for the
truck to arrive or when you stop for lunch.
The shot at the leopard should be one of the easiest on any safari but the truth is
that despite the client being seated comfortably, having a rock steady rifle rest, a
perfectly zeroed rifle for the range of the shot and all the time in the world. It‟s the
shot that is most commonly stuffed up and the shot that is most liable to put the PH
and his trackers in danger. The way to get over this is to set up a proper rehearsal.
Once you have the cat on bait and the blind built and equipped, use your rangefinder to zap the exact distance between blind and where you expect the leopard to
be sitting when he is shot. Also measure the height from ground to the same place.
Then go off to the range and recreate the shot exactly. Put the client in the same
type of chair he‟ll be sitting in when in the blind, build him a similar rifle rest and
make him equally comfortable.
Next step is to take a couple of cardboard boxes and draw a life size outline of a
leopard on the side of it. Take an empty 1 or 1.5 litre plastic water bottle (always
plenty of those in a hunting camp). Drop a few pebbles into it to give it weight and fix
it inside the box where the cat‟s heart will be. Then have someone climb a tree and
fix it in a location where it is exactly the same height as you expect Mr. Spots to be
when he cops a bullet.
Then wait until the client is perfectly comfortable and relaxed and tell him he has all
the time in the world but he has to be able to put three consecutive shots through
the „heart‟ of the cat before he does the real thing. Most clients‟ get this wrong the
first few times, but don‟t worry about it. Tell the client it‟s better to get it wrong a few
times here than get it wrong on the real thing. Sooner or later, he‟ll consistently get
the shot right and you can tell him he‟s ready to sit for the cat.
Sooner or later, you are going to have to be able to judge the weights of elephant
ivory by sight. Elephant tusks in southern Africa tend to be short and thick whereas
those from east Africa are usually, longer, thinner and more elegant. Individual tusks
can vary in size of nerve and so judging tusk weight is not an exact science.
However, if you can judge the circumference of the tusk at the lip in inches and the
length of the bottom or outside curve of the tusk from the lip to the tip in feet and
tenths of a foot (ie: 2 foot 4 inches = 2.3 feet). Then multiply one by the other and
deduct 10%. This will tell you the approximate weight of the tusk in pounds. For
example, a tusk of 15 inches circumference and 2 feet 6 inches in length = 37.5 lbs
minus 10% = 33.75 lbs or 33 lbs 12 oz.
As you progress through your hunting career, you‟ll sometimes have occasion to
check a rifle when in the bush and away from the rifle range. When this happens,
you‟ll make a mark of some kind on a tree or a termite mound and use that as the
aiming point.
Please…..look carefully at whatever tree you propose using before you allow
anyone to shoot. If it‟s a tree, make sure it‟s a dead tree at best and a common, fast
growing tree at worst. If you use something like a live leadwood or a baobab, it
might have been growing there for hundreds of years. If you‟re using a termite
mound, try to ensure it‟s an extinct one. Just think what a shameful waste it would
be to kill such things just to check the zero on a rifle.
Clients often arrive in camp in a relatively unfit condition. Don‟t blame them for this
because their lifestyle which after all pays for their safaris often means they don‟t
have time to take long walks or visit the gym as often as they‟d like.
You have to learn to work with what you‟ve got in this and the trick is to try not to
walk them further than they can manage at the start of their safari. If you walk them
2 or 3 hours on the first day, you can usually extend the walking time as each day
goes on.
If and when you get onto a good prospect that you know is going to be a long walk
then the trick is to walk them until they look like they‟re flagging and then stop, give
them a quick drink of water and ask them if they can give you just one more hour
because if they can, you‟re fairly sure you can get them in front of a buffalo or
whatever species you happen to be hunting. 99 times out of 100, they‟ll agree they
can continue. You then „forget‟ to look at your watch and walk them for as long as
possible until they again look like they‟re flagging and repeat the process. (reducing
the extra time you need at every stop)
You can usually get away with this for at least 3 or 4 stops and this can usually give
you an extra 2 or 3 hours of walking at least. You do however need to keep them
properly hydrated by giving them plenty of water and if necessary, some glucose.
Try not to allow them to stop for too long as if you do, the lactic acid builds up in
their muscles, which will make it harder for them to start walking again.
At the end of the walk (whether you get to see/shoot the animal or not, try to use the
radios to bring the vehicle in as close as possible to make their return journey as
easy as possible for them.
As part of your pre-safari communications, if you have a client from the western
states of the USA, you might like to suggest they get a bit of pre-safari target
practice and instruction at the SAAM (Sportsman‟s All weather, All terrain
Marksmanship) ranges in Dallas Fort Worth, Texas. This company runs a variety of
training courses and any client that has attended one of their African Safari training
courses will arrive with you all the better for it.
Summary
If you‟re lucky enough to get into the African hunting industry and some outsiders do
manage it, you will be taking your first steps down the road to a fantastic and
rewarding career and lifestyle.
Working as a Professional Hunter is a great and very fulfilling way to spend your life
but don‟t ever expect it to make you rich. If you want to make serious money, go to
university and then work as a lawyer, banker or doctor. Sure, it‟s not as much fun as
working as a Professional Hunter but you‟ll probably make enough money to go on
fairly regular safaris.
If you feel you can forego the money in exchange for the lifestyle of a Professional
Hunter, I would encourage you to go for it with all your heart and soul. I did and I‟ve
never regretted it for a second and if I had my life to live over again, I wouldn‟t
change a thing!
I sincerely hope this book will help you decide whether or not you want to spend
your life as I have spent mine and if you do decide to follow in my footsteps, I wish
you all the luck in the world and I know you‟ll have a ball.
Should you have any questions, comments, criticisms or compliments, (especially
compliments!) don‟t hesitate to contact me at [email protected] and I‟ll be
happy to do my best to help you. If you do make it into the industry, with a bit of luck,
maybe we‟ll meet up and share a beer or two and a camp-fire somewhere down the
trail!
Just before I sign off, I‟d like to tell you a little story about the very final test that Ian
Goss set me prior to giving me my very first Professional Hunters licence. He sat me
down and told me that thus far, I‟d passed everything, but there was just one more
test I had to pass and if I failed, I‟d have do the whole course over again. He went
on to say, I had to recite word perfectly a poem we both knew and loved and that
could in many ways, be called the Professional Hunter‟s poem.
I‟m glad to say, I passed the final test and here‟s what Ian calls the PH's poem:
IF
By Rudyard Kipling
If you can keep your head when all about you
Are losing theirs and blaming it on you,
If you can trust yourself when all men doubt you,
But make allowance for their doubting too;
If you can wait and not be tired by waiting,
Or being lied about, don't deal in lies,
Or being hated, don't give way to hating,
And yet don't look too good, nor talk too wise:
If you can dream - and not make dreams your master;
If you can think - and not make thoughts your aim;
If you can meet with Triumph and Disaster
And treat those two impostors just the same;
If you can bear to hear the truth you've spoken
Twisted by knaves to make a trap for fools,
Or watch the things you gave your life to, broken,
And stoop and build 'em up with worn-out tools:
If you can make one heap of all your winnings
And risk it on one turn of pitch-and-toss,
And lose, and start again at your beginnings
And never breathe a word about your loss;
If you can force your heart and nerve and sinew
To serve your turn long after they are gone,
And so hold on when there is nothing in you
Except the Will which says to them: 'Hold on!'
If you can talk with crowds and keep your virtue,
' Or walk with Kings - nor lose the common touch,
if neither foes nor loving friends can hurt you,
If all men count with you, but none too much;
If you can fill the unforgiving minute
With sixty seconds' worth of distance run,
Yours is the Earth and everything that's in it,
And - which is more - you'll be a Man, my son!
Dedication
This book is dedicated to the memory of the late Mr. Vivian L Good, without whose
help I would probably never have set foot in Africa, let alone have been able to
make Africa my life. Without his kindness and generosity, none of my dreams would
have been realized. To me, he truly was the epitome of Kipling‟s 1000th Man.
L to R: Jim Good, Bongani, Vivian Good & (a very skinny) Steve (c.1980)
Acknowledgements
My thanks must go to a lot of people who have so kindly helped me in my career.
Firstly to my two friends and mentors Ian Goss and the late Vivian Good, without
whom I‟d never have gotten properly started and correctly trained in the industry.
Also, and equally, to Susan without whose creativity, skills, patience, determination
and love, I‟d never have made the leaps forward I did. My achievements are as
much hers as they are mine (maybe more).
Thanks must also go to those clients, game department staff, fellow Professional
Hunters and Safari Company staff who simply became my very good friends and
have given me some especially fond memories.
I can‟t name them all here but just a few (and in no particular order) are Peter Lang
(who also kindly proof-read this book), Bruce Ferreira, Don Hooker, Pierre van der
Walt, Michel Allard, Mark Cordwell, Stoffel de Jager, Gary Davies, Wikus
Groenewald, Jason & Michelle Van Aarde, Bob Mitcham, Hilda Creasey (deceased)
and Kay Hiscocks (deceased).
Those that are not mentioned know who they are and they all have my eternal
gratitude for giving so unstintingly of their magnificent support, humour and
friendship.
About The Author
Steve Robinson was born and raised in the south of England and began his
professional hunter training in South Africa in 1980 with the late Mr. Vivian L good
and later under the eagle-eyed tuition of Mr. Ian Goss, the chief examiner of
professional hunters in Kwa Zulu Natal, South Africa.
During his over three decades of working in the African hunting safari industry,
Steve has hunted professionally in seven African countries and has amassed a
wealth of experience with both dangerous and plains game. He is co-director of
Kuduland Safaris (Africa) Ltd, writes for a variety of hunting magazines and websites
and with his partner Susan has co-authored the „Handy Little Hunting Book‟ and coproduced www.shakariconnection.com
Among his hobbies, Steve is a keen wildlife photographer, fisherman (anything from
trout to crocodile) and very poor amateur pilot.
Reading List
„The Perfect Shot‟ by Kevin Robertson‟
„Africa‟s Most Dangerous‟ by Kevin Robertson
„Nyati, The Art of Hunting the African Buffalo‟ by Kevin Robertson
„African Dangerous Game Cartridges by Pierre van der Walt‟
„The Game Warden‟s Report‟ by Ron Thomson
„Managing Our Wildlife Heritage‟ by Ron Thomson
„The Wildlife Game‟ by Ron Thomson
„Shots At Big Game‟ by Craig Boddington
„Into The Thorns‟ by Wayne Grant
„Chui‟ by Lou Hallamore
„In The Salt‟ by Lou Hallamore
„Field Guide to the Larger Mammals of Africa‟ by Chris & Tilde Stuart
„Mammals of Southern, Central & East Africa‟ by Chris & Tilde Stuart
„Birds of Africa‟ by Chris & Tilde Stuart
„Tracks & Signs‟ by Chris & Tilde Stuart
„Field Guide to the Trees of Southern Africa‟ by Piet van Wyk
„Four Fires‟ by Bryce Courtenay
DVDs
Firearms Multimedia Guide
„Hunting Trophies‟ by taxidermist Kruger Human.
Useful Contacts
RSA Provincial Wildlife Departments
Kwazulu-Natal Conservation Service: +27 33 845 1652
Western Cape: +27 22 931 3832
Eastern Cape: +27 42 741 1944
Northern Cape: +27 53 807 4800
Free State: +27 41 400 9518
Gauteng: +27 11 355 1280
Mpumalanga: +27 13 759 5300
Limpopo: +27 15 295 9300
North-West: +27 14 592 7378
Useful Websites
Shakari Connection
Firearm Permit Application Forms Download
PHASA – Professional Hunters' Association Of South Africa
You may also download most provincial hunting ordinances here.
CITES