Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Africa PHs The Good and The Bad

BH63 - I'll second JJ's request. I did a lot of checking before booking my first hunt with him and it was a great hunt. The nice thing about that is I didn't have to spend any time checking references etc. when I booked my second trip with Jim. I've been on the campfire for quite some time and have never read anything negative about his operation. Nothing but positive reviews.

Well then, I'd like to take this opportunity to say I hunted with Marius Goosen of KMG Hunting Safaris and was very happy with my safari. I'll hunt with him again if I ever get a pass from my wife.

I'm one of the few here that can say he knew Capstick and has hunted elephant. I don't remember specifically that reference to elephants by PHC, but I'll look around.

I will say if you are on foot and approach within 50 yards or less, you are hunting, and there is still that experience if you want to cough up the fees. Nothing else quite like it. Wrong bullet placement and he's on you in a few quick steps. Fail to brain him, and you'll be dug out from between his toes for the post mortem.

Yeah, you can still do it.

Beg to differ. I've hunted Cameroon and those elephant are definitely wild! Most people with a couple of safaris under their belt also know that Capstick was for the most part full of [bleep]! He sold a lot of books but his hunting info is pretty sorry.

I agree with JJ, I've not heard of bad hunts here. I hunted with SS Pro Safaris, had a great time, I'd hunt with JJ in a heart beat. I think you over stated what's going on here.

He heard about safariman, that was the only bad one.

I have not hunted with JJ but I have communicate with him several times. He is reasonable and honest. Anyone who has posted here who hunted with him always gives rave reviews. I am sure some folks who have had a grand time with JJ haven not bother to post for a variety of reasons.

I have also communicated with Marius Goosen and can and will say the about him as I have said about JJ

I certainly hope that one particular comment was not directed at either these gentleman's way.It would be wrong to slag a good man even on the faceless internet.

All the best to yall

GRF

Gras Ranch in Namibia. Great accommodations, lots of game, amazing scenery. Highly recommend

JJ,

I did not state anything specifically about you (or your hunts). I have read many posters complain about PAC hunts that were arranged (or discovered) on this forum. These posts are not hard to find.

I also spoke to a long-time poster F2F, who told of a 24hourcampfire outfitter where he specifically wanted to hunt Buffalo, and he and the PH got run off of a landwowner's property, because, according to the landowner, the outfitter never paid him for the last animals killed on his property. He never did get his buffalo.

I don't honestly remember who the outfitter was in this instance.

I'm sure you have plenty of satisfied customers, and I realize, even outfitter's with the best of intentions, occasionally get skunked or run into un-foreseen circumstances.

I recently read on another forum, where a logistics problem resulted in the clients and staff being without hardly any food for parts of the hunt.

As I recall from the story, on one day, the client got a can of peaches to eat, and the PH got a can of beans. (My guess was that the supplies got stolen by some locals, but because this safari was in a hard-to-reach area, there wasn't time/resources available to replace the missing food.)

BH63

It could have been him, but I don't remember exactly. What was the complaint about him?

BH63

My rationale for starting this thread, was that basically people going on safari, put up large amounts of money, sometimes to people they really don't know. The potential for scams is really huge.

Most of the PHs, I have ever met and/or hunted with, have been decent, honest, hardworking individuals who sincerely want the client to get his trophies.

Also sometimes, the PH and the owner/outfitter don't always see eye-to-eye on availability of species, sliding fees, etc. I once had a PH argue with the owner over the trophy fee of a large ellie I had shot. My original booking was for a bull ellie of any size. After I had shot a 60# a side bull, the owner apparently "forgot" that arrangement and wanted more money. The PH had to remind the owner a couple of times, before the owner finally remembered.

So, like a used car dealer, an outfitter who seems like your best friend before the money changes hands, can suddenly stop returning your calls (or your money) if things don't go as planned.

BH63

Am I to understand that it is actually acceptable for a person to go into an area unfamiliar to him, hunting for species with which he has no experience, and hire someone to guide him in his hunt? Amazing the difference geography makes!

BH63, at the risk of turning this into a quarrel--which is not my intention--I'm afraid I don't understand this statement from your last post:



You state that you have a "rationale" for starting this thread, then you fail to state clearly what your "rationale" actually was and is. I can infer from this rambling incomplete first sentence, then the second (thankfully complete) sentence that you think that people are being scammed. That is hardly a "rationale".

Most of us who frequent this forum are experienced to some degree with recent events and hunts in Africa. We are eager to share our experiences with each other, to help guide others looking to hunt Africa to find their own great quality hunting adventure.

By your own admission, your own African experience is quite out-of-date. I can understand you wanting to catch up, benefiting from the more recent experience of the rest of us, to increase your chances of getting a good hunt yourself next time. Good, that's what this forum is here for! But why are you looking for more specific tales of woe? To help you avoid the bad white hunters? It would seem not, since you've already booked your 2016 safari!

You have made the claim in this thread that there are many examples of African outfitters promoting scams on this forum, and that if one looks, "they're not hard to find", yet you fail to give even one example. Why didn't you? If you're really concerned about scams perpetrated here, shouldn't you be specific in pointing them out?

So what exactly is your rationale for starting this thread, old chum, since you've brought that up? To sling mud in general? To bring specific complaints against specific outfitters? What? What?

I guess what I'm saying is that I see no rationale for this post other than a thinly veiled attempt to rake muck, and an invitation for others to do so.

If I'm mistaken, please enlighten me.

^
DocR



If you read the entire thread you should understand, that the point of the thread was not to bad mouth any particular outfitter (or even name them), but just to gain a general understanding of bad hunts that some members may have experienced in more recent times.

I have found knowledge is where you find it, and to find it, you have to look in different demographics and ask the right questions.

The safari business, like any business has its share of marginal operators, and I'm sure some of the posters here have had some bad experiences.

To me being forewarned is being forearmed. It is much easier to avoid a potentially bad situation, if you know what to look for in advance.

I have traveled to over 43 different countries and have seen a fair share of tourist scams. Many are unique to the country and/or culture. Knowing what the scams are in advance is a good way to avoid unpleasant surprises.

I understand you have made several safaris, but I assume most of them have been with the same outfitter.

So have you personally, ever had a safari that wasn't what you had expected or didn't live up to its billing?

BH63

Exactly my experience in 2 elephant hunts in Zimbabwe. When you close inside 50 yards with a herd, a bachelor bull band or finally, inside 30 yards of a mature bull and his askaris, you're hunting wild elephants that can kill you, the PH, and the trackers, even when there are multiple heavy rifles on hand.

Once the shooting starts at appropriately close range, someone will end it. Hopefully good planning, experienced PH team and a hunter who can perform as needed will mean a happy ending, mature trophy elephant and nice pictures on the 24HCF.

No different than the experience Ruark and Selby had when it comes to tracking a bull and closing the deal. Do we need to be reminded of Ian Gibson's outcome to realize that elephant hunting is the essence DG hunts?

Well, I have read the full thread, which is why I wrote my preceding post.

In fact, I was so puzzled by your post purporting to clarify your "rationale" that I re-read the entire thread twice through. Still not really clear to me that you've given a true rationale, but I gather that you'd like to hear some stories of hunts gone bad, ostensibly to avoid having the same thing happen to you (or to other who read this thread).

Am I reading you right?

If so, I would argue that this is the wrong way to go about it. As I wrote in my post on this thread on Jan. 13, in my experience the best way to assure yourself you're buying a good hunt is to find out which PH's/outfitters are getting good reviews in the area you want to hunt, then talk to some of their recent past clients to get candid reports, and if all checks out, talk to the PH/outfitter yourself. I've used this method on every guided hunt I've been on except one, and every single time I've had an enjoyable hunt with no bad surprised.

The only exception to my rule was a Wyoming elk hunt that a "friend" had booked, and I let him talk me into going with him. It turned out to be an unpleasant experience in many ways, none of which were the outfitter's fault. I came home sans elk and with a strong lesson in not trusting other people to set up my hunts for me.

In my experience it's a lot easier to seek out the good guys and work with them than to try to find the shady characters. Doing the opposite just makes no sense unless you're in the business of catching bad guys (i.e., you're in law enforcement).

Thats what makes the world spin.

I have zero desire to see or hunt africa. I have all the desire to move to AK and hunt/fish evetyhing there until I die

I read the African forum from time to time just to read. Still have no desire.

But unfortunately the guides seem just like in the US... some bad, many good, a few great... probably that way the world over.

Alaska is where my heart is also rost, but I would like to take a safari with my wife and children while we still can. I hope I'm wrong but they very well could be the ones telling the tales of hunting Africa when there was still hunting allowed. I never had the desire but as I get older (45) I think it'd be a hell of an experience. I'd have to set aside a week for fishing though....

I don't disagree with what you state, but I think there is more to it than just reading the "good" reviews.

I had an extremely fantastic elephant hunt with a certain PH. He no longer works as a PH, and, although I would write a really great review for the hunt I had with that outfitter, I'm not sure it would apply to the same outfitter today who is currently using different PHs.

That's why I like to collect anecdotes of "things to watch out for", if you will.

Nothing, nefarious intended.

Cheers,

BH63

PS: An example (although not pertaining to PHs) is knowing to watch out for the overly aggressive porters in Jo'burg International Airport and the officials wanting bribes at the Police Check counter. Once you are aware of the potential problems, you can take proactive steps to thwart them.

I used to get excited about Alaska (and I still hope to do a brown bear hunt there someday), but after watching the TV series "Alaska State Troopers", it has lost a lot of charm for me.

But like you said "That's what makes the world spin".

I hope all your Alaskan dreams come true.

BH63