Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Africa 7 Day Safari report...

Welcome back and congratulations on a bag full of really good trophies.

Thank, you sir.I took my daughters and son-in-law with me. Great choice for me. My PH was just great. We were all in tears when it came time to go. Spiral Horn Safaris has my business, thats for certain. Louis Van Bergan constantly worked at making sure our trip was the best...

Ouch, Sir sounds so very British. During the 1899 - 1902 Anglo Boer War we did not like them Brits all that much. You are welcome to call me by my name, or almost anything else.

Only two things make my work really hard:
1. a PH and outfit that did a fantastic job, and
2. a PH and outfit that did a really bad job

Has the bug bitten you and how long before you head down thataway again?

My best

"thataway again" sums it up. Later...

My youngest daughter, Lisa finally got around to adding her 2 cents worth. Makes me proud of that kid...Here goes:

"My name is Lisa, and I'm Gary's youngest daughter. I heard that you were looking for a little insight in regards to Spiral Horn Safaris, and I thought I would weigh in a little.

I cannot emphasis enough the wonderful experience I had at Spiral Horn with my dad, sister, and brother-in-law. From the moment we arrived (dead beat tired, of course), Louis made sure we were as comfortable as possible. He picked us up from the airport and navigated us through the unfamiliar terrain to the ranch. The entire staff greeted us there - even though it was past midnight - and they had refreshments and snacks laid out by the fire for us. For the duration of the trip, I didn�t prepare one single drink, snack, or meal myself. My private chalet was cleaned from top to bottom daily and even my laundry was washed and delivered back my room every day. We all started joking by midweek that it was a very, very easy lifestyle to get used to.

The camp itself was beautiful and had the perfect blend of creature comforts and natural surroundings. Other than my chalet - which was awesome - all other living at the ranch was done outdoors. We ate at a table outside under a thatched roof, enjoying the sights and sounds of nature. We had mid-afternoon snacks and beverages outside, lounging in the shade. We socialized and talked about the hunt every evening around the campfire. It just seemed perfectly natural to be outside and around the natural environment as much as possible in South Africa. Of course, you already know how beautiful it is there!

I loved hunting with Louis and my dad. It was truly amazing to see all the beautiful animals and I took more than my fair share of photographs. It was a blast to track animals with them � Louis knows exactly what he is doing. It seemed he has a sixth sense of where the game would be or where to go to find them. One of the most impressive things about Louis though, is he was extremely aware of the quality of each animal we encountered. He had the upmost respect for each animal, allowing it only to be taken if it was ready � when it was at the peak of its quality. Louis is just as concerned as the hunter with each trophy - there were many times that my dad had a chance at an animal that Louis determined was not good enough yet. And it was well worth the wait! All the animals my dad took were of the highest quality and I�m almost certain that all of them were record contenders.

Working with Louis at Spiral Horn is the best avenue and I would highly recommend it, especially since you are planning your own trip. He is more than happy to answer any questions you may have and his friendly and knowledgeable disposition will reassure you that you are in the best hands around."

That's way cool stuff there Gary O, and a fine testimony written by your daughter. I enjoyed that very much. My nephew and son are graduating from college 6 months apart. My dream is to take them and myself to S Africa on safari. I can't imagine a better time spent with them, as they've already grown up too fast.

Hi Gary

Thank you so much for the very kind hunt report it is always great to read things like this!

Also a big thanks to all for their very kind comments.

Nothing beats spending time with great people!

I hope to see you soon my friend.

Best Regards
Louis van Bergen

Gary

You must be very proud of your trophy's and your family. I enjoyed the pics and Lisa's writing. Life is good.

Yes, I am blessed...

Very nice, you know that you are going to have to build yourself a 7 x 57 now and put a good 4x scope on it, and then load good 175 gr bullets in order for you to sleep better at night now. The 7 x 57 is one of the most useful and shootable cartridges we have. Pure perfection.

My thinking goes like this: 7x57 Ackley, Leupold 4X, 160 grain Partition handloads all in a Model 70.

Gary I am thinking about getting another 7x 57 just to have in camp!

Gentleman should you be seriously considering hunting with us please PM me with your postal address and I will send you our Promotional DVD free of charge!

Best Regards
Louis van Bergen

I would be glad to help you score a 7x57 on this side of the pond, but I am unsure about the gun laws in the RSA that you face. Let me know if I can help...Gary

Gary O, you are hooked now! It has been said by many. "Your first trip is merely a tune up for your next trip(s). Great pics. MTG

Thanks Gary I need to change my license but once that has been done it might be just the thing to do I will work on making the changes in December and then lets look in to that!

Best Regards
Louis van Bergen