I'm the David who will be joining the August hunt. I met Gerhard at the Houston Safari Club show last year, and was introduced by a friend who had hunted at Gerhard's other location. He shot an Eland that won him Archery Trophy of the Year for African Game at the HSC convention. Very impressive animal.
The trophies I was able to take were 2 zebra, 1 each eland, waterbuck, and bushbuck. I also killed 8 each cull impala and blue wildebeest. I scheduled a 9 day hunt, but had some luggage issues with South African Express, so lost over a day due to that. The size of the hunting area is immense, with diverse terrain due to the 15 miles or so that it borders the Limpopo river. No domestic animals on the place, but it's loaded with a great variety of game. Gerhard also has access to other areas, including one an hour away where I got my bushbuck, and an area next door that is so overpopulated with animals that they had to feed them hay to keep them alive last year. I was amazed at how many giraffe Gerhard has.
I've been to Africa 6 times, and have stayed in tented camps and 5-star lodges. The accommodations in Botswana were clean and comfortable, but more of a camp than a lodge. Maggie fixed excellent food, much of it being bush meat cooked on open fire. I ate wildebeest tongue, burgers, backstrap, even the tail. Dining was outdoors, with a fire in the firepit, and great wine every night. Lunches were also in camp, followed by a nice nap in a real bed. No internet, big screen TV, fancy bar, etc. But if you're there to hunt, you'll be very happy.
My main hunting partner is over 80 years old and unwilling to travel such long distances to hunt, so I'm looking forward to meeting up with the group and making new friends. My plan for this year is to take only cull animals.
