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Muhungo Camp 20:50 Monday September 6th

This afternoon we went looking for another buffalo to hunt, we saw several herds of 100 plus buffalo as well as some smaller herds and few small bachelor groups. We also saw a bout 7-8 familial groups of elephant.

Muhungo Camp 20:45 Tuesday September 7th


We again are up early, coffee and rusks at 5:30, wheels rolling at 6:00 to pick up or game scout for the day a man named Thomas, he was ready to roll when we arrived. We drove in along the northern border of the park and headed toward the river, we parked the truck and went for a walk to see if we could any bulls moving into cover from grazing in the river bottoms.

url=https://postimg.cc/jLqGVx8m][Linked Image from i.postimg.cc][/url]

An old bull with a broken horn tip was spotted crossing the river with a companion bull and a plan to intercept him was made. The bull was moving faster than was thought and he had gotten past us. We went into pursuit mode and were able to catch up to the two bulls but were abut 300 yards distant, they had joined a herd of cows and were heading into very thick bush so we called off the chase.

On the way back to the truck another two bulls, one quite old with one broken horn tip what Kevin Robertson in his Perfect Shot book calls a teapot, were spotted hanging out with a small herd of blue wildebeest. We watched them move into an “island” (when the water is high the area would be an island, now it is a piece of high ground with some pretty thick bush on it) we moved in and were able to find the two bulls and waited to catch them as they moved off of the island. However the bulls had other plans and were staying put. After a considerable period of time without any sign of the bulls moving we left the western end of the island moving out slowly to our left and hooked around to the other end of the island to see if could get a clean and safe shot angle.

[Linked Image from i.postimg.cc]

Once at the eastern end of the island it took a great deal of time to move a very little distance as the bulls knew roughly where we were but were very reluctant to leave the safety of the island, however a movement too sudden or too threatening would cause them to bolt before reasonable shooting situation could be arranged. After a good deal of time moving with extreme care and slowness we were in position for a shot. The old teapot bull was 50 yards away quartering very slightly towards us. I put the cross hairs betwixt the front legs and into the lower portion of the vital triangle ad pulled the trigger, as I was dealing with recoil and cycling the bolt I saw the bull head out to the north, what I did not see was him pull a 180 and head to the south following his buddy. Jaques informed that the hit looked excellent and in a few seconds told me the bull was down, shortly thereafter we hear the death bellow.

Jacques estimated by tooth ware that the bull was in the 15 plus year range and would very soon be in decline due the poor condition of his teeth.

[Linked Image from i.postimg.cc]

The 270 grain .375 Barnes LRX was caught up against the hide and the far side. There was very, very little blood between where the bull was shot and where he dropped; about 40 yards.

An interesting side note, the pursuit of both buffalo involved walking in the tracks of elephant.

The afternoon we saw three herds of at least 100 buffalo each, one herd had to be 300 itself. No bulls worthy of pursuit under reasonable conditions were seen.

Muhungo Camp 21:00 Wednesday September 8

The morning saw us at the south end Bwabwata observing several large herds of buffalo return from the grasslands in the floodplains into the bush to hide out and chew cud. Two old bulls left the herd and headed into some very thick bush We pursued them looking for a chance for a shot. After a long stalk where had several times been within 20 t0 30 yards from the bulls no shots presented themselves due the very thick cover. The wind shifted and the bulls took off for even thicker cover we pulled out.

On the way back to the truck we encountered the remains of 3 dead buffalo i various stages of decay, one was 41” wide. There were no signs of the animals being poached just old sick animals heading into thick nasty bush to die.

[Linked Image from i.postimg.cc]

Later on in the morning we found a group of bulls on an island close to the main bank and snuck in close and waited for them to head onto the mainland so we could get a shot. The bulls had other plans, we left with plans to return in the afternoon and see if we can connect with one of the old bulls.

Back in the afternoon, the herd of bulls, Jacques figures about twenty of the have left the island, crossed the dry channel and are now grazing in some thick bush. We made a stalk and very quickly closed with the herd. We are sometimes within 20 yards of some bulls and see the bull we are after several times but a shot is impossible due to the thick bush and th position of other bulls. We reposition ourselves several times and often spend 15 minutes of more remaining completely still.

As the sun begins to set the bulls start to head back to the river bottom, there are numerous sightings of the bull we are after but due to bush and other buffalo moving in front of him no shot options was available. After almost 2 hours in the bush in close proximity to the herd our bull appears to moving where he will cross a thin opening, the sticks are up and I am ready for the shot. There is a bull just to the left of the opening in some very thick bush and I confirm that our bull is coming from the right. Jaques says he will make a noise to stop our bull when he enters the clearing. The bull entires the clearing at a rather rapid pace for one who was so slow getting to the clearing, Jacques “blats”, the bull stops, I have the crosshairs in the “vital triangle”, I pull the trigger and as the rifle begins to recall I see the head of the bull who was at the left side of the clearing appear in my crosshairs. I cycle the bolt and come out of recoil to see the chosen bull running away and the “bodyguard bull” laying motionless on the ground.

We are all some shocked, Jacques saw the bull step forward and lift his head just as I pulled the trigger, but before he had time to say anything I had shot, Humphrey said ‘where did the bull come from”, I said “I saw that bulls head in the crosshairs just as recoil began”.

I have the downed bull in my crosshairs as the chosen bull runs away apparently unscathed.

Jacques says stay on the bull on the ground, despite having seen the head in my crosshairs I have seen “dead” animals collapsing as if struck by the hand of god suddenly arise and leave the scene, so I need no convincing. A few minutes later the downed bull lifts his head and starts thrashing about, another shot in the base of the neck into the chest settled him down for good.

A few minutes alter after no more movement from the bull I put the safety on a and come of the sticks, we approach the “bodyguard” bull and after ensuring that is truly dead and just mostly dead we inspect the wounds and find an entrance would on the right side of his head with no exit wound on the left, confirming the assessment by Jaques, Humphrey and Thomas the game scout of how the chosen bull moved that he was unhurt. We are all relived that only one bull has been shot and for the good fortune that he put a lethal part of his body in front of the shoulder of the chosen bull. I scoped my forehead pretty good, as my wife said “ two head wounds, at least only one was fatal.

[Linked Image from i.postimg.cc]

The bull I shot had been observed by us in the AM and the PM pursuit of this herd as he was never part of the herd but always on the outside and slightly apart from the herd.

Pictures are taken and we are off to the truck, Peter and Humphrey will come back later to pick up the bull.

So ends an exciting, interesting and somewhat odd day with lessons on some of the challenges and risks of hunting large hearts in thick cover. Hunting is a pursuit with greatly random variables which impact the outcomes, no matter how hard we train and prepare.

I head off to bed hearing buffalo wading through the sallows and hippos bellowing their displeasure at something. Tomorrow will be a day for fishing for Tigerfish

BP-B2

Joined: Jul 2007
Posts: 8,138
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Joined: Jul 2007
Posts: 8,138
Quite the adventureso far!


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