Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Africa 30-06 in Africa

I think 5.5-22 is way too many X's and would personally prefer a 3-9x but wouldn't turn my nose up to a 4-12x

Unless you're hunting in really open country (and there is some in South Africa and Namibia) a shot over 200 yards is rare in most of southern Africa. I used a Trijicon Accupoint 3-9x40 in Mozambique and it worked great. I like illumination for hunting in thornbush which is the most common hunting environment.

I used 168 grain TTSX bullets in my 30-06 and they worked very well for me and my son.

yes i shoot plenty with higher power scopes ,part of the reason is my eyes at 70 yrs. old are not that good anymore so higher power scope would help me.plus i have been shooting Nightforce scopes for many years now and i really like the clear glass and how tuff this brand scope is. thanks,Pete53

Aren't most dead animals in Africa killed with the 7.62x39?
(I guess that's a different discussion.)

I'd say your tried and true '06 is going to do fine.

I’ve killed a lot of plains game and a crocodile with a 30-.06. No drama. If I needed a boat anchor, I’d take a big nightfirce. A 3-9x is more than adequate. Never had to shoot more than 250 yards as the vast majority of the country is thick and brushy. Bottom line though is use what you want, it’s your hunt and you’re paying for it. Have fun!

To echo what has recently been said... the 180 Partitions will work great from your .30-06. I used that combo to kill 5 of my 7 animals just a few months ago. Largest was Eland. As far as the scope, I used a 2-10x42 Nikon Monarch 5. My longest shot was 155 yards, and that scope performed perfectly. Just my opinion, but the optic you suggested has too much magnification. Nothing wrong with Nightforce, but I'd pick something smaller with less magnification.

As a general comment, it's always interesting to hear from hunters who've been to Africa and never had to shoot farther than 150 yards. Yes, a lot of southern Africa is brushy and forested, but quite a bit isn't--and sometimes both kinds of habitat occur in different places on the same safari. I've hunted with everything from iron-sighted rifles to several very accurate scoped bolt-actions--but have also taken animals with irons at 225-250 yards, because they were in an open area. The longest shot made with a scoped rifle was 500 yards, and that was in country that went from forested to open plains within a mile.

I'm glad MD chimed in. I've only been to Africa once. That is a very small sample of an amazingly varied and huge continent. I hunted central and northern Namibia. I'm an Eastern hunter. With exception of groundhogs, I seldom shoot more than 100 yards on game. I kept my shots easily under 150 tards in Africa. I did pass up two trophies when the shot would have been between 250 and 350 yards. I also did a some photography in areas in northwest and more northern areas where an acquaintance was hunting. He told me his shots were 250 to 400 yards. He had no opportunity for close shots. My thoughts are that you should discuss with your PH what rifle and scope would be best for the animals and area you will be hunting. Not all of Africa is the same.

Bfly

i have hunted for over 10 years now with a Nightforce 5.5.-22x56 for deer out west and up in Northern Minnesota shot my biggest Whitetail buck running away with that scope at 8 power i have killed bucks close and far away with this scope in a Tamarac swamp ,i see very well with it ,even my grandson at 9 years old killed a deer with this same scope with me in a 257 Weatherby mag. the best thing about a scope of this size is you see so much better . the only thing is its not mounted on my new to me Winchester model 70 yet to see how well i can make this rifle shoot.

Sounds like it should work for you. Where will you be hunting? Namibia, Ethiopia?

My first trip in 1998, the PH highly recommended the Swarovski 1.5 x 6 x 42 over a higher power scope. All shots were under 150 yards except a Zebra at a little over 300 yards. I did not need or wish for more scope and that same scope is still a favorite all of these years later. Next time I go it will be the Z6 1 x 6. That said, if you want a 56mm high power variable scope it is really not an issue because they typically carry your rifle for you and weight is not an issue. It all comes down to what you like and it is doubtful that a reasonable scope choice could result in not being able to take a shot, all things being equal. I think it comes down to what you have the most experience with and have the most faith in.

Leupold VXIII 2.5X8X36... GOD uses one...

MD makes a good point. I hunted in the Limpopo Province of SA, which has a lot of fairly dense cover. You could certainly find yourself taking longer shots in other areas. Regardless, 180 Partitions from a 30-06 should do the job for as far away as you should be shooting.

Gents, as MD stated, he took a kudu at 375 yards, how much more range do you want, unless you're one of "those" who takes shots at big game animals at absurd ranges.

shooting animals at longer ranges kinda depends on each person`s ability and rifle he uses, at my rifle range and at bench rest matches i have seen the good ,the bad and the ugly. with a bi-pod on my rifle and a range finder i can shoot a long ways out . no i won`t take a wild shot but i also know how that rifle and cartridge will preform with my handloads over many years shooting as do many others on this forum also know as does M.D. knows too , i just need very good glass , higher power on the scope with a good trigger . here is an example rancher out west in Wyoming last year 2022 ,rancher said that antelope buck is 460 yards out wanna try and get closer i told him that will be fine right here so i laid down , bipod was adjusted turned scope to about 20 power and fired my 257 Weatherby mag. 1 shot and the buck went down dead. and i bet many others on the Campfire can do or have done the same thing it just takes practice and understanding ballistics.

MD,

interesting you should mention that longer than 150-200 yd shots are not off the table. A couple of my shots on my first trip were at or a bit over 200 yds. I used a scoped (2.5-8x) 300 WSM. I also saw my son, my hunting companion, shoot once at 200 yds and twice at longer than 300 yds. The other 10 or so animals were inside 100 yds.

We were in fairly open country on that safari, reminiscent of much of our Western states. My other hunts have been in Mozambique and Zimbabwe for other type of PG and DG, in different terrain and conditions, so most of my other shots have been generally less than 200 yds.

We are all creatures of our experiences and conclusions therefrom. I still think that most American hunters in most Southern African conditions - excluding open terrain as I imagine Namibia and some areas of RSA - are best served with their Western deer or elk rifles and bullets for PG. Being ready and able to execute the occasional 250-350 yd shot never hurts.

i plan on on having a my rifle zeroed at 200 yards and a cheat sheet taped on my rifle stock too.

Wildcatter264,

South Africa is probably still the most popular country for safaris, but it's also just about 1000 miles wide, and the terrain and vegetation varies enormously. The western region called the Karoo (which is essentially the southeastern end of the Kalahari Desert) looks almost exactly like parts of Wyoming, with sagebrush plains and isolated mesas--except the "sagebrush" (called Karoo bush) has thorns. The dominant game animal is springbok, which from a distance also look almost exactly like pronghorns--but there are also some of the biggest gemsbok in Africa. But due to the relative lack of variety in native big game the Karoo isn't nearly as popular for safari hunting as other parts of RSA.

MD,

our 1st safari included hunting the Karoo for part of the time. The conditions, animals and our impressions were exactly as you describe. My son shot his 270 WSM Kimber, a good match for conditions given his experience with it.

Fortunately we had hunted our own West for antelope, so it seemed familiar, as you describe. IMHO, it was excellent preparation for the RSA conditions you mention. Especially shooting sprinbok at longer ranges in the seemingly constant wind.

Yeah, it can be pretty breezy!

Interestingly my Karoo hunt was the first part of a 2-place safari, primarily a cull on springbok, though we could take trophies as well. Got both my biggest springbok and gemsbok there--but the longest shot was 250 yards on another spingbok.

The second part was in the Eastern Cape, where I got the Cap kudo at 375!

I'll see if I have a photo of the Karoo country to post here.