Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Africa The somber look so many hunters have in Photos

Peashooter...

Wanna stand out about 1000 feet and catch one of them peas? <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />

I don't reckon a buff would either...

Of course, I'd rather that buff be about 300 feet away, rather than 1000... but only so long as the first 286 gr. TSX takes the shoulders and number 2 takes the pump and bottom of the lungs...

If not, I want a 20mm for back-up... pronto...

I've spoken with Safariman about the 7K buff hunt and it sounds very interesting. I left him with the understanding that if the dates work for me and he can get a group together I'm in.
I'll let him post the dates,etc. as it is his show.
Only big bore I own is a Mauser 98 action chambered in 458 WM. I've killed several AK 'bou, moose, and a few brown bears with it so I don't doubt with a 400gr TSX @2400 I can kill a buff with it too.

*** I suggest we start another thread about the hunt...how about it Safariman?

I'll start the other thread for him... since he's STILL trying to talk me out of $7k I don't have... <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" />

I think Buffhunter and Model70Guy, are on the right track.

I'm the guy with the serious look on his face behind the impala and the one who looks like a real goober behind the blesbok. That is my wife Ingrid with the kudu and two of us kissing Jim in the last frame.

Looking back on taking that impala I would definitely say that the issue was that I was experiencing so many emotions, not that I wasn't experiencing any. This was my first kill in Africa. I had been looking forward to the trip for almost a year, so there was a lot of anticipation. Ingrid and I were hunting 2X1 with Jim and since only one of us could shoot at a time I let her go first and I had had to wait patiently for more than a day for my turn to shoot. I had the rifle for less than an hour and I knew I had to give it back to my wife again. The shot was exhilarating as we came on the impala quickly and I had to shoot completely free hand from a standing position. Because of the angle, I went for a spine shot and hit it right on. It was a majestic and graceful animal that I had just killed, and I was relieved that he died quickly. I even thought about how I narrowly escaped being paralysed for life when I broke my own neck in a car accident years ago. Etc., etc., etc.

So, when Jim snapped this picture, it's not surprising that my computer was still processing.

The blesbok on the other hand was my fourth or fifth kill of the hunt. All four hunters from our camp had gone out together, Hatari style, that day and with all the comradery and congratulations from my fellow hunters it was much easier to be in a jovial mood more quickly.

I don't know what was going through my wife's mind when that first snap shot of her was taken, but there is a funny story that ties together that kudu and the last picture of us both kissing Jim.

To set the scene, this hunting trip was the central portion of a "blow out all the stops" fifteenth anniversary trip I had planned for my wife that was 9 to 12 months in the planning. That afternoon we were hunting near water. Ingrid had the rifle and Jim and I were watching the bush on the far side of the water with binoculars. This big fella wanders out from the bush for a drink and Ingrid drops him in his tracks with one shot.

As the kudu falls to the ground, I'm thinking: Ok, this is good. Just exactly the kind of experience I was hoping for. Exciting African adventure, beautiful animal, fantastic shot. The anniversary trip is going great! And what does Ingrid do? She throws her arms around Jim and gives HIM a big kiss!

Oh, well. Jim's such a lovable guy she just couldn't resist. As you can see, by the end of the trip he had me kissing him too. As they say, memories to last a lifetime.

It is common to all photography, not just game shots.

See the thing is I don't like to be photographed, I had a camera once, and well it still had photos I took when it was stolen, It walked 3 years after I snapped the last shutter. Some people like it, to me its one less thing I need to carry. But I do like to keep a written record of my hunts.

I look pretty darn happy in this picture. Maybe because the Steinbock was over 6 inches.