Employer presented me an opportunity for 12 month stint in Johannesburg starting February 2022. Who would say no?!!

So, I'll be lurking on these Africa pages and reaching out for input.

I'm not a biggame nor a trophy hunter, but certainly want to take advantage of opportunity to hunt while in SA. I'm in Michigan and hunt whitetail, moose and upland birds.

What are the best small to medium size critters to hunt in Africa which I could bring back to my apartment in Johannesburg to increase my culinary enjoyment while on the safari continent for a year?
I do all my own aging & butchering at home in Michigan, but need to do more research on transporting game between African countries for personal consumption.

Nyala is superb table fare.

Chilled capuchin monkey brains is good eats....

Not planning on blowgun hunting, so I'll stick with nyala.

Nyala are interesting creatures. Females are somewhat reminiscent of whitetail, but the males are uniquely african.
Although I'm not a trophy hunter, the male's spiral horn would make for interesting contrast to my whitetail euro mounts. Also curious how backstraps compare.

Looking forward to learning more about African game species.

Buy the perfect shot book by Kevin Robertson, it’s gives a brief look into the most common African game animals.

Thanks GRF! Just ordered the THE PERFECT SHOT II - A Complete Revision of the Shot Placement for African Big Game. Will certainly tempt me to expand my hunting pursuits after I see everything the continent has to offer.

You do realize that Africa is a huge continent and Joberg is at the southern end…. Best to concentrate on common plains game in RSA. They can be hunted quite cheaply for meat/biltong.

jdollar, I think I saw where you said you were going over before long. What are your thoughts on getting the COVID vaccination, and are you vaxed?

Gemsbok backstraps cooked over Mopane coals are like the best Filet Mignon at Ruth Chris Steakhouse

oryx or gemsbok is best eating

you find find hunts for cheap if you look/dig

there's american prices, and then local prices.


make sure to make it to namibia.

plenty of cheap fallow deer hunts east cape.

bird hunting is real good.

as for living in jo-berg

normally i'd be jelly but ur stepping into a war zone right now. keep ur crap in a pile and heed all local advice about who to avoid, and places to not go. operate like ur south of 8 mile on a hot friday summer night and you should be fine.

My favorite game meat in Africa is Zebra.

Sorry for the delayed response. Just saw this post. I leave in 4 days for the Caprivi via Doha, Joberg, and Kasane, then drive into Namibia. I and my wife( who has a PhD in nursing education) are vaccinated. As a retired physician, I consider anyone that is refusing the vaccine as stupid. It’s free insurance against a potentially fatal disease. Granted, the mortality rate is low, but the hospitalization rate isn’t for unvaccinated people. 85-90 % of people in hospitals due to COVID are unvaccinated. Enough said.
)

Stop BSing everybody. EVERY HUNTER is a trophy hunter. Whether the meat, or a spike buck, or a B&C buck, everyone hunts for THEIR trophy, whatever it is.

Do not apologize for being a hunter!

Impala can be found in most of South Africa. They are roughly the size of a whitetail and are interesting to hunt. They taste good, although the old ram I shot last time was not aged for a great length of time and was pretty chewy.

I haven't eaten bushbuck, but they are neat to hunt and slightly smaller than a whitetail.

Most Africans rate eland as the best.

Enjoy your stay.

Once you get there I doubt you will have any problems deciding which "trophies" you would like to take. It's one thing to see them in a book and another to see them in person. When I went it was clear I wanted a:
Gensbok
Impala
Wildebeast
Kudu
Blesbok
Zebra
Warthog
I'm sorry I didn't get an opportunity at a Nyala
I have no doubt you'll easily come up with your own list.

Eland. Full stop.
Impala
Kudu
Nyala
Warthog

That's all I can recommend that I've had.

J Dollar
I would say You Suck!
But I have been back from Botswana just barely 2 weeks!
Hope your trip goes as well as ours, hunt report coming
Kevin

I hope Doha airport is back to normal. I went Qatar (dfw) Doha, Joburg, Bulawayo in May and transit to BUBYE VALLEY. QATAR business class is the best value I have seen.

God’s speed and enjoy the Bush. It was way lush in the Bubye after remnants of two cyclones left roads terrible. The folks working roads did miracles to make Safari doable. Unfortunately the lucky hunter after me got MY leopard!😎

I knew you were some sort of Dr, so thanks for the info. Best of luck on your trip.

Eland was easily my favorite. Zebra can be very good, also. If you like liver eland liver is the best I ever ate. The "problem" with these two are size. THEY'RE B I G !!! You can no doubt arrange with the landowner to sell a lot of it.

Take the saddle out of a Steenbok and make a crown roast. Stuff the center with fatty pork sausage/seasoned bread dressing.

Pork crown roast at our Christmas table a few years ago. Looks fancy, but it's easy.

Dang you Bruce---your making me hungry.


Cape Buffalo is also good.

Appreciate all the great replies! I'm enjoying Robertson's book and looking at his entries per all your suggestions. Obviously highly subjective, but including a "tastiness" or "table fare" rating might be a worthwhile addition for Perfect Shot III.

The most interesting part for each game species are his varied rifle/caliber/bullet selections (and always being reminded that you're in dangerous game country). He does have a preference for 7x57 for many medium size ruminants, but I'm not hurrying out to get one. My 7mm mag will handle anything on the larger side of medium. Even though I do have a 223/5.56, perhaps this is a good time to consider 22-250 or 243 or similar fast/flat shooting. Not sure I wanna join the 6.5 Creedmoor ballyhoo (although it is quite versatile). Basically, since I don't reload, something with good commercial offerings.

Yep, aware and definitely not sharing that kind of intel with wife. But, will definitely be mindful when family comes down to visit. What does SA say about CCW? Or pistols in apartments for self-protection? Do they even acknowledge such a right?

Jo-berg may not be the a$$hole of Africa, but it is the dark skin next to it. It's a rough place so be careful.

Well, I harken from Detroit and spend time in Chicago so am aware of how to identify "no go" unsafe zones. That adaptation is valuable everywhere.

Problem is, sometimes trouble comes & finds you. Any idea whether pistols are legal for self-defense inside one's abode in Pretoria?

I don't know the exact laws, but I can tell you every private resident I have met has handguns in their home. Not sure if that's possible being a US citizen and all. If I lived there I would have one either way, law be damned.

If your a bow hunter I can hook you up with the best outfitter there. Pelser Bowhunting Adventure. I’ve hunted with them 8 times and they are the best.

Thanks John. Offer noted & appreciated. Will get back to you in future if I do end up bringing archery gear in addition to firearms.

All firearms in RSA must be licensed. Each individual gun
As visiting hunters we get a temporary importation license for hunting and MUST take the firearm home when we leave (The SAPS form)

Residents must get a license per gun. The process includes interviews, background check and home inspection. It used to be a “speedy” two year average but since COVID 2 years is a pipe dream

They are pushing to eliminate licensing for personal defense

“The law be dammed”??? Trust me, you don’t want to find out what the inside of a South African prison looks like. And if you are found with an unlicensed firearm you will.

Recent article on the topic

https://www.google.com/amp/s/thecon...frica-tightening-the-law-and-more-166194

Oh…for me…Kudu Tenderloin is the best meat I have ever eaten

Meat…not game meat