A Tale of a 2 DGR Safari - Part 2 - 08/15/23
I heard somewhere that the proper response to the question, “What do you use to hunt elephants?” is “Your feet.”
Well, we proved that on the first part of the hunt having recorded about 24 miles walking in the first 3 days. Well worth it with the first tuskless processed during the morning of the 4th day. Meat hauled off to the Nottingham pickers, hide to the outfitter and a bit of the tenderloin for camp.
We resumed the hunt for the 2nd tuskless by cruising into the CAMPFIRE area further down the road from Sentinel
![[Linked Image from i.postimg.cc]](https://i.postimg.cc/Ssw9Jqyp/IMG-1712.jpg)
The afternoon wore on uneventfully after we looked over several possible areas where elephants tend to travel through and feed. As a public area, CAMPFIRE is inhabited by subsistence farmers with their donkeys, goats and carts. There’s now even a police outpost near the Shashi River, presumably to control the smuggling to Botswana.
Toward the end of the afternoon we finally climbed one of the higher kopjies to glass and spotted a couple of small bands of elephants in the distance.
Day 5, early morning we were back cruising the dirt roads in search of spoor. After a few fairly quiet hours, the trackers spotted fresh tracks from earlier that morning and we picked up rifles, ammo belts and were off on the trail.
I’ll mention that having now seen the type of terrain and vegetation in the new area the day before - much of the leaf cover was still on the bushes and trees had not yet fallen, as there had been no proper frost yet - decided to switch out the Holosun optic for a Leupold 1-4x heavy duplex scope. It would turn out to be the right choice.
We could clearly see as we stayed downwind and followed the spoor that we were hot on the trail and gaining on a band of 6-7 elephants. No large bull tracks as we were encouraged to continue. The subsequent track proved interesting as the elephants were headed toward a thicket and obviously feeding as they went.
Tracker Mabena spotted an elephant ahead in a pretty dense thicket so we slowly circled and moved in for Mitch to glass each animal in search of a tuskless. From our final vantage point, screened by a few small trees, Mitch spotted a mature tuskless directly facing us behind brush, making it obvious that a path through the brush would be the only choice. Several other elephants meandered in the brush while they fed. Now knowing that the CEBs would likely punch all the way through the elephant, making sure no other elephant would be wounded became a real consideration.
Tracker Ocean set up the sticks at 30 yards, I positioned the rifle and was cleared for a frontal brain shot - never my preference, but no other opportunity would present itself. The scope was invaluable in picking a path for the bullet and ensuring correct placement. On the 2nd tuskless, it was the Win M-70 460 G&A at play.
At the shot, the elephant’s rear quarters collapsed and it fell propped up, almost lying on its belly against a couple of smaller trees on which it had been feeding.
![[Linked Image from i.postimg.cc]](https://i.postimg.cc/3xYt8Mrq/IMG-1856.jpg)
Although the frontal brain shot had clearly knocked down the elephant and it seemed unable to stand, its trunk was moving as was the head. Although stunned and severely brain injured it was not finished. I couldn’t follow up the shot immediately from my position because a second elephant had moved in behind the fallen one and there was a clear danger of shooting through and wounding the other elephant.
Mitch moved to another angle and shot into the pelvis to prevent the elephant form running and I fired a shot into the neck, which exited through the brisket, and a lateral brain shot at the prone elephant which entered just in from of the left ear and exited through the right ear hole. I then moved forward, as the other elephants had now moved off, and fired frontally once again, with the bullet entering between the ears and exiting through the back of the head, entering the upper chest and exiting the right chest.
![[Linked Image from i.postimg.cc]](https://i.postimg.cc/LY724PQZ/IMG-1853.jpg)
In summary, of the 4 CEB BBW#13 500 grain 0.458” bullets fired from the 460 G&A, 3 exited. The only one not exiting and not recovered was the initial frontal brain shot. Of Mitch’s 2 500 grain Woodleigh Hydros fired from his 458 WM, one was recovered from the off side under the hide in the pelvis. No deformation, straight line penetration with the only markings the impression of the lands on the bullet.
![[Linked Image from i.postimg.cc]](https://i.postimg.cc/wBZxJYvq/IMG-1885.jpg)
This meat from the 2nd tuskless went to the CAMPFIRE council and was transported to the village of Masera for distribution to the people in the area.
Overall, excellent ballistic performance from both DGRs, a great hunt with all of the elements of hunting the herds and all of the craft of the trackers and an excellent PH.
Praying that one more time we’ll be able to pursue the herds, God willing.
Well, we proved that on the first part of the hunt having recorded about 24 miles walking in the first 3 days. Well worth it with the first tuskless processed during the morning of the 4th day. Meat hauled off to the Nottingham pickers, hide to the outfitter and a bit of the tenderloin for camp.
We resumed the hunt for the 2nd tuskless by cruising into the CAMPFIRE area further down the road from Sentinel
The afternoon wore on uneventfully after we looked over several possible areas where elephants tend to travel through and feed. As a public area, CAMPFIRE is inhabited by subsistence farmers with their donkeys, goats and carts. There’s now even a police outpost near the Shashi River, presumably to control the smuggling to Botswana.
Toward the end of the afternoon we finally climbed one of the higher kopjies to glass and spotted a couple of small bands of elephants in the distance.
Day 5, early morning we were back cruising the dirt roads in search of spoor. After a few fairly quiet hours, the trackers spotted fresh tracks from earlier that morning and we picked up rifles, ammo belts and were off on the trail.
I’ll mention that having now seen the type of terrain and vegetation in the new area the day before - much of the leaf cover was still on the bushes and trees had not yet fallen, as there had been no proper frost yet - decided to switch out the Holosun optic for a Leupold 1-4x heavy duplex scope. It would turn out to be the right choice.
We could clearly see as we stayed downwind and followed the spoor that we were hot on the trail and gaining on a band of 6-7 elephants. No large bull tracks as we were encouraged to continue. The subsequent track proved interesting as the elephants were headed toward a thicket and obviously feeding as they went.
Tracker Mabena spotted an elephant ahead in a pretty dense thicket so we slowly circled and moved in for Mitch to glass each animal in search of a tuskless. From our final vantage point, screened by a few small trees, Mitch spotted a mature tuskless directly facing us behind brush, making it obvious that a path through the brush would be the only choice. Several other elephants meandered in the brush while they fed. Now knowing that the CEBs would likely punch all the way through the elephant, making sure no other elephant would be wounded became a real consideration.
Tracker Ocean set up the sticks at 30 yards, I positioned the rifle and was cleared for a frontal brain shot - never my preference, but no other opportunity would present itself. The scope was invaluable in picking a path for the bullet and ensuring correct placement. On the 2nd tuskless, it was the Win M-70 460 G&A at play.
At the shot, the elephant’s rear quarters collapsed and it fell propped up, almost lying on its belly against a couple of smaller trees on which it had been feeding.
Although the frontal brain shot had clearly knocked down the elephant and it seemed unable to stand, its trunk was moving as was the head. Although stunned and severely brain injured it was not finished. I couldn’t follow up the shot immediately from my position because a second elephant had moved in behind the fallen one and there was a clear danger of shooting through and wounding the other elephant.
Mitch moved to another angle and shot into the pelvis to prevent the elephant form running and I fired a shot into the neck, which exited through the brisket, and a lateral brain shot at the prone elephant which entered just in from of the left ear and exited through the right ear hole. I then moved forward, as the other elephants had now moved off, and fired frontally once again, with the bullet entering between the ears and exiting through the back of the head, entering the upper chest and exiting the right chest.
In summary, of the 4 CEB BBW#13 500 grain 0.458” bullets fired from the 460 G&A, 3 exited. The only one not exiting and not recovered was the initial frontal brain shot. Of Mitch’s 2 500 grain Woodleigh Hydros fired from his 458 WM, one was recovered from the off side under the hide in the pelvis. No deformation, straight line penetration with the only markings the impression of the lands on the bullet.
This meat from the 2nd tuskless went to the CAMPFIRE council and was transported to the village of Masera for distribution to the people in the area.
Overall, excellent ballistic performance from both DGRs, a great hunt with all of the elements of hunting the herds and all of the craft of the trackers and an excellent PH.
Praying that one more time we’ll be able to pursue the herds, God willing.