LopeHunter
Well-known member
You have been patient as I rack up the word count so, before I begin the daily recaps of each of the nine days of hunting, below is a concise summary of what happens starting when the sun rises on April 26 through the last critter tipping over on Day 9 of hunting.
Days away from home: April 23 – May 7, 2024
Days hunted: April 26 - May 4
Days harvested: April 28 – 30, May 2, May 4
The ranch where I stayed: I hunted with Dries Visser Safaris (DVS) mostly on their main Citadel ranch property (offers primarily bow and crossbow hunting) which is in the Limpopo region in South Africa just south of Botswana. Thabazimbi (mountain of iron in the local language) is the closest city and is an iron ore mining town with one of the largest mining shafts in Africa. The city’s population is predominately Black African (83%).
My hunt tally:
=>Using a TenPoint Flatline 460 Oracle X crossbow provided by the ranch, Tenpoint EVO-X Center Punch 16” carbon bolts with expandable tips:
6 shots taken at big game with the crossbow.
Shot 1 experienced a nock failure which resulted in the flying bolt harmlessly skidding along the dirt on Day 2 of hunting. Damn it. This riddle needs solved as batting .333 now after three bolts have been shot. My technique is consistent. I am not yanking the trigger. Riddle is solved before I load another bolt on the crossbow.
Shot 2 harvested an Impala on Day 3 of hunting.
Shot 3 harvested a Cape buffalo bull (the bolt’s tip was changed to a single-bevel 200 grain Maasai GrizzlyStik broadhead) on Day 4 of hunting.
Shot 4 harvested a Gemsbok on Day 4 of hunting.
Shot 5 harvested a Kudu on Day 5 of hunting.
Shot 6 harvested a Blesbok on Day 7 of hunting.
=>Using a .375 CZ Rifle with scope, provided by the ranch:
No shots taken though tried four stalks on Cape buffalo bulls through the thick bushveld after cutting tracks or seeing a bull dart off the road. If I was more comfortable with shouldering the rifle and field-judging a bull in under ten seconds then on two of the stalks could have shot. Is a bang-bang moment and I never made a bang-bang happen.
=>Using a .30-06 CZ Rifle with scope and suppressor, provided by the ranch:
No shots taken on an afternoon when drove over an hour to property owned by the in-laws of Jr. and unsuccessfully tried three stalks close to springbok before they bounded far, far away in mere seconds. If you have hunted pronghorn watching them zoom along at 60 mph then springbok at 55 mph is also impressive.
On the last day I hunted, I fired three shots after visited a property 30 minutes away from the ranch. The bushveld had recently been thinned so was could see 100 yards at times.
Shot 1 harvested a Blue Wildebeest on Day 9 though I did not fully settle into the scope and stock so the point of impact did not match where I held the crosshairs. Was the only animal I did not drill in the boiler room on the South African adventure. Tracking by Phillip and Charlie was required as the animal went out of view for over 100 yards. I accidently clipped the jugular low on the neck so was lucky as had been on Day 2 when the crossbow bolt skidded on the ground rather than hit the gemsbok poorly. I adjust my posture before my next shot.
Shot 2 harvested a Nyala on Day 9 of hunting.
Shot 3 harvested a Sable on Day 9 of hunting.
Why hunt on other properties? Some species of big game will thrive in specific types of terrain so might need to troop-move to hunt along a river or along tall ridges. A few sub-species will interbreed so only one variety of zebra can be on one property. Sometimes, is merely wanderlust and curiosity.
Weather: Temperatures during my visit spanned from a low of 43F/6C to a high of 91F/33C which was 10F degrees warmer than typical for my visit that spanned into early May. Skies were bright blue for the most part during daylight hours. Winds were most often no more than a mild breeze other than my first day of hunting when gusts exceeded 30 mph for hours.
Photograph: L to R - Blue Wildebeest, Kudu, Impala, Gemsbok, Sable, Nyala, Cape buffalo and Blesbuck
Days away from home: April 23 – May 7, 2024
Days hunted: April 26 - May 4
Days harvested: April 28 – 30, May 2, May 4
The ranch where I stayed: I hunted with Dries Visser Safaris (DVS) mostly on their main Citadel ranch property (offers primarily bow and crossbow hunting) which is in the Limpopo region in South Africa just south of Botswana. Thabazimbi (mountain of iron in the local language) is the closest city and is an iron ore mining town with one of the largest mining shafts in Africa. The city’s population is predominately Black African (83%).
My hunt tally:
=>Using a TenPoint Flatline 460 Oracle X crossbow provided by the ranch, Tenpoint EVO-X Center Punch 16” carbon bolts with expandable tips:
6 shots taken at big game with the crossbow.
Shot 1 experienced a nock failure which resulted in the flying bolt harmlessly skidding along the dirt on Day 2 of hunting. Damn it. This riddle needs solved as batting .333 now after three bolts have been shot. My technique is consistent. I am not yanking the trigger. Riddle is solved before I load another bolt on the crossbow.
Shot 2 harvested an Impala on Day 3 of hunting.
Shot 3 harvested a Cape buffalo bull (the bolt’s tip was changed to a single-bevel 200 grain Maasai GrizzlyStik broadhead) on Day 4 of hunting.
Shot 4 harvested a Gemsbok on Day 4 of hunting.
Shot 5 harvested a Kudu on Day 5 of hunting.
Shot 6 harvested a Blesbok on Day 7 of hunting.
=>Using a .375 CZ Rifle with scope, provided by the ranch:
No shots taken though tried four stalks on Cape buffalo bulls through the thick bushveld after cutting tracks or seeing a bull dart off the road. If I was more comfortable with shouldering the rifle and field-judging a bull in under ten seconds then on two of the stalks could have shot. Is a bang-bang moment and I never made a bang-bang happen.
=>Using a .30-06 CZ Rifle with scope and suppressor, provided by the ranch:
No shots taken on an afternoon when drove over an hour to property owned by the in-laws of Jr. and unsuccessfully tried three stalks close to springbok before they bounded far, far away in mere seconds. If you have hunted pronghorn watching them zoom along at 60 mph then springbok at 55 mph is also impressive.
On the last day I hunted, I fired three shots after visited a property 30 minutes away from the ranch. The bushveld had recently been thinned so was could see 100 yards at times.
Shot 1 harvested a Blue Wildebeest on Day 9 though I did not fully settle into the scope and stock so the point of impact did not match where I held the crosshairs. Was the only animal I did not drill in the boiler room on the South African adventure. Tracking by Phillip and Charlie was required as the animal went out of view for over 100 yards. I accidently clipped the jugular low on the neck so was lucky as had been on Day 2 when the crossbow bolt skidded on the ground rather than hit the gemsbok poorly. I adjust my posture before my next shot.
Shot 2 harvested a Nyala on Day 9 of hunting.
Shot 3 harvested a Sable on Day 9 of hunting.
Why hunt on other properties? Some species of big game will thrive in specific types of terrain so might need to troop-move to hunt along a river or along tall ridges. A few sub-species will interbreed so only one variety of zebra can be on one property. Sometimes, is merely wanderlust and curiosity.
Weather: Temperatures during my visit spanned from a low of 43F/6C to a high of 91F/33C which was 10F degrees warmer than typical for my visit that spanned into early May. Skies were bright blue for the most part during daylight hours. Winds were most often no more than a mild breeze other than my first day of hunting when gusts exceeded 30 mph for hours.
Photograph: L to R - Blue Wildebeest, Kudu, Impala, Gemsbok, Sable, Nyala, Cape buffalo and Blesbuck
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