Successful Africa trip for leopard and plains game

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Spent two weeks with our friends in Namibia, and celebrated our 29th anniversary while there. Saw tons of game, and got everything I wanted and more, with lots of photos and video.

Got to release hyenas, dart lions, participate in game capture of gemsbok by helicopter, and just have a wonderful time in general. Weather was hot, and snakes were quite active. Mambas are as bad as they say, and lost one of the little Jack Russell hunting dogs to a mamba bite on the last day. Travel time is bad (24-36 hours), but very endurable when you are going on a trip of a life time.

 

[BIGOLMULEY]

Awesome! Congrats on a great hunt. What a cat! Someday for me. Did you use dogs or bait? Very nice Eland as well, course so is the waterbuck.
Nearly had a night adder get me one night, but never saw any mamba, I don't think they were where I was at. Nice to have your wife and friends there, it also makes for a more enjoyable experience. So what is next for you?


My next Africa is Mozambique in '09, cape buffalo (bow) waterbuck, sable and a crocadile. It is so far away and I think about it everyday.

Jason "The Big Ol' Muley"

 

[andrew_12gauge]

thats one big kitty, looks like fun

 

[Craig]

Great looking Leopard. What kind of mount are you going to do?

 

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Thanks for the comps. The leopard was run with dogs, and was taken on our second race. Ran a bigger one the very first day, but escaped. Baited and checked tracks of females and small males for 3 days, and found this one early in the morning after a rain. Shot with 375 H&h and 260 grain Nosler AccuBond. Sam Raby in Bluffdale, Utah will do a lifesize laying on a rock or tree limb, and shoulder mounts of the eland and waterbuck.

Here's a couple more to look at-

Jason: The Moz trip sounds great. My friend who guided me here got back and said 14-16 foot crocs were the norm up there! Just incredible. Don't know if I would attempt buffalo with a bow, but I know I'd like to stick a 400 grain hard-cast out of my muzzleloader thru one.

 

[kilbuc]

Great trophies and photos. A real big leopord. The lump on the eland, is that the bullet that penetrated to just under the skin on the opposite shoulder??.

Big mul;ey. A PH told me buff with a bow can be asier than with a rifle. Shoot broadside, double lung, buff don't know it is hit, walks off, falls over in a couople minutes. Good luck.

from the "Heartland of Wyoming"

 

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WOW Congrats!!! And to think I just watched Tracks Across Africa!!! Good Luck

 

[HunterHarry]

Do you have a taxidermist in mind for the leopard?
I have a suggestion!

 

[BoostedRob]

Congratulations that is a beautiful leopard. Which safari company did you hunt with? I second that recommendation of taxidermy;Phil Soucy is considered by many to be the best cat taxidermist around. He has done all of my cats and trust me the money and wait are more than worth it.

 

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Some answers to all your questions:

I hunted with Corne' Kruger and his brother Nic at ERINDI RANCH, about 2 hours north of Windhoek. The ranch has around 170,000+ acres and excellent accomodations for the wive's to enjoy also. Their new website is WWW.ERINDI.COM

Yes, that is the bullet in the eland's off-side shoulder. It went in the right, double lung, and wrecked the left before stopping just under the skin. It weighed 198 grains upon retrieval. recovery distance 50 yards. I only recovered 3 this time - one from eland, one from blue wildebeest, and one from the zebra. So far, 41 animals have fallen to this bullet combo in my last two trips.

Harry: That is a gorgeous leopard, and classic pose. You can PM me with taxidermist info if you'd like. The wife gets to pick the pose, and she has decided on a nice, relaxed mild pose with closed mouth.

I agree, Phil Soucy does excellent work also. There are about 10 all time great taxidermists out there for leopards. Each has a very devoted following, and for good reason. How do you decide?

 

[MEANTTOBBUCK]

Thanks for posting the pictures and the story of your trip. Its exciting seeing and reading. You made the most of your opportunity!

 

[fisrtcoueswas80inches]

Man i want to take the Mathews and my 30-06 to africa and take what i can take with them both. how bout a 200 gran bullet from the 30-06 and a 400 grain arrow from the Q2?
congrats! very nice!
Casey

 

[sixgunn]

Very cool pics, man, that trip had to cost you some coin. If you don't mind me asking, how much are you into this trip with taxidermy and all. Congrats on the successful trip.
>>>-----------> Sixgunn

 

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FC80: That is a great combination for all the plains game you might encounter. Any premium 180-200 in a 30-06 will topple all but the biggest (or dangerous) game. My friends there in Namibia use a 30-06 for all their culling operations, and they all shoot Matthews bows, as do a large number of clients. There are some bowhunting ranches in both RSA and Namibia with really reasonable costs.

6G: Think of it as 3 one-week vacations with the wife , a new car, or an outfitted deer/elk/bear hunt each year for 3 years . It is something I have dreamed about all my life, and am finally able to do so without causing hardship for the family. Rather than buy a 4-wheeler, dirt bike, or snowmobile just started a trip account and I worked 20-40 hours of overtime per week since July, so that took care of most of the cost. Sold one of my trucks for the balance. The one cost that is hard to justify is $3000-5000 for a lifesize leopard mount!