Elephant hunt:
\nMany hunters dream of the day they can relive one of Africa’s oldest hunting traditions of toting a double rifle over their shoulder and taking on a beast the size of a double decker bus.
\nElephant hunting is done mostly on foot by following promising fresh tracks until the animal is sighted. It is then determined if the tusks are of trophy size or not. Usually this type of hunting involves hours of walking only to be disappointed by a large bodied but small tusked bull. In most cases, an Elephant hunt is a psychological battle of endurance, patience and persistence with many blisters, sunburn and exhaustion.
\nThe shooting part of the hunt is fairly quick, usually a brain shot is recommended at close quarters with heavy grain solids from a large bore calibre. The minimum is the .375 H & H which is a legal requirement in many countries. Most hunters prefer something heavier starting from .416 or .458 Magnum upwards with heavier double rifles being the best choice.
\nWhen facing the Elephant a frontal brain shot is one of the most difficult shots to master. The brain, the size of an American football, is situated well back in the skull. With a side brain shot, the brain is situated in front of the ear hole, behind the eye and slightly above the zeugmatic arch. The actual point to aim at, for a brain shot differs tremendously at the different angles the animal holds his head at the time of the shot.
\nIn short, any sort of brain shot on an Elephant is not easy. There are many things to consider before taking it! A broadsided heart \/ lung shot is a better bet when it is difficult to get in close to the elephant or there is little time to take the shot.
\nA big bull Elephant with 100 pound ivory tusks is considered by many as the ultimate African trophy, but these days anything over 40 pounds is still considered trophy quality.
\nThey are continual feeders, resting during the heat of the day and are destructive to their habitat if confined to certain areas, often destroying hundreds of trees. Their impact extends to the destruction of the habitat of other species as well, thus creating a serious dilemma for conservationists.
\nDespite their size, Elephants are worthy of their status and offer one of the most arduous hunting challenges available today.
\nBuffalo hunt:
\nFew other game animals are held in higher esteem as a worthy hunting adversary than the African Cape Buffalo. The sheer thrill of hunting this mountain of muscle and attitude is unrivalled and quite addictive. Buffalo are similar to cattle in that they are herd animals, preferring the open savannah where grazing and water is plentiful. They tend to graze the cooler parts of the day from early morning and evening into the night and seeking shade as it gets hotter during the day.
\nBuffalo are generally hunted on foot and this is what makes them dangerous, particularly when wounded or chased. Often trackers or game scouts will pick up fresh tracks at waterhole’s or across roads. Older bulls tend to separate from the herds and form small bachelor groups often called Dagga boys (meaning mud boys in Swahili).
\nIn the Caprivi, these big Dagga boys love to hide up during the day on islands in the Dzoti hunting concession, surrounded by swamp and reeds, before venturing out as night falls, to raid the locals maize crops. Needless to say the local people are very keen for paying hunters to take out these night raiders and provide them with fresh meat!!
\nBuffalo hunting and their dangerous nature when wounded has been documented by all the great white hunters and on various video footage. BUT BE WARNED – each situation is unique and buffalo are one of the most dangerous animals when wounded. Despite their size they are extremely quick and cunning at hiding, as they remain absolutely still until the hunters are right upon them.
\nMost PHs swear by the .375 H & H as a starting point, with the .416s & .458s being a good compromise on price and power. Some hunters will load a soft-nosed round for the first shot, followed by solids as the animal moves off. Remember, you want to do as much damage as possible with your first shot and heavy grained, good quality soft-nosed bullets are essential.
\nHowever, with Buffalo you can never have too much gun, provided that you the hunter, can handle the recoil with confidence. If you can afford it, a well oiled gleaming double rifle packing 500 grains of lead would be the classic preferred choice.
\nTrophy size judgment on buffalo is quite easy but remains an individual choice. Old lone bulls usually have worn horns with characteristic gnarled bosses. The sheer menace and presence of these bad-tempered old boys make for an excellent hunt and well-deserved trophy.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Elephant hunt: Many hunters dream of the day they can relive one of Africa’s oldest hunting traditions of toting a double rifle over their shoulder and taking on a beast the size of a double decker bus. Elephant hunting is done mostly on foot by following promising fresh tracks until the animal is sighted. It […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":56391,"template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_themeisle_gutenberg_block_has_review":false},"product_brand":[],"product_cat":[533],"product_tag":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-38768","1":"product","2":"type-product","3":"status-publish","4":"has-post-thumbnail","6":"product_cat-sell","8":"first","9":"outofstock","10":"taxable","11":"shipping-taxable","12":"purchasable","13":"product-type-simple"},"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/huntermeetshunter.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/product\/38768","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/huntermeetshunter.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/product"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/huntermeetshunter.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/product"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/huntermeetshunter.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/56391"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/huntermeetshunter.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=38768"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"product_brand","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/huntermeetshunter.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/product_brand?post=38768"},{"taxonomy":"product_cat","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/huntermeetshunter.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/product_cat?post=38768"},{"taxonomy":"product_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/huntermeetshunter.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/product_tag?post=38768"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}