Me and my son just returned from our first trip to Africa, and man oh man what a time!! My expectations were far exceeded, and we already cant wait to go back (already booked for 10 days in late 2024). From the landscapes to the people to the food to the hunting and more, it was the best trip I have ever taken in my life by a longshot! We went with Nick Bowker Hunting who does free range hunting in the Eastern Cape, and from the minute arrived until the minute we left we were more than taken care of.....he recently opened a new lodge which was excellent, the food was great and him and the PH we were hunting with (Meyrick Bowker) went above and beyond to make the experience amazing for us. And that went alot further than just the hunting (hunting itself was unreal, we were on game consistently and saw piles of different species/animals), but Meyrick took the time to show us random things that had nothing to do with hunting, explained different cultural things to us, took us all around Port Elizabeth and the coastline for a tour on the last day, etc. Just all around great people running a great outfit that i cant wait to spend more time at. And the views from the Lodge is something that I could wake up to every morning for the rest of my life and never take for granted lol.
Day one started with the 2.5hr drive from Port Elizabeth to the lodge, where we had dinner, took in the view before dark (while watching sable and springbok feed in the valley behind camp), met the other guys in camp and then basically passed out for a dozen hours.
The first morning we woke up to fog and rain, so the start to hunting was delayed but we were treated to extra special breakfast and brunch and got to know the other guys in camp a bit better while we waited for the weather to clear. Around noon the weather broke and we were off. One animal my son was very interested in was Impala, and that afternoon we found a suitable ram and the stalk was on. After playing cat and mouse for a bit, he got his 160yd shot and we were on the board.
Later that even while glassing from a ridetop, we spotted a decent Kudu bull. Our PH made it clear that we would likely find larger bulls on the hunt, but my son was happy with this one and the shot scenario and after a great 302yd shot down from the ridge, he anchored his kudu in its tracks. By time we were done dealing the bull day one was done.
Day 2 started much the same as day 1, with fog and rain first thing. Fortunately, it broke earlier and by mid morning we were back out hunting. The target for the day was a waterbuck for me. While exploring, we came across the first wild tortoise me or the kid had ever seen, so we spent far longer than we should have taking pictures and just watching it do its thing lol....
Anyway, after some tortoise watching and walking of ridgetops, we found a small group of waterbuck. After a fairly lengthy stalk, we were in position for a shot and I had my waterbuck down. The rest of the day was spent dealing with the bull, and then shooting some vervet monkeys (at our request).
More to follow....