Contents

Editorial by Richard Lendrum (Scroll down to read)
Wildlife column by Dr. John Ledger
Book Review: From the Cape to Kasserine by Ken Bailey

Read

African Dawn Catalogue
Rigby rifle winner - Letter of thanks
The Twofer by Ricardo Leone
Campfire Thoughts & Reminiscences Ch 2 + Ch 3 by Neil Harmse
Reborn as “Bwana” by McKennon “Mac” Laas
Among Giants by Thierry Labat
The One that Didn’t Get Away by Ken Moody
On the Menu - Warthog Fillet with Red Peppers and Onions by Leslie van der Merwe
Dangerous Game Quest by Kim Stuart

Watch
**African Dawn Outfitter

Driven guinea fowl by Mike Currie Adventures **
Spear Safaris on Big Game **
Upland hunting with Karoo Wingshooting
Hotfire Safaris **
Mayo Oldiri Safaris **
SB Hunting Safaris **

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African Dawn featured outfitters

Editorial

March into Africa - The season is dawning

Back in January 2009, we hosted the first African Hunting Expo. It was a small group of African outfitters in Toronto, Canada. These boutique shows grew across Canada – also in Atlanta, GA.

Today, the model of outfitters promoting themselves, and for you booking your hunts, is changing. It has had to for so many reasons.

The delivery of information (and entertainment) can’t just be at a venue in some hotel once a year. It can’t be just over a weekend. It can’t just be via a quarterly printed publication. It is to be every day and every week, on a variety of platforms all year round.

Based on who we know and what we know, we are here help you. There are over 500 outfitters across the continent. Many may be outstanding. Some aren’t. What we do is try promote the better ones and help you make the decision with whom to hunt. ‘Hunting for Africa’s greatest spots’ was the slogan of our shows back in 2009. We have the same commitment helping you today. More than 10 years later, are some of those original outfitters from way back then. Now, in the comfort of your home, as northern temperatures slowly rise, you can browse through this AHG Monthly. Growing in content, growing in reach. And just below this is the info on our African Dawn program, the list of distinguished outfitters and we encourage you to book with them directly.

Share with a friend if you enjoy the content – and if you are marching to Africa in 2022 - we look forward to you visiting.

Regards,
Richard [email protected]

African Dawn Catalogue

I am not sure if you have seen in the African Hunting Gazette – or on the adverts in these newsletters, but we actively promote a range of outfitters across Africa in whose services we are confident and encourage you to consider on your next hunt. They are what we call the African Dawn Outfitters, of which there are a limited number. Each outfitter is featured over a double page spread in the African Dawn Catalogue, with information to help you make a great choice for your next hunt. Plus, there are links to their websites, other digital material and their direct contact details.

The link to the catalogue is below, hope you enjoy it - and please shout if you need anything that they cannot answer.

View and down the African Dawn 2022 Catalogue.

Regards,
Richard

Wildlife column

Wildlife conservation in Namibia is probably the best-managed in Africa, with a very strong NGO movement, community programmes and unwavering support from the government for a policy than includes sustainable use and hunting. One of the latest initiatives sees the establishment of the GOSCARS, which will reward those who have performed beyond their line of duty in community conservation activities.

The first annual Grassroots Owen-Smith Community Rangers awards (GOSCARs) will be presented on the morning of Thursday, 7 April this year at Wererldsend Environmental Center where Garth Owen-Smith and Dr Margie Jacobsohn lived and where Garth was buried two years ago on 9 April.

Classic and Contemporary African Hunting Literature: From the Cape to Kasserine

This is the fourth book in Craig Boddington’s series describing his African hunting adventures; he writes one every decade, but for my money this is the best yet. Boddington is without doubt the preeminent contemporary writer of African hunting tales, and reading From the Cape to Kasserine it’s easy to understand why.

Letter of thanks from the winner of the Rigby rifle

I want to thank you, AHG, Maria Gill at J Rigby & Co. in London, Kevin with Blaser USA in Texas, and Jim Morical at C&J industries in Nevada, Iowa for making this happen. I have my new rifle in my hands.

What a magnificent rifle it is!

The attention to detail, the wood, the polishing, the engraved AHG logo on the floor plate, the checkering on the stock is all top notch. Unbelievable how beautiful this rifle is. The J Rigby team is amazing. All master craftsmen at what they do.

The Twofer

After another great Zambian Safari in 2016, we set out to try a new African country to hunt in 2017 with news species to chase after. Our friend, Richard Louw, who had recommended Hunter’s Namibia years prior suggested another Farm, this time in his backyard – a Farm named Ratelfontein in the Greater Karoo. The Farm is owned by Jan Pickard – a prominent South African businessman. Mac, my youngest son was my hunting partner for the third straight year; however, this year was going to very special with my two older children and their partners travelling to South Africa during the same week Mac and I were hunting. My eldest son and his wife were going to Phinda on a photo Safari while my daughter and her then fiancé, were going straight to Cape Town for R&R and to scout the restaurant scene.

Campfire Thoughts & Reminiscences Ch 2 + Ch 3

My First Double Rifle – A Proud Moment and Then…

Having purchased and used my SAKO .375 H&H on a number of hunts, the gleam soon wore off. It was a bitch of a gun to shoot. It was far too light and kicked like a mule. The stock developed a crack behind the top of the action, and I think this was the underlying cause of my dislike of the .375 as a calibre. I have owned several .375s since, but have never taken to the calibre.

Reborn as "Bwana"

Certain tribes believe that a person has two births. The first occurs when one is physically born, the second when he is acknowledged as a person, reborn with purpose and direction. His mind and body is altered forever, and he has a clearer picture of his existence. He has been measured and found worthy to be given the name of “Bwana”.

Before his awakening, this Madala (old man) was a hunter. A true sportsman, as well as a conservationist of the land in which his quarry roamed. Revered by his youthful colleagues for his desire to stick to the old ways and, in his later years, his ability to captivate an audience with yarns spun of his exploits. Madala had hung onto every word that his mentors of old had shared, and therefore his pupils, in turn, followed suit.

Among Giants

Having previously and successfully hunted with Will Parks for a Lord Derby a few years earlier, we agreed that on this our fourteenth hunt together, we would look at as many eland as possible for at least the first week and then come the second week we would settle for something big, mature, and with a certain shape of horns.

Of course it is important to note that there are very few areas where this is possible to do, and Faro Lobeke’s block 16 is one of those areas. It is the largest, if not one of the largest, area in the northern savanna region of Cameroon, spanning some 400 000 acres. It is an extremely well looked after area with serious anti-poaching teams on the ground backed up by an aircraft above, and a low off-take of animals for the size of the area. The camp is situated on the banks of the Faro River, with a superior road network in a block which is loaded with game – and in my opinion unquestionably makes this the premier hunting destination in Cameroon.

The One that Didn’t Get Away

It had been a hard hunt to this point. Five days into a ten-day safari, and still not a quality bull spotted. Richard, our client, was cheerful as always, never doubting that we would persevere to the end, but those of us in the know were becoming a bit anxious. Day in and day out we had spotted, tracked, crawled, snuck into, and engaged dozens of buffalo bulls within the large herds we were hunting. Still, no dice. Everything so far had been soft-bossed and too young to consider. Where are the big boys, I pondered as we discounted another group of six bulls not up to snuff.

Warthog Fillet with Red Peppers and Onions

The ugliest pig you will ever see is a warthog. Bushpigs are not glamorous, and giant forest hogs must have myopic lovers. But a long forehead, wide mouth and jaw, facial warts and a grey leathery skin with spiky hair is not exactly Miss Piggy’s greatest dream. Thick callouses on their front legs, where their wrists would be, and a hard snout caked with dirt from all the rooting. And then those triangular-shaped bottom tusks, rapier sharp, that have been the death of so many dogs. And leopards. And cheetah. But warthogs have beautiful ivory. Those massive tusks curling up have every hunter’s heart skip a beat. And the bigger, the better. They did not get big by chance. These old boars are a challenge to hunt, because they are not stupid. At the first whiff of danger they are off, tails straight up in the air.

Dangerous Game Quest

Unlike the months-long safaris of the past, the opportunity to be challenged on an African safari nowadays has become a rare one. In an effort to find a demanding and unique challenge, the idea of taking the Magnificent Seven dangerous game animals of Africa with a muzzleloader built by a friend becomes a paramount hunting pursuit for Kim Stuart.

After successfully accomplishing this goal, he decides to attempt to tackle the Magnificent Seven hunt with a conventional rifle. Stuart then goes on to try the same repertoire with a handgun.

Mike Currie Adventures

Spear Safaris on Big Game

Upland hunting with Karoo Wingshooting

Hotfire Safaris

Mayo Oldiri Safaris

SB Hunting Safaris

READ THE 2022 AFRICAN DAWN CATALOGUE HERE

African Dawn featured outfitters

BoschNel Safaris

As a family-run business, consisting of a father (Hannes Nel) and his two sons (Brendan and Sheldon Nel) along with our partner, Johan Bosch, we take great pride in offering unrivaled African Adventures for the outdoorsman seeking the ultimate thrill. Africa has so much to offer, why not experience it with a family that spoils you with undivided personal attention.

Huntershill Safaris

Huntershill Safaris is located on the malaria free Wildschutsberg Game Farm in the picturesque foothills of the Stormberg mountains near Queenstown in South Africa’s Eastern Cape Province. The Game Farm is 55 000 acres (22 000 hectares).
At Huntershill Safaris we specialize in making your hunting Safari an experience of a lifetime.

Northern Operations Africa

Based out of Miami, Florida USA, Northern Operations Africa is an all-inclusive African hunting outfitter specializing in bongo, Lord Derby eland and mountain nyala. Started in 2009 by Dave and Maria Rademeyer, using the over 10 years of experience in Northern Africa that Dave had acquired previously, they have had the advantage of knowing which areas were the best and what was required to operate successfully in these countries.

Wayne Grant Safaris

During Rhodesia’s brutal bush war Wayne served as a commissioned officer in The Rhodesian Light Infantry – a crack airborne unit which became renowned for its fire force operations. Wayne commenced professional hunting at the end of the war in 1980 and started his own operation in 1985. Wayne has won several awards for hunting excellence, including the coveted Professional Hunter of the Year award.