- Report by:
- PH Nigel Theisen
- Clients:
- Sanson Family; David, Lori, Trent and Connor
- Area:
- Rungwa Game Reserve
- Date:
- 13 July 2007 - 21 July 2007
The Sanson family arrived at Makwasa camp in Rungwa Game Reserve on the 12th. Trent their eldest son was very eager to get some hunting done as for the past week or so he had been watching younger brother Connor and Dad, Dave, bag a few good animals in Natron South, Masailand. Rungwa was his turn!
After a quick settle down in camp it was off to the range for the whole family. After a few shots with the 30-06 to loosen the nerves a bit, Trent fired his .375 and proved that he would be a worthy adversary to the Cape buffalo.
It was with great excitement that the whole family left the camp in the double cab land cruiser for the first days hunting in Rungwa. Things started changing from excitement to slightly concerned when after three days they had yet to put something in the salt. Not through lack of hunting though. On all of the first three days both Dave had trent had their share of stalks on buffalo, duiker, Lichtensteins hartebeest and impala. Dave had also passed up a few warthogs in the hope of finding one of the larger pigs in the area.
With both the hunting party in camp and the camp chef getting quite desperate for some fine game table fare, something HAD to be done….. Trent Sanson explains how he managed to remedy this……
“Today was the fourth day in Rungwa and we hadn’t shot anything yet, so I was a bit nervous, but still optimistic. We woke up at six o’clock and had some eggs and sausage for breakfast, it was very delicious. Then we left at around six-thirty to go find some buffalo because they were our main priority. Over the previous three days we were able to see most of the concession and we were able to guess where most of the buffalo were, that was Buffalo Basin. When we arrived at the base of the mountain, we began our hike in search of some big dagga-boys up in the Ikili hills. The hike up was interesting, we were following an elephant path along a stream. Along the way we saw elephants running up the mountain, giant monitor lizards, and a giant python. Grant, our camp manager, managed to catch it; which enabled us to get some awesome pictures.
When we began to reach the top of the mountain I was becoming a little skeptical, I was beginning to think that our hike to the top was for nothing. In the midst of all that thinking, we stumble upon a sleeping dagga-boy. There was enough wind in the right direction so that the lone bull didn’t hear or smell us. Peter, our tracker, and Nigel, or PH, got me set up on the shooting sticks. To get the bull to stand up, Peter made a lion sound. Once it stood up, I shot him right in the chest through the heart and lungs. He collapsed for an instant and regained his footing. To add insurance to the kill because we were among the rocks with no real escape route for the buffalo but through us, I shot him four more times so that he wouldn’t charge us or get away. I have never had to shoot an animal that many times, usually once or twice, but that shows you how tough those buffalo really are. )
After the hunt, we celebrated, shook hands, and took pictures. Then we had to take the head, cape, and all the meat we wanted off of the buffalo. After that we had to carry all of the parts we wanted back down the mountain, over an hour and a half walk which was quite a bit of work, but not too difficult. It was a hunt I will never forget, and I thank everybody that helped because it was a team effort.”
And it was buffalo tenderloin kebabs for dinner last night!!
After Trent had managed to hunt his first Cape buffalo spirits in camp were high. A good bull as reward for some hard hunting! The focus was still on buffalo however as Dave was yet to get a crack at hunting his. Over the following few days the boys, Trent and Connor and their mom Lori decided to take it easy for a while in camp and let Dave get out there with Nigel Thiesen his PH and hunt hard for that trophy buffalo. Just as it was with Trents buffalo hunt, things were to prove challenging! It was on Daves 7th day in Rungwa when he finally managed to collect his first Rungwa trophy, a very respectable warthog boar! It was late evening and the hunters were returning back to camp empty handed yet again when a pair of hogs were spotted. Some good snap shooting by Dave and the warthog was down in no time at all. The next two days proved a little frustrating for Dave at times as time was running out as were the opportunities to collect his first Cape buffalo. Everyday the hunters were onto buffalo relatively quickly and on occasions, twice a day. But that shooting opportunity just did not present itself. Trent had now had enough of resting and watching the old man hunt. On the family’s third to last day in Rungwa After yet another exciting but slightly frustrating early morning buffalo hunt the attention turned to impala. )
Not long after we had changed tactics did we bump into a herd of impala in a large burnt area. Nigel and Trent set off on the stalk. After no less than about an hour and a half did we hear the shot and the solid thump of Trent’s bullet, a mere two or three hundred yards from where they had started stalking the ram. It was a slow and tiresome stalk over some rough burnt ground. Trent was beaming with having bagged his impala ram, number two on his list after the buffalo!
With only two days left and having done some hard buffalo hunting over the duration of the trip Dave was starting to resign himself to the fact that he was going home with only one buffalo to the Sanson’s name, while not first prize he was more than happy with the buffalo hunting experience he had gained over the last 10 days and the fact that he was there to witness his eldest son collect his first buffalo on a very memorable hunt in the hills. Rungwa-Ikili had other plans though…
The hunters were quick onto fresh tracks seen the night before when returning back to camp. This yielded an unsuccessful stalk because of swirling winds. A brisk walk back up the Ikili mountain on the tracks of a lone dagga boy then followed. After coming right up onto him and missing an opportunity at him the hunters then back tracked down to the vehicle to grab a bite. Not long at all after lunch a herd was picked up close to the entrance to buffalo basin. After a short stalk the hunters were in position to take a fine old bull, what Dave had been hunting for up until the final hour. Dave put three shots into him and he disappeared with the herd. After waiting a short while the follow commenced and turned sour as the blood soon ran dry. The bull was located nearly two kilometers away in some thick grass on a stream bank. He was clearly on his last legs and the coup de grace was delivered. )
Dave could not believe that an animal could go that far with three perfectly formed soft nosed bullets right into the chest cavity. The pictures were taken in the dark as the bull had taken the hunt well into the evening!
The Sanson’s had got what they ultimately came for and after a small celebration in camp it was decided the last day of their safari would be dedicated to hartebeest that up until now had proved to be very tricky in getting up on! Well things didn’t change and as the last day drew to a close and the last hartebeest disappeared into the thick miombo it was decided to call it a day.