SOUTH AFRICA'S EASTERN CAPE
Hunting the Massive, the Medium
and the Miniscule: Part I
WRITTEN BY ~ BRENT GLENTWORTHIt pays to do your research when choosing your African outfitter. First priority, study your main target
species, check their natural range and the trophy quality of the animals taken by the outfitter. Secondly,
check his referees and contact a previous hunter. Ensure the hunting concessions and grounds are
extensive enough for free range populations. Our party of five – three hunters and two partners – made
an excellent choice with Lynedoch Hunting Safaris. This is the story of my hunts with them.Cape Eland:
In early October, the intense South African sun was
making its presence felt, and it was only 7.30am. The
Land Cruiser laboured up the steep cutting flicking out red
dust behind as the tyres clawed at loose rubble and rock to get
traction. Three hundred metres below us we had crossed the
Bavians River and we had another 400m to climb through thick
acacia on the bush faces to reach the gentler open tops.
My professional hunter (PH) JJ Marais had scouted out a
bachelor herd of nine Cape eland bulls up there a month
before my arrival. “They congregated here to make the
most of the green pick that emerged after a lightning
strike and subsequent fire three months ago” he explained.Two Xhosa (pronounced KOH-sah) trackers Derick and
Desmond were standing on the back, their sharp eyes scanning
the surrounds for our quarry. We wound up through a pass
in the kloof (cliff buttress) and stopped the vehicle on level
ground, walking up a spur to glass the country in front. It
seemed the word was out on the new grass flush and game
abounded – blesbok, wildebeest, zebra and eland were
scattered over the tops – a truly incredible sight.
We glassed for 15 minutes, trying to pick the oldest eland bull
and gauge the lay of the land, while JJ hatched a plan. He
sent the trackers back to the truck with a radio to gain a better
vantage point, as potentially more animals would be hidden
from our view. We would stalk up a shallow gully running upAfrican Aloe trees20 NZ HUNTER MAGAZINE ~ August / September 2019SOUTH AFRICA'S EASTERN CAPE
Hunting the Massive, the Medium
and the Miniscule: Part I
WRITTEN BY ~ BRENT GLENTWORTHIt pays to do your research when choosing your African outfitter. First priority, study your main target
species, check their natural range and the trophy quality of the animals taken by the outfitter. Secondly,
check his referees and contact a previous hunter. Ensure the hunting concessions and grounds are
extensive enough for free range populations. Our party of five – three hunters and two partners – made
an excellent choice with Lynedoch Hunting Safaris. This is the story of my hunts with them.Cape Eland:
In early October, the intense South African sun was
making its presence felt, and it was only 7.30am. The
Land Cruiser laboured up the steep cutting flicking out red
dust behind as the tyres clawed at loose rubble and rock to get
traction. Three hundred metres below us we had crossed the
Bavians River and we had another 400m to climb through thick
acacia on the bush faces to reach the gentler open tops.
My professional hunter (PH) JJ Marais had scouted out a
bachelor herd of nine Cape eland bulls up there a month
before my arrival. “They congregated here to make the
most of the green pick that emerged after a lightning
strike and subsequent fire three months ago” he explained.Two Xhosa (pronounced KOH-sah) trackers Derick and
Desmond were standing on the back, their sharp eyes scanning
the surrounds for our quarry. We wound up through a pass
in the kloof (cliff buttress) and stopped the vehicle on level
ground, walking up a spur to glass the country in front. It
seemed the word was out on the new grass flush and game
abounded – blesbok, wildebeest, zebra and eland were
scattered over the tops – a truly incredible sight.
We glassed for 15 minutes, trying to pick the oldest eland bull
and gauge the lay of the land, while JJ hatched a plan. He
sent the trackers back to the truck with a radio to gain a better
vantage point, as potentially more animals would be hidden
from our view. We would stalk up a shallow gully running upAfrican Aloe trees20 NZ HUNTER MAGAZINE ~ August / September 2019