28 Sporting gun m ay 2019 http://www.shootinguk.co.uk
T
he three of us made our way carefully
downhill, trying to avoid slipping on
the rock-strewn ground. The hunting
car was a good mile behind and the
thick bushveld with its flowering cacti, tall
euphorbia and acacia bushes studded with
3in thorns seemed completely alien.
The morning sun had started to heat up the
landscape and I regretted not shedding my
light fleece before we had set off. Somewhere
ahead of us was a small herd of kudu cows
that the keen eyes of Twenty, a Xhosa tracker,
had picked up. A quick scan revealed that one
was moving badly. All this he had ascertained
in seconds through his old and battered
pair of binoculars, while I struggled with my
modern Swarovskis to even find the herd on
the opposite slope. The ability of these guys
to spot and evaluate game at long ranges and
Out and about
the bushveld
Charles Smith-Jones had always assumed that hunting in Africa was beyond
his means until he learnt of an ethical and affordable safari in the Eastern Cape
in the field
African safariHeavy work: a kudu
bull can weigh as
much as 600lb