I hope y'all will bear with me on this. This was the trip of a lifetime for me and I wrote daily, so my recollection of the 11 day hunt is wordy.
Like most avid hunters, Africa has always been a dream destination for me. I grew up reading the thrilling tales of Peter Capstick, Bob Ruark and J.A. Hunter among others, and had always dreamed of stalking the wild plains of Africa hunting buffalo, rhino, lion, leopard and elephant. Unfortunately, the opportunity to do this type of hunting is all but gone due to misguided politics and poaching, particularly in the case of the elephant and rhino, both of which have highly sought after tusks and horns which are sold on the black market for millions of dollars annually. In places where hunting is made illegal, there is no monetary incentive for landowners or local natives to keep these animals alive. A lion or leopard is no longer an asset that can bring tens of thousands of dollars, but something that may kill their livestock or even their family. Plains game is killed indiscriminately for meat or sold for pennies on the dollar. Money from legal hunting that goes towards anti-poaching units is no longer available and poaching runs rampant. But enough of that, I’m likely preaching to the choir.
For the last 15 years, I have hunted almost exclusively with a bow. With that in mind, I was very intent on finding an outfitter who caters specifically to bowhunters and who is a bowhunter himself. Through the power of the internet, I found many recommendations for African Arrow Safaris and Harry Nel, who has access to more than 110,000 acres in the Limpopo River Valley of South Africa. After reaching out via email, speaking with him on the phone and meeting at the Dallas Safari Club convention, I put a deposit down for my wife and me with two of our great friends, a couple from Oklahoma Spencer and Alison Grogan. We get along incredibly well with the Grogans and they are passionate bowhunters, so we felt good about a group trip.
My wife Erin and I had this trip in mind when we married 5 years ago. It was actually on our honeymoon that she suggested we save for a 5 year anniversary trip to Africa. I married well! 3 years passed when we really began to get serious about booking this trip, and everything came together nicely. We decided on a list of our desired animals, Erin’s main target being a sable while I was after the “spiral slam”, which consists of a kudu, nyala, eland and bushbuck.
November 9th, 2015 our first son was born, Brooks Michael Webb. Although Africa weighed heavy on our minds, we had a new treasure to keep us occupied. When the last few months before Africa started counting down, we rushed to gather all the necessary equipment. We both shot our bows nearly every day leading up to the trip, and I was practicing out to 60 yards in anticipation of some spot and stalk opportunities.
I had arrows built specifically for the larger animals we would be hunting on this trip by a gentleman named Chris at Valhalla Bow Works. He is a proponent of heavy front of center arrow design, meaning the balance point on an arrow is more towards the business end than the middle. This results in higher momentum and better penetration, something I struggle with because of a 26” draw length. With a 90 grain brass insert, he was able to build a 450 grain arrow with 19.4% FOC for me and a 410 grain arrow with 20.2% FOC for Erin. For broadheads, I took both Slick Trick Magnums and the new Rage Hypodermic +P, which are designed for lower kinetic energy bows and have a 1.5” cutting diameter rather than the standard 2”. I was looking forward to the opportunity to field test both of these setups.
We arrived at OR Tambo airport in Johannesburg, South Africa mid-morning on June 11th, 2016. The Grogans were scheduled to arrive later that evening, so we settled in to the Intercontinental Hotel across the street and got some much needed R&R after a long day and a half of travel. Watching the sun set from the hotel balcony, I couldn’t wait to begin my lifelong dream of hunting Africa.
Later that evening, our friends arrived and Garry Pretorius, who is Harry Nel’s right hand man, retrieved us from the hotel lobby. The four of us were giddy with excitement for what was to come. We arrived past midnight, checked out the fantastic lodge and after a quick cocktail, settled in for a short night’s sleep. I was astonished to see the very unique designs of the lodge, including what I later learned was an ironwood tree coming out of the wall of our bedroom. This is very similar to the mesquite tree which is so prevalent in Texas. There was even an outdoor shower which was incredibly enjoyable in the brisk fall mornings of South Africa.
The next morning I shot out of bed at the sound of my alarm, showered, dressed and walked outside to see Harry, Garry, Mechiel and Johan, our four P.H.’s. I would be hunting with Harry, and we got caught up over a light continental breakfast. I decided on a small cup of tea, I didn’t need any coffee this morning. We got our fill and went out to the range to make sure our sights hadn’t shifted on the flight. I’m not sure there is anything more nerve racking than four professional hunters watching you shoot, but those same nerves have a habit of creeping up on you when you’re drawing back on the animal of a lifetime, so it’s good practice.
From the lodge, we split into two trucks and went to one of Harry’s properties to spot and stalk. A cold front had blown in, and although this Texas deer hunter thought the conditions were perfect, I was quickly informed that cold, overcast and windy weather was TERRIBLE for hunting South Africa! I noticed Harry was walking with a limp, which I asked him about. He had been gored by a gemsbok the previous Wednesday(four days prior), missing his femoral artery by fractions of an inch. I would have understood completely if he was unable to hunt with me, but as I came to understand about Harry, that would have been out of character for him.
We saw lots of game driving, including 2 kudu bulls. As would happen again and again on this trip, I was very impressed with the trophy quality and when I would prod Harry to confirm, he just smiled and said “they’re okay.” We began our walk, quartering into the wind. Harry asked how far I was comfortable shooting, which is 50 yards on larger game. The wind and cloud cover made for good spot and stalk conditions, and we quickly came upon a small group of young sable. We glassed them for a few minutes and worked around them, going by unnoticed. A few minutes later we spotted a nice nyala bull at 100 yards. In my opinion, the nyala is the most handsome trophy in South Africa and it was my number one target. We stalked closer and came to within 55 yards of what turned out to be a group of 3 nyala bulls. I was incredibly excited, we were closing the distance on my top animal the first morning of our hunt and it was looking like it may happen via spot and stalk!
Unfortunately, a group of 20 blesbok were between us and the bulls so we either had to wait and see what they would do and risk getting busted, or backtrack and work around the blesbok to get to the nyala. Of course, I suggested we work around and after getting by the blesbok we quickly learned that the nyala had fed to within 10 yards of where we originally sat in ambush. So it goes!
We continued walking and busted a really big sable bull bedded down behind a fallen tree. I learned about various plants and animals we ran across, including the “go away bird” which warns animals of impending danger. As Harry said, the go away bird has saved millions of animals in Africa.
Like most avid hunters, Africa has always been a dream destination for me. I grew up reading the thrilling tales of Peter Capstick, Bob Ruark and J.A. Hunter among others, and had always dreamed of stalking the wild plains of Africa hunting buffalo, rhino, lion, leopard and elephant. Unfortunately, the opportunity to do this type of hunting is all but gone due to misguided politics and poaching, particularly in the case of the elephant and rhino, both of which have highly sought after tusks and horns which are sold on the black market for millions of dollars annually. In places where hunting is made illegal, there is no monetary incentive for landowners or local natives to keep these animals alive. A lion or leopard is no longer an asset that can bring tens of thousands of dollars, but something that may kill their livestock or even their family. Plains game is killed indiscriminately for meat or sold for pennies on the dollar. Money from legal hunting that goes towards anti-poaching units is no longer available and poaching runs rampant. But enough of that, I’m likely preaching to the choir.
For the last 15 years, I have hunted almost exclusively with a bow. With that in mind, I was very intent on finding an outfitter who caters specifically to bowhunters and who is a bowhunter himself. Through the power of the internet, I found many recommendations for African Arrow Safaris and Harry Nel, who has access to more than 110,000 acres in the Limpopo River Valley of South Africa. After reaching out via email, speaking with him on the phone and meeting at the Dallas Safari Club convention, I put a deposit down for my wife and me with two of our great friends, a couple from Oklahoma Spencer and Alison Grogan. We get along incredibly well with the Grogans and they are passionate bowhunters, so we felt good about a group trip.
My wife Erin and I had this trip in mind when we married 5 years ago. It was actually on our honeymoon that she suggested we save for a 5 year anniversary trip to Africa. I married well! 3 years passed when we really began to get serious about booking this trip, and everything came together nicely. We decided on a list of our desired animals, Erin’s main target being a sable while I was after the “spiral slam”, which consists of a kudu, nyala, eland and bushbuck.
November 9th, 2015 our first son was born, Brooks Michael Webb. Although Africa weighed heavy on our minds, we had a new treasure to keep us occupied. When the last few months before Africa started counting down, we rushed to gather all the necessary equipment. We both shot our bows nearly every day leading up to the trip, and I was practicing out to 60 yards in anticipation of some spot and stalk opportunities.
I had arrows built specifically for the larger animals we would be hunting on this trip by a gentleman named Chris at Valhalla Bow Works. He is a proponent of heavy front of center arrow design, meaning the balance point on an arrow is more towards the business end than the middle. This results in higher momentum and better penetration, something I struggle with because of a 26” draw length. With a 90 grain brass insert, he was able to build a 450 grain arrow with 19.4% FOC for me and a 410 grain arrow with 20.2% FOC for Erin. For broadheads, I took both Slick Trick Magnums and the new Rage Hypodermic +P, which are designed for lower kinetic energy bows and have a 1.5” cutting diameter rather than the standard 2”. I was looking forward to the opportunity to field test both of these setups.
We arrived at OR Tambo airport in Johannesburg, South Africa mid-morning on June 11th, 2016. The Grogans were scheduled to arrive later that evening, so we settled in to the Intercontinental Hotel across the street and got some much needed R&R after a long day and a half of travel. Watching the sun set from the hotel balcony, I couldn’t wait to begin my lifelong dream of hunting Africa.
Later that evening, our friends arrived and Garry Pretorius, who is Harry Nel’s right hand man, retrieved us from the hotel lobby. The four of us were giddy with excitement for what was to come. We arrived past midnight, checked out the fantastic lodge and after a quick cocktail, settled in for a short night’s sleep. I was astonished to see the very unique designs of the lodge, including what I later learned was an ironwood tree coming out of the wall of our bedroom. This is very similar to the mesquite tree which is so prevalent in Texas. There was even an outdoor shower which was incredibly enjoyable in the brisk fall mornings of South Africa.
The next morning I shot out of bed at the sound of my alarm, showered, dressed and walked outside to see Harry, Garry, Mechiel and Johan, our four P.H.’s. I would be hunting with Harry, and we got caught up over a light continental breakfast. I decided on a small cup of tea, I didn’t need any coffee this morning. We got our fill and went out to the range to make sure our sights hadn’t shifted on the flight. I’m not sure there is anything more nerve racking than four professional hunters watching you shoot, but those same nerves have a habit of creeping up on you when you’re drawing back on the animal of a lifetime, so it’s good practice.
From the lodge, we split into two trucks and went to one of Harry’s properties to spot and stalk. A cold front had blown in, and although this Texas deer hunter thought the conditions were perfect, I was quickly informed that cold, overcast and windy weather was TERRIBLE for hunting South Africa! I noticed Harry was walking with a limp, which I asked him about. He had been gored by a gemsbok the previous Wednesday(four days prior), missing his femoral artery by fractions of an inch. I would have understood completely if he was unable to hunt with me, but as I came to understand about Harry, that would have been out of character for him.
We saw lots of game driving, including 2 kudu bulls. As would happen again and again on this trip, I was very impressed with the trophy quality and when I would prod Harry to confirm, he just smiled and said “they’re okay.” We began our walk, quartering into the wind. Harry asked how far I was comfortable shooting, which is 50 yards on larger game. The wind and cloud cover made for good spot and stalk conditions, and we quickly came upon a small group of young sable. We glassed them for a few minutes and worked around them, going by unnoticed. A few minutes later we spotted a nice nyala bull at 100 yards. In my opinion, the nyala is the most handsome trophy in South Africa and it was my number one target. We stalked closer and came to within 55 yards of what turned out to be a group of 3 nyala bulls. I was incredibly excited, we were closing the distance on my top animal the first morning of our hunt and it was looking like it may happen via spot and stalk!
Unfortunately, a group of 20 blesbok were between us and the bulls so we either had to wait and see what they would do and risk getting busted, or backtrack and work around the blesbok to get to the nyala. Of course, I suggested we work around and after getting by the blesbok we quickly learned that the nyala had fed to within 10 yards of where we originally sat in ambush. So it goes!
We continued walking and busted a really big sable bull bedded down behind a fallen tree. I learned about various plants and animals we ran across, including the “go away bird” which warns animals of impending danger. As Harry said, the go away bird has saved millions of animals in Africa.
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