# South Africa work trip



## swbuckmaster (Sep 14, 2007)

If you haven't been to south Africa your missing out. It really is an incredible place. I went for work but found some time to play. I hunted zebra because it was a deal the lodge gave me on a cull hunt "to many zebra on the land" I couldn't pass up. The lodge I stayed at doesn't hunt because they offer game drives and weddings ect. More of a place to come and relax and see woldlife. So I was an exception. Every night after work I take a walk or drive arround and look at game. You never know what your going to see. Any way here are a few of my photos.


















































































































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## swbuckmaster (Sep 14, 2007)

Not many people know zebra have canine like teeth









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## Critter (Mar 20, 2010)

Did they let you keep the skin for a rug? 

I have thought about going back over for a warthog and a couple other animals and a zebra is on my short list. 

I too found the country quite enjoyable once we got out of the big cities and it sounds like the lodge that you were staying at was a great place even if they didn't do trophy hunts on the property.


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## longbow (Mar 31, 2009)

It kooks like every picture is of a new and different experience. I bet you were loving every minute. I especially like the pictures of the waterfall and the one with you and your zebra. I'm envious.


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## CPAjeff (Dec 20, 2014)

Wow, that is incredible - thanks for sharing!! Hey, does the company that you work for need a CPA... umm... I'd gladly travel to South Africa for work if needed!;-)


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## swbuckmaster (Sep 14, 2007)

Critter said:


> Did they let you keep the skin for a rug?
> 
> I have thought about going back over for a warthog and a couple other animals and a zebra is on my short list.
> 
> I too found the country quite enjoyable once we got out of the big cities and it sounds like the lodge that you were staying at was a great place even if they didn't do trophy hunts on the property.


Rug is at the taxidermist in south Africa. Hope it turns out good. The hide was really nice. I was selective and didn't shoot an older male because they have fighting scars. Mine was blemish free except for a small bullet hole.

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## swbuckmaster (Sep 14, 2007)

I wish I had the money and time to hunt more over here. Africa is sadly out of my blue colar budget for this trip without planning. Maybe some day I'll be back. The lodge did say if I come back they will let my girls shoot a blesbok and impala. Just need a few more skymiles and maybe it can become a reality. 

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## Catherder (Aug 2, 2008)

Has Goob said this was "cooler than the other side of the pillow" yet? If not, I will. Thanks for sharing. It's definitely on my bucket list.


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## swbuckmaster (Sep 14, 2007)

A few more photos from today





































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## swbuckmaster (Sep 14, 2007)

Goob would be proud. They saved the guts. 

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## ridgetop (Sep 13, 2007)

SW, you suck!!!!;-)
The farthest I've been on work trip in the last 20 years is Evanston Wy, not that there's anything wrong with Evanston.


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## wyogoob (Sep 7, 2007)

27.5 cred points the way I score it. 

What an adventure! Thanks for sharing.

Don't stop now; more pictures, more stories!!


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## swbuckmaster (Sep 14, 2007)

Well I'm back home. What a cool and sometimes dangerous place at times. You need to be carful in South Africa there are thieves everywhere in Johannesburg. They are looking for quick snatch and grab items arround the airport. They work in groups. So don't go out at night! Daytime isn't much safer. Keep your wallets, passports ect in your front pocket. Keep jewelry, watches, cameras ect out of sight. Absolutely don't go driving arround Johannesburg it's simply not safe! Probably highest car jacking % anywhere in the world. The local whites that live out in the bush won't go to Johannesburg even in the daytime. There are other places further away from the city that aren't safe either. If you do go into the local souvenir shops stay in groups. Don't get split up or distracted. One guy at a shop told me to stay with my friend because the locals will kill you for less than 500 rand. They operate in high pressure sales tactics. Almost forcing you to buy. Don't pull your wallet out to pay. If they see how much you have you wont get a good deal on anything and more then likley you might loose your wallet. Keep your doors locked and windows rolled up when driving! Seriously you don't know what anyone will do. 
As for purchasing anything don't go with the price on the item. Talk them down. We got our items for half what they wanted.

As for the bush stay away from the hippos ha ha. They are seriously dangerous! They were constantly outside my room walking the banks at night. In my work I have to lay out miles of wire. It's often along rivers, trails ect. Encountering hippos and crocks were always on my mind and I encountered both on many occations. On one occation I was mapping in my wire and saw a bull hippo in the lake. I was probably 50 yards away when he popped up. I pulled out my phone and started filming it. I new it was in the area because I had found fresh spore on the ground. 




Finding them on land would have been a bad situation. So when I found it in the water it was a big relief. However as I made my way along the bank he continually got more aggravated at my presence and paralleled me closing the distance. I put my phone away and climbed up the bank to the edge of the trees. This is when the bull charged. He was still 40 to 50 yards away and closed the distance with explosive power. I ran as fast as I could along the inside of the tree line. I could hear him gaining on me. I couldn't have gone more then 20 yards when 2 hippos I hadn't seen on land took off towards water. Seeing two 8 to 10 foot animal flushing like pheasant is the last thing I wanted to see at this point. They hit the water hard and the bull behind me was busting brush and making horrible hippo noises as he made his way up the bank. I kept running for my life heading up hill over rocks, cactuses and thorn bushes. I didn't stop running until I could breath anymore. When I finally stopped I noticed I had stepped on a thorn that had gone completely through my shoe and was stuck in my foot. I didn't even feel it when I was running for my life.

Here is a clip of the bull before I put my phone in my pocket and all hell broke loose. Rember cellphones aren't the best for filming and the sound the bull made is not as loud as it real life. He also looks further away then he was. 





As for crocks they're typically more scared of you then you are of them. However the lake I'm working on has had four incidents with attacks on humans. You never know when your going to find the one crock bold enough to pull you off your fly-fishing pontoon. The pontoon I took will fit two people and had an electric motor. We saw two good sized crocodile on the far bank when we finished work for the day so put the battery in the boat and headed towards them for a few photos. The crocodiles were in the same general area the hippos were located in the day before. So I was already on edge. As we kept closing the distance the larger crock hadn't moved a mustle. The smaller one charged the lake. I was filming and trying to operate the electric motor at the same time all the while trying to keep my co workers head out of the film. Next thing I new we had cut the distance so close I thought I would run aground before the crock would run into the water. This is when the crock exploded for the water. He couldn't have been more then 15 yards away. Knowing a hippo may be in the area arround the corner I put the boat in reverse. This is when I noticed the prop was tangled in weeds. I seriously was starting to pannic. I had to reach in the water and rip the weeds off the prop with my hands where two 8 to 12 foot crocks just went in the water all the while knowing a charging hippo could come at any time. I used everything but my teeth to tear the weeds off that prop. In the mean time my co worker had used the oars to get us out of the weeds and we were finally on our way. A few high fives and laughs later we were safely on the opposite bank and out of the water.

This is the video of the crock before I got stuck in the weeds. 





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## swbuckmaster (Sep 14, 2007)

I'm not really a collector of trinkets but I picked up this hand carved wood piece for about 10 bucks. It's really nice and kind of fits my hunting personality being an up close kind of guy.











































It's still wet so I had to put a paper towel under it.

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## Natural Born Killer (Oct 29, 2015)

Nice bushman,

we leave in 3 weeks,


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## longbow (Mar 31, 2009)

The hippo story makes me shutter. :shock: I've heard too many bad things about them. Cool story.


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