Hunting News 4. Welcome to our fourth newsletter of the 2018 hunting season...

Size: px

Start display at page:

Download "Hunting News 4. Welcome to our fourth newsletter of the 2018 hunting season..."

Morgan Barber
5 years ago
Views:

1 Hunting News 4 Campaign Preview HTML Source Plain-Text Details Hunting News 4 Good day fellow hunters and friends! Welcome to our fourth newsletter of the 2018 hunting season... We have had the privilege of hosting some more great hunters in the past couple of months and it is with great pleasure that we report on their hunts and some of the fantastic activities that they did while visiting with us in South Africa. We would also like to wish a very Happy Birthday to Drom, who turned 36 years young on July 19th. Happy Birthday Drom! Under your leadership, we have all succeeded more than we could have ever imagined. You are our rock and you will never understand how much we appreciate all that you do for us! You're the best! Jacobus will also celebrated his 6th birthday on August 1st! He is growing like a weed and we are so proud of the little man that he has become! 1/27

2 Like father, like son... Happy birthday boys! Dante and Meade Safari Our very good friend George Dante has hunted with us several times before and always lends such great support whenever we are over in the USA. You might be familiar with George from his wonderful taxidermy operation, Wildlife Preservations. This was a very special hunt and, as we know you can all imagine, Drom was like a little boy on Christmas morning knowing that he could be part of making this experience one of the greatest yet! We were ecstatic to have George over with his dad, George Snr., and his friends Steve and Jeanne Meade. They all did some super hunting and as usual, it was such a pleasure to see our old friends and spend time with them again! 2/27

it was such a pleasure to see our old friends and spend time with them again! Drom had way too much fun and loved being part of this fantastic hunt! Let the hunt begin... The Two George's.

3 it was such a pleasure to see our old friends and spend time with them again! Drom had way too much fun and loved being part of this fantastic hunt! Let the hunt begin... The Two George's... George sent us a short but very sweet account of his hunt, that we would really love to share with you... "It was hard to believe that this trip could have been better than the last, but once again, Somerby has exceeded our expectations. It is such a pleasure to hunt with people who make the experience. Aside from fantastic hunting and trophy quality, the Somerby team has a talent in making you feel as though you're hunting with old friends. Aside from the friends, food, and amazing accommodations, the most memorable parts of the actual hunt are too numerous to mention, but I must say, stalking giraffe on foot and getting within 50 yards for a shot with open sights, is not something I will soon forget. Being with my dad as he took a cape buffalo and sable of a lifetime, bird hunting that will rival Argentina, all made this trip another dream come true." Thank you so much, George! 3/27

4 The spoils of the bird hunting that could rival Argentina... On this trip, George took down Giraffe, Springbuck, Blue Wildebeest, Gemsbuck, Nyala, Caracal, Duikers, Steenbuck, Red Hartebeest and Zebra. He also hunted a range of smaller mammals, including springhare and a few wily monkeys /27

5 5/27

George and Drom standing proudly with George's magnificent buffalo after a

6 George Snr fulfilled a lifelong dream of hunting two of the most magnificent African species - buffalo and sable! George also shot a black wildebeest. George and Drom standing proudly with George's magnificent buffalo after a very hard day of hunting! 6/27

The Meades Steve and Jeanne, very good friends of George's (which in turn

), joined on safari and went on a veritable spree of plains game hunting!

7 The Meades Steve and Jeanne, very good friends of George's (which in turn makes them very good friends of ours, of course!), joined on safari and went on a veritable spree of plains game hunting! Both husband and wife did and excellent job and took down some trophies to really be written home about! Steve hunted kudu, blue wildebeest, warthog, zebra, black wildebeest and red hartebeest /27

8 Steve also hunted springbuck, gemsbuck, steenbuck, waterbuck, duiker and the less common tsessebe. 8/27

9 9/27

10 Jeanne took down some great trophies of her own, including blue wildebeest, gemsbuck, zebra, white blesbuck and kudu. Well done! 10/27

The couple also did a spot of fishing, which is one of the great activities that we offer to take some down time in between all the exciting hunting!

11 The couple also did a spot of fishing, which is one of the great activities that we offer to take some down time in between all the exciting hunting! To our dear friend George: thank you so much for coming to visit with us again! You are such a special person and we really treasure the time that we get to spend with you! A big thank you to George Snr. as well and we would like to congratulate you both 11/27

12 on your amazing trophies! We would also like to extend a heartfelt thank you to Steve and Jeanne - it was awesome to have you guys over! You did a really swell job and we hope to hunt with you again very soon! Shaffer Family Safari We had the honor of hosting Mark and Melissa Shaffer on their honeymoon safari back in We were so happy when Mark let us know that they would be returning to hunt with us, this time bringing along his son Tanner and Matthew. Melissa observed on the hunt and although she didn't shoot anything herself, a great time was had by all! Mark hunted with his bow, taking down his buffalo at 30 yards and his impala at 20. It only took them 150 yards to track his beautiful buffalo bull. Well done, Mark! 12/27

13 Matthew also hunted with his bow and shot an impala and a really beautiful nyala. 13/27

14 Mark's son, Tanner, another bow hunter, did not disappoint and ended up with two stunning trophies - a kudu bull and a gemsbuck. 14/27

15 Thank you so much to Mark, Melissa, Matthew and Tanner for joining us on this great safari! Mark and Melissa: we really enjoyed our time with you two in 2016, but as the saying goes... "the more the merrier"! Congratulations on all of your beautiful trophies and we know that we will be seeing you all again soon! Shotzman Dream Safari The story of the Shotzman family safari starts in a small down by the name of Greenwood, Arkansas, not so long ago... It was here that a little boy with a dream, named Braden, met a bigger boy with lots of fascinating stories to tell, by the name of PD. It was our absolute honour and privilege to host the Shotzman family, consisting of Holly, Kevin and, of course, Braden, on a safari that Braden had been dreaming about since he was just knee-high to a grasshopper. Unfortunately, Braden's brother Jake could not join, but we hope to see the whole family again next year in the USA! This really was a very special hunt because of how much it meant to Braden and we had the most wonderful time with this great family! All of the animals were taken with a and shots ranged between 260 and 50 yards. Although Braden's hunt was the main focus, Kevin and Holly did not make light of this opportunity and both also shot a great trophy each - a nyala for Kevin and an impala for Holly! 15/27

16 Braden really seized the day, each and every day, on this hunt! He went home with an impala, blesbuck and gemsbuck under his belt... According to Holly, it was full of excitement and a real adrenaline rush with each animal! 16/27

done some true, Somerby-style night hunting.

17 As we had the privilege of making this young hunter's African dream a reality, we felt that it would not be right to send him home without having done some true, Somerby-style night hunting. Braden bagged himself a duiker and a scrub hare! 17/27

18 The family also enjoyed a trip to the lion sanctuary and a day was spent at Pilanesburg National Park. Definitely something to consider when visiting Africa! We would like to give a shout-out to the entire Shotzman family /27

wow, what a great honour to have shared this experience with you! We are truly privileged that you chose Somerby to induct Braden into the world of African hunting.

Webb and Sumners Couple's Safari We met Jason Webb and Jeremy Sumners (brothers in law) in Kansas City in 2017.

19 wow, what a great honour to have shared this experience with you! We are truly privileged that you chose Somerby to induct Braden into the world of African hunting. It is so special and always a real sight to behold! We hope to see you again soon but we just know that we will be hunting with you folks again! Webb and Sumners Couple's Safari We met Jason Webb and Jeremy Sumners (brothers in law) in Kansas City in After speaking with many outfitters, the two decided to book their trip with us and we could not have been happier! We were even more excited when they let us know that they would be bringing with their wives, Julie (wife of Jason and sister of Jeremy) and Christie. The guys did some outstanding hunting and the ladies enjoyed some wonderful activities! Left: Jason and Christie, Right: Jeremy and Julie Jeremy let us know some details about his hunt... All of his animals were taken with his.300 Winchester Mag. "The first location that we hunted was a national reserve in the Free State where the habitat was much more open and the game much more difficult to stalk. The animals taken here included waterbuck, zebra, black wildebeest, red hartebeest, and gemsbok. Some of these animals were taken from the truck and some on stalks. The hunting here was phenomenal with the number and quality of animals." 19/27

"The second location that we hunted was the Tilodi area.

Among these were some of my favorite hunts including stalks on my kudu and

On our stalk for my Kudu we encountered a large buffalo at about 30 yards who

We then continued the stalk where we encountered a group of kudu including one

20 "The second location that we hunted was the Tilodi area. Our professional hunter ensured that we shot exceptional animals. Among these were some of my favorite hunts including stalks on my kudu and nyala. On our stalk for my Kudu we encountered a large buffalo at about 30 yards who stared a hole through us until he made his peace and left us alone. We then continued the stalk where we encountered a group of kudu including one cow who alerted and caused several others to leave the area. To my disbelief, a couple of bulls remained including the bull that I harvested". 20/27

21 Jeremy and Jason also took down an impala each! 21/27

22 Jason also shot a waterbuck, blue wildebeest, kudu, bushbuck and nyala. 22/27

The ladies joined on some of the hunts, but also enjoyed visits to the lion and elephant sanctuaries. A big thank you to the Webbs and the Sumners for joining us on this fabulous couples safari!

23 The ladies joined on some of the hunts, but also enjoyed visits to the lion and elephant sanctuaries. A big thank you to the Webbs and the Sumners for joining us on this fabulous couples safari! We had the best time hunting with you guys and it was a real privilege to show the ladies around as well. We really hope to hunt with you again soon but until then... See you in Kansas City! Wilson Couples Safari Dr John Wilson and his wife Rachael joined us on a lovely couple's safari recently, where John did some hunting, Rachael did some sight-seeing and the couple enjoyed a trip to Cape Town together. John took down some outstanding trophies and Rachael enjoyed seeing the sights. They are a truly remarkable couple and we had the best time with them! Enjoying some of that splendid African sun at the Elephant Lodge John kindly sent us a wonderful report on his hunt /27

"I took 7 plains game animals - all with my Winchester model 70 30.06. The blue wildebeest was taken at 100 yards - we were actually stalking an impala when we came up on 3 good bulls in an opening.

We drove some distance away and dismounted and then hiked back to where we had spotted him. These two were both taken in the Limpopo.

There were gemsbuck, blesbuck, wildebeest, zebra and springbuck visible all at the same time and no matter how well we masked our approach to the zebra one of the other species would spook and make

Later in the day we came across a group of zebra and using the vehicle to steady the rifle I was able to harvest a beautiful stallion from about 150 yards.

24 "I took 7 plains game animals - all with my Winchester model The blue wildebeest was taken at 100 yards - we were actually stalking an impala when we came up on 3 good bulls in an opening. We approached using the brush as cover until we could set up the shot. We took an impala at about 75 yards after spotting a nice ram from the truck. We drove some distance away and dismounted and then hiked back to where we had spotted him. These two were both taken in the Limpopo." "We then traveled down to the Free State where we saw an enormous amount of game. We tried to stalk a zebra on foot but the vast herds of several animals kept spotting us. There were gemsbuck, blesbuck, wildebeest, zebra and springbuck visible all at the same time and no matter how well we masked our approach to the zebra one of the other species would spook and make the zebra nervous. However eventually we were able to get within 250 yards of some trophy specimen male gemsbuck and I was able to drop one it its tracks off of the sticks. Later in the day we came across a group of zebra and using the vehicle to steady the rifle I was able to harvest a beautiful stallion from about 150 yards." "The next day I experienced something I'll never forget. As we were trying to stalk a blesbuck we experienced the same issue we had with the Zebra because of the high density of game. Eventually I was set up behind a bush as the herds turned and ran in our direction broadside at about 230 yards. I watched through my Leupold scope as gemsbok, water buck and zebra ran by. The blesbok brought up the rear and a nice ram stopped long enough at the back to offer an 24/27

On our last day we spent much of the day looking for a good male reedbuck and it was in the

hunting experience." Well done on all of your great trophies, John!

25 pp g g open shot. I also took a spring buck that day at 240 yards after spotting two males by themselves. On our last day we spent much of the day looking for a good male reedbuck and it was in the waning minutes of daylight that we harvested a wonderful trophy ram to complete my plains game hunting experience." Well done on all of your great trophies, John! Although Rachael joined John on some of the hunts, she also enjoyed some time seeing some sights and took a trip to the elephant and lion sanctuaries. 25/27

After the hunt, John and Rachael flew to Cape Town where they experienced the Mother City in all her glory.

Cape Town is a must-see for any traveler visiting South Africa! Thank you John and Rachael for visiting with us in South Africa!

26 After the hunt, John and Rachael flew to Cape Town where they experienced the Mother City in all her glory. The highlight of this portion of the trip must have been a beautiful hike taken up the iconic Table Mountain. Cape Town is a must-see for any traveler visiting South Africa! Thank you John and Rachael for visiting with us in South Africa! We know that you have many stories to tell your friends and that you fell in love with our beautiful country... See you again soon! Congratulations on all of your beautiful trophies, John. Thank you for taking the time to read our fourth newsletter of the season... Watch this space for many more great stories to come! Please visit our website at www somerbysafaris com for more information on 26/27

27 Please visit our website at for more information on what we do and to view some great pictures. Please like our Facebook page and follow us on Instagram... Copyright 2018 Somerby Safaris, All rights reserved. PLEASE UNSUBSCRIBE IF YOU DO NOT WANT TO RECEIVE CORRESPONDENCE FROM US REGARDING HUNTING IN AFRICA Our mailing address is: Somerby Safaris Po Box 141 Kestell, FS 9860 South Africa Add us to your address book Want to change how you receive these s? You can update your preferences or unsubscribe from this list. 27/27

Hunting News 3 May: Part 1

Hunting News 3 May: Part 1 Campaign Preview HTML Source Plain-Text Email Details Good day and welcome to our third hunting report of the year! Hunting season is in full swing and we had some great hunters