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Day 12

Join Pat Lefemine in the Limpopo Province of South Africa for a traditional spot and stalk Buffalo Bowhunt

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day 12

day 13



Discuss this hunt

I had two goals for this trip. The first was to kill a buffalo, the second was to experience Kruger National Park. Given how well the first objective was going, we thought it would be best to go for the sure bet. We left camp at 6:00 AM and were at the Orpen Gate of Kruger by 6:45.

The first half hour was uneventful, lots of warthogs and impala. But then everything changed. By noon we had seen elephant, lion, buffalo, zebra, wildebeest, waterbuck, kudu, impala, warthogs, hippo, giraffe and even a secretary bird that was looked crazy.

Photos and Videos Shot by Pat Lefemine

Click on thumbnail to view large photo
All photos shot with a Nikon D200 and an F6, 18-200mm Zoom Lens
Click on Video to View
Big Bull Elephant feeding next to the road
A secretary bird strutting it's stuff
Playful Hippos at Dusk
A nice bull elephant feeding in a meadow
Hippo vs. crocodile - a Hippo female gets between her baby and a crocodile
A cow elephant who became irritated by our presence when her babies got too close
Videos shot with a Panasonic HVX-200 High Def Video Camera. Highly compressed for web

 

 

The park is simply a treasure. As someone who loves videography and photography as much as I do will go nuts over Kruger. This place is a candy store.

Wild animals walk around completely undisturbed by passing cars and allow you to get some spectacular photos and video. I thought about one of our favorite visitors, BB, and the incredible photos he could take here. The park is enormous and my only complaint was there were not enough hours in the day. The time flew by. I had taken stunning photos of just about every animal imaginable except buffalo (figures) and we worked hard at getting some video of buffalo before dark but no luck.

I have to say that my one-day visit to Kruger Park has to be one of my all-time favorite memories in Africa - certainly the highlight of this trip -so far. All I could think about was having the opportunity to visit Kruger with my children. If I ever hunt RSA again a Kruger visit will be part of that trip.

While it was tough to give one of my last two hunting days, I have no regrets. With one hunting day left we need to make it count. It will be an all out push till the very last second.

 

Kruger National Park - South Africa

Considered to be one of the fourteen greatest reserves in the world, Kruger Park is 7700 square miles and roughly 5 million acres of undeveloped, natural habitat. It holds 20 separate ecozones and ranges from dry savannah grasslands to lush riverine drainages.

Named after South Africa's President, Paul Kruger in 1883, who started the Sabie Game Reserve in 1898 which later merged with the Shingwedzi Game Reserve in 1962 to form Kruger Park as South Africa's most valued treasure.

The park is home to all of South Africa's indigenous game. The animals are unfed and unhunted and coexist alongside people who can drive their cars along improved and unimproved roads however they are not allowed to step out of the cars, feed, or harass the animals in any way. The animals are oblivious to the cars and will hunt, forage and go about their daily lives sometimes 20 feet from a tour bus.

While tours are arranged, anyone with an automobile can purchase a day pass and drive through the park. There are several rest camps along the route and some have exhibits, curio shops, restaurants, and rest rooms. These handful of camps are the only developed locations within Kruger and represent a very small fraction of the total park.

All 5 million acres of Kruger is protected by a game fence. This is to both keep out poachers and trespassers and to protect the animals inside from escaping to nearby farms where they could be hunted.

 

 

 

This Bowhunting Adventure is sponsored by these fine companies..

 

 

 
 

 

 

 

Next - Day 13


Our Professional Hunters for this safari is: Madiakgama Safaris
P.O. Box 138
VRYBURG
8600
Republic of South Africa
International Phone: 011-27-82-684222
USA Agent - Jeff Frey
Bowhunters Select Outfitters
717-261-5951
Email: [email protected]


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