So, we're here in South Africa's
stunningly beautiful Eastern Cape and
we're hunting blue wildebeest.
I've hunted many times before with
Uduna hunting safaris still like more
part of the family than a client.They
really do make you feel welcome and it's
going to come to the Dark Continent this
is a place you come.
Blue wildebeest are one of Africa's most recognizable
species. We've all seen the imagery on TV
of mass migrations across the plains.
They survive just about every difficult
encounter that any species could come
across here on the Dark Continent. That's
made them very very difficult animals to hunt.
They communicate with each other
very vocally when dangerous present
trying to get up close and personal with all
those pairs of eyes and all those pairs of ears
is really, really tricky.
I've done my fair share of wildebeest stalking over
the year and I have to say it's some of
my favorite hunting.
But, this time they made us work really hard. We've had a
number of very close calls, we've got
into the perfect position with a herd in
front of us and selected the right bull
only for it to be sky lined.
What we were looking for was a mature bull past
breeding age, something that we could
take out of the herd and let new blood
come through and strengthen the gene pool.
Evening can be one of the most
frustrating times to stalk because
they're falling Sun in the sky the
cooler afternoon temperatures brings all
of the animals out to feed. However, time
is not on your side as the Sun starts to
creep towards the horizon, the sky starts
to darken and eventually you just run
out of time.
A new day brings with it fresh
opportunities. We set out early from camp
just as the Sun was starting to rise
above the mountains. We spotted a small
bachelor herd of three bulls just
across the valley from us. The sun was on
our backs and the wind was in our face
the conditions were absolutely ideal.
We've moved a little further down the
hillside trying to keep bushes between
us but more importantly trying to get
into the shade so that we have a
backdrop and when silhouetted against the skyline.
Clint bought my sticks out and I
got up ready for my chance.
Patience in this scenario is absolutely key,
selecting the right animal waiting for
it to move into position and then giving
yourself enough time to take the perfect shot.
As soon as I had a clear shot I
took it. The bull skipped in the air and
he disappeared into cover. After a few
moments the bull step clear of the bushes
and then just took a few steps down towards
the bottom of the valley, leaving a very
clear blood trail and tracks for us to follow.
Then we found him.
A magnificent old blue wildebeest bull and
another magnificent animal thanks to the
holistic game management program here at
Uduna hunting safaris.
If only all of my African adventures could be like this.