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[Charl]

Thanks for the input guys.

I would like to respond as follow:

Accommodation in South Africa on Game ranches/farms:

It is because of pressure and request from the international hunting community (Especially American hunters) that a minimum requirement was set for outfitters to register, by our government. ONE of the many things that get inspected by Nature Conservation before they register you as an outfitter is the quality of your facilities/lodge. This prompted a spur in Southern Africa to bring "lodges" up to a very high standard. I really do think you are topping it a bit to speak for 90% of Americans.

We offer camped Safaris, and two of the areas we hunt, have "bush" camps. About 2 hunters a season request a tented/camped safari. It is stated on our web-site that we facilitate this type of hunt, but we do not get a lot of interest.

The roads.......We'll, it can be said of a lot of people that they want to travel on dirt roads, and be uncomfortable. Again, these people are in the vast minority, I think. We are based two hours drive from Jo-burg Int. You start driving through city and build up environment. Yes you see people walking along the roads. This gradually gets less and less, until you see one person every 4/5 kilo's., and you drive in the bush. True, the lions and elephants have all gone, but this is still wild Africa. Then you turn of the main, tarred road, and you drive 14 kilo's on a dirt track into the bush. Arrive hunting camp/lodge.

You can travel great distances in SA as well, make no mistake. I have just heard a lot of hunters say that they did not like the travelling conditions in Namibia.

Big Five.... hmmm......., can you shoot Buff for less that $14500.00, all incl, exl airfare from the States and taxidermist fees, in one of the other countries mentioned, two hours from the airport? And they ARE not "canned" my friend, it is walk and stalk hunting that will keep you in the bush from dawn till dusk.

Most of our areas that we hunt in is 3000acres or bigger, the avg. being 6000acres. I KNOW it is not Tanzania, BUT there is now so much Buff available in SA, that we do not have to struggle with all the things that make Tan. A problem for outfitters from SA. We don't have to pay the license fees, concession fees, fire arm tax, local community tax, and struggle to get a concession, and then the infrastructure nightmare....We do not have to fly charter from Arusha or Dar, and we do not have to travel hours from camp to hunt and back. No, we simply quote trophy price for the animal to be hunted, and we have our day fees. Correct me if I'm wrong, but I know a lot of outfits in Tanz. charge approx. $800-$1000 PER DAY for a Buff safari, min 10 days. Compared to SA dangerous game day fees of $300-$500 for Buff, min 7 day Safari. As a company, we recon we will have approx. 35 Buff available for 2007. That is NOT a reflection of something that is very rare, and expensive.

True, our cats have gone, and Rhino and Elephant in SA are VERY expensive. (Hippo not so), but when it comes to Buff, we are right up with the other guys at the moment.

I look forward to you input.

[rainydayhunter]

I met a fellow hunter on the plane to Namibia who said he was from Midland, Texas. As we were about to land Hosea Kutako (Windhoek) we looked out the window and I said, "Looks like we're about to land in Midland." Sure looked like Texas to me.

Driving on the dirt roads was great - no other cars for 2 hours, only springbok, hartebeest, oryxes, warthogs, an occasional snake or tortoise. On the other hand, driving on paved roads scared the hell out of me - drunk drivers thinking they were on the Autobahn, small Toyotas crammed with 13 people passing on the left (traffic drives on the left side in Namibia), tourists stopped just over the rise to take pictures of the baboons.

I've tented enough under wintry conditions, and slept (or stayed alert) not a few times under ponchos, to appreciate a nice clean linened bed, after a sundowner and braai. But, yes, I still like to hear the sounds of Africa at night under a sky full of stars.