BOW HUNTING IN AFRICA

The Dark Continent – One of the most sought after and desired places to hunt in the world. The game is plentiful, the scenery is breath taking and the people are beautiful, inside and out. As a traditional bowhunter, my dream of pursing some of the most unique animals in the world consumes me. Finally, after years of waiting, my wife Darby and I went on the adventure of a lifetime to celebrate our 1 year anniversary.

An important note for anyone who hasn’t been to Africa before is that while people go there to hunt and harvest large quantities of animals, there is absolutely no shortage of game there and without proper management of these animals, they would do more damage to themselves, if animals were not constantly taken from the herds. In addition to game management, the economy needs hunters. Hunters spend millions of dollars a year hunting Africa and without hunters, that’s money they would never see. While it is different from anywhere else in the world, just like in the United States of America, hunting in Africa is about all conservation and preserving their economies future.

Watching the world wake up in Africa is something I’ll never forget. The red morning glow, fog and silhouette of new animals was incredible.

After a morning of blown stalks and missed opportunities, Darby connected with a beautiful Impala Ram.

Impala are as unique and beautiful as they are plentiful.

A perfect 22 yard shot resulted in a very quick recovery.

Later that day I had my chance at a nice heavy ram.

A quartering away shot did the trick on him and we watched him go down in sight.

This beautiful Kudu bull, which was my favorite animal of all, cautiously made his way in our 2nd evening. A perfectly placed arrow at 25 yards and a short tracking job later, we walked up on my dream animal.

Blesbok come in all different colors, sizes and builds. This roan colored male was as pretty as they get. Since we couldn’t get within range for Darby’s bow, she opted to take him with a rifle. Such an amazing critter.

This old and mature Blue Wildebeest bull was right up there with my Kudu. A small herd came into the blind and he offered an open quartering away shot. A perfectly placed arrow brought him down in seconds.

After watching me take my Wildebeest, Darby was eager to take one as well. The next evening Darby arrowed a giant bull. It was right before dark so we had to come back the next morning.

With the help of the trackers, and some blessings from above, we found Darby’s bull the next morning. Her’s absolutely dwarfed mine!

On our way back from recovering Darby’s wildebeest, this giant male Warthog made the mistake of staying out too late in the day. Darby settled the crosshairs of the rifle and took the final animal of our adventure.

A special thank you to Sensational Hunting Safaris for their hospitality. The food, lodging and employees were top notch. If you have any interest in learning more about them, please visit them at sensationalhuntingsafari.com.