|
|
|
Trophy Game Safaris December 2009 News Merry Christmas & Happy New Year!
Today is the 12th December 2009. Amanda, myself with the kids and Lucie ran away from Sand River Hills for our only break for this festive season We headed for the most northern part of the park which we don’t see very often. This is a part of Kruger my dad always took us in our younger years. We just had a braai (barbeque African style over the coals) and I was telling Amanda of the memories 30 years ago when this rest camp (Shingwedzi) was still smaller. Big fires used to burn in the central spot of the accommodation which are build in large circles to help keep predators away. Life was very social with everyone gathered there. Both my older brothers are quite musical and loved to get the spirits high with their guitars in hand and singing around the fire. Weren’t those the days!
These 3 days will be sweet and short then we head back to the ranch to give everyone else their three weeks of leave. As they return one after the other Amanda, myself the kids and Arno will be heading out to the states for our annual marketing trip. Yip, you got it right…. The kids are coming with us. It will be a big and costly trip which is made possible by many of our friends in the TG family that will host us. We have saved up a few years to get the airfare together.
Before writing a bit more about what 2010 holds for us, let’s reflect back on the last few months after our September newsletter. My hopes of the $ recovering against the ZAR Rand never materialized and my budget went out the window. The Spa we are building will take a bit longer to finish due to this, but as everyone will see from the photo’s the dam has been build and sealed by manpower over a four week period. We tried to let the dam seal itself, but that failed us and we took the past three weeks to cement and compact the bottom. There is another two weeks of work ahead before it will be finished. My aim is to get the foundations in for the spa before everyone goes on leave before Christmas so that we can build it up to floor level before we leave for the states. We should get it done in the run of the 2010 season. Meanwhile we will set up a temp spa in one of our chalets to accommodate those who would like some pampering.
 |
Long time friends Hooker & Kathy Browning visited us again this 2009 season. Hooker took a beautiful Bushbuck & Waterbuck with some upland birds while we convinced Kathy to test her hunting skills on an Impala and she was rewarded with this beautiful ram! |
Queensdale & Princess Hill has always been a haven for the spotted cats since I was a young boy. Since March this year we started hearing of complaints on a cat taking several of the neighbors cattle. On March 24th the cat took a calf on Queensdale too and we went out to investigate. We started keeping an eye out for his signs in the area and in the next few months to follow he took several cattle on the neighboring farms. We heard most of it through the grapevine on local intelligence and that they have tried to hunt him down. In July and August we started seeing more and more of his kills on Princes Hill and Queensdale. It seemed that he was after a resident female at the time. Not having a CITES license for a leopard on these properties we applied for a local hunters permit on the basis of a DCA (Damage Causing animal). It took a lot of patience as the cat kept killing and local authorities took for ever to get everything investigated, inspected and issued. Finally we got the license and having done our homework on him it paid of when we found a kill shortly after the license were issued. My Taxidermist from Safari Taxidermy, NW Lichthelm has been asking me for a cat for a client /friend of his since the beginning of the season. Everything and everyone was ready by the time the license was issued.
We followed up on the fresh kill and had our blind about 60 yards down the ridge as the kill was dragged about 200 yards from where it was killed in a thicket and dragged up the ridge to where the cat had a view and could comfortably feed watching his surroundings.
We sat in the blind from about 4pm, it was a very hot day and temp still was above the nineties. It was me (Tino), Benand (client) and NW in the blind with Arno and Tom on stand by a few miles away. As we approached very last light at 6.15pm I could see his body mysteriously appearing over the bright red rocks which was fading to black at the time. Benand moved in on his gun as I whispered to him to get ready and what felt like minutes happened in seconds and the shot rang out into the night, the echo traveling through the cliffs and a load roar accompanying it with a thunder of rocks to the right and then…….. one growl! No More, the night was quiet except for our hearts pumping out of our chests. I call on the radio brought Arno and Tom in and we followed up on the track. Less than 30 yards later was a beautiful God given creature. Celebration followed with a great deal of respect to be able to take such a beautiful animal from the African Kingdom.
Congratulations to Benand and we thank our Lord for such great privilege in our heritage! To be able to have such great creature is a motivation from a Hunters heart to at the same time protect this great specie!
Brent & Cami Watson
Ahhh….the guy who I only knew as the man who bought the NWTF national convention donation. I had a hard time to get much interaction with Brent, but after a phone call from Africa I had his attention and things started falling in place pretty good for their trip to Africa.
Here is Brent with some of his great African trophies taken….. A Jackal was pretty high up his wish list and Arno got him one.
Kevin & Beth came with Brent & Cami on their Safari and arrived a few days later to expand their trip to Cape Town after the visit to Kruger on their last part with TG Safaris.
Traveling through the Drakensberg and on to Kruger was next on the list for the group. Arno and myself took them on this journey. One would think that being a medical doctor Brent would know what the sign says: “Don’t go beyond this point”……it either meant you may never return or you may return a divorced man Brent!!
Luckily Arno and I saved him this time!!!
All jokes aside, the big tree, Bourke’s luck potholes and the Blyde River Canyon was a hit with all. Although being a lot smaller than the Grand Canyon, the Blyde Canyon is the world’s largest green canyon and very spectacular in its own way.
One of my Danish friends and partner John Hald with his wife Linda and kids Jonas and Sarah visited SRH (Sand River Hills) again this year with some personal family. A first time hunt for his son Jonas was on the map! Arno took Jonas out and it wasn’t long before they had success on a nice Impala. The traditional initiation had to follow. Now you have become a hunter Jonas and we trust you will follow the path with respect and remember……. a true hunter conserves wildlife with passion! Dad John followed up with a Zebra to give his visiting family a rug to remember Africa by!
Jeremy Herndon & fiancée Michelle Otto visited us end October/early November to brave some extreme heat in Africa! Jeremy ha as much trophies on his list as one can take in seven days and we shot nine beautiful animals in the end. We even turned Michelle to the gun after Jeremy made a hunter out of her the last few months before their trip to Africa. We made it Arno’s mission to get her out for a Zebra and it turned into success way to fast! Michelle realized though that hunting Zebra is not like shooting a horse! A Great hunt ended on the last day with me and Jeremy on a perfect stalk, an eland we took within a hundred yards from where it all started on a Impala seven days earlier
Michelle timed out for a day with some of our Danish visitors to go Elephant riding. As you can see below there were some personal interaction and it is wonderful to learn more about these clever animals. The EFAF elephants are within a one and half hour drive from SRH and a trip well worth doing
Arno ofcourse had to try his career out as professional model, but the waterbuck still looks better right?? During our visit to the Drakensberg Mountains with Jeremy and Michelle we caught the mountains in one of the ideal times when the clouds came in low after a misty November rain. This took us to God’s window which we usually pass as the view was spectacular. The edge of the world is what it looked like as described in the movie The Gods must be crazy. Truly God’s window.
Our last hunt of the season! Bill Baker & Dave Tenney – Mid November,2009
Personal friend David Tenney brought over fiancé Kerin and Bill Baker from Tennessee. Bill’s trip has been planned since February 2007 and it played out perfectly. Bill saved up for his first time safari and was able to take some really beautiful and spectacular animals.
Dave hunted his third kudu in Africa and after his first two fine specimens he shot a monster old buck! This bull did not just score well, but it really brought out the real quality aspects of a truly great trophy!
A closing word & Christmas Wishes
As our time here in Kruger comes to a close on our third night, so has our season ended on a high note. As we head back to the responsibility taking care of SRH over the next four weeks until everyone returns from leave in early 2010. We would like to thank each and every client/ friend this past season for their great support.
We wish all our special friends of TG Safaris a blessed and special Christmas. Thank you for everyone that prayed for Tianda this year. It was another hard but successful season for us. We are blessed with wonderful friends and support.
2010 is here and we are heading into it full steam! Looking forward to make new friends and host the old timers!
Your friends in hunting!
Tino & Amanda Erasmus with the TG Safari team!!
VERY IMPORTANT! Please drop me a mail @ contact@tgsafari.co.za with your updated mailing address for the new 2010 brochure & DVD to be in the mail to you!
|
| |
