June Does It Again….
June once again proved to be a successful period to hunt the East Cape. Apart from hosting Larry Pendleton and Paul Valentine whom you have previously read about in Hunting with Eagles and Jackals…. , we had the pleasure of welcoming back Lawrence Trunk on his 3rd hunt with John X Safaris. Joining Lawrence was fellow hunter Chris Perdomo on his first African safari.
Chris Perdomo with a well-earned Springbuck.
Chris teamed up with Professional Hunter, Greg Hayes, and tracker, Bless, hunting a variety species. Starting off with an Impala and Burchell’s Zebra on his first day set the tone for one great hunt. Chris worked hard for his game, sharing many a story around the dinner table in the evenings, retelling the events from the days hunt. His excitement and enthusiasm for Africa and hunting became infectious for all to enjoy, finally coming away with a variety of great animals as just reward for a deserving hunter.
While Chris enjoyed the benefits of unlimited variety of species that every first timer enjoys, our old friend, Lawrence Trunk, had a few limited East Cape specific species he was after. Having hunted many of the available species on his previous African hunts, this hunt with Professional Hunter, Carl van Zyl, would be one focused on some of the toughest critters out there. To add even further challenge to the hunts at hand, Lawrence as always would be packing one of his trusty handguns as weapon of choice.
A Blue Duiker in the coastal forest, adjacent to the Indian Ocean, is always an exciting prospect. Lawrence’s ram being the first we’ve ever taken with a hand gun – no easy feat to say the least.
And so with a Blue Duiker in the bag and a couple of nights in the blind waiting on a group of Bushpig to hit the bait, we opted for a Bushpig hunt with hounds. In our part of the world, like with many other hunting cultures, pig hunting with hounds is conducted by a certain special group of people. These hunters are dedicated to the point of obsession. Come rain or shine – they will hunt Bushpig EVERY Saturday.
Their dogs are their proudest possessions and a pig hunter’s lead dog may be ranked higher in the pecking order than some of his closet relatives. To the outsider its hard to fathom, let alone understand the obsession of gearing up and heading out on a pig hunt at 4am each weekend. But let me warn you, once you’ve learnt how to judge the hounds and their various tactics of baying, including the all important prediction of where they’re heading, its unbelievably addictive. Experiencing the action at close quarters in the midst of the thickest coastal undergrowth imaginable leaves ones heart racing with a touch of fear – hoping that a ragging Bushpig doesn’t choose you as his next victim. These pigs can be extremely aggressive once pursued and bayed, with many a hound or hounds man bearing sufficient scars to prove their experience from past hunts.
Lawrence’s Bushpig proved to be one heck of a challenging hunt. With the pig finally coming to bay in a small stream, a shot had to be made at extremely close quarters. At 5 yards to be exact!
With the excitement of the Bushpig hunt behind us, and having gathered our breath after a lengthy three-hour chase, it was time to get our pig out of there – A 2 mile hike up the gorge to the nearest road.
Like I said – These Bushpig hunters are a breed of their own. The smallest guy in the team walked up to Lawrence’s downed pig, transformed it into a back-pack within minutes and started the 2 mile hike. And in case you were wondering if he stopped along the way to rest? Not once!
With Lawrence and Chris’s hunts coming to an end it was time to welcome new comer Freddie Seeds to the John X family. We had met at SCI this past January in Vegas, and from the outset it looked like this was going to be a hunt for the ages.
Freddie Seeds
Freddie owns and operates Bears Den Guides & Outfitters based out of New Mexico offering a variety of species including Mountain Lion, Bear, Elk and Antelope. Being an active guide himself he did his “homework” on finding the right outfitter which suited his needs for Africa, settling on John X Safaris.
Having chosen a 7mm manufactured by our long rage partners, Gunwerks, for this first hunt to John X Safaris proved to be a master stroke on his behalf. Guided by Professional Hunter, Ross Hoole, and having his safari filmed by GTS Productions videographer, Pierre Prins, has given you the opportunity to join Freddie and his team in the field as they head out in search of something big…. Enjoy the highlights – The hunting was superb and the shooting even better.
For more information and current updates about John X Safaris; follow us on Twitter, connect with us on Facebook, subscribe to our YouTube Channel and visit our Website!
