By Ed Heckman

Thanks to my wonderful wife Penny, I was recently fortunate enough to have the opportunity to travel to Zimbabwe, Africa. This was truly a trip of a lifetime—a 12-day African Safari! We endured through more than a year of planning and a last minute anthrax scare before we got on a plane for the Lemco Safari Area in Zimbabwe, Africa. The lucky five included my brother-in-law from Baltimore, Steve Teague, 2 friends from Phoenix, Joe Nochta and Dan Parizek, and myself. We originally were scheduled to hunt the Mokore Safari Area but due to an outbreak of anthrax, our safari outfitter Barry Duckworth of Mokore Safaris was able to find another safari company. HHK Safaris accommodated our hunt at Lemco. The Lemco Area is approximately 650,000-acre conservancy. The landscape was very similar to Arizona – very flat and dry with lots of tall grass, brush, and small trees.

After a 10-hour flight, a 6-hour lay over in London, then another 10-hour flight to Harrare, and a 1 1/2 hour chartered flight; we finally arrived at HHK Safaris Headquarters. From there we were transferred to Ngali, one of 7 camps operated by HHK Safaris. Once there we settled in to our chalets and waited for our Professional Hunters (PH) to arrive. I was paired up with PH Zayne Von Der Merwe. Thinking this guy is awful young to be a PH, we sat down to get acquainted. Born and raised in Zimbabwe, Zayne is 27 and has been a PH since he was 19. Zayne normally works for another company Zambezi Hunters, but contracted his services out for this safari – lucky for me, as I would later realize.

The first thing we needed to do was go sight in the rifle I was to use. The Mokore Safaris provided me with a 375 H&H with Winchester 270-gr. Fail Safe cartridges for my use. I shot a few rounds at 100 yards, it was back to camp for a few rounds of cold Zambezis (local brand of beer), and some more discussion on the trophies I was looking to take on my safari. I need to explain that having to use a rifle from the safari company is where the first scheduling mistake was made on my part. About a month after we had booked our flights on British Airways, I was searching their website to see about their requirements for carrying guns on the plane, and came across a restriction for carry sporting arms into Zimbabwe. Our travel agent made numerous calls to British Airways and finally confirmed that since England had declared Zimbabwe a “hostile” country that we could not transport sporting rifles into Zimbabwe on a British Airways flight. My suggestion is that if you ever want to take a firearm to any country on a major foreign airline, check that specific airline’s requirements as well as the laws and regulations for the country the airline is based out of.

The next morning, Zayne and I set out to see what Lemco had in store for us. We were accompanied by 3 trackers/scouts – Parisi, Josea, and Judas. Zayne explained that he has never been to the Lemco area on a safari so we agreed to basically just drive around the first day to get a lay of the land and see what trophy plains game was around. Well, needless to say, it did not take long to be totally amazed by the amount of game that we were surrounded by. After about an hour, I told Zayne that I have been hunting for over 35 years, and that I had seen more game in this first hour than I had seen in my entire life. Later that night back at camp, Zayne said the game at Lemco was so abundant that we could take all 8 animals I wanted in 2 days if we wanted to. We agreed to take our time, enjoy the scenery, and take only trophy animals that would “book”. By book, he meant animals that would meet Safari Club International Record Book minimums.

The second day is when the fun started, less than an hour into our hunt we came across a herd of Zebra. Zayne explained that Zebra are one of the hardest African animals to stalk. They are extremely cautious and skittish animals. We stalked the herd for maybe a 100 yards looking to get a shot at the lead stallion. The stallion finally stepped into the clear. The 120 yard shot was a piece of cake for the 375 H&H; the zebra went about 60 yards and was down. I was pretty pumped, but needless to say the excitement for the safari had just gotten started. We loaded up the zebra into the Land Cruiser and transported it back to the skinning shed. Here you tell the skinners what kind of mount (i.e. flat skin, shoulder mount) you want for your animal. After it is skinned, the hide is scraped and salted and the skulls boiled out for transport to a local taxidermy company for dipping and packing prior to shipment back to the US. The safari company either uses to meat to feed their workers or is sold to a local meat company. No meat is ever wasted.

Late that afternoon, we were headed back to camp when one of the scouts told us about a waterhole not to far away. We headed for it and came across 4 Bushpigs at the hole. It was almost dark as we set up for about a 30-yard shot. Zayne pointed out the largest of the 4 as we waited a minute or 2 for it to come into the clear. Meanwhile one of the other pigs wandered out into the water about 15 yards away never seeing or hearing us. The larger one finally cleared, and the 375 dropped the pig in its tracks.

The next day we set out to hunt my #1 choice for African plains game – Kudu. We set out for the Bubi River, which was probably 25+ miles away. Upon arriving at the Bubi River, what do I see – your typical Arizona river – SAND!!!! The river only runs during the rainy season. The scouts spotted a couple of Kudu probably 400 yards away. We stalked the Kudu for probably a half-mile. Zayne got me within about 70 yards of one of the Kudus. As I got in position for a shot, he signaled to me that this was probably a Kudu with 48” horns but that we could do better. As we watched the bull, he finally got wind of us and let out a warning snort.

Other Kudu and a herd of Impala had been down in the riverbed, and they took off running across the Bubi River. We hurried down to the edge of the river. All of the other animals had already made it across the 200+ yards of riverbed. Zayne glassed 2 Kudu bulls on the opposite bank of the river. He set me up on the shooting sticks and told me to get ready. I could see the 2 animals behind a tree and some brush. Zayne told me to wait for the back one to clear the tree on the right. Once it cleared the tree, I squeezed off the shot. The bull jumped about 3 feet in the air and took off. We walked across the river to where the bull was. We found the blood trail and only had to track it about 40 yards before we found the bull dead. He measured out to be 51 1/2” – second largest taken at Lemco this year, and Zayne said it was the largest he had taken this year. I was becoming very impressed with my PH as well as becoming sold on this 375 H&H as quite the all around caliber for any game whether in Africa or back home in Arizona – sucked the life right out of these animals.

On the way back to camp, we passed a large pond that had numerous Eland in the area. My PH explained that Eland are the largest member of the antelope family weighing 3000lbs plus and can jump 8’ fences. We made a plan to return to this spot the next day at the same time to try and get my Eland. The next day we returned to the pond, ate lunch, waited and watched the pond for over an hour. Nothing came into the pond to drink on what was the hottest day since I had been there. The temperature was around 100 degrees. I could see my PH glassing something about 500 yards away. He called me up and gave me the binoculars. Under a tree, I could see a silhouette of an animal moving about. He said it was a cheetah eating a kill. We watched both the pond and the cheetah for a while longer. Zayne then asked if I wanted to go see what the cheetah was having for lunch. Sure why not – so we headed out to try and sneak upon the cheetah.

We were within about a 150 yards, when Zayne told us to freeze. About 300 yards to our right were a couple of Eland bulls grazing. So much for the cheetah!!!! We started our stalk on the Eland working our way from bush to bush. After close to an hour, we got to within about 150 yards. We left our water back at the land cruiser so I was getting pretty thirsty. Still not able to get a clear shot, we started to crawl from bush to bush. Now I was really feeling the heat. Zayne asked if I was ready to crawl some more. I asked where are you planning on going to? Zayne said that he really didn’t know, I am making this up as we go. Real funny Zayne!

When we made it to the last bush, he set up the shooting sticks and told me to get on the sticks and get ready. After catching my breath, I rested the rifle on the sticks and took aim. I could see 2 Elands standing behind a tree and some brush about 100 yards away. He said take the bull on the right and just shoot through the brush. I could see a mass through the brush but could not make out the head or shoulder. The bull finally raised its head so I could get a reference on it shoulder. The bull ran about 50 yards and went down. Although he was down, I put a second round into the animal. This massiveness of this animal was amazing. The horns measured out to be 35” – another “book” animal for me.

The next day we decided to go after my giraffe. We did not have to go far since giraffe were everywhere in Lemco. Along with our 3 scouts, we took along 2 more scouts and a couple of skinners because a giraffe is so large that they skin and cut up the animal on the spot. We spotted a nice mature stink bull and easily got to within about 60 yards of the animal. I hit it with well-placed heart and lung shot. Still the huge animal turned and ran about 60 yards before it went down. I was hoping to see it fall but the brush was too thick

The next couple of days the weather turned cold and misty on us. The animals were not moving as much as they were during the hotter days. We came upon a young bull elephant at a water hole. Zayne grabbed his rifle and told me to get my camera. We came up on the young bull and got to within about 20 yards. When he finally saw us, the young bull let us know that we were too close. He turned and faced us rearing his trunk up, spreading his ears wide, and kicking rocks at us. I snapped a couple pictures as the bull moved toward us. Needless to say my heart was pounding and the adrenaline flowing. The PHs had told us stories about elephant charges and how they will not shoot a charging elephant until it is less than 10 yards away just in case it was a mock charge. We backed off and so did the elephant. As my heart rate returned to normal, Zayne explained that we were never in any real danger. The young bull was just showing off. Needless to say the elephant had definitely impressed me with his tough guy act.

The weather warmed up and the rain quit so we went looking for my wildebeest. We saw many herds of wildebeest, but we were looking for a small group of 2 or 3 male wildebeests. Finally seeing a couple mature bulls, we started our stalk. Not having to go very far, the wildebeest started toward a clearing about 100 yards to our left. I readied the rifle on the shooting sticks. When the largest bull stepped into the clearing, I took the shot. The bull’s knees buckled and it dropped in its tracks. It was amazing to see this large animal drop like a rock. The 375 H&H is just plain awesome. The wildebeest measure out to a 30” spread with 14” bosses.

The warthog was next on my list of trophies. Warthogs are one ugly animal, but they are hilarious out in the African bush. They have long thin tails that when they run stick straight up in the air. They reminded me of an antenna on a remote control car. Back at his home, my PH had a pet warthog named Burp so whenever we saw warthog we just called them Burps. We spotted a warthog with good size tusks and started to track it. These African scouts are simply amazing when it comes to following a trail. We tracked this Burp for over 2 hours. After it got into a herd of zebra, we gave up because it would now run with the zebra herd. We returned to the cruiser and headed off. Less than 30 minutes later, we spotted and even bigger Burp just off the road. Quickly I got my rifle out and Zayne set up the shooting sticks. The warthog was on the run about 80 yards away when it made the mistake of stopping to look back at us, giving me an easy shot. My Burp’s tusks measured out to 14”.

On last animal remained on my list – an Impala. The next day we headed out to an area not far from camp where we had seen a couple of herds. Zayne spotted a nice Impala so we hopped out of the truck and started after the herd. The herd was about 120 yards from us when Zayne pointed out the large male for me to take. It was moving at an angle away from me as I shot. My first shot hit it in the neck as it went about 50 more yards and stopped to look back. I fired a second shot up its rear as the herd ran off. Knowing it had 2 hits in it, I figured the smallest of all my animals I was going to take would be an easy find. Boy was I wrong; this Impala was tough. We had to track it at least 1000 yards. And once again the trackers were amazing at how they can follow a blood trail. When we found the impala, it was down but was still trying to get to its feet. A third shot was needed to finally put the animal down for good. Who would have thought that the smallest of my trophies would be the toughest and hardest to kill. The horns on the impala were 22”.

Well my safari was at an end. I had taken all 8 animals I had hoped to, and as promised Zayne had gotten me animals that would “book.” I was in total amazement with everything I had seen and experienced the past 12 days. Not only did I see well over a thousand plains game animals, I saw a Lion, a Leopard, 2 Cheetahs, Elephants, and a herd of Cape Buffalo.

The only animal out of the African Big 5 I did not see was the Rhino. All I can say to any hunter is you have got to experience this for yourself. You will not be disappointed and the memories will last a lifetime. But be warned, hunting in Arizona will never be the same. And although the cost was significant, it was not as expensive as I had first thought it would be.

I was lucky in having the luxury of having Joe Nochta do all of the planning for our trip. This was Joe’s 6^th trip to Africa and is well acquainted with Barrie Duckworth of Mokore Safaris. My suggestion to anybody looking into an African Safari is to use common sense. Use a reputable safari company like Mokore Safaris. Your daily rate should include your PH and his vehicle, room, 3 meals a day, all beverages including alcohol, and laundry service. Find out all the costs up front as transfer costs from camp to airport, visas, and tips for the PH, scouts, and camp staff can add up fast.

Try and find out and talk to your PH prior to your arrival. I was lucky in getting paired up with Zayne as we hit it off from day one. Not to say the other PHs in camp were not exceptional; it is just that being on the same page with your PH as far as your expectations and what trophies you want makes the hunt all that more enjoyable. A well-planned African Safari will provide 2 weeks of total amazement and excitement and a lifetime of memories. I can only hope that in a few years I can return to Africa to take on a dangerous game hunt.