
156: Africa Hunting Expectations
08/19/21 • 31 min
Today’s episode continues the Africa hunting series and I'm going to talk about having realistic expectations when hunting in Africa. A listener asked me to discuss what the hunting is like in different parts of Africa and the importance of realistic expectations. So that’s what I’m going to talk about today: what the hunting is like in South Africa vs Namibia vs Mozambique vs Zimbabwe, how it's different hunting government concessions vs private land, fenced vs free range, and cape buffalo vs plains
Show Notes: https://thebiggamehuntingblog.com/podcast/africahuntingexpectations/
Show Sponsors: We The People Holsters: They have literally thousands of different holster options for left and right handed shooters, inside and outside the waistband holsters, and a cool selection of different custom printed holsters. So, you’re almost guaranteed to find the exact holster that fits your needs the best. Go to WeThePeopleHolsters.com now and use code BIGGAMEHUNTER to support The Big Game Hunting Podcast and take 15% off your order.
Hunting Guns 101: Avoid the painful and expensive mistakes I've made over the years and improve your odds of success afield on your future hunts by purchasing the Hunting Guns 101 training at huntingguns101.com/form. Purchase Hunting Guns 101 before 26 August and receive The Insider's Guide To Booking An Outfitted Hunt for FREE (a $97 value) and receive insider information that will help save you time, money and frustration when booking a guided hunt almost anywhere in the world!
What We Covered1) What you can do to begin a hunt with the right mindset.
2) Examples of what realistic expectations are for various hunts in Africa.
3) What to expect when hunting private land in Namibia.
4) What to look out for when hunting the Caprivi Strip in Namibia.
5) What to potentially expect when hunting cape buffalo and plains game on private land and in a CAMPFIRE area in Zimbabwe.
6) What to potentially expect when hunting in Mozambique.
7) What to expect when hunting private land in South Africa.
8) Comparison of hunting fenced vs unfenced areas in Africa.
9) Lessons I learned along the way.
Show SponsorLooking back on things, I brought a rifle to Africa on my first hunt there that was very poorly suited to the conditions. As I learned the hard way, using the wrong rifle set-up can dramatically lower your odds of success on a hunt. Lots of other people make that same mistake each year and I don't want that to happen to you. That’s why you need to sign up for the Hunting Guns 101 online training, which is your playbook for choosing the best rifle, cartridge, sighting system, and ammunition for your dream hunt.
Additionally, I'm offering an incredible bonus to podcast listeners for a limited time: The Insider's Guide To Booking An Outfitted Hunt. In this module I share a lot of lessons I learned the hard way over the years on a personal level booking a guided hunt, some insider secrets hunting outfitters DON'T want you to know, and a list of questions you should ask any outfitter before booking with them.
I normally offer The Insider's Guide To Booking An Outfitted Hunt as a $97 upgrade to the Hunting Guns 101 training, but I'm offering it to podcast listeners for FREE if they purchase Hunting Guns 101 before 26 August. Just go to huntingguns101.com/form, submit the order form, and click "NO" on the next screen asking if you want to upgrade your order to include The Insider's Guide To Booking An Outfitted Hunt. After you complete your order, just email me at [email protected] and let me know you’re a podcast listener and that you just bought HG101. I’ll manually upgrade your order to give you instant access.
Today’s episode continues the Africa hunting series and I'm going to talk about having realistic expectations when hunting in Africa. A listener asked me to discuss what the hunting is like in different parts of Africa and the importance of realistic expectations. So that’s what I’m going to talk about today: what the hunting is like in South Africa vs Namibia vs Mozambique vs Zimbabwe, how it's different hunting government concessions vs private land, fenced vs free range, and cape buffalo vs plains
Show Notes: https://thebiggamehuntingblog.com/podcast/africahuntingexpectations/
Show Sponsors: We The People Holsters: They have literally thousands of different holster options for left and right handed shooters, inside and outside the waistband holsters, and a cool selection of different custom printed holsters. So, you’re almost guaranteed to find the exact holster that fits your needs the best. Go to WeThePeopleHolsters.com now and use code BIGGAMEHUNTER to support The Big Game Hunting Podcast and take 15% off your order.
Hunting Guns 101: Avoid the painful and expensive mistakes I've made over the years and improve your odds of success afield on your future hunts by purchasing the Hunting Guns 101 training at huntingguns101.com/form. Purchase Hunting Guns 101 before 26 August and receive The Insider's Guide To Booking An Outfitted Hunt for FREE (a $97 value) and receive insider information that will help save you time, money and frustration when booking a guided hunt almost anywhere in the world!
What We Covered1) What you can do to begin a hunt with the right mindset.
2) Examples of what realistic expectations are for various hunts in Africa.
3) What to expect when hunting private land in Namibia.
4) What to look out for when hunting the Caprivi Strip in Namibia.
5) What to potentially expect when hunting cape buffalo and plains game on private land and in a CAMPFIRE area in Zimbabwe.
6) What to potentially expect when hunting in Mozambique.
7) What to expect when hunting private land in South Africa.
8) Comparison of hunting fenced vs unfenced areas in Africa.
9) Lessons I learned along the way.
Show SponsorLooking back on things, I brought a rifle to Africa on my first hunt there that was very poorly suited to the conditions. As I learned the hard way, using the wrong rifle set-up can dramatically lower your odds of success on a hunt. Lots of other people make that same mistake each year and I don't want that to happen to you. That’s why you need to sign up for the Hunting Guns 101 online training, which is your playbook for choosing the best rifle, cartridge, sighting system, and ammunition for your dream hunt.
Additionally, I'm offering an incredible bonus to podcast listeners for a limited time: The Insider's Guide To Booking An Outfitted Hunt. In this module I share a lot of lessons I learned the hard way over the years on a personal level booking a guided hunt, some insider secrets hunting outfitters DON'T want you to know, and a list of questions you should ask any outfitter before booking with them.
I normally offer The Insider's Guide To Booking An Outfitted Hunt as a $97 upgrade to the Hunting Guns 101 training, but I'm offering it to podcast listeners for FREE if they purchase Hunting Guns 101 before 26 August. Just go to huntingguns101.com/form, submit the order form, and click "NO" on the next screen asking if you want to upgrade your order to include The Insider's Guide To Booking An Outfitted Hunt. After you complete your order, just email me at [email protected] and let me know you’re a podcast listener and that you just bought HG101. I’ll manually upgrade your order to give you instant access.
Previous Episode

155: Lion Hunting 101 With Kevin Robertson
Today's episode continues the latest series on hunting in Africa. Kevin Robertson back on The Big Game Hunting Podcast again today to talk to us about lion hunting. We discuss the ins and outs of lion hunting today: how to evaluate a trophy lion, cartridge and bullet selection for lion hunting , shot placement, what can happen if your shot placement is not good, etc. We also touch on the Cecil the Lion scandal from 2015 and the controversial practice of captive bred lion hunting at the end of the show.
Show sponsor: I highly recommend purchasing a copy of The Perfect Shot II if you think you might want to hunt in Africa one day. If you have an upcoming hunt or if you just want to learn more about game in Africa and want a great "all in one" reference, you will not be disappointed with The Perfect Shot II.
What We Covered1) Story of what can happen with poor shot placement on a lion.
2) A brief overview of lion: what they are, where they live, how big they get, and their natural history.
3) Overview of what life is like for a lion and how they often die miserable deaths.
4) Description on some of the most popular ways to hunt lion.
5) Description of lion shot placement and why shot placement is so different on these cats from almost any other species of game in Africa.
6) What cartridges and bullets Kevin recommends for lion hunting.
7) Kevin's take on the ideal lion rifle set-up.
8) The basics of lion trophy evaluation.
9) Kevin's take on the Cecil the Lion Scandal.
10) Concluding thoughts on hunting captive bred lions.
Show SponsorI highly recommend purchasing a copy of Kevin Robertson's book The Perfect Shot II if you think you might want to hunt in Africa one day for almost any species of game, to include leopard. This was a revolutionary book when Kevin first published it back in the late 1990s. It’s still an incredibly useful resource, especially the updated edition that’s currently in print.
If you have an upcoming hunt in Africa or if you’re just dreaming about hunting in Africa one day, then you NEED to buy this book and carefully study what he has to say. The information inside it is invaluable and reflects Kevin’s decades of hard earned experience as a professional hunter in Africa. If you pay attention to what he has to say and use the book as a guide to prepare for your hunt, you will increase your odds of success, reduce the chances of something going wrong, and have more fun over there.
Plus, the book is just really interesting and entertaining. You’ll learn all about hunting the most popular species of game in Africa; buffalo, leopard, lion, elephant, hippo, crocodile, and most of the really popular species of plains game from southern Africa like kudu, impala, wildebeest, etc.
The Perfect Shot II is available anywhere books are sold. You can just click here to buy your copy from Amazon and help support The Big Game Hunting Podcast in the process.
Next Episode

157: Arica Hunting Expectations Part 2 With Phil Massaro
Today’s episode is the second installment of my mini-series on having appropriate expectations when hunting in Africa. I talked about my personal experiences back in episode 156 and Phil Massaro is on the show today to talk about his hunts in the Makuti Safari Area and Chirisa Safari Area in Zimbabwe, the Zambezi Delta in Mozambique, the Luangwa Valley in Zambia, and the Selous Reserve in Tanzania.
Show Notes: https://thebiggamehuntingblog.com/podcast/africahuntingexpectationspart2philmassaro/
Show Sponsors: We The People Holsters: They have literally thousands of different holster options for left and right handed shooters, inside and outside the waistband holsters, and a cool selection of different custom printed holsters. So, you’re almost guaranteed to find the exact holster that fits your needs the best. Go to WeThePeopleHolsters.com now and use code BIGGAMEHUNTER to support The Big Game Hunting Podcast and take 15% off your order.
Hunting Guns 101: Learn the essential information about practical ballistics, hunting firearms, and ammunition that will improve your odds of success on future hunts by purchasing the Hunting Guns 101 training at huntingguns101.com/form.
What We Covered1) Brief overview of Phil's most recent hunt in the Makuti Safari Area.
2) In-depth discussion of the travel and logistics involved with these hunts.
3) Overview of hunting in the Chirisa Safari area in Zimbabwe.
4) Overview of hunting in the Zambezi Delta in Mozambique.
5) Discussion of hunting in the Luangwa Valley in Zambia.
6) Overview of hunting in the Selous Reserve in Tanzania.
Resources1) PhilMassaro.com – Phil's Web Site
2) Phil Massaro's Facebook, Instagram, & Twitter Pages
Show SponsorPurchase the Hunting Guns 101 online training and you'll learn the essentials of practical ballistics and what firearms, sighting systems, cartridges, and ammunition you should be using on your future hunts to improve your odds of success afield. Go to huntingguns101.com/form and submit the order form to receive instant access or go to huntingguns101.com/order to learn more about the training.
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