|
Techno-Hunt - Mukiwa Safari Co
In September last year a friend who is a marketing consultant, approached our outfitting company with a proposal to capture a typical hunt using the latest digital video
equipment. I was informed that the technology was so advanced, that we could install the movie on a website, and anybody with a standard dial up modem, could view a video quality presentation over the Internet. As a
comparatively new Professional Hunting and Outfitting Company, we immediately saw the potential for future marketing, and agreed to assist. Besides – another opportunity of getting out in the bush, doing what we
love best, was too good to pass up. As Bruce Truter rightly pointed out, "If you don't mind being where you are, you are not lost". I often get lost in town, but I am never lost in the bush!
We specialise in traditional walk and stalk bushveld hunting and I informed my friend that it would not be easy to accomplish, and we were not prepared to hunt or shoot from vehicles in order to achieve the desired
result.
Mindful of PHASA's recently published guidelines on the subject, and respecting our ethics, they agreed our terms and conditions. Under no illusions as to the task that lay ahead, we were all intrigued at the
prospects of what we might accomplish if successful. All agreed that we would work hard to achieve the desired result, but at the end of the day, if we did not, we would surely enjoy ourselves.
The team comprised of the Producer, Marinda Stuiver, the two cameramen, Dino and Donovan, my Outfitter Raymond Tree, myself, and most important of all, our client Anton de Bruin. Luckily he was as excited at the
prospect of his hunt being captured on video as we were, and readily agreed to participate.
Our preparations began, as we would for any local or overseas client, with a briefing on what to expect, followed by a trip to the local shooting range to test both the equipment and the client's capabilities. We
were impressed with Anton's shooting skills and were confident that given any reasonable shooting opportunity, we wouldn't have any problems in that department. These routine but essential tasks behind us, we headed
north for our hunting ranch, Gannapan, in the Limpopo Valley.
Our journey through Thabazimbi and beyond was typical of any hunting trip, full of enthusiasm and excitement of the unknown adventures that surely lie ahead. It didn't take long before the pressures and stresses of
the city were left behind. As with all such journeys, they never seem to take long, but the traditional refreshment stop at Thaba Inkwe took a lot longer and cost a great deal more than planned, through no
fault of theirs I might add. Somehow, neither seemed to matter.
The next morning 5 am alarm call was greeted by some, with far less enthusiasm than had been expressed the night before. With all eventually present and accounted for, we set off to a section of the ranch that is
always worth a leisurely early morning stroll to re-tune the senses. As the morning peeled back the mantel of darkness, the sights, sounds and smells of the bushveld at dawn, reaffirmed my belief in the Great
Creator. It is just too beautiful and awesome to have happened by chance. You know you are alive, and truly blessed.
After the season's heavy rains, the bush in the Limpopo Valley was still extremely thick, and apart from a few sparse clearings, our average visibility was down to 30 meters. Once again I was sceptical about getting
Anton, Dino and myself in close enough to capture the hunt on video. I decided to concentrate on hunting with Anton, and hoped that Dino would manage his role as video observer.
It didn't take long before we picked up the peaceful grunts of a small heard of Blue Wildebeest. Within a few minutes we had them visual. Anton had stayed close to me, and we were able to stand and watch them at 80
meters without disturbing their breakfast. Unfortunately Dino had dallied too long in collecting footage of our stalk, and was in no position to even see them, let alone capture any footage.
It turned out that this group was considerably bigger than I had expected, and we had actually walked right into the middle of the herd. An alert peripheral sentry picked up our scent, snorted, and sent them
galloping off out of the danger-zone. I thought that I would be clever, and anticipating their flight path, cut across their tracks. However, they were wide-awake by now, and with the breeze swirling, all our
efforts to close on them failed. Non-the less, we enjoyed the experience and the outing.
It had become apparent on the Wildebeest stalk that our cameraman was enjoying himself so much with his digital toy, that he was both in serious danger of getting lost and missing out on the action. If we were to
capture the hunt in its entirety, we needed him closer to the program. We agreed that he should take up a position where he could walk comfortably on Anton's shoulder without disturbing either of us, and we
practiced that on the way back to the camp. One of my main concerns had been his positioning, and his ability to be there without disturbing hunter or prey at the crucial moment. The last thing I needed was to
explain to the producer that we had changed the brief, and now had an excellent video on how to track a wounded animal. He listened, did exactly as he was instructed, and I soon became less conscious of his presence
and became far more confident of success.
After our traditional brunch, and customary study of all things horizontal, we took the camera down to the dam with the certain knowledge of capturing some additional wildlife footage. We were suitably rewarded by
the appearance of a family of warthogs. Mom and the kids took to quenching their obvious thirst, whilst Dad indulged in a mud bath of note, almost as if it was his last, which it very nearly was. Raymond had asked
me to shoot something for the camp staff, but I enjoyed watching this old boar so much, that I knew it was neither the time nor the place. He eventually trotted off to father more little warthogs, and the camera had
captured some great footage.
Raymond took the late afternoon, and next early shift, and although Kudu and Wildebeest had been encountered, getting everybody lined up and even focused in the same direction had proved difficult in the thick bush,
but as they say, "that's hunting". We were all working hard to achieve the desired result and we were all enjoying ourselves.
Whilst Raymond was out with Anton and Dino, I had taken a leisurely late afternoon stroll with the balance of the party left in camp, and had managed to get really close to a herd of Gemsbok. Anton had let it be
known that a Gemsbok bull was high on his to-do list, so the next afternoon, after Anton reverted to his old lucky hunting hat, we made our way to that section of the ranch. Anton informed me that he too felt good
about the area, and with renewed confidence from his lucky hat, was keen to give it a try.
We had been walking for about two hours and crossed what appeared to be the 'N2 highway for bokke' several times, but had not encountered what we were looking for. I had changed directions several times in order to
cope with the constantly changing breeze, and we had come out a lot higher up than I had planned. No, we didn't mind being there. I decided that it was time to take time out for a smoke and relax, and while my
companions took a break in the shade, I wandered off to see what I might pick up on my own. Nothing - must have missed rush hour.
With the light now starting to fade, I resolved that we should investigate an old dry pan whilst we had the wind in our favour. I was tired, and we were all starting to lose concentration with thoughts drifting
towards the contents of the cooler box back in camp.
As we entered the cover around the pan I saw the flick of a tail. It was so clear that it could have been painted neon pink. I knew that Anton was close on my heels, Dino might have to be summonsed, but I was now
focused on getting Anton into a shooting position. As it turned out, Dino had the camera rolling and was in a good spot behind Anton's left shoulder. As we settled down, the Gemsbok bull walked out of his cover
quartering towards us. We had a lot of foliage between us, and I knew we would have to wait for a clear shot.
Anton had steadied the 30-06 on my shoulder, and as I heard the safety click off, I coaxed him to wait. All credit to him, he waited, we waited. The scene seemed to take an eternity to unfold. The bull, now
grazing towards us, stopped, lifted his head and stared straight at us. Although it was a perfect front on shot, I was worried about a small branch that was between us and the Gemsbok's chest. I wasn't sure if Anton
was picking that up through his scope so I whispered to him to take to take him just under the chin. The 30-06 bucked off my shoulder and the bull went down. "Dino, did you get that?" His beaming face gave me my
answer. Watching the video later, it turned out as if the footage had been taken through the scope!
As a hunter who confessed to have little experience, Anton showed remarkable maturity and patience and it was a great pleasure to hunt with him. He has received a complimentary video of his experience, and the
quality of the footage is truly remarkable. The memory of his hunt and his trophy is recorded exactly as it happened. He told me that he could not wait to show this to his hunting mates - they all have their photo
albums and stories, but only he has a video. Who says hunters are humble?
This is now all captured on disk and installed as a two-minute video clip on our website. Although our local bandwidth does not provide as good a quality as the same version viewed overseas, we are extremely pleased
with the results and I feel very privileged to have been a part of it. We were subsequently approached, and have completed a similar production of a walk and stalk bow hunt, but that is another storey.
The clip can be viewed at www.mukiwasafari.com
|
