I just went thru a couple hundred pictures and whittled it down to a manageable amount for my farm / slow / PC , to show you some of Wylie and Russ's excellent adventure !
Research and planning complete , forum member Wylie Harvey ( aka WalknTall ) and his brother in-law , Russ Pottinger , took off to South Africa , for a Photo Safari and to test their Excalibur tackle on an awesome " Hunt of a Lifetime " .
August 9th – August 25, 2011 .
A picture leaving home ....
A couple of airport pictures ...
A few frames form the Smithsonian Airplane Museum ( man , there were enough pictures to post an entire new thread on that place ! )( I didn't know Excalibur had their own plane ? )
Once they arrived in South Africa ...
Started at Kruger National Park for 3 days and nights with Sabie River Bush Lodge for a cool safari... Sabie River Bush Lodge organizes open-vehicle game drives into the Kruger National Park with its own qualified guide and game vehicle.
http://www.sabieriverbushlodge.co.za/index.html
Here are some pictures of the accommodations and tasty treats at both Sabie river bush lodge and Diekie Muller Hunting Safaris ... Not every day , you can sit on the deck > watch elephants pass by and hippo's " Do their thing " , day and night !
Here are some frames of all the cool birds and animals from Kruger ...
Of course , there we elephants ! ... Wylie and Russ found out that when the elephants have young with them , the matriarch will help the Safari vehicle along if it stops for too long !
And no matter where you go in the world , there are always cool sunrise / sunset pictures to be taken ..
Next on to the hunt , at Diekie Muller Hunting Safaris , http://www.dmsafaris.com/
Predominately hunting from ground blinds over food / water source ...
And cover scent is the sweeeeet aroma of burning donkey dung !
They used Wylie's " Old Faithful " Excalibur Exocet 175 , equipped with a Maxzone scope , Boo Custom string , shooting Big John's Goldtip Bolts/arrows , c/w 150 Boltcutter broadheads .
( Combined weight of 459 grains )
And an Excalibur Exomax , equipped with a Varizone scope , Boo Custom string , and again shooting Big John's Goldtip Bolts/arrows , c/w 150 Boltcutter broadheads . ( 459 grains total )
The animal dispatch went as follows ...
Wylie's first mission was to take out a nuisance baboon ... a 42 yard shot with his Exocet and the 150 Boltcutter broadhead make quick work of it !
And later a dinner pot Guinea fowl , with the same set up .
On to the bigger game .... these animals were spread out over the duration of the stay .
Wylie took a beauty , Blue Wildebeest , 27 Yards , Exocet 175 ..
His next trophy was a 23 Yard shot on a real nice Impala , with his Exomax .
Russ stepped up to the plate , with a 24 yard shot on another beauty Impala , using the Exocet 175 .
His next hit was a 25 yard Kudu , again with the Exocet 175 ...
Wylie then took a cool looking Gemsbok ... 26 Yard shot , with his Exomax .
Russ also picked up a Gemsbok at 25 yards , using the Exocet 175 .
And then Russ connected with a very heavy Eland ... 27 yard shot , with the Exocet 175 again .
Yep , Big John's bolt / arrow set-up with the 150 Boltcutters , did the job well on all .... and the 2nd frame shows what happens when you miss low and hit a water pipe !
Next few frames show some of the needed help , gear and transport for such an adventure ...
Last day , Last hour , Wylie and Russ were called on to put down a couple of warthogs , with a borrowed , Sako 270 ( Wylie 125 yards , Russ 130 yards )
Great way to wrap up the trip ...
All trophies dropped off at the local taxidermist , to be prep'd , mounted and shipped back to Canada at a later date ...
A picture with " the crew " and it's off on the long trip home !
I hope you all enjoyed these few pictures , showing Wylie and Russ's excellent adventure!
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