15 minute read
NOT YOUR AVERAGE Girls’ Trip BY MEAGAN McELYA
Meagan posing for a photo after a successful sable hunt near Tarkastad.
When most women plan a getaway with their girlfriends, the first destinations that come to mind are usually associated with tropical drinks or poker chips. But this group…this group of eight ladies from Texas could never come close to being like “most women.”
Let’s start with the fact that we hardly knew each other when this whole thing started. We were a diverse group consisting of childhood friends, professional colleagues, and in my case, a mother/daughter pair. Having never visited South Africa, I was so excited when I received an invite from Monica and eager to experience such a new and exciting destination not only with my mom, Michelle, but with some of the coolest chicks I had just met that same day over our first glasses of wine at the Houston airport.
Monica, by far the most seasoned traveler to South Africa, kindly leveraged her personal relationships to coordinate travel itinerary, lodging, professional hunting services, photo safari locations, shopping sprees, you name it. She did a wonderful job creating an enjoyable trip for both groups: The ladies who were hunting, and the ladies who were strictly wanting to enjoy some R&R while capturing photos on safari. You see, not all of us are hunters. And that wasn’t a bad thing! It actually provided a great opportunity for sharing knowledge and having an open dialogue about conservation efforts and how the hunting experience was so much more than just the harvest of an animal. I just so happened to be on the trip for both reasons and had absolutely no idea at the time how fulfilling and exciting that would be.
ADDO
With swollen ankles and a hankering for a large glass of wine, we stepped off of the final flight into the Port Elizabeth airport. Walking through the arrival gate, we met up with our professional hunters, Juan, Ashley and Rudolph (Rudy), whose South African accents (and toned, tanned legs) were about the warmest welcome a group of ladies could ask for. We loaded our things into the back of each of their vehicles, and our caravan headed to the first destination: Africano Country Estate in Addo.
To break up the commute, Juan had made plans to drive through Addo Elephant National Park, the third-largest national park in South Africa. I was in awe of how beautiful and unique they were. I’d have to say that my favorite was the surprisingly photogenic male warthog who decided to stop mid-stroll for a drink just as we pulled past him, almost posing for the camera.
I’m sure Rudy will tell you how I asked him about the agriculture industry as we traveled from one area to the next. I was fascinated by how similar some of the growing environments were to those that I had experienced back in Texas. Citrus fields were present up to the driveway of the Africano Country Estate, where we arrived just before sunset to settle in for a relaxing night of enjoying dinner and the company of new friends. The suites at the estate were breathtaking, featuring a large outdoor shower and a twinkling, starlight ceiling right above the bed.
That evening we mingled and exchanged stories over a gourmet meal of various sushi dishes and, of course, a few bottles of wine. And when I say a few, I mean we kept them coming to the table until we lost count. This created the perfect environment for loads of laughter and almost instant new-found friendships. After ordering a nightcap to enjoy by the fire, we all returned to our suites for the evening, excited about the plans Juan had shared with us for the days ahead.
Rudy assisting in netting and relocating a female mountain reedbuck near Tarkastad.
Netting and relocating a female mountain reedbuck near Tarkastad.
Male warthog stops for a quick drink at Addo Elephant National Park.
TARKASTAD
After our restful night in Addo, we enjoyed a scrumptious breakfast together before loading up to make the four-hour drive to Tarkastad, where we would be staying for the next two nights. The hunters would head out that evening, so we met with Juan’s mother, Shannon, to pick up our talented local trackers and Juan’s eleven-year-old decker terrier, Leica. Mountain tops began to peek around each curve as we approached Tarkastad, and I began to notice colossal termite mounds dotting the landscape. We stopped to stretch our legs and fuel up in town before making our way to the Carrickmoor Guest Farm, where Nikki and Justin Phillips were waiting to welcome us. After unloading, it wasn’t long before we had the rifles and shooting sticks out. Having never used shooting sticks, I was intrigued and very excited to give them a try. Juan and Rudy did a fantastic job explaining how the sticks were a necessity for the spot-and-stalk style of hunting, ensuring that all hunters understood how to set up, balance, steady the rifle and explained where to aim on each animal before taking a shot. The goal: a properly placed shot every time, so the animal does not experience unnecessary suffering.
My mom, Michelle, and I would be riding with Rudy for each hunt in his impressively equipped Toyota Land Cruiser. This truck was like nothing I had seen before, complete with custom suspension to cover the rocky, mountainous terrain and a hunting rack in the back where our tracker, Neil, and I would be spending most of our time. Neil wasn’t too talkative that first day, probably trying to process what he had gotten himself into with all of these Texas women who seemed a tad too comfortable with a rifle in their hands. Over the next few days, Neil and I would spend hours upon hours in the top of the truck together as I attempted to hide my struggle to balance as we drove along the rough and rocky paths. I would ask him about his family, and he seemed very interested in hearing more about my camera gear, which I had in hand every minute that I wasn’t hunting. I explained how my love for hunting and the outdoors is just as significant as my love for photography and storytelling.
Our first hunt that evening was on acreage just across the road from the guest farm. I was impressed as we watched Rudy and Neil glass the hillsides and valleys for movement. As the sun started to dip behind the mountains for the evening, they spotted a male red lechwe, an aquatic African antelope, napping in an open field. Now let me explain something. Before our trip, my mom and I had created a sort of “wish list” of animals we would like to harvest, having every intention of sticking to that plan. You see, Rudy had this sound he would make when he spotted a trophy animal. It was an almost growl-like sound from the depths of his vocal cords. “Yooouuuhh,” he would say, or something along those lines. When he made that sound everyone in the truck would get excited, especially Michelle! As Rudy stopped the truck to get a better look, there it was. “Yooouuuhh!” Michelle jumped out of the truck and grabbed the rifle within a split second. Using the creek bed for cover, they slowly made their way up to him and she was quickly the first hunter to make a kill.
Something that immediately stands out to me is how unique and almost artistic the horns of African animals are, and the lechwe was no exception. Each evening we stayed in Tarkastad, we celebrated our successful hunts and swapped stories of the day with the whole group back at Carrickmoor Guest Farm. Nikki is a talented chef and prepared gorgeous, home-cooked meals of various venison, springbok, fallow dear, fresh vegetables, and decadent traditional desserts. We spent the rest of our evenings stargazing while sitting around the fire and when it got too chilly, we played blackjack and you guessed it, drank more wine. At this point in the trip, the group had jokingly nick-named red wine “giraffe juice,” mainly because of the purple stains on our tongues each morning.
Rudy’s Toyota Land Cruiser.
Juan’s 11-year old decker terrier, Leica, waits eagerly.
The next stop was a separate piece of land where I had the pleasure of watching Debbie, a dear family friend and fellow HLSR Ranching and Wildlife Committeeman, harvest her handsome sable antelope. I’ve only had the opportunity to hunt with a handful of people, most being family, so being part of her hunt and experiencing her raw emotions firsthand was a very special moment for me.
Soon after the hunt, Rudy let us know that he had arranged a surprise for us and that he was pretty sure I would enjoy it. I was intrigued, to say the least. We made our way around to the other side of the same property where a team with trucks had pulled in along with their small helicopter, there to collect and relocate springbuck and mountain reedbuck to another area. Although I had heard of the practice of netting animals from the air, this was my first time seeing it done in person. The precision and speed of the team was astonishing as we chased them around the property, with me in the back of the truck attempting the impossible task of taking steady photos from a moving vehicle. As we rounded a corner, the blade whirring became louder and we realized they were about to fly directly above us in pursuit of a female mountain reedbuck, which was about 30 yards up the hill from our truck. Rudy jumped in to assist by safely receiving her once she was netted, standing just a couple feet under the hovering helicopter. Hard to believe I remember all of that considering my heart was racing the entire time, frantically trying to capture as many photos of the action that my storage card would allow.
As we snacked on a packed lunch, Rudy took us to the last stop of the day which was conveniently on the way back to the guest farm. I caught myself thinking about Debbie’s sable, his impressive confidence and massive stature. Then…there it was again. “Yooouuuhh.” Rudy had spotted another nice male sable. This animal was breathtaking, having an almost majestic presence about him.
Remember that “wish list” I mentioned? Well in that moment, all consideration for what was on that list went completely out the window. “Want me to hand you the camera?” Debbie asked. “No, thank you,” I replied. “But please hand me the rifle.” The giant smile that spread across her face was priceless. Rudy and I quietly made our way through some high brush to a clearing. Trying to keep me calm and comfortable, Rudy set the sticks and waved me over to take a shot. The next few moments were a complete blur. I had made a perfect shot and he dropped about 40 yards away from us. I can’t remember a time when I have felt so many emotions at the same time. That night was full of celebration, but as a cold front started to blow in, the hunters headed to bed early knowing of our 5 a.m. wake-up call the next morning.
Our final day in Tarkastad was by far the coldest and Renee would be joining us today on the hunt. We packed into Rudy’s truck and headed to a massive 11,000-hectare private ranch where Rudy had previously spent 11 years as an apprentice.
Early in the hunt, both Michelle and Renee were off to a great start. Michelle harvested a male waterbuck on the hillside just as the sunrise kissed the landscape and after a pursuit on foot, Renee and Rudy returned to the Land Cruiser with a gorgeous black springbuck. Mind you, we hadn’t gotten far from the main camp and still had a LOT of ground to cover. Over the next eight hours, we ventured around steep hills speckled with the occasional herd of wildebeest, through deep valleys where groups of mountain reedbuck would scurry to shelter in tall grass as we passed.
Neil pointed out a male on the hillside and after he and Rudy had decided he was mature, my mom urged me to go after him. We walked into the valley to the hillside opposite of the reedbuck and I’ll be honest, I was having an extremely difficult time finding this tiny dude through the scope. Finally, after a successful shot, we watched as he quickly tumbled down the hill.
We moved on and Rudy then spotted a couple of eland antelope, the largest species of plains game in Africa and had the ability to be rather elusive. We’d come to find out that that was sure an understatement. Renee and I waited patiently at the truck while Neil, Rudy, and Michelle made their way across an open field leading to the edge of the valley where the eland had been spotted grazing. Soon though, Renee and I spotted the two eland trotting up to the top of the valley, headed back toward the mountain. It wasn’t long until the crew also appeared, hauling butt back to the truck to continue the hunt. Rudy quickly put the truck in gear and barreled down the weathered dirt “road” toward where we had seen them stop. Everyone in that truck was told to keep an eye on the eland as Rudy did his best to take us to a good position for a shot. “Don’t lose em’!” Rudy exclaimed, and at that very moment, I looked down to realize that I was in the back of a truck that was now quite literally scaling up a mountain sideways in pursuit of these animals. After what seemed like the longest 30 minutes in my life, a clean shot was made, and the eland bull went down at the very bottom of the valley on the riverbed. All was grand until Rudy realized that the path he had once been familiar with had eroded and would leave his truck high centered. We now had no way of turning around, unless he built his own road. Which is exactly what he and Neil did, lifting and carrying several substantial boulders up to the truck where they created a new “road” as us ladies watched in amazement. We also soon discovered the near 2,000-pound eland carcass was only accessible by foot and the animal would have to be quartered and carried over 100 yards. Say no more! Rudy and the team picked up and hauled each quarter of that animal on their shoulders back to the truck as if it was an everyday chore.
The fifth-generation owner of the ranch, Mr. Charles Price, welcomed us back at the main camp offering some of the finest red wine I had ever had in celebration. He told us stories of Rudy’s time working on the ranch as we all nibbled traditional biltong, dried meat sliced extremely thin with a beautifully crafted wooden slicer. I shared photos of the property with Charles and we all thanked him for hosting us before heading off to join the rest of the group for dinner and a good night’s rest at Chappy and Maryland’s house. Chappy and Maryland are two of Monica’s very close friends and were so kind to host us for one night before we moved on to our final destination.
When we arrived at their home, it was late evening and we met the others by the fire to enjoy, you guessed it, more South African red wine. I hadn’t had the chance to introduce myself before I turned around and saw Maryland’s welcoming smile as she offered bread, skewered meats, and beans that she had saved until we arrived. Chappy had already gone to bed for the evening, but the next morning I had the absolute pleasure of getting to know him over a breakfast of warm oatmeal and freshly squeezed orange juice before we loaded everything up to head to the coast for the remainder of our trip.
KENTON ON SEA
Our final three nights were spent near Kenton on Sea enjoying impeccable hospitality, gourmet meals and twice-daily photo safaris at Sibuya Game Reserve. After hunting each day up to that point, I was eager to enjoy some days of resting and relaxation while hopefully capturing the beauty and power of the animals.
We arrived by riverboat just before dinner and were greeted by a staff of young college students who were there as part of an apprenticeship program with the reserve. I was looking forward to spending a few days with the rest of the ladies, including Rebekah, Monica, Taryn, Cindy (aka C1) and Cyndie (aka C2). We had only spent time together over meals, which didn’t give us much time to get to know each other.
A giraffe and her calf strolling through Sibuya Game Reserve.
The next few days were spent meandering around the reserve, searching for and experiencing a variety of animals including impala, white rhinos, nyala, elephants, zebras, and giraffes, to name only a few. Oh and of course the king himself, a fourteen-year-old male lion weighing it at about 230 pounds, napping in the shade with his lioness.
Before making the long trip home, we went into town to shop a bit, enjoy massages and just take in the final days. Some of the group met up with us down at a local hole-in-the-wall bar that backed up to a gorgeous beachfront. We sat together talking about our favorite moments and sharing stories before taking a walk in the sand just before the sunset.
The next evening was our last and as sad as I was to leave, I was overwhelmingly grateful to have spent time in such a magical place with fantastic company. Thank you, Beyond Horizon Safaris, for literally creating the most memorable experience I have had in my life. Each of you made a lasting impact and it was so nice to hear how much the ladies who didn’t hunt also enjoyed the trip, watching the hard work and dedication from the hunters as well as the vast knowledge and professionalism Juan, Rudy and Ashley all possessed. There is just no place that will ever compare to Africa, and I can’t wait to plan my next trip. ★
