TRAVEL:
 You will need a passport. If you already have a passport, be sure to check the expiration date. You are required to have at least one entirely blank (unstamped) page in your passport. US and Canadian hunters - for South Africa and Namibia only a passport is required, no visa. We don't do anything other than make recommendations concerning airline reservations. Unless you have some sort of frequent flyer miles or other sort of free ticket, an African specialist can probably get you there and back cheaper than your regular travel agent. Don't wait too long to book your airline reservations. We recommend that you contact Esplanade Tours for airline reservations.
Contact Person: Jill Potash
E-mail: ej@esplanadetours.com Website: http://www.esplanadetours.com/
Contact Number: 1-800-426-5492 or 1-800-628-4893
If you are traveling in a group, it is much more convenient if others in your party arrive about the same time. If everyone arrives on a morning flight and one person comes in on an evening flight, then others must wait around as we use transfer companies to do our transfers and everyone needs to be transferred together. Try to coordinate this. You will be met by a DVS representative when exiting customs.
COMMUNICATION:
Cellular reception is available from our lodges in both South Africa and Namibia, so bring your cell phone along. Remember to apply for Roaming on your phone to be able to use it outside your country. Limited e-mail is available in camp. Remember time zones; there is a 6 (Namibia) and 7 (South Africa, Mozambique) hour time difference to the Eastern Standard Time of the USA. Be sure to leave phone, fax and email numbers with your family.
HEALTH and MEDICAL:
No special inoculations are required for South Africa and Namibia. Camps are mainly in malaria-free areas. Your family physician may suggest anti-malaria tablets, although you won't see many African mosquitoes that time of year. If your hunt includes any side trips to Kruger National Park or Mozambique, then you will be outside the malaria-free areas. Sleeping pills are recommended. With time zone changes and jet lag, your body will require a couple of days in Africa to adapt. Anti-diarrhea medication is always good to have in along.
CLIMATE and CLOTHING:
Your hunt will take place during Africa's winter. Weather should be very pleasant. Chilly mornings, warm/sunny days and cool evenings are normal. Rain is possible but very unlikely. Temperature and weather should be about the same as Arizona in February. Bring enough clothing for chilly mornings and outdoor dinners. Hunting vehicles are usually open-air pick-up trucks, so rides to and from blinds or hunting areas can get nippy.Camo clothing is fine for hunting but not necessary. We suggest olive drab, browns, tans or greens. Since laundry is done daily, three or four sets of clothing are usually sufficient.
NON HUNTERS:
We can arrange optional side trips and/or pre-hunt trips for those of you who will be bringing your wives or family. Costs of side trips are extra.
Please let us know in advance if you want to go on side trips or a pre-hunt trip.
Most blinds are big enough for three people so wives will be allowed to accompany their spouses to the blinds should they want to. Ladies / observers are welcome to hunt a day or two and will then just be charged the regular hunting fee for those days hunted. Make arrangements with the PH on arrival.
EQUIPMENT AND SHOTPLACEMENT:
For bowhunting - use any bow / arrow combination you would hunt elk with. Feel free to bring a spare bow, extra strings and any accessories you might need. If you come up short, someone in camp will probably have what you need. Two dozen broadheads should be sufficient. There is a practice range set up right in camp. Africa is the survival of the fittest. Game is tough and die harder than similar size game in America. A lung shot is a lung shot, but trust us, these critters are extra tough. The vitals of most African plains game sit further forward in their chest cavity than American big game. Pick a spot several inches forward of where you would on a similar sized North American game animal. Come straight up the front leg on a broadside shot. Trust your PH on this. The shoulder bones angle forward above the leg. Quartering away shots work great too. Pick your shot angles and distance carefully. You haven't seen "jump the string" yet! Quieten your bow noise as much as possible. Use quality broadheads and have them razor sharp. All wounded or lost game will cost you, so please consider the stress of anxiety, jet lag, stretching your personal range limits, etc. Don't take a twenty-five yard shot when the animal might come considerably closer. You'll get plenty of close broadside shots. Many shot opportunities will be around fifteen yards. We trust you will be honest enough to admit to poor hits if/when you are sitting alone. Many poorly hit animals can be found. Avoid awkward situations by confessing the truth of poor hits when you are alone. We want to help. Study species available and know what they look like or order our Best Bowhunt VOL 8 DVD as it focuses on this and shot placement.
WISH LISTS:
We routinely ask for a "Wish List" from each hunter which has to be completed on your safari contract. This list would include the top species you will be looking for on your bowhunt. Please complete your wish list species on the safari contract so that we can plan accordingly. This is helpful. For instance, someone who particularly wants to shoot an eland will be taken into consideration during blind selection when eland are using certain areas. Same with zebra, waterbuck, etc. We also work on quotas at different concessions and therefore it is necessary to know what each hunter would like to harvest.
BLINDS:
Although some portable or pop-up blinds might be used, we are heading more and more towards enclosed pit blinds to eliminate human odor drifting to game. They are cooler on sunny days and darker so game won't spot you. They are built big enough for two, maybe three, people. You will be given food, water, a urine bottle and a radio when you reach the blind, or you can sit with your PH. Note that hunters are NOT allowed to exit a blind at any time - except when mother nature is calling - unless your guide's hunting vehicle is next to your hide. Game are used to hunting vehicles and each time somebody exits a blind without the vehicle there, the game will become more afraid of the hides which will reduce our success. We need to keep our hides as bowhunting friendly as possible; your co-operation will be appreciated in this matter!
TROPHIES:
Everything is utilized. Nothing is field-dressed. Animals are taken back to camp intact after photographs. The PH will ask you if you want your trophy skinned for a shoulder mount, rug, boiled out skull, etc. Animals will be skinned and caped accordingly. Your hides and capes will be salted and dried. Horns/skulls will be boiled out. You cannot take any trophies back with you. They must be packed, dipped and shipped thru import/export authorities with the relevant documentation. We recommend all US hunters to export their "raw" trophies for mounting in the US. Should you be interested to contact the Taxidermy or Dip and Pack Companies that we recommend ahead of your safari, then please let us know and we will supply you with the contact details.
TIPPING:
Tipping is pretty routine when hunting in Africa and hunters are respectfully requested to leave a tip at their own discretion. Hunters used to leave some sort of equipment such as a bow, arrows, a custom knife, optics, etc. but the PH's have all the gear they need by now. They appreciate cash more. We'll leave this decision up to each of you.
The local black people are very poor and appreciate anything. A trip to the Dollar Store or rummage sales is worth the satisfaction of helping those who don't have much, but again they also appreciate cash more! We ask every hunter to please not give tips directly to the staff, except for your PH, as tips are given to all of them after the season is completed. This way they receive a larger amount of cash at one time and can afford to spend it more wisely. Should you want to bring small gifts and such, we suggest you bring along school materials as the local people really can't afford much for their children.
Average Tips are as follows:
PH = $70 / day
Staff (chef, cleaners, waiter, skinners) = $40 / day
CONCLUSION:
The above information should answer a lot of questions. If any of you have specific questions which were not answered above, then feel free to contact us or visit our FAQ page. It's never too early to start getting fired up. We cannot guarantee how many animals you'll down nor what species, but we promise you'll see lots of game and have plenty of shooting opportunities. We have done a lot of homework on these hunts. Trophy quality, variety and numbers are exceptional, as are the facilities and the people we're dealing with. You won't find a better hunting experience for your dollar anywhere else in the world. By all indications, you should have a great trip with memories that will last a lifetime!
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