This cheerful little pic arrived in my Inbox at 5am today:
Yes, that’s Doc Russia on the right, the PH on the left. The skull will eventually decorate his office wall. (Mr. Free Market got his buff on Monday.)
I have to tell you, in all the hunting I ever did in Africa, I never went after Cape buffalo, because I simply didn’t have the guts. (Also, the money for the license fee, but that’s not an excuse.)
Kudos to them both.
Nice picture. Now tell us what make, model and caliber is Doc Russia’s rifle.
Oh, good grief. It’s a CZ 550 Safari (the same as the old Brno 602) in .375 H&H Magnum, shooting the excellent Buffalo Bore 300gr TSX solid copper bullet which leaves the barrel at 2,550fps, and arrives at 50 yards with just over 3,900 ft-lbs of energy.
Satisfied?
I remember Jeff Cooper saying that a heart-shot buffalo will die in three minutes, so your problem is staying out of his way for 180 seconds.
Peter Capstick had lots of experience with Cape Buffalo, and he personally witnessed longer than that. His comment was that “on any basis, I’d rather argue with a gut-shot jumbo than a buff.”
Africa permits hunting British women? I learn something new every day.
Not British… no visible tattoos.
Just in case I win the lotto, what did it cost Doc for everything, including the mount?
No idea. The buff license is about $35k, but that may include the taxidermy. No idea what the PH fees and accommodation costs are (I’ll ask him when he gets back). The air ticket (first class) is about $5k (out of DFW).
Apparently, Cape Buffalo are called the Black Death. I have seen pictures of them running off lions and goring some. Someone once said that they perpetually look like you owe them money.
According to Peter Capstick, that was Robert Ruark.
Capstick was a professional hunter for 20 years, and wrote several books (Death in the Long Grass was the first) on his experiences, and other famous hunters such as Selous. They are all available in both Kindle and dead tree on Amazon, and I recommend them highly.