South Africa Adventure

Jet lag and exhaustion from my South Africa safari was only a minor inconvenience in the large scope of my adventure. What a marvelous vacation! The landscape and the beauty of South Africa was almost equal to the hospitality of the warm, friendly people who reside there. The breathtaking beauty of South Africa is somewhat reminiscent of that of northern Arizona. The mountain ranges and valleys were dotted with large, flowering aloe plants, nestled between the cactus. Watching the wildlife was a sight to behold. One afternoon while hunting, I watched hundreds of majestic animals like zebra, kudo, springbok and wildebeast roam in a valley as the wind blew a brisk breeze. Although the temperature was hovering around 30 degrees Fahrenheit in the late afternoon, the sights were so overwhelming beautiful I was oblivious to the cold. I met so many wonderful people in this rustic country area near Craddock, South Africa, from the lodge proprietors, Penny and Peter, to our professional hunter, Glen Elliott. I was humbled to be in the presence of these most warm and friendly people. I will write more in the days to come on my experiences in South Africa but today I would like to focus on my hunt. As a first time hunter, my challenges were great by first overcoming my apprehension of the first kill, to the complete accuracy of my shot to be a humane hunter. I have four trophies in all which include a Red Hartebeest, a Springbok, a Blesbok and a Mountain Reedbuck. Without going into detail on each animal, I would like to comment on the Mountain Reedbuck. It was a clean, one shot take down, through the heart at 250 yards. My husband, Tony and our professional hunter, Glen were so excited they slapped me on the back in unison and nearly knocked me off the jump seat of the Land Rover. I will end with the saying of one of the professional hunters named Sokkie which was, its my story and I can tell it anyway I want to...So that's my story and I'm sticking to it!