It has been some time since my blog and I had a chat. The last week or two has been quite busy with all sorts of things.
I have enjoyed some of the contributions some of the members has made. Some are comical. Some are very interesting, and some are heart warming. I have made some good friends here. Last night I had one of my awake sessions in the middle of the night. And I wondered how it would be if the world was smaller just so that I can take a quick drive to actually meet some of my new friends face-to-face. That would have been great.
Maybe someday I will get the opportunity to meet some of them, and if I get lucky, maybe even hunt with some of them. Who knows?
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During the winter months in South Africa I was talking to a game farmer. Something was causing his kudu to die, and he was awaiting reports from the vet. At that point he had already lost 8 bulls, and even more cows.
I suggested to him that we get together some local hunters, and hunt the kudu at a reduced price for meat. He flatly refused, saying that he would never let his kudu be hunted under his asking price. At the end of the winter he had lost 96 kudu. At the price I suggested to him, he lost 160,000ZAR by just being stubborn.
It is unfortunate that game farmers (not all, but at least a lot of them) has become so greedy that they do not even want to listen to good advice. Especially the South African bushveld is a fairly arrid region, with fairly low rainfall. Every year during the summer months (rainy season), when we have had fair rainfall, prices on animals increase by 10-25% because these farmers believe that they have enough grazing for the animals. And during the majority of years the winter grazing gets bad, and animals die of hunger.
Then the same game farmers get all upset if the government does not want to help them financially, and award them drought relief. But greed prevented them from taking sound business decisions. If they keep their animals to acceptable numbers, they will not have a problem. But due to high prices local hunters are hunting less and less every year, causing excess animals on farms every year. Trophy hunters are not nearly enough to keep numbers in check, plus they do not shoot excess female animals.
It is my submission that greed is the single biggest cause of the breakdown in the hunting industry in South Africa. If this trend continues there will be very little to hunt in the forseeable future. Over the years I have seen many new game farms going up, and I have seen many returning to traditional farming like cattle etc. In 1995 there were just over 9,000 registered game farms in South Africa. Today, 13 years later, this number has not changed.
The recent crash on the stock markets happened for many reasons, but one of the main reasons were the over-valuation of stocks. As with stocks game has become totally over-priced, and a correction is without a doubt neccessary. I have been warning about this for a number of years now, and the signs tell me that the time it is going to happen is getting closer and closer.
Greed can never survive common sense
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The current world economy is biting all of us. And hunting, being a "luxury", is getting the bad end of the stick. Outfitters are already feeling the tightening of spending amongst clients. And the clients are not booking as many hunts they used to, and if they do, the wish lists has become a lot shorter.
The question amongst all outfitters in especially South Africa is :- what can we do to lure clients to hunt with us? The answer in short is :- not much. I have changed my price lists to South African Rand (ZAR - our currency) in order to give clients the benefit of our weaker currency. It has been many years since foreigners (to South Africa) were able to hunt at the prices on offer now. But still clients are reluctant to book that South African hunt.
Just the other day I talked to one of the biggest outfitters in South Africa, and I was told that they were scaling down big time in order to try and ride out the economic crisis. Professional hunters who were in full-time employment have all been placed on freelance contracts. Some of their hunting land and game have been sold off to cover costs.
When I hear things like this I cannot help but wonder if the hunting industry in South Africa is going to suffer damage which would be very hard to repair. The wildlife industry as a whole is going through a very tough time at the moment, and even those doing photographic safaris to wildlife conservation areas are struggling to make ends meet. During the past 30 years the wildlife industry in South Africa has gone from strength to strength. Is this now coming to an end? And all due to a bad economy?
I certainly do not hope so. But it can only be maintained by continued hunting and photographic safaris.
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It has come to my attention that hate mail with regards to this site comes almost exclusively from South African women. It is truly a sad day for me to know that women from Africa still don't understand the value and importance of hunting as a tool in the bigger picture of conservation.
Having said all this, I also want to pay tribute to the South African women, and all the other women for that matter, on this site. It warms my heart to see you here, and know that you do not only understand the sport of hunting and its importance, but also actively participate in hunting. It also warms my heart to see South African mothers with their kids in the hunting fields. It has often been said that you should take a kid hunting, fishing or camping just to teach them about the great outdoors.
The mothers on this site is living that call. I salute you.
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Some days things just don't want to go right. I just had one of those days. But somehow I'm sure the sun will shine again tomorrow.
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I have been thinking a lot with regards to the disabled hunter I wish to help to come and hunt in South Africa. It turns out that his medical situation is a little more serious than what I initially thought. Not so that he cannot hunt in SA, but enough to cause him to have a very limited income. Sometimes I cannot help but wonder why some people are dealt with such a bad hand in life.
I know that there are a lot of people in this world who has to deal with the hardship of life on a daily basis. And although I would love to help lift the burdens they face in every one of those lives, I know that I cannot. But I might be able to be of assistance to give a little bit of meaning to one life.
One of my (wonderful) buddies on Hunters Networks has offered me her help in order to make this happen. I cannot express my gratitude to you enough, 'Sunshine'. It is when you really need some help, God always manages to send you an angel to lend a helping hand. I know that we as humans can only do so much, and I'm hoping that God will intervene in all our efforts to make this a reality.
I think of how I sometimes complain about the little things that go wrong, and then something like this crosses my path just to get me to be humbled by all my blessings. And I feel ashamed for being dissatisfied when I have so much to be thankful for.
I want this soooo much to happen, and although I'm bursting with ideas of how to make it happen, I also know that there is no way that I can do this alone. I pray that God will assist me. He has sent me one angel. I hope that more angels will join this worthy cause.
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It s so easy to just use the word "friend". How often do we say : "The other day a friend of mine ....", whilst it is someone we know, but we are not really friends. We talk to each other, and we might stop to exchange a few pleasantries in the street, but we're not really friends.
Some wise person once said:- "In order to have friends, you need to be a friend first." Being a friend is not easy. It means to not want anything in return. It is all about giving, and about not taking. Friends are those people who knows exactly who we are, but love us nevertheless. To be a friend you need to share the joys of the other, but also be there when he/she is hurting. It means to feel their pain, and be able to soothe it with a kind word, or a hug, or a kiss. To let him/her know you are there ... at all times ... you are there for them because you are a friend.
Another wise word from another wise person:- "You cannot splash good around without a few drops falling on yourself." This merely means that if you are willing to give true friendship, it will be returned ... most of the time. But expecting friendship in return is not what you should do. One of the biggest gifts of life is precisely the gift of giving. There is nothing more rewarding than giving without any expectations. And when giving comes from deep within your heart, you do not even need a 'thank you'. Because the appreciation in the receiver's eyes will be all the 'thank you' that you will ever need.
While I'm on the quotes, here's another one for you :- I expect to be in this world but once, any good that I therefore can do, any love, kindness or goodwill that I can show to another, let me do it now, let me not neglect or postpone it, for I will not come along this road again.
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After 40 years of hunting I can truly say that no two hunts are the same. Everyone brings its own highs ... or lows.
A day or two ago a sweet lady friend of mine (from HN) took a whitetail/mule deer doe. (how would I know the difference?) The doe was still alive, and a second shot was needed. The doe picked up her head and looked at the huntress. The sweet bambi eyes, helplessly looking at the huntress, made a huge impact on her. So much so that she now does not want to ever hunt again. This would be very unfortunate if she doesn't.
From time to time things like this happens to us hunters. You get the shakes because of the excitement (it still happens to me after 40 years of hunting), and the shot is not placed spot on, or in the excitement we take a shot we should not, with the same result. I vividly remember the first time this happened to me. I will never forget the expression in the eyes of that impala. I skipped hunting the next year. Then I realized that it was all due to human (my) error, and that I should just take the lesson from the experience, and become a better hunter.
I've had similar experiences over the years, and every time I could actually pinpoint why the shot was not a good one. After that first experience I just became more aware of exactly what I was doing when shooting at an animal. This awareness just helps to make a better hunter out of you.
Life is full of highs and lows. Most of us has had a bad experience with regards to loving someone at some point in our lives. Did that stop us from loving again? Certainly not. We just were more careful the next time.
Keep hunting lovey
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From the day I joined this site I felt at home. It almost felt as if Arjun has created a cyber home just for me. I was amongst "family". I've made some great friends, and I'm sure that in time to come I will hunt with a lot of them, either here on my home turf, or with them wherever they are.
Success has already knocked at my door from this site, and a hunt has been booked. A member decided to take advantage of the exchange rates. Who he is, I will keep to myself for now. He got a great deal, and I'm happy because I'll have another 5 days of hunting in 2009.
I'm as excited about this hunt as I've been on my very first hunt, because it came from Hunters Networks. Although he will get the same (excellent) service all of my clients get, there might be a little extra for him as the first "brother" from HN to book a hunt with me.
You know who you are - I promise you a seriously memorable hunt bro!
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Somehow I've always had the need to be able to make a positive difference in other people's lives. And although I do not get the opportunity to do so often enough, such opportunities present themselves from time to time.
When the opportunity arose to help a fellow disabled hunter realize his dream of hunting in Africa, I just had to react without hesitation. Although nothing has been set, and I suppose a lot has to be worked out before this dream can truly become a reality, there is a strong possibility. Should I get the opportunity to do this hunt, I will be humbled by the honor to do so. I can only go on my knees and thank God to have presented me with this opportunity, and I truly believe that He will make it happen.
I pray that this will come true, and that someone who truly deserves the opportunity to hunt in South Africa, be able to do so.
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