Alex Svenson
08-19-2008, 02:57 PM
Saturday August 16 – Sunday August 17
I had no idea what I was in for when I got on the flight to DC. My destination, South Africa with some friends for two full weeks of hunting. I met Keith (friend from the industry) and Joe Chiusano (Cusano Cigars) at Dulles airport in DC on Saturday afternoon. I had already been in the airport all day as I had to arrive three hours in advance of my flight in Chicago to check my rifle and fill out the necessary forms, but once in DC with my group, time started to fly as we shared each others enthusiasm for the coming days. This trip has been a long time coming. In fact, our group got the idea last Christmas and over the past 8 months we have been taking all the steps necessary to prepare for our trip.
The 15 hour flight from DC to Johannesburg was grueling as my enthusiasm for the coming hunts kept me from sleeping on the plane. We arrived in Johannesburg at 3pm on Sunday afternoon and even the long walk from the jet way to customs was welcome after all the time I spent in my seat on the plane. Navigating through the airport with a checked firearm was a bit difficult. There were endless numbers of forms and people to talk to, but finally we made our way out of the airport at 6pm. Our guide met us outside and escorted us to the vehicle and we began our two our journey to the Limpopo province. All of the hunting in South Africa is done on private land. Several of the ranches are in excess of 20,000 acres giving us plenty of room to hunt down our trophies.
We pulled in at the Karoa Ranch which is where we would call home the next 7 days. The accommodations were fantastic and to ensure our comfort, the outfitter reserved the entire ranch and all rooms for us despite there only being three of us on the trip. We pulled in right around supper time and when we got out of the car to stretch our legs we could smell the food cooking. We dropped our gear in our rooms and proceeded to the lodge where dinner was waiting. I was a bit concerned about the food for the week, but as soon as I saw our first meal I quickly realized I would be eating well. The cook, Rodrick, is a native Malawi and attended culinary school before managing a major restaurant and then moving to manage the kitchen at the ranch. As he came out to the dining room to present the dinner menu, it was clear that he takes a lot of pride in his work.
After dinner we enjoyed whisky and cigars and went to be early to prepare for our first day of hunting.
I had no idea what I was in for when I got on the flight to DC. My destination, South Africa with some friends for two full weeks of hunting. I met Keith (friend from the industry) and Joe Chiusano (Cusano Cigars) at Dulles airport in DC on Saturday afternoon. I had already been in the airport all day as I had to arrive three hours in advance of my flight in Chicago to check my rifle and fill out the necessary forms, but once in DC with my group, time started to fly as we shared each others enthusiasm for the coming days. This trip has been a long time coming. In fact, our group got the idea last Christmas and over the past 8 months we have been taking all the steps necessary to prepare for our trip.
The 15 hour flight from DC to Johannesburg was grueling as my enthusiasm for the coming hunts kept me from sleeping on the plane. We arrived in Johannesburg at 3pm on Sunday afternoon and even the long walk from the jet way to customs was welcome after all the time I spent in my seat on the plane. Navigating through the airport with a checked firearm was a bit difficult. There were endless numbers of forms and people to talk to, but finally we made our way out of the airport at 6pm. Our guide met us outside and escorted us to the vehicle and we began our two our journey to the Limpopo province. All of the hunting in South Africa is done on private land. Several of the ranches are in excess of 20,000 acres giving us plenty of room to hunt down our trophies.
We pulled in at the Karoa Ranch which is where we would call home the next 7 days. The accommodations were fantastic and to ensure our comfort, the outfitter reserved the entire ranch and all rooms for us despite there only being three of us on the trip. We pulled in right around supper time and when we got out of the car to stretch our legs we could smell the food cooking. We dropped our gear in our rooms and proceeded to the lodge where dinner was waiting. I was a bit concerned about the food for the week, but as soon as I saw our first meal I quickly realized I would be eating well. The cook, Rodrick, is a native Malawi and attended culinary school before managing a major restaurant and then moving to manage the kitchen at the ranch. As he came out to the dining room to present the dinner menu, it was clear that he takes a lot of pride in his work.
After dinner we enjoyed whisky and cigars and went to be early to prepare for our first day of hunting.