ZEBRA HUNTING ! ! !

Craig, Dax, Tobis, Simpson, Sigi and zebra

We are up very early, 4:35 a.m., sleepily dress and stagger out to the truck and leave for another hunting farm about 1 1/2 hours drive away.  It is at a higher elevation and has mountain zebra on it.  Sigi is friends with the owner as they went to school together and hunted from their teen years together on various farms where they could get permission.  It seems to be a universal truth that hunters take care of each other when it comes to hunting.  Dax and Tobis hunker down in the back of the Toyota pickup with a blanket each.  We drive through the darkness for quite some time.  We finally arrive at the turn off and the sun is just starting to poke its head over the horizon.  We bounce up the dirt road to the farm house and there are local fellows working already around the barns and equipment with jackets on.  We greet them in English.  They mostly nod to acknowledge us as I doubt they speak much English.  The dogs sound the alarm that someone new was in the yard and the farm owner comes out to say hello, his name is Reiner.  He is a tall very German looking man about 35 - 40 years old.  He sees Sigi and breaks into a big smile.  He introduces himself to us and gives us a hearty handshake.  We are invited into his home and seated at the family breakfast table.  We are asked if we want any eggs?  I say sure if they are on the menu.  Dax and I both have scrambled eggs, bacon, and toasted bread for breakfast.  I meet the Mrs. (Veepa is how her name is pronounced, she says it is very German) and the two boys ages 3 and 1.  They are a fine little family living in the country side of Namibia.  Reiner assigns a tracker to help us from his farm.  He can help us locate a zebra and stalk best as he already knows the lay of the land, his name is Simpson.  I don't know if that is his first name or last name I just shake his hand and am glad he is here to show us around.

The five of us drive to a hill top maybe a mile from the house and glass 360º for some time.  This farm is much different than Farm Garib with lots of hills and deep ravines and lots more trees.  Sigi and Simpson see some zebra like animals about 3 to 4 miles off in the distance easterly.  We load up in the truck and head that way.  We make our way past a fairly large reservoir full of water.  There are animals tracks all around -- cattle of course, but also kudu, oryx, hartebeest, springbok, zebra, baboon, and lots of others with some birds.  Water is a valuable factor of life here in the desert.  We park the truck and decide to make an investigatory stalk toward where the zebra like animals were seen.  There are blue wildebeest on the farm and in the distance and at the early hour our animals might be just that and not zebra.  We decided for greatest stealth we will walk down the dry drainage bottom below the reservoir.  The steep canyon walls are about 50 feet high all along the ravine cut by water when the rains overflow the dam.  We walk down the drainage and can't really see anything more than 30 yards up and 50 yards in front of us.  We really are depending on "luck" that the animals seen are indeed zebra and that we don't exit the canyon too soon or too late to try for a shot at one.  We walk along and are all trying to be as quiet as possible.  We really are not making much noise for 5 men walking in grass on rocks.  Our scent is kind of trapped in the ravine and this is to our advantage.  We walk for some time and my GPS says we are about 1 mile from the truck.  (Remember I am taking GPS shots when ever we move away from the truck as I don't want to be semi-lost again and have to shoot another acacia tree.)  Dax, Sigi, and Simpson work their way further down the wash another 3/10ths of a mile and gently climb up the north side of the canyon.  When they get up on top they hope to see a zebra group with one suitable for hunting.  As they crest the ravine wall top they see the zebra had moved over to the south side of the wash.  Joke is on us.  The three hunters move quickly and quietly to the bottom of the ravine and then scale the south side of the canyon.  It is only about 20 yards up but very steep.  As they emerge the ravine Dax and Sigi target a nice zebra.  Dax is told to wait for a broadside presentation and he does as he is told.  The zebra walks away from them but not fast.  It is maybe 150 yards and stops to look around.  Dax has his opportunity and squeezes off a great shot.  The Barnes 225 gr. 338" tipped triple shock bullet enters just behind the front leg and exits the other side more or less on a straight line.  Dax quickly reloads and readies to take another shot as the zebra has not fallen or faltered at his first shot.  Sigi grabs his arm and tells him to WAIT.  Then the zebra staggers back toward the hunters and falls over mortally wounded.  Sigi reminds us the hide is the major trophy of the zebra and less holes is better.

I hear the shot and jog to where the hunters are gathering.  It is a grand zebra.  The hide is not chewed up nor gouged yet it is a big animal and very healthy.  We set up the zebra for photos and we are all very glad to have found and harvested such a good specimen.

location 22º39.951' S 17º27.407' E

We are 1.3 miles from the truck according to my GPS.  Sigi makes his way back to the truck.  Tobis and Simpson start the skinning and gutting process.  They remove the skin entirely before they prepare the meat for harvest.  They are so careful to not knick the hide or make any unnecessary holes in it.  It comes off beautifully.  Then they gut the animal and quarter it.  Sigi has brought the truck to within 150 yards on the other side of the ravine.  We each take a quarter or some part and start toward the truck with the meat.  Dax is impressive with his "Badlands" pack and the ability it has to pack meat.  Sigi comments as much.

Badlands pack works on zebra quarter as well as elk or deer

We get all the meat loaded and head back to the farm house.  Reiner and his family get all the meat as part of the arrangement.  Sigi talks him into letting us keep a filet from the tenderloins.  Sigi says we will eat it this afternoon and it is great.  I am surprised as I thought it had to age some for best flavor.  Sigi says eland and zebra are great right after they are downed.  Other animals do indeed have to age some to peak flavor.

We travel back to Farm Garib and stop for fuel at Dordibus, the small town closest to Farm Garib. Funny to me the convenience store is closed from 12:30 p.m. to 3 p.m. for lunch.  In the USA it would be the best time of the day for sales.  Gas is available even though the store is closed.  As we leave the fuel stop the grade school has just let out for the day.  Several of the students are in the road and stop us for a ride to their little cluster of homes.  It is only a couple of kilometers but they want a ride.  Sigi says OK, hop in.  They climb the racks on the bed of the truck and are in the back of the truck lickety split.  Dax is riding in the back on the shooting benches and offers the kids a Swedish fish candy from his pocket.  They have never seen one before and they don't know what to do with it.  After all it is a fish and they live in the desert so fish is talked about but not seen hardly at all.  Tobis tells them it is candy in their native language and immediately the fish disappear.  They are all smiles.  They have hit the jackpot today -- a ride home and candy to boot.

We drive on to Farm Garib and I see a really big warthog on the side of the road.  He is big as a cow it seems.  We can't shoot from the road nor is the land anyone who Sigi knows so we just watch as the huge animal works his way under the fence.  There are baboons all along the road looking for food and human trash.  They seem to have no fear of us in the truck.

We unload our gear and the zebra hide.  Sigi makes an acacia wood fire in the fire pit and gets some hot coals as well as a bit of flame going for our zebra filet.  Sigi does not salt or pepper the meat and once the cooking disk is hot enough he adds some vegetable oil and starts to cook the filet.  We watch closely with hunger and education in mind as both Dax and I are cooks to some degree.  We need to learn this new technique.  We wait with a bit of apprehension about the freshly taken zebra but after the first bite it is easy to understand why Sigi was so excited to get a filet.  The meat is extra delicious.  Sigi likes it a bit rare for my taste but he cooks Dax and I some to a medium well tenderness.  It is one of those meals I will never forget.  I am actually starving and the meat is new and different.  It is delicious -- just take my word for it. The filet weighed about 5-6 pounds and there was no fat or silver-skin on it.  Sigi, Dax, and I ate the entire piece of meat.  It was so good we all just kept going back for one more piece until it was all gone.  We had some bread and swiss cheese but mostly all we ate was meat!  I guess you could say I am no where near a vegetarian.  Actually I am hoping for a repeat of this again someday.

Zebra filet on a re-purposed farming disk