Day 7 of the Namibia 2019 hunt

Monday April 16, 2019

Up at 6:00 a.m. -- breakfast of scrambled eggs, bacon, delicious breads, and jelly.  We are out hunting at 7:15 a.m.  We stalk up on 2 or 3 bunches of oryx but no shot.

Dax and Sigi see an tough old warthog.  They are off on the chase for awhile on foot keeping low in the brush.  Dax makes a good shot on the old bugger at 200+ yards.  A crusty old warthog with no tail left, a broken tusk, no teeth in his lower jaw, one ear off, and tons of scars on his face.  Dax may have done him a favor as he would have eventually starved to death due to the not teeth problem. Sigi really congratulates him on the trophy.  We take some photos and William brings the truck around.  We load it up and head back for lunch.

Capt. Crusty the un-lucky warthog

Lunch is some type of fried in bacon grease composite lunch meat resembling ham that is carved thick, maybe 3/4th of an inch, and served with fried potatoes, and is served with a fried egg on top of the meat.  There is a tossed green salad.  To me more or less the least good meal of the hunt.  Dax later told me in Santa Clara he liked it.  The other hunters chowed it down.  Dax asked me if I were afraid to eat the bacon here.  I said no, I didn’t feel like it.  I also gave some of my fake ham to Dax, above the table.  I gave 2 bites of the fake ham to the dog under the table to finish it off.  Dessert is a rich dark chocolate pudding.  It was chocolately good and I could relate to it via my spoon.

After lunch I go soak my foot and rest for an hour.  Later over on the main house patio for cokes Sigi asks what I am out to hunt for now?  I say I would like to get an “old ugly hartebeest“.  He laughs and says while snorting “They are all ugly”.  We go out and find the perfect specimen of a "old ugly hartebeest."  He is a sneaky rascal.  As I stalk to within 280 yards he winds us.  He then stays really close to a cow and calf so I can’t get a clear shot.  The animals gradually wonder over west into some shoulder high brush and disappear.  We journey on to another venue.

We drive up the southeast side of the valley of death and saw oryx, kudu, and mountain zebra.  Hares and springbok are all over the place.  It was a cool drive and I took several photos.  At sunset we head back for dinner.

Before dinner we have to settle up accounts with Sigi.  I pay for Dax and my hunting fees and food.  I am glad Dax could come with me.  I wish Rusty, my other son, would have come.

Dinner for all the hunters and guides is bar-b-que oryx, black wildebeest, and lamb all good meat!  I think Ben, the P.H., grilled it over charcoal.  We had some excellent bread that was cooked in a dutch oven.  Ben, the P.H., saw us all sitting together at the table ready to eat and asked me to say grace.  I did  and I wonder what they thought of this gringo from Utah praying at their table.  Good fun talking about all the adventures we had together.  Hunting together makes for good friendships.

No dessert and time to soak my foot again.  Shower and off to bed.  Poor night sleeping as I had lots of anxiety and major foot pain.