To blog, or not to blog ... that is the question

• Posted by SAHunter October 21, 2008 - 546 views
  I've contemplated this blogging thing for some time now. Did not know whether I should ... or should not. Hamlet's words "To be, or not to be. That is the question" came up so many times. Eventually I decided - why not? This is a hunting/outdoor site, and it offers me the opportunity too write about the things that really makes me tick. I can share some great little stories of the African bush with other like-minded people.
  
  

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  A friend, whom I went to school with, has been a professional hunter for almost 20 years. About 6 years ago he was hunting with a Spanish lady in Botswana. She wanted to hunt a female lion, and they were hunting hard for a couple of days, walking many miles through the African bush. She took some great trophies of African plains game, but that lion kept on evading them.
  
  On day six of the safari, the almost tripped over the lion. When they entered a small little clearing in the bush, about 60 yards wide, the yellow killing machine was on the other side. She got up immediately and stared at them. There was just no time to set up shooting sticks for the shot. Without taking his eyes off the lioness, he motioned to the senorita to put her rifle on his shoulder, and take the shot. The shot rang out, and the lioness went down, but got up almost immediately, now very pissed at the intruders.
  
  "Lanzamiento otra vez!" he urged. "Shoot again!" The lioness was now circling them, coming closer. He could not feel the senorita's rifle on his shoulder, and the shot did not come. He did not dare take his eyes off the lioness to look at what was stopping the senorita from shooting again. His rifle was in his shoulder. "Lanzamiento otra vez!!" It was getting seriously dangerous by now. The lioness growled, and her tail started to sweep from side to side. He could not wait any longer. He took the shot and put the lioness down.
  
  Afterwards he asked the senorita why she did not shoot again. She just said that she could not get her rifle bolt open to chamber another round. Later that evening, when he was overseeing the skinning of the trophy his tracker came to him. "Bwana, that lady ... she was very scared today. When she made the first shot, she took the rifle, held it up straight in front of her, and made herself very small behind your back. When you turned, she turned with you, hiding all the time."
  
  

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  As a professional hunter you need to always protect your client from being injured by a wild animal. Sometimes, like this little Spanish senorita, your client might freeze in the face of danger. She was not a seasoned hunter, and the experience with a 250 pound killing machine, mad as hell, scared the wits out of her. But her PH kept his cool, and took the shot when it was needed. To the professional hunter stories like this is great, provided you come out of it alive, and you are able to share that story with others