TOM NELSON'S JOURNAL
LIMBSAVERS AFRICA TOUR 2005 - NAMIBIA

DAY ONE
10:55 AM
This is wonderful! After a grueling two days of travel, we have arrived at our final destination, Eden Safaris. Camp Eden is situated in Namibia's Kalahari  desert not far from the Botswana border. We arrived in camp via a 2 hour plane ride from Windhoek. The small charter plane dropped us off in the middle of , well.. no where. Steve Sims, president of SIMS VIBRATION LABS and Alan Lotton, marketing director for SIMS/LIMBSAVER and I are settling into our accommodations. We each have our own walled tent complete with toilet and shower. Then there is a main, thatched covered area for dining and lounging. Really nice accommodations and camp is situated on a dry river bed with plenty of acacia and mopane trees for shade.

Our professional hunter and outfitter is Jamy Traut. Jamy is a life long resident of Namibia's bush country. He seems like a great guy and is a bowhunter. That is a bonus when hunting Africa. At least he knows what it takes to get an archer up close and personal to wary critters.
I am now putting together my bow and gear for the much anticipated upcoming hunt. It's great to be back in Africa again.

DAY 2
7:10 PM

typical blind set-up at a waterhole

What a day! I saw perhaps a hundred or more animals. Greater Kudu. gemsbok, impala, springbok, eland and warthog, came and watered throughout the day. With temperatures reaching perhaps 75 degrees today, animals were thirsty. I did not shoot anything today, albeit I had numerous opportunities. Kind of just getting acclimated to Africa again. No hurry as we have 8 full days of hunting.
Steve Sims shot a BIG warthog today and a very nice eland bull. The eland bull was massive and weighed well over a half ton. Most impressive when you are standing over one..

Steve Sims and his very good eland bull

  

Alan Lotton and a nice Gemsbok

Alan shot a large gemsbok. All their bowkills were captured on tape for future airing on LIMBSAVER"S AMERICAN ARCHER TV SHOW. Tomorrow I will put some carbon in the air.
 
DAY 3
8:20 AM
Just shot a very good gemsbok. Two bulls came in together and I took the larger one. Twenty yard shot and I am sure I saw the dust fly as he went down just out of sight. I will wait a bit however just to be safe.
Oh, almost forgot, had a bull giraffe water in front of me at 10 yards. My cameraman got some awesome footage.

4:30 PM
Forgot to write in that we retrieved my gemsbuck. He only went 100 yards. The Montec broadhead by G5 performed flawlessly and left us a copious blood trail. I am most pleased.

Here is my animal count so far today.
Gemsbok - 5
Greater Kudu - 43
Springbok - 23
Impala - 3
Warthog - 7
Giraffe - 1
Wildebeest - 18
I have seen more game here in just 3 days than my last two African hunts combined. I passed up 3 different Greater Kudu bulls today that were 50" or so. I want one better than my 52" bull taken in Namibia back in 2001.

8:15 PM
After a very good dinner and a couple sun-downers around the fire it's time to retire for an early wake-up. We have been getting up around 5:30 am and after a quick bite, off to our blinds until dark. Long days but LOTS of action.
Steve Sims shot a dandy wildebeest and duiker today. Jamy  our PH say's the wildebeest will score very high in SCI. Steve is very happy and he should be. Steve has made excellent shots on everything he has taken so far. I watched him practicing at camp and he can really pound the bulls-eye.

DAY 4
10:35 AM

Tom with a 40" gemsbok

Just shot another gemsbuck. This one was huge! I had about a 25 yard shot and believe I hit him good. I will radio Jamie and the tracker and then go have a look for him. Man, he was a good one.

11:50 AM
I cannot believe how tough these animals are. We tracked my gemsbuck perhaps 400 yards before we found him. Thanks to Kamotte our tracker we were able to recover the gemsbuck without too much trouble. He is a very good bull with horns just shy of 40" and very heavy mass. I am most pleased as I wanted a gemsbuck more than any other species. Now I have two.

5:30 PM
The truck will be here to pick us up shortly. I did not keep track of the animals I observed at the water hole today. Just too many. Passed on a big warthog a few moments ago. But I have shot a few in the past and most likely will not take one on this trip. Now I am concentrating on bagging a waterbuck. The number 2 animal on my list.

11:20 PM
Cannot sleep, yet too tired to read. Had another great dinner here this evening. I believe they said it was eland. Very tender.

Steve Sims shot a good Greater Kudu bull today and like his other animals made a perfect double lung shot. The bull only ran something like 70 yards before going down. Shot placement is everything over here. African game carries its vitals farther forward then our big game back home. Hunters must aim for the crease in the shoulder, placing the arrow tight and low for a good lung shot.

Shoot just a few inches back and your arrow will be in the paunch. Alan shot a good duiker and hit it perfect also.

Well.. need to try and get some sleep.

Day 5
9:30 AM

Tom with a 30" waterbuck

  

waterbuck and Kudu cows at the waterhole

Yes! Just arrowed a huge waterbuck bull. Hit him good and had excellent penetration. We had maybe 30 or more waterbuck come in this morning. We are sitting in a ground blind that Jamie just constructed a few days ago. Jamie mentioned that a lot of waterbuck sign was at this water hole so I elected to try it even though the blind is new. We also had a large herd of hartebeest come in with a few very good bulls. I decided not to shoot and wait for the waterbuck to show. Glad I waited.

10:15 AM
Found my waterbuck just a short ways form the blind. He is a good one with great mass and horns just at 30".  I feel most fortunate to have taken him. He is beautiful, yet majestic and will hang in a place of honor in my trophy room.
We also saw an amazing Greater Kudu bull this morning. He must be pushing 57- 58" in horn length. I will tell Alan as he wants a big Kudu bad.

5:45 PM
Almost too dark to write in this blind. I hear the truck in the distance coming to get us. What a perfect day in Namibia. Clear blue skies everyday and an unbelievable amount of animals. This hunting concession unlike a lot of others in Africa today is not fenced. The majority of South Africa hunts and some in other countries take place behind fences. Albeit, these are large tracks of land often covering tens of thousands or acres. They are still fenced. Here it is like Africa of old. Elephant, rhino, leopard, along with vast herds of zebra and wildebeest roam about as they did hundreds of years ago. This is truly wild Africa as it was meant to be.

DAY 6
AM

Alan, Steve and Tom with the Bushman

Bushman checking out Steve Sims arrrow

This morning we went to the Bushman village and spent time observing them and their harsh yet unique way of life. The men showed us how they started fire by rubbing two sticks together and how they snare small game. Steve got them to all grin when he demonstrated his archery prowess by acing a small chunk of elephant dung at 40 yards. They were really impressed. It was a lot of fun and we took a bunch of photos while we were there. I will always remember this time spent.

11:45 AM
I am sitting with Alan today as Scott my cameraman is filming Steve. Alan and I will film each other. We are not pros but can get it done. We spooked a big bunch of Kudu off this water pan when we drove in. Hope they come back as Alan wants a good bull.

12:35 PM

Alan and his 54" Kudu bull

Alan is radioing in that he just arrowed a very nice Kudu. My heart was pounding as I filmed him making the shot. I bet I was as excited as he was. The Kudu bull is hit hard so we are most confident that Alan will get his much desired bull.

2:45 PM
Alan and I are back in the blind after recovering Alan's great Kudu bull. With 53" horns and thick beams, it is an incredible trophy. I am very happy for Alan. He has been patient all week waiting for a big bull. Now he has it.

5:15 PM

Tom with a nice 24" impala ram

With Alan taping me this time, I shoot a nice impala ram at about 25 yards. He runs a short distance before piling up in a cloud of Kalahari dust. He looked like a good one. Now we will go have a look.

9:10 PM
Another great day in Africa. Alan shot a great Kudu and me a good impala ram. Steve Sims did an admirable thing today. Instead of bowhunting for himself, he shot a Kudu cow to give to the Bushman village. Quite an unselfish act considering the time involved recovering the cow and taking it to the village. Time he could have been hunting for himself, but that's the Steve Sims I have come to know. The Kudu will supply the village with some much needed protein.

Day 7
7:30 AM
I am sitting with Steve today. When we reached our intended blind to bowhunt we were surprised to find that elephants had destroyed it during the night. After a brief counsel we elected to go to another blind some miles away and post up there for the day.
We are now there and waiting for game to start moving as the day heats up.

1:00 PM
Steve and I were just having a chuckle. We were complaining that today was slow as we had only seen a couple dozen animals. We chuckled because on past African hunts, today would be a good day. But here at Eden Safaris, it is slow. This has got to be the best bowhunting venue in Africa. Both Steve and I agree.

3:40 PM
I just passed up a 50" plus Kudu bull. Tough to do, but both Steve and I agreed that there are better to be had. I hope so. Time is getting short.
Starting to miss my family back home. Hope all is well. Next time I came I will bring them along.

9:00 PM
Trying to fall asleep. I can hear jackals yipping not far from my tent. Last night late, I heard the clicking of eland as they walked near camp. Eland make a clicking noise as they walk and it is amazing how loud it sounds in the African bush.

Had a good day today with Steve. We had a lot of laughs. What a great guy! We did not shoot anything. First day I believe that Steve has not shot something.
Alan however took a nice eland bull late this afternoon. Again, it is amazing how big these eland are. I have passed on a couple of shots at eland bulls this week.

I did not want one when I came over here, but now they are starting to grow on me and perhaps next trip I will take one.

DAY 8
7:45 AM

Tom with an exceptional 55" Kudu bull

Two days left. Where does time go, it seems like we only just arrived. It is a bit cooler today. I could see my breath in the blind this morning. I am back in the blind where I took my waterbuck. There is lots of Kudu sign here also and with time running out I need to concentrate on one. Hope lady luck is with me as I need it.

I bet I have passed on at least 50 Kudu bulls this trip. All under 30 yards. Some pretty darn good ones too. But, if I do not get one I don't care as it's been a great hunt. Oh, here comes some gemsbuck.

9:05 AM
Three very nice Kudu bulls just left the water hole. I was at full draw on the largest but he turned just before I was ready to shoot and walked away. He was a dandy too. Perhaps 53-54". That was my chance at a big bull and it just was not to be.

11:20 AM
I just arrowed a BIG Kudu bull. He is the best one I have seen all week. Scott captured it all on tape. The bull came in and drank facing me. Then he spun to leave, just walking away. At 30 yards he turned broadside and stopped to look back. The shot looked good and the bull ran off as if hit hard. I pray the arrow placement is good.

12:10 PM
Kamotte our tracker found the bull in less than 5 minutes. He is amazing! He saves us hours of time. The bull is a top quality animal taping out at 55". He has really heavy beams and ivory tips. A trophy bull worth the wait. Honestly I thought I would not get a Kudu this trip as I was being picky. Well.. Lady Luck smiled on this bow bender today.

7:50PM
I am exhausted tonight. Ready to hit the sack. Great day as have been all the others. Alan killed a very good impala ram today and Steve took a grand gemsbuck. All good shots and short track jobs. Tomorrow is our last day. I am going to relax and just observe the wildlife. I have taken the animals I wanted and am most pleased. Maybe one more Taful lager and then to bed.

Day 9
NOON
I have seen over 30 Kudu today and perhaps 50 springbok. I passed up a very nice springbok ram at 10 yards. He may have been 15" or better. I kinda wish I had taken him now. I also passed on a huge warthog. Oh my, he was big. I did take a few still photos of him watering.

3:20PM
I just chased away 7 giraffes. Nothing comes in as long as they are around. They intimidate all the other wildlife. I forgot to mention the rhino tracks all around my blind. They look like dinosaur tracks. Pretty neat!

5:30 PM
Almost the end of shooting light. I just hung up my bow. I am done. Saw perhaps 75-100 animals’ water today. It still is incredible the amount of free ranging game here. I have had a wonderful time here in Namibia and hope to return in another year or two. Honestly, it is a good thing it is so far over here or I would be here 2 or 3 times a year.

10:10 PM
Just finished backing for tomorrows early departure to Windhoek. It is a sad part of the trip, leaving. I am anxious to see my family again and share my stories with them. It has been a great trip and I really enjoyed my time with Steve and Alan. I will miss the campfires, camaraderie and stories of the days hunt as recounted around it. I have left a part of me here and will need to return again and again.

Tom Nelson has been shooting a bow for over 30 years. Tom has bowhunted in 21 states, 7 Canadian Provinces and 5 countries. As host of the award winning TV series LimbSavers American Archer, Tom entertains and educates his audience each week with bowhunting and archery segments from around the globe.

Be sure to catch Tom each week on The Outdoor Channel Friday nights at 7:30 EST.