Ken Barrett's Fast Facts
For The TRCP's Life in the OpenReturn to the Green Hills of Africa - Zimbabwe Cape Buffalo and Kudu Location:
The 900,000 acre Save Conservancy (pronounced “Sarvee”) is located in the southeast corner of Zimbabwe, which in turn is located in southeastern Africa; bordered by Botswana, Republic of South Africa, Zambia and Mozambique. The Save was established in 1992 when twenty-four farmer/ranchers joined forces and took down all their fences and eliminated domestic livestock. It is the largest privately held hunting concession in Africa. To learn more, visit the Zimbabwe tourism authority website. Access:  Getting to the Save Conservancy is not easy. I flew from Montana, to Washington, DC. where I stayed overnight. I then flew from DC. to Dakar, Senegal and from there to Johannesburg, South Africa. From Johannesburg I flew to Harare, Zimbabwe then by bush plane to Hammond Ranch, located in the Save Conservancy. On my return trip I traveled straight through, it took forty-five hours.
Best time to go:Zimbabwe is in the southern hemisphere, so their seasons are the opposite of ours. I went in early May when daytime temperatures were in the 70’s and low 80’s. June and July are their coolest months. I’d recommend going in May, June or July. Don't forget to check the weather. License availability: There are no hunting licenses per se, instead you must discuss and arrange with your outfitter/professional hunter the species you hope to take ahead of time. Most concessions have fixed quotes, so make sure the animals you want to take are available. Recommended equipment:For Plains game, I recommend that you bring a minimum of a .30 caliber; I used a .375 because I also took a zebra, wildebeest and a kudu all tough critters that weight 600 pounds of better and because the area we hunted was inhabited by dangerous game. Jim Range used a .416 Rigby with 400 grain bullets on his Cape buffalo. Most African countries require a minimum of a .375 for dangerous game.Discuss your rifle and bullet choices with your outfitter/PH before you depart the US. Most standard safari operations have full staffs. I brought two shirts, two pair of shorts and one pair of pants. Dirty clothes are gathered each morning and returned cleaned and pressed each evening. Bring good binoculars, a knife, bug spray, sun screen, and good light walking shoes/boots.  Costs:
Go to www.African-hunter.com/ZambeziHunters/ and you can get all the information for the hunts they offer from 7-10 day plains game to 10 day buffalo to 21 day bull elephant hunts. Zambezi Hunters, who I hunted with, structure their fees, like most outfitters in Africa. My hunt was for plains game, which cost $400 per day for all inclusive: room, board, a PH (professional hunter), tracker and assistants, hunting car, trophy retrieval, skinning and preparation. Jim’s buffalo hunt cost $800 per day. In addition there are trophy fees. The Kudu fee was $800 and the buffalo was $2,000. If you hit an animal and lose it… that counts, so make sure you shoot straight! For most hunters a trip to Africa is a trip of a lifetime. A two week trip to the Save, with ten days of hunting, for five species of plains game, will cost you approximately $10,000 and for buffalo approximately $15,000 including some additional plains game and airfares from the US. Shipping and mounting your trophies is extra. Tips & Comments:My hunt in the Zimbabwe’s Save Conservancy was an extraordinary experience, surpassing any other hunting experience of my life. Zimbabwe is not for everyone, but if you’re a hunter, a real hunter, looking for a real wild hunting experience…GO! During my hunt, I was false charged by an elephant and encountered a number of Cape buffalo. I saw two leopards on the ground, was awoken by lions at night, encountered impala, zebra, wildebeest, giraffes, waterbuck, eland, kudu, baboons, klipspringers, duikers, and more. Sadly, a tracker on a nearby concession was killed by an elephant and a game ranger was speared by poachers when I was there. Zimbabwe and the Save are still wild places. If you like birds pick up a copy of Newman’s Birds of Southern Africa. There are over 400 species in the Save and some of them will astonish you. Visit the US Dept of State’s webpage on traveling to Zimbabwe for more information. Special Thanks:I’d like to thank the following for their help in making my safari to Zimbabwe such a success: Sako Firearms Beretta Clothes Swarovski Optiks All the people at Hammond Ranch, Zimbabwe Please follow these links for more from Ken Barrett on Roosevelt in Africa and this one-hour special, Return to the Green Hills of Africa. 
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