# Luke's Kudu Re-Do-  and Part 2- Tradbow in the Treetops



## jerry russell (Jul 9, 2013)

This story really gets its starts in June, 2007 in the Tsumeb region of Northern Namibia. While it is a story of Africa it is much more about a young man, traditional archery and a long awaited chance at redemption. It is also a story of the satisfaction that comes from hard work and patience while bow hunting. 
My son Luke had accompanied me on a 2007 bow hunt to Namibia. It was a great hunt and at nine years old he managed to take a few nice animals with his bow including a red hartebeest, kudu cow and warthog. Towards the end of the hunt the PH had asked if we would consider selling my sons youth compound bow as it was difficult for him to get archery gear for his young son. I said that would be fine and we decided to let my son shoot another small animal with the funds. On the last hour of the last day as we were packing up to head back to camp, a monster Kudu bull strolled into the water hole at 15 yards. My son asked if I was going to take the bull and I told him that it was just out of my hunt budget having been shooting for ten days. I got an instant lump in my throat when he turned to me and said “dad, you can have my money from my bow”. That little guy always seemed to do things like that.  Well, I decided that kudu bull was going home with us but it would be Luke that would get the chance. His eyes lit up when I told him to get ready for the shot.  He took his time and made what I consider to be a perfect shot but I knew something had gone wrong as the penetration was not great.  The bull ran out to 50 yards and gave every indication that he was going to go down. He then just walked away.  The trackers showed up quickly and the sign indicated that the bull would be close by. Over one mile later, we lost the blood trail and he was crushed.
Even at nine years old that incident impacted my son very hard.  At a very early age he seemed to understand the importance and value of every animal we pursue. He talked about that bull for years and vowed that he would return to Africa one day for a second chance. In the winter of 2012 we decided to return to Namibia and set a date for late June of 2013. The excitement began to build from the moment we committed to go and we would be joined on the trip by my friend John Abbott. We would be hunting in the North of the country with Toby Englebrecht.  I really enjoy this place because of the diversity of terrain and the great people of Namibia. This location allows for a variety of hunt styles from stalking to blinds to tree stands. It is a converted cattle ranch from 30-40 years ago and is family based and very comfortable. This would be my third trip to hunt here and I am a man that rarely returns to the same hunting location.   



















The grounds are lush but just feet outside the fence the Kalahari sun bakes the dry bush veldt landscape. It is difficult to believe that anything could survive in the environment but there are nearly 20 species of big game roaming this game rich land. Since I was here last, they have constructed a waterhole just 60 yards from the dining room table and this unhunted site attracts a wide variety of game both day and night for viewing. The vast plain next to camp always has many species of antelope in view.




  The discussions prior to the trip always came back around to a second chance at a big kudu bull. Luke, now fifteen years old, had moved to traditional archery gear a year before and had practiced a great deal in preparation for the hunt. His stated goal was to wait for absolutely perfect shots on all animals and to bring a big kudu bull back to Georgia.
He spent the first three days of his hunt primarily stalking but the extreme dry conditions and total lack of cover made getting close to the wary plains game species nearly impossible. He did have a few close encounters and passed on marginal shot opportunities at a few animals including impala, gemsbok, zebra, duiker and more.  Around day four he moved to a pit blind named Fig Tree and managed to take a beautiful and very wide impala in the morning.













 Later that afternoon he took an old warthog.  He had also passed on several kudu bulls in the 46”-48” range. He had also seen some shooter bulls that did not provide him with quality shot angles.













I had taken an animal earlier on day five and decided to spend the afternoon with Luke in “gemsbok” blind.  We saw a few animals early on but in the last bit of daylight a very good bull kudu strolled into the water at fifteen yards. I reached up to turn the camera on and looked back to see if Luke was ready for the shot. I was surprised to see him still sitting with his Black Widow recurve still hanging up. This was a solid 50” bull but he told me that he had waited six long years for this second chance and he wanted a bull that was as big as the one that had escaped him in “07”.  I gave him a fatherly “bird in the hand” speech but he wanted to do it the way he had envisioned it for the past six years. I couldn’t help but see a little of me in his stubbornness. I also found a way to understand him.
This hunt always turns into a great adventure. There are so many things that we do outside of bow hunting big game.  We also do night drives and chase down a number of critters on foot such as porcupine, genet cat, bush babies, aardvark and spring hare which looks like a cross between a kangaroo and a jack rabbit. An afternoon stalk also provides for a stunning variety and numbers of fowl for a young man to chase with a bow. I just happened to have a video camera running when Luke made a 50 plus yard shot on a fowl.  Luke also fished in a stock tank and caught some African catfish. 










We also took some time to get to know some of the local orphaned wildlife that had been raised by the family and frequented the camp. “Princess” was a real looker of a warthog that would try and sneak into the yard several times per day to eat the lush grass. The Jack Russell tracking dogs took great pleasure in chasing her and her young from the lawn several times daily.  









Over the next few days he hunted from both blinds and tree stands and would have some awesome encounters with many bulls that were just not what he was looking for or giant bulls that never seemed to present perfect shot angles.









 During this time he did manage to take a great cow red hartebeest and a good springbok ram. 













Around day seven I watched as Luke and his PH returned to camp at a high rate of speed. It was clear that something big had happened. As we all gathered around, Luke recounted the excitement of the day. He had as many as 7 big kudu bulls around him along with a host of cows and other species. He had decided to take a great bull but it simply would not give him the perfect shot angle. He watched in frustration as the bull drank head on and just simply turned to walk away. He thought the game was over but a cow kudu caught the attention of the big bull and she pulled him back. When the big bull was at 12 yards, Luke made the perfect shot. 
The concern was arrow penetration. This had happened on his 2007 bull and Luke was seriously concerned. I did my best to assure him that a Kudu in not a wide animal and even marginal penetration would put him down. Secretly however, I was praying with all my might that this would turn out right for someone that had worked so hard to break the so called “kudu voodoo”. We gave the bull plenty of time and the whole gang piled into the trucks. Nobody wanted to miss out on the end of this story and we followed a line of bushman trackers, other trackers with dogs and two PH’s into the bush. His arrow was quickly found and I was sure from the looks of it along with the viewing of the shot on video that his bulls would be close. Still, I continued to pray. 
The blood sign was very easy to follow and at around two hundred yards we came upon the great bull. The excitement for everyone was unreal but I was nearly overwhelmed with relief.  His shot had indeed been perfect. The big bull weighed in at between 700 and 800 pounds and would require that a road be hacked in to him for recovery. As Luke and I sat alone in the brush, he spoke little of the size of the horns. He was clearly proud that he had honored the great bull with a perfect shot and quick death. He was also relieved that after six long years, the Kudu voodoo had been lifted for good and redemption had finally come.   













I am hopeful that the telling of these stories will inspire anyone that has a trip that they have dreamed of to do your best to make it come true.  Thanks for taking the time to go along on Luke’s adventure. It is a trip that we will never forget.  

Jerry Russell

Luke’s equipment on this hunt included:
Bow: Black Widow MA series recurve- 56#@28”
Grizzly Stick Arrows
Steel Force “Hellfire” 150 gr. Broadheads

Look for the second part of our story entitled “Tradbow in the Treetops- Africa”. All of these hunts were captured on video and will be produced as soon as possible.


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## Al33 (Jul 9, 2013)

Just AWESOME Jerry!!! Congrat's to Luke for me please!


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## Dennis (Jul 9, 2013)

Wow that is AWESOME


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## Cavalry Scout (Jul 9, 2013)

Wow!


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## Nicodemus (Jul 9, 2013)

Those are great accomplishments. Congratulations to both of you!


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## sawtooth (Jul 9, 2013)

that is unreal. what an awesome trip.


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## whossbows (Jul 9, 2013)

very nice


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## longbowdave1 (Jul 9, 2013)

I'm very happy for ya both. Luke that is unreal! Jerry you must be real proud of him.

 I'd hate to see the taxidermy bill from this trip. LOL


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## jerry russell (Jul 9, 2013)

longbowdave1 said:


> I'm very happy for ya both. Luke that is unreal! Jerry you must be real proud of him.
> 
> I'd hate to see the taxidermy bill from this trip. LOL



Now you know why I don't mount anything. I would not be able to afford to hunt, lol.


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## Blueridge (Jul 9, 2013)

Great job guys! Congrats Luke , those are some fine animals and obvious great shooting.


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## John Abbott (Jul 9, 2013)

I got to spend several weeks with Jerry and Luck and all I can say is WOW what a time, Luke is and exceptional young man that I would be glad to share a camp with any time. 
I heard someone say that 100 years from now no one will know what kind of house you lived in or car you drove but they will know what kind of kids you raised.
Luke and Jerry are just good people.


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## jerry russell (Jul 9, 2013)

John Abbott said:


> I got to spend several weeks with Jerry and Luck and all I can say is WOW what a time, Luke is and exceptional young man that I would be glad to share a camp with any time.
> I heard someone say that 100 years from now no one will know what kind of house you lived in or car you drove but they will know what kind of kids you raised.
> Luke and Jerry are just good people.



Thank you for the kind words John. I REALLY enjoyed hunting with you. That first morning we sat together in that blind was awesome. I remember looking back at you to see your face when that first wave of kudu' impala, springbok, blesbok and came rolling towards us. Your eyes were as big as saucers! It was awesome watching you make that great shot on that Impala.
Thanks for sharing a camp with me and Luke. We will never forget our time spent with you.  Now, you have a few stories to tell yourself...


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## longbowdave1 (Jul 9, 2013)

jerry russell said:


> Now you know why I don't mount anything. I would not be able to afford to hunt, lol.



 Jerry that picture with Luke, yourself, and the Kudu is awsome. A Laser engraving would be cool.

http://laserdesignsengraving.com/laser-engraved-photos/


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## Barry Duggan (Jul 9, 2013)

Very nice. Man that's one big ole spike.


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## Munkywrench (Jul 9, 2013)

Awesome story Jerry. Sounds like you're raising one heck of a young man


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## Clipper (Jul 9, 2013)

What a wonderful adventure for a father and son to experience together.  Your son will look back on this as one of the great experiences of his life and it will be all the better because he was with his dad.  Congratulations to both of you.  A son like Luke is a blessing and you sound appropriately grateful.


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## gurn (Jul 9, 2013)

Luke is a good young man. Rifle, Reloading, and bow he can do it all. Good job dad!


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## jerry russell (Jul 10, 2013)

Thanks for the kind words about Luke. He is a good young man for sure and I count my blessings every single day.

This place is a dream come true for anyone but for a young man it is simply heaven on earth. Luke was invited to come back for a summer stay (their winter) and can't stop talking about it. Can you imagine what that would be like. Sounds like the makings of a great book.


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## fredw (Jul 10, 2013)

What special times to spend with your son.

Great pics.....great story.  Thanks for sharing.


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## dm/wolfskin (Jul 10, 2013)

GREAT HUNT. Congrats. to both of you. Ya'll did good. mikE


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## charlie 2 arrow (Jul 10, 2013)

Wow!


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## T.P. (Jul 10, 2013)

Very cool!


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## hogdgz (Jul 10, 2013)

I am speechless. Wow!!!


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## Larry Young Jr (Jul 10, 2013)

Awesome Job. Good shooting Luke.


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## baldfish (Jul 10, 2013)

That sure was a pretty kudo and a great story
I like the warthawg better


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## GAstumpshooter (Jul 10, 2013)

Awesome


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## jerry russell (Jul 10, 2013)

baldfish said:


> That sure was a pretty kudo and a great story
> I like the warthawg better



Then you are going to love the warthog video.


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## Blueridge (Jul 10, 2013)

How long were those horns on the Kudu and to take a springbok with a tradbow is awesome in itself, those things are wired real tight.


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## jerry russell (Jul 10, 2013)

I did not measure Luke's bull but I guesstimated it at 53-54.  You are darn tootin on those springbok being wired tight. Regardless of the speed of your bow, you must wait till the exact right moment to shoot or they will embarrass you. It is also compounded by the fact that they almost never stop walking.


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## oops1 (Jul 10, 2013)

Very nice read.. Congratulations to you both!


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## robert carter (Jul 10, 2013)

Outstanding stuff guys. Keep it coming!!!RC


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## SELFBOW (Jul 10, 2013)

This is alot to take in and its not over yet..did you shoot any footage like we talked about? That boy is ruined but he really has been since he was real little.I know how proud you are Jerry I feel it to. Congrats to Luke!


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## The Original Rooster (Jul 10, 2013)

Great pics! Thanks for sharing!


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## hogdgz (Jul 10, 2013)

I cant stop looking at the pics, i keep coming back to this. Man how I wish I could do something like this, only if I could come up with the money. Cant wait to see some videos.


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## jerry russell (Jul 11, 2013)

buckbacks said:


> This is alot to take in and its not over yet..did you shoot any footage like we talked about? That boy is ruined but he really has been since he was real little.I know how proud you are Jerry I feel it to. Congrats to Luke!



Martin, 
I do have great pride in that boy but most of it is centered around the fact that he "gets it" when it comes to hunting. His maturity level when it comes to understanding the importance of each animal and just how lucky he is to get to pursue them is far, far beyond me at that age. I guess that's what happens when you are raised around a bunch of trad guys. 

We ran 3 HD cameras during the entire trip and the amount of video that we recorded is staggering. I do not even know where to start with all this editing.


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## dm/wolfskin (Jul 11, 2013)

No string tracker on ya'll bows. I guess you wouldn't want to hurt the real trackers feelings plus the experience of watching them work. mikE


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## jerry russell (Jul 11, 2013)

dm/wolfskin said:


> No string tracker on ya'll bows. I guess you wouldn't want to hurt the real trackers feelings plus the experience of watching them work. mikE



Really no need there for a string tracker. Even if there was you would need  a LOT of spools.

If you do your part and make the right shot those trackers will find your animal 100% of the time. To say they are amazing is the understatement of the year. I have seen them track an animal for two days and over several miles.


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## jerry russell (Jul 11, 2013)

Tradbow in the Treetops- Africa

The excitement of a planned “away hunt” is like a drug to me. I get a ton of excitement from the planning and waiting and that’s why I try to set up a hunt as far in advance as possible. I started thinking about another African bowhunt years before it came along. It would be a retirement gift for myself from the fire department after 31 years and a hunt to share time with my 15 year old son Luke. Two things needed to happen- first, I needed to retire and second I needed my son to get a little older so that he would both be able to bowhunt on the trip and fully appreciate the importance of the event. The four years flew by.
We decided the Namibia was where we wanted to go. It is a very safe location for travel and we had hunted there before. The location had proved to be extremely bowhunter friendly in the past and offered something that was important to me, options for hunting away from water holes. This would be my third trip there.
I have nothing against hunting at a waterhole. As a matter of fact, I had done it many times in my previous trips and found it to be a very exciting way to see staggering numbers of game. It is also great for the hunter that is inexperienced in learning to judge the large variety of game to learn so much more. Even determining the sex of many species is a difficult task for many antelope species for a first timer.  It also makes getting close to many of the species even possible. I had learned in previous adventures that stalking plains game species in the dry season is more difficult than you can imagine. I would compare it to stalking a turkey, with zero cover, on dry oak leaves. Yep, that is about how difficult it is.










For this trip, I wanted more. I HATE sitting in a blind. I know it is very productive but I always feel like I am looking at the world through a pipe. I had some past experiences hunting from tree stands in Africa and loved it. No doubt that it created some problems but I was ok with less success for the chance at taking all of my animals with a tradbow from the treetops. 
The scent issue was a big one. Pit blinds help a great deal in containing scent and being in the open is a sure way to be detected by any animal anywhere near down wind.  Next was the issue of the uncanny ability of African game to spot predators. This issue would turn out to be huge when you combine it with the fact that I would be self-filming the hunt. Adding camera gear to any hunt compounds the difficulty.  I would rate African game as much more alert than North American game and this is greatly compounded by the fact that there are often 20-30 sets of eyes looking for danger.  I knew it would be difficult but it would be stalking and tree stand hunting or nothing at all. 
Our hunt would be taking place in the Tsumeb region of Northern Namibia. June and July are mid-winter there and there would be little cover and extreme dry conditions. My son and I vowed to stalk early on and after eating enough humble pie we would move to the trees and some blind hunting for him. The best way to tell this story is from excerpts from my journal.
Journal Entry- Namibia 25 June, 2013:
The flight over is a grueling one and as we approached the African coast I had to wonder if this place would impact me the same way it has in the past.  The answer came quickly when the great dunes of Namibia’s Skeleton Coast appeared below us.  I actually felt my pulse quicken and the excitement began to build to a fever pitch. I felt like was coming home after being gone for six years. This is going to be awesome.
Hunting Day One- Wildebeest Hide: 
We were accompanied on this hunt by my friend John Abbott. He had never hunted Africa and I thought I would spend the first half of the day in a blind watching him shoot and giving him the rapid course on judging the various species. We got up in the early morning and took a few minutes to shoot the bows and headed out.  Thirty minutes after arriving it was as if someone had opened the gate at a zoo. Waves of animals approached the water and when one animal finally drank it triggered a mass pandemonium. I was doing my best to help john pick out the right animal from the 6-7 species. The look on his face as he tried to take this incredible sight in for the first time was priceless. It only took one look at a great impala ram to know he wanted it. He made a great longbow shot and we watched it go down. Later, we spent the afternoon stalking gemsbok and I had a great bull at 12 yards but the shot was blocked by brush.
That night my son Luke recounted a full day of stalking. He told me “Dad, this is really hard”. He had gotten close on several animals but had not been able to seal the deal. He had also had a chance (and passed) on several Dharma dik-dik.  These are a very small 15 pound antelope and a rare treat to see at close range.
That night we all sat around a warm fire and watched several species including kudu, duiker, springbok and warthog come to a waterhole illuminated by a solar light just 60 yards from camp. We cook wild game every night over an open fire for dinner and it is better than any beef I have ever eaten.  This place is just simply awesome.













Day Two- Tamboti Forest:
Early morning found me high in a Tamboti tree in a small forest. The area we were hunting is primarily bushveld. This is an arid mix of thorny brush and grass lands. We had hung tree stands in the small woodland patches because they provided shade during the mid-day heat and trees large enough to conceal a hunter. About one hour in I was attempting to video a sand grouse and was caught flat footed by a group of Gemsbok and kudu cows. It took some time to reposition the camera and get the bow off the hook. I waited for a perfect quartering shot and watched as the arrow landed right where I was looking. Gemsbok are really tough animals but this one was quickly down in sight. After the recovery, I spent some time with Luke hunting a mid-day water hole and then back to the tree where I passed on another great Gemsbok.










Day Three- Eland Waterhole Treestand:
I traveled some distance this morning to an area with a treestand that overlooked a waterhole from about 70 yards. My number one animal for this trip was zebra but this location had very few and were off the hunt list. Well, you don’t have to guess what came into 15 yards. Five Burchell zebra and a host of other animals including black wildebeest, waterbuck, duiker and kudu kept my head on a swivel all day. I also watched several warthog feed on a dead jackal. Some of the hogs were monsters.  Side note: I had been given some arrows by some friends and I had brought them along on the trip. Jeff K. had given me the Grizzly sticks and Dendy C. had made some fine cedar woodies for me. I had saved two of these woddies just for this trip.  I hope to put them to good use soon.













Luke and John had great days with John taking a kudu bull and a duiker and Luke taking a very wide impala and a good warthog.
Day Four- Tamboti Forrest:
Back to the forest where I saw some great kudu bulls and eland in the morning hours. The winds were swirling terribly.  I then acted as a cameraman for Luke at gemsbok water hole where I watched him pass on a 50” kudu bull at 12 yards. That boy has more patience than I could have dreamed of at that age.  Birdlife: How can there be so many species of beautiful birds in this arid place. The numbers and species variety is staggering.  










Day Five- Marula Forest:
This is a forest area with some big trees. The stand is 25’ up in a Marula tree and completely concealed in the canopy. I passed on several impala early along with a scattering of warthog, gemsbok and duiker. Later, a very nice kudu bull followed a cow into a salt lick. He was at 12 yards but never presented the perfect shot for both the bow and camera at the same time. He eventually walked away. It had been requested that I cull a kudu cow so when I got the chance, I pulled the custom wood arrow (the Dendy Stick) from the quiver.  She finally gave me the perfect shot and I watched as those barred turkey feathers suddenly appeared right where I was looking. The Delta broadhead did its work and the tracking job was a short one. 










I hunted with Luke during mid-day and then he hunted the Eland waterhole where he had a 55” kudu close but it never gave him a perfect shot angle.
That night we tracked a big wounded warthog with dogs. The dogs cornered the big hog in an aardvark hole and when shot with a rifle, the hog charged killing one of the dogs and nearly getting one of the Professional Hunters. That little Jack Russell terrier showed a lion’s heart as he fought that giant hog. It tore us all up to see him pass.  







Day Six- Eland Treestand: 
Wow, what a day! It was quiet for the first 90 minutes and then I was covered up by kudu, blesbok and black wildebeest. The stand was well placed but it is nearly impossible to move with 25 kudu standing under you.  The view of the water hole is obscured by several trees and at some point to great kudu bulls slipped in behind me. One appeared at my feet and was a shooter for sure but the other one that was behind me was a true monster bull. Getting a shot at him would require standing up, repositioning the camera arm, turning around and getting the bow off the hook- all with 25 kudu within 20 yards. A strong wind began to blow and this made all of this possible. I finally made the maneuvers and concentrated on the spot I wanted that arrow to hit. The white feathers on that grizzly stick indicated a perfect hit as the bull raced away. I lost sight of him as he ran around the water hole but I knew he would not go far. I radioed for trackers and within 10 minutes a loud growling sound began to emanate from the area where he had gone. I did not recognize the sound and was totally screened from seeing what was going on. Every animal was looking in that direction as well.  Moments later I looked up into the sky to see a vulture in a steep dive and realized what the sound was. I raced to climb down but heard the PH and trackers coming down the road. They instantly saw what was happening and raced to the downed bull. It was amazing that in just a few minutes around 50 vultures had found the dead bull. Luckily, we had gotten there before they had torn him to bits. A great bull at 55.5” but more importantly I had done it the way I had always wanted to do it, from a tree stand.

















I did not think the day could get better but that afternoon my son shot a great kudu bull as well as well. John shot a good blue wildebeest. That afternoon I spent some time with Luke stalking birds on a vast plain near camp and watching an intense sundown.






Day Seven- The Fig Tree:
I hunted a waterhole from the branches of a giant fig tree. This thing was massive and for 11 hours I balanced on a branch over the water. I saw kudu, warthogs and a host of other animals including a big black wildebeest that never really gave a good shot angle.  Luke is still on fire and shot a great red hartebeest. Even in head to toe camo I cannot believe how many animals spotted me high in that tree.  A leopard had also visited the water hole that morning.  That night we did a night drive and laughed like crazy as Luke and some of the others chased springhare, rabbits and genet cats on foot. Apparently it is difficult to see the many aardvark holes that litter the ground and we howled as they tripped and flipped in red dust clouds.  Man that is fun.












Day Eight- Wildebeest Waterhole Stand:
We went out late last night and placed a treestand near the waterhole. At first light two different herds of red hartebeest converged at the water and I got to watch as the bulls went to their knees to fight. A good bull gave me a perfect 17 yards shot and I made it count. I watched him go down at 60 yards.   I also came close on 30 blue wildebeest and saw over 70 kudu and many other animals. The winds are killing us during the middle of the days and we combat it by burning lines of zebra dung. Not always perfect but it often does fool the animals. I am sure I saw more than 25 warthogs in the morning alone. I have buddies back in Georgia that would FREAK if they could hunt hogs here. In the late afternoon, I had a massive bull giraffe roll into the water. I was 18 feet up and we were eyeball to eyeball. He did not seem pleased to see me up there. 















Day Nine- Last day:
Back a wildebeest Waterhole.  Bad winds hurt me all day but I know I saw over 200 animals before lunch.  Luke got a nice springbok ram at kudu waterhole. That afternoon I spent just an hour at kudu waterhole. It was more for a bit of reflection time than hunting. I was treated by 5 giraffe coming to drink and a slender mongoose than came to the blind window looking for a handout. He let me feed him some crackers and then he bit me. Special note: Mongoose have VERY sharp teeth. This blind is the first spot that I hunted in Namibia in 2006. It is lined with exotic palms and also the first look at Africa that my children had in 2007. I have so many great memories there.  With a half hour of shooting light remaining, I stepped from the blind and walked to the edge of the big clearing. Listening as the African bush goes to sleep is a sound you will never forget and I wanted to take it in just one more time.








Hunt Summary:
The hunt is over and all that is left is the 8,000 mile journey home. We certainly miss our families but leaving here is always so hard to do. I think Luke is ready to move here. 

End journal notes.

I knew Africa from the tree tops would be much more difficult but it turned out quite well. I saw so much from that different perspective. I certainly would not recommend it for a first time experience but if you are ever blessed with the opportunity to hunt there more than once, give it a try. You won’t be sorry. Africa will absolutely capture your soul.  I have been blessed with hunting some pretty awesome places but no place on earth calls to me the way Africa does. Somehow, someway, I will find a way to return here.

Thanks for taking the time to read this and go along on the hunt.
Jerry

Equipment Summary:
Black Widow SAIII Recurve- 53@28
Grizzly Stick Carbon Shafts
Dendy Stick Custom Pine Shafts
Steel Force “Hellfire” Broadheads
Zwickey “Eskimo” Broadheads

Photo Credits: John Abbott, Luke and Jerry Russell


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## whossbows (Jul 11, 2013)

you the man jerry,,it would be nice to visit and watch all the game even if you didnt hunt,,,,nice stories,im sure you will have many to tell for years to come,(;-)


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## sawtooth (Jul 11, 2013)

that is amazing. I can't stop looking at the pictures.


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## 2wheelfoster (Jul 12, 2013)

WOW! Great story and pictures Jerry.


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## Hunting 4 Him (Jul 12, 2013)

What an unbelievable hunt.  You are blessed to have been able to share that with your son.  You just can't replace those memories or the solid foundation that you have laid for Luke.  Simply awesome!


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## Blueridge (Jul 12, 2013)

What a great trip and story and pics. Thanks for sharing Jerry. Namibia is a blast and the best bang for the buck in my opinion.


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## TIMBERGHOST (Jul 12, 2013)

OUTSTANDING!  Thanks so very much for sharing this adventure. Luke and Jerry, y'all are THE MEN!


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## stick-n-string (Jul 12, 2013)

HOLY SMOKES!!! What a awesome hunt!!! Never have I ever had a desire to go to Africa. Jerry I believe you have changed that!! Great job on the story telling and successful hunts!


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## John Abbott (Jul 12, 2013)

I was able to tag along with Jerry and Luke on  this trip and all I can say is its a trip of a life time, and on that note while we were in the "hide" waiting we did a lot of reading, and the PH brought along copies of African Bowhunter, if you want to read a very good mag on archery that includes Trad you can read the mag online. Archery is very strong in Africa and this mag is very well written with no ads for ATV's or camo.
Take a look I believe you will enjoy


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## jerry russell (Jul 12, 2013)

Alright John, time for you to give us part 3 of this story...


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## whossbows (Jul 12, 2013)

you think he is hiding something  there,jerry


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## Knee Deep (Jul 12, 2013)

Man, this is awesome. That Wart Hog is one bad lookin dude. Congrats on all the animal's taken.


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## hogdgz (Jul 13, 2013)

Freakin amazing!!!  

Jerry I am ready and after talking to you the other day I am going.


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## jerry russell (Jul 13, 2013)

hogdgz said:


> Freakin amazing!!!
> 
> Jerry I am ready and after talking to you the other day I am going.



Chase,
As exciting as these pictures make it look, there is no way it can capture the excitement of a hunt there. Every single day there equals the intensity of 10 years of hunts here. You are warned, however, that you will never be the same after a hunt there. I would sell a kidney, half a liver and my right leg to get back there if I had to, lol.


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## hogdgz (Jul 14, 2013)

Cant go to sleep so here i am at 1.30 in the morning looking at the pics and reading the stories again. Amazing!!! I sure hope I can go with yall next time!!!


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## delta708 (Jul 14, 2013)

Nice!!!!!


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## John Abbott (Jul 14, 2013)

Wow Team Longbow in Africa....it would be and outstanding trip


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## stick-n-string (Jul 14, 2013)

hogdgz said:


> Cant go to sleep so here i am at 1.30 in the morning looking at the pics and reading the stories again. Amazing!!! I sure hope I can go with yall next time!!!



Save some extra money for me too! I wanna go too!


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## Al33 (Jul 14, 2013)

Thanks again Jerry!!! Just can't read enough about this adventure!


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## longbowdave1 (Jul 14, 2013)

I enjoyed reading your "Journal style" narration, amazing  Jerry. The pictures are awsome, the video must be even better. I'm real happy for the way your hunt panned out.


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## Jake Allen (Jul 15, 2013)

Just wow Jerry. Thank you very much for thinking enough of us, and taking the time post these pictures, and tell the stories. Amazing.


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## Red Arrow (Jul 15, 2013)

Wow Jerry!!  Congrats to Luke, you and John.   Seeing 200 critters a day must be amazing.  Great pictures and stories! I sure hope to see the Dark Continent someday...

Lee


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