Q: Dean, what got you started and motivated to do an African Safari?

Dean: One day, out of blue, came this exclamation from my son, Brad. …..“Hey Dad, let’s go on a safari” ……. Brad and I have always hunted together, Brad comes back to South Dakota almost every year and we hunt throughout the Black Hills and Western SD….. I was a little “stunned” at first and then over the next year we researched more about the idea……where, when, who, what, why and how do we do this……we finally decided on a combination photo and hunting expedition.

Q: In South Dakota almost all hunting is for Whitetail deer, Mule deer, Pronghorn antelope, or pheasants……Africa is a different story, how did you determine what and where you were going to hunt?

Dean: We ended up selecting Namibia (southwest corner of Africa). A lot of quality areas were eliminated because of the greater animal population of Namibia. Political stability also ranked up there pretty high and the stability of Namibia met that critieria……(We wanted to be able to leave when we finished). Namibia hosts a great population of the Greater Kudu and the Gemsbok or Oryx which were the two species we were most interested.

Q: How did you go about finding a host or guide? And, what criteria did you have?

Dean: Professional hunters in Africa must be licensed and registered. We were fortunate. Brad lives in Texas and Jan and I recently found a “winter hide-a-way” near Dallas. Dallas is also host to the annual Safari Club International convention which gave us the opportunity to explore safaris in general and to interview several professional hunters.

We had five (5) criteria including:

a) We had to like and admire the person because he/she admired and respected the country, culture and wildlife.
b) If they “guaranteed” trophies we knew they were just “blowing smoke up…….”
c) They would make us work hard.
d) There would be no other hunters on the land. Those high powered rifles can really hurt and “I don’t like pain”.
e) It must be a free or “fair chase” of wild, native animals. No fences or preserves.

Q: What difficulties did you encounter in making your way from Texas to Namibia?

Dean: Two observations about the trip from Texas to Windhoek, Namibia. 1). We became very personally involved with airplane seats and, 2). Transporting high powered rifles and ammunition across three continents gave us a new perspective of airport security, customs forms and regulations, and border security.

Q: Where did you set up camp? What was it like?

Dean: We set up camp was approximately 100 miles from Windhoek. The site was a combination of the outback brush, mountains, and desert. We were able to take hundreds of photographs of the incredible landscapes, unbelievable sunrises and sunsets, birds of all colors and a minimum of twenty different species of wild animals.

Each day we left camp before sunrise, we were accompanied by the professional hunter and three of the six natives that were a part of the safari group. None of the natives spoke English.

To walk among wild giraffes takes the breath away from an old South Dakota boy. To stop and remain motionless while a rhino, less than 30 feet away, makes a decision to make his move toward you or elects to ignore you and head elsewhere can really get the blood circulating.

Q: Bottom line……..were you successful in your quest for the Kudu and Gemsbok?

Dean: Yes, we were fortunate to obtain two Kudu and two Gemsbok.

Q: What was it like to hunt these two species?

Dean: Kudu are very shy, elusive animals. They typically weigh 700-900 pounds and stand approximately 5+ feet at the shoulder. They exist in very heavy brush, which is taller than the Kudu, thus we did spend many hours with binoculars and on quiet and lengthy stalking. On older mature Kudu, the spiraling horns may reach 4-5 feet in length. Sixty (60) inch horns are record book size. The Kudu’s protective coloring, the habitat and their keen eyes and hearing afford one shot (if that) and typically at 350-500 yards.

Gemsbok or Oryx have striking black and white faces. They stand 4-5 feet at the shoulders and generally weigh between 400-500 pounds. The horns are needle shaped and reach about 30 inches at maturity. A Gemsbok with horns over 35 inches is rare and exceptional. They are referred to as “The King of the Kalahari Desert”. The Gemsbok is a member of the antelope family and live on or near the desert in open terrain. As such, you need a set of very good binoculars, you experience long and quiet tracking, and you get one (maybe) shot at 350-500 yards.

Q: Were the Kudu and Gemsbok in the “trophy” category?

Dean: The four animals qualified for awards from The Namibian Professional Hunters Association. Brad received two gold medals one for the Kudu and one for the Gemsbok. I received a silver award (Dean failed to tell us which species of his met the standard for the silver award). The awards are granted for size of the species and the horn configuration

Q: Any other interesting observations?

Dean: One of the many gratifying things experienced was giving all of the meat and hides to the natives, many who face or live in or at near starvation standards.

The selection of our Professional Hunter included, as I said, a criterion that the culture, country, and wildlife had to be admired and respected. Our hunter met and exceeded these standards and because of that he and the native staff greatly enhanced the experience.

The experience of the country, the culture, the people, the food, the scenery and the joy of hard work made our safari even more than we had ever dreamed.

I am often asked, “Would I go again?” ...my answer...“Not until Tomorrow!!! “

	Question: Are there any future commercial possibilites ? i.e...film documentary, private labeling, endorsements, etc...?
	Question: Will your trophies be mounted and displayed around your new Texas "hide-a-way".