In the land of ORYXES

My host Rene Krafft is here to remind us about it. His grandparents were those who had come here from Russia and Germany at the beginning of last century. They made Namibia home for the family Krafft for so many years till now.

Today the grandson of those settelers Rene leads a life of farmer at the place they had chosen. There are 700 of animals on Rene's farm today. Besides, he has been a professional hunter for ten years having title and license of PH ( Professional Hunter ), that allows him to guide his clients - hunters on the whole territory of Ibinstein or on any other territory if only the owner of it agrees.

BIRDS IN THE EARLY MORNING

Being a guide is a very demanding profession. It requires not only great knowledge about the territory, animals' life and habits but also inner intuition that makes one guide to face and manage with clients' expectations. Different wishes and demands of foreign guests lead a guide to be flexible and creative but never to forget about ethic rules. There are some hunters that are ready for big trophies, others want to shoot much, those that complain about walking, some of them seem to know everything and some that know nothing and finally these that follow the rules of Rene and those who do not respect them.

The French hunters are fit, ready to walk, listen to, obey and able to appreciate the moments that give them a chance to experience something special. The one that does not care for all this what Ibenstein offers must not be a hunter for sure.

The house where Krafft's family lives and where they receive their gusts - hunters leads a visitor to the old colonian times. This typical architecture style lets one to have wonderful rest at the terrace and tasteful meal in a big living room where the walls are decorated with numerous trophies of Rene or his father Michael. While having a dinner together there is a great opportunity to discuss about common passion hunting as well as about wonderful experiences that only Africa provides.

There are also birds here. The special ones with red beaks that make one to adore and like them. They start singing in the garden before the sunrise and wake you better than any alarm clock predicting the great day of hunt that is ready to start.

TO BECOME A PLUNDERER  

At the time of breakfast the sun rises and a few minutes later jeep is silently discovering the paths that provide a patient hunter a hope to make the dreams come true and to live the great adventure of hunting. While traveling from one district to another one has possibility to adore the richness of nature, territory that cannot be anywhere else found, at the horizon the clear and blue sky...: great territories covered by grass, trees and high bushes, isolated hills covered by savanna, amazing mountains with rocks, naked hills and forested valleys.

While being in the bush there is no possibility to miss a great animal that is a goal of hunt. You have to be a good observer of small fauna: to see a posture of marabut or secretary, to understand

 guinea hen Numidii, lapwing or calao, catch yellow and brown feathers of African  hoopoe, listen to sound of black drop, that flies as it was not and lets you know about an immediate landing, admire the architecture of nests being like made from silk, remember the icon of vulture  sitting on the branches of dry tree... It is not possible to forget the squirrel that was drilling by the feet of hunter, hare Cap, being disorientated with the lack of hunter's movement waiting with a gun or jackal that will not even have a chance to regret that he let us see it.

To observe this wild nature to be able to integrate with the place and to make it be the place for real hunt is to be like a plunderer searching its victim.

OBSERVATION AND DISCOVERY

When we cross the roads it is so nice to meet a group of springboks hidden in the bush, see the oryx on the hill or find the great kudu that is beside a tree. This is a real pleasure of the journey. But the moment that a hunter is waiting for is the one when the car stops just in the middle of savanna like a lost point, when the people sitting on the hill are silently discussing what the can see by their glasses far away in front of them. There somewhere you can see warthog that is drilling the sandy earth: there is a female and three small ones. And these two dark shadows that can be seen from far distant  are two black gnu. The only sign of their movement are the white tails. On the other side ostrich and blue gnu. Why the blesboks start to run away? It is usual that they behave unusual. Look at this two shining points among the trees, you could say that you can see horns of a bubal in the high grass. On the right you can see oryxes, between them there is a great male. These springboks where they come from...? We have not noticed them. And far away we can see the postures of a few zebras. It is not easy to count them, but yes there are fourteen. If it comes to babulines they are barking on the top of the hill like guards but it would be better for them not to come too close to the place that the gun can reach them. The air is clear and clean as we can count the distance we are from the certain animals. The animals seem to be at the distance of 200m, 300m,500m and even further. 

STALKING HUNT  FOR SPRINGBOK

The hunt always starts with the same ritual : patient and careful observation, which lets to notice this that you were unable to see till now. The male springbok seems to be beautiful but it is rather far. But on the other hand it is not unreachable. On the opposite side of the road there is a hill and if you take it round using the valley with many trees and bushes....it may work! From this moment there is nothing to do like putting trust in Rene's competence and experience and talents of Michael that is following the animals and try to catch their sense of hunt. You have to walk carefully on   the sand and rocks mixed, be careful for bushes and to not break even a small branch, to not hurt yourself  with a sharp rocks so with a few words just move forward trusting two men knowing the animals and the territory. You must be like one person knowing that one hunter on a hunt is one person to much... Pending. You have to stop and to wait and try to the springbok which could already     change the place. You have to observe the animals, with telemetr count the distance that is between you and it. Try to come closer. We gain again some meters and then moving slowly among trees and bushes to find the branch that could support our gun. Springbok moved. It is eating the leaves. Its white - yellow posture with brown strips appears behind the tree, its horns look like a pear from the profile and they are shining in the sun. But it does not know that the hunters are observing it. 

We managed to come for 160 meters to the animal. It lasted over an hour. It is impossible to come closer.  Rene and Michael are close to the earth and observing the animal using their field glasses. How can they locate the animal in the field glass of my gun. Do not shoot! Do not try through the branches! Stay calm! Wait until the springbok moves as you can see it better among the trees, wait until it is side to us. Wait to the moment that the shot will be optimal.

LIKE A FAN

Now! I knew the the guide Rene would finally say that magic word in this moment! My finger presses the button. I can see in my field glasses jumping animal at one place, rolling around, trying to make some more steps and falling down. The sound of the soot broke the silence and the pressure disappeared. We congratulate each other, shake hands, hug.... we are happy because of a successful hunt, good stalking and shoot. It does not need much to miss... We approach the animal, shoulder - blade shows the place of shoot and on its back white long fur looking like a fan. Michael goes to take the car. Rene and I, we admire the animal, discuss the way of stalking, precision of shoot and beauty, elegance of trophy, the taste of meat. Rene is calm, he thinks about all these animals that could be shot by his clients with his help. Every year with his help about 12 hunters can hunt 70 antelopes (oryks, kudu, springbok, bubal, blesbok, gnu...),from which two of three trophies are worth gold medal. He can be proud of himself but he does not show it. For him the most important in hunting ethics is the animal to be nice, the stalking loyal and mostly if the trophy is worth it. You have to hunt always fair with a gun not with rope.

THE TELEVISION OF BUSHMEN

Michael came back driving his jeep. The sun in the middle of day is high on the sky. We are taking photos to make our memories stay, we drink a tank of water, eat a few pieces of dry meat of antelope, place the springbok on the car.... and the hunt can go on, we can continue to walk, discover and hope...

In front of the house in a special room, clean as laboratory can be, the fur of antelope will be taken off and animal cut into pieces, to be placed in special fridge, the fur well salted and the occipital  placed in the clean water.   

And somewhere in the bush there are other antelopes that are waiting for us. Oryx with its strong body, with the black and white front part of occipital, with its long or ring horn, great kudu, being as always mysterious in its posture with no movement, amazing with its drilling sight, being admired for his long horns which seem to touch the sky, bubal, blesbok or eland may sacrifice for us....

And when the sun sets, hunters and the whole family of Krafft sit on the terrace beside the house. They gather around the fire which is called a tv set here as it provides the most beautiful programs about people, world, animals, arms and hunt. It is the time to talk about the day that is already to pass away, about our feelings and moments that will remain in our memories for ever. We come back to the moments when life and death were becoming one and we were the wittness of it...

There will be another day of hunt in Ibenstein tomorrow.

Text and photos Jacques Reder

This is an article that was published in the newspaper Voyages de chasse, in France, number 7, June/July/August 2006