Welcome to my blog, or should I say to the ramblings of an old man. I doubt that my ramblings are of much value, but at least I have an opportunity to share them.  So, please be kind and humor me. If nothing else of value stands out in these thoughts, I hope that you at least sense the value I place on a daily walk with the Lord.  That walk is what has provided me with motivation and a sense of purpose throughout my lifetime.  My prayer is that you, too, are experiencing this direction and joy in daily living which is available to everyone who puts his trust in Christ.  So, thanks again for joining me.  Please don't go without leaving some comments here so I can get to know you better as our paths intersect today in this blog.

Monday, July 18, 2011

Number Four

My son and his family recently returned from a trip of a lifetime. They spent several weeks in South Africa and Botswana hunting. For our grandkids it was the second time they've made this trip, while my son and his wife have been there several times. They have become good friends with the families that own the hunting ranches there. The main purpose of this trip was for my son to notch the fourth animal in what is known by hunters as the "Big Five" - the five most difficult animals in Africa to hunt on foot. Previously he had shot his lion. Later it was the Cape Buffalo which is considered by many to be the most dangerous animal to hunt. Many hunters have been killed attempting to hunt it. He had also shot his leopard which is considered to be the most difficult to hunt. If you are interested, you can read the diary of that hunt on my website, fbfawana.com. He might not ever get a chance to get fifth, the black rhinoceros, since licenses for that animal are not presently available. But this hunt was to get his African Elephant, which despite its size, is very difficult to hunt because it is very dangerous and most likely to charge you. It is extremely difficult to track because it can hide in the tall grasses and trees. But after nine days of hunting, he was able to shot a very large elephant with tusks that probably weighed more than 50 pounds each. His daughter was with him when this was done and she was even able to take some video of the event. Hopefully he'll write his diary of this hunt and if he does it will also appear on my website. After the kill, area villagers came and claimed all the meat. This was a big event for them. My grandson went for a zebra and he was successful. My granddaughter went for an impala and she shot that and a zebra. My daughter-in-law took hundreds of pictures. If you see any of them ask them about their experiences since they have many stories to tell. Ask them about how much "fun" it was to sleep out in the wilderness in tents with wild animals and snakes all around. We are just glad that they've returned safely. Folks often ask us where they've picked up this desire to hunt. I really don't know. However, I have been very successful as a hunter ... killing things around the house like spiders and ants as well as catching mice and even squirrels. Do you think that counts?

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

When did he get a Lion?

csauer said...

Hunting spiders, and household creepy crawlies seems much safer! -Chris