July 2025

This month’s message has two components:

Firstly, the Honey Badger

Pound for pound, the badger, or honey badger, must be our continent’s toughest animal. And in South Africa, it is commonly known by the Afrikaans word, as the “ratel”.

I am not sure if badgers run, or trot, but they certainly don’t walk. They’re cocky beyond belief.

There are some fabulous YouTube clips where they are battling with leopards, pythons and, in some cases, lions. It’s hard to understand this till you see them in the wild – and in action. Here are two videos that will give you an idea.

We’re proud of our game in Africa; biggest, tallest, fastest, and in this creature’s case – perhaps the toughest. So it is with much respect that I suggest considering this feisty animal on a future hunting safari.

As a bonus for all existing subscribers, and an incentive to renew, we have a third quarter subscription draw.

Dawn Member, good friend, and an all-round tremendous guy, Dave Freeburn, who runs Dave Freeburn Safaris, has generously offered something special for 2026: The Big Badger Safari Draw.

Closing on September 30, all existing current subscribers and new subscribers will go into the draw. Included in the prize is:

• Afton VIP Meet and Greet; gun permit; overnight accommodation at Afton Safari Lodge; transfer
• 7- night Big Badger Safari; the honey badger trophy fee, and hunting permit
• Life-size/full mount taxidermy courtesy of TTS (Taxidermy & Trophy Shipping). Additional trophy animals are for the lucky winners’ account.

Secondly, nothing good came of it – my friendship with Kevin Steele.

A couple of weeks back, it was Kevin Steele’s annual hosted safari to Harry Claassen’s Mata Mata camp. 

The pictures give you a sense of what this trip is about, or at least how it starts, at Afton, where we hosted Kevin and his group. I said, tongue in cheek, nothing good has come of this friendship, chatting to his buddies as we shared banter about how we met.

In 2000 or 2001, I was exploring how to get the African Hunting Gazette better known, spread the word, and I thought, ‘why not team up with the biggest hunting publishers…the Petersen’s Hunting Group? Gotta dream! Perhaps I could convince them of the value teaming up with my magazine. They kindly gave me an audience to discuss this. I was staying with friends in Santa Rosa, north of San Francisco and said ‘No problem, I will be there at 12 noon.”

Little did I know, with no google maps, and the distance, what it meant to drive there and back in a day. Anyway, I met Kevin and the big wigs of the Petersen’s Group at their HQ in Wiltshire Blvd in the middle of LA. My buddy lent me his Mustang and off I set.

Completely bonkers. Sadly, we didn’t do a deal.

We laugh about it now and that’s why I tease him, that nothing good came of it. But how wrong could I be.

A friendship with a man who has spent 48 years in the industry and takes the trouble to promote Africa, bring over buddies to hunt in Africa. He really has been a pillar of support and encouragement for me over the years. To say I was green and completely ignorant back then would be a mild understatement. Anyway, after 25 years at Petersen's HQ - me trying to get the powers that be to see value in doing something with the Africa Hunting Gazette it is tremendous that:

a) we are both alive,

b) we are still good mates. and

c) we both do what we love and the truth is…

We are hosting his safari first night or two at Afton and managing the TTS (Taxidermy & Trophy Shipping) of his group - so, the truth is - this title is completely wrong.

A lot has come from this past 25-year friendship and this is my public thank you to a chap that has, over the years, been there for me.

Here’s to a great July. 

Richard Lendrum

 Congrats to Brad Peters of California!

Brad renewed his subscription just in time to win our Bontebok Safari giveaway with Bowker Safaris. Already booked for an elephant hunt in Botswana, he generously gifted the prize to a friend — now heading to Africa for the very first time!

Huge thanks to Bowker Safaris for donating this incredible hunt. Learn more at BOWKER SAFARIS.

We love being part of someone’s first safari — it’s often the beginning of a lifelong love for Africa. We can’t wait to hear how it all goes and what Brad’s friend’s first impressions of Africa were!

Stay Connected. Spread the Word.

Already a subscriber? Thank you — we appreciate your support! Help us grow by sharing African Hunting Gazette with friends, fellow hunters, and anyone who shares a passion for Africa.

Not subscribed yet? If you love hunting in Africa — or dream of going one day — African Hunting Gazette is the beautifully produced, trusted publication that keeps you inspired, informed, and connected to the continent, even when you're back home.

SUBSCRIBE today and keep your dream alive.

Questions?

Birgit Reprich

📞 705-644-3380

📧 birgitreprich@gmail.com

Send Us Your Story

We all love reading about your African hunting adventures. Let’s spread the word.

Submit your story, and we’ll clean and edit it to be published on Africanhuntinggazette.com

Rigby Unveils Limited-Edition 250th Anniversary Gun Rack

Handcrafted in South Africa from solid African kiaat wood, this gun rack is designed to reflect Rigby’s enduring commitment to quality. Sourced from Zimbabwe, Botswana and Tanzania, kiaat is renowned for its exceptional strength, stability and rich natural grain, making it the ideal choice for a gun rack intended to serve for generations.

Ten Years After Cecil The Lion's Death, Let's Mourn Human Victims of Wildlife Attacks

By Ed Stoddard & Adam Hart

Instead of mourning the animals killed by trophy hunters – which in many ways owe their existence, like it or not, to the hunting industry – we would suggest tears should instead be shed for Josephi, his widow Elphina and their son, Success.

Red Hartebeest Among White Rhinos

By Glenn W Geelhout

The setting sun tinted the red hartebeest an even more glowing shade of red as we tried to stalk toward it, using the slight depression of a “loof”, a long-ago run-off that had left a tangle of boulders in the thorn scrub. The hartebeest bull, which I had first got to know in its Ki-Swahili name “kongoni”, was on to us. It kept moving, keeping just beyond the 400-meter range that I felt comfortable in attempting to shoot with the .300 Win Mag. I was now looking through the scope, having been following it earlier with the Zeiss binoculars as it was edging away from us.

Archery & Bowhunting:

Why I Like It

By Dr Adrian de Villiers

The reason archery and hunting with a bow is so special is because you are only as good as your last shot.

With archery there is no such thing as sighting in your bow and packing it away till next hunting season, taking it out of moth balls and going hunting with it. It takes regular practise, and it takes gym and exercise to stay in shape. Today’s bows are state-of-the-art machines with computer-designed and C&C cut aircraft quality aluminium parts – they are way better than the cast magnesium riser bows we used in the 1980s. The bows can be fine-tuned, and good archers can easily shoot a golf ball at 100m with them.

A Matter of Stripes

By Craig Boddington

The zebra is Africa’s most recognizable animal, requiring no description. Although related to both horses and asses and of the same Equus genera, the zebra is indigenous only on the African continent, and evidence that it existed elsewhere in prehistory is unclear. In Africa the zebra is not found continent-wide, but occupies an extremely broad range across East and Southern Africa. There are actually three species of zebra: Plains, mountain, and the Grevy’s zebra. There are, or were, seven races or subspecies of plains zebra and two of mountain zebra; the distinct Grevy’s zebra stands alone. All zebras are primarily grazers, social animals that form into herds.

Chapter Five

In The Blind

By Wayne Grant

In 1981, my first season as a professional hunter, I was based on a forty thousand acre cattle ranch between Tsholotsho and Nyamandhlovu. I did not know one other person in Bulawayo who was a professional hunter. Of course there must have been a few, but on my limited trips to the city my path did not cross with one until about 1983 when I met Ian Lennox. Ian and I became firm friends until his death in 2006. I mention this to illustrate a point. If a young, learning professional hunter is able to consort with others of his trade, he will learn about hunting far more quickly than one who doesn’t.

Who are the African Dawn Outfitters?

The African Dawn Program is about promoting hunting in Africa, not just through what we publish, but with the outfitters’ cooperation in this program… and it is for your peace of mind.

International travel consumes two precious commodities – personal time and money. And when you are a hunter, things can get tricky when there are further considerations like rules, regulations, details and differences between each country and their species. It is important to have a good outfitter, and whether it is your next hunting safari, or your first one, there are many outfitters to choose from. In fact, there are over 500, so how do you find a reliable one, the one that is right for you?

To help you, we decided to promote and work with approximately 10% of this continent-wide group of outfitters. We have listed a limited number of an esteemed group of established and reputable African outfitters and they can be found in this Catalogue. To familiarize yourself with this list, we also offer monthly publications, and monthly trophy gallery posts (Trophies Fresh from the Veld). To ensure you receive these updates, sign up www.africanhuntinggazette.com.

If you are an agent looking for an outfitter to represent, you’ll be safe contacting one of these outfitters.

If you are researching for your next safari, be sure to contact any one of listed outfitters directly. It will support them and save you money by booking with them. Please tell them that it was by them being an African Dawn Member that contributed to the decision.

Our website www.africanhuntinggazette.com has a detailed overview of them all, and you know where to contact me if you need to know anything more.

For now, just enjoy the read.

Richard Lendrum - Publisher African Hunting Gazette

richard@africanhuntinggazette.com

2025 African Dawn Members