Move on about five miles to check the bait left the day before. Nothing has been on it, but there are some fresh buffalo tracks nearby so we follow up,  come across a small herd about one mile and are able to get very close. In fact, herd is working toward us. They are within 30 yards and we are squatting low in the grass. They are so close now I can smell them. Very thick bush and can't make out the good bull. Finally they alert and are off. Follow about another mile but then as the wind changes just a little they turn and run down wind, so we give up.

Back to the hunting car and we drive on another 3 or 4 miles where we spot a big herd of buffalo, probably 100 or more. We stalk up to a look but they keep moving. We follow about three miles through rough, hilly country. I am dead beat and give up.

On the way back to camp I spotted a nice blue wildebeest bull at about 200 yards. I drop him clean. He has an ugly head so we will take only the skin and horns and the carcass back to where we saw the lion. We hang up the wildebeest carcass in this area and drag the area good with the insides, hoping he will pick up the scent. Then back to camp.

DAY 10 - We are up at 3:30 am. Leave camp at 4:30 and drive to about a mile and a half of the lion bait, stop the hunting car and quietly walk the last mile and a half in the dark. Very, very carefully creep into the blind. I slowly remove the clump of grass from the look-out hole but it is too dark to see. As light comes, I can see nothing there, but on examination the lion has come to the bait and eaten 40 pounds of the meat, left some mane hairs where he has eaten. We recover the bait with green branches to keep the vultures off and walk back to the car. On the way, Shame spots a green snake poised to strike in our path. It is a poisonous mamba, so he kills it with a stick.

Headed out in a different direction to hunt. Spotted a small herd of buffalo and start to stalk. They go about a mile, stopping 4 or 4 times, which gives us a chance to glass the horns. We finally pick out one and I shoot. I heard the bullet "thunk" but I'm not sure where. They run off and we track about another mile. Bulls stop and are laying down in a mud wallow, again. I am not sure which one I hit. Biggest bull gets up and lays down again. I think he is the one I hit. We wait until they all get up and I hit him again. They run off about a quarter of a mile, but slowly. Apparently the hit bull is pacing them. I finally get off a shot that stops him, and another that puts him down. He is a big bull, with a good set of horns, about 42".

Without John's urging to crouch, run and crawl, I would not have caught up. Buffalo hunting is the toughest game - this bull took four 375 soft nose in the chest. To kill just any buffalo is easy, but to pick out the big bull with the right trophy horns, you must sometimes follow long distances over rough country. It took us about 2 1/2 hours to skin and cut up the bull. We estimated his age at about 15 years and his weight at 1,500 pounds.

This is the wrong time to hunt this area, hottest time of the year, 100° plus everyday -- exhausting. The jungle is green and in full leaf, very hard to see the animals, the flies are murder. I have a bite on my left arm that is red and swollen, two inches wide and four inches long - many bites the size of half dollars. The backs of both hands are so swollen you can't see the knuckles.

We headed back to camp and set out the front half of the bull for lion bait. It's quite dark now and the boys do not relish hanging lion bait in the dark. While lions will walk or run away from you in the daylight, they are not afraid of humans in the dark and will not hesitate to attack if they think you are interfering with their food. I stand guard with a gun while the boys and John put up the bait. We get back very late and are dead beat.

DAY 11 - Up again at 3:30 and off to sneak into the lion blind. Lion tracks all around but did not feed, probably ate too much yesterday. We leave only the buffalo bait, take down the old wildebeest and throw it to the hyenas and then go to check the leopard bait. Baiting lion and leopard in this heat is a dirty job. The meat is full of maggots after one day and we must cut down and replace -- thousands of flies all the time. Nasty job, but John and the boys work very hard at it. Shame has only one useful hand but still climbs trees as good as anyone, while Daka pulls up the baits. The car is filthy from rotten meat and so are the boys, so we go back to camp to clean up. I clean and check my rifles, find some screws loose, so decide to shoot them again. Back to check the lion bait, nothing there, return in the dark back to camp.

DAY 12 - Up at 3:30 am and sit at the lion blind. Nothing came so will give this one up. Going to another area. We see some buffalo in the wood and follow. Woods are quite open so we can't get close. All we can see are cows and young bulls, probably 200. We only want the old bull. It can be distinguished in one manner by the width of the soft spot in-between the bosses. The young bulls it is quite wide but in an old bull the bosses come together. We follow about a mile - wind is wrong so we quit.

Further on we see a herd of young bull sables. I think they are the most handsome animal in Africa. They stared at us long enough for me to get some pictures. We drove out on to a big dambo and stopped to have a drink. At the other end,  mile away, was a small herd of zebra. We were afraid to move the hunting car  for fear they will see us so we just keep still. They approach to about 500 yards and then they see us and off they go. We follow about a mile but the wind keeps changing so we leave them.

My heart sure pounds from the effort and excitement and I am walking better now, much more quietly. You have to learn not to step on patches of dry leaves, burned grass stubble, twigs and anything that makes a noise. Very, hot so we return to camp.  ---> Next Day 13 -17

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