I consider myself extremely fortunate to be able to experience an African Safari with five other women dubbed “Safari Sisters” by the trip’s organizer Wayne van Zwoll of High Country Adventures for Women. I feel so cliché when I write about my hunting trips, because the big take away isn’t ever about the animals harvested, it is always about the experience and accomplishment of the physical hunt, and nearly never about the actual shot. This experience was incredible, ten days of waking up to cold temperatures that bit you to the core, then warming yourself by the fire with morning coffee and the excitement we all felt going into the day, to climbing into the truck and the wind and sun hitting your face, and feeling like God was saying, “Good morning, remember Me.” Of course, we did, and gave thanks to Him often.
This hunt brought spot and stalk to a whole new level. I would actually call it, spot, squat, run, climb, crawl and stalk. The land that we hunted was right where the dessert meets the mountains, and we experienced each type of terrain…daily! We were lucky that Weatherby had provided their new Vanguard Camilla rifles, which are very light weight to carry. We laughed at dinner each night, as we compared our Professional Hunters (PH) who were our guides. The first night at dinner, Cristy, Janet and I were exhausted. We had literally sprinted through the Savannah, and physically we hunted hard; while our other sisters, seemed to have had a much easier time of it. Well, after we switched guides later in the week, they finally understood what we were experiencing!
There is such a sense of accomplishment when you meet the demands of hunting, the environment, the physicality, the marksmanship and the mental aptitude to bring it all together. All of these accomplishments enhance the experience of seeing magnificent animals and beautiful landscapes, of sharing meals with new found friends and of building relationships with women who are like family; actually who are now my “Safari Sisters”.
Karen Butler is President and Founder of Shoot Like A Girl, a company dedicated to empowering women to participate in shooting sports with confidence, and proudly sponsored by Weatherby.