African Safari Gear Packing List - What To Take Along
September 22, 2007
The last thing you want on an African safari is to realise that you have left any important safari gear behind.
Because of the nature of safari there are some things that are essential to take with and others that you can do without because they are only going to add to your luggage weight.
This is a listing of some of the “must have” safari gear you need to pack to take along which forms a part of the full safari packing list that you can print out to tick off each item as you go along.
This safari packing list is based on the packing advice and recommendations from a collection of safari trip reports and my own experience in packing for the dozens of safaris that I have been on…
SAFARI CLOTHES
If you are going on a walking safari it’s essential that you get the safari clothing right. Bright colours are definitely to be avoided.
My wife and I went on a walking safari in Botswana and we came across a group of elephant that the tracker wanted to take us closer to but because my wife was wearing a red shirt she had to wait further away for fear of the elephants noticing us. So remember to pack the following safari gear…
General Overview About Trout Senses
September 21, 2007
When fly fishing for trout, it is of crucial importance to understand their senses. Trout are fish, after all, and make different use of their senses than we do. Understanding these senses can greatly increase the prospects of a successful fly fishing trip. Many anglers make the common mistake of thinking trout are not very smart. As far as hatchery born fish are concerned, this is mostly correct.
However, in Montana and many other prime rivers in the world, most of the rivers are not stocked with hatchery born fish. Instead, the trout found will generally be wild trout. And wild trout, whether they be rainbows, browns or brookies, are always smarter than their hatchery born counterparts.
Additionally, even if you are fly fishing primarily for hatchery born fish, it is still good to know how a trout uses their senses. Why? Quite simply, by knowing how a trout uses their senses, your approach and presentation will be better, leading to less spooked fish and thus better results in the stream. While hatchery born fish are rather stupid, they aren’t so stupid as to sit right on top of an anglers foot, patiently waiting for that fake fly to float right by.
Chimborazo: Learning Spanish At 20,600 Feet
September 20, 2007
Climbing the glaciers to the summit of Mount Chimborazo in Ecuador isn’t highly technical. It is mountaineering, but how hard can it be, considering I went to 20,600 feet the first time I used crampons and an ice axe? Okay, I used them once for practice, on a sledding hill near my house. I climbed forty feet while people walked by with their sleds, telling their kids to stay away from me.
It’s also easier to climb when the guide drives you to 15,000 feet. Don’t get me wrong. Climbing the last 5,600 feet was incredibly difficult, but not for the skill required. The air missing half of its oxygen is what had me quitting twenty times on the way up. It just gets difficult to move up there.
The Chimborazo Graveyard
The monuments near the first refuge weren’t for climbers without skill. The graveyard is a warning of the unpredictability of all high places. Chimborazo is very high, it randomly shruggs off large rocks, and has weather that changes by the minute. While hiking to the second refuge, we could hear the rocks and pieces of ice falling somewhere above.
Three Main Trout Senses
September 19, 2007
An angler should therefore become familiar with the three main senses a trout uses. These are:
Smell:
Trout have amazing powers of smell. For humans, trying to understand smell underwater is rather difficult since we can’t do it. However, trout have no difficulty smelling underwater, so it is worth an anglers time to make sure that they aren’t introducing foreign smells into a trout stream (which can warn a trout to a lurking danger such as a fisherman.)
When fly fishing for trout, do your best to avoid any artificial smells that are completely foreign to a trout stream. Avoiding these smells, though, of often easier said than done, as the sources of these smells can come from many sources. Fly line cleaners, fly floatants, epoxies and glue can all contribute alien smells to a trout stream. Other things such as aftershave, deodorant and even the smell of your clothing can all tip off a trout that an angler is near.
Cheap Safari in Africa For $70 a Day - Heres How To Do It
September 18, 2007
You would think that a cheap safari in Africa for $70 a day would have to take place in some shady game reserve in Timbuktu that nobody visits. But not in this case.
This is, and has been one of the best national parks in Africa for over 100 years and it’s visited by over 1 million people every year.
It’s the Kruger National Park in South Africa and you can visit it for only $70 per day by using a little bit of local knowledge and some common sense. The local knowledge is provided by me as I have been on over 15 cheap safaris in the Kruger park over the last twenty years and the common sense is applied by you, using the information that I share with you.
Here are the cheap safari guidelines to go on safari in the Kruger for a song…
Daily Conservation Fee: Pay only for six days and get the rest of the trip Free…
One of the things that drives the price of a safari up is the conservation fee that you have to pay for every day you spend in the park. It is for a good cause because the money is ploughed back into managing the reserve effectively but if you could lessen that cost it will make a big difference to the safari price.
Selecting the Right Tackle
September 17, 2007
One of the most important things to consider when fly fishing is choosing your tackle the right way. Many people overlook this important factor and start with the wrong assumptions. They first buy the rod, then the line to match the rod, then the reel and then they buy the flies they will need to fish. The fact is the flies are the most important in determining weather or not you will be catching any fish.
The tackle selection process should go as follows:
First you must select the correct flies that you will be using to catch the type of fish you will be attempting to catch. The type of fly that is abundant in that particular environment. We will get into the types of flies to use in the right environment later on in the book. For now, accept that the fly should be chosen first.
Lines:
Creative Camp Cooking - Part 2
September 17, 2007
In a previous article, I wrote primarily about box ovens. With this article, we will consider a couple of other ideas that can also make your camping meals fun and enjoyable.
The first is something called foil packs. Foil packs are quite simple. You spread out a large sheet of aluminum foil, add whatever ingredients you like, seal it up on the ends, and place it on a bed of hot charcoal.
Remember not to use too much charcoal. Each briquette adds about 25 degrees F. (The same rule applies to dutch ovens, box ovens, and even your barbeque grill at home.) Add too many and you will burn the food, possibly melt the aluminum foil, and maybe burn yourself in the process.
Sample ingredients might include potatoes, onions, carrots, hamburger, a couple spoonfuls of campbells soup (such as cream of mushroom), salt and pepper to taste, and a bit of water for moisture during cooking. If you want to add cheese, add it after the cooking process. Otherwise, it will probably burn to the inside of the foil pack.
Another fun way to cook outdoors is with dutch ovens. You can cook almost anything in a dutch oven and you can find lots of recipes on the internet.
Techniques of Wet Fly Fishing
September 16, 2007
Many anglers who are new to fly fishing consider dry fly fishing the "traditional" way of catching trout. Well, that’s not entirely true. Wet fly fishing dates back hundreds of years, well before dry fly fishing came around.
Wet fly fishing is one of the best ways for anglers to get introduced to sub-surface fishing. Unlike nymph and dry fly fishing, where skill, practice and precise imitations are needed to effectively take trout consistently, wet fly fishing can provide rewards quickly - even to beginner anglers. Unlike dry fly fishing and nymph fly fishing - when using wet flies, the angler is not attempting to precisely imitate any particular insect.
Wet Fly Fishing : Basic Overview
Instead of looking precisely like a particular type of insect, a wet fly is more an imitation of a stage of life of aquatic insects. Many wet flies imitate a struggling nymph as it attempts to reach the surface of the river. These same wet flies also suitably imitate dead or drowning insects. Either way, one thing about wet flies is that they generally imitate aquatic insects in motion (moving to the surface, drowning in the water, etc?) ? not just floating merrily along in the current, completely helpless (although that is done, too!).
A Fishy Road Trip in Cairns
September 15, 2007
The Cairns Fishing Adventure A Great Australia Road Trip
You love holidays? You love to fish? Then you’ll need to come to Cairns, Australia where the fishing is, quite simply, bloody fantastic.
You’ve got options coming out of your ears when you fish in Cairns on your next Great Australian Road Trip. It has almost every species of Pacific game fish in the blue waters near the reef. You can go fishing in the estuaries; you can go fishing in the rivers. You can go fishing offshore, onshore, and in sections of the reef. In fact, we can’t be sure if anyone does anything else up in Cairns. You can self drive at your own leisure, or hire out a charter and go on a great adventure, cashing in on local knowledge for all the best fishing spots.
The Cairns Plan So, the plan is - fly into Cairns Airport and venture off in your new car rental to start hunting some cold-blooded scaley things. The mighty Black Marlin, the Barracuda, the Giant Trevally — they’re all lurking out there. Go get’em!
How To Choose the Right Fly Line Weight
September 14, 2007
Written on the rod blank or handle is a code number which indicates the line that the rod manufacturer suggests is best for most customers; i.e., 6 line. To most fly anglers, this means that they should use nothing but a 6 weight line with this rod. But to get the full potential from different fishing situations, you may want to consider using several line sizes on your rod - perhaps varying as much as two line sizes from the one suggested on the rod.
Manufacturers know your rod may be used in a host of fishing situations, but they can’t judge your casting style and fishing skills. So when they place a recommended line number on your rod, it is implied that it’s for average fishing conditions. First, understand that you’re not going to damage a fly rod using fly line a little lighter or heavier than is recommended. Certainly, at times, the rod will fish better if different line sizes are used.
Match line weight to conditions
Let me cite several examples of when you might want to use various line weights on the same rod for different fishing conditions you may encounter.
