Back to our roots in the wild: Hunting

Importance of Hunting Skills:

1) Hunting is not only for prevention of starvation in the wild (dehydration is much more likely), but to alleviate the physical results induced by starvation, which can lead to injuries or circulatory colapse, which could have fatal consequences. In a real survival situation, hunting is especially useful in a "Stationary Survival" scenario, while waiting for help at one specific point (e.g. vehicle, or crashed landed aeroplane).

2) In addition, hunting skills are a basic requirement for a ranger and therefore an important training module in their training program.

3) Hunting requires numerous suvival skills that can hardly be trained without hunting. Additionally, hunting is not just a key survival discipline and one of the biggest outdoor adventures, but also an ultimate test (and training) of many survival skills in the wild, as hunting requires:

- In-depth knowledge of wildlife and their behavior,

- In-depth nature expertise

- Sharp observational ability, sensory acuity and camouflage abilities 

- Spot first; Remain invisible; See all, but not be seen at all

- Control the adrenaline rush, - Hunting is a great test for your ability to stay controled under stress 

- Shooting accurately under physical and mental strain

- Discover the wild - hunting takes you in the most remote and wildest places 

- Slaughtering and meat utilisation

- Preservation of the meat  - use of other parts of the animal for survival purposes. The whole carcass is a treasure case for the hunter

 

Hunting in Namibia:

For hundreds of thousands of years hunting has been the most important survival strategy of man, long before agriculture and livestock farming were born. For many Africans, hunting is still a completely normal form of food supply. Like our masters, the "oldest hunters" of Namibia, the San (Bushmen), we modern Africa hunters are deeply associated with the wild and the wildlife, and thus stand in competition with agriculture and industry, which to drive back the wildlife, as happened in the industrialized nations. For this reason, as paradoxical as it may sound to the uninformed, the hunters are the "keepers of the wilderness."

 

Hunting weapons and equipment:

Even with good equipment hunting in real wilderness is a challenge that requires intense training and the whole man. We refer to this best case as "Specialized Weapon Hunting", that is  hunting with hunting rifles (see Advanced Survival Hunter, Master Course). In this bachelor's course we start hunting training with "Improvised Hunting Weapons" and "Primitive Hunting Weapons", following the fascinating skills of the Namibian Bushmen (San) and other native tribes.

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Hunting in the Ondjou Wilderness Reserve:

Ondjou is real wilderness, without the "camps with game-proof fencess" unfortuantly common in Namibia. Ondjou gives home to large numbers of wild animals that roam here freely since thousands of years. Here, as for the ancient hunters, the detection of the game is already a challenge. The diversity of landscapes are ideal for learning the most effective and ancient hunting techniques and tactics. At our shooting ranges and hunting parkours, hunting with rifle, shotgun and hunting bow as well as the use of primitive and improvised hunting weapons can be simulated so well that the participants can be quickly introduced to the "real hunt", if wished so.

Hunting on Ondjou is not only used for ecological reasons and meat production, but also to make it economically competitive against  livestock farming and agriculture, so that we can keep Ondjou as it is: A real wilderness as it was since the beginning. Only in this way, over many years, surrounded by commercial cattle farms, we were able to build up a healthy wildlife population and also create a haven for pursued "conflict animals" such as leopards, elephants, cheetahs and lions.

Basically, we only hunt wild animals, which occur in such high numbers that hunting is never affecting the wellbeing of species.- Hunting on Ondjou is therefore responsible, sustainable and meaningful.

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Our sister company "Terra Africana Hunting Safaris" offers special hunting safaris for more ambitious hunters: www.terra-africana-hunting.com

 

Real hunting - or simulated:

n our Basic Survival Hunter course hunting is usually only trained and not necessarily practiced. Nobody has to kill an animal, unless a participant expresses the wish to practice the hunt in real. Whether prey is actually made is secondary, as long as the control of the hunting weapon, as well as the hunting techniques and tactics work well.

The participants are trained on the weapon, so that it could be used in a real hunt with success. For training, the actual hunting in the wild can be simulated, e.g. by photo hunting. The task is "shooting" a photo from as close as possible. If nevertheless an animal was hunted and killed (which is extremely difficult especially with primitive hunting weapons!), the animal is of course professionally slaugtered, prepared and eaten.

 

Participants:

This training module is suitable for anyone, man and woman, who are interested in hunting as a form of food purchase, bushcraft and survival (hunting license for your home country is not required in Namibia). Participants can be for example:
Ranger trainees who need this training module as part of their ranger training course with us. Their training is therefore particularly challenging.

Non-hunters who want to learn "real hunting" 

Young hunters who want to improve their hunting skills under the challenging conditions of the Ondjou Wilderness Reserves

Experienced hunters who want to discover the original form of hunting in Africa and Namibia - with hunting techniques and tactics that - in this form - can not be used or trained elsewhere

Bushcrafters and survival sportsmen who want to get to know all aspects of Wilderness Survival in real and under particularly hard wilderness conditions and who want to learn how to hunt as an ancient form of survival and food acquisition.

 

Training content - Overview

 

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The Adventure of a Lifetime!

 

Hunting training means the most intensive interaction with wildlife. The hunter must merge with nature and see and hear with the senses of the wild animals in order to find and hunt them. This means a lot of physical action in the bush - fueled by the primeval human hunting instinct - many will be surprised at how strong this instinct can capture us. The combination of terrific scenery, wildlife encounters, the magic of Africa and the certainty that his survival skills are essential make training one of the greatest adventures in nature.