Over in Cameroon, chasse libre organizer Cam Greig (cam.greig@ yahoo.com) he has discovered a new hunt area for bongo in the Bombazi Wilderness. Greig, you will recall, has made a side-line business out of helping other hunters organize old-fashioned, on-your-own portered safaris in West Africa. In a recent e-mail Greig sent me a photo of a bongo (see our online Trophy Gallery) taken in this new area along with the following note: "This was taken in a new area that is unhunted and seemingly unpoached. I did not find a single snare on the trip, which is simply amazing. It does take a 20-kilometer walk to get into the area; yet, once there, bongo are the most predominant animals! Tracks are everywhere, and we have set up a number of machans and reinforced the salt licks. It is a light jungle zone, where the canopy allows light to penetrate to the forest floor, allowing the growth of vegetation that can be reached by bongo. The area was logged five years ago, so the new growth has stimulated the bongo population.
"I plan to personally go back in July when the wet weather allows us to track better. The hunting style here includes machans, but is mostly walking known areas and tracking the bongo until you are close and then releasing one or two dogs. This is a most enjoyable hunt, as most of the tracking is with the Bameliki tribesmen. They are used to hunting in this manner and do not normally use dogs at all, just tracking.
"Anyone interested in joining me in July is welcome to contact me. Since this was our first hunt to the area, the 2012 bookings are open, but I think we will take only two groups in per year. The area also has duikers, sitatunga, red river hogs, giant forest hogs and forest buffalo."
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