The Safari Club International Convention was not just about outfitters, hunting, and the like. There were jewelers, furriers, and purveyors of all sorts of things. I didn’t pay much attention to the jewelers and furriers but I did pay attention to the furniture.
My favorites were tables made by a local Nashville company called Sawdust and Whiskey. Made from trees from Central and South America like parota, they emphasized the heartwood of the trees.
The curved slab or drip slab tables were incredible. They take half of the log and then cut it so it ends in the curve you see above as well as below. These tables sell for approximately $5-6,000.
Sawdust & Whiskey also had flat slabs for a more traditional table as well as tables with epoxy inlays.
You also had the lamps and chandeliers made from antler sheds. Lake Antlerworks from Wyoming also used antlers to form the legs of side and coffee tables.
Continuing the outdoor theme but using old parts from outboard motors and agricultural machines was Machine Age Lamps. Some of their stuff had a very Steampunk vibe to it. I loved how they repurposed the old Johnson outboard motor seen below.
Chairs made from reclaimed stumps stood out like the ones below. I’m not sure which company they came from.
You also had the more traditional leather and antler furniture as well.
Whether it was for your trophy room, man-cave, or dining room, you could find something that would be a statement piece if you looked. You could also go for the British campaign furniture look as well with items from Jim Morando of African Sporting Creations. Unfortunately, I didn’t get any pictures of it while in Nashville. You will have to look on his website.
To round it out, there was a lot of artwork and sculptures. I particularly liked the bronze below by the late Loet Vanderveen which has a patina painted on it. The painting of the elephant is by South African artist Derric van Rensburg. Both were represented by Native Visions.
Another van Rensburg painting that caught my eye is that of this leopard.
There were plenty of more realistic pieces of art at the convention but it was the colorful, impressionistic works that obviously caught my eye.
The SCI Convention will again be held in Nashville. The dates are from January 31st to February 3rd.
One of the great things about a convention is seeing old friends and meeting new ones. It doesn’t matter if it is the NRA Annual Meeting, the SHOT Show, or, as in this case, the Safari Club International Convention. The Complementary Spouse and I attended the convention held in Nashville as well as the one held last year in Las Vegas. Thus, I have some basis for comparison.
I met hunter, author, Marine, gun writer, and editor Craig Boddington initially at the Dallas Safari Club where I bought a couple of his books. I met him again in Las Vegas when I attended his seminar for first time African hunters. This year I attended his seminar on buffalo hunting in Africa as well got another of his well-regarded books on safari rifles. I had the original edition and now I have Safari Rifles II. I had hoped to get his book on buffalo hunting but he was sold out.
Another author I met at the SCI Convention was Sue Tidwell from Idaho. She is the author of Cries of the Savanna: An Adventure. An Awakening. A journey to understanding African wildlife conservation. Sue and I had “met” on the africahunting.com forum. I will be reviewing her book which I am about halfway finished. It is a story of how she had many of her preconceived beliefs on African wildlife stripped away when she journeyed to Tanzania with her husband on safari. She was not anti-hunting but had some romanticized beliefs about animals such as the zebra. Sue was a delightful person to chat with and I look forward to seeing her again next year. I understand she might just have another book in the works.
I have been a long time fan of Cable Smith’s Lone Star Outdoor Show podcast which is sponsored by SCI. I had contacted him prior to the convention asking if we could meet. We did and it was great speaking with him. In the photo below (which I think I took for him), Cable is with large carnivore wildlife biologist Maria Davidson. She retired from the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries. She is now the SCI Foundation Large Carnivore Program Leader. Her interview ought to be must listening for everyone here in Asheville as she talks about black bears and opportunistic feeding.
Courtesy of Cable Smith
Speaking of old friends, as I was meeting with Cable Smith up comes Jim Shepherd of the Outdoor Wires. I had met him at many events and corresponded or chatted with him multiple times. Jim now lives in Nashville and was reporting on the convention for the Outdoor and Shooting Wires. I am in total agreement with Jim that Nashville was a good fit for SCI. While some of SCI’s old guard may love Vegas, SCI recognized the need to be where they could have the potential to reach millions of younger hunters.
I also got to catch up with Andy and Sheila Larsson of Skinner Sights who introduced me to Tim Fallon of FTW/SAAM Training Ranch. Sheila told me she presented a rifle to Jim Shockey to replace a family heirloom that had gotten stolen or lost in transit. Another person I ran into was Chris Cox of Capitol 6 Advisors. Yes, that Chris Cox. Unlike Wayne, he seemed to have a genuine interest in hunting.
As I said earlier, we attended the SCI Convention in both Las Vegas and Nashville. One of the major differences I noticed immediately on arriving on Wednesday was that you saw more families in Nashville. While not at the level as what I saw at the Dallas Safari Club Convention in 2022, it was still lightyears ahead of what I saw in Las Vegas. You also saw many younger attendees looking for their first hunt out West or in Africa. I can’t speak for the evening events as we didn’t attend them but even those seemed aimed to attract a somewhat younger audience with entertainment from Lynyrd Skynyrd.
Four days seems like time enough to see everyone you wanted to see but it really wasn’t. I am a fan of Gabriella Hoffman’s District of Conservation podcast and had made plans to meet with her. Unfortunately, due to a glitch in our schedules we didn’t get to meet. There will be other events so I am sure she and I will meet sometime.
When all is said and done, it is the people that make events such as this a memorable event.
Teddy Roosevelt and his son Kermit on safari in 1909.
The seminar was very comprehensive and covered all six species of African buffalo, where they are found, their differences, how to hunt them, how to judge a trophy, hunting in various countries, and meat utilization. Few hunters have the breadth or depth of hunting buffalo over such a long period of time as Craig Boddington.
Look at the picture above of Teddy Roosevelt and his son Kermit on their famous 1909 safari in which they took 512 animals. To an uneducated eye, that looks like a good Cape buffalo and for 1909 it probably was. For today, not so great. Today it would be considered an immature bull as its boss or helmet-like covering of its horns had not hardened. However, in 1909, the rinderpest virus had wiped out much of the Cape Buffalo herd across Africa along with much of the domestic cattle. Cape buffalo were few and far between making Roosevelt’s probably as good as it got.
Buffalo are found from sub-Sahara Africa all the way to the tip of South Africa. They tend to be smaller as you go from east to west in central Africa as well as lighter in color. The Southern Cape buffalo is both the largest and most numerous of the buffalo.
According to Craig, there are six sub-species of buffalo. These include:
Southern Cape – Found in southern and east Africa
Nile – Found in Uganda and Sudan
Central African Savannah – Found in Cameroon and Central African Republic
West African Savannah – Found in Benin and Burkina Faso
East African Savannah – Found in Ethiopia
Dwarf Forest – Found in Cameroon, Congo, and Liberia
Craig then went on to detail country by country what to expect in terms of size and number as well as how they are usually hunted. Given he has hunted buffalo for almost 50 years and they are his favorite African animal to hunt, he can speak from experience about hunting in all of these countries.
Southern Cape Buffalo By Country
Botswana
While the Cape Buffalo found in Botswana are big, they have a quota limit. This is because the overpopulation of elephants has had a negative impact on habitat for all other species.
Mozambique
In the north, it is a tracking hunt with lots of glassing. You are looking for white Cattle Egrets as they a tip-off to the presence of Cape Buffalo. The north has big herds that can be two miles wide by six buffalo deep. You will also be doing a lot of swamp hunting where you will either be wading or using an amphibious vehicle like an Argo. This is true of coastal area where the bulls are not as numerous but still good.
Nambia
Most of the country is too dry to produce the grasses needed as feed by the Cape Buffalo. Hunting is primarily in the Caprivi Strip and the Waterberg Reserve north of Windhoek. Namibia has a small quota for buffalo, the herds have good genetics, and hunting there is more expensive due to the limited numbers. Most buffalo are found as they are coming in and out of national parks.
South Africa
The country initially had low numbers of Cape Buffalo. However, breeding has pushed the supply and disease resistance. Breeding has also resulted in good genetics. It is the least expensive place to hunt for Cape Buffalo. As with most hunting in South Africa, it is not genuinely free-range as regulations force high fencing between wild and domestic animals. Craig noted that despite the fencing it is not an easy hunt. The bulls know every nook and corner of their 5-10,000 acres and can disappear in a heartbeat.
Hunting for buffalo in South Africa tends to be a stalking hunt. You are often dealing dense brush in the bushveldt. Buffalo here tend to be more aggressive and more likely to charge.
Tanzania
It is a classic, tracking hunt in Tanzania. Craig noted it was expensive but the hunting was great. Much of the hunting is a what he termed “park boundary hunts” where you are waiting for buffalo to leave the reserves. The keys for buffalo hunting here are grass and water. They need both. Craig’s all-time best buffalo was taken in the Masailand area of Tanzania.
Zambia
Zambia is a sleeper according to Craig. While more expensive than Zimbabwe, it has very good hunting. Tracking is the method of choice here.
Zimbabwe
There is good buffalo hunting in Zimbabwe with large herds. The bulls are not monsters when it comes to size. It is, however, very good for duggaboys or older bachelor bulls. You have classic tracking hunting here with thick cover. The herds are primarily found in the periphery areas of Zimbabwe.
Other Sub-species Of BuffaloDiscussed
Nile Buffalo
The Nile sub-species is most prevalent in Uganda. It is smaller than the Southern Cape Buffalo and tends to reddish-brown in coloration as opposed to the black of the Southern Cape. Their horns tend to be flatter and don’t drop below the jaw line.
Most of Uganda lies within the Nile drainage but it is in the Karamoja region of the north where the Nile buffalo is concentrated. It consists of acacia forests surrounded by large mountains.
Central African Savannah Buffalo
These buffalo tend to be more red. Their horns are smaller and their horns go up, not out. They are found primarily in Cameroon and the Central African Republic.
West African Savannah Buffalo
Even redder than the Central African Savanna Buffalo, they are about one-third smaller than their Central African cousins. They not only have smaller bodies but smaller horns as well. They are found in Benin and Burkina Faso.
Dwarf Forest Buffalo
These, as the name implies, are the smallest of the African buffalo. Found in Congo, Cameroon, and Liberia they weigh about 600 pounds or so. He noted this is a tough hunt because you are hunting in a rain forest. Their coloration is a reddish brown and their horns curl up much like a water buffalo.
Hunting Techniquesand Tips
Tracking
Tracking is the classic method of hunting buffalo in Africa. Most PHs will have a dedicated tracker whose job is to pick up the trail of the buffalo. Craig said to keep an eye on your tracker as his behavior will tell you if you are getting close. He also said to keep an eye out for birds especially in Mozambique. These will be either oxpeckers or white Cattle Egrets. In that case you will be doing “spot and stalk” to get into position to shoot a buffalo.
Shooting & Shot Placement
The average shot distance on a buffalo in Africa is 70 yards. As such, if you are using an optic, you do not need a lot of magnification. Craig said scopes in the 1.5-5x, 1-8x, 2-7x, and the very common 3-9x are all you need. You should also keep it at the minimum magnification and only go up if needed. Craig said the longest shot he ever took on a buffalo was 160 yards.
You will need a tough bullet such as the Swift A-Frame, the Nosler Partitions, the Barnes monometal TSX/TTSX, or the Hornady bonded DGX. Solids are also an option. However, if the buffalo is in a herd, avoid monometal bullets (Barnes) as well as solids. Stick with a good bonded bullet. You don’t want the bullet to go through one buffalo and then wound another. That can be costly in more ways than one.
In terms of shot placement, it should be about one-third of the way up the shoulder if the buffalo is quartering or broadside. The big mistake is to shoot too high. Frontal shots are common. If all you can see is the front two legs, then center the shot. Do not shoot to the sides. You should always take that second shot as buffalo are tough and you don’t want to be tracking a wounded one if you can help it.
Given buffalo are generally herd animals, make sure you and your PH are looking at the same buffalo.
Evaluating Trophies
The trophy bull will have a hard boss. That is the thick, helmet-like growth at the base of its horns. There should be no hair on the boss which would indicate a younger animal. The hard boss is the mark of a mature bull. The boss only starts to harden at 9-10 years old and the bull is then ready to compete for breeding rights. He may only have one year of breeding before he is forced out by a new bull. The average age for a trophy bull is 12-13 years old.
This is a case where you need to pay attention to your PH. He will be experienced in evaluating the age of a bull and its trophy quality. If there is any doubt, don’t shoot!
Danger Factor
A wounded bull can charge. Thus, you need to make sure of your shot. Buffalo in South Africa seem more likely to charge than elsewhere which might be due to a smaller range caused by high fences.
Jokingly, Craig said not to read too many Peter Hathaway Capstick stories. That said, the “dead one’s” will kill you. Hunters, PHs, trackers, and others have been killed by buffalo and especially wounded buffalo.
When approaching a downed buffalo, approach from behind and be ready to put a finishing shot in its spine. I have heard this not only from Craig but just this week on a podcast with Dr. Kevin “Doctari” Robertson who was both a veterinarian and a former PH.
Meat Recovery
The meat from a buffalo is never wasted. It will often go to local village especially in areas like Mozambique. Alternatively, it is shared with local schools or orphanages with some retained by the outfitter for feeding the guests.
The Book
I tried to get a copy of Craig’s book, Buffalo II, at his booth. Unfortunately, they were sold out. The deluxe limited edition is still available on his website along with some of his other books and his DVDs. I bought my copy of Buffalo II! on Amazon. Here is a link. If you ever think you might want to hunt African buffalo, this is must reading. Even if you just want to dream about it, I suggest getting the book while it is still available. Safari Press was sold late last year to large publisher Rowan and Littlefield. Large presses like that are less likely to keep older books on their list.
The Complementary Spouse and I attended the 2023 Safari Club International Convention in Nashville held from February 22nd through 25th. It was held at the Music City Center in downtown Nashville. This is where the NRA was supposed to have their 2020 Annual Meeting until the pandemic interfered.
There were 835 exhibitors with 140 countries represented. From what I understand, they had to turn down some exhibitors as there just was not enough room for everyone who wanted to be an exhibitor. Having attended the convention last year at the Mandalay Bay Convention Center, I didn’t realize there was that much difference in size. However, checking the available exhibition space for both venues, Mandalay Bay is about 2.5 times as large as the Music City Center.
The Complementary Spouse reminded me that the aisles were wider in Las Vegas and that there were more open spaces in the Mandalay Bay exhibit hall. I do remember it being much harder to find the rooms in which the seminars were being held as they were on a different floor in another section of the facility.
Regardless of which venue had more exhibit space, it was my impression that they had better attendance in Nashville over the four days than they did in Las Vegas. It was the first time that SCI had come East for a convention. As Jim Shepherd noted in his report on the convention, you go to where the people are. There are millions of hunters and anglers within a four hour drive of Nashville. For us, it was a five hour drive which was fine. Not having to fly to Las Vegas and deal with that city made this year a pleasure.
We did talk to quite a number of safari outfitters. My goal is to hunt somewhere in southern Africa in 2024. I spoke to outfitters from both South Africa and Namibia as well as catching up with a safari outfitter from Zambia that I met last year. I had hoped to make the trip this year but honestly felt I just was not in the physical shape that I’d like to be.
One of the biggest differences I saw between last year in Las Vegas and this year in Nashville were the number of families who attended. Other than not having groups of school kids, it felt much more like the Dallas Safari Club Convention I attended in 2022. What I mean by that is that kids were welcome, families were numerous, and younger people were everwhere. I know there is a difference in admission fees between SCI and DSC but this year you wouldn’t have known it.
Photo from SCI
The convention is the major annual fundraiser for SCI. Beyond the money raised through ticket sales and memberships are the funds derived from live and silent auctions held every day of the convention. While I don’t have the figures from the silent auctions, the day and night live auctions raised approximately $4.4 million by my estimate. The range of winning bids for trips and goods ranged from $500 at one end to $675,000 for a set of five custom rifles called the African Lion Rifle Collection. These were made by gunmaker John Bollinger on sequentially serial-numbered Winchester Model 70 actions with Turkish walnut stocks which all came from one 300-year old tree. It took five years to complete the project.
Courtesy of SCI – African Lion Rifle Collection
We did not attend any of the evening events such as the concerts by stars such as Lynyrd Skynyrd, Gretchen Wilson, Big & Rich, and Lee Brice. From what I understand, they all sold out or close to it. These, too, helped raise money for wildlife conservation and protecting hunting.
I did attend two of the 41 seminars held from Tuesday through Saturday. I will have separate posts up on those two. However, the seminars ranged from everything from African hunting to the impact of drug cartels on US wildlands.
The convention and evening events attracted and honored a number of legislators, diplomats, and foreign officials. Beyond the US politicians, you had Eduardo Bolsonaro, a Brazilian legislator and son of the former president, who was honored at International Legislator of the Year.
We were also joined by honorable dignitaries from Namibia, Mozambique, South Africa, Tanzania, Zambia, and Zimbabwe and extend a special thank you to H.M. Rodney Sikumba, the Honorable Minister of Zambia’s Ministry of Tourism and H.E. Elsie Sia Kanza, the Tanzanian Ambassador to the U.S. for her attendance.
Events like this often attract demonstrators from anti-hunting groups who wish to impose their neo-colonialist beliefs on African and other countries. Surprisingly, the only thing we saw was a roadside billboard objecting to bear hunting. It is my understanding that the Humane Society of the US which is virulently anti-hunting had an “undercover investigator” sneak in. I will have a separate post of it.
The convention hotels in downtown Nashville were all very nice, convenient to the facility, and, dare I say it, expensive. We took an alternate route. We stayed at a Comfort Inn in Brentwood which includes breakfast and free WiFi. Even better was the road we took into downtown Nashville, US 31 aka Franklin Rd and 8th Ave, went directly to one side of the Music City Center which had plenty of parking for a set fee of $20. It was a 15-20 minute drive with no traffic jams. It might not work for you but it was great for us.
The SCI Convention will be in Nashville for the next two years and then switch to New Orleans for a year. The dates for the 2024 event are January 31st through February 3rd. If you can make it even for a day, it is worth it.
(I had planned to have this up much earlier and apologize for the delay. Some things had to be attended to when we got home and then my natural procrastination kicked in.)
The registration for the 2023 Safari Club International Convention is now open. The even will be held February 22nd through 25th in Nashville at the Music City Center. This is the convention center where the NRA has held their annual meetings in the past.
This will be the first SCI Convention to be held outside of Nevada since 1993. In their earliest years, they held some conventions in cities like Atlanta and Orlando. However, they were not a great success when compared to Las Vegas and Reno. I am hoping this year will be prove to be different.
The 2022 convention was fun in Las Vegas and we split our time between it and the SHOT Show. I enjoyed the exhibits as well as attending some of the seminars. Not wanting to be tempted, I skipped the auctions and banquets. All of that said, I’m excited that it will be held in a location to which I can easily drive and where I know my way around. I also like the timing of it as it won’t make the month of January jam-packed with events.
More information on the convention is below in their press release:
SCI’s preferred hotels for the 2023 Convention include Grand Hyatt Downtown, Hilton Nashville Downtown, Hyatt Place Downtown, JW Marriott Nashville, The Westin Nashville, Renaissance Nashville, and Omni Nashville. Please mention “SCI2023” or “Safari Club room block” when booking hotels over the phone to receive discounted pricing.
The Convention will showcase unique hunting opportunities on six continents, world-class taxidermy and art, and give manufacturers their first opportunity to demonstrate new products directly to consumers. Considered the “Ultimate Sportsmen’s Market,” the Convention also plays host to dozens of topical seminars presented by subject matter experts. Several hundred hunts, fishing trips, firearms, works of art, jewelry, and other items and services are offered at live and silent auctions, helping SCI raise hunter advocacy and conservation funds. Finally, you won’t want to miss out on the nightly banquets and world-class entertainment starring country music celebrities, hunting superstars, and much more!
Whether attendees are looking to book their dream hunt, scope out the latest firearms and gear, or find taxidermy inspiration, the SCI Annual Convention will impress with many exhibits and something for everyone!
To register for the 2023 SCI Annual Convention, visit https://showsci.org. To contact a registration agent, please dial 520-620-1220 or call toll-free at 888-746-9724.
UPDATE: I came across this teaser video on the 2023 SCI Convention. It is definitely well done.
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