Hunting African Game In Texas

Many hunters in Texas and beyond don’t realize the rich landscape of African game hunting opportunities right here in our state. Think of just about any African game animal from an Addax to a Zebra and we have it here, most likely on a high fenced hunting ranch near you if you live in Texas or many roam free-range throughout the land. If you are not from here, this is a great state to visit!

There are many advantages to hunting African game in the Lone Star State. For one you get to keep your meat from your harvest! Many times in hunting adventures in Africa you get to eat some of your meat there but a majority of it goes to the local villagers. While that is a great thing for the locals there, many hunters, like myself, hunt for meat and not just the trophy shoulder mount to hang on the wall.

The second reason to consider an African hunt in Texas is the total cost of the adventure. Now while you can get some great hunting rate deals in Africa, it’s the international airline travel, meals and lodging that can be the most expensive part most of the time. The biggest objection to hunting abroad in the dark continent is usually two things: time and money. An in-the-states hunting adventure solves both these problems most of the time. Getting here in a short amount of time via air travel or even if you are a road warrior is relatively easy and the cost is usually less in the grand scheme of things when pricing out the entire adventure from start to finish in Texas versus Africa when you total each one out.

While you most likely won’t find Elephants or Cape Buffalo here in great state of Texas, many plains game are readily available to hunt. Ever wanted to take home an Oryx? There is an ample amount of them here. My absolute favorite of all the African game animals is the Greater Kudu and I saw a hunt for one the other day on a Facebook group dedicated to Texas exotic hunting. How about a Blue Wildebeest or Waterbuck? Texans can hunt for them as well.

One of my many roles in the outdoor industry is working with hunting ranches and brokering exotic animal sales. I know that second part of the last sentence might sound weird but stocking hunting ranches with all of these different exotic game animals is a real business. My best advice when going to book one of these hunts on a dedicated game hunting ranch is to ask plenty of good questions and watch out for kill fees, trophy fees and other hidden fees a ranch might spring on you at the end of your hunt. It is vitally important to know the total cost of a hunt before you commit to it, book a deposit and schedule your hunt.

Africa is beautiful and most of the people you run into who have been there say they plan to return there to hunt once again in the future. The culture and people of that great landscape stay with you for a lifetime. The purpose of this article takes nothing away from a trip abroad to the great hunting adventures of Africa but always know you also have some wonderful hunting opportunities, beautiful scenery, great meat yields and wonderful people always waiting for you a little closer to home, right here in Texas.

 Dustin Vaughn Warncke