Testimonials
people who have experienced hotfire safaris
Jim
Calgary, AB Canada
11 May - 30 May
2014
We arrived in Johannesburg late in the evening of May 12, too late to fly on to East London. The Air 2000/Hunter Support personnel are worth their fee. Nothing like being met at the gate, expedited through the immigration booth and on to the SAPS office where the pre-approved rifle permit made for a speedy exit with no headaches. We were then escorted to the City Lodge, which is a short walk from the airport through a walkway. The City Lodge is very nice and certainly convenient, especially as we had an early flight the next morning.
Our Outfitter and PH Patrick Fletcher met us in East London. Our rental car was quickly obtained, a quick tour of the local gun shop, and we were sent off to Morgan Bay.
Our Outfitter and PH Patrick Fletcher met us in East London. Our rental car was quickly obtained, a quick tour of the local gun shop, and we were sent off to Morgan Bay.
- May 16: Patrick came over to Morgan Bay and took us into the Trans Kei.
- May 17: We said goodbye to Morgan Bay. We dropped off the rental car and Off we went to Addo Elephant National Park with Patrick as our guide.
- May 19: We finally arrived at Hotfire. It was everything that was advertised. We quickly went off to the range to check zero before sunset.
- May 20: About 15 minutes into the hunt, I was able to harvest this great East Cape kudu.
- May 21: I missed a really nice impala on a steeply uphill shot with the setting sun in my eyes. I’m beginning to think that impala are my nemesis!
- May 22: I was finally able to make my impala jinx go away.
- May 23: The early morning hunt yielded a blue wildebeest. Late in the afternoon, I was able to harvest a nice zebra stallion.
- May 24: We hunted another property called Imvani near Queenstown. I was only able to cull this red hartebeest, although I somehow missed a black hartebeest.
- May 25: We’re back at Imvani, looking primarily for a fallow deer. Another belly crawl resulted in this nice black wildebeest.
- May 26: We’re back at Imvani for one final crack at fallow deer. No joy, so we are off to Lalapa to try for fallow deer there. It is also a great mountain reedbok area.
- May 27: We set off up the mountain at Hotfire to harvest a blesbok. After photos, Allman the tracker, gutted the blesbuck and without any assistance, packed it off the mountain. He almost beat me, but them I am so crippled up, I not very fast. None the less, IMO, it is an impressive feat. By 1130 we had packed up and were off to Fort Drummond Safaris to search for gemsbok. We were cursed by high winds and warmer than normal temperatures, but were finally able to harvest one the next morning on May 28th in gale force winds.
Jennifer and Lucille entertained my wife by visiting with her around camp and taking her to various game drives and spas and just being good company, except for the gemsbok hunt, which is the first time she has ever come hunting with me.
On May 29, we said our goodbyes to everyone at Hotfire and began our journey home. It was the best vacation of our lives!
READ FULL STORY HERE
- May 17: We said goodbye to Morgan Bay. We dropped off the rental car and Off we went to Addo Elephant National Park with Patrick as our guide.
- May 19: We finally arrived at Hotfire. It was everything that was advertised. We quickly went off to the range to check zero before sunset.
- May 20: About 15 minutes into the hunt, I was able to harvest this great East Cape kudu.
- May 21: I missed a really nice impala on a steeply uphill shot with the setting sun in my eyes. I’m beginning to think that impala are my nemesis!
- May 22: I was finally able to make my impala jinx go away.
- May 23: The early morning hunt yielded a blue wildebeest. Late in the afternoon, I was able to harvest a nice zebra stallion.
- May 24: We hunted another property called Imvani near Queenstown. I was only able to cull this red hartebeest, although I somehow missed a black hartebeest.
- May 25: We’re back at Imvani, looking primarily for a fallow deer. Another belly crawl resulted in this nice black wildebeest.
- May 26: We’re back at Imvani for one final crack at fallow deer. No joy, so we are off to Lalapa to try for fallow deer there. It is also a great mountain reedbok area.
- May 27: We set off up the mountain at Hotfire to harvest a blesbok. After photos, Allman the tracker, gutted the blesbuck and without any assistance, packed it off the mountain. He almost beat me, but them I am so crippled up, I not very fast. None the less, IMO, it is an impressive feat. By 1130 we had packed up and were off to Fort Drummond Safaris to search for gemsbok. We were cursed by high winds and warmer than normal temperatures, but were finally able to harvest one the next morning on May 28th in gale force winds.
Jennifer and Lucille entertained my wife by visiting with her around camp and taking her to various game drives and spas and just being good company, except for the gemsbok hunt, which is the first time she has ever come hunting with me.
On May 29, we said our goodbyes to everyone at Hotfire and began our journey home. It was the best vacation of our lives!
READ FULL STORY HERE
The view from our Morgan Bay Hotel Room
Great East Cape kudu - May 20
Zebra Stallion - May 23
Arden Jacobs
10 Day Hunting Safari
2016
My son, Joe and I did a 10 day hunting safari and it was truly, thanks to Patrick, the trip of a life time. Patrick was my son’s PH and Patrick called in an excellent PH (Ray Kemp) for me. Both men were absolutely first class professionals.
You will find the hospitality at Hotfire to be exceptional. The cuisine, conversation, wine selection and, of course open bar are all wonderful. This is a tent camp, but it is “glamping”, with a nice bed, dresser, electric light and private full bath adjoining your tent.
You will find the hospitality at Hotfire to be exceptional. The cuisine, conversation, wine selection and, of course open bar are all wonderful. This is a tent camp, but it is “glamping”, with a nice bed, dresser, electric light and private full bath adjoining your tent.
On the hunting side, when one considers the daily rate (is it $350 USD/day?), for a dedicated Professional Hunter (guide), a purpose built vehicle, spotter/tracker complete with terrier dog to find a wounded animal (if need be) in the thornbrush, plus the accommodation, food, bar, maid service and daily laundry it is a bargain. Hunting is not “canned” as there is sufficient terrain and it is physically challenging as the camp is in a bowl surrounded by low mountains, with a river forming one boundary.
I have no first hand experience regarding the touring side, but I am confident that Patrick will ensure that no detail is over looked and it, like the hunting safari, will be the trip of a life time.
I highly endorse Hotfire and Patrick Fletcher. Patrick’s mom (Lucille) and wife (Jen) are also involved so the family is engaged in the enterprise. You will be in good hands to deliver whatever your heart (and wallet) desires! Take lots of cash, because you will enjoy tipping all the hands that make your trip so unforgettable!
I have no first hand experience regarding the touring side, but I am confident that Patrick will ensure that no detail is over looked and it, like the hunting safari, will be the trip of a life time.
I highly endorse Hotfire and Patrick Fletcher. Patrick’s mom (Lucille) and wife (Jen) are also involved so the family is engaged in the enterprise. You will be in good hands to deliver whatever your heart (and wallet) desires! Take lots of cash, because you will enjoy tipping all the hands that make your trip so unforgettable!
Jeff
After meeting Patrick at the Africa Hunting Show in Saskatoon in 2016, I decided to take the plunge and give Hotfire a shot (sorry). I had been on a wonderful two-country hunt with a friend the summer before, and attended the show more out of curiosity than anything else, but Patrick quoted me a price for a nyala and bushbuck that I couldn’t refuse, so I sold a kidney, collected bottles, and was on my way at the end of April 2016.
Patrick is a very personable young man, and a determined, dedicated, and extremely ethical hunter, as I was to learn. From the moment I arrived in East London, we hit it off well and every second of my time with him was exciting, challenging, and rewarding. This was my first trip to the East Cape, and the various landscapes are stunning. By the time I left, we had hunted mountain valleys, bushveld, and huge open plains teeming with game animals and an astonishing variety of plants, birds, and other animals.
Patrick is a very personable young man, and a determined, dedicated, and extremely ethical hunter, as I was to learn. From the moment I arrived in East London, we hit it off well and every second of my time with him was exciting, challenging, and rewarding. This was my first trip to the East Cape, and the various landscapes are stunning. By the time I left, we had hunted mountain valleys, bushveld, and huge open plains teeming with game animals and an astonishing variety of plants, birds, and other animals.
One of the real highlights was to climb so high (in search of the elusive bushbuck), that daybreak saw us sitting above the clouds in brilliant sunshine looking down into the cloud-filled valleys while being entertained by a large troop of very noisy baboons who were sunning themselves on the rocks across the valley. Cool.
Patrick’s camp is very attractive, with comfortable tents artfully integrated into the trees, as well as the usual African features, all interconnected by beautiful stone walkways and terraces. The food, prepared by Patrick’s mother, Lucille, was excellent and always accompanied with fine South African wine, and many entertaining stories. Jennifer, Patrick’s wife, was a charming hostess, who provided many important little touches, including mailing items for me in Cathcart, and generally making me feel at home. Unfortunately for Patrick, my pre-dinner bad habit ritual of drinks and cigars around the fire caught on with him, and I think he has developed a new vice. Sorry Jenn!
As I wrote above, nyala and bushbuck were the primary objectives, and there are nyala everywhere! We saw dozens of bulls, but they were mostly a little too young. Hunters who try Hotfire in the next years will benefit from the bumper crop of these young bulls as they age over the next years. Day in and day out, Patrick, Allman the tracker, and I walked, climbed, and glassed in search of the right one, and, of course, he did finally show, distracted by a number of ewes as we made our slow, careful approach. I hunted hard for this bull, and am more proud of him than any other animal I have hunted. What a memory!
Unexpectedly cold, drizzly weather had made the nyala and bushbuck hunting much more difficult than it otherwise would have been, so we struck off inland a few times in search of other opportunities. I shot a nice red lechwe, and a common and black springbok, and enjoyed encountering the many other plentiful animals, especially the antics of the black wildebeest, truly the clown-prince of the plains, and a large family of bat-eared foxes. I should have taken a great common reedbuck ram, but hindsight is always 20/20.
I could go on, but suffice it to say, I recommend Patrick and Hotfire Safaris unconditionally. He has a great operation, and I know that I’ll be back again before too long…there is also a monster kudu bull we watched on the last evening of my stay, whose huge and still-developing horns are burned into my memory. And I didn’t get my bushbuck, who apparently don’t like cold or rain. Next time.
Patrick’s camp is very attractive, with comfortable tents artfully integrated into the trees, as well as the usual African features, all interconnected by beautiful stone walkways and terraces. The food, prepared by Patrick’s mother, Lucille, was excellent and always accompanied with fine South African wine, and many entertaining stories. Jennifer, Patrick’s wife, was a charming hostess, who provided many important little touches, including mailing items for me in Cathcart, and generally making me feel at home. Unfortunately for Patrick, my pre-dinner bad habit ritual of drinks and cigars around the fire caught on with him, and I think he has developed a new vice. Sorry Jenn!
As I wrote above, nyala and bushbuck were the primary objectives, and there are nyala everywhere! We saw dozens of bulls, but they were mostly a little too young. Hunters who try Hotfire in the next years will benefit from the bumper crop of these young bulls as they age over the next years. Day in and day out, Patrick, Allman the tracker, and I walked, climbed, and glassed in search of the right one, and, of course, he did finally show, distracted by a number of ewes as we made our slow, careful approach. I hunted hard for this bull, and am more proud of him than any other animal I have hunted. What a memory!
Unexpectedly cold, drizzly weather had made the nyala and bushbuck hunting much more difficult than it otherwise would have been, so we struck off inland a few times in search of other opportunities. I shot a nice red lechwe, and a common and black springbok, and enjoyed encountering the many other plentiful animals, especially the antics of the black wildebeest, truly the clown-prince of the plains, and a large family of bat-eared foxes. I should have taken a great common reedbuck ram, but hindsight is always 20/20.
I could go on, but suffice it to say, I recommend Patrick and Hotfire Safaris unconditionally. He has a great operation, and I know that I’ll be back again before too long…there is also a monster kudu bull we watched on the last evening of my stay, whose huge and still-developing horns are burned into my memory. And I didn’t get my bushbuck, who apparently don’t like cold or rain. Next time.
