THE SAVANT

The Bezoar Ibex, the most striking of the Ibex species. In the second week of June (2026), Turkish wildlife authorities issued the minimum auction prices for hunting permits. All species are affected, and the increases range from 14% to almost 100%. Somehow, they think this is a good move for conservation and the broader hunting industry. They believe that the market will is elastic enough to flex with their policy. Like all challenges we collectively face as international hu

Highlights from Kamchatka for the 2026 Spring Season There's zero value in the hype and performative boasting that runs rampant in the hunting industry. What hunters are hunting for most is the truth and to have expectations set correctly, to be well-prepared with details that are planned meticulously, and no surprises. When pictures of exceptional trophies grace the pages of magazines and social media, the issue is whether or not success will be predictable and repeatable fo

No one has ever attempted to create a global, cross‑era, cross‑species ranking of the greatest big game trophies. That’s understandable because any list could be debated ad infinitum. Subjectivity and personal preference could understandably skew what makes the list and what doesn’t. But that’s OK for the purposes of this post because the Top 12 list that follows was developed with the specific input of several hundred global hunters gathered over 3 decades of hunt consulting

Another successful season. Shown are but a few of the bears taken on the Magadan coastal area. These are the same bears that inhabit the Kamchatka Peninsula. Very up-market camp. English-speaking outfitter. Highly professional. We also use this camp as a base for hunting Okhotsk snow sheep. Snow machines are used to cover ground -- spotting tracks and bears on the move. These are the most successful trophy brown bear hunts in the world. Russia is safe. Why? It's about the eco

The Bayaka Pygmies—called Baka in Cameroon, Aka in CAR, and collectively known in Congo as the Forest People—are one of the oldest continuous human cultures on earth. Their ancestry predates the Bantu migrations, the Sahelian kingdoms, and the colonial frontiers. They can track ghosts. They can sense parts per billion of scent. Each track is a living organism speaking to them. They don't follow "around" an obstacle on the track; they go under or through it. You follow or you

While Pakistan's Markhor receive well-deserved recognition as an unparalleled conservation success story, Turkey has been quietly replenishing its herd of the distinctive Konya Mouflon. Early conservation efforts began with a starter herd nurtured in a large fenced enclosure located in the sheep's home range in the western part of the country. Many sheep are being released into the wild with each passing year. Today, hunting takes place in both free-range areas and fenced, ga

Bongo - Forest Sitatunga - Forest Dwarf Buffalo - Red River Hog - Multiple Duikers Two 2026 cancellations have resulted in a $15,000 discount in the total daily rate per hunter. 13-day safari. Flexible dates in prime season: First half of June, second half of June, and sometime within the first 3 weeks of September. If these dates don't work, please contact us to see what we might be able to arrange. High density of Bongo. Multiple species. Professional outfitting. Track wi

Success in the Himalayas A solid joint effort by our Caprinae Safaris and Markhor Safaris teams helped two hard-working hunters achieve their objective on Blue Sheep and Himalayan Ibex in March 2026. These are hunts that not only qualify for high achievement in the mountain hunting world, they distinguish themselves as adventures that feel more like expeditions. This is not the first time that we have advocated hunting in the beautiful, game-rich, and welcoming cultural atmos

4D fortress thinking is both a process and a state of mind for how we advise a hunter. We don’t advise based on what the playing field looks like today—we advise based on what it will look like over time. We’re not just helping hunters choose and plan a hunt. We’re planning a sequence. Most people in our industry don’t even realize is possible. We’re not just thinking about hunts; we’re thinking about systems, time, ethics, foresight, and inevitability . That’s rare air. 1. P

2026 marks the 40th anniversary of personal hunting, operating, and cultural immersion in Mongolia. I’ll be in the Altai and Gobi again this September with the same desire and excitement as my first trip in 1986 but with more perspective, due diligence, and operational know-how than I possessed as a young hunter. Change is so dynamic in the country that the success formula has evolved. The wisdom that created experience is valuable, but conditions signal the need for actionab

Superb trophy taken among the rocks and sky. The Sindh Ibex ( Capra aegagrus blythi ) is one of Pakistan’s signature mountain trophies—compact, spectacularly horned, and hunted in some of the most dramatic desert‑mountain terrain in Central Asia. It’s a prestige species with a long conservation legacy and a tightly regulated permit system that ensures their prosperity. Sindh Ibex hunts are virtually 100% successful as are the hunts for Blanford Urial which cohabitate in the s

At the Pantheon Hunters Booth - Eastern Chapter of WSF Expo with Craig Kauffman and my partners Riza Gozluk and Mehmet Alkan of Caprinae Safaris. Hunting conventions and fundraisers never disappoint. The passionate emerge from behind websites, emails, social media, and advertising to engage in a dialog. Having genuine conversations with hunters and reunions with friends who serve the hunting community in the real value - be they philanthropists, luminaries, outfitters, guides

Abercrombie & Fitch, founded in 1892, evolved to be the social center of American sporting and safari gun culture. “I’m going to Tanganyika for lion, buffalo, and plains game.” “You’ll need a .30‑06, a .375 H&H, and a .470 double. Let’s begin.” A&F was importing sporting guns and rifles from Holland & Holland, Westley Richards, Rigby, Purdey, Boss, Francotte, Krieghoff, and Merkel among others. But A&F didn’t just sell safari rifles — they booked hunts, arranged travel, and

The Regal Alpine Ibex - Arguably Europe's Most Noble Mountain Game Trophy The Alpine ibex ( Capra ibex ) is a muscular, sure-footed, and crowned with ridged, arching horns symbolizing ledgers of age and dominance—each ridge a chapter in a life of vertical mastery. Weighing up to 250 pounds but as fleet footed as an antelope, the brown coats of billies gradually thicken in late summer to take on the brutal winters of the high Alps. Nearly extinct by the 17th century across Eur

The opportunity to hunt sheep at relatively affordable prices in the sheep hunting world can be found throughout the Russian Far East. Combinations are possible. Inter-area transfers to hunt multiple sheep are usually conducted by charter helicopter. Outfitting capabilities and guiding talent rank with the best anywhere in Asia. Species Reference Chart with Physical Degree of Difficulty Index

Vast open flats of deep snow. The only option during the Spring brown bear season is to ride over the top of it. This will most likely also be the case during prime-time November hunts for moose. Workhorse of the Russian Far East - the Big Mi8. Transports hunters, equipment, supplies, and trophies. 5 minutes from the window of an Mi8 . . . flying over Brown Bear and Chukotaka Moose territory.

Cake Eaters Need Not Apply The Itelmen are an Indigenous people of the Kamchatka Peninsula — once a riverine, salmon‑based hunter‑gatherer society with deep spiritual traditions tied to game animals, rivers, and seasonal cycles. Their pre‑Russian‑contact population may have been as high as 50,000, but epidemics, conquest, and assimilation reduced them dramatically. Today, best estimates are that 2,000 remain. Some identify ethnically even if they no longer speak the language,

Packing out in the Dzungarian Alatau The name Alatau originates from Kazakhstani and means “colorful mountains.” The Alatau range of Eastern Kazakhstan is a pristine hunter’s paradise about 250 miles long (≈400 km), up to 50 miles wide (≈80 km). The valleys below are sparsely wooded, but the higher elevations present an amazing view of the snow-covered summits of mountains inside China. Even today, the Alatau is inhabited by only a few farmers and nomads. These mountains are

Imagine a sensation that defines a threshold moment. The wind moves past you. Mountains stop being terrain and become something closer to a presence. You realize you’re no longer just in the Altai—you’re being absorbed by it. Up where air tastes of stone and sky, the hunt takes on a strange clarity. For a moment, you’re not a hunter, not a visitor, not even a man with a rifle—you’re a spirit scouting its own destiny. When you finally see him — an old ram standing on a skyli

February 2026. Niassa is a pristine ecosystem where the tradition of classic safari hunting thrives. Real lion hunting.