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Three days in a blind under the sub-Saharan sun will test the patience of any hunter. For a bowhunter, the mind begins to wander—daydreams of picking up a rifle just for the sake of moving, anything to break free from the sweltering furnace of stillness. But there I was, baking in a fabric pop-up blind, waiting for one shot at the elusive trophy bushbuck ram.

Despite three previous trips to the Limpopo region, I had yet to lay eyes on a mature bushbuck outside the safety of a national park. That changed in an instant. From the haze of exhaustion came a bolt of adrenaline as a mature ram cautiously stepped out of the brush. Nico, my PH, tapped my knee and I knew it was time. The ram was followed by a ewe, scanning for danger. As the ram lowered his head to drink, Nico raised the camo netting and hit record. I came to full draw, steadied my breath, locked onto an off-color patch of hair, and sent the arrow on its way.

While my wife might disagree, I think I’m a pretty realistic bowhunter. Sure, I dream of hunting Argali or chasing dangerous game in Tanzania. But the truth is, I live in a blue-collar world where adventures need to fit within the confines of a real-world budget. That said, South Africa offers something special—affordable opportunities for the working-class hunter to chase truly exotic game. The spiral slam—kudu, nyala, bushbuck, and eland—had been a long-term goal of mine. These beautiful antelope, found throughout South Africa, can be hunted at reasonable prices if you’re willing to save and prioritize. My journey toward completing the slam began in 2003, harvesting a stunning 50” kudu at Cruiser Safaris and concluded in 2014, eleven years later, with a hunt I’ll never forget.

That bushbuck I mentioned earlier was taken in 2011 while hunting with Dries Visser Safaris in Limpopo. It was anything but easy. On day three, Nico and I visited a farm near Thabazimbi where trail cams had shown good rams near a cattle waterhole. The permanent blind was a solid 50 yards from the water—too far for a precise shot. Nico set up a new pop-up blind just 20 yards out.

The setup worked, though not immediately. Several immature rams came in before a mature one cautiously approached. I aimed low, anticipating the ram would duck at the sound of the bowstring—and he did. The arrow passed through just behind the shoulder. Nico waited 30 minutes, then called in General, our wonder tracking dog. Tracking wounded bushbuck is serious business. Their horns are like daggers, especially dangerous for dogs. General found the ram still alive, and in a heartbeat, it charged straight at us. Nico shoved me aside and placed himself between the ram and danger. The animal veered off at the last moment, collapsing just 10 yards later. He was an old warrior with broomed 13” horns and worn teeth—a true trophy, and one I’ll never forget.

I returned to South Africa in 2014 to hunt with Dries Visser again, this time to pursue nyala and eland. Nyala, once native to KwaZulu-Natal, are now widely found across South Africa thanks to game management. With trophy fees averaging around $2,500, they’re not cheap—but they’re within reach for hunters like me, especially when added to a package with lower-cost species. On day four of the hunt, a mature nyala bull walked in just before sunset. He circled the blind for a full 30 minutes—so long, my GoPro battery died filming him. At 25 yards, I bracketed his vitals between my 20 and30-yard pins and released. The bull ran just 80 yards before going down. Wrapping my hands around those spiraled horns as the sun set was an unforgettable moment.

Two days later came the eland. We sat in a tower blind overlooking a quiet watering hole. After three hours, a herd of 25 eland approached, including two bulls. One was an older animal with worn horns, the other a wide, prime specimen. Willem, my PH, gave me the green light on either. I took a quartering-away shot on the wider bull—low, but solid. A long tracking job followed, but we eventually recovered the animal. Eland are massive—comparable in body size to moose. As someone from Alaska, I’ve seen my fair share of big animals. While the eland’s body is just as thick, their legs are shorter, making recovery much easier. Willem’s truck winch handled the job with no trouble.

Like most bowhunters I know, I live paycheck to paycheck. I watch the market, even if I don’t understand it, and I try to stretch every dollar. The dream of hunting in Africa felt impossible for a long time, but with the right planning and a few smart package deals, I made it happen. The spiral slam might not be on the radar for globe-trotting adventurers, but for a working-class hunter like me, it was the trip—and the achievement—of a lifetime.

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Peyton Merideth is the CEO of Shoshone Adventure Consulting.

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