This was our second hunt to East Cape Safari’s. It is like coming home. You not only hunt with them but you become part of the family. Absolutely the “best” hunt of my life. Can’t wait to come home again.

Dear Grant and Sarine; I’ve been home now about two weeks. Others have written extensively (and turthfully) on how wonderful you are as outfitters. And on the quality of the accomodations along with the amazing amount of Trophy quality game. I want to share simply that I stare out the window often nowdays thinking of my safari. More than any recent trip or vacation, your Africa has left a wonderful image in my mind’s eye. Thank you for all you did for me, save me a room and some food, and tell Thruston I’m coming back soon. Life is too short not to hunt with the best, after the best animals, with people you can trust. 

My son and I had the tremendous fortune of getting to meet Grant, Sarine, Anthony and Abigail in 2009. To say we were absolutely swept off our feet by the entire experience would be a gross understatement. After talking with Grant on a number of occasions, I changed my previously planned hunt to go with Grant instead. On a scale from 1 to 10, I whole-heartedly rate East Cape Safaris a solid 15!

I am a wildlife manager of some 40+ years, so naturally I was very analytical in what Grant offered for the price. The quality of the game on Grant’s property is unbeatable. The numbers blew my son and I away. We saw more game in one day than I have seen in my entire life, combined. The trackers and skinners were every bit of what I see on TV. We had a couple of animals that we hit poorly, and Grant’s tracker, Da’Man found the animals before the dogs (Jack Russells) did. And the price for the trip was far below what I thought it would be. I was looking at a 350″+ elk hunt and the Africa trip was much, much less. The elk hunt was $7200, whether we got a shot at a bull or not. The trip to East Cape Safaris was a management package. Being a wildlife manager, I understand the need to keep herd numbers below the carrying capacity. Plus we generated roughly 3,300 lbs. of meat to Grant’s family and the families of his employees. We brought home several gorgeous trophies, got plenty of shooting, my son got his very first animal with a bow in Africa (how many can say that?), but most importantly, we met a family that not only spoiled us rotten, but became family to us. My son and I grew to love this family more than words could ever describe.

I would suggest two things here. First, if you are an outdoor enthusiast (hunter, photographer or watcher), you MUST go to Africa. Secondly, if you go to Africa, you absolutely WILL NOT find a better PH/outfitter to go with than East Cape Safaris. They just simply cannot be beat. I am hoping/planning to return next August, and can’t wait to see the Abrahamson family again. If I don’t pull a trigger, just getting to see this wonderful family will be worth the trip.

We so enjoyed our stay with you and the extra lengths which you went to to make us feel welcome in so many ways. The side trips to the other properties; the trips to the elephant park the Elephant ride and of course the opportunity to see Graaff Reinet were all so appreciated.

Meeting Abigail and Anthony junior more than just once and seeing their schools and hearing about their ambitions meant more than you would realise most probably. They are already fine young people with good ambitions and we look forward to following their careers with interest. We thoroughly enjoyed the company of Anthony senior and Beverley the delicious meal shared with them in their home. There is so much more we could comment on about this Safari but the most memorable thing for us must be the warm hospitality shown by you and your extended family.

We both thoroughly enjoyed the final night and next morning in Port Elizabeth with you both.

Hunting animals always throws up the odd challenge, the Bushpig and the long range shooting using sticks will be a memory for me. The quality of many of the animals was right up there as was Roubel’s knowledge and hunting competence. I will have no trouble in suggesting any keen Kiwi contemplating a trip to the Eastern Cape contact ECS!

We had a fabulous time. Brandon will not stop talking about the experience. I am sure it is something he will remember for his whole life. You and your staff, and family, outdid every expectation I had. Your facilities are superb; your staff was excellent; your family and your hospitality were without equal in my experience.

The quality and quantity of your game was beyond words. My first concern was how a PH would respond to a 12-year-old client but I could tell immediately that you were not going to be condescending or brusque. You made Brandon feel like a true sportsman. I just got back to my desk after making the rounds of town to show my friends the photos. My first stop was to my friend the taxidermist who was amazed at Brandon ‘s animals. He has been to Africa and does quite a bit of African game. Brandon went to sleep at 6 PM last night and got up at 10 AM this morning. I forced myself to stay up until 9PM last night and got up at my regular 6 AM time this morning and even now, at 2 PM, I feel great. It was very nice of you to include the Addo trip in with your package and it was especially friendly of you to have us dine with your father and mother. That was indeed an honor and a pleasure.

I would be happy to serve as a reference for your hunting operation. My phone numbers are: Office 570-785-3800; Home 570-785-5670; Cell 570-960-1085. There is not even one small detail that I could think of which would be a negative to your services. Brandon talks about Anthony and Abigail, and I truly feel that their association together made it even more special to Brandon. I was as thrilled as Brandon to be able to have this experience. It is the first of my hunting career not to be behind the gun and I wondered how it would be. It was great!! The experience with my grandson was equal to, if not better than, my past 32 years of hunting.

My best wishes to all of you and my God bless the Abrahamson Clan now and in the future.

The bar has officially been raised. You and the staff could not have been better. Thanks!

Let me start off by saying this message was unsolicited by this outfitter. As a professional guide I have had the opportunity to hunt and fish with a wide array of people, outfitters and guide businesses. Having hunted since I was six years old and Guiding for over 20 years one gains a wide span of knowledge about the hunting and fishing industry. I am not a celebrity but I am an outdoor writer for a hunting and fishing magazine. To say I am hard to please is probably too harsh but I am a stickler for quality and attention to detail. East Cape Safaris is by far the best outfitter I have EVER hunted with.

Being an outdoor writer one must be honest and call bad, bad and good, good. Readers these days have more access to relevant data in researching than ever before. Grant and Sarine’s attention to personal detail is second to none. In an ever changing hunting industry where PUT and TAKE is the norm and getting the hunters dollars is the focus. Grant and Sarine are indeed a breath of fresh air in what’s becoming a stale industry. Their effort to ensure your hunt is the hunt of a lifetime is incredible. Their hunting experience is second to none with all animals grown in their native habitat on their properties. Again this is not PUT the animal there from a pen then TAKE by canned hunting. This is real hunting! The quality of their animals is an industry high. The accommodations are excellent and the food is delicious the staff are happy workers who often sing as they go about their daily duties. If you’ve ever dreamed of that one hunt of a lifetime give EAST CAPE SAFARIS a chance I know you wont be disappointed.

We are home safe and sound. A nights sleep and I’m ready to start working for more Kudu!

We listened to other hunters talk about their experiences while waiting at the Tombo airport in Johannasburg. Hunters from Nebraska, Tennessee, and elsewhere. I asked questions and listened. Some stayed in tin buildings and tents. Some had to move every few days to get to the next area to hunt. Many had to travel a bit to get to where they were to hunt each day. Most of them only hunted, and their wives toured. They enjoyed their stays but had no idea about how good their total experience could have been with you. One chap was in the Bedford area. Another was in the Limpopo district. A few just didn’t know. I am extremely grateful that Barbara and I both had the chance to not only hunt, but meet your family and experience the community in which you live. It is one of the few places on earth that I truly felt that I could fit in!

Please thank David, Mishak, Chrisy and Tina for their support. You have a great staff that provided us all that one could hope for and more.

Barbara and I want to thank you, Sarine, Anthony and Abigail for the time of our lives. You are correct in saying that you arrive as client and leave as friends. Barbara and I feel more like we left family behind in South Africa. That is most definitely heartfelt on our part. Time will pass far too slowly until we meet again.

May God Bless and look over you and your family.

When I first met Grant in January of 2010 at the Denver Sportsman’s Show there was an immediate feeling that you had been friends for years. We talked about my visit to South Africa and East Cape Safaris in May of 2011 and the plains game package Grant would put together for us. My good friend Harold Lee had been telling me for years I needed to experience Africa and boy was he right. Harold is a very experienced African hunter and decided to go with us as an observer and sample ECS’s hospitality.

Coming along with me was my college roommate and hunting buddy of 45 years Mark Campbell. Two other good friends Howey Lisne and Andy were with us. Believe me the 16 month wait was long but, as the departure date got closer my excitement grew. We left Denver on May 10th and took the LOONG flight to Cape Elizabeth. Grant and Roebel were there to meet us and my dream had come true! After sighting in the rifles from the trip Rubel took Mark and myself out to show us some of the country. WOW, pinch me this is a dream!! Animals everywhere. Mark ended up shooting a Springbuck and the hunt hadn’t even begun. The next day was day one and I was in a blind with Ruebel and BoyBoy. Only a few minutes into the hunt I shot my first African animal an nice male springbuck. Next a Blesbuck herd came around and BANG I now was 2 for two. Ten minutes had pasted and along comes three huge Black Wildebeast bulls. Ruebel whispered “That front one is a monster, are you comfortable in taking him.” My answer “HELL YES”. Bang and three for three!! Ten minutes and another springbuck. Four for four in 45 minutes!! Unbelieveable!!!

The rest of the trip was just as amazing taking a beautiful impala, huge fallowdeer, and another 2 springbuck. Everynight we were set down to a gormet meal with the family including– Grant’s parents Anthony and Beverly. This trip was definitely a dream come true for me and East Cape Safari’s made every minute of it. I have only one complaint to Grant and that is I gained 6 pounds while with you!! Nobody gains weight while on a trip to Africa!!!! Will I be back– same answer as to Ruebel on my Wildebeast HELL YES!!!!

We had a great time at ECS with Grant and the family. Covey and I talked it over on the way back and agreed that everything was just perfect. We enjoyed the hunt. The food was great and the people were terrific. We saw hundreds of animals everyday and finished out our package early. Still, Grant entertained us and made the trip an adventure of a lifetime. Thank you for your part in making our experience successful.

Covey and I will see you and Grant in Harrisburg in February and will talk up ECS every chance we get.

In the past you have made enquiries , via me , regarding hunts for your friends and associates. Look no further! As you know, I have had my own Safari operation, and took my P H ( professional hunter’s ) licence back in ’92. Since then I have hunted many places with a variety of clientele, and can say without fear of contradiction, that Grant runs the best plains-game operation I have come across. Coupled with that, his facilities , professionalism, hunting/guiding ability, and concern for his clients’ well-being and enjoyment, are of the highest standard. What I also appreciate , is his exclusivity . He doesn’t mix groups. I first hunted with Grant in 2002, when I took Ray , a Grand Junction , Colorado , gun-smith client there. Since then, Ray has been back on two more occasions, and each year I include a visit to Grant on my hunting calendar. I sent you Grant’s contact details, and can re-send if you wish. I can also give you Ray’s contact details in Colorado , if you or any of your friends would like to contact him for a reference.

Thanks for providing Sherri and myself with one of the most memorable vacations we have had. The hunting was great and making new friend such as yourself and the rest of your family was exceptional. We too look forward to seeing you again soon.

Just a note to thank you for your gracious good care and adventures while we were with you on safari. we really did hate to leave , not only your beautiful country, but mostly you as individuals. You will always remain very dear to us and we hope to visit with you soon again, if not next year the following one. We will see you Grant when you are in for the Sportsmans Show – and I will bring you lunch. Our love and best wishes to all of you. I will be sending a goodie in the near future.

April Davis here, we met on the plane last night going home to Boise. I am sending you some pictures and info about my safari experience near Somerset East, South Africa. I’ll send another email with a few more pics as well.

My dad and sister had the 10-day, 26 animals of 9 different species package. But once my dad and sister got there and saw the gemsbucks they upgraded (they each got one) and my sister upgraded for a zebra and Kudu Bull. I went along as an observer for the last four hunting days and two sight-seeing days. When I got there, my dad and sister had saved me some animals to shoot from their cull package: three springbucks, a warthog, and a female kudu, plus Grant let me shoot a monkey and a porcupine just for fun (brought home some nice big porcupine quills).

Grant Abrahamson is the safari proprietor (ranch and land owner) and Andrew Harvey was our professional hunter (PH) and let me tell you, if it wasn’t for Andrew’s dog “Hunter” it would’ve been extremely hard to find the kudu bull my sister shot do wn when we were hunting in very thick brush. Both Grant and Andrew are professional hunters, they ensured that we got every single animal on our package list plus any others we wanted to upgrade. All you have to do is wait for them to tell you which animal to shoot and when to shoot, they do all the rest. They find the animals for you, they do everything to ensure that you get a clear shot at the animals, the animals are packed – out and loaded in the truck for you, they set up all of your photo opportunities , and prepare the animals for the taxidermist if you want mounts and skins.

When they say all inclusive, they mean it. They picked us up from the airport (if you get in to Port Elizabeth really late or have an early morning departure back home they have a n apartment 10 minutes from the airport). We stayed in the beautiful lodge on their ranch near Somerset East during our entire trip. Every evening when we returned from our hunts the staff had our rooms cleaned and any clothes we left in the dirty clothes hampers were laundered and folded (ani – theft lock boxes provided in all the rooms too). Grant’s wife, Sarine, prepared breakfast for us in the mornings, packed lunches for our hunts every day, and made wonderful, home – cooked, traditional South African meals every night that we ate on the covered outdoor patio by the fire.

It has a family friendly atmosphere, Grant and Sarine’s children (Anthony and Abbey) helped out with the meals and helped wait on us during social hours and dinner times. We planned for t wo extra days on the tail – end of our trip (non – hunting days for only the cost of the daily lodging rate) to visit Addo National Park, had some leisure down – time sit in the hides to take close – up pictures of plains game, and because we grew fond of Grant’s kids we even decided to attend Anthony’s rugby game (a nice cultural experience). You truly become part of the family while you’re there, including a wonderful, farewell dinner during the last evening at Grant’s parents, Anthony Sr. and Beverly’s beautiful home.

My dad discovered East Cape Safaris watching Keith Warren’s Outdoor Adventures, East Cape Safaris has been featured on the show twice.

I hope you don’t mind that I gave Grant your email address to inform him that you might be contacting him. Grant’s email address is grant@eastcapesafaris.co.za

Here is the East Cape Safaris website: https://www.eastcapesafaris.co.za

If you do decide to go, please let me know. My dad and I can answer any questions you might have and offer some suggestions about preparing for your safari: flights, paperwork for taking your guns, what to pack, etc. My dad planned our whole trip, so feel free to also email him with questions you might have: Mike Hancock zmilksmail@yahoo.com It was nice meeting you. I hope you do decide to take this trip, it is something every hunter must experience at least once in their lifetime.

My name is Mike Hancock. A long time ago and far, far away (at least from California), I played tight end for the 1973 – 76 Washington Redskins footbal l team, back when George Allen was the head coach. My career ended when I broke my left foot against the Dallas Cowboys. (You can look me up online, I’m on the team roster for those years.)

I then went to work in the Insurance Industry and just recently r etired, but still work part time in my own small business for Insurance Agents, doing safety inspections and taking photos for them of their commercial accounts.

So we’re in the same boat so to speak…retired, yet still working at less demanding and less stressful jobs. Anyway, I’m writing to tell you that my two daughter and I just returned from a hunt with East Cape Safaris (yesterday in fact).

While there, Grant mentioned that he had received an e – mail from you and the concerns you had about booking a “package hunt!” I ask him to send me your e – mail and told him I would contact you to verify that everything that Keith Warren said on his show was correct. I too saw the first show he did at Grant’s and somehow just knew that it was true! Only two months later, my daughters sitting were there at East Cape Safari’s lodge for a father/daughter hunt of a lifetime.

We booked the 9 – species, 26 animal cull hunt Grant offers, the whole idea being that we would “ALL” get several shots at various animals on the trip.

BECAUSE, in 2004 I did book one of those “Safari Package Hunts” in Zimbabwe, your mentioned you were concerned about. I only got shots at three of the six animals I went for! So I understand your concerns! Based on that hunt package alone, I would hav e said you are correct by being cautious about African package hunts.

However, once we arrived at Grant’s East Cape Safaris, and after seeing all the beautiful trophy class animals on the first and second days of our hunt, we started adding animals to our 26 animal package, and also upgrading to trophy class, some of the cull animals that were in our package as well.

We simply couldn’t believe the quality and numbers of animals we saw on Grant’s own properties as well as on those he has permission to hunt all with – in from 15 minutes to at most a 1 – 1/2 hour drives from the lodge. (So you’ll be back at the lodge in the evenings for the wonderful meals they serve.)

I can tell you, because I have seen with my own eyes, that YOU WILL get every animal on your li st! Because WE tried to beg – off shooting some of the females that were included in our cull package and Grant and our PH would have “none – of – it!”

They both said (and I now can testify that it’s true) that their reputations are on the line to complete the entire package a client books for, AND THEY WILL DO IT! And they did exactly that too! Anyway…this is my first day back…from yesterdays 34 – hours of travel. I’m still a bit jet – lagged and also 9 – hours behind in clock time from South Africa time, so I’m a bit tired! But let me just say this; my daughters and I will be happy to answer any and all the questions or concerns you may have about a hunt at East Cape Safari’s. (I cc’d them above so you’ll have their e – mails addresses as well).

Not only that, but we’ll answer with words, photos and even short video clips. We’ll share with you our photos and video’s of the game we saw while driving the properties, the beautiful animals we collected, the lodge, the meals and most importantly, this FACT:

“You DO BE COME a member of the Abrahamson Family when you book with East Cape Safari’s. That is not a sales slogan. It’s a fact!

In closing, let me just wish you the best of luck in whatever African Hunt of a Lifetime you choose, but if you do choose East Cape Safari’s…you won’t be disappointed! (There’s still a 38 – inch male Gems Buck Bull out there with massive bases we couldn’t find again after seeing him the first day of our hunt, and deciding to ADD Gems buck our list — we had to settle for piddling little 39 – 3 /4 inch (me) and 38 – 1/2 inch (my daughter) females…a real bummer — ha – ha).