Good Bye Hartzview :(

July 29, 2010
Hello family and friends, this is really difficult to write. We are saying good bye to a place we called home for 12 days. While L.B. is ready for the city, I am feeling a bit melancholy about leaving Hartzview. Our bags are packed and Hill and Richard are out for their last morning hunt. Sarah is a local school, and as for me, I am blogging. We have so many to thank that took care of us and made sure we were always comfortable..... it really is hard to know where to start. We have driven and walked, tracked and stalked, we have missed some and shot many, but none of this would have been possible without the people I will mention.
First, we need to thank Braam and Jacques. Braam is the proud owner of this 40,000 acre farm, filled with all the animals that one would be in Africa. Jacques is our professional hunter. Together, Braam and Jacques are a first class team, making Hartzview a world class operation. We met Jacques in February when he came to the states. We were very excited to meet him, as we were interviewing him as a professional hunter for our safari hunt. This experience was more than we could have ever expected..... he over delivered. Jacques, kept telling us to "trust him", so we did! With a leap of faith and trusting all that Jacques had told us, we made our decision to go with Hartzview. Boy, are we glad we did.
Maurus, thank you for always making sure we were equipped with what we needed at camp and for every hunt. You are definitely the wheels that keep this place turning.
We want to thank Frank, John, Jonathan, Joseph, A.B., the trackers and drivers, without them we would have NEVER found all the animals.
Ria and Sally need a big thank you for the wonderful meals that were prepared for us day after day..... especially the homemade bread. I guess I also need to thank you for the extra lbs that were put on while we were here. When I am back in the states and working out, I will definitely be thinking of you.... thanks! Bread will never taste the same again!
A special thanks to the ladies that cleaned our rooms and washed our clothes..... because of you I realize all I needed to pack was a backpack ;), yeah right. We would put our dirty laundry in our labeled baskets in the morning and we would get back from our evening hunt and our clothes had been washed and ironed, if desired and put back in our rooms. L.B. does not have it this good at home, well maybe sometimes, if I get around to it that day! We were spoiled to say the least.
We take away from Hartview, the hunting experience, yes, but, more than that, the friendships and memories that were made in this short time. Forgotten, never, as we will always remember, the meals that were carefully prepared for us, the conversation around the dinner table, stories and jokes around the nightly campfires, the most magnificent sunsets, and the perfect weather. I can't forget about Bullet (jack russell terrier), the best hunting dog in the world, Dainty and Whiskey (italian wippets) when at the end of the day would come curl up and cuddle in our laps. It was in all these things that made our experience more than we could have ever expected or hoped. We flew almost 9,000 miles to another country that we knew no one, but leave Hartzview with a new family....so cheers to all of you..... our hearts will always remember Hartzhootge....Hartzview!
Until tomorrow......I will call my girls and Nanny and Pop on Saturday when we are in Cape Town...... can't wait. I need to hear their voices! Love and miss all of you!!!!
xoxoxoxox,L.B.
Newsbreak.......Good Gracious, how many more animals do they need???? Stacey, you have your zebr,you can thank Richard for that one..... talk about the last hour?! Richard got his confidence back by shooting a red hartbeest, and gemsbuck this morning. The animals are thinking.... get these people from Texas out of here!!!