Africa Adventure

This documentary chronicles the exploits of a safari, headed by American Robert C. Ruark, as it journeys through the rugged terrain of East Africa. After describing the trip from the United States to Nairobi, Kenya, Ruark introduces other members of the safari, including professional hunters Harry Selby and Andrew Holmberg. In their truck, packed tightly with food, medicine and equipment, the men travel first to the northern frontier village of Isiola, where they are greeted by elephant-eating Turkana tribesmen and brightly dressed Somalis. As the safari continues deeper into the frontier, Ruark notes that special precautions were taken to avoid Mau Mau rebel attacks. At a river bed on the arid Kenyan plains, the safari encounters rhinoceros, gazelles, guinea fowl and elephants, all competing for the same precious water. After members of the nomadic Rendille-Samburu tribe show Ruark how a huge bull elephant destroyed one of their water wells, Ruark and his fellow hunters pledge to kill the animal. Accompanied by Kenyan police, the men search the area until the elephant, an outcast, is spotted. Despite a sudden rainstorm, the hunters shoot the animal dead and are thanked by the Rendille-Samburu, who look forward to selling the bull's valuable 110-pound tusks. The hunters then take on a large rhinoceros, felling him with their rifles. Next, the safari meets a band of Samburu tribesmen, who entertain the men with their ritualistic jumping dance. After three weeks of hunting and photo taking, the safari ventures into Uganda, where their truck is impounded by the local authorities. Eventually another truck is secured, and Ruark's wife and hunter John Sutton join the group. Near Lake Edward, the safari encounters hippopotami and a large elephant herd. The group then heads for the Masai region of Kenya, where Masai warriors show off their lion mane headdresses. The process of setting up camp, hunting for dinner, and cooking in the wild is detailed. Later, the hunters set out to find a herd of big-horned buffalo, spotting baboons and antelope along the way. After a determined pursuit, the men zero in on a huge male buffalo in the brush and quickly shoot it. Ruark admires its forty-nine inch head, noting that it will make an excellent wall trophy. The safari next observes a pride of lions as well as hyenas and vultures. As spring begins, Ruark undertakes his final hunting challenge, the killing of a leopard. Using a dead wart hog as bait, Ruark lures the usually nocturnal leopard into a tree and shoots it from a distance. The wounded cat falls from the tree and runs into the brush, but dies soon after. Commenting that he "just doesn't like leopards," Ruark inspects his kill with pride, then declares that his wife will appreciate its fur. After three months of adventure, the safari concludes, and the Ruarks return to the United States.