Colton Cozza Shares Why He Loved Doing A Father and Son African Hunting Trip

Africa has been on my want-to-go list for years and when I heard Colton had just come back from 14 days of it with his dad exploring Africa, I had to know more! Their epic adventure included hunting exotic plains game in South Africa's Eastern Cape. He works in outdoor PR, he is one of my favorite guys to deal with on that side of the business, and when I heard where he had been I asked him to tell our readers about it.

He and his father have hunted together across the United States his whole life. This was the first time the two of them left the country, and it traces back to a set of hunting shows they watched in the living room when Colton was a kid. We sat down with Colton to talk about how they chose it, what caught them off guard once they were on the ground, and what he would say to a guy who keeps telling himself there is always next year.

Colton Cozza is a PR coordinator at Gunpowder, an agency that represents a long list of hunting, fishing and outdoor brands, so he spends his working life around gear and the people who build it. He also grew up hunting with his father across the United States, watched African hunting shows with him as a kid, and this year took them on an epic African hunting expedition to the Eastern Cape of South Africa.

The Hunting Shows He Watched As a Kid That Inspired Them To Visit South Africa

Set the scene for us. Where did you and your dad go, how long were you there, and what were you hunting?

My father and I went to South Africa for 14 days to hunt all kinds of plains game, including Kudu, Bushbuck, Impala, Duiker, Fallow deer, Nyala, and more.

Was this the first time the two of you had done something like this together? And what was it about South Africa specifically that made it the destination?

My dad and I have hunted together my whole life all across the United States, however this was our first trip out of the country together. We chose Africa based off all the hunting shows we would watch when I was a little boy together. Africa seemed to be the hunter's dream, full of adventure and animals never seen.

What Africa Looked Like in Person

Were there moments on the ground where the reality beat what you had seen on TV? And beyond the hunting itself, what did two weeks in the bush teach you about your dad?

Being able to see all the wildlife we would watch on TV in person and in their natural habitat was amazing. It was breathtaking to see the variety of game that Africa has to offer. Our 14 days in Africa offered a lot of camaraderie and time to appreciate nature in a place that is still wild. Hunting Africa with dad was nothing like anything we had done before, the animals, the terrain, it was all new to us. Also the hunting style was different than what we were used to, so it was a blast to learn their ways.

Layers, Permethrin, and the Ticks They Never Got

What gear made the biggest difference out there, and is there anything you wish you had packed or prepared differently?

We went during the summer months here in the states which is Africa's winter. So I was super glad that I brought my light down jacket and a good vest. I was sure to bring a lot of layers since the temperatures would start in the 30s in the morning and by lunch be in the 70s. Another thing dad and I did that I was super happy about was treating our clothes with Sawyer Permethrin before heading over. A lot of the guys in our group would return to camp in the evenings with lots of ticks on them, however since dad and I treated our clothing we never had a single tick on us.

The Advice, and What Comes Next After Hunting In Africa

For guys dreaming about making a similar trip happen with their dad or their son, what is the one piece of advice you would give before they go? And now that Africa is done, what is next?

I would just say go for it, Africa is everything you dream of and more. I can't wait to return, however I think dad and I will aim for Alaska next.

If a guy is thinking about his first African hunting trip right now and does not know where to start, what are the practical things he needs to know going in?

We were able to go with a group that had gone before so they helped us with pretty much everything so we had a super smooth trip.

Why He Would Not Wait To Do Another Father and Son Hunting Expedition

It sounds like these trips are as much about the two of you as they are about the destination. What would you say to a guy who keeps putting off the big trip with his father, telling himself there is always next year?

There is no one who will love a boy as much as his father, and unfortunately our time with our fathers is limited. You can keep pushing off a trip with your father but you never know when all the sudden you may have pushed it off one time too many. Getting to share something like adventuring to the other side of the world for the first time to hunt with the man who taught you everything is absolutely unforgettable. You are both getting to experience it for the first time, share the wonder and awe together.

Planning Your Own South African Plains Game Hunt, What To Know Before You Book A Trip Like This

Colton had the easiest version of this, going with a group that had already done it and sorted the arrangements out for him. Doing a father-son trip on your own is obviously much more complicated, so we always encourage guys to book with experienced operators and work with a trusted travel advisor to help you pick the right trip.

Season runs backwards from what a first-timer expects. Southern Hemisphere winter is the window, so our June through August is their prime, which is why Colton packed a down jacket and a vest for a trip he took during our summer. Thin bush, short grass, cold mornings, visible animals. The Baviaansriver country takes hunters most of the year, with March through November the working season.

Health concerns and vaccination requirements in the Eastern Cape are simpler than most people assume. The CDC puts South Africa's malaria transmission in the Mopani and Vhembe districts of Limpopo, Ehlanzeni in Mpumalanga, and uMkhanyakude in KwaZulu-Natal. The Eastern Cape area appears on none of those lists, so the pills and the prophylaxis conversation aren't as critical of an issue compared to visiting other parts of Africa.

Ticks should worry you more when planning a guys trip to Africa - which makes Colton's permethrin habit the right answer rather than a nice touch. African tick-bite fever is the second most common cause of fever in travelers coming home from sub-Saharan Africa; hunters sit in the high-exposure group, and the bacteria behind it has been found in Eastern Cape ticks specifically. CDC guidance is 0.5 percent permethrin on clothing, boots, and gear, and the treatment survives several washings.

The outfitter is the decision that carries the other three. You do not buy your own tag in South Africa the way you would draw a state elk permit. A visiting hunter is legally a client, and the outfitter and professional hunter are the ones required to hold the provincial permits that make your hunt legal and your trophies exportable. Confirm he actually holds a current one before anything else, then ask for the contact details of two clients from last season and call them. Colton's version of this was going with people who had already been, which is the same safeguard bought a different way.

Your rifle rides on that choice. Bringing your own adds US Customs Form 4457 before you fly and a free import permit on arrival, with no two rifles chambered the same. Renting the outfitter's skips all of it, as plenty of first-timers do on an Australian hunting trip too.

Then the money, in three parts, because that is how it gets billed. Daily rates on a plains game hunt generally run a few hundred dollars a day and cover your professional hunter, the tracker, the vehicle, the lodge and the food. Trophy fees are separate and charged per animal you take, running from a few hundred dollars for an impala into the low thousands for a kudu, so the total moves with the trip.

The third part is the one that catches people. Dip and pack, freight and taxidermy arrive months after you are home, and the industry rule of thumb puts that package at roughly a quarter to 40 percent of the hunt. Decide whether you want mounts, skulls or nothing before you leave, because that choice sets the number.

The Chance To Build Bucket List Memories With Your Dad Is the Part That Matters Most!

The most important part of Colton's story probably has nothing to do with kudu, rifles, or permits. He and his dad had talked about Africa in one form or another since Colton was a kid watching hunting shows with him, and eventually they decided to make it happen.

That is probably the best planning advice in the entire interview. Pick the trip, find a week that works and start putting the pieces together. Your father does not necessarily have to hunt either. Many outfitters accommodate non-hunting observers who can share the lodge, game drives and evenings in camp without taking an animal themselves.

For Colton and his dad, Africa checked off one of those trips they had imagined for years. Alaska may be next. Whatever your version of that trip is, there is a pretty strong argument for putting a date on the calendar instead of assuming you will get around to it someday.