Our African Safari
I had met Gerard through a good friend of mine. Over the years Gerard and I have talked about getting me into a South Africa Safari hunt, and as hard as Gerard tried to get me the best price available, I just didn’t have the funds. One day I received an email from Gerard sharing some information of an available hunt that a Client couldn’t attend. This afforded me the best opportunity to hunt Africa if I could do it at the time vacated by the previous Client. I met Gerard, who was in the Dallas area visiting Clients, and after discussing the details with my wife, sealed the deal.
Kevin and Lisbeth Fischer
Dallas USA (2019)
Day 1: Windhoek, Namibia
Fast forward to September 2019Lisbeth and I had made travel arrangements with Qatar Airways from DFW to Windhoek, Namibia. We arrived in Windhoek that September and found Gerard waiting for us in the arrivals area of the terminal. We loaded our luggage into his Toyota truck and headed into the city. Gerard had arranged accommodations for us at the Windhoek Hilton for a two-night stay.
Gerard met us at the hotel early Wednesday, packed up our belongings. He was accompanied by Moses and Buck. Introductions were made and we were off to the countryside on Safari. This I guess you would say is our official start to our Safari, with camp equipment, guns, ammo, and special provisions in tow.
It was a 4 hour drive to our camp. three hours of that were highway, leaving the last hour on dusty gravel roads. Gerard said that Namibia was in a 5 year drought, at it sure looked it. We saw some wildlife on the trip to camp, none of which I was after. But you could hear Lis’ camera working overtime as we tracked on. Once we arrived at camp, Gerard showed us around the
compound. Our cabin was located close to the kitchen, an outdoor kitchen. the cabin had all the comforts of home, minus air conditioning. But the bathroom was modern enough a woman could love (or not complain about). This was true camping, lighting by solar DC, cooking over fire, a fabric tent and a dirt walk to everywhere.
Gerard showed us some areas nearby where the natural structure washed by rain water, making a picturesque view.
Gerard said that we should sight in the gun. I was using Gerard’s gun, a 7mm Mauser rifle perfect for taking Plains Game in Namibia. It is customary to bring ammo from the US, as buying it in Africa is very expensive. I was sighting in with ammo I brought with me.
We went back to camp and found Lisbeth relaxing with a book in front of our new home away from home. Gerard requested that we meet him at the kitchen shortly. Lis and I changed into our formal dining attire (shorts and t-shirt) and trekked across the desert sand. We could see that Gerard and one other unloading the trailer and getting the coolers out. We were introduced to our camp chef Chris. It was soon apparent that Gerard and Chris go way, way back. This team was in tune almost in Lock Step, getting the kitchen ready for dinner. Drinks were served and conversations soon lead to how we would hunt and what some expectations were. One of the first questions I asked were, how many other hunters will be in camp. Gerard said Lis and I were his only Client the next 5 days at camp Barbarossa. I was totally blown away. A few ground rules were set, more dinks were consumed. The first meal in camp was being prepared. Lis and I enjoyed the meal, the company of Gerard and Chris and evening campfire before returning to our tent. We used flashlights to shine on the path winding between the sage brush and dead trees.
Day 2: Camp Barbarossa
An early start to the day, Gerard was in the kitchen getting the coffee going, setting out breakfast. Lis stayed in bed, Gerard and I had coffee and packed up the truck for our morning hunt. We went to the main farm house to pick up Moses and some more provisions. with me and Moses in the crows nest, the elevated seat in the box of the truck, we set out on a Safari. My emotions were heightened, I was thinking, “This is really happening, I finally got to Safari!!”. As hard as I could, I looked for signs of wildlife, but Moses, saw everything, he relayed sightings of Gemsbuck, Zebra and wildebeest before I had ever seen them. This was a true challenge, we call ‘spot and stalk’ your game. With me at the ready, rifle in hand, Gerard tried to position us for a shot.
One of the firsts rules when hunting with your Professional Hunter, is he picks the animal you are to shoot. So getting clear direction from him is paramount before you pull the trigger. You don’t want to shoot an animal that wasn’t his choice. So I waited to hear him acknowledge which animal I was targeting. These animals are elusive and didn’t allow us to get close enough.
We drove and glassed the ranch from one end to the other. It was getting close to midday so Gerard made his way to camp, all the while hunting until we hit the ranch gate. Time to unload the rifle and place it in its case until the next hunt.
We went to the camp to get Lis and went to the main farm house for lunch. Chris had made us a great meal, refreshing lemonade and desert. My God! Now this is hunting, Black tie Hunting. But more about that later. There was WiFi at the main farm house, so Lis and Gerard were making good use of that, Gerard checking on emails and communicating with Clients and Family. Lis was uploading pictures to Facebook.
Once lunch was complete, we went back to the tents for the most crucial part of any hunt, the NAP! Yes, Gerard allowed time in the busy schedule for a nap. And nap we did!
Lis and I were awakened by the sound of clambering in the kitchen. Gerard and Chris were setting up for this evening’s dinner. I met them, refreshed with renewed energy and ambition, at the kitchen. Gerard informed me that Lis must go with on this hunt. So I went to get Lis for the afternoon hunt. Here we go!! Thursday afternoon hunt.
Gerard, Moses, Buck, Lis and I head out for a new expedition. We soon spotted three Zebra in the plains on the ranch. We got out of the truck and Gerard and I put the stock on them. They eluded us but Gerard spotted a herd of Springbok grazing in the lower brush. We stayed behind brush and mounds to get closer. Gerard glassed a large Buck that he wanted me to take. I rested his rifle on my hat in the prone position and confirmed the target. ‘Yes, he is the one facing left, he is squatting now’ said Gerard, all the while glassing him with his binoculars. I squeezed off the first shot of the Safari. BAM!! the Buck went down! “Good Shot” Gerard whispered. He’s down. With the rest of the herd scattered, we walked straight up to my first African Plains Game trophy. We looked over the shot, it hit him in the spine behind the shoulder. Not exactly where I wanted to hit him, but Hey!!! He was squatting, taking his final dump. So I’ll take it. ‘One Shot, One Kill’.
Gerard positioned the Springbok and I for photos. Gerard showed me how the hair on the back of a Springbok raises up on alert and smells sweet, like flowers. I was apprehensive when he said “smell this”, wanting me to smell the backend of this animal, but he was right!! Sweet smell indeed, not the musk I was expecting. I fully expected that he would take a photo of me smelling the ass of this cute little Springbok and post it to his Facebook with some discerning comment about ‘when you know hunter has been in the bush too long’.
I am having an out of body experience at this point. He through my trophy over his shoulder and we made our way to the truck on the road ¾ mile away. I had harvest my first African trophy.
Moses, Buck and Lis must be bored waiting that short hour. We shot more photos with the buck on the tailgate of his truck. Now we can celebrate!! Gerard reached for the cooler and brought out the beer. Lis and I hugged, kissed and took photos of us, the trophy, the hunting team and the terrain. Great evening!!
We went back to the main farm house where the skinning station is. Gerard instructed the Moses how this animal is to be skinned. Depending on how you want your trophy to be will be how they skin it. We then went to the farmhouse to chill, enjoy more drinks, and the sunset. Chris had prepared our dinner for the camp kitchen at the main farm house. We drove back to camp and got the evening fire going.
That evening had a different feel to it. We learned more about each other, felt more comfortable about our surroundings and company. I produced a cigar for each as a celebration to the first game harvest, our sweet smelling Springbok. During the course of the evening, I shared a tradition that we used during deer hunting in North Dakota. The evening of the first hunt, the heart and liver of our first kill would be cooked for dinner. Chris and Gerard were quick to accept the challenge and by offering the heart and liver of the Springbok for tomorrow’s dinner. Menu solved.
What a great day. What we learned today: Lis is comfortable enough to join us on the hunt, I can hit my target. Gerard has a sense of humor (but beware) and we are having Springbok for dinner tomorrow.
Before I forget, there were occasions when Gerard would spot game before Moses or I, and we were promptly chastised as being asleep on the job. We weren’t, we were just looking where they weren’t.
Day 3: Camp Barbarossa
Up early, Lis slept in. Gerard, Buck and I had coffee and breakfast. Packed refreshments for the day’s journey, we hunted deeper in the ranch. We are after Wildebeest, Zebra, Gemsbuck and Kudu. We drive all morning, checking water holes for signs of wildlife. Remember, Namibia has been in a drought for 5 years. We spotted a herd of Wildebeest, Gerard formulated a stalking strategy and drove around to the back of the hill to put on a stalk. We crawled from the low land to a mound close to where the herd was resting. Gerard picked the bull he wanted me to take.
We settle in a prone position and I rest his rifle on my hat to take the shot. The shot was too far back he said. The herd bolted, I turned to where the animals were heading, shot at the animal again. No good. Gerard and I headed up hill to watch the herd for a failing bull. These animals are tough, no sign of a wounded Wildebeest. Gerard had to make a decision to get in front of that herd. We got back to the truck, Moses, Buck and I in the crows nest, Gerard driving the trails (not roads) as in a Baja race. Moses keeping Gerard informed of the Wildebeest herd whereabouts.
We hung on for dear life. I thought to myself, I missed that Wildebeest while he was laying down!!! How?? We ran down trail to get in front of the herd. I was at the ready with the 7mm. I topped off the magazine at 55 mph. Gerard shouted “shoot the last one”. I placed the crosshairs at the brisket and sent the 150 grain bullet to that last bull crossing the dry gulch. He fell ‘assover-tea kettle’ as my Grandmother would say. Gerard was surprised and exited the truck. We were about to break out the beer when Moses shouted, “he’s up”, and running, running like he didn’t have a hole in him. I took two more shots at him, and Gerard took three. That bull ran around the clay mound and was gone. Gerard and I thought he would be dead around the corner. He, Buck and Moses heading out to track down my wildebeest. I stayed with the truck, Gerard with a radio and rifle set out on a trek. Hours later I get called on the radio. Gerard wants me to drive the jeep off the ranch to the main road. Now, I hadn’t watched every turn that we made to get to where we are now, but now am expected to drive to a ranch 10 miles outside this ranch. I called Gerard at every trail split to see which direction to go. I made it to the main gate at the road, all the time thinking that Gerard and Moses had found my wounded wildebeest dead and were hauling it back to camp. Earlier they mentioned that Chris met up with them, I surmised that they were heading back to Barbarossa. As I am driving to camp, Gerard radios me asking me where I am. I responded back, “I’m heading to camp”. H responds “why are you doing that? We are waiting for you at the ranch down the road. We found your wounded bull in the herd”. I thought to myself, I am screwed!! I turned that Toyota around and followed his direction. Once I found him with Chris, I gave them beer!! They deserved it. Gerard was in full ‘kill the wildebeest’ mode. Again, 50/60 MPH race to the herd. Now we were in territory that looked like the moon. We raced to get in front of the herd, I took two shots on the wounded animal, nothing anchored it until Gerard made a shot that, as Chris put it, ‘Put on the parking brake’. Well, that was an adventure!! Running Wildebeest, Baja style driving, miscommunication (more about that later) and a trophy at the end. We broke out the cooler, beers for everyone!! But Gerard only put 6 in the cooler. Not to worry, camp is only 40 miles away.
At camp Lis was waiting at the Kitchen, that’s where the drinks were. I am glad that she didn’t go with us on that hunt. It was an for hours, wondering how I misunderstood Gerard’s message. At camp, drinks in hand, Gerard asked, “why were you going to camp?”, I told him I thought he had the animal and with Chris, was heading to camp. He said “ we are out there tracking your Wildebeest and you head to camp!! Who does that!!??”. Lis is hearing this for the first time, was wondering what happened.
You know the story, hunter wounds animal, PH and tracker track animal, hunter goes for more beer. Can you imagine the kind of trouble I would have been in if Gerard hadn’t radioed when he did. I would have had restocked the beer and had 2 or 3 myself. Win-Win..?? We laughed at the day’s activities. I caught a bunch of crap from Gerard, all in good fun. Our dinner was Springbok heart/liver with potatoes and veggies. It was the best. We find that Chris is actually an accomplished educated chef from Germany. We retired early that night. Gerard insisted the Lis join us tomorrow morning for the morning hunt.
Day 4: Camp Barbarossa
Coffee and breakfast early and off into the dark of the morning. My usual, had to have a coffee in hand for the trip. Gerard starts the hunt off by telling me, ”Kevin, get your shit together!!”. This phrase sticks with me the entire Safari. Lis, Chris and Gerard, and maybe Moses too, would repeat this often.
It was a windy day, sand blowing and no sign of game. Gerard formulates a plan to hunt a mountain on at the corner of the ranch. The dark corner I learned was the name of this area. Early in the morning, Gerard parks at the base of this pile of rock.
Rocks as big as busses. I kiss Lis, saying that if I don’t come down, I’ll be dead somewhere up there. I took a selfie of me alive before setting off. Gerard starts up the mountain like a gazelle and I straggle behind. What you don’t know is that I have a weak heart, so I act as if I am taking selfies often to catch my breath.
We topped the mountain and find a high mountain meadow, where 1000s of African animals were take refuge during a windy day. Not even a gopher, or whatever a Gopher-like African rodent is called. We slowly made our way down the other side. Towards the bottom, Baboons were abundant. They chattered at us, keeping their distance. It was interesting but nothing I wanted to take.
Gerard is guiding us off the mountain and states, the truck should be right over this mound. We top the mound, and yes, the truck, Moses, Buck and Lis were right where Gerard figured. Once we got to the truck, I kissed Lis, stating that if this hike didn’t kill me, I can make it through this Safari. Where’s the beer!??? We cracked a beer and heading back to camp. We were at the far corner of the camp, the Dark Corner, Dunkerhoek. The first beer went down fast, we asked Liz for another, she said that there were no more. WAIT??!! Three beers, where are the others. Gerard asked if she and Moses were drinking while we were hunting. She denies having a beer until we got there. The entire drive, Gerard insists he put 6 beers in that cooler. He radios Chris about dinner for the evening. He asks Chris if he remembers him placing beers in the cooler, Chris said yes, but he, Chris, retrieved three beers from that cooler during last night’s dinner. Problem solved! The solution, when making coffee at 0500, restock beer in cooler. With no animals in the back of the Toyota, we head back to camp. We had another great campfire.
The conversation turned to why we didn’t see any game today. We joked that the Great White Hunter at Barbarossa was an Ass Shooter and the word got out to the herds, and they all left the ranch. Then we talked about the hike. We surmised that since Gerard, Buck and Moses tracked my wounded Wildebeest for 15 Kilometers, Gerard’s payback was to have me climb a mountain of stone boulders. I mean, we didn’t see any animals.
Day 5: Camp Barbarossa
Sunday morning, Coffee and breakfast was good. We still had zebra, gemsbok and kudu on the list. Lis, me, Gerard, Buck and Moses headed out to a new ranch. We drove a long ways and entered it at sunrise. We rounded a hill and spotted a zebra standing under a tree. Gerard said shoot it!! I already had my crosshairs on it but was sitting awkwardly and shifted my butt, Boom!!! The gun went off, I wasn’t ready for that and chambered another round and aimed at the zebra. It was lying under the tree he was standing under. Gerard gets out of the truck and gestures as if WTF!! He says “where did that come from?” At first, I thought I screwed up. Gerard was watching the zebra through his Swarovski Binocs and said “it fell like a sack of potatoes.” We drove around the gully to get to it. He and Moses inspected the zebra and found it shot right between the eyes. Damned good shot, Kevin (I commended myself). Gerard asked how I was able to make that shot? I said “Don’t ask…”
They positioned the zebra for photos with Lis and I, Gerard and I, Gerard and Buck, Moses, Gerard, Lis and I for Safari Club International Hunter of the Year award. I hit the big time. We loaded the zebra all the while I photographed the process of using the winch. It was fat.
Shortly after loading the zebra, we spotted gemsbok, got some good shots on one but it ran off. Gerard and Buck tracked it for a while but the blood trail dried up, so he came back to the truck. Off we go again. We came across another small herd of gemsbok, but needed to get close enough for a shot. Gerard tried to get in front of the herd to catch them coming across the terrain. As they crossed in front of us, Gerard yelled out to shoot the last one, “it’s the bull.” He honked the horn to stop them and I shot the bull. He went straight down! Perfect shoulder-heart shot. The cows trotted away and Gerard yelled, “shoot another one!” At that point I placed the crosshairs on my downed bull but wondered why am I shooting a dead animal. Moses quickly corrected me in aiming for a cow. I asked which one, he yelled out, the last one. Boom!! Another gemsbok down. This one for the owner of the farm we are hunting on. This was apparently prearranged between them.
Gerard drove the truck to the bull first. He and Moses positioned that beautiful animal for our photo ops. Again, Lis and I, etc. You know the routine…
We loaded the gemsbok on top of the zebra using the winch again. I got to operate the winch this time. Now I’m part of the team. And we were collecting plains game trophies like no tomorrow. And I’ve got plenty of 7mm ammo. I am stoked!! Onto gemsbok #2, the cow. We loaded her on top of the zebra and gemsbok #1. It was 11:00 Sunday morning and we had all we could haul. Break out the beer!!!
When we got back to camp, Gerard backed the truck up to the skinning station, instructed Moses on how each is to be skinned (again to my preference in mount or rug), and invited us to the main farm house for lunch. He and Chris discussed our hunt, with the possibility of having some gemsbok back-strap for dinner. Chris had already made the provisions for tonight’s dinner.
We enjoyed a great Sunday lunch and cold beer. There was great conversation, mostly about the zebra. Gerard was convinced that I gave the rifle to Moses to make that shot. He said my shots so far have not been great. Lis even got on the bandwagon thinking Moses made the shot on the zebra. True, but four trophies shot dropped right in their tracks.
After a Sunday nap, Gerard, Moses, and I drove out to the ranch to see if we can see any other potential game. We saw an old giraffe by himself. He was majestic and towered over the trees. We watched him a while then decided to head back to camp.
At camp, we met with Lis and got a fire going for the night’s dinner. After a successful day of hunting, I broke out the cigars for Chris, Gerard, and I. We enjoyed stories of past hunts and hunters. The drinks were good, the food even better.
Day 6: Camp Barbarossa
The next morning, Lis and I met Gerard at the kitchen for breakfast. Gerard laid out a plan to go to another ranch a long way from Camp Barbarossa. We downed our breakfast, and I looked for my travel coffee mug. It was usually in the sink, freshly washed. I really needed the road coffee, and Gerard and Lis were ready to go. He asked if I left it in the truck. It wasn’t in the cup holder, so I said no, it must be in the kitchen somewhere.
As Gerard was putting the cooler in the truck, he saw the cup behind my seat. He handed it to me and said the usual, “Kevin, you’ve got to get your shit together!” This time I deserved it. We headed out in the dark morning. We drove for what seemed like hours. We turned off the main road to a secondary road, to a ranch house, where we met the ranch foreman.
Gerard had been in contact with this gentleman for an opportunity for kudu. The foreman had already had his hired hands ready their truck to guide us to where the kudus may be. Moses, Buck, and I were in the crow’s nest in the back of the truck. It was a nice morning, but the terrain looked like the moon—barren land, void of vegetation.
We followed the guide truck through the hills and valleys. The guide truck got a flat tire, so Gerard asked the foreman to jump in our truck to continue the hunt. As we topped a hill, I spotted a very distinguished figure under a lone tree in the valley off the road. I grabbed the rifle, and at that time Moses spotted the kudu and signaled to Gerard to stop.
The wind was blowing pretty hard on top of that hill. The kudu made his way up to the top of the hill. I turned on the Tacticam and was sighted in on his shoulder, waiting for the PH (Gerard) to let me know to shoot (or not). I heard him say, “Shoot him!” So I sent the first round to the kudu; he fell forward. I reloaded and got him in my crosshairs. I just knew that a kudu wasn’t going down without a fight.
Gerard and the foreman watched through their Swarovski’s and confirmed that he was down. WOW! What a rush! That all happened so fast. Gerard got out of the truck and shouted, “Now that’s what I’m talking about!” He was so pleased that there was no tracking—an instant kill of the last trophy on my list. This all happened before 10:00 AM Monday.
We drove around the valley to where the kudu lay. Buck was especially interested in the downed animal. The ranch foreman and Gerard looked over the kudu, estimating the length of horns. Gerard showed me how symmetrical the horn spirals were. He told me, “You have no idea how special this animal is.” The foreman pointed out the ivory tips, the shot placement, and the quality of the trophy we had in front of us.
Lis was videoing, and I started to realize that this kudu was special. If this was an elk, it would be in the 400+ class. Gerard and Moses hoisted the kudu into the truck. We broke out the beer. Gerard had fulfilled his responsibility for the hunt. He got me on the animals I wanted, and they will all be off to the taxidermist soon.
At the ranch house, Lis and I were invited to come sit for a cold drink while the hired hands skinned and processed the kudu. It didn’t take them long to have that meat in the cooler and the hide salted, skull cleaned for the taxidermist.
We needed to get back to Windhoek that day, so we went back to the ranch to drop off the kudu hide and then have a great lunch with Chris at the farmhouse. Lis and Gerard used the internet to upload photos of the kudu in different poses to Facebook, Instagram, and emails. Chris went to the cleaning station out back to see the kudu for himself. He pointed out some things about this trophy that I should be proud of—the perfect spirals and horn measurements: 52.8” and 53.5”. Exceptional, to say the least!
We were not afforded a nap this day; we needed to get on the road. While Chris, Moses, and Gerard loaded the camp stuff into the truck and trailer, Lis and I packed our bags and waited for Gerard to drive around to our cabin. We got loaded up and headed down the dusty dirt road to the farmhouse. Gerard made one more stop to talk to Chris. With Moses and Buck in the back, Lis and the cooler in the back seat, and Gerard and I in front, we headed off Camp Barbarossa to the main highway to Windhoek.
We talked about what an adventure we had, the great food, accommodations, and most of all, the gracious hospitality.
Gerard is a fun-loving chap and can be serious too, but he is mostly light-hearted and lives for the moment. Once we got off the long dirt road and onto the highway, he developed a dry cough. I was talking to him, and he was coughing, then looked at me. I realized real fast that he was summoning the beer attendant sitting in the back to dig deep for a cold beer. I joined in on that dry cough, and Lis finally got the hint. Two cold beers for the Great White Hunters! She joined as well. That was just one of Gerard’s comical moments.
Almost through the first beer, Gerard got a serious look and asked me point blank, “You never said how you were able to shoot that zebra between the eyes.” At the time we were retrieving the zebra, he asked the same question, and I said, “Don’t ask.” Well, now I have to come clean.
“Gerard, you put some camp chairs between the seat and shooting rest, and while I was sighting in on the zebra, I was being pinched on my leg, so I moved my leg slightly, and the gun went off.” He looked at me in total surprise, and while still driving the highway, started to laugh. He said, “So the best shot of the entire hunt you didn’t mean to make!?” I said, “Yup.”
Lis started to laugh, and Gerard was laughing so hard I reached over to help steer the truck because he couldn’t.
My once-in-a-lifetime safari adventure was over far too quickly. I am glad that Lis accompanied me on this trip. I know that she had her reservations about the whole thing.
We dropped Moses off at his house, and Gerard took us to a lodging place he picked especially for us—a cabin on a game reserve. We arrived shortly after dark. With our cabin key, he assisted Lis and me with our luggage and bid us a good evening.
Lis and I cleaned up and went for a delightful dinner at the lodge’s restaurant.
Day 7: Windhoek City
The next morning, Gerard came by to take us to Nyati Wildlife Art, the taxidermist, to create lifelong memories of my trophies. Lis and I had toured the facility before the hunt, so we had some time to reflect on what we thought we wanted.
Manfred hosted us during our visit, showing us the process and various options for mount positions, wood selections for our European mounts, and all the other details involved in packaging and shipping the final products.
We enjoyed cold beers while laughing about memorable moments—mountain climbing, chasing wildebeest, and the fine shot placement on most animals.
Once we finalized the details, Gerard took us back to the hotel. He had also made plans for us to have dinner with him and his wife, Monique, at one of their favourite restaurants.
At dinner, we rehashed some of the stories, with Gerard continuing to remind me to “get my shit together” and teasing me about not always making great shots.
It was a wonderful way to round out the safari.
Day 8: Windhoek City
The next morning, Gerard arrived at the hotel in his spotless Toyota. Moses must have worked all night to clean that truck. We loaded our luggage into the back, and our next stop was Windhoek International Airport.
With excitement and total satisfaction, we bid Gerard goodbye, promising to return. Lis and I headed inside to check our luggage, while Gerard was probably already onto his next client, planning their next safari.
Thank you, Lisbeth Fischer, my brave and beautiful wife, for being my safari companion these past nine days. Lis, you are a true trooper for enduring this adventure and sharing my lifelong dream hunt.
We return home with the best stories and memories this Great White Hunter could ever ask for.
Thank you, Sumsare Safaris, for providing the best hunting experience of my life!
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