Trophy of another kind

Hunting is his passion and obsession. The slightest instigation for the Big Game makes him completely restless and draws him towards the snow-capped highest mountain range in the world: The Himalayas, like a magnet pulls a nail towards it.

This is Hesham Usama Khan, who lives in Lahore and belongs to an agriculturist family of Punjab in 1975. He loves hunting and has been to almost every nook and corner of the country, especially the rugged mountain areas, including the Himalayas. He remembers that he would go for target practice with his grandfather Khan Tariq Ismail Khan, a known educated personality and civil servant. This affair with the guns at a very early age got over him completely and as he grew older, he started to go out for hunting with his father Usama Tariq Khan, cousins, uncles and friends.

To him, “Hunting is not killing animals mindlessly, but, it is a highly sophisticated, scientific and laborious, as well as, dangerous sport.” Those who make faces over the stuffed animals and consider hunting the animals a cruel activity must remember that humans have been killing animals since the start of human civilization. The killing of animals is still going on. However, shooting animals for the sake of shooting and going for hunting certain animals in the wilderness is another ballgame altogether.

Moreover, Hesham commented: “I don’t go for the rare species of animals nor I unbalance the delicate order of the nature, rather I go for Himalayan Ibex or those species, which is in abundance in our country but on very high altitudes and hazardous environments. However, I pay a lot of money in the form of licenses which not only befits the government but also helps the underdeveloped communities in our northern areas like Gilgit-Baltistan, etc.”

He revealed that of the hefty sum of money which is being paid for licenses by him and other hunters 80 percent goes to the local communities, while 20 percent goes to the Wildlife Fund for the protection and upkeep of the animals.

Hesham can go on for hours and hours when it comes down to narrate his hunting experiences and the most favourite hunting expeditions. While describing how it was and how it feels while hunting way up there in the freezing zone, he said it’s a different world out there. Scaling the high altitude mountain peaks in the most rugged, hostile and up there at 3454.5 meters in a freezing zone with temperature as low as -20 C with the cold winds blowing all around, is simply chilling to your bones. And, that’s where you get a Himalayan Ibex.

He calls it “A labour of love”, and all those hardships faced by him were worth it. While describing the mesmerizing details of the final day when he finally got his reward by the grace of Allah on Jan 1, 2016, on the top of the mountain where he shot down the biggest Himalayan Ibex, the beaming Hesham Usama Khan got excited and recalled the 48 hours long stalking and lookout in the vast wilderness for a glimpse of that much sought after Himalayan Ibex, many sleepless nights in small tents at the foot of the Batura Glacier and the unforgettable final night at an altitude of over 3,000 meters, spent in a shoebox like shepherd hut. It all paid off on the morning of the New Year’s first morning and, it was all over in just three seconds, a single shot from the Steyr Mannlicher 7mm Rem Mag Riffle from a distance of over 800 yards. And, the World Record Himalayan Ibex-Ranked No.1 was down on the cold stone floor of those snowcapped mountains in just three seconds, while his fellow animals running for a cover right past him.

The majestic, unbreakable and unchallengeable World Record Himalayan Ibex. Trophy with horn measuring 53 inches having the privileged of the biggest horn size certified trophy ever hunted in the world by Hesham Usama Khan from Lahore (Pakistan) on 1st January 2016. The world class trophy was harvested in Passu, Hunza (Younz valley) near Batura Glacier at 3454.5meters altitude outfitted by Muhammad Shifa (Silk Route Expeditions).

The auspicious shot was taken with Steyr Mannlicher 7mm Rem Mag Riffle. Leupold Scope VX-3, using 162 grains soft nose bullet. The legal harvested Himalayan Ibex Trophy has been certified by World Organizations Safari Club International & Rowland Ward, which has successfully secured the first position worldwide and ever since has maintained its Rank.

This Trophy was appreciated on local, as well as International Forums, to name a few prominent worldwide awards are Safari Club International Gold Award, Rowland Ward’s Record of Big Games, Carlo Caldesi Award (Italian Chapter for all animal species worldwide) and Shikar Safari (for all animal species in Asia). Pakistan’s leading newspapers, hunting magazines and websites worldwide also published the news and appreciated Hesham Usama Khan to make Pakistan Proud. This great achievement spread a wave of celebration in the region which also highlighted the local communities’ effort of animal conservation and the growth of sustainable development for local communities.

After this greatest achievement so far till this day by Hesham Usama Khan, there are a lot of claims that the Himalayan Ibex 53 inches horn size world record has been broken, but no authenticated registration or certification was ever brought up as evidence from any forum or recognized world’s organization.

Claims were made to get the spotlight but couldn’t be certified by any local or international organizations.