The Summer Issue

To Africa, With Whiskey

Africa has a way of staying with you. It gets under your skin, settles in your bones, and stirs something in the soul that never fully fades. For me, this issue is more than a collection of stories—it’s a love letter to a land that continues to call me back, again and again.

Our Africa Edition is always one I look forward to. Not that the others don’t stir excitement, but this one allows me to share something deeply personal. Within these pages, you’ll find a photo essay of Brian Smith and his wife as they explore Botswana’s Okavango Delta on horseback—a journey as intimate as it is wild. We mark the 100th anniversary of the last known photograph of the Barbary lion, a haunting reminder of what’s been lost and what must be protected. We celebrate the life of legendary professional hunter Harry Selby and the enduring legacy of Rigby Firearms, now 250 years strong.

You’ll also find practical insight for your own adventure: the best boots for safari, the five Swahili words you need to know, and a sip of Africa in the form of a DAWA cocktail.

So pour a whiskey, find a quiet place, and let this issue carry you across the red earth, thorn scrub, and timeless wonder of Africa.

Welcome to Feathers & Whiskey.

Wildly Refined

Michael Maynor 

Editor-in-Chief