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Seeing and photographing Giraffes on safari in Africa

14th October 2020

Seeing and photographing Giraffes on safari in Africa

As long-time safari planners and regular African travelers, giraffes are often on our minds, or in front of our camera lenses. Other than perhaps elephants, it is the one mammal that we get the most questions about. Everybody wants to see giraffes on safari. Just like the big cats, these quintessential African mammals are high on everyone’s must see list. It is easy to see why. They are simply spectacular in so many ways. There’s the sheer size of them, their stilt-like elongated necks and unmistakable ‘horned’ heads literally towering above the landscape and everything else. There’s the way they feed, drink, stare at you and run. Pretty much everything about a giraffe is weird and worth a second look.

Linyanti floodplain, Botswana

This photo, taken in the Linyanti area in Northern Botswana, illustrates a couple of things about giraffes and about getting useful images of them. Be ready with the right lens. If all you have available is a big telephoto lens, this is all you might get. A portion of a giraffe. Legs. Or a head, maybe a neck and head. So either shoot them at a good distance where they can fill the frame or use a shorter zoom lens to frame them properly. On this day I was fortunate to have a yellow-billed oxpecker bail me out of the tight photo spot. These birds have a symbiotic relationship with giraffes, helping them to get rid of disease-carrying ticks, food for the birds. Even ill-equipped photographers can be the beneficiaries of symbiosis, with a bit of luck.

Kwara concession, Okavango Delta

When it is not possible to get the entire giraffe – or more than one – inside the frame, consider grouping together a few giraffe necks, heads or upper bodies. Sometimes, you can get lucky and three giraffes will be facing in the same direction, with a nice cloudy background. It doesn’t happen all the time but keep looking for such an opportunity to present itself. Some years ago in the Kwara concession in Botswana’s Okavango Delta, I did just that, got lucky and succeeded in getting a visually pleasing shot of these three giraffes.

Kwandwe Game Reserve, Eastern Cape

I captured this photograph of three plains giraffes feeding at Kwandwe in the Eastern Cape Province of South Africa. It is another example of framing more than one giraffe in the same photograph, by isolating their necks and heads. The more giraffes, the better. Four necks may even be better than three; I’ve just not come across a suitable opportunity to try that!

Samburu region, Kenya

There are several species of giraffe in Africa. The three photos above have been of the most common of these, the Southern giraffe. In north-eastern Kenya one finds what I consider to be the most handsome of the giraffe species, the Reticulated giraffe. This photo of a few of them was taken in Samburu, a mostly stark, arid area where a good number of these endangered animals co-exist with a couple of other northern Kenyan endemics such as Grevy’s zebra and Beisa oryx. I’ve always described the Reticulated giraffe as the oil painting of giraffes, compared with the more washed out – ‘watercolor’ – Southern giraffe. If you’ve seen Reticulated giraffes in nature, I think you will agree. Their spots are a vivid, dark burnt orange which make the white stripes stand out even more. Another good place to find and observe Reticulated giraffes is the Lewa Wildlife Conservancy.

Lewa Wildlife Conservancy, Kenya

Taken in the Lewa Conservancy in northern Kenya, this photo of three Reticulated giraffes also illustrates their striking color pattern. And my penchant for trying to get several giraffe necks and heads in the same photo…

Lake Nakuru National Park, Kenya

There is considerable disagreement among scientists as to the specific number of giraffe species. Some maintain that there’s only one ‘giraffe’ with several subspecies. Others contend that there are as many as eight distinct species. A giraffe that is widely considered to be a subspecies is the Rothschild’s or Nubian giraffe. I photographed this one walking in a yellow-barked acacia forest on the edge of Lake Nakuru in Kenya. Full species or not, it is certainly a handsome beast with its characteristic white ‘sox’.

Giraffe Center, Nairobi

There are several Rothschild’s giraffes at the popular Giraffe Center in Nairobi, Kenya. The Giraffe Center is operated by the African Fund for Endangered Wildlife, to educate Kenyan youth about the country’s wildlife and environment and to provide visitors an opportunity to come into close contact with the giraffes. ‘Armed’ with a handful of giraffe pellets, visitors walk up a ramp to a balcony from where they can feed the giraffes at eye-level. The giraffes know the game. Whenever there are visitors, there are giraffes ready to stick out their crazy long tongues to retrieve a treat and be photographed. All for a good cause. Funds raised by the Giraffe Center have helped with efforts to re-establish the endangered Rothschild giraffe in several wilderness areas elsewhere in Kenya.

Royal Malewane, Thornybush Reserve – South Africa

A giraffe drinking is quite a sight to behold. This photo which I took on a game drive from Royal Malewane in South Africa illustrates the peculiar posture which a giraffe has to adopt in order to get its mouth down low enough to drink water from a pond or river. The exact mechanism by which a giraffe gets enough water in its mouth and up its massively long neck, isn’t entirely clear. What is clear is that giraffes are vulnerable to predation when they are drinking and they are always careful to look around for lions, before assuming the position.

Skeleton Coast area, Namibia

A little known fact about giraffes is just how adaptable they are. As a result giraffes are widely distributed in most habitats throughout Africa, even in some areas which are inhospitable to many life-forms. On two separate visits to Namibia’s Skeleton Coast we saw several groups of desert-adapted Angolan giraffe, a sub-species concentrated around ephemeral or seasonal rivers such as the Hoarusib, Huab and Hoanib. Wherever you see groves of acacia albida (Ana) and acacia erioloba (Camelthorn) trees, you can expect to find these giraffes. This photo was taken on a game drive out of Wilderness Safaris’ Hoanib Skeleton Coast Camp.

Okavango Delta, Botswana

Baby giraffes are cute. Like most other animals. These two youngsters were photographed on a game drive out of Wilderness Safaris’ Abu Camp in Botswana’s Okavango Delta. Even at a young age, giraffes adopt the typical habits of the species like being inquisitive and observant. They can see you long before you can see them, and they fully utilize their special advantage, always looking and staring. When safari guides are out on game drives searching for predators, they make a point of checking out where the giraffes are looking. If giraffes are standing still and staring consistently in the same direction, it is always a good indication that a predator is around.

Samburu, Kenya

Giraffes are relatively common in many areas in Africa. We always expect to see some – and sometimes many – in places like Mashatu in south-eastern Botswana, in Zimbabwe’s Hwange National Park, pretty much all over northern Botswana, the north-eastern lowveld of South Africa including all but the far northern part of Kruger Park, and in most East African parks and game reserves. While it is still fairly easy to see giraffes on a trip to Africa, it is a disturbing reality that giraffe numbers have decreased by 30% over the last three decades, with about 110,000 remaining. Even though giraffes as a species are not endangered, they are considered threatened and the situation could get worse, if current trends persist. Mostly, their numbers are dropping because of habitat loss, which happens when woodlands are converted into farms and ranches. Trophy hunting and poaching also play a role in their steady demise. Some of the species – or subspecies – such as the Reticulated Giraffe are in fact endangered, with their numbers down more than 90% compared with earlier times. These Reticulated giraffes photographed in Samburu in northern Kenya are nowadays found mostly in a few wildlife sanctuaries, with less than 10,000 of them surviving.

In our blog post next week, we will take a look at Africa’s signature mammal: the African elephant. With plenty of photographs and a few of our most indelible memories of interacting with these behemoths in all parts of Africa over the years.

More Info

Email bert@fisheaglesafaris.com

Email jason@fisheaglesafaris.com

@fisheaglesafarishouston

#FishEagleSafaris

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Cheetahs, cheetahs, cheetahs

9th October 2020

Cheetahs, cheetahs, cheetahs

For many visitors to Africa, seeing the big cats is #1 on their wish list. Nobody wants to go home only to have to say ‘no’ to the inevitable question about having seen lions. Even though the total number of lions in Africa have dropped alarmingly over the last few decades – largely due to habitat loss – they are still relatively easily seen in most wilderness areas. Lions are also prolific breeders under the right conditions – with enough prey animals around – so they bounce back quickly and predictably after setbacks such as prolonged droughts. Which means that on your next – or first – trip to Africa, you will almost definitely bump into lions if you spend a few days in practically any major game reserve or national park. In Southern or East Africa. So, did you see lions? Yes.

Other big cats are less frequently seen. Leopards are supremely adaptable creatures and they are common in almost any non-urban African habitat except true deserts. What makes them difficult to find and observe is their naturally elusive, shy and mostly nocturnal nature. They are mostly solitary and stealthy creatures of the night. That is when they are out and about in search of prey such as unsuspecting smaller antelope, monkeys, baboons and the like. Consequently, visitors see them mostly very early in the mornings or in the late afternoon, when they start to get active after resting up. In areas where they are habituated to the presence of vehicles, such as the Sabi Sand reserve in South Africa, in parts of the Masai Mara and the Serengeti, in private concessions in Northern Botswana and at Mashatu in south-eastern Botswana, they are more readily seen as they don’t conceal themselves at the first sign of vehicles, movement or humans.

The other big African cat – the cheetah – is in a different league altogether. It has a relatively tiny total population of about 7,000 in comparison with lions (approximately 25,000) and leopards (approximately 700,000). Despite being as sparsely distributed as they are, cheetahs are quite visible where present, due to their diurnal nature and preferred habitat. Cheetahs are adapted to hunt during the day which reduces competition from the nocturnal big cats, notably lions. Cheetahs also prefer open terrain where they can use their amazing speed to its best advantage. And they will often clamber onto anthills or stumps or other elevated spots to check out the area for potential prey – or danger. Open terrain, broad daylight, a spotted cat perched on top of an anthill? Bingo! For me personally, a cheetah sighting is a highlight of any Africa trip. They are just so rare, so beautiful and so special that even a brief glimpse of one of them will make your day.

Here are some photos we took of cheetahs in six different areas in Southern and East Africa where they are regularly seen. The captions summarize the back story about each photo and how it came to be.

Selinda, Northern Botswana

This cheetah was part of a coalition of two brothers which used to move up and down along the Linyanti River in northern Botswana, spending weeks or sometimes months in an area. For no apparent reason, they would then move along to a neighboring concession. Less competition from lions or hyenas, more prey animals? Who knows. The reasons are hardly ever readily apparent. The day on which we bumped into this particular cheetah and his brother, marked the first sighting of cheetahs on a game drive from Selinda, in several weeks. So essentially, we got lucky. Being in the right habitat and spending enough time scanning open terrain along the Linyanti floodplain, just improved our luck somewhat. We would get even luckier later that day, when we saw the cheetah coalition hunt and bring down an impala. My advice to anyone wanting to see a cheetah kill? Bring your best patience game as cheetahs take their time sizing up the area, the conditions and whatever their instinct dictates. It took the brothers the better part of four hours to finally attempt a charge. They were successful though. Cheetahs are the most efficient of the big cats in terms of hunting success, bringing down about 40% to 50% of prey, as a percentage of total attempts. By comparison leopards are successful about 30% to 40% of the time. Lions bring up the rear in a significant way, being successful less than 20% of the time.

Tswalu, South Africa

Tswalu in the northern Cape Kalahari in South Africa is better known as one of the best places in Africa to see pangolins and aardvarks, but it is no slouch for some of the big cats, notably lions and cheetahs. On our most recent visit to Tswalu (we will be returning this November) Kathy had set aside one afternoon to do some horseback riding. We were at the stables and she was just about to set off into the veld with one of Tswalu’s beautiful steeds, when word came on the radio that a couple of cheetahs had been spotted. Kathy and I looked at each other and there was no disagreement: the horses would have to wait for another day. It was a longish drive to get to the cheetahs, with the light fading fast by the time we pulled up to them. Even so, the decision was the right one. Looking in our direction in the gathering gloom, the cheetah’s ordinarily yellow eyes shone almost red. The sighting would be brief but eminently memorable.

Masai Mara, Kenya

When I first saw these cheetahs on a game drive out of Mara Explorer Camp, one of the cheetahs had jumped on top of a game drive vehicle from Mara Intrepids. I do not like to see behavior like that: it should have been prevented by the Mara Intrepids driver-guide. The guides in the area are all aware of the propensity of some of the cheetahs to try to use the vehicle as an observation post. And the guides know to avoid an incident, by staying clear of ‘known perpetrators’. It is potentially dangerous for the guests and for the cheetahs. Getting bitten or getting run over, respectively. Too risky all round. We left the scene, deciding to rather return early the next morning. It made all the difference. We had the cheetahs to ourselves for the better part of an hour, observing them walking around and getting onto anthills – not vehicles. The way it should be.

Serengeti Plains, Tanzania

Tanzania’s Serengeti Plains and its northernmost extension, the Masai Mara in Kenya, are likely Africa’s single best repository of cheetahs. This is their habitat par excellence. Open, rolling grassy plains with rocky outcrops, patches of woodland and riverine thickets, and plenty of prey in the form of Thomson’s gazelles and impala. Irrespective of the status of the annual wildebeest migration, the Serengeti and the Mara are great for the big cats, who have territories to defend and who do not move around with the wildebeest and the zebras. In fact, on the day we saw this cheetah on a game drive out of Nomad Tanzania’s Lamai Serengeti Camp, we experienced a rare big cat trifecta: lions, leopards and a cheetah. All in one game drive, not during the migration season. Other parts of the Serengeti where we have experienced above-average cheetah sightings include the southern Serengeti (Kusini camp) and the western Seronera area (Namiri Plains camp).

Hwange, Zimbabwe

Since we regularly started visiting Hwange National Park in north-western Zimbabwe in the 1990’s, we’ve come to recognize it as a good and reliable area for cheetah sightings. Just like elsewhere in Africa, the Hwange cheetahs move around and can’t always be seen in the same spots. So if you’re keen on seeing cheetahs on a trip to Zimbabwe, we would suggest including two different camps, such as Somalisa or The Hide or Khulu Bush Camp, combined with Little Makalolo or Linkwasha or Camelthorn. And give yourself plenty of time to find the cheetahs; five to six nights in the area would be ideal. This trio of young cheetahs were following their mother around and getting a lesson in patience. She wanted them to stay back and stay low while she approached some antelope. It was not to be. They kept showing themselves and following too closely behind her. Which naturally spooked the antelope. All in a day of growing up.

Mashatu, Botswana

Mashatu Game Reserve in far south-eastern Botswana is currently one of the best big cat destinations in Southern Africa. Spend three or better yet four nights there and you will most likely get to see lions, leopards and cheetahs. And not furtive ‘drive-by’ sightings either. On a recent September visit to the area, we had multiple good sightings of both lions and leopards, and notched up two different cheetah sightings in the course of a 3-night stay at Mashatu Tented Camp. What makes Mashatu a particularly good bet for cheetahs – and other big cats – is the fact that off-road driving is allowed which means that you can get quite close to these magnificent cats. For photographers this is a major advantage over many other areas where vehicles are not permitted off-road. Also, compared with most other good big-cat destinations, the Mashatu properties namely Mashatu Lodge, Mashatu Tented Camp and Euphorbia are moderately priced – at about half the cost of camps of similar quality in northern Botswana. We recommend combining a 3-night WalkMashatu foot safari with a few days at one of the Mashatu camps, to make the most of the area.

In our blog post next Friday, we will focus on one of the most popular and also instantly recognizable African mammals, the Giraffe. There will be photographs, of course, as well as some information about places where they can be seen. We will also review the various species you are likely to encounter in Southern and East Africa, and their conservation status.

More Info

Email bert@fisheaglesafaris.com

Email jason@fisheaglesafaris.com

@fisheaglesafarishouston

#FishEagleSafaris

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Kruger Park & Sabi Sand Reserve South Africa (Continued)

17th September 2020

Kruger Park & Sabi Sand Reserve South Africa (Continued)

I wrapped up an extensive educational trip in Kruger Park and in the northern, western and southern sections of the Sabi Sand Reserve, notching up multiple big cat sightings (lions, leopards and cheetahs), some of which rank among my best ever, from a photography perspective. I was also fortunate to find another big pack of African painted dogs one afternoon, on a drive in the western part of the Sabi Sand reserve. The four properties visited during the last week of the trip were Mbali Mbali, Savanna Lodge, Singita Boulders and Chitwa Chitwa.

MBALI MBALI LODGE, KRUGER PARK

Continuing where we left off on a recent late September trip, I was up a little bit later than usual on this day, at Hamilton’s Camp. After a solid English breakfast I collected my things and was driven to the nearby Mbali Mbali camp which sleeps 24 people in 12 rooms. This thatched property has a large lounge and dining room with a high vaulted ceiling. Mbali Mbali appears to be quite suitable for families and small groups in search of a moderately priced safari experience. Several of the guests were on self-drive safaris which reduce the overall cost even further. I arrived in time for lunch which was a self-service buffet with choices ranging from leg of lamb to chickpea salad, slices of pizza and couscous. None of it was gourmet fare but it was tasty and plentiful.

The afternoon and early evening game drive which lasted from about 4 pm until just after 7 pm was predictably quiet. It was simply too windy and unseasonably cold for many of the mammals to be active, and birding was practically impossible under the conditions. Even so, the game drive was not without its highlights. First off, we went in pursuit of a few sable antelope which had been spotted nearby. It took a while but we eventually located the small herd of about six or so sable antelope moving steadily from our right to our left in fairly thick woodland. I never could get a decent capture of one of the magnificent males which was too bad. Nonetheless seeing and following them for the next 20 minutes or so was quite exciting. In South Africa sable antelope are particularly rare and very seldomly seen.

Our last significant sighting of the day was a seemingly abandoned buffalo carcass, being fed on by five or so whitebacked vultures. We looked around for predators, expecting at least some hyenas to be present, but there were none. This was true for only a few minutes though because three hyenas did eventually show up, sniffed around and loped off into the bush again soon after.

Then it was back to the lodge for a plated three-course dinner which was served at 7:30 pm. It was quite good, inclusive of a chicken salad starter, impala fillet for the main course, and malva pudding to end. The highlight of the day was definitely discovering the high-speed broadband at Mbali Mbali. What a pleasure to be able to check email without being totally frustrated by glacially slow data transfer speeds like those at practically all the other camps to this point.

SAVANNA LODGE, SABI SAND RESERVE

After catching up on some work and taking a few bird and small antelope photos around the grounds of Mbali Mbali, I did a site inspection of nearby Hoyo Hoyo. It is a quaint, small camp with six rooms in a traditional African or Tonga style. The lodge had been recently updated with an enlarged deck and extra seating/dining options. It is known for reliably good game-viewing – we saw quite a few elephants close to camp – and is a popular, moderately priced accommodation option.

From inside Kruger Park, it took about three hours by road to get back to the western part of the Sabi Sand Reserve, where my capable and friendly driver from Sable Tours dropped me off at Savanna Lodge. My first impression of Savanna Lodge was mixed due to the proximity of a village, close to the western edge of the Sabi Sand reserve. As I was to see and experience during my stay there, it was not an issue. In fact if visitors want to, they can be taken on a village visit to meet and interact with some of the local people. Savanna has great rooms and amenities. I happily took them up on an offer of ‘emergency’ laundry service and the few items I handed over were back in my room, washed, dried and neatly folded, before dinner. Speaking of which, the meals at Savanna were terrific, served family style. Lots of choices, an abundance of fresh salads and produce, and a convivial atmosphere.

That afternoon’s game drive started on a high note with close-up views of several white rhinos and quickly reached ‘fever pitch’ with the sighting of a pack of about 20 African painted dogs. We followed and observed them for the better part of an hour, with young ones running around all over the place. For a moment there it looked like they might try to take on a zebra but it was not to be. The reaction of one of the zebras was pretty interesting though!

The following morning’s game drive with camp manager Paddy was simply brilliant. It started with a singularly good cheetah sighting with a male cheetah jumping into a tree and just about posing for us – so close to the vehicle that I had to switch to a 24-70mm zoom lens. There was a nice dark blue sky background, so for once no burn out issues in what might easily have been another backlit conundrum. Shortly afterward, the male cheetah – by now down from the tree – got into an altercation with a hyena. This time, I missed the shot, not having enough time to change out the telephoto lens. Note to self: always have a second camera handy for this type of situation. Even an iPhone would have done the job admirably. From there, we had another look at the painted dog pack – by then mostly sleeping. The day wasn’t over yet, though. It ended on another highlight, being a great sighting of a female leopard close to Dulini Camp, posing for us on top of a mound of dirt. If I hadn’t gotten a good photograph of that obliging leopard, I probably would have dumped my photo gear right there and then…

SINGITA BOULDERS CAMP

By 11 am I was on the road again, this time fortunately just a short drive from Savanna to Singita Boulders. I was shown around by Nicole who was friendly and informative and witty – in fact one of the best front of house people I’ve encountered in a long while. Unquestionably, Singita stands at the pinnacle of the photographic safari experience in Africa. It’s all on display at Singita Boulders: exceptional quality architecture and a luxury safari vibe, fine dining from morning until night (there always seemed to be something else delicious to eat) and impeccable service. Pretty much the ultimate safari experience – admittedly at a price.

My wine-tasting experience at Singita underscored the level of sophistication of the operation. For this experience, I was driven a few minutes across to Singita Ebony, the other Singita Sabi Sands property. The young sommelier did a wonderful job introducing a few of us to some fine South African wines including a particularly nice Pinotage blend. One of the guests present was not overly impressed with the selection of wine tasting options and almost jokingly said, “Where is the Rust en Vrede Estate?” Singita being Singita, the sommelier disappeared into a doorway and re-appeared minutes later, brandishing a bottle of Rust en Vrede Estate. Everyone was blown away by the depth and complexity of this Bordeaux style blend. Incidentally, Rust en Vrede was chosen by President Nelson Mandela to be served at the Nobel Peace Prize dinner. Rust en Vrede is produced by winemaker Jean Englebrecht in the Stellenbosch area.

Our game viewing outings from Singita Boulders were on the quiet side, compared with what I had experienced over the previous few days. Even so we (I shared a vehicle with a family from Sweden) saw more Cape buffalo in the area close to the lodge than anywhere else in the Sabi Sands. We also had some excellent rhino sightings in addition to the usual plains game. Guests who spend several days – we would recommend a minimum of three nights – in the Sabi Sands would of course have multiple opportunities to see all of the ‘Big Five’ species and much more. My Singita guide was a stand-out: fun to be with, knowledgeable and able to impart information in a credible manner without lecturing or sounding forced. Clearly in love with her job in the hospitality and wildlife conservation field. All of the other guests on the vehicle remarked on that.

CHITWA CHITWA CAMP

By 11 am the following morning I was on my way to Chitwa Chitwa. This would be the last overnight stop on my lengthy trip. Fortunately, it did not disappoint. The room and lounge layout and design were stylish and creative, without being extravagant. Chitwa Chitwa has massive rooms with air conditioning, indoor bath and shower, and an outdoor shower. It is squarely in the deluxe category, on every level. I liked the wide and gently sloping pathways and the entertaining yet thorough arrival briefing. A rambling, overly long or unnecessarily pedantic camp introduction can be off-putting, but this one was spot-on. Brief, to-the-point and light-hearted, yet touching on all the important safety stuff.

The game drive that afternoon started off on a rather shaky note, with more backlit photos of a leopard against a bright sky background. My guide displayed considerable patience and guiding acumen and somewhat to my surprise (I should have known better), the afternoon ended on a high note when we spent the last hour observing and photographing a couple of baby leopards, in the fading light. They had been secreted by their mother while she was away hunting, but their curiosity overcame their fear and they started to show themselves – barely – peeking out at us from the undergrowth. A magical experience which I will never forget.

On my last game drive of the trip, I was up at 5 a.m, ready to go. If there’s one requirement for a job in the photographic safari business, it is to embrace the routine of getting out of bed super early – often in the dark and when it is cold – day after day. It turned out to be a nice sunny morning, a bit breezy and colder than what one may expect for the South African bushveld in early October. It was yet another productive game drive and perhaps not unsurprisingly, we saw more big cats. I had to stop myself from getting blasé about cat sightings. They are just too rare and too special for anyone to be indifferent about seeing them. Initially, things were quiet but then picked up with a great buffalo sighting. We spent some quality time with a herd of about 50 or 60 Cape buffalo, getting photos of them from a variety of angles in very nice if somewhat bright morning light. And then things got really interesting when the guide spotted a female leopard and her sub adult cub walking through the open woodland, eventually jumping into a tree very close to us. Again, I was caught with too much lens: the fixed 300 mm lens on my D4 was not ideal for the close up action which followed. This is the type of situation where one should ideally have two cameras on hand: one with a shorter zoom lens such as a 70-200 mm. Fortunately the advent of lighter and smaller mirrorless cameras is making this less of an issue than it had been up to now, because of weight restrictions.

My brief stay at Chitwa Chitwa turned out to be one of the highlights of the entire trip. It was friendly, everyone seemed to enjoy working there and every facet of the experience was excellent. The food was a highlight: the dinner starter – a grilled prawn (shrimp) salad – was one of the best I had had in many years. The perfectly cooked lamb loin chops were just as praise-worthy, and ditto for the malva pudding dessert, simply divine.

At the time of my visit, a serious drought was affecting much of the greater Kruger Park area. One of the worst droughts in many years, in fact. It had a serious impact on grazing species such as hippos and buffaloes, many of which died or moved out of the area, either because of a lack of food or as a result of being pursued by lions. There were no issues with the overall quality of the game viewing, in fact it was stellar. Clearly, the predators were having a field day. In 40-plus years of game-viewing, I had simply never seen and photographed such an abundance of big cats and other predators, in one extended trip. Not soon to be repeated either.

In next week’s blog we look at the first of a couple of walking safari options, this one being the WalkMashatu trail in the Tuli block of Botswana.

More Info

Email bert@fisheaglesafaris.com

Email jason@fisheaglesafaris.com

@fisheaglesafarishouston

#FishEagleSafaris

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Destinations

Zambia

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By late July we found ourselves at Chindeni, a small Bushcamp Company property

Botswana

Destinations

Okavango Delta

3rd October 2022

Camp Okavango, Botswana

Camp Okavango is in the heart of the permanent part of the Delta. In this idyllic setting there are no vehicles, and it is just a short walk

Area

Destinations

Nyerere National Park

Ruaha

Tanzania

14th October 2023

From My Safari Notebook: Wildlife Photography

Birds in flight and wildlife photographers have an uneasy relationship. Things go wrong as often as they go right. Getting focus-lock on a moving subject

READERS FAVOURITES

Destinations

Zambia

10th September 2021

Chindeni and the Bushcamp Company, Zambia

By late July we found ourselves at Chindeni, a small Bushcamp Company property

Botswana

Destinations

4th August 2022

On Safari At Belmond Eagle Island Lodge, Okavango Delta

What is the ‘secret sauce’ for an unforgettable few days on safari in Botswana? It starts with the animals, of course. The elephants, lions, giraffes, hippos

Destinations

India

27th May 2023

India

India’s tiger, mammals and birds.

A visit to Kruger National Park & Sabi Sand Reserve, South Africa

10th September 2020

A visit to Kruger National Park & Sabi Sand Reserve, South Africa

Over the course of a week or so in the Kruger Park area I discovered a couple of superb new camps and revisited an old favorite, saw lots of animals – including many big cats and African painted dogs – benefited from expert guiding and was served some of the best food I’ve ever had on safari.

SINGITA LEBOMBO

On a recent September visit to South Africa, I traveled by road from the southern Sabi Sand area for about three hours to Singita Lebombo, on the eastern edge of the park.

This was my first visit to Singita Lebombo, and it did not disappoint. Singita sets an exceedingly high standard for the safari experience, at all of their Southern and East African properties. As I was to see for myself at Singita Lebombo as well as at Singita Ebony and Singita Boulders – which I were to visit later on – the properties excel at every facet of the guest experience. You might think that the food at Singita is out of this world – and it is – or that the lodges have simply the best stocked wine cellars, which is also true. But it doesn’t stop there. The same attention to quality and detail extends throughout the operation, from the selection and training of guides, to the front of house staff, property management, as well as the planning, design and execution of the lodges. Even more important is how successful the company has been in mobilizing its resources to create programs that benefit the people, wildlife and the areas in which it operates, all to safeguard Africa’s most vulnerable species and natural habitats.

Singita Lebombo is an architecturally striking lodge with clean modern design, lots of glass and plenty of natural light. The main dining room, bar and lounge have beautiful views over the foothills of the Lebombo mountains and Mozambique in the distance. The expansive kitchen turns out simply fantastic food. It takes confidence to attempt dishes of this quality and then to actually live up to advance billing is an achievement anywhere. All the more so here, in such a remote area.

The evening’s entertainment started with drinks in the Boma, by the fireside. It was a festive affair with a range of splendid South African wines and other beverages on offer. Guests had the choice of four white and four red wines including a Chardonnay, Chenic Blanc, Rose, Pinotage, Cabernet Sauvignon and Shiraz.

The food was bountiful too. The main offering was a range of charcoal grilled meats including beef, springbok, eland, lamb and beef ribs, pork ribs, and boerewors, the traditional South African ‘farmer’s sausage’, usually made with ground beef, sometimes a mix of beef and either pork or lamb. The starters were fantastic including snook pâté and chicken liver pâté, sweet corn fritters, Moroccan quinoa salad, citrus beetroot salad, ostrich sausage with bread pockets, sourdough bread, hummus, and marinated olives. If all that didn’t quite do it for you, you could also opt for fish fillets, grilled chicken, and oxtail stew. Side dishes included lentil bobotie, traditional ‘pap’ (a version of polenta), cabbage, shish kabobs with peanut sauce, sweet potatoes with a citrus reduction, broccoli and cauliflower, corn on the cob, and fruit skewers with ginger sauce. For dessert the chefs prepared a couple of South African traditional favorites, namely malva pudding and milk tart, and a peppermint crisp mousse. In recounting this menu, it occurred to me that I need to go back to this property immediately.

The morning game drive at Singita with our guide Margo started just after 6 am on a cloudy, rather blustery day. Margo succeeded admirably in making it a fun experience for the couple of safari veterans she had on board, as well as for a honeymooning couple from the USA, for whom it was game drive #1.

Although there were not large numbers of general plains game around, we did see a good variety of animals including plenty of giraffes, lots of Impala, some waterbuck, steenbok, several zebras here and there and a few wildebeest.

Of the bigger game species, sightings of note included two different male lions. One young intruder into the area just under four years old, the other a fully mature black maned individual, one of the dominant males in the local pride.

We also had good looks at a solitary old Buffalo whose face was often almost covered with several red billed oxpeckers and a large, handsome white rhino. Rhinos are apparently not easily seen in this area.

Lunch was started off with a flavorful focaccia bread with olive oil and fresh feta cheese. The tapas menu included carrot and coconut soup, apple walnut grape salad, beetroot polenta with white wine reduction, shimeji mushrooms, a butternut risotto, salmon tartare and carpaccio of kudu. All interesting, all expertly prepared and delicious.

The afternoon game drive at Singita was as good as any I had experienced on the trip thus far. Early on we observed a female leopard snoozing close to a recent kill, an unfortunate impala strung up in a tree just a few meters from where the leopard was resting. The leopard was the most relaxed of any of the Lebombo leopards and she paid not a whit of attention to our vehicle or to the two others which came and went. From there we proceeded to a different area where another leopard had killed an impala, close to the overhang of a cliff, alongside the Nuanetsi river. There was no sign of the leopard and the carcass seemed to have been abandoned. Later that afternoon we watched a black backed jackal sniffing around the area.

Shortly afterwards, having picked up our tracker Lawrence again – he had to do some remedial work on tracks our vehicle had left in the riverbed – we went on to our second lion sighting at Singita Lebombo. This time around there were two female lions belonging to the Mountain pride, walking away from a pan where they had been drinking. One of them crossed the road in front of us and it was painfully obvious that she had a bad case of mange. No doubt brought on by the stressful conditions of the drought. We were told that the cubs in this pride were currently malnourished due to an injured free-loading male lion who was hogging much of the food supply. One of the lionesses turned around and went back to the water where we had a chance to see her drink. And then almost as an added bonus we enjoyed our second leopard sighting of the day. This time it was a female lying on the road. She got up as we approached and slunk off towards the bushes, in the gathering darkness. Not alarmed or spooked, but somewhat more apprehensive than some of the more habituated individuals we had seen. There was not enough light to focus for photography but it definitely didn’t matter – the experience was firmly embedded in our personal memory banks. Dinner was superb again with a starter of seafood and ostrich fillet main course.

KIRKMAN’S KAMP, SABI SAND RESERVE

In somewhat of a departure from the usual early morning game drive, I did a site inspection at the nearby Singita Sweni Lodge, and the adjacent African village shopping area. Both impeccable. Singita Sweni Lodge’s seven spacious, open-plan suites are tucked into the banks of the Sweni River. The rich and vibrant interiors add to the dramatic look and feel of the lodge. The suites feature sweeping views through floor-to-ceiling glass, there are daybeds for sleeping under the stars and private decks that seem to float above the river.

At 11:00 I departed on a 3 hour drive to Kirkman’s Kamp, in the Sabi Sand Reserve. We first visited Kirkmans when it was still in the MalaMala stable, many years ago. We liked it then and nothing material has changed. The game-viewing is still as good as it gets, with all of the ‘Big Five’ mammals being seen practically every day, week in and week out. From the first time we saw it, we were drawn to Kirkman’s classic safari ambience. Built in the style of an original 1920’s homestead, the property is elevated on a high ridge with spectacular views over the landscape sloping down to the Sand River.

After a delicious al fresco lunch, it was time for the afternoon game drive departing at 3:20. Having received a very proper briefing, we trundled out of camp, the main objective being to locate a male lion coalition of two. We did that in short order, initially observing them in a rather sleepy, resting posture and then walking through the bush. Both lions sported beautiful black manes – and one of them had a prominent dislodged right lower incisor dangling from his lip. It didn’t seem to faze him at the time; the tooth was expected to fall off by itself soon enough.

That evening, we enjoyed a boma dinner, a rather elaborate affair capped with a lively singing and dancing performance by staff members. The menu included corn soup or asparagus as a starter; mains of chicken Cordon Bleu or grilled fillet of kudu and the grand finale was either an orange panna cotta or sticky toffee pudding.

The following morning’s activity started with a call to my room, prompting me to remain indoors for the next 20 minutes due to the presence of a leopard in the path in front of room number 10 and 11. I was in room number 13. Once the coast was clear, I made it to the reception area deck for a cup of coffee and a rusk, and then – naturally – we were off to find the ‘camp-exploring’ leopard. It didn’t take long. About 30 minutes later we were making our way through some pretty thick bush to where the leopard had been seen walking. It eventually got into a tree, where we were able to photograph it fairly well. Not ideal – due to a backlit situation – which wildlife photographers know is a problem without a real solution. You make the most of it with exposure variation, increasing the exposure by a few increments, trying to correct the exposure on the darker animal, without blowing out the lighter background. Somewhat unexpectedly the leopard snarled at our vehicle a couple of times – it was clearly not entirely happy with the situation.

Eventually the animal climbed down the tree and walked to a nearby ridge from where it observed the surroundings from its elevated position.

Unbeknownst to us the male lions which we had observed the previous night had made a kill only 300 meters down the ridge from where the leopard was sitting. In fact, we could see the lions from there. We made our way back to the road, drove around the corner and there they were: both of the boys literally sprawled out in the middle of the bush track. Just 20 meters or so away, was their thoroughly mauled buffalo victim. Its massive head had been bent backwards and sideways in an unnatural, clearly violent manner when it met its demise sometime the previous night.

The lions were not actively feeding, just lying there and resting up before going back to the buffalo carcass again. It would probably last them for a couple of days or more.

We then drove off to the bank of the Sand River where we stopped for a bush break and enjoyed a cup of coffee.

Just as we were finishing up, the radio came alive with news that a group of African painted dogs had been spotted in the Charleston sector of adjacent Malamala game reserve where Kirkman’s has traversing rights. Off we went to go and find them. After 10 minutes or so of steady but not overly fast or aggressive driving, we spotted the first of what would prove to be about 20 dogs in total.

We followed the painted dogs through the woodland, into the riverbed where they paused for a while, some of them drinking water from a depression, and then we picked them up again as they exited the river on the other side.

All the while the youngsters were sniffing at everything and clearly finding new and exciting things along the way. They stopped to inspect a buffalo skull and horns, ducked behind stumps, poked into bushes and generally followed the lead of the adult painted dogs who were running ahead of the pack, seemingly in hunting mode. By the time the pack started to disperse and move into thicker bush, it was time for us to return to camp for breakfast.

HAMILTON’S CAMP KRUGER PARK

A little later that morning I was on my way to Hamilton’s tented camp, a six-roomed property inside the Kruger Park about a two hour drive from Skukuza airport and about 2.5 hours from Kruger gate.

The camp can also be reached by road from Hoedspruit airport; this would entail a road transfer closer to 3 to 3 1/2 hours.

The drive from Skukuza to Hamilton’s was not unpleasant with good numbers of general plains game to be seen including zebra, buffalo and giraffe. I also spotted two white rhinos grazing around a depression where recent rainfall had resulted in a bit of green emerging vegetation.

I liked what I saw on arrival at Hamilton’s: it had an attractive lounge and dining room area located on the banks of a river, with beautiful tented rooms with air conditioning, a bath and outdoor shower, mosquito nets, ample storage space plus adequate lighting.

The afternoon game drive started slowly but it soon became apparent that there were lots of animals around. We were almost never not in sight of something: giraffe, kudu, zebra, elephant, buffalo, warthog, impala, there were animals everywhere. The afternoon ended on a high note with an excellent leopard sighing, being a solitary male lying up in the open on a sandy bank along a drainage line. He was apparently very full from just having fed on an impala, so not very active. It suited me just fine for a few photographs.

Our last day in the Kruger Park was not an ideal day to be on safari. It was blustery and downright cold at times with a strong wind whipping around camp, and right through the passengers in the semi open game drive vehicles. And of course the animals were not immune to the impact of the weather. My capable guide Gareth and I gave it a good shot and he did manage to find and show me the young male leopard in the marula tree, which we had briefly spotted earlier. The leopard was finishing up the last of the impala kill which was by now reduced to mostly skin, ribs and leg bones. After about 10 minutes or so the leopard dropped down from the tree and disappeared into the low bushes.

With the wind becoming even stronger and some rain making things decidedly unpleasant, we called it a day and returned to camp.

In next week’s blog: I travel to the northern and then western part of the Sabi Sand reserve in search of more special places and experiences.

More Info

Email bert@fisheaglesafaris.com

Email jason@fisheaglesafaris.com

@fisheaglesafarishouston

#FishEagleSafaris

YOU MIGHT ALSO BE INTERESTED IN

Destinations

Zambia

10th September 2021

Chindeni and the Bushcamp Company, Zambia

By late July we found ourselves at Chindeni, a small Bushcamp Company property

Botswana

Destinations

Okavango Delta

3rd October 2022

Camp Okavango, Botswana

Camp Okavango is in the heart of the permanent part of the Delta. In this idyllic setting there are no vehicles, and it is just a short walk

Area

Destinations

Nyerere National Park

Ruaha

Tanzania

14th October 2023

From My Safari Notebook: Wildlife Photography

Birds in flight and wildlife photographers have an uneasy relationship. Things go wrong as often as they go right. Getting focus-lock on a moving subject

READERS FAVOURITES

Destinations

Zambia

10th September 2021

Chindeni and the Bushcamp Company, Zambia

By late July we found ourselves at Chindeni, a small Bushcamp Company property

Botswana

Destinations

4th August 2022

On Safari At Belmond Eagle Island Lodge, Okavango Delta

What is the ‘secret sauce’ for an unforgettable few days on safari in Botswana? It starts with the animals, of course. The elephants, lions, giraffes, hippos

Destinations

India

27th May 2023

India

India’s tiger, mammals and birds.

A Visit to Northern Botswana Continued

3rd September 2020

A Visit to Northern Botswana Continued

JAO CAMP, OKAVANGO DELTA

Having taken my farewell of the Kalahari for a while, I was driven back to Maun where I got back on a small plane for the half hour flight or so, to Jao in the western part of the Okavango Delta. What more is there to be said about Jao other than that it is perfect. Since way back to when we first visited it in 2000, not long after it was opened, Jao has been on our ‘Groundhog Day’ list – a place where you can wake up every morning for the rest of your life and be happy.

The rooms are gorgeous: massive, romantic, dramatic, the stuff of dreams. The same adjectives can be applied to the rest of the property: the main lounge and bar area, the outside seating areas, the library, and extending right out to the gym and spa. Even the dingiest of camps can look romantic at night, but Jao passes the daylight test with flying colors. Does it still look good in the unflattering glare of the midday sun? Definitely yes. Which puts it in very select company.

Dinner was predictably excellent on the night I was there. Even the most jaded of travelers will long remember nightfall at Jao. The sensational views of the sun setting over the Delta, the soft pink glow lasting for what seems to be hours as the birds go silent, the reed frogs start up to their metallic clinks, and the last few baboon noises dying away as they settle down in the trees.

On an afternoon boating outing I caught (and released) a decent-sized tiger fish, much to my surprise and much to the delight of the guide, who was even happier about it than me. Even if I hadn’t caught a thing, it would have been a great afternoon. Being in a small aluminum skiff exploring the bywaters and lagoons of the Okavango Delta can easily push you into a Walter Mitty moment. There you are, expertly piloting the craft along the deceptively serene-looking waterways, taking just the right line to smoothly glide around a tight corner. Fortunately, the imaginary helmsman doesn’t have to concern himself with the myriad of unseen obstacles lurking below the surface. Shallow sand-banks, hidden tree stumps and sometimes – a misplaced hippopotamus. Those ones that are supposed to be in deeper water…

Our morning game drive at Jao was fairly uneventful except that I got a couple of nice bird photos including a Plainbacked Pipit and a Malachite Kingfisher in superb morning light. To be sure, there were lots of elephants around and some general plains game. Ordinarily, we’d advise guests at Jao to take a day outing to nearby Hunda Island, if they are keen to see predators such as leopards and lions, among others.

Upon my return to Jao, there was a surprise waiting for me: a 20-minute helicopter flight over the Delta with Helicopter Horizons, courtesy of Wilderness Safaris. What a treat and what a special experience! This was fast turning into the ‘helicopter trip’. Great to start working on a new skill, aerial photography.

PELO CAMP, OKAVANGO DELTA

En route to Pelo Camp – which would be a new property for me – I did a site inspection at Kwetsani which is now even more impressive than before. Pretty much the ideal – classic – Okavango Delta experience with rooms that are well beyond the standard of a normal, run-of-the-mill classic camp. One thing which will always be the same at Kwetsani is the time tested views over the large floodplain in front of camp, where there’s almost always some birds and animals around. Then it was on to Pelo which I liked right away. Quite small, with only 5 rooms, tucked away on a well-vegetated island right in the heart of the Delta, Pelo is all about experiencing a typical Okavango Delta water camp with boating, mokoro outings and walking on the islands. Pelo has a particularly nice communal area, intimate and inviting. The afternoon boat trip was rather quiet but the other boat saw a breeding herd of 50-plus elephants. As always it’s a matter of time and place.

We enjoyed a boma dinner outside with an entertaining singing and dancing performance from the staff. Great memories!

On my last morning at Pelo, I took my best photos yet of a Pel’s Fishing Owl, a rarely seen nocturnal bird. Prior to my visit, I had been alerted to the fact that there was a female Pel’s raising a chick outside tent number four. Emerging from tent #4 that morning, there it was: staring me down as it was bringing some food (it looked like a piece of fish) for the baby. I managed quite a few exposures in good light. Simply an amazing bird! Later that morning I enjoyed yet another enjoyable and interesting boat ride. There were lots of colorful birds to be seen, with African Fish Eagles being visible practically every few hundred meters. We also had great looks at a few decent sized Nile crocodiles.

SABLE ALLEY CAMP, KHWAI

After a good breakfast it was back to the airstrip for a flight to the Khwai area, where I would spend the next two nights at Sable Alley. The main area is about as good as it gets in Botswana, with a huge open-design deck and dining room, overlooking a pond. The camp also has a beautiful pool. The tented rooms – spread out along a boardwalk in a wetland habitat, were well planned and executed. Spacious, with a large veranda and a usable bench, excellent ventilation, and superior indoor lighting – the best of any camps I’ve been to lately. Add to that a comfortable bed and bedding, separate toilet, ample storage space, an effective waterfall shower head as well as scaldingly hot water, and an outdoor shower on a raised wooden deck.

Our afternoon game drive with guide Tony and trainee Teenage turned out to be surprisingly good despite conditions not being ideal. There were several small groups of elephant, some seen quite close up, and we had some good views of kudu and impala. The most notable sighting was a couple of sub adult African Painted Dogs at a suspected denning site. We watched them for a while before they loped into the bush. According to our guide Tony the alpha female had already given birth to a litter of pups; it remained to be seen how many pups there were, and if the pack would raise them in that location.

We returned to camp for a quick shower, drinks and excellent dinner.

Our Sunday morning game drive was on the quiet side although first time visitors to Africa would’ve been quite happy to see as many elephants as we did. It was noticeable that the elephants in the concession have a lot of ‘attitude’ compared with elephants in most other areas. Likely a holdover from the days in which hunting was allowed in the area, resulting in the elephants being a bit wary and giving vehicles and people a wider berth than one might anticipate. We came across several small groups of up to 10 or so elephants with several young ones including a couple of tiny babies. Clearly the elephants are doing well.

Later on during the drive we came across zebra, kudu, some giraffe, and plenty of impala. Fantastic birds. In line with my previous experiences in this area, it is best visited in the dry season from July through October.

That afternoon I relocated to Hyena Pan, which looked like quite an interesting spot, again likely to be a much better bet in the dry season than when we were there. Located on the edge of a water hole, the camp is rustic but perfectly comfortable, with a cozy common area and large dining room. Our guide there – Daniel – was one of the best to date on the trip: energetic and enthusiastic. We drove about 40 minutes in the Khwai village direction, mostly through non-productive mopane forest. Once we reached the more open area and riverine bush strips of the NG 18 concession, we started to see plenty of game. Initially a mating pair of lions and then a group of four painted dogs which we followed for a while. They kept moving so photography was hit and miss; lots of excitement though. The evening was rounded off with a good buffet meal with beef stroganoff as the main attraction.

CHITABE CAMP, MOREMI

Late this morning I was on a flight to Chitabe, a Wilderness Safaris classic property in the far south-eastern part of the Okavango Delta. Almost immediately I started seeing giraffes, zebras and elephants – clearly there was an abundance of general game all over the area. Since my visit the main area at Chitabe has been rebuilt. The rooms were superb: plenty of space, good lighting, huge mosquito nets, hot water bottles at night, a tea and coffee station, sufficient charging points.

On the afternoon game drive we had yet more views of elephants, zebras, giraffes and a large pride of lions. We enjoyed sundowners at a small, peaceful lake. The excellent dinner that evening was served family style.

I was up at 05:30 am the next morning for a light breakfast, embarking on the game drive just after six. The drive presented our best views yet of spotted hyenas at their den, producing a few nice shots in good morning light. Then we got word about a pack of African painted dogs, and found 20 of them resting up and snoozing in the shade of a vehicle on the edge of the Chitabe airstrip. The light and vantage point was not great but I managed a few photographs.

Then it was back to camp where a huge elephant bull was barring the front entrance, at least for a while. Following on a tasty brunch, we enjoyed an impromptu drumming performance by one of the staff members. By 2:30 pm I was back at the airport, with multiple elephant, zebra, kudu, impala and giraffe sightings en route. Indicative of the wealth of game in the Chitabe area, I had to assist the guide in chasing impala, warthogs and giraffe from the airstrip to make it safe for the incoming aircraft, who would take us on to our next camp.

Chitabe certainly lived up to expectations and indeed exceeded them. The rooms are great and now that the rebuild of the main area has been completed it will likely rival just about any other northern Botswana camp for supremacy in delivering a big game experience.

VUMBURA PLAINS, OKAVANGO DELTA

Just after 3:00 pm I was on the way to Vumbura Plains in the northern part of the Okavango Delta. A bit later than planned, due to an unexplained flight delay. Once in camp – it is a rather lengthy and bumpy drive from the airstrip to the camp – I spent the next hour or so looking around the recently rebuilt main building. It was quite impressive with clean, elegant lines, open to the environment and awash in natural light, with ample seating options in an expansive dining area. Even if you spend several days at Vumbura Plains, you would rarely enjoy a meal in the same spot twice.

After a quick introduction, we walked down the boardwalk to room number one. There were no apparent changes to the room which I had seen for the first time some years previously. Spacious, lots of natural light, decent interior lighting, an impressive indoor shower with a view as well as outdoor shower. A bathtub was oddly lacking – one would expect to see it in a deluxe property like Vumbura Plains; in fact an outdoor tub would be a nice touch. After a delightful dinner with the camp manager it was off to bed, early.

After an early breakfast it was time to saddle up for the morning game drive with my guide Ron. Initially it was slow but after about an hour we found four beautiful young male lions, not quite into their prime but not far from it either. Next was a herd of about nine or so sable antelope. These rarely seen and sparsely distributed antelope are fond of fairly tall grass, often seen in relatively thickly vegetated woodland such as in Hwange National Park in Zimbabwe.

This particular group was as approachable as any Sable I’ve ever encountered, the two females allowing us to approach them quite closely. The light was still fairly good and I captured a few decent images. The dominant male sable was not at all cooperative. It was as if he knew that he was the one that we ‘really’ wanted to see, playing hide and seek with us for 30 minutes. He proceeded to deliberately and seemingly determinedly walk from one thicket to another without as much as stopping even once, to give us a good look. The sighting was a big plus in my book as Sable antelope was the one species I had specifically mentioned when asked by Ron – at the outset of the game drive – whether there was something particular I wanted to see. Being able to deliver on a very tricky animal such as this one counts a lot.

The game drive got even better with sightings of a large herd of buffalo at the waterhole and then an equally large herd of fifty plus elephants stampeding through the woodland. Their irate trumpeting and a dust cloud announcing their whereabouts, from afar. They were apparently entering a new or dangerous area and all of the older females were trumpeting and running around. Towards the final stage of the stampede, three of the females – including what appeared to be the matriarch female – started to approach the vehicle in somewhat of a threatening pose. We were ready to decamp at a moment’s notice, but in the end it was not necessary. Plenty of adrenalin though.

CAPTURE AFRICA, KHWAI REGION

Due to a flying mix up my planned 11:25 a.m. departure from Vumbura did not take place, but it was deftly replaced by a helicopter flight of about 20 minutes or so direct to Khwai River Lodge, where I was picked up by Brian Gibson of Capture Africa. An hour or so later we were at Capture Africa‘s private campsite on the Khwai River

Capture Africa specializes in high-quality private mobile tented safaris mostly in the Khwai, Moremi and Okavango Delta areas, but they can set up private mobile campsites and provide support services literally anywhere in Botswana.

Adding a few days of “real“ camping to a mostly lodge-based itinerary adds an extra layer of authenticity and adventure to a trip; for many people this is as close as they may ever come to the bush.

That afternoon, from our exceedingly comfortable camping site we saw an elephant walk along the floodplain, splashing its way through the shallow water and down the river. It was a pleasant change to what I had been doing seemingly nonstop the preceding few days, which was finding the wildlife out on game drives. Having them come to you is infinitely more rewarding and relaxing.

Brian Gibson – who heads up Capture Africa – is clearly passionate about the wilderness. He is a highly experienced guide himself and it was quite a revelation spending a day or so in his company, trying to absorb his pithy advice and in-depth knowledge of the area and its wildlife as well as its people. On a drive with Brian the next day we got lucky with African painted dogs on the move – the thrill of the chase! – and we enjoyed a great lion sighting as well. The Khwai region is clearly a productive game-viewing environment, however the number of vehicles per sighting was notably higher than most of the other areas we visited on this trip.

Our party of four people enjoyed a particularly splendid meal at Capture Africa’s mobile tented camp that night, spending another hour or so around the campfire afterwards. It was just us, a brilliant sky, and what must have been close to 4,500 stars above. That being the maximum number visible to the human eye, which can only detect stars brighter than magnitude 6 to 6.5. Just as noticeably, there was practically no man-made ambient light, no noises and no disturbances. Not that it was totally quiet. If you knew what you were listening to, there was what sounded like a lost – or lonely – jackal, a few hungry hyenas and a couple of African scops owls advertising their presence with their chirp-like calls. The African bush at night.

EBONY CAMP, LINYANTI

This morning I flew from Khwai to the Linyanti floodplain for an overnight at Ebony camp, African Bush Camps’ family option, adjacent to the similar but slightly larger Linyanti Bush camp. Room number 10 at Ebony Camp is the designated family room.

Either camp would be an ideal safari choice for visitors, particularly from about June/July through October and early November, in the dry season. At that time of the year the floodplain attracts good numbers of elephant, buffalo and other big game species including predators.

At the time of our visit in mid-May the surrounding bush was still quite thick which made game viewing challenging. Even so, we saw several small herds of elephants, hippos in the river and a coalition of three male lions. As well as some giraffe, waterbuck, impala and exceptionally good birdlife.

The camp is clearly well-managed and I found the staff to be friendly and approachable. It would be nice to have the tent door zippers replaced with regular doors. Only two of the rooms (honeymoon room and family room) have bathtubs. The other rooms have showers with hot water available at all times.

The grand finale of my Botswana trip was yet another helicopter ride, this time to check out the Linyanti River and its denizens which included several pods of hippopotamus, giraffes drinking, a few crocodiles. From the air, there was a dearth of any signs of human encroachment. There are so few places left in the wilderness which are truly remote and this is one of them.

My next stop would be South Africa, for a return visit to the Kruger Park and Sabi Sand reserve. Details to follow in our blog post to be published next Friday.

More Info

Email bert@fisheaglesafaris.com

Email jason@fisheaglesafaris.com

@fisheaglesafarishouston

#FishEagleSafaris

YOU MIGHT ALSO BE INTERESTED IN

Destinations

Zambia

10th September 2021

Chindeni and the Bushcamp Company, Zambia

By late July we found ourselves at Chindeni, a small Bushcamp Company property

Botswana

Destinations

Okavango Delta

3rd October 2022

Camp Okavango, Botswana

Camp Okavango is in the heart of the permanent part of the Delta. In this idyllic setting there are no vehicles, and it is just a short walk

Area

Destinations

Nyerere National Park

Ruaha

Tanzania

14th October 2023

From My Safari Notebook: Wildlife Photography

Birds in flight and wildlife photographers have an uneasy relationship. Things go wrong as often as they go right. Getting focus-lock on a moving subject

READERS FAVOURITES

Destinations

Zambia

10th September 2021

Chindeni and the Bushcamp Company, Zambia

By late July we found ourselves at Chindeni, a small Bushcamp Company property

Botswana

Destinations

4th August 2022

On Safari At Belmond Eagle Island Lodge, Okavango Delta

What is the ‘secret sauce’ for an unforgettable few days on safari in Botswana? It starts with the animals, of course. The elephants, lions, giraffes, hippos

Destinations

India

27th May 2023

India

India’s tiger, mammals and birds.

A Visit to Victoria Falls & Hwange Zimbabwe

14th August 2020

A Visit to Victoria Falls & Hwange Zimbabwe

In late May last year, just after noon on what was a Tuesday, I stepped into a seven seater Mahindra Airvan at Saile Airstrip on the edge of the Linyanti floodplain in Northern Botswana. A click of a seatbelt and a short safety briefing later, it was time to go. The young pilot pushed the power throttle to its fully forward position, released the brakes and in less than a minute we went hurtling into the blue Botswana sky.

For me, bush flying will never get old. With the passage of time, I have come to enjoy and appreciate it more and more, since my first ‘white-knuckle’ flight in a Cessna 206 – also in Botswana – in 1990. Over the last almost 30 years the pilots have become younger and more diverse in terms of gender and nationality, new types of aircraft have arrived on the scene, and operation and safety standards have improved. The fun and excitement never went away.

Bush flying has always been different. This is ‘real’ flying with a sense of immediacy, noise, speed and a tinge of danger. All lacking from commercial flying. Even so, if you have yet to strap yourself into the seat of a single prop aircraft in which you can make eye contact with the pilot as he or she looks back right before takeoff, there is no need to be nervous. These young persons have acquired excellent flying skills, are totally safety conscious and have to be exceptionally skilled to have snagged a flying job in Botswana. It’s a plum position.

Just over 30 minutes later we were in Kasane. And 20 minutes later I was in a boat crossing the Chobe river into Zambia. The landing in Zambia is a bit jarring, having to negotiate one’s way along a somewhat rickety gangplank, amid industrial debris and the grimy, smelly environment of a working dockside. Thankfully the immigration process was quick and painless, taken care of by my Wilderness Safaris driver Angel. I paid $50 for a univisa, which allows unlimited entries into Zimbabwe and Zambia for several months.

TONGABEZI LODGE, ZAMBIA

By 2:30 p.m. I arrived at Tongabezi where the affable and efficient general manager Mark showed me around and helped me with a quick check in, almost immediately afterwards followed by a delightful lunch overlooking the Zambezi. Which was flowing strongly.

About an hour or so later – my last mode of transport for the day being a small aluminum skiff which deposited me on a small island in the middle of the Zambezi – I had made it to my final destination of the day, Sindabezi. Here, I would spend the night. Sindabezi Island is remote, private and the ideal spot for someone open to new adventures. After a peaceful night’s sleep, I woke up not to sunlight, but to a moonbeam. I had been sleeping within sight and sound of one of Africa‘s mightiest rivers, right in front and below me. A nearby set of rapids stirring up the most soothing white noise of all. Sleeping virtually outside with just a few light curtains between you and the great African outdoors. There’s more. You’re attended to personally by several friendly and efficient staff members, enjoying delicious food from a varied and creative menu with lots of local options, and choosing from a huge list of included and optional activities. Being severely time limited, I opted for an afternoon sundowner cruise which was relaxing and fun, ending at a drinks stop where I met many of the guests staying at Tongabezi Lodge. It was a most agreeable conclusion to a busy day.

One final plus point about Sindabezi Island: good fast Wi-Fi on an island which runs on solar power. All the lodges out there with feeble excuses about sub-par Wi-Fi service. Take note. It can be done.

The next morning I woke up to an unusual sight. A bank of fog had formed over the surface of the Zambezi resulting in a spectacular if somewhat spooky sunrise, the sun itself and its light reflected, refracted and obscured by the fog. The photographs hardly do it justice but I took a few nonetheless.

After a super breakfast and catching up on a few emails I went back to Tongabezi Lodge for a site inspection. I was really pleased to see that both the houses and cottages at Tongabezi were fantastic and I would highly recommend the property for a Victoria Falls stay.

Tongabezi has the most magnificent trees and gardens including an extensive vegetable and herb garden, both featuring heavily in the planning and execution of meals and drinks.

As previously alluded to, the list of included and optional activities is exhaustive, ranging from sundowner cruises to village visits to micro light flights over the falls. Tongabezi was then in the final stages of an extensive upgrade, and their large bar and lounge had been completed, with a new reception landing area. With a new office already in place Tongabezi was looking great. By all means go there.

THORNTREE LODGE, VICTORIA FALLS

By late morning I was dropped off at African Bush Camps’ Thorntree Lodge, on the banks of the Zambezi, inside the Zambezi National Park. This property has been setting a new high standard for deluxe boutique accommodation in the fully inclusive lodge category, with 10 beautifully designed villas, each with a large deck and private plunge pool, looking out over the Zambezi. The rooms have every feature one could wish for: air conditioning, Wi-Fi, striking glass and screens, and adequate lighting. Each villa has a mini bar, tea and coffee making facilities, indoor and outdoor showers and an indoor tub, a large bathroom with separate enclosed toilet, a personal safe and mosquito netting.

The main area is an impressive – mostly glass enclosed – structure and there’s also a spa and gym on the large grounds. The lodge offers a full range of activities. The standard of hospitality which I experienced at Thorntree was exceptionally high. My day started with a peaceful and rather quiet Zimbabwe river cruise with the Thorntree activities manager – a pleasant change of pace from the hectic pace of the previous day.

En route to Zimbabwe that afternoon, I made an hour-long stop to observe the Victoria Falls from the Zambia side. I had done this outing approximately a year ago so I knew what to expect, with the Zambezi being in flood stage. Again it was an awesome sight to behold. While the view of the Victoria Falls from the Zambia side is not the best when the river is low – from September to about December or so – it is quite satisfactory and even spectacular when the Zambezi is running at flood or near flood stage.

In fact the closest one can get to the actual flow of the water – to experience an effect much like that of seeing Niagara Falls from the Canadian side – is a spot close to the entrance to the falls reserve, on the Zambia side. Powerful and mesmerizing. You inadvertently stop to think about the survival chances of someone going down there in a barrel. Only to conclude that the prospect of the person surviving to tell the tale is a big fat zero.

Crossing the wet and slippery Devil’s footpath bridge across a side gorge, you reach some more good view points over the eastern portion of the falls, observing the Angels’ armchair and the famous Devil’s pool, popular attractions for breathtakingly close approaches to the abyss. Only doable when the water in the Zambezi is low.

BATONKA GUEST LODGE

Having been driven across the Zambezi and into Zimbabwe, my first stop was the Batonka Lodge, an all-around delightful property with 16 well-equipped rooms, less than a mile away from the falls, in the residential portion of Victoria Falls town.

The rooms are spacious, effectively air-conditioned, there is Wi-Fi and even television with 10 channels. The meals were excellent. I overheard a guest complimenting the chef on a main course of pork medallions served with a caper sauce. I concurred. They were expertly prepared and deftly served and not unreasonably pricey by Victoria Falls standards.

Batonka Lodge has a nice pool in a sunny spot, there are both indoor and outdoor dining options as well as some comfortable inside and outside lounge areas, and a cozy bar.

Particularly for someone who already has a couple of scheduled Vic Falls activities planned – and who does not “have“ to be within walking distance from the falls – it is a good and affordable option with no high season premium.

GORGES LODGE, VICTORIA FALLS

After lunch that day, and a road transfer of about 35 minutes, I checked into one of the excellent tented rooms at Little Gorges, a five room tented addition to the well-established Gorges Lodge.

Gorges and Little Gorges are ideal for guests who prefer to be away from the helicopter noise and hustle and bustle of Victoria Falls town, and are keen to experience a more peaceful environment with great black eagle viewing, as well as experiencing an authentic local village and school experience. Included in the rate is a daily round-trip transfer to Victoria Falls town for a guided tour of the falls or some other Victoria Falls activity.

My afternoon black eagle activity did not have the desired outcome which was a good photo of a black eagle in flight. As is often the case with wildlife, it was circumstantial. A male black eagle did in fact fly right over us but I had too much lens and there were some trees in the way. Photography issues. I did manage to get a half decent pic of a black eagle sitting in a tree close to one of the tented rooms. Plus I had a great chat with co manager Chris, enjoyed the superb sundowners snacks and watched as the sun slowly set over Batoka gorge. A worthwhile experience unto itself.

Dinner at Gorges was quite enjoyable. As before it was a tasty home style meal with a grilled steak, grilled potato and two veg plus an excellent malva pudding for dessert.

Tent number one at Little Gorges is right on the edge of the Batoka gorge with the sound of the Zambezi rushing over some rapids, creating a soothing backdrop, making it a perfectly splendid place to fall asleep. Which I promptly did after dinner. There is nothing like a solid eight hours in likely some of the cleanest air in Africa to recharge the batteries.

Breakfast at Gorges Lodge could have benefited from a little work in the way of presentation and ‘wow’ factor; and perhaps a French press instead of drip brewed coffee. Even so, the cooked breakfast was perfectly fine – no issues with that.

VICTORIA FALLS RIVER LODGE

Rather earlier than was necessary – which caused me to forgo an activity at Gorges – I was transferred back to Victoria Falls and from there by boat from the Shearwater jetty for a pleasant 10 minute or so river trip to the Victoria Falls River Lodge.

Although brief, my stay at the Victoria Falls River Lodge was pleasant. I particularly liked the main lodge dining room area with great views over the Zambezi. The room was spacious and well equipped with an outdoor shower, indoor bathtub and plenty of space. I always appreciate adequate lighting. The food – both lunch and dinner – was a notch above the usual lodge fare.

My afternoon activity was a Bushtracks jet-boat sundowner cruise on the Zambezi, advertised as getting to within 800 meters of the falls. While I enjoyed the activity a lot, I don’t think we got closer than 1600 meter to the falls. The biggest advantage was the fact that closer to the falls, in shallower water, there were no other boats around to spoil the serenity of the area. It was only us and one other jet-boat – also from Bushtracks – in the area. We spotted quite a bit of wildlife including hippo and elephant. Plus points for Victoria Falls River Lodge were the proximity to the Zambezi, the quality of the hospitality and guiding, and also – somewhat surprisingly to me – the game-viewing in the Zambezi National Park within which the lodge is located. We had some excellent views of elephants, giraffes, zebras, waterbuck and a couple other species. Game-viewing in the park improves as the dry season progresses.

Next stop: Hwange National Park. To be featured in our blog post next Friday.

More Info

Email bert@fisheaglesafaris.com

Email jason@fisheaglesafaris.com

@fisheaglesafarishouston

#FishEagleSafaris

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