ARTICLES WRITTEN BY Ian

We hope all our guests have enjoyed their Christmas break and would like to wish you a very happy, healthy and prosperous new year.

We thank all our guests who have travelled with us in 2017 and previous years, as well as those who have already booked for 2018 and beyond. Most Safari countries are experiencing excellent forward bookings and we would urge guests wanting to travel in 2018 to book as early as possible.

ZIMBABWE
We are very confident that the change of leadership in Zimbabwe will result in Zimbabwe returning to the mainstream safari circuit. Zimbabwe is a great safari country with Hwange National Park and Mana Pools, two of Africa’s very finest reserves within its borders, as well as a number of excellent, but less well-known reserves. At present visitor numbers are low and prices quite affordable whilst the game viewing is exceptional, so we would encourage you to visit Zimbabwe while it remains largely
undiscovered. View Tours

CONSERVATION SUCCESS
Despite the ongoing battle against Rhino and Elephant poaching in many African countries there is also plenty of good news. Some parks that had been neglected for years have received substantial investment and have been restocked and given the protection they need, creating new and exciting destinations to visit, mainly under the management of the philanthropic “African Parks organisation” These include parks in countries as diverse as Rwanda, Republic of Congo, Chad, Zambia and Malawi. 400 elephants were recently translocated in a huge operation to return the Nkhotakota National Park in Malawi to its former glory. 200 Black and white Rhinos have moved from South Africa where they were at high risk of poaching to Botswana where they were locally extinct. They are breeding and spreading well. Lions once again roam free in Akagera. Majete and Liuwa Plains National Park. The importance of tourism as the main source of sustainable funding cannot be underestimated.

NEW CAMPS IN BOTSWANA
In Botswana former hunting concessions have opened or are due to open for photographic tourism following the ban on commercial hunting in the country most of these camps are in huge private concessions with just one safari camp, creating exclusive and genuine wilderness experience. See below.

Kadizora Camp -Northern Okavango Delta

Nogatsaa Pans Lodge – Chobe Game Reserve

Gomoti Plains – South East Okavango Delta

Qorokwe Camp – South East Okavango Delta

Dinaka Camp – Central Kalahari Game Reserve (Opening March 18)

CLASSIC LONGER SAFARIS
At Safari Club we have been busy creating some new flexible, private safari tours which will appeal to guests who are time rich and would like to explore an African country in a bit more depth, some of these are partially self-drive, whilst others are privately guided and may include overland and air travel connections. See below.

Kenya Overland Adventure – 18 Nights
This leisurely safari includes both air and privately guided overland elements. Whilst avoiding the busiest areas, Samburu Reserve, Laikipia Plateau, the Maasai Mara, Amboseli and Tsavo National Parks all feature, the safari ends with a few nights at the idyllic South Coast.
View Tour

Northern Namibia Overland Self Drive Tour – 16 nights
This is a private self-drive safari visiting this scenically stunning country with its fabulous wildlife and fascinating semi nomadic people. With a good road network Namibia is the perfect country for the adventurous traveller to explore. Your tour visits the spectacular red dunes at Sosussvlei, Walvis Bay famous for its prolific, birdlife and dolphins, the seal colony at Cape Cross, the remote and windswept Skeleton coast. You will then travel into mountainous interior where desert adapted elephant, lions and the last free ranging black rhino roam. Etosha National park is the jewel in Namibia’s wildlife crown and here you will drive yourself through the reserve seeking out the plentiful game that can usually be found close to the waterholes. Your safari finishes at the Afrikat foundation at OKonjima famous for its cheetah rehabilitation programme.
View Tour

Tanzania Overland Adventure – 12 nights
This tour is a twelve night, privately guided safari through Tanzania’s Northern Circuit, you will visit Tarangire and Lake Manyara National Parks as well as the Ngorongoro Crater. The highlight of your tour is the Serengeti National Park where you will visit the Central, Western and Northern regions of this huge reserve. The itinerary may be adapted to suit seasonal game movements and offers the opportunity of witnessing the Great Migration as it passes through the reserve. Could be easily combined with a few nights on the beach. Accommodation is in mid-range tented camps and lodges making this trip particularly good value especially for small groups and families.
View Tour
View Family Tour

South Africa Overland Adventure – 29 days
The ultimate month-long adventure through Africa’s most diverse country travelling in a mixture of self-drive and air and including the classic Luxury Rovos Rail journey from Cape Town to Pretoria. Your journey includes the Anglo/Zulu and Boer war battlefields of Rorkes Drift, Isandlwana and Spion Kop as well the Drakensberg Mountains, Durban, Oudtshoorn, the Garden Route, Whale Coast, Winelands, Cape Town and a Rovos Rail experience. Your tour ends with a “Big Five” safari in the outstanding Timbavati Area of Kruger National Park. A fantastic and safe adventure giving a real insight into the splendours of the Rainbow Nation.
View Tour

AFFORDABLE SAFARIS – OUR TIPS

Going on safari is never cheap, but, considering that most things are included, the total cost is often less than at first appears. There are a number of ways you can make a safari more affordable in some cases the savings can be very large without compromising the experience.

• Avoid peak season travel, most destinations have low and mid-season rates and often these can be half the price of high season rates. With good guidance we can advise on where you will get a great experience outside of low season. Particularly good value can be had in Botswana or Kenya both of which have great game viewing at any time.
• Travel with friends, you won’t save much on a flying safari, but privately guided overland trips and self-drives in countries like Namibia, South Africa or Tanzania can be much cheaper.
• Don’t try to do too much, getting from place to place in some countries can be expensive in Africa, it may be better to spend between 6 and 10 nights between two or three different camps in different parts of some of the larger reserves. The Serengeti. South Luangwa, Kafue, Hwange and the Okavango Delta for example.
• Reduce the average daily cost of your African holiday by adding time at the beach in Kenya or Tanzania or maybe spend a few days at Victoria Falls, Lake Malawi or Cape Town.
• Consider carefully which country to visit, as a general rule South Africa, Zimbabwe, Southern Tanzania and Kenya are more affordable.
• Book as far in advance as possible, the most cost-effective lodges and those offering special deals tend to get booked up very early. Nine months is perfect.
• Late availability deals are sometimes available for guests able to travel at short notice who are flexible with dates and location. It is worth asking!
• Travelling with children, try half term or Easter as the summer holiday period is invariably expensive.
• Consider more simple accommodation, whilst it is certainly true with safari holidays that you get what you pay for, spa’s, butlers, gyms, pools and other extras are included in the rate at more expensive lodges and camps but you may struggle to find time to use them. The essential ingredients of a wonderful safari are safety, comfort and great game viewing, guiding and interpretation, all possible at an affordable price.

African wild dogs are one of Africa’s most endangered large predators and are considered a top sighting by many safari enthusiasts, Hwange National Park in Zimbabwe is one of the best places to see them. Alison Dewar visited in November 2016 and had a memorable experience.

“Seeing Painted Dogs has been an ambition of mine for many years. Bar one fleeting glimpse in Mana Pools National Park in 1995, the dogs have remained an elusive dream ever since.

When my husband Craig and I began planning for a return trip to Zimbabwe (the first for 16 years) it was time to get serious with working out how and where our best opportunities for viewing the dogs would be.

A chance discovery led me to the Painted Dog Conservation  and the excellent Vintage Camp, which supports PDC, and is just a short drive away and boasts excellent food and hospitality with comfortable rustic accommodation.

There were so many highlights, it’s almost impossible to name them all, but here just a few:

• tracking the Nyamandhlovu Pack with Jealous and seeing them with 12 pups on 3 different occasions
• visiting PDC HQ to see the great buy acyclovir ointment work of the rehabilitation centre, the medical facility and the dedication of the team
• having a personal tour of the Interpretative Hall from Maria and finding out more about the dogs through Eyespot’s life story
• visiting Inganyana Bush Camp, meeting the children from Ngamo School and seeing how much they got out of their visit
• hearing stories from Wilton and Dominic about the education programme’s success stories
• listening to the benefits that the community outreach programmes bring to local communities and, in turn, lead to improved protection for the dogs.

PDC is doing very special work and any support is well deserved – for now and in the future”

Guests with an interest in these highly endangered and fascinating predators should consider adding a few days at Vintage Camp from where you will be able to track the dogs with the researchers from the Painted Dog Conservation Society. Safari Club will be happy to include a visit to the conservancy as part of a longer tour of the Hwange National Park or as an add on to a visit to nearby Victoria Falls.

Kwara Concession

A frequently seen female cheetah with her three cubs continued to be a highlight during March. This particular animal has always been relaxed and now it seems that her cubs have picked up on her confidence, using our vehicles for their games of hide and seek, to the delight of the guests. This entertaining family were often found in the Bat Eared Fox Den area where the female was successfully killing impalas, one after the other. Mostly the cubs accompanied her, but we noticed that sometimes she tired of their distracting play and left them behind so that she could get on with the serious job of hunting without them disturbing the prey. On one occasion this family group were seen wading through the flood water – in the Okavango Delta even the cats have to get their paws wet from time to time. A male cheetah, in great condition, was also been found in the area.

Lions were tracked and successfully located most days during March. On one occasion, the guide and tracker had picked up the tracks of 2 females and 4 cubs on the road. They followed the tracks and located the group whilst on foot only to find that they themselves were being tracked – by the young cubs who were making a playful attempt to stalk them. On a different day, a guide and his guests heard a troop of baboon making alarm calls. Upon following up, they found a lioness in the thickets who was killing a big male baboon. She then left the kill and ran to fetch her two shy cubs who seemed rather alarmed when they came face to face with this particular meal. Lions were also seen hunting red lechwe and zebra several times, the most spectacular chase included a stampede and hunt through the floodwater.

Leopards were seen very regularly, often enjoying cooling breezes as they rested on the branches of Marula or Sausage Trees. One beautiful female was very regularly sighted in and around Little Kwara camp where she seemed to have her eye on our resident herd of impala. Towards the end of the month a female leopard was tracked for over an hour, but patience was rewarded and she was located resting up on a sausage tree. Guests were offered very good photographic opportunities as she jumped from one branch to another scanning for prey species. Another lucky group of guests encountered a leopard at the airstrip as they were being collected from their flight, setting the bar very high for the rest of their stay at Kwara. 

Wild dogs were seen many times, sometimes on the move or playing, other times looking full-bellied and sleepy. One of the best sightings in March was an incredible morning spent on one of the islands where seven wild dogs were found feeding on a kudu kill. The pack was being nervously watched by a large male leopard who had taken refuge in a nearby tree. We stayed with this intriguing scene for some time and eventually, after the dogs had eaten their fill and moved off, the leopard gingerly came down from the tree to eat the leftovers. On a different drive the wild dogs left their carcass to a small pride of lions.

General game in the Kwara area was abundant including giraffe in groups of up to seventeen. Large breeding herds of elephants have starting coming through the concession and there are plentiful numbers of zebra, tsessebe, wildebeest, reedbuck, red lechwe and impala.

The boat trips from Kwara continue to be rewarding. Hippos and large basking crocodiles are often seen, lucky guests may also have the chance to spot the elusive sitatunga antelope. On one cruise this month no less than five of these rare animals were seen at different points of the trip. The heronry is very busy at this time of year; before the winter season the chicks will be independent. Regular sightings included Pink-backed Pelicans, Black-crowned Night Heron, Rufous-bellied Heron, egrets and weavers. Fish Eagles are often hanging around watching for the opportunity to steal a nestling from the island.

Lagoon Camp

We are happy to report that the two sub-adult cheetah brothers who left their mother earlier this year are going from strength to strength and appear to be very successful hunters. During March, we were able to follow them on hunts and witnessed them bringing down young zebras and impalas.

The Wapoka Pride of 14 lions were spotted regularly – this large pride comprising of 6 adults and 8 bouncy sub-adults are always entertaining to watch and photograph. The two dominant males in the area known as ‘Big Gun’ and ‘Sebastian’ were also seen regularly eating, sleeping or sniffing after the females. Towards the end of the month the Northern Pride were also seen in the area, with one exceptional sighting as the lions clambered up onto a dead tree, posing in perfect light. A lone lioness was successfully tracked. She appeared to be in hunting mode, so we stayed with her and in the end, she was successful in killing a warthog after an exciting chase.

The general game in the Kwando area was excellent with herds of giraffe, eland, impala, tsessebe, kudu and, wildebeest all being seen regularly. It is always interesting to revisit the same groups and observe how the behaviour of the animals can change from day to day. One overcast morning a large mixed group of zebra and tssessebe was found skittishly racing up and down Baruti Road for no apparent reason. The following day they were in the same area, lying down very relaxed in the sun. Each sighting produces a unique experience and different photographic opportunity. A successful game walk also located the herd of around 80 eland on foot, as well as a wealth of bird species.

Large breeding herds of elephants were seen in the woodland areas, feeding on different plant materials. Hippos were seen in outlying pans as well as in the river area.

Troops of baboons were often seen foraging and interacting with each other. Watching mothers nursing babies, youngsters romping or adults engaging in grooming rituals is always interesting.
Leopard were seen a few times. A persistent morning tracking paid off when a female was found relaxed and in hunting mode. Our guests were able to spend good time with her which they really appreciated.

Wild dogs and hyena were not seen as often as usual in the area for much of March, however towards the end of the month they seemed to return to some of their usual favourite spots, so hopefully we will be seeing more of them again during April.

Some notable sightings of smaller mammals sighted during night drive included honey badger and African wild cat.

The boat cruise from Lagoon camp always gives good opportunities to get close up sightings of hippos and crocodiles, as well as water birds such as cormorants, darters, herons, egrets, ibis and other waders. The aptly-named Goliath Heron, standing up to 5 feet (1 metre 50) tall was a popular favourite.  Lechwes, kudus and waterbucks were often seen in the marshes during March. Beautiful white water lillies are out in full bloom and it is a treat to try and photograph African Jacanas amongst the flowers, stalking across the lily pads with their specially adapted long toes.

Lebala Camp

The guides were excited to find a set of small new prints when tracking the Wapoka Pride this month and sure enough, when they located the lions, there was a new cub of about 8 weeks old playing with a sub-adult. It is always a joy to see new life in our concessions. The mother and cub have also been seen apart from the pride, so it seems that she is managing her baby’s integration into family life slowly.

The large Northern Pride of lions were sighted regularly. On one memorable afternoon the adult lions lay resting whilst the 10 sub-adults played endlessly, climbing up fallen logs and pouncing on each other, to the great entertainment of the guests. Two male lions were also seen regularly, often full-bellied and sleepy, but were also seen in hunting mode stalking a big herd of wildebeest at the airstrip.

General game in the Kwando area continued to be very good and the impressive herd of over 80 eland was still in the area. Both sexes of the eland have horns, and we can already see that the twenty or so calves born this year are starting to grow theirs. Other species regularly seen included sable antelope, zebra, wildebeest, impala and warthog.

One rather notable sighting was when we found a hyena being chased by a large wildebeest bull on the airstrip – it is always rather amusing to witness the hunter turning tail and becoming the hunted.

The resident pack of wild dogs, consisting of 19 adults and 9 young were found eating a young male impala. The guides were also intrigued to follow a smaller group of two male and two female wild dogs who appeared in the area near Twin Pools. Time will tell if this a transient aciclovir buy over counter group or whether they will attempt to stay in the area and form a territory of their own.

A dead hippo was relished by the scavenging ‘clean-up crew’. Up to eight hyena at a time were seen feeding on this feast, as well as many vultures. The most common vulture in the Kwando area is the White-backed Vulture, however Lappet-faced, Hooded and White-headed Vultures can also be seen in the region.

Leopards were seen a few times, including a female with two sub-adult cubs. One day they were all found up a tree feeding on an impala kill, the following day the carcass had dropped to the ground where the two youngsters were enjoying finishing it off whilst their absent mother was no doubt hunting for their next meal. Towards the end of the month some guests were able to enjoy a wonderful photo opportunity of a leopard perched on top of a termite mound, staring intently at a herd of antelope.

Other smaller animals enjoyed by guests during the month were dwarf mongoose, African wild cats, honey badgers and occasionally a python basking in the sun.

The bird life in the Kwando area continued to be rewarding and some migrants who appeared included White Storks and White Storks, European Bee-eaters. One night drive gave a wonderful sighting of a Verreaux’s Eagle Owl.

Nxai Pan Camp

Prize for sighting of the month across all the Kwando camps surely had to go to the surprise arrival of two hippos at the Nxai Pan watering hole. To find these highly water-dependant animals in a (normally) semi-arid desert environment is testament to the incredible rains throughout Botswana that the early part of 2017 will be remembered for. Bearing in mind that Nxai Pan is hundreds of kilometres from the nearest permanent river, these two animals must have had quite a journey, stopping at rain-filled pans and natural watering holes along the way. Many of our Kalahari-born staff had never seen a hippo before, so the arrival of these large, strange creatures caused great excitement. The bushman tracker was initially perplexed when he initially spotted the tracks, having never seen such a creature in the area before. Even when the guide identified the footprints there was a good deal of disbelief at the thought of desert-dwelling hippos. The animals stayed around for a couple of days before they headed off to their next destination. Now that the weather is drying up again we hope that they reach the safety of a permanent river soon.

The camp watering hole was a popular spot for a wide range of species during March. A bachelor herd of six buffalo bulls were regularly seen, and two big breeding herds of buffalo used the watering hole before continuing on to the southern area of the pan. Elephant bulls showed up at brunch-time each day to drink and bathe. A large breeding herd of elephants also returned to the area, coming for water before disappearing into the bush.  In the afternoons, zebra came to drink in massive numbers, as well as wildebeest, springbok and many giraffes.

With so many animals congregating in the region it is no surprise that predators were seen regularly. The resident lion pride of seven sisters and two dominant males were seen almost every day last month. The two males were mating with one of the lionesses for a week. Two separate lionesses showed off their 3 cubs during March, each family having two females and a male cub.  These six cubs are all about 8 weeks old and were hidden in safety during their most vulnerable stage. A group of lucky guests were able to witness one of these lionesses moving her cubs to a new den site, carrying one in her mouth with the other two following behind. It appears that some of the other females of the pride are also pregnant, so we hope to have a very sizable pride at Nxai Pan soon.

This baby boom is not restricted to the lions. A female cheetah was seen with brand new cubs. Towards the end of the month cheetah were seen on every single drive. The regularly- seen mother cheetah with her two sub-adult cubs were making the most of the congregations of springbok in the middle of the pan and were in excellent condition. There was also a single male cheetah in the area who appeared to be doing well.

Bird watching was at its best during March, with many sightings of eagles, hawks and kestrels. There were lots of Kori Bustard in the area and ostriches with chicks in the Pan.  Summer migrants included both Blue-cheeked and Southern Carmine Bee-eaters. Due to the abundant rain, waterbirds such as Abdim’s, Yellow-billed and Saddle-billed Storks were unusually in the area. A Spotted Eagle Owl was seen many times returning from evening game drive.

Guests making the day trip to Baines Baobabs were rewarded with spectacular view of the pans which were filled with water. The birdlife was incredible and oryx were resident in large numbers.

As always, our guides were keen to show guests a wide range of wildlife species and other notable sightings during March included honey badgers, black-backed jackals and bat-eared foxes. Basking snakes included black mambas and a rock python. A small spotted genet was sometimes encountered in the evening on the walkway when taking guests to their rooms.

Tau Pan Camp

The impressive Tau Pan pride were seen almost daily during March. They were mainly found towards the Pan area where there was the highest concentration of game and were often seen stalking oryx.

Seven lions, two lionesses and five males were seen finishing off an oryx carcass, apparently killed the previous night. They were surrounded by group of 13 jackals who were impatiently waiting for their turn, working together to try and make bold snatches at the kill whenever the opportunity arose. The lions became extremely irritated, chasing the jackals away repeatedly. Our guests were able to witness this spectacle for over 45 minutes, until eventually the lions moved off leaving just the skull and spine for the jackals and some waiting vultures to tussle over.

On another occasion, a guide called his guests through to the main area early as the pride had killed an oryx and were feeding right in front of camp.  One evening, a large male lion was seen chasing a single oryx for over a kilometre all the way from the open plain into an area of thick vegetation.

As often seems to be the case with this dynamic pride, the number of individuals ranged considerably, but usually they were seen in groups of a range between four and eight. One of our guides’ interest was aroused when he found a lioness on her own, having already seen the rest of the pride together earlier in the drive. He followed this single female and sure enough his intuitive reading of her behaviour was correct; his guests were lucky enough to see her tenderly reunite with her tiny cub of just one month old and pick the cub up in her mouth.

Leopards were seen a few times, including one on a springbok kill at San Pan, and another posing beautifully up a tree. Cheetah were not seen often during the early part of the month, but were being picked up much more regularly during the last two weeks, including a female with two cubs.

In an interesting drive on the return from San Pan 2 jackals killing an adult springbok. The antelope appeared to be nursing a previous wound and thus could not run away.

A rather skittish Brown Hyena was spotted; though highly mobile and shy it was wonderful to see this threatened species. There were also some fabulous sightings of the smaller predators during March including a very relaxed Cape Fox close to the road. This is a beautiful silver-grey fox with a yellow belly and a black tip to its tail.

A caracal was also seen nonchalantly walking along one of the roads. These medium-sized cats with beautiful tufted ears are always a treat to see.

Oryx and springbok were in plentiful numbers in the Pan area and appeared to be enjoying the new shoots of the grasses. A small group of 3-4 red hartebeest was also seen as part of this mixed herd.  Springboks congregated in large number and were often seen running spontaneously and ‘pronking’. Giraffe were found in the Tau Pan browsing on Acacia trees and in large numbers at San Pan on top of the sand ridge.

There was still lots of birdlife in the pan during March, many water species such as Saddle-billed Storks were attracted to the large puddles of water which remained after the rains. Southern Pale Chanting Goshawks were numerous in the area. These elegant grey raptors have a varied diet of rodents, lizards and insects; this month one individual was seen feeding on a juvenile African Rock Python. Other notable birds of prey seen during March were Tawny Eagles, Bateleur eagles, Blac-shouldered Kites, Amur Falcons and Lanner Falcons.

Article courtesy of Kwando Wildlife

We have been collecting together lots of photographs that have been provided either by some of our clients on safari or by ourselves on our familiarisation trips.

For example Martin Taylor and family did a self-drive holiday in the Western Cape on a trip to South Africa, staying in Knysna, buy aciclovir uk Hermanus, Franschhoek and Cape Town. They then flew to Timbavati Reserve (Kruger area) and stayed at Hamiltons and Chitwa Chitwa Camps.

Links to our photo galleries will appear on the destination pages to which they apply but all the galleries currently available can also be seen here:

All Photo Galleries