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Local Celebs Tackle the Africa on Foot Wilderness Trails : What goes on Tour…

…Doesn’t Stay on Tour.

Not when I’m around. Not when I have a keyboard, a bunch of adjectives, videos, photographs, and first-hand accounts from resident photographer and undercover spy, Em Gatland. She’s not quite part of the KGB and certainly doesn’t have ties with the Mafia family, but she has shared a few secrets from the 3 day Africa on Foot wilderness trail spent with local South African celebrities. We won’t be telling tall tales because anything to do with height remains the giraffe’s business. And our style is a far cry from the trash DailyMail tabloid that thrives on making up stories about Batman’s love child with Beyonce. We’re more fact driven and prefer first-hand accounts from our khaki-clad crew on the ground.

Our 3 day Africa on Foot Wilderness Trail in the Maseke Game Reserve is becoming a popular trail among dedicated hikers and visitors wanting a more on the ground safari experience. A handful of local celebs donned their khaki and headed out on trails to experience the daily safari lifestyle of the trails team. Each night of the trail is spent at a different location within the Maseke Game Reserve, ensuring guests experience the game-rich pockets of the reserve while being surrounded by contrasting scenery.

Our adventurous group of explorers included a group of local South African celebrities with an indomitable spirit. Turns out there was such a sense of camaraderie on trails, and plenty of stories emerged from their 3 days in the Maseke Game Reserve. Joe Pietersen, a well-known South African Union rugby player was one of the sporting celebs to join the walking safari. We knew Joe would be fine on the trails, and could probably blitz and manoeuvre his way through a pride of lions, given that he was a cheetah. Joining the trail party and flanking the team of walkers, we had another rugby player and ex-Springbok, AJ Venter. Then we threw another rugby player into the mix – Michael Claassens, who also enjoys his fair share of cats.

To break up the rugby theme we invited media personality and all round sportswoman, Liezel van der Westhuizen. This fitness fanatic and lover of the outdoors placed third in Miss Fitness South Africa, making her an ideal candidate for our 3 day walking trails. Stacey Holland, global traveller, social change maker, fitness fanatic and media personality also proved to be the perfect person for trails. Leading the team of the sporting elite were legend guides Courteney and Luan. We needed the best-of-the-best to lead this team of die-hard go getters. I’m speculating and assuming there would have been plenty of sporting talk in between the dissection of elephant dung, stories of marauding hyenas and tales of brutish lions.

Armed with an arsenal of personalities in their group with just the right balance of khaki gear, Courteney and Luan set-out to show the walkers the spoils of the Maseke Private Game Reserve. Needless to say, the group weren’t disappointed with their experience.

Em Gatland jotted down a few highlights from the blissful bushveld days on trail, which we’ve listed below:

Wildlife sightings while on foot : elephants came into camp, towers of giraffe were spotted while on foot, lions were seen devouring the remnants of a giraffe carcass, and a lone elephant joined the gin sundowner session at the river.
Artefacts : while exploring the landscape the team came across plenty of debris and artefacts from a bygone era. One of these was an ancient ceramic pot.
Sisterhood : Liezel and Stacey met for the first time on trails. Their conversation flowed like red wine on a winter’s day and rumour has it that they’re now “besties”. The bushveld is the perfect spot for forming lifelong friendships!
Awkward Funny Moments : one of the guys was on the toilet, and Luan walked in to have a shower. Awkward. One of the directors, Cecilia, decided to join the trails for a bit. The team decided to prank her by putting elephant dung in her toilet. Awkward and funny.
Humour : Em says, “All personalities complemented one another and each person had an incredible sense of humour. AJ mentioned how enjoyed having in depth conversations with people – something that gets lost in life.”
Pop Quiz : on the last night the guides decided to host a quiz. Joe won first prize – two nights at any one of the Klaserie/Maseke camps.

Photographer Em Gatland captured the essence of the trail with her mesmerising images, and Joe created an amazing video of time spent in the bushveld.

Spending Time with the Cheetah of Roam Private Game Reserve

The coalition of cheetah recently relocated into Roam Private Game Reserve’s traverse, appear to be thriving in their new environment. The cheetah were relocated to the arid Great Karoo region as part of a conservation project that ultimately seeks to increase the population numbers of cheetah in the wild, and the Karoo forms part of the cheetah’s historic range. Upon arrival the cheetah were kept in a controlled boma area and monitored closely, giving them time to adjust to their new environment. When the cheetah were released into the open it wasn’t long before they conducted their first kill – a red hartebeest! Photographer Em Gatland headed to Roam to photograph the cheetah in the wild, and her portfolio of cheetah images is nothing short of remarkable!

We chatted to the team at Roam who informed us that the cheetah are slowly getting used to their new environment and rugged terrain. Their diet is still being supplemented to ensure they continue to thrive. The last full moon provided enough light to illuminate the landscape, providing the ideal circumstances to take down a rather unsuspecting aardvark! Overall, the cheetah have provided excellent close-up game viewing opportunities for guests. It seems visitors to Roam are surprised at the size of the cheetah boys, who are quite large in stature!

The cheetah experience at Roam Private Game Reserve forms part of ongoing conservation projects in the Great Karoo. Various animal monitoring activities will be established on Roam to fulfil different objectives. Some of the high-profile animals
will be monitored on a regular basis, whilst general game will be monitored less frequently. Cheetah will be monitored by tracking them with a combination of telemetry, and traditional track and sign methods developed by the Khoi and San bushmen, the original inhabitants of the area. The original inhabitants developed these methods in order to hunt their prey. Visitors to Roam seeking to contribute to the overall conservation efforts of the reserve have the option of becoming involved in the cheetah experience.

Roam is home to a number of animals, and it is imperative to the sustainable management of the reserve that we accurately monitor the health of the entire system. This is achieved through monitoring of the fauna and flora. During the time in the boma the cheetah is unable to hunt for itself and we must supply its dietary requirements. To replicate the cheetah’s natural diet, animals are supplied to the cheetah from the nature reserve. This is naturally not to everyone’s comfort so participation in this part of the program is optional.

10 Lion Cubs Spotted While on Game Drive with Ezulwini

Lion cubs are fragile, bumbling cats with a high mortality rate in the wild. They’re born completely helpless and require protection and guidance from their mother until they’re old enough to leave their den site, which generally happens at 3 months old. This is when they’re ready to be introduced to their powerful birth pride. Not only do cubs face threats from marauding scavengers, stampeding bovids and sly predators; but they also face the dreaded underlying threat of infanticide from testosterone fuelled male lions in search of females to conquer and prides to take over. Seeing a healthy lion cub in the wild, thriving, surviving and confident is indeed a rare sighting.

Imagine the sheer delight of guides and guests when they spotted 10 lion cubs happily waddling through the crunchy ‘veld? Game drives with Ezulwini Game Lodges have delivered noteworthy big cat sightings recently, and this is not the first sighting of the tawny group of cubs. A couple months ago, 10 lion cubs were spotted together with their mothers, the Kudyela lionesses. The 10 cubs were sired by the reigning kings – the Machatons! In this particular sighting, which Angele visually documented, the 10 cubs were trailing behind 4 of the Kudyela lionesses. The pride were clearly on a mission to an undisclosed location, which could be anything from an ideal shady spot to a protected den site. The 4 lionesses each have cubs aged between 2 – 6 months (3 cubs, 3 cubs, 2 cubs and 2 cubs).

For months on end, Angele (lodge manager and avid field guide of River Lodge), sent through reports of sightings of the Kudyelas mating with the Machaton males, and kept a close eye on the dynamics on the traverse. With all the intense mating sessions, it was inevitable that we’d see new life emerging.

The Machatons are still holding their territory and blitz their way through their kingdom preying on unsuspecting game, and mating with available Kudyela lionesses. Power plays in the world of lions are always shifting, and at one stage 4 burly boys infiltrated the Machaton’s turf on a number of occasions, seemingly without fear. To date, the Machatons are still large and in charge, and successfully chased the burgeoning males away. There will always be threats to the Machaton brethren, but they have a pride to protect and hopefully theirs will be a dynasty that becomes a legacy.

Klaserie Leopard Relaxes on the Wooden Deck of Buffel Dam Treehouse

When it comes to siesta time, leopards tend to seek out elevated areas providing sweeping views of the surrounding wilderness. This height advantage means they are in the ideal position to eagerly scan the ‘veld for potential prey; and it keeps them out of harm’s way. A leopard generally relaxes at the top of a termite mound, or the fork of a tree. Not our leopard princess Nyeleti. This princess decided that the perfect spot for a siesta was in the doorway of an open canvas tent resting on a wooden balcony, which is actually the Buffel Dam treehouse – a raised hide overlooking the wilderness. Nyeleti moved from the comfort of a termite mound (see photos) to the treehouse in order to step up the luxury a bit.

Guests from nThambo Tree Camp and Africa on Foot were taken to this spot on the Africa on Foot traverse to observe the ultimate in Klaserie leopard laziness. The Klaserie is heaving with leopard sightings at the moment, and as each month passes by we notice a marked increase in sightings. A few days ago, head guide Mauritz reported a sighting of 5 leopards sharing a kill. The number of Klaserie leopard sightings is quite remarkable!

Leopards are opportunistic, so we’re not surprised our princess found THE best spot to relax. One of our guides, Elmar Van Niekerk, was quick to photograph this memorable moment.

We trust you’ll enjoy these images of a leopard dominating her turf in the Klaserie.

The Week in Pictures : The Youth of Today

We owe you a storm of images and plenty of updates from our camps. The ‘veld is brimming with activity and the bushveld abounds with mystery. The thickets have plenty of stories to tell, and our favourite is the stories that bring promise of new life into the unforgiving landscape. When we browse through the collection of images and videos sent through from our guides on a weekly basis, we try to get a feel for a similar thread that weaves its way through the reserves. Today, the theme is the youth of today. Our guides and guests have enjoyed a bounty of sightings of cubs, calves and fledglings. Spring is approaching, which means new life is emerging!

Chacma Bush Camp

The Lamai lioness has cubs! She’s been stashing her cubs deep within the thickets, keeping them out of harm’s way and far away from carnivorous intruders. Lion cubs are vulnerable when they are born and have a high mortality rate in the wild. The Lamai female has been spotted mating with the Maseke boys on numerous occasions, which leads us to believe that one of them sired her cubs. Lion sightings are on the increase, and this only adds to the bulk of species that Chacma have spotted while out on drive.

Roam Private Game Reserve

The cheetah that were relocated to Roam Private Game Reserve continue to thrive in their environment. One of our photographer’s, Em Gatland, managed to capture a few magnificent photos of the cheetah. The cheetah experience is just one of the many activities on offer in the Great Karoo.

Umkumbe Safari Lodge

Umkumbe have enjoyed a wealth of big cat sightings, with an appearance of a slender and refined cheetah. Coupled with this unique sighting, the team stumbled across an endangered pangolin, otherwise known as the scaly anteater. Notoriously shy and leading a life of solitude, the pangolin is certainly a rare find. When the Umkumbe guides aren’t tracking rare species they’re stumbling across our aloof leopards.

Africa on Foot Wilderness Trails

The Africa on Foot Wilderness Trails is in full swing, with avid walkers enjoying their 3 day trails through the Maseke Game Reserve. These set trails offer up a variety of game viewing opportunities, and each night is spent in a different location. Sun Destinations recently hosted well-known rugby players and local celebs, who seemed to enjoy quite a riveting outdoor experience. Our photographer joined the trails to document their journey, a story which is currently in the making. Highlights from recent walking trails in the Kruger have included sightings of lions, a resident hippo, and the sneaky crocodiles that guard the mighty river that eagerly cuts through the reserve.

Klaserie Camps

The Klaserie continues to enthral and entertain us with their big cat sightings. The leopard dynamics on the Africa on Foot and nThambo Tree Camp traverse continue to fascinate us, and there seems to be plenty of shared genetics among the leaps of leopards emerging from the thickets. Just the other day Mauritz reported that 5 leopards were spotted on one kill. The leopards were a female with 2 cubs, and the Ross Dam female. Later that evening the local legend, Rhulani and another male leopard were spotted feasting on the same kill.

About a month ago the wild dogs were commanding the Klaserie sightings, but the sightings seem to have dwindled. This has made way for exceptional lion sightings, and the guides are being rewarded with consistent sightings of 3 prides of lions (pride of 10, pride of 6 – possibly Bateleur Pride, and the Ross Pride females) operating within the region. We’ll showcase the big cat Klaserie images during the course of the week. In the meantime, the general sightings of big game and plains game continue.

Ezulwini Game Lodges

The bushveld is heaving with sightings, and fairly notable wildlife moments continue to emerge from the Balule Nature Reserve. When wildlife reveals their new additions to the reserve, it always makes for heartwarming sightings. Guides from Ezulwini, together with their guests, witnessed a spate of sightings dominated by the “youth of today”! Sightings included that of a 1 day old giraffe calf being nurtured by its mother, 4 lionesses on the move closely followed by 10 cubs, and a fragile young leopard cub seeking refuge in the foliage from an Apple leaf tree. In other sightings, the Kudyela lionesses and the Machaton male lions were spotted mating, the elephant bulls are enjoying the grounds of the lodge, and the general game continues to provide prolific sightings.

The Week in Pictures : Orange You Glad We Love Sunsets?

This is the last showcase of images forming part of our trio of themed “Week in Pictures”. This week we’ve decided to neglect the animal focused posts and pay homage to part of the safari experience that is always a much celebrated and anticipated event. We’re referring to golden hour. Sunset is the time of day when that golden ball pushes the crisp blue skies into oblivion, and dominates the landscape below with its warm hues.

We’re talking silhouettes of ancient leadwood trees leaning against fiery skies, low lying shrubbery providing a textured border between the red sky and landscape below; and exceptional colourful skies that roller coast through pinks, oranges and finally indigo. Today we celebrate golden hour, a revered time of day.

In the Klaserie Private Nature Reserve Africa on Foot and nThambo Tree Camp built a dedicated sundowner area close to a drainage line. This is the spot of the famous Bush Bar, which is a permanent rustic bar complete with a makeshift boma area. Home to surprise gin and tonic tastings, the Bush Bar is fast becoming an institution. Ezulwini Game Lodges also have a dedicated area called Paradise deck, which is often used for surprise sundowner sessions.

Umkumbe Safari Lodge and Chacma Bush Camp prefer to do things out in the open, as do Walkers Bush Villa and Nsala Safari Camp. Sundowner stops are located in sweeping savannahs, close to waterholes, on riverbanks and in Chacma’s case, on rocky outcrops.

Tuskers Bush Camp have their majestic baobab tree that serves as a backdrop, and sundowners are often served under this mighty baobab tree. Xobega Island Camp and RAW Botswana delight guests with sundowners in waterlogged areas teeming with hippo and abundant game. The waters tend to reflect the brazen orange skies and create a mysterious and magical scene.

Roam Private Game Reserve is in the heartland of the Great Karoo and the crisp air provides the perfect setting for mind-blowing sunset scenes.

Here are a few of our favourite sunset images to make you feel alive.

Tuskers Bush Camp, RAW Botswana Motswiri Camp and Xobega Island Camp

Chacma Bush Camp

Ezulwini Game Lodges

Africa on Foot and nThambo Tree Camp

Walkers Bush Villa

Nsala Safari Camp

Umkumbe Safari Lodge

Roam Private Game Reserve

The Week in Pictures : Leap of Leopards. Your Bumper Edition.

Leopards are aloof, scarce, graceful and independent. They lead a solitary lifestyle, and they’re rarely seen keeping company with other leopards. When we see 2 or more leopards hanging out together, it’s either a mother with her youngsters, or a mating pair. Seeing a leopard in the wild is always a heart stopping moment and often requires plenty of tracking skills to find this elusive cat. It’s a combination of guiding experience, luck, and being in the right place at the right time that sees us coming face to face with the sleek beauties of the bushveld. Leopards tend to hide out in the tops of trees, drainage lines and dense thickets. They’re always there, but our untrained eyes often miss them. Today, in our second theme of the trio of themed “Week in Pictures”, we showcase the ethereal leopards of the Kruger.

Why are leopards so tricky to find? There are a number of reasons why it takes eagle-eyes to find these cats. Because they lead a solitary lifestyle, and they don’t live in prides, it’s harder to locate them. Prides are normally on the move and easier to spot than one heavily camouflaged individual.

When it comes to meal time, lions with sit with their meal for days while they gorge themselves until they can longer move. They tend to hover around the vicinity of the carcass, rolling around on their back to expose their full bellies. They are so full and generally don’t move because of their enlarged bellies.

When a leopard conducts a kill, it’s quiet, secretive and done with stealth. They elegantly stalk and dart through covered areas, and ambush their quarry when up close. Almost immediately they drag the kill up into the fork of a tree for safekeeping, or even in a drainage line shrouded with vegetation. Not being on ground level also makes it tricky for us to find them. Leopards will keep their meal in a tree while they wander off to replenish their thirst, or conduct patrols of their turf. It’s not uncommon to find a half-eaten impala kill draped over a branch, but no sign of a leopard anywhere!

Leopards traverse far and wide. Males have far larger territories than females, and they seek out areas that have a heavy presence of females and ample sources of with prey. Females seek out smaller territories with easy access to prey and areas providing potential den sites. Because of these wandering ways, and the constant need to be on the move to mark their territory, it makes it tough to locate leopards.

Of course, you can just as easily sit on your patio with a drink in hand and a leopard strolls past. We call this leopard luck!

Without further ado, it’s time to celebrate the presence of the leopards that dwell on the traverse surrounding our lodges in the Balule Nature Reserve, Klaserie Private Nature Reserve, Sabi Sand Private Game Reserve, Timbavati Private Nature Reserve and the Maseke Game Reserve.

Umkumbe Safari Lodge

nThambo Tree Camp and Africa on Foot in the Klaserie Private Nature Reserve

Chacma Bush Camp

Walkers Bush Villa in the Timbavati Private Nature Reserve

Ezulwini Game Lodges

The Week in Pictures : The Art of White Space in Wildlife Photography

This week for Week in Pictures, we’re going to focus on something a bit different. It’s time we scrolled through our archives and showcased our photographer’s skills when it comes to the theme of negative/white space in photography. For the next 3 editions of “The Week in Pictures” we’ve decided to give the weekly portfolio of images a theme. When our theme-based week in pictures has come to an end, we’ll ensure we deliver an epic bumper-edition catch-up!

White space is also referred to as negative space, and it can create quite a stark illusion when it comes to photography. It’s the notion of abandoning an area around the subject, making sure that the subject appears to “pop” out from the image and the eye is drawn to the positive space within the image. It’s a concept used in digital and print design; and has made its way into photography, which has led many photographers providing us with conceptually unique images.

Our wildlife photographers have adopted the negative space concept, and have produced a number of remarkable wildlife images where your eye is drawn to a particular area without getting distracted by the busyness of the background. It seems that birds are the most common subject when it comes to negative space

Below are a few of our favourite engaging images of wildlife surrounded by negative space, and a few that can be slotted into that category. We have hippos dwelling deep in the open waters of the Okavango Delta, birds soaring above, giraffe galloping across open plains in the Kwatale Conservancy and lions in the dark night.

Botswana : The Selinda Spillway, Okavango Delta and Kwatale Conservancy

Ezulwini Game Lodges in the Balule Nature Reserve

Umkumbe Safari Lodge in the Sabi Sand Game Reserve

Africa on Foot and nThambo Tree Camp

Chacma Bush Camp

Roam Private Game Reserve

The Week in Pictures : Expect the Unexpected While on Safari

We can never anticipate what we’ll see scurrying and loping through the bushveld while we’re on safari. Eager safari goers arrive at their destinations with a certain level of expectation, and a tick-list of the “must sees”. The wild natural world around us doesn’t care about your safari bucket list, and constantly seeks to disappoint and surprise us on a daily basis. We are merely observers to the tumultuous, yet strangely ordered world of wildlife. We experience swings-and-roundabouts in terms of sightings, and today’s Week in Pictures is an yet another example of the unpredictable moments in the wild!

You are to expect the unexpected when visiting reserves. You will see things you’ve never expected, and soon forget about your list. Our highly-qualified guides will attempt to monitor wildlife behaviour and make assumptions based on history, and their experience in the wild. But even they don’t know what will cross their paths at any given moment.

Herds of elephant might visit the lodge swimming pool everyday for 2 weeks, but then the day you arrive, they stop. We might not have seen a leopard kill in weeks, and you arrive and a kill is made. This is the beauty of the wild – we’ve come to expect surprises.

Our first eye-opener of sighting this week happened on the traverse hugging Africa on Foot and nThambo Tree Camp in the Klaserie. Rogan was out on drive and came across a pack of wild dogs frolicking at a waterhole, while a herd of elephants were hovering in the background soaking up the fresh water. Neither party seemed to give much notice to the other, and shared their space quite happily.

On the Klaserie side, we’ve shared a few photos of the resident hyenas and vultures that seem to have crawled out of the woodwork to perform their janitor duties. Those lions that feasted on the giraffe kill from the previous week sure made a mess! Commonly spotted carrion lovers will retreat into the bushveld abyss when a kill site is cleaned to perfection, proving yet again that sightings are never guaranteed.

Another thunderbolt of a sighting occurred at Chacma Bush Camp. The Maseke male lions were spotted ! The team at Chacma haven’t seen the Maseke boys in a while, so it made for yet another unpredictable sighting. Ezulwini Game Lodges have continued to enjoy lion sightings on their traverse in the Balule, with the previous week’s sighting of the cubs ranking as one of the top sightings of the month. Umkumbe constantly enjoys leopard sightings, but once again, we can’t predict when and how these sightings happen!

Nsala Safari Camp came across a coalition of young and confident male lions, just casually enjoying their pocket of paradise in the wild. They are the youngsters from the Western Pride of lions. In term’s of our Timbavati sightings, Walkers Bush Villa delivered an unexpected sighting of hyena cubs in the wild.

That’s our round-up for this week, we trust you’ll enjoy the images. Next week we’ll start the week off with a themed “Week in Pictures”, which will run for 3 weeks. After which, we’ll take a week’s break and then furnish our fans with a bumper catch-up.

We Found Cute Hyena Cubs While on Drive with Walkers Bush Villa

We’re here to dispel the myth that hyena are nothing but scavenging evil cretins. The team at Walkers Bush Villa recently enjoyed a sighting of adorable coarsely furred hyena cubs while on drive with leading guide, Brett. Em’s images prove that hyena can be pretty cute.

It goes without saying that hyena have a bad reputation in the wild. This is largely due to their unfortunate looks and sheepish gait, the misunderstanding of the hyena’s role in the bushveld, and their less than ethical means of gaining prey.

Did you know that hyenas have a crucial role to play in the wild? They clean up debris, decaying flesh and prevent the spread of possible disease. When the unmistakeable cries of a flaying animal echo through the savannah, the hyenas begin to vocalise, and the clans eagerly approach the scene of a kill. These animals are opportunistic and will do what is necessary to find food, but they’re also accomplished hunters, which means they’re highly successful carnivores! We see hyena hovering around the base of trees while leopards dwell high above with their kill. They wait in the wings while beastly lions gorge on kills. These odd looking animals are experts at sourcing food.

So now we know about the vital role that hyena play in the cleanliness of a reserve, but it should be noted that hyena are more than just successful hunters and part of the ‘veld clean-up crew. Hyena have a softer side. The entire clan – together with the dominant female – helps to rear the cubs. There is always full cooperation from clan members, including bringing food back to the den for consumption, and even protecting territories from intruders. Hyena might have a tight-knit community, but interestingly enough, groups aren’t always made-up of related individuals. The structure within clans is quite complex, making them one of the most fascinating species in the wild.

Walkers Bush Villa is certainly no stranger to hyena sightings. With a prevalence of big cats in the area, it goes without saying that the spotted hyena is an ever present force within the reserve. Walkers enjoys plenty of hyena sightings, mostly of groups feasting on the remnants of a kill, making this cub sighting a welcome break from the “standard” hyena sightings. While Em and Rogan were on a game drive in the Timbavati with guide Brett, they came across hyena cubs. This made a nice break from seeing hyena fulfilling the stereotype of cackling, stealing and skulking in the shadows.

Em, Rogan and Brett watched the young cubs stumbling around and play fighting. The bitch births 1 – 3 cubs on average and her gestation period is a meagre 4 months. Cubs are born into a carefully selected birthing den, which can be anything from a disused termite mound to a well-hidden hole they’ve dug in the ground.

Brett, a highly-qualified and eager guide, knew just where to find the hyena. These growing cubs are born black and develop their spots at roughly 3 months of age, which would indicate that they are in the vicinity of that age, if not slightly older. This was yet another adorable sighting at Walkers Bush Villa.

The only negative side of hyena cubs? Unfortunately, cubs of the same sex often begin fighting – quite violently, and this can result in the death. We’re pretty sure you’ll love hyena after seeing these pictures!