It is perhaps an inevitable consequence of our society's goal-driven ethic or maybe the need to have immediate gratification that makes the viewing of the "Big Five" the "Big Deal" that it is amongst visitors to Game Reserves. In fact, if the said Game Reserves are not " Big Five " , then they are regarded as inferior.
There is no doubt that the vast majority of tourists to Africa come to our Game Reserves to view big game. There is also no doubt that these tourists have related expectations that the tour operators must try to satisfy. In the 30+ years that I have been taking groups on safari in Kruger Park, I have almost always been asked whether we would see lions. To view the " King of the Jungle" in the natural surroundings in which he holds reign is somewhat akin to meeting up with exceptionally important people in their homes.
I recall in the late 1980's being tour-guide to a young man from North America, who we shall call George. George epitomized the "lion-seeker" tourist. We were hardly out of Johannesburg when he asked me when we would be seeing lions. I explained that South Africa had only about 5% of its total area utilised as game reserves and that we would only see lions ( possibly, although I didn't use this word ) once we had entered the gates of Kruger. Again, once we were in the Lowveld around Nelspruit ( still outside Kruger ), he complained that we had seen no wild animals, let alone lions. I increased speed and arrived at the gate, hoping and praying that a great big pride of lions would be on show so that this nagging nuisance could be kept quiet. Of course, as things turned out, I spent the entire afternoon looking unsuccessfully for a lion. By now the phobia to see a lion had spread to all the other tourists in the vehicle. I made extensive enquiries from staff at the camp and asked every tourist I saw the same abominable " have you seen any lions ? " . I spent the entire second day rushing around to spots where lions had been seen the previous day, but again, all to no avail. George was now becoming extremely rude, almost abusive. He couldn't understand what was wrong with me, a so-called Kruger Park specialist guide, who was unable to perform the very elementary task of showing people who had traveled 8000 km what they wanted to see. The fact that the Kruger Park, at the time, used a lion photo on its entry pamphlet didn't help either. A lawsuit was even considered - against both myself and the Kruger Park. On day three , after spending a restless night, during which I prayed part of a special rosary just to see lions, we left the camp on our last game drive before returning home to Johannesburg. About 30 minutes later, my prayers were answered. At a distance of some 150 metres there he was - a lion, partly obscured by the bush under which he was lying, half-asleep. George promptly and efficiently took out a huge telephoto lens which he deftly attached to his camera and in the space of 10 minutes, he took three rolls of 36 exposure film ( remember those days had not yet seen digital cameras ) of what I thought was exactly the same photo as the lion hardly moved. And then came the praise and accolades - what a wonderful guide I was, what a wonderful place Kruger was, what a wonderful world we were living in. About 20 minutes later, we came upon five wild dogs eating a young kudu which they had just caught. For me this very rare sighting was unbelievably good luck - for George it wasn't even worth a photo.
I tell this story to highlight the pressure that tour guides may experience. While I fully understand that it is good to see impressive animals like lions and leopards and to be awe-struck by the size of elephants, rhinos and buffalos, we need to encourage a more holistic expectation experience for our tourists.
Viva Safaris seeks to offer a total bush experience - there must be time taken to appreciate an impressive sunrise or sunset ; time taken to stop the night drive vehicle and listen to the nocturnal sounds while viewing the splendid stars of our skies; time taken to view a spectacular bushveld panorama; time taken to listen to the vociferous call of the Fish Eagle; time taken to stop to smell the potato bush; time taken to walk quietly in this beautiful paradise, reflecting perhaps on how fortunate we are to still have these wild open spaces.
To this end, we shall introduce to our Tremisana Lodge safari packages, a four hour bush walk. We will drive our tourists to a remote part of the Balule Plains, where our experienced guide will lead them through the bush at a pace that they can handle. The thrill of following tracks of Africa's animals ( big and small ) in a quest to approach close enough to take a good photo will last with our guests forever. Their adrenalin surge will be acute, notwithstanding the fact that the guide is adequately armed in case of potential danger. Our new product will be available on request from November 2007 onwards and will be a scheduled item as of 1 January 2008.
GAME VIEWING REPORTS
Our guides have become quite blasé about sightings. It would appear from the reports that are sent to me that lion-sightings have become so commonplace as to no longer warrant proper mention ! I only get to hear about the kills.
BONGANI reports that he had no problem regularly seeing 4 out of 5 , with leopard being the difficult one to find. He reports a lion kill ( young giraffe ) on the Nwanedzi road and a leopard kill ( impala up a tree ) near Rabelais. On a sunset drive at Tremisana, his guests saw a jackal stalk and catch a scrub hare. Bongani says that the morning walks at Marc's Camp have been very good. Because of the copious water in the Klaserie River, his guests have been seeing zebra, kudu, blue wildebeest, nyala, buffalo, giraffe and baboons most times.
CHARLES reports a lion kill ( kudu ) on the 30th September. Another highlight was had on 22nd : a mother hyena with three new-born cubs.
JONAS reports as follows : " We had outstanding sightings the whole of September. Lion sightings on the S100 ( sand road along Nwanedzi River ) were almost guaranteed on a daily basis, giving us 4 out of 5 most days. On the 25th we came across a leopard on the S100. It crossed in front of the open vehicle four times and I think it was even using the vehicle to get closer to a herd of impalas. Unfortunately there was no kill. We had kills close to the road near Ngotso pan where we sighted a pride of 15 lions on three consecutive days. At Rabelais, we had a leopard up a tree with its kill and we also had lion kills at Nkaya Pan, Welverdiend waterhole on the Sweni road and Mudzanzene Pan."
NELLY says he has had a good month's sightings with " lots of lions everywhere ".
If ever I needed proof that my newsletter was , in fact, being read by some people , I received this when no fewer than three recipients emailed me to correct the Latin name of the Flame Creeper, which is not Combretum Apiculatum but in fact Combretum Microphyllum. Good to know you're keeping me on the straight and narrow ! Well done !
NEWS AT TREMISANA
With the sustained drought in Kruger, the monkey troop has spent most of September inside the camp. There is little to eat outside in the barren veld and they have been surviving on Delina's kitchen scraps. This has come at a price - the thatched roofs of most of the chalets have been badly damaged. It is an interesting thing that the insurance companies will not pay for damage done by monkeys ( that are regarded as vermin ) while they will pay for damage to thatch done by elephants ! In any event, we have decided to cover the thatch roofs with chicken wire. My initial reaction on seeing the newly covered roofs was negative, but once the wire loses its shine, I am told it will look fine. The new Lapa for our guests, who will be doing the Balule Plains Experience from 1 Jan 08, is almost complete. We shall include a chessboard in the tiled surface. We inherited large wooden chess pieces when we bought the Cheetah Inn. One of our previous managers there used these as decorations in the rooms at Cheetah Inn and some unscrupulous dishonest thief stole one of the bishops. It has taken me 10 months to replace it. We eventually sent an example to Zimbabwe where a copy was made out of Mukwa wood. We look forward to using the Lapa as a recreational area.
NEWS AT MARC'S TREEHOUSE LODGE
The new tents are now operational. We have added an electric plug point and each tent now has a bedside lamp and a fan. To keep the wooden theme of the camp, we have enclosed the tent with branderings.
We have had a number of groups use our adventure camp in September. Mathebula, the gate guard has had his job cut out keeping the buffalo herd away from the swimming pool while guests are present.
Jonathan Beretta, warden of Motlala, informs me that two black rhino will be released by mid-October. These are not the best tempered of animals so we need to keep a close eye on their whereabouts. I am told that they tend to shun human habitation, so I hope they keep away from the treehouses.
NEWS AT THE CHEETAH INN
Our AA evaluation was held. We were advised that new pillows, new towels and new mattress protectors will go a long way in our quest for Three Star rating. The assessor, who was the same guy who came last year, appreciated the new hospitality tray ( tea/coffee station). His overall assessment concluded with " unpretentious inn, with great potential for relatively inexpensive accommodation , situated in an attractive setting ". As of 1 January 2008, all our 3 day overland safaris that were going to Tremisana will now be hosted at the Cheetah Inn.
Our bird aviary is being registered and permits have been granted for the following LBJ's ( Little Brown Jobs that fly so fast into the bush as to defy identification ) :
Blue Waxbill
Violet-eared Waxbill
Common Waxbill
Orange-breasted Waxbill
Melba Finch
Quail Finch
Bronze Mannikin
Red-billed Firefinch
Our plan is to have a board attached to the aviary with colour photos of each of the above species to assist in identification.
NEWS FOR OUR TRAVEL PARTNERS
As indicated in the previous parts of the newsletter, Viva Safaris is once again on the move. We are aware of the enormous potential in offering walking safaris and we are very confident that our new product, " The e Balule Plains Experience ", will be a hit. As so often happens, the success or otherwise depends on the staff employed to kick-start the new venture. The enthusiasm and passion on the part of the guide play a crucial part in the overall enjoyment of our clients. We are extremely pleased with our appointee, who has asked to remain anonymous for the time being.
A new Landcruiser has been bought with specific usage for the Balule Plains. We have determined our new tariffs for 2008 and will communicate these to you at the beginning of November or earlier by request. Our tariffs are again very competitive and once again, underline our claim to offer the BEST VALUE-FOR-MONEY safaris to Kruger Park.
We look forward to being of service
Piero General Manager, Viva Safaris
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