South Africa 2017

12
A day in the
game reserve
life of a private
Top: Elephant at Madikwe
Private Game Reserve. Bottom
left: Monkey at iSimangaliso
Wetland Park; Bush colours;
Lionesss in the Kruger
Lodges on private reserve include all meals
and generally all drinks, both alcohol and soft
drinks. The more information you can give the lodge
about your clients, the better they will be able to cater to
their needs and the more special the experience will be.
RISE AND SHINE
Morning: After a pre-dawn wake-up call guests gather
for tea or coffee in the lodge, before embarking on an
exciting safari game drive at sun-up, typically lasting three
hours. The early morning is one of the best times to view
wildlife and to see predators such as lions on the hunt or
elephants seeking out new areas to forage. Open-top safari
vehicles generally take a maximum of six passengers, each
with an eagle-eyed ranger and tracker who know the reserve
well and can spot animals that guests often miss.
When a good sighting is made, the rangers in the camp’s
vehicles communicate with each other by radio to alert them
to animal sightings. This also ensures that the animals are not
disturbed by having too many vehicles around them at one
time. The limit is often just two vehicles at a sighting.
Tea and coffee with snacks are generally served halfway
through the safari drive at a scenic location, whether that be
by a river filled with hippos or a vantage
point overlooking the surrounding bushveld.
Back at the lodge, guests enjoy a full
breakfast on the deck with views out over
the bushveld or forest. Some lodges offer
guided walks with rangers, who take guests
South Africa’s
winters require
warm sweaters
or jackets for
morning and
evening game
drives, although
the lodges also
provide blankets
and rain capes.
Smart clothes are
not required for
dinner
out out into the bush. Not only does this give visitors a chance
to experience the game reserve on foot and see the smaller
creatures and plant life, it also helps them work up an appetite
for lunch. A bush walk is a must do and enclosed shoes are
required. Alternatively, guests can just enjoy the facilities of
the lodge. Lunch is generally served in a lodge location that
overlooks the bush or an animal watering hole.
Afternoon: As the day hots up after lunch guests can
choose to relax in their rooms or take a dip in the
swimming pool, if the lodge has one. Some lodges have rooms
that come with their own plunge pool. Afternoons are also
a good time to enjoy a massage at lodges that feature a spa.
Many lodges offer a high tea, usually served on the deck, from
which guests can look out for nearby game on the move.
Early Evening: As the sun starts to set and the day cools
off it’s time for another game drive in the ebbing daylight,
stopping halfway for sundowners – alcoholic or non-alcoholic
beverages of choice - as you watch the sun set over the Africa
bush while listening out for the calls of birds, monkeys and
hyenas. Driving through the bush in darkness is a completely
different experience, the eyes of nocturnal animals such as
prowling leopards or bush babies lighting up in the tracker’s
spotlight while overhead the stars shine brilliantly in the ink-black
sky. Back at the lodge there is time for guests
to soak in a hot bath before dinner. Dinner can
be served in the lodge, in the boma (an open
outdoor space around a fire pit), or out in the
bush. Most lodges rotate dining locations to
make things interesting for guests.
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