Innholdsfortegnelse for July-September 2019 i Travel Africa

This button here. You see? The red one,” points Alan Msuya, our rental car handover guy. “This is the panicky button.” I’m just outside Moshi at the Mountain Inn, home to 4x4 Safari Rentals and, as the lodge’s name implies, a cracking view of Kilimanjaro. It’s comfortable accommodation, with excellent food — particularly the curry — and ideal for the budget-style, self-drive safari on which I’m about to embark. As well as the big red button, which is linked directly to the rental company’s HQ, our 4WD Tata Xenon is equipped with a GPS tracker and a phone, enabling the staffto keep track of our whereabouts should we run into difficulty. Self-driving in Tanzania is a relatively new venture, but with a good road network and excellent ground support, it…

For my twelfth birthday my parents gave me a novel present: they packed me and nine school friends offinto the wilderness. Their plan, apart from getting the boisterous pre-teens out their hair for a while, was to have us slickers of the urban sprawl of Johannesburg educated in the forgotten ways of the bush. The place of choice was Lapalala, a 5000-hectare reserve of the most pristine wilderness deep in the Waterberg in the remote north-western part of South Africa. Here, isolated red-soiled valleys lined with spectacular layered sandstone cliffs echoed the flow of rivers cascading into rock pools where endless wooded and grassland landscapes harboured a diverse range of wildlife. If an African wilderness could be personified, this was it. The ten of us were dumped on the bank…

Shaped by water, with some of the most intense concentrations of wildlife and the most idiosyncratic landscapes on the planet, Botswana leaves nothing to compromise. If you want to see wildlife, it delivers everything in abundance. If you want space, it strips the earth bare. If you want solitude, it gives you absolute freedom. If you’re intrepid, it casts you into the wilderness. And if you want to be pampered, it indulges you like royalty. If you’d like to visit, we hope this 26-page overview will set you on your way Botswana’s vast horizons allow the imagination space to roam. And nowhere feels more spacious than Nxai Pan, on the eastern fringe of the Kalahari. During the parched dry season, when dust devils chase across desolate salt flats, nowhere feels…

Try a camp with a sleep-out platform for a different and adventurous night-time experience, but avoid doing it over the full moon as it is a little like sleeping with a light on! Take a helicopter as a transfer between camps, or book a scenic flight as an activity. The Delta is spectacular from the air, especially in flood season from June to September. Visibility from a helicopter is vastly superior to a light aircraft and the cost difference is not huge. Travel in the green season from December to March to enjoy the best game-viewing in the Central Kalahari and Makgadikgadi Pans (rather than the dry season).…

All too often we’re impatient to head straight out on safari, eager not to miss any action. But rather than going looking for wildlife, perhaps we should sit tight and let it come to us? Spending time at a waterhole may reveal many more of nature’s secrets than we’ll see from a vehicle, and we might tune in to our natural environment much quicker. Doing this early in your visit will relax you into your holiday and enrich the days that follow. On a recent visit to Mana Pools National Park, Mana Meadows forewent a game drive to sit at Kanga Pan for the morning. Here’s what she saw. 5:26 Where the sun will soon emerge, the sky is a pink wash. Across the pan a small flock of Egyptian…

The considered regard of a wild elephant is a corrective to any glib evaluation of its worth as a creature. It’s a bit like having a CAT scan. It leaves you in no doubt that these are not only enormously intelligent animals, but also deeply wise. Let me explain. There’s a rule of the bush, often fatal if broken, that you don’t get in the way of a wild elephant. You give it all the space it needs. And if the tusker is a matriarch in charge of a breeding herd, you keep well away These warnings were flashing code red as I stared up at the huge grey creature only metres away which had impaled me with her stare. With brutal poaching in the area, I couldn’t be on…

From my lofty vantage point, a world in miniature spread out, a rugged coastline encompassing a landscape of mountains, forests, grassland and semi-desert. With place names like Longwood, Half Tree Hollow, Deadwood Plain, and the Gates of Chaos, it was easy to envision I had been transported to Middle Earth. However, this was not New Zealand. This was the island of St Helena. A mere speck 16km long and 10km wide, St Helena could be the dictionary definition of isolated. Anchored in the South Atlantic between southern Africa and South America, the island ascends 4000m from the ocean floor to its highest point at 820m above sea level. First discovered by the Portuguese in the 15th century, it remained uninhabited until the British East India Company founded Jamestown in 1659.…

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It is well-known that women are critical to effective conservation, sitting at the heart of local livelihoods enrichment and ecosystem health. Gender inclusivity in natural resource management holds immense promise for the growth and empowerment of women, particularly those living in rural areas. Promoting gender equality through conservation triggers transformative impacts for sustainable development and biodiversity protection—increased agricultural yield, enhanced economic security, better use of forest resources, climatechange effects mitigation, and healthier bodies of water. AWF’s Zimbabwe Country Manager Olivia Mufute knows firsthand that rural women benefit from sustainable natural resource management. For the first time, women are joining the team of more than 40 community scouts patrolling Mbire district in Zimbabwe’s wildlife-rich Lower Zambezi Valley. For Mufute, who leads AWF’s community conservation and wildlife protection programs in the landscape,…

When a group of ravens flaps by,” wrote the author and television personality James Lipton, “you should, if you want to refer to their presence, say, ‘There goes an unkindness of ravens.’ Anything else would be wrong.” Many of us are familiar with the creativity and aptness of collective nouns such as “gaggle of geese” or “murder of crows.” These terms are also known as “nouns of assemblage” or “terms of venery.” But did you know that these terms and the hobby of craft ing them go back centuries? According to Lipton in An Exaltation of Larks, terms of venery are “the end result of a game that amateur philologists have been playing for over five hundred years.” They date back in printed form to the 15th-century Books of Courtesy,…

AFRICA UTOPIA 2019 SOUTHBANK CENTRE, LONDON 13-15 SEPT Showcasing an exciting line-up of leading artists and voices, Africa Utopia will celebrate and explore Africa and its diaspora’s influence in shaping the way we think about art, culture, race, fashion and society. Opening the festival, The Kuti family will present ‘Afrika Shrine Alive’, an evening of live music and dance, with performers such as Femi Kuti. A chamber ensemble from Chineke! Orchestra will also perform, and there’ll be readings of remarkable letters from black history, a fashion show, comedy showcase and several talks, panel discussions and workshops. “Through music and performance, talks and debate, this vitally important festival has become a beacon of fresh ideas and discovery, pushing culture forward,” said Creative Director Madani Younis. WWW.SOUTHBANKCENTRE.CO.UK WILDLIFE AND SAFARI SHOW HARROGATE…

If Zimbabwe itself is an under-the-radar destination on a global scale, then Mavhuradonha is basically incognito. People can’t even agree on how to spell it consistently Let’s face it: many places of natural beauty around the world can be overcrowded. From traffic jams on Mount Everest to queues on Bali beaches, it can be difficult to fully enjoy the great outdoors when you’re being jostled by brigades of adventurers wielding selfie sticks. So, when you finally find a spot where you can absorb nature’s splendour in peace, it’s like a balm to the soul. Zimbabwe has a host of such retreats, and the Mavhuradonha Wilderness is one of them. If Zimbabwe itself is an under-the-radar destination on a global scale, then Mavhuradonha is basically incognito. People can’t even agree on…

Communicating only in hand signals, Alex beckons us to come closer. We crouch down and move slowly along the riverbank. Some 30 metres ahead wading through shallow water are four elephants, one so tiny he fits under his mother’s tummy. We watch mum nudging him gently with her trunk and in the stillness hear their soft rumbles soothing the little baby. “This is how I like seeing elephants,” Alex whispers, “when they’re at peace and undisturbed and don’t even know we’re here.” Moments like this are what walking safaris are all about. For me, it’s the best way to explore the bush, better than a game drive with that inescapable engine drone and the inevitable degree of separation from nature that comes from sitting in a vehicle. On foot, you…

I often ask myself why I love Botswana. It’s like asking anyone in love why they fell in love in the beginning. It is the lift of hair in the breeze, the fragrant scent that you can still remember from the first time you saw her, the sound of laughter that lifted your own spirit to the clouds. It is why I fell in love with Beverly, and with Botswana. Even now I can recall the scent of wild sage mixed in with the particular elephant smells across the mopane woodland in the north, that no-man’s land between the rivers that bustle with life in the dry season and the vast wilderness that sucks up thousands of herds and makes then disappear into the greenery each wet season. I think…

ACCOMMODATION Botswana intentionally keeps its visitor numbers low, ensuring that whether you stay in a permanent lodge or a mobile tented camp, it’s all about enjoying the solitude of its vast wilderness. The fixed camps and lodges recommended by us at Mahlatini Luxury Travel are all small, allowing for a personalised service. They usually comprise traditionally-styled, walk-in tents or suites (often on raised wooden decks), with electricity, flush toilets and hot running water. Very often, extra spoils such as plunge pools, jacuzzi baths and outside day beds complete the picture. They are not fenced, so all manner of animals can move through camp. At one with nature, you will soon become attuned to every sound and often enjoy unbelievable wildlife sightings from the comfort of your own room. The isolated…

The further west we went, the more desolate the landscape became. Solitary shepherd’s trees, wild sesame bushes and tenacious tufts of grass gave way to infinite gravel plains and a lunar-like terrain that glittered with mica. It was unlike anywhere I’d ever seen. We chose a spot to set up camp and, with no distractions from the Internet, TV or telephone, I wandered just far enough away to feel that the vast valley was mine alone, and sat marvelling at the space and the stillness. I tried to capture the wild solitude but the images fell far short of reality and soon I put my camera down and simply watched as the sun’s last rays painted the escarpment gold, orange, red and purple by turns, before its jagged silhouette turned…

The newcomer to Manyara Ranch wasn’t hard to flush out. Two rangers crept around a bend toward its hiding spot – a thicket at the edge of a large pond. With a sudden rush from the foliage, the hippo flew out and into the water with a decisive splash. It’s not advisable to approach hippos, but Manyara’s caretakers must monitor their resident wildlife’s numbers and be aware of potentially dangerous animals’ presence and movements. The two men were elated to see the new arrival, who appeared to be a solitary traveller. It was the first time in decades that a hippo had appeared on the 45,000-acre community conservancy. The hippo is part of a wildlife resurgence at Manyara Ranch. Thanks to a multi-faceted conservation programme that includes anti-poaching measures and…

Goling pilgrims to the spectacular St Francis Links in the Eastern Cape can look forward to enhanced accommodation options at the award-winning Jack Nicklaus signature course. The Links, regularly voted one of South Africa’s top ten tracks, has teamed up with the Mantis Group to develop a new R60m hotel complex adjacent to the clubhouse and overlooking the 18th fairway and dam. The facility will have 60 en suite bedrooms, a clubroom and pool, and will be modelled on a similar operation at Paarl Valley in the Western Cape. The Links is situated in the dunes by St Francis Bay, and its unique location is a big attraction for golfers from around the world. Je. Clause, St Francis Links CEO, is convinced the new development will further enhance the estate’s…

A new study from the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology found that chimpanzees have a more complex and diverse material culture than previously thought. The 12-year study, supported by AWF and other partners, gathered data on nesting sites, dung, and food remains and was conducted across 20 survey areas in northern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). The researchers discovered a new “behavioral realm” in Eastern chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes schweinfurthii) of the Bili-Uéré region. The study revealed a new chimpanzee toolkit: short probes for ponerine ants and stingless bees, long probes for epigaeic driver ants, and thicker digging sticks for stingless honey bees. The researchers observed the chimps using new tools for scooping different species of ants and blunted tools for pounding fruit—aptly named “ant scoops” and “fruit hammers.” But the…

GENTLE GIANTS JOIN LIST OF SPECIES UNDER THREAT Many people are dismayed over recent news that the giraffe joins the roster of species at risk of extinction. Over the last 30 years, giraffe populations have been dwindling due to threats including habitat loss as well as hunting and poaching. Giraffe numbers have dropped 38 percent—from 157,000 in 1985 to an estimated 97,500 in 2015. This decline led the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) in 2016 to heighten giraffes’ endangered status from “least concern” to “vulnerable.” More recently, IUCN uplisted three subspecies even further. The Kordofan and Nubian giraffes, who together have around 4,500 mature adults, are newly classified as critically endangered, while the reticulated giraffe is classified as endangered. Now 30 African countries are urging the international regulatory…

The newcomer to Manyara Ranch wasn’t hard to flush out. Two rangers crept around a bend toward its hiding spot—a thicket at the edge of a large pond. With a sudden rush from the foliage, the hippo flew out and into the water with a decisive splash. It’s not advisable to approach hippos, but Manyara’s caretakers must monitor their resident wildlife’s numbers and be aware of potentially dangerous animals’ presence and movements. The two men were elated to see the new arrival, who appeared to be a solitary traveler. It was the first time in decades that a hippo had appeared on the 45,000-acre community conservancy. The hippo is part of a wildlife resurgence at Manyara Ranch. Thanks to a multi-faceted conservation program that includes anti-poaching measures and strategic support…

Did you know hyenas are neither cats nor dogs? They are so unique, they are members of their own family, Hyaenidae. Hyenas are the most common large carnivore in Africa and are widespread across sub-Saharan countries. They’re adaptable creatures and live in a wide variety of habitats: grasslands, woodlands, open savannas, forest edges, deserts, and even low mountain ranges. Hyenas live in large groups of up to 80 individuals called clans; clans have a strict social hierarchy in which females rank higher than males, and an alpha female dominates each clan. Hyenas are fearsome hunters, and while they do scavenge for their meals, about 70 percent of their diet comes from direct kills. They are not picky eaters and will consume animals of all sizes; their superb hearing and night vision serve…

In the Tuli Block, a group of wildlife lovers from around the world are developing an exciting project that secures them complete freedom of their own safari experience and enables them to engage directly in a number of important conservation programmes. And you too can participate. Part of Africa offers individuals the opportunity to invest in freehold land in a 20,500ha private reserve. For many of the co-owners, this has enabled them to take their safari experience to a new level. It’s also meant they can make a meaningful contribution to several important programmes aimed at conserving endangered species, such as rhinos, wild dogs, elephants, lions and pangolins. The creation of the reserve saw farmland returned to its natural habitat, coupled with the reintroduction of rhino, wild dogs and lion,…

GORILLA TRACKING For most tourists, the primary motivation for visiting Uganda is the opportunity to track mountain gorillas, a truly one-in-a lifetime experience that can only be had elsewhere in Rwanda (at more than twice the price) or the Democratic Republic of Congo (with greater security concerns). Within Uganda, your options boil down to the choice of Bwindi Impenetrable National Park, which hosts 18 habituated gorilla troops and issues 144 tracking permits daily, and Mgahinga Gorilla National Park, which has just one habituated troop and issues eight permits daily. These are often sold out months in advance (so book as early as possible) and the disparity in numbers alone dictates that the vast majority of trackers end up in Bwindi. If both are available, however, Mgahinga is worth considering for…

Vacillating between a circus and self-harm convention, a shirtless performer swallows broken glass whilst another slashes his bloodying tongue before the febrile crowd gasps at a corpse wrapped in calico. “Don’t worry. He’s pretending and will be brought back to life,” smiles Mohammed Marar, coordinating an energetic welcome to Kabala. “What our show is saying is if you have heart you can perform miracles in life.” If two qualities are required for Sierra Leone’s redemption, it is ‘miracles’ and ‘heart’. From the moment 380 emancipated slaves came ashore in 1787 to lay the foundations for this West African nation it has endured a fraught passage through history. Slavery lingered well beyond abolition in 1807 and thereafter British colonial shenanigans maintained a divided society. After 1961’s independence politicians gorged themselves on…

For more on walking safari options across Africa, see the feature Body and Soul in Travel Africa issue 85 01 CREATURE COMFORTS Some safaris focus on tracking wildlife on foot, staying at the same camp throughout. ‘Mobile safaris’ involve hiking from one point to another, fly-camping in different locations most nights. Either way, there’ll be ample food, cold drinks, comfortable beds, showers and decent loos! 02 TAKE IT EASY You don’t need to be particularly fit. The pace is slow, with frequent stops to learn about the wildlife and habitat. Distances vary depending on what you encounter. Most walks last between two-five hours with breaks. 03 FIRST-TIME NERVES Tracking big game sometimes better suits guests who’ve been on safari before and are a bit more aware of what to expect.…

It is now widely accepted that the continents that populate our planet are in constant motion, slowly drifting across its surface. Some 300 million years ago Africa was near the southern pole, part of Gondwanaland, and glacial conditions prevailed. As it moved north and warmed, the ice cover and glaciers melted to form swamps, lagoons and rivers and the exotic vegetation of those times accumulated to form our massive coal deposits of today. Gradual drying over millions of years, and slow but continual movement north, turned swamps to mudstone to shale and in the depressed centre of the sub-continent vast quantities of sand collected, forming over time great depths of sandstone. Around 180 million years ago Gondwana began to break up and massive sheets of basalt covered the land. Remains…

1 ZEBRA MIGRATIONS Rather than simply following the herd, Botswana’s zebra populations illustrate more selective migratory behaviour, eschewing a single mass movement in favour of several distinct migrations, which together create a network of pockmarked trails crisscrossing the country. The journeys all occur after the rains, when, untethered from the need to be close to a permanent water source, the zebras move to seek the most nutritious grass. The largest migration is from the Chobe and Linyanti rivers to Savute and, it was recently discovered, even as far south as Nxai Pan, a lungbusting 1000km round trek, which trumps the distance travelled by the more celebrated Serengeti ungulates. The second major movement is from the western Makgadikgadi to the east of the park. In addition to these, it was recently…

HUNTING Back in the early ages we were hunters and gatherers, so our lifestyle was looking more at animal behaviour and the weather. When we had rains at a certain area, usually around September, we would go and prepare a temporary shelter knowing that there would be green pastures and a good concentration of wildlife. The eland was the main animal to be hunted; it is big and could sustain the whole extended family, and during that time the elands would have enough meat and fat. The bone marrow would be used as edible oil or cooking oil. This hunting would normally start around November when the animals had gained weight and were healthy because of the green vegetation they had to feed on. During this season as well there…

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Further advancing the rehabilitation of Akagera National Park in eastern Rwanda, Wilderness Safaris has opened its new camp, Magashi, overlooking Lake Rwanyakazinga. Developed in partnership with African Parks and Rwanda Development Board, the six-tent facility brings an enhanced safari experience to Rwanda. “Akagera has undergone a remarkable transformation over the past nine years, through which it has emerged as one of Africa’s greatest conservation success stories,” said Jes Gruner, Park Manager. “Our partnership with RDB has seen poaching essentially eliminated, wildlife recovered, including bringing back lions and rhinos, and tourism is helping Akagera become 80 per cent self-.inancing, which also supports local communities.”…

There’s a couple of new additions to the river cruise scene at Victoria Falls. Hideaways has launched Zambezi Tribe, a handcrafted, traditional wooden dhow which sails quietly down the Zambezi, while foodies will love the Pot & Cruise option operated by Pure Africa. With this you start o­ by preparing a stew with all your favourite delicacies in a potjie (pot), which will simmer for a few hours will you enjoy a sunset cruise on the luxurious Zambezi Explorer, before heading back to Zambezi House to enjoy your dinner.…

The Kilombero Valley in Southern Tanzania is not only a beautiful landscape where elephants and other iconic wildlife roam, but it is also invaluable to Tanzania, with the biggest freshwater wetlands in the country, unique ecosystems, and fertile soil. Mirroring population growth on the continent, Kilombero’s settlements are expanding, and the government has encouraged agricultural development in the region. But resource exploitation can over-stress ecosystems such as the Ruipa wildlife corridor. At the same time, wildlife becomes a nuisance or worse to farmers, and conflicts erupt. AWF is helping address these issues through a project designed to improve incomes for 2,000 smallholder farmers in 13 villages. The project also seeks to restore 1,500 hectares of forest in the landscape, thus helping preserve vital ecosystem services. We are supporting the growth…

A hot pepper that is known as the “African bird eye” is helping to protect elephants in rural Uganda. Around Murchison Falls National Park, Uganda’s largest protected area and one of AWF’s priority landscapes, cropraiding elephants are a critical problem. When elephants move through fields—an increasing problem throughout Africa as human populations increase and more habitat is converted to agricultural use—farmers can lose a season’s worth of labor in a day. Trying to protect their livelihoods, they sometimes retaliate with poison or spear, adding to the loss of already endangered elephants. Enter the bird-eye chili, which AWF and the Uganda Wildlife Authority introduced to farmers as a way to deter elephants while improving incomes. When compacted in blocks or mixed with rice husks or cow dung and burned, the chili’s pungency…

People around the world marched for African wildlife during the Global March for Elephants & Rhinos this past April. From Johannesburg to Rio to Los Angeles, people of all ages marched in more than 60 events worldwide and demanded that governments “Save Our Wild World.” AWF staffmembers were among thousands who marched in Nairobi. Our intrepid photographer Peter Chira did what had to be done to capture the crowd size (right)—and the result is inspiring! Responding to the spirit of the day, Kenya’s Cabinet Secretary for Tourism Najib Balala offered a fee waiver for Nairobi National Park that Sunday, and over 15,000 Kenyans flocked to the park. The goal of the march every year is to raise awareness, generate global media attention and convince governments to take action to stop…