The night seemed to be an endless succession of tossing and turning. No matter how comfortable my sleeping position seemed, that comfort would only last a short time before the rocky ground began to dig into my back or my hips. So it came as quite a surprise to find that I was actually asleep when I got woken for[…]
Read moreWhat have I let myself in for? In May 2015 I was invited to join a small group of friends on a 5 day / 4 night hiking trail in South Africa’s iMfolozi National Park. Without giving any real thought to what such a trail might involve I said ‘Yes’. I love being out in the wilderness and sleeping under[…]
Read moreLet’s make it clear from the start that this is not an in-depth technical review; rather a series of first impressions based on 2 field trips. Having said that; is there a better way of finding out if a camera will do what you want? I’ve used Nikon cameras for many years and have no quibbles about the image quality[…]
Read moreEvery time I travel to Witfontein, our house on a private wildlife reserve in the Klein Karoo, I wonder what I will find there. On recent visits, in addition to the perennial questions like; will the veldt be green or brown? will we get sunshine or rain? I’ve found myself trying to guess who might be dropping in for a[…]
Read morePhotographs for Sale For some time now I’ve been getting requests for copies of my photographs, either as digital images or as prints. It came to a head last Christmas when I found myself being asked to produce a whole bunch of canvas prints so that people could give them as presents. One of the most common gripes I’d received[…]
Read moreCombine the Serengeti with the Indian Ocean Coast Tanzania is where crystal clear beaches meet intimate wildlife experiences. As one of the most attractive locations on Africa’s safari circuit, from the vastness of the Serengeti, to the calm waves of the Indian Ocean, Tanzania has so much more to offer than game viewing alone. From the beating heart of the[…]
Read moreWell, will it? By most people’s reckoning, 2014 was not a good year for Africa. It was a year when the continent was constantly in the news but for all the wrong reasons. With the headlines shouting out about deadly viruses and repeated attacks by Islamic militants across the continent, it was no real surprise that most travellers sought alternative[…]
Read moreFor some inexplicable reason, over the past couple of days, I have been coming up against a recurring theme; “can photography be art?” and if so, when does it become art? It all kicked off when I read an article in the Guardian entitled “The $6.5m canyon: it’s the most expensive photograph ever – but it’s like a hackneyed poster[…]
Read moreThe term ‘private vehicle’ is often used in the context of African safaris and game drives but what exactly does it mean? And, more importantly, do you need one? When you go on safari as part of a group you will find that you almost always have a vehicle to yourselves, exclusively for members of your group only. When you travel alone, or[…]
Read moreAfrica Stop Ebola Way back in 1984, two British musicians, Bob Geldof and Midge Ure, brought together a stellar line up of singers and musicians to record a song to draw attention to, and raise money for relief of, a devastating famine in Ethiopia. ‘Do they know it’s Christmas?’ was a huge hit and sold over 11 million copies worldwide.[…]
Read moreElephants at Kanga Pan Our first sight of Kanga Pan did not fill us with optimism. What we saw was a lot of mud, with a few small pools full of stagnant green water and it certainly bore little resemblance to the year round waterhole we’d been expecting. Appearances can be deceptive though, and over the course of the 2[…]
Read moreto read the previous chapter of our Safari Diary An elephant named Boswell, Wild Dogs and a Leopard click here 26 September 2014 The topic of conversation when we gathered for our morning drive was noises that had entertained us during the night. I’d heard hyaenas and lions but apparently at about 5am 2 wild dogs had run through camp[…]
Read moreThis follows the previous chapter in our latest safari diary – Matusadona, a birding paradise on the shores of Lake Kariba 25 September 2104 Mana Pools here we come Our flight to Mana Pools was booked for 9 o’clock, so we had to make an early start. Our stay at Rhino Safari Camp was much too brief (much much too[…]
Read moreThe 9th installment of our latest Safari Diary follows on from – Cheetahs and vultures on our last morning in Hwange Matusadona National Park As we come into land the first plane is sitting waiting to take off again and no sooner have we taxied off the runway than it roars off kicking up another dust storm. We disentangle ourselves[…]
Read moreThis is the 8th installment of our Zimbabwe safari diary and follows on from – Game Driving in Hwange National Park 23 September 2014 Our last morning at Bomani. On our way to the gate we spot a pair of Yellow Billed Kites in a tree above us, they’ve got some fresh meat. No idea what it might be though.[…]
Read moreThis is part 7 of the Chobe and Zimbabwe Safari Diary and follows on from – Elephants, more elephants and a lion 22 September 2014 One of the things that I’d been asked to arrange for this group was a visit to a local school. They had brought with them some children’s clothes and boxes of school materials (books, pens[…]
Read moreThis is the 6th installment of my Safari Diary and follows on directly from Elusive Sable and idle Cheetahs – Hwange NP Elephants everywhere Some time ago the folks at Bomani installed something that they call the ‘Look Up’. A shipping contained was buried in the ground beside one of the waterholes and converted into an underground hide or blind.[…]
Read morePart 5 of my Safari Diary and follows on directly from my previous post – Victoria Falls – so much more than just a waterfall Bomani Tented Lodge – Hwange NP As we pulled in to Bomani all the staff came out to greet us and we were led in to the large communal building that houses the bar, lounge[…]
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