Adventures – WANDER OUR WORLD

24. Juli 202122. Juli 2022

The smoke that thunders

Hello, Bonjour and Salibonani from Iganyana tented Camp at Hwange National Park, Matabeleland in Northern Zimbabwe. I am on leave for some days and have the possibility to reunite with Ride Zimbabwe, for whom I have worked for 3 months back in 2019.

James Varden from Ride Zimbabwe leading us through the bush

Early morning, we took the game drive vehicle once more to head out and find the buffaloes as well as hopefully the lions. On our way we spotted impalas, zebras, an elephant cow and kudus.

A lonesome elephant cow enjoying the waterhole

The big herd of buffaloes was to be found at a waterhole, calmly drinking and relaxing. We spotted lots of lion and hyena tracks but no lions to be found. However we knew they must have been around, probably hiding in the bushes.

During the afternoon we went out for another lovely ride through the bush. We spotted the herd of sable antelopes between the trees and just enjoyed the sun setting in the vlei, while the fire place was lit up in camp and waited for our return.

Sunday was reserved for another conversation project, we visited the donkeys sanctuary build up in the small village of Dete by the help of MARESZim and Ride Zimbabwe. Any sick donkey of the village shall be brought to the Chief and he will then together with his son take care of the injured animals until they have recovered. The support, lots of hard work, medication, education and funding comes from the NGO, MARESZim with the support of Ride Zimbabwe. Your donation via MARESZim will save animal lives and support poorer communities in Zimbabwe.

On our way we shortly stopped at Hwange main camp to look after Nugget and Skanky, 2 horses from Ride Zimbabwe. Not far away we spotted about 6 – 7 old buffalo males. They were grazing just next to the main road.

The end of the holidays is coming closer and Monday morning started with the last ride through the vlei. We were lucky enough to see 2 secretary birds, tall birds that you will usually spot walking on the ground on the hunt for some food such as snakes, frogs, lizards and other small animals. The ride was fabulous and I enjoyed it a lot, still not wanting to believe that the 8 nights holiday in the bush will come to its end already.

Clearly for some the grass is just more interesting

The last afternoon was reserved for a game drive within Hwange National Park. When you enter these days your tires will be desinfected as well as yourself. After paying the fees you can drive through the boom and enjoy nature‘s beauty. The aim was to drive to Nyamandlovu pan that has a little hide lookout with lovely views on a waterhole. It’s an epic place for a perfect last night sundowner!

A yellow hornbill enjoying the last rays of sunshine

Unfortunately, the last day of my bush adventure had arrived and I packed my bags to hop on my transfer back to Vic Falls where I headed straight to PSMI for my COVID-19 PCR test. The results were ready within 2 hours, very efficient work. Afterwards, I enjoyed the vulture feeding at Victoria Falls Safari Lodge before I ventured off to see the mighty thundering smoke, the Vic Falls.

This time I was almost alone with the falls, due to COVID there aren’t many tourists around which makes the sighting very special and unique but of course the harder it is for the locals to keep their business up and running. It’s hard to see all the people that were depending on tourism and now have no jobs anymore. I so wish this will soon come to an end and change as yet again it’s the poorest of the poor that suffer the most! On the other side almost everyone has received their vaccine in this town and people are hopeful for the tourists to come visit their beautiful home.

Victoria Falls, always a special sighting

The last night in Zim has arrived and I enjoyed my stay at Victoria Falls Safari Club that offers beautiful views into the bush and a waterhole where the baboons like to gather. During the evening hours there was also an elephant coming for its good night drink. Thanks Zimbabwe, for yet another unforgettable, peaceful holiday. It’s always special to visit and reconnect with nature. Happy to return soon!

My newest lessons learned in Northern Zimbabwe and Victoria Falls:

Melting shoes – If you are smelling rubber at the fire place, your shoes might well be melting away already;
Sunset views – Nyamandlovu platform is an epic place to enjoy a sundowner &
Fast testing – At PSMI in Victoria Falls you can get your PCR test results within 2 hours!

Cheers to wandering the world and exploring Northern Zimbabwe – bye bye, salut and lisale kuhle ∞

29. Mai 202119. Juli 2021

Discovering my new home

Hello, Bonjour and Molweni from Cape Town where I live and work since December 2020. Due to the ongoing pandemic, I have arrived about 9 months later than it was planned. But I think all of us have realized by now that planning and COVID-19 are not much compatible.

I have started my work in January and I am still settling in, buying all items you need to have in order to sleep well, make your life easier and drive around town. It has been already 3 months since my last blog, as time just flies by when one moves continents and ends up in Cape Town, a city with plenty possibilities for outdoor fun!

The iconic Table Mountain with all its hiking trails

Golden hour is always epic at the mountain side

Since February I am renting my apartment where I am living at now, which is a piece of heaven to me. Some of my furniture have arrived via sea freight after being postponed and postponed for about a month. Apparently that was due to the weather and wind that was too terrible in Cape Town. To me the ocean looked very clam in that period but well, I guess with my views until the horizon, I can probably not judge correctly…

Surely, of all the wonders of the world, the horizon is the greatest
Freya Stark

In the meanwhile, another short hike waited for me on the edge of Signal Hill. The path starts directly at my apartment and goes along the side of Signal Hill leading eventually to Lion’s Head. However, I didn’t yet hike the whole path as I am still recovering from an injury when I had a horseback riding accident a few weeks ago. All is healing well, but it takes also some time and I have to be patient. This accident has brought me already the second time into the South African hospital, I am a good customer now and I hope I won’t have to go back so quickly. Hence, no riding for me at the moment, but I try to keep up with walking, easy hikes and a few little running rounds in between. Thus, it is incredible convenient to have a stunning hiking path just next to my place, it makes things so much easier if you love hiking.

During Easter time I took some holiday to enjoy one of the game farms in the Western Cape and spent 2 nights at the Garden Route Game Lodge, which is about 4, 5 hours driving from Cape Town. I stayed in a little Bush chalet with an amazing view on the waterhole. Every morning and afternoon I joined a game drive through the reserve where we spotted zebras, springboks, buffaloes, giraffes, lions and even 2 cheetah mums with their 9 little cubs in total. I was so lucky to see the older cubs come walking towards the vehicle. They just laid down very closely to it. However, the younger cubs that were about 8 weeks old only were all tucked up in the thick bush and it was hard to get a close shot of them. But I could still see their honey-badger like fur. These special sightings really were the best.

Safely tucked away in the bush but still curious to see what’s happening

The older Cubs were really lovely to watch

The lions were a bit lazy I must admit, they were only laying around in their enclosure, so it wasn’t such a hard job to find them as they have a smaller area just for them. The cheetahs however roam freely in the biggest enclosure, which is a bit of a challenge to spot them. But they do wear a collar around their neck, so there is always a good chance to track them.

The getaway weekend went by very quickly and on my way back to Cape Town, I shortly stopped at the most Southern tip of Africa in Agulhas and the little fisher’s village, Struisbaai. It was such a lovely trip and journey through the Western Cape.

Back in Cape Town, I visited the Cape of Good Hope and Boulder’s Beach to see the little cute penguins. This time I was so lucky to spot a few ostriches, elands and even a zebra in the National Park around the Cape of Good Hope. It surely is worth a visit if you want to also see some wildlife. Also, you should stop at Kalk Bay, which itself is a cute little village with a harbour were you can get good fish. I can recommend Scirocco as a little outdoor restaurant, where you sit underneath a big palm tree that is the heart of the place. The atmosphere is quite special with the light decoration and life music, something you don’t want to miss if you are in that area.

Nothing beats the cuteness of these little creatures

During one morning, I went kayaking with Kaskazi Kayaks & Adventures, which was an incredible adventure. There were whales close to the shore and I was so lucky to see them quite close during the kayaking tour. Sometimes, it even felt a bit too close to my kayak and I tried to make sure to not be in the way of these huge creatures. It’s magnificent to spot them from this angle and they seem even bigger than I thought.

Someone enjoying the ocean in front of us

I also went for an incredible tandem paragliding adventure from Signal Hill. The start was so quick that I didn’t even recognize what was happening, all of a sudden I had this huge backpack on and was already running down the hill with two men on each of my side helping to get the momentum with the heavy paragliding thing behind me. I flew over Sea Point right towards the ocean where the sun was about to set. From above, I could even spot my apartment, it was such a great adventure even though it was quite quick. All in all, I might have been 5 minutes in the air only before landing on the grass next to the Sea Point promenade. Next time, I would love to fly from Lion’s Head.

My newest lessons learned in my new home town:

Chalet number 27 – that’s the best one to have a magnificent view towards the waterhole at Garden Route Game Lodge;
Windy excuses – blame it on the wind if you are late seems to work in many businesses here &
Be late – enter Boulder’s Beach shortly before it closes at 5pm and you will enjoy the penguins on your own!

Cheers to wandering the world and exploring my new home town – bye bye, salut and hamba kakuhle ∞

26. Juni 201917. Januar 2020

It’s not a goodbye but a see you soon

Hello, Bonjour and Salibonani from Matopos National Park, Southern Matabeleland where my Zimbabwean journey ends with my last horse safari. It’s very sad to say but unfortunately my time in Zimbabwe has already come to an end, time just seemed to be flying by way too fast and almost 3 months have passed by since I have arrived! So many fun and exciting days with lots of lessons learned, adventures lived and wonderful highlights experienced. I am thankful for every single moment.

Nugget and I enjoying the Matopos afternoon light

My last safari with Ridezimbabwe was very special as I finally had the chance to get to sleep under the star sprinkled sky, in the middle of the African winter. Ah it was very cold during the night but also so unique! We slept close to the water at Toghwana Dam after a long drive finding that place. At least 3 times we got lost, everyone on the road directing us in opposite directions. It was driving me crazy! I neither speak Ndebele nor Shona but I still understood we were completely lost in the bush; driving madly back and forth and even in circles on the dirt roads. After 4 hours and 120km we finally arrived, pitched up our rustic campsite and enjoyed the bonfire.

I chose to sleep next to the horses and saw plenty of shooting stars rushing through the pitch black sky. What a wonderful night outside, the perfect way to end my African adventure.

The next day we had to get ready, pack everything and load our 8 horses into the big lorry to drive them back home to Umguza, where they can rest now after plenty safaris in the last weeks.

Vice Roy following Dodger into the lorry

I have spent my most interesting months here in Zim with plenty of fun experiences. It has definitely been the best job that I have had in my live so far; teaching me how fragile life can be.

I am so grateful that I got to witness a little foal being born, which was just the most magical moment in Cawston Wildlife Estate (see this blogpost).

I am so happy that I had the chance to enjoy plenty of magnificent sunsets in the African bush, one more spectacular than the other (see this blogpost).

If I have ever seen magic, it has been in Africa.
John Hemingway

I am so thankful that I was taught how to shoot a 0.22 and a 0.375 at the shooting range, definitely a fun experience (see this blogpost).

I just feel so blessed for all amazing people I have met and all the fun adventures I lived through in a gorgeous country, desperate for some economical changes. I could get to travel to different places in Zimbabwe such as:

Matopos National Park, where I got to see the rhinos (see this blogpost),
Hwange National Park, where I found some lions laying in the bush while I was riding (see this blogpost),
Vic falls, a city full of adrenaline, which I got to know when I got mock charged by an elephant bull (see this blogpost),
Zambezi National Park, where I saw the buffalos so that I had finally seen the big 5 here in Zim (see this blogpost),
And Bulawayo, where my Zimbabwean journey began with a little foal (see this blogpost).

The falls in all magical colors at the Zambian side

Zambezi National Park with its amazing scenery

I never knew of a morning in Africa when I woke up that I was not happy.
Ernest Hemingway

My new lessons learned during my last horse safari in Matopos National Park:

Never trust people along the road when asking for road directions – everyone will direct you onto another path.
When sleeping under the stars in winter, choose a place under the trees – or you might wake up very wet.
Enjoy the dark sky with plenty of shooting stars – better have lots of wishes ready to choose from!

When you leave Africa, as the plane lifts, you feel that more than leaving a continent you’re leaving a state of mind. Whatever awaits you at the other end of your journey will be of a different order of existence.
Francesca Marciano

Cheers to wandering the world and the wonders of our lives, Africa has always its own special ways to find you somehow – bye bye, salut and lisale kuhle ∞

22. Juni 201917. Januar 2020

A big grey giant and a small stone

Hello, Bonjour and Salibonani from Cawston Wildlife Estate, Northern Matabeleland where I help for about 2,5 months with the horses. My very last horse Safari on this game reserve has just finished with an epic sundowner and an even more spectacular full moon rising above the horizon! Just such a special sighting here in the African bush.

My last day at Cawston was lots of fun, I got to shoot a 0.375 rifle. First shot on the shooting range was just for a practice round with a smaller ammo and somehow I missed the target completely. Probably I was just too scared of the noise and the pushback. The next shot was with the big ammo and I was very nervous as I knew this pushback is going to be even stronger – but I had no idea what really is going to happen. When I pulled the trigger I just had automatically to take a step back due to the forces on my body. Unfortunately, I missed the bullseye but at least I hit the bigger target this time. Lots of fun but still plenty of practice ahead of me to become a professional hunter…

It’s time to say goodbye to my lovely home in Cawston Wildlife Estate as my Zimbabwean journey takes me to Matopos National Park for my very last Zimbabwean horse safari.

Last time I was here, I saw a rhino (see this blogpost) on a game drive from a vehicle. This time I got even more blessed! It’s been about 3 weeks since I last sat on a horse, due to my foot injury from the spiderbite. So, I was very happy when I jumped on my horse, Engine, to go on a bushride in this colorful winter scenery. Engine showed me that he really deserves his name, it was a dancing party for the whole 5 hours while we were bundu bashing. This made it hard for me to look for wildlife as I had to concentrate on my horse.

We were tracking and tracking and suddenly we stood just right in front of this majestic looking grey, big cow. First I thought she was standing next to a stone until I realized she had a little calf with her that was sleeping on the ground. How gorgeous was that?! Fabulous sighting.

The afternoon ride had some wonderful sceneries for us, we got even a few rain drops creating a beautiful rainbow. Winter has fully arrived and shows off with great colors and fantastic sunsets. We found one spot from where we had an awesome view on the valley in front of us, enjoying the sun setting behind the hills.

My new lessons learned while helping at Cawston Wildlife Estate:

Enjoy the full moon rising just above the horizon – it’s such a spectacular moment to see the moon crawling up behind the trees.
Don’t forget your earplugs when shooting a 0.375 – lots of noise but lots of fun!
Always have your jacket with you – June can show you some very cold winter days.

Cheers to wandering the world and the wonders of our lives, hope to see you soon for my last fun days in Matopos – bye bye, salut and lisale kuhle ∞

17. Juni 201917. Januar 2020

Last Safari in Cawston

Hello, Bonjour and Salibonani from Cawston Wildlife Estate, Northern Matabeleland where I help for about 2,5 months with the horses. The Cawston family is still growing and a second little foal was born, which we were waiting for the last couple of days. It’s a very cute and healthy little male with dark brown fur and a white star on his face. He runs around with our little female foal that was born almost 2 weeks ago (see this post) and the other donkey babies.

We just finished one horse safari on Cawston Wildlife Estate and started a new one. It’s always fun times even though it can get quite hectic. This will be my last safari in Cawston where I help Ridezimbabwe to operate the bush rides before I will head southwards to Matopos National Park.

Unfortunately, I still struggle with my tick bite fever that has just possibly turned out to be a spiderbite according to my second visit to the doctor. It’s actually really confusing to me what it is and how to treat it. However, I really hope it’s going to get better just now, which can be basically everything between a couple of days and some months. I really want to go out on outrides in the bush and join the safaris for my last few days in beautiful Zimbabwe.

Everything in Africa bites, but the safari bug is worst of all!
Brian Jackman

Meanwhile, I had the possibility to join two hunts, one for an impala and one for a zebra that was needed for lion bait. We never found an impala on that one day, but I enjoyed walking through the tick bushes, where I got caught up in the thorns every now and then. Whereas the zebra hunt was very quick and successful. We started first thing in the morning just when the sun was rising over the horizon showing off with the most lovely orange colored sky. We stalked a herd of zebras for a short time but they noticed us and ran away. So we drove to another spot, where we saw zebras just in front of the car. The shooting was so quick, I couldn’t even take a picture. Afterwards, we had to load the zebra on the truck and we drove straight back to the butchery. The job was done by early morning so there was plenty of time left to cuddle with all the foals.

I spent my first Friday night in town and got to experience the Bulawayo bars, which was lots of fun. As there was a power cut that day, we were dependent on the generators and hopped from one bar to another and back again to the first place. Funny enough we started and ended in one place that I saw when I had just started my Zimbabwean journey as it was a bar in front of the stables, where I helped with the donkeys and rescued horses. It turns out that Zimbabwe and it’s community is smaller than I thought.

Tin Cup bar during the day in front of the stables

The next morning, I got to experience the real city vibes of Bulawayo as I went to the bend over market, where you can basically buy everything from clothes to make-up. It was very interesting to see this kind of African flee market. However, I am very happy to have left the city and be back in the bush!

My new lessons learned while helping at Cawston Wildlife Estate:

You can be bitten by plenty animals in the bush, but it’s still the most lovely place to be.
Going on a hunt can be a very quick job.
Bars in town close whenever the generator will be switched off.

Cheers to wandering the world and the wonders of our lives, hope to see you soon – bye bye, salut and lisale kuhle ∞

6. Juni 201917. Januar 2020

Magical moment of life

Hello, Bonjour and Salibonani from Cawston Wildlife Estate, Northern Matabeleland where I help for about 2,5 months with the horses. Unfortunately, not only one of our horse has tick bite fever (see this blog post), but also I am affected by it now. A couple of days I thought I am getting the flu, until I remembered the tick bite I had. So, I had to go into town again to see a doctor and get antibiotics. That’s why I have to miss out another amazing safari in Hwange National Park. Hopefully it will be better soon and I can go back to riding again, to enjoy my last month here in this fabulous bush.

Meanwhile, I lunge some of the horses, especially our beloved Zhovhe that still isn’t too happy when a sand bag is put on his saddle. He still isn’t fully broken in and there is a long way to go. I am just hoping he doesn’t have any back issues.

Zhovhe and me watching the giraffes at distance

Last weekend I got to shoot with a rifle for the very first time ever at the shooting range here in the reserve. Quite an exciting thing to do and I have to say I do like it. The targets I was shooting at were about 25 m at distance. Didn’t look too far compared to my very first shot I did a couple of weeks ago trying to hit the tomato (read this blog). I am quite proud, as I always hit the bulls eye as well as the stones. Just my second last shot was the only time I missed one of the stones, so I am very happy with my first trials!

Afterwards, we went for a magnificent sundowner on the ridge on the other side of the reserve that is a 20 mins drive away from the homestead. This time, we were finally on time to watch the sun setting on the horizon behind the trees. All the other times, something happened and we were just too late to indulge in this magical moment. The braai that evening was just a lot of fun and I wish for every single Sunday being like that, welcome to my kind of paradise!

Next morning, was about the best and cutest start of a Monday, I could ever imagine in my life! We had put one of our three pregnant mares into the stables for the previous night and during early morning hours we found that mare, Donha, running up and down in her stable. So, we put her quickly in a paddock on her own where she started to give birth shortly after. All of us were just standing next to poor Donha, watching closely if everything went alright. One more amazed than the other. 45 mins after, a cute little female girl is now a new member of our family. Another 45 mins later, the foal managed to stand up and wobble around, trying to find some milk. This was quite a mission and took until the early afternoon when it got finally some milk. By now, it’s just a lovely little beauty, jumping around and growing healthy. We are all now waiting for the second foal to be born, which could come every day from today on.

My new lessons learned while helping in Cawston Wildlife Estate:

Having the magnificent chance watching a foal being born, is just about the best way to start a Monday ever in life!
If you feel like you ran a marathon while feeling as if you have the flu, you might have been infected with tick bite fever.
Always count your pills the pharmacy hands you over, otherwise you might end up with half what you paid for.

Cheers to wandering the world and the wonders of our lives, hope to see you soon – bye bye, salut and lisale kuhle ∞

3. Juni 201917. Januar 2020

It‘s baby season

Hello, Bonjour and Salibonani from Cawston Wildlife Estate, Northern Matabeleland where I help for about 2,5 months with the horses. Every now and then we take the horses and look around in the ostrich paddock for some eggs that might have been layed but still there are none to be found. I am really questioning if it is time for the females to lay some eggs or if this will be later this year, maybe end of winter.

Donha and me looking for some ostrich eggs

We do have a new patient, unfortunately it’s our precious Starlight. She is very likely to have billary, which is the African tick bite fever, as she was shivering one morning, had high temperature and pale gums. So we had to give her some injections with a special powder that is mixed with water. Of course, I was alone at that time and so I had to do the injections by myself. And what should I say, the instructions said that I had to inject at least 2-3 shots. Goodness me that was quite interesting, I have seen it so many times by now but never attempted to do it myself. Not quite sure who was shaking more the horse or me. Luckily, she survived the night but unfortunately I had to find her the next morning with two big lumps on the neck where I injected her. Now, I have to treat them as well, still a long way to go until I am a good vet…

Work starts now at 6.30am so I can finally see again the food I am preparing for the horses. I quite like that extra half an hour of sleep I get now before feeding and grooming the horses. We had some beautiful outrides during the last days and we saw herd of impala and wildebeests very close. Also some eland and tsetsebees crossed our path.

Another little calf was born, this time it’s a male and I got to see it just a couple of hours after it’s mother had given birth. Such a cutie, it could barely even stand yet. And just shortly after the calf was born, the little donkey has finally seen the light of this wonderful live. We were waiting for him quite a few weeks already. I got to see it a couple of hours after it was born during the night, it could already run around in the morning sun! Maybe one or two horse foals will be born soon, that would be fabulous. Let’s see what will happen.

He could already walk in the morning sun

As my second month has passed by, I had to go into town and renew my visa. On my way to town I got the chance to sneak a peak into a clinic close by the reserve and a physiotherapist place in town. It’s very different from what I know back in Europe, but it looked all quite clean.

My new lessons learned while helping in Cawston Wildlife Estate:

Take your time when looking for ostrich eggs – you might be looking for months.
If you want to see a calf or foal being born, stay up during the nights – they always seem to be born during the nighttime.
IV injections need a lot of practice – or your patient might have some lumps.

Cheers to wandering the world and the wonders of our lives, hope to see you soon – bye bye, salut and lisale kuhle ∞

28. Mai 201917. Januar 2020

31 giants and the deep peace of the wild

Hello, Bonjour and Salibonani from Cawston Wildlife Estate, Northern Matabeleland where I help for about 2,5 months with the horses. During the last few days I did some splendid outrides to new places on the reserve that I haven’t been to yet. I saw so much wildlife from a horse‘s back: a herd of sables with 2 calves, 4 elands, 31 giraffes that were very close and curious, a herd of wildebeests and impalas. Every single bushride has just it’s own magical encounters and I am so very happy to be able to enjoy this journey in the heart of Zimbabwe.

Looking at the wildebeests just behind the trees

I prefer the saddle to the streetcar and star-sprinkled sky to a roof, the obscure and difficult trail, leading into the unknown, to any paved highway, and the deep peace of the wild to the discontent bread by cities. . . it is enough that I am surrounded by beauty.
Everett Ruess

As some of the horses are not fully fit or rideable, I lunge them. Zhovhe for example is a gelding that is apparently not yet fully broken in, so I lunge him with a saddle on and I try to put some weight on him. We will see how it goes for the next few times.

We are still repairing the paddock, remember when I said I am happy if this will be done before end of May (see this blog post) ?.. well.. take your time here. Things are just moving on a bit slower and I definitely get used to it!

During lunchtime, I enjoy myself at my happy place, watching kudus, impalas, bushbucks, warthogs, monkeys and even a waterbuck drinking and playing around the waterhole. I had the amazing chance to spot 19 eland antelopes during sunset hours at my happy place together with some zebras. I haven’t seen zebras at that spot since I came. They usually like to hang out at other places on the reserve. Such a wonderful experience! I really start to love this fabulous reserve with all its great opportunities and epic sunsets.

Eland, impalas and warthogs sharing the waterhole

The last weekend, we hosted a group of bird hunters to shoot some guniea fowls. One morning I could join in and watch them shooting the birds and finding them with the help of plenty of dogs. This was quite an interesting process.

One of the evenings, we prepared a sundowner in the bush for the clients and I drove on my own to the place to bring some food. I wasn’t really sure where exactly the place was and I couldn’t even remember that I ever had been there. So it was definitely a fun drive, where I tried to figure out my way on my own to a place I wasn‘t sure where it is supposed to be.

A couple of times I thought I was lost, but I actually wasn’t because I found the fireplace with all the chairs already prepared after a 25min drive. This night the sunset was just magical with all the pink, orange and red colors the sun could possibly draw into the endless sky. Perfect evening for a sundowner and enjoying the peace of the bush that I had completely to myself as the clients were still too busy shooting some birds.

My new lessons learned while helping in Cawston Wildlife Estate:

Giraffes are so very quiet – especially if you get very close to them, they seem more and more graceful and silent, you can barely hear them.
To get things done in Africa doesn’t take days – always count on weeks or even months!
6 hunters required more than a dozen of helpers – the ratio of staff to clients still amazes me.

Cheers to wandering the world and the wonders of our lives, hope to see you soon – bye bye, salut and lisale kuhle ∞

21. Mai 201917. Januar 2020

A special cat‘s visit

Hello, Bonjour and Salibonani from Cawston Wildlife Estate, Northern Matabeleland where I help for about 2,5 months with the horses and have just safely arrived back from Hwange National Park after a great safari. Since I now saw the lions (see this blog post), I thought nothing can bother me anymore in Cawston. However, walking around on the reserve by myself during night still makes me feel uncomfortable. I hear all different strange noises and in my imagination it’s always a leopard killing impalas close to my room.

My torch starts to become my best friend as it is still dark at 6am when I start working and it already gets dark by 6pm. The torch is also my only weapon against any nocturnal friend that might cross my path during the dark hours. As artificial light is a very rare source here, one relies on the cell phone light, torch or the full moon. So you better always carry one of these items in your pockets.

By now, we are definitely heading towards winter, the leaves are changing into beautiful orange shades and the early morning hours are getting very chilly as well as the evening hours. During the day however we can still hit 30 degrees Celsius, hence I dress in many layers.

I am fully back into my working routine in Cawston and love my 6am to 5pm job that doesn’t know any weekends. Incredible, that I just had one day off since the 3rd of April. Time flies! We still often look for the donkeys to check on them and it always turns out to be a gorgeous bushride, where we see kudus, giraffes, tsetsebees and other wild life.

Starlight smelling wild life ahead of us

We have 2 donkey patients at the moment, one of them is the little foal called Style. Not quite sure what she has but I hope we treat her correctly with what she needs. Roiboos tea, honey, hi-tet, vitamin B shots and penstrep are our little helpers here that hopefully will work for these injuries.

We are still waiting for the donkey foal to be born, which should be happening very soon! However, a little calf was just born and it is the cutest little thing ever at the reserve right now.

Little baby cow that is just 2 days old here

And then, during my lunchtime I had finally the privilege to see a leopard laying in the tree in front of camp. Unbelievable! I spotted him from my happy place. So grateful to have had this wonderful experience. To spot these nocturnal cats is not given at all time and I wasn’t sure if I will have this fantastic opportunity here at Cawston. The more I am so happy for this chance. I have heard so many leopard callings during the nights and seen so many tracks on the sand pads, to finally have a face to these signs is just incredible!

As one of the boreholes had some problems and we couldn’t get any water anymore, the guys had to drill a new one. I got the chance to see this process, which took about 12 hours. First, a water source needed to be found underground. A fruit or mopane tree branch is needed for that and it will be bended in a special way to see where its pointing towards. That’s where the source of water should be. After 45m of drilling, we finally found the water around 6pm. Afterwards, it took another 6 hours to get all the rods out and the pipes in. Somewhere in the middle of this process I just fell asleep. Long days.

Getting the pipes ready for the borehole

During this day I also got the chance to hold a rifle in my hand and shoot for the very first time in my life. The sound gave me a fright and of course, I missed the tomato that was just way too far! Maybe the next time will be better.

Last night, a scorpion just marched into my room as if it was open door to everyone. I had to intervene and make sure he is not going to try to come in again. I left the scene like as if it was an accident…

My new lessons learned while helping in Cawston Wildlife Estate:

Always check the tree branches – you might be lucky enough to find a lazy leopard hanging in them during the hot hours.
Water is never granted – it can be quite hard to find this needed resource.
Having a rifle in your hand can be very odd – not only the feeling but also the sound when triggering can definitely be frightening.

Cheers to wandering the world and the wonders of our lives, hope to see you soon – bye bye, salut and lisale kuhle ∞

17. Mai 201917. Januar 2020

A lions roar to the rhythm of hoof beats

Hello, Bonjour and Salibonani from Hwange National Park, Northern Matabeleland where I stayed 4 nights in a proper bush camp and helped with the horses on a safari. We drove from Matobo National Park that is about 1 hour South of Bulawayo to the Northern part in the country and arrived after 6 hours in our bush camp in Hwange National Park. On our way we saw a couple of kudus, hornbills and a roan antelope that is apparently quite rare to be seen.

During the evening hours we set up the tents, prepared food for the horses, dinner for us and enjoyed ourselves around the fire while listening to hyena callings and the rumbling stomachs of elephants. An electric fence is helping to protect the horses from predators such as lions as you get all big fives in the National Park. This is definitely different to Matobo or Cawston, the two reserves I have been to in Zim. Therefore, our guide carried two guns from now on.

Right in the first night one of the cars broke down in the bush. Lucky enough there was a radio in the car to call the staff in the campsite asking for help. Unfortunately, the car couldn’t get fixed that evening as some nuts and bolts were needed to repair it. So, the car had to spent the night out in the bush until the spares could be bought at main camp of Hwange. Luckily, the car didn’t get chewed up by some hyenas during the night.

Our bush toilet had a great view and the waxing moon gave us some light in the bush shower during nights as there was no light or any electricity except for the fence. And of course we didn’t have any phone signal in this remote place. To enjoy a hot shower we heated up the water on the fire, which I was definitely grateful for as the late evening and early morning hours got very chilly in the park.

The next two days were all about outrides and wildlife encounters in the fabulous scenery of thick bushes and wide open plains. We have seen zebras, wildebeests, warthogs, ostriches, jackals, impalas, baboons and even a roan antelope. But no sights of lions unfortunately (or luckily it all depends on the view..). On a short drive to main camp and the stables, I even saw a herd of 9 roan antelopes, which was just marvelous!

For our last afternoon we took the car on a game drive and had a sundowner, which offered fabulous wildlife sightings. We saw elephants, giraffes, kudus, zebras, yellow hornbills and lilac-breasted roller in the marvelous afternoon sunset light, while enjoying our drinks. The following night was quite hectic, lots was going on especially hyenas were calling the whole night until 6am very close to our fence. They were circling our camp but luckily didn’t try hard enough to bother the horses or us.

The last morning started off with a stunning bushride through the pan, along some waterholes, where we saw zebras, impalas, wildebeests, jackals, baboons and some eagles controlling their territory. We trotted along the sand pad that was full of lion spoors, when we heard some bird callings. We stopped and turned around for a couple of meters and there it was: the deep growling of a cat.

Government and Gizmet happy to have each other

We found lions! Three at least, a lioness with her teenage cubs lying in the shade of a bush, barely visible, so well blending in with the scenery. We were definitely a bit too close, the growling didn’t stop and the lioness was surely not happy of our presence, therefore we backed up to put some space between us and the predators. I surely don’t want to be bait! What a special moment to experience. I just enjoyed this fantastic experience until we heard some new bird calling and we saw one of her cubs walking down the hill towards the lioness. This was the moment when the mother jumped out of the shade of the bush and gave all of us a fright. Luckily, she stopped and walked towards her cub before laying down in the shade again. My adrenaline was high up, unsure if we should move away or stay and do nothing. We did the latter until the cub ran away to the spot it came from. The deep growling still continued until we made our way back to camp, cantered along some small path and just enjoyed the rest of this majestic ending of our safari time in Hwange National Park. Just about the most perfect ending I could wish for!

After we packed everything together and had the horses loaded, I drove back to the stables that are close by the main camp. A little surprise was waiting here for us, Lucy the wild zebra was hanging around with her horse friends. Unbelievable, she is so close with all of the horses. She stays around the stable and enjoys their presence. However, it would be important for her to stay with a zebra herd instead. Maybe one day she will be excepted by some other wild zebras. Such a perfect day for this unforgettable horse safari in this very special park. Glad to have had this splendid opportunity of helping out here in Hwange!

My new lessons learned while on safari in Hwange:

Never feel too secure on your horse in Hwange NP – predators can be laying under each bush.
Wild zebras can adopt interesting habits – if they are not welcomed in a herd, they might feel happy to hang around horses.
You should have a radio in your car in Hwange – just to make sure, if it breaks down during late hours, you can call for help.

Cheers to wandering the world and the wonders of our lives, hope to see you soon from Cawston with some incredible visitors – bye bye, salut and lisale kuhle ∞