35-50 years of age
Review about Spioenkop Game Reserve by Colin Summersgill
Varied game in a fairly small park, can include white rhino, eland & kudu.
This is a beautiful reserve with thorn veld and a large expanse of water. The north bank of the lake is also interesting with the Spioenkop mountain dominating the park.
The north bank certainly allows a better vibe as it is more remote and has less visitors.
Birding can be good with some bushveld specials. Summer can be exceptional with the variety of cuckoos a highlight.
35-50 years of age
Review about Ithala Game Reserve by Colin Summersgill
A large park with different game across the very varied habitat.
Scenery is immense with the park dropping from 1450 masl at the mountain tops to 340 m where the Pongola River leaves the park. Habitats include thornveld, grasslands, river valley bush and cliffs.
You can virtually get lost in your own little valleys looking for wildlife. Some roads are sealed, but given the nature of the terrain this does make life easier.
Birding is excellent, the varied habitat and altitude allowing a large variety of species to make the park their home.
35-50 years of age
Review about Hluhluwe-iMfolozi Game Reserve by Colin Summersgill
Easy game viewing with a good spread of species, many of which are easily seen.
Depending on season the scenery can vary from lush in summer to stark in winter, especially in Imfolozi. This does however have it's own beauty.
Hluhluwe can be fairly busy from a tourist point of view as the game viewing is easier. Imfolozi certainly has a wilder, more bush vibe feeling.
Birding is great across the park, with a distinct change in habitat from Imfolozi in the south and going north to Hluhluwe. Hluhluwe presents higher species numbers, but Imfolozi can very often be better for raptors.
35-50 years of age
Review about Addo Elephant National Park by Colin Summersgill
Wildlife viewing can be good, with guaranteed viewing of elephant, often very close.
This is a beautiful park and the increased size includes some very scenic areas.
Parts of the park have good bush vibe, but it can be very busy at peak times.
Birding is good, with the a few biomes converging within the park, e.g. it is possible to see Cape, Red-eyed and Dark-capped Bulbuls in the park on the same day.
35-50 years of age
Great scenic nature reserve with good bird and game viewing
I have visited in all months of the year, sometimes camping.
The birding is very good, with many bushveld and some grassland species, including Chestnut-vented Titbabbler, Blue Crane, Brubru, Arrow-marked Babbler. The reserve is especially good for cuckoos in summer.
Game includes White & Black Rhino (the latter rare and difficult to see), Giraffe, Eland, Kudu, Red Hartebeest and other antelope. Black-backed Jackal are fairly common and can be seen during the day.
Accommodation includes campsites (some with electric plug points) and a five bed self-catering cottage. There is a hide and three picnics spots (one with ablution facilities).
There are good gravel roads covering most of the reserve and it's major habitats, as well as a self-guided walking trail. There is a viewpoint with stunning views over the Bushman's River.
Zimbabwe is a country of rich culture and history, friendly locals, and stunning natural beauty.
My stay in Zimbabwe was a very memorable one. I had the good fortune of meeting some local guides on my first day in Victoria Falls, and so was able to see some local sights that I feel I wouldn't have otherwise. I watched the sunrise over the falls, went on bushwalks, and camped in places that were very secluded and special. Zimbabwe is a photographer's paradise, and the opportunities for good shots were endless. I was there during their fall/winter, and the weather was brisk at night, and very temperate during the day. I loved the food, especially some of the more exotic dishes, and in rare cases wild game meat. Though their economy has seen better times, the quality of safari available there, as well as the unmatched natural beauty, continue to make it a desirable destination for many adventurers, photographers, and wildlife enthusiasts. I truly hope that I can return to Zimbabwe soon, because there is more to see and do there than anyone could write about. Safari njema!
DE
35-50 years of age
Review about Zambia by halvardcux
you are free to do what you want (bush vibe +++) Problem:game sight often poor and shy because of pouching which is the main problem in Zambia even inside parks.
NZ
35-50 years of age
Great safari in a lesser known and under-rated park
Meru National Park is an amazing place that has gone from totally animal free in the 90's to fairly abundant wildlife in the present time. It is a lot less touristed than places such as Masai Mara, but has a low key more local feel to it. There are some great camp sites, where animals walk freely within the confines. One such camp has baboons and waterbuck that come to drink water from the swimming pool! Locals and park staff are very friendly as well.
Review about Lake Mburo National Park by Andsov
I recommend Lake Mburo, mostly for its charm and that genuine bush feel. Most of the time we felt alone in the park.
BR
35-50 years of age
The Adventure of a Wildlife
In Africa, for driving a car from one place to another, you must travel a lot. The paths are long and roads are poorly maintained, then the journey by car, from Tete, on Mozambique, to the Luangwa National Park, on Zambia, was absurdly tiresome, entitled to an electrical fault in the rental car. So, we had to distribute the contents of the damaged car, including people, for the other remaining cars. Lucky we were in a very large group.
Safaris in the Luangwa National Park were different from those made in the Kruger Park, South Africa. They are wilder and more close of local people's lives. The villages of the region are practically within the park and there are no fences enclosing the area. After the damaged car episode, we arrived too late and we went to the park in searching for our lodge, which was located into the park. The plates looked old and were not in good conditions, especially for us that we were tired and concerned about driving at night, in a national park full of wildlife in Africa.
So we started some feelings about being lost. We had to return to the starting point and then we found another lodge where we asked for guidance. They said we should just to move on and we did it, until we found a road forked and we did not know what to do. We choose one way to found a bridge wich we couldn't see clearly, in the darkness, if we could cross or not. It was almost a letter "V", entering to the center of the crossing stream and seemed that was broken on the half. We couldn't see the whole path far ahead. On guy in the car was opening the car's door to go out there and see better, when we shouted all together "don't go out of the car!!" We hold him by the shirt and closed the car’s door again, almost in panic. The driver put the car in a way that we could see clearly the bridge path, so finally we crossed the bridge to find just after that a herd of elephants crossing the road.
I had seen these scenes at Kruger Park, on South Africa, that was the first wildlife experience for the others. You can imagine the reaction of a person who was never seen an elephant, to find a whole herd in the middle of the night, crossing the road just in front of the vehicle. There were the most oddest reactions, which began smoothly with no one showing their own fear, but in few seconds everybody were lost in their own emotions and some even began to pray quietly while others gave the most absurd guidelines for the driver. "Speed up this car, let's go at once," was all that was heard in a voice full of fear, while the driver, a brazilian guy, stuck by the scene and driving for the first time in the oposite seat of Brazil, remained in shock. I asked him to avoid sudden gestures, high beams and horn, to stop the car and wait the herd leaving. Everyone then got relaxed and finally enjoyed that wonderful scene of wildlife.
We started again our searching for the lost lodge, and then we could saw a plate were it was written "Wild Life". That was the Lodge's name, but in that time we were so excited that we started to think that it was simply stating the place where we were at that time, because we were truly in the "Wildlife".
Luangwa National Park is actually much more wilder and less under control than the Kruger Park, with far fewer animals in it. The safari guide in the next day explained that, because Luangwa is a natural park, not being allowed to acquire animals from other regions. All animals were borned and raised there, spontaneously. He also said to us that, due to the hunters, there are a very low adult males population of rhinos, lions and buffalos. Hunters could buy a lion to hunt for something like five thousand dollars. They could bring home the animal skin and teeth. Should be a nice prize, but I still prefer to take my pictures.
Some animals are almost unique in Luangwa National Park, such as their zebra, whose pattern of two colors only exists in Luangwa and some few regions of Malawi and Zimbabwe. The pattern is really beautiful, more than the other one that I knew at Kruger Park, which had beige tones between the white and black stripes.
During a safari I saw a large group of young lions resting. They were so young that it was just a little furry manes, pending down from their faces, as happens with some human adolescents. It was really a wonderful feeling, to see the animals there so loose, so free and so close to us.
Impalas are the wild animals fast food. They are found in large groups in all safaris I've ever done. In Luangwa, there was also another animal very like him, but with a weird white mark on his ass. The safari guide told us a very old story about that, regarding to the bible. Noah finished painting his ark in a hurry and shipped all the animals when the ink was still fresh. That animal was the first to use the bathroom and because of that it got a stamped with the brand of toilet seat on his ass.
Safari is a lottery, with many different surprises. Sometimes we are fortunate, some less so. A couple who were with us saw a lions hunting, last night safari. They said the feeling were incredible, and you could hear the lions chewing the impala's bones as if they were tiny chicken wings. Hyenas came and fought tough for a piece, dragging it down near the river and eventually loose the game for a crocodile emerged from the water.
These are the feelings of life, the big ones eating small ones, even in nature, which is by itself more than perfect.