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From the end of the tarred road, set off to paradise
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The Star Tonight! 12 June 1985Botswana never fails to surprise me: the size of France but with the total population of a small provincial city in that country, it is wildlife paradise which can be enjoyed on any level. In one weekend recently, I sampled two of her game lodges- so far apart that it took nearly two hours by plane to get from one to the other. Both were unique experiences that one could have had nowhere else in Africa. Mashatu is the new name for Bushfillian, the Rennies-owned safari camp in the Tuli bloc which borders Zimbabwe and the Transvaal on the Limpopo and Shashe rivers. In five hours you can drive on tar all the way to Pont Drift where one is collected. Or you can fly in 80 minutes, landing just a few kilometers from the reserve’s two camps, Mashatu and Majale. With access to well over 100 000 hectares and with a remarkable variety of ecosysytems raging from the mopane woodlands to the open savannah to semi-desert to lush riverine, its game-viewing is spectacular at any time of year.
When I first saw it, summer rains had swollen its rivers into raging torrents which often meant one had to be hauled across by truck as even our Land Rovers would get stuck. Although it was fairly green, one cold nevertheless see for miles in many parts of the reserve as the vegetation was thinner than in the lowveld, enabling us to spot many herds of elephant, wildebeest and kudu. This time the brown cloak of winter and the mere trickle of water brought the animals out in droves and provided continuous hours of fascination that rarely let up. No amount of game or beautiful scenery constitutes a first-class safari. It all depends on the quality of the people running it.
Majale scores higher than most when it comes to personable intelligent, attractive and warm staff. Accommodation is in seven comfortable thatched rondavels with bathrooms en suite near a waterhole. An amazingly efficient woman, Jackie, is in charge of catering; her four years’ experience in running a Johannesburg restaurant has ensured that the standards are extremely high. Yes, I do think good food is important in the bush; homemade breads, salads, desserts, teacakes and scones and fine meats.
At Majale there is venison served every day – impala or kudu – and Jackie knows 18 different ways of cooking it! The other camp open to guests is a charming old thatched house with accommodation for eight people, including one room en suite, set in a tropical garden under shady mashatu trees. This is run by wildlife ranger and artist Gareth Patterson and his lovely girlfriend, Rosanne, who is also a genius in the kitchen. Here you bring your own food and your own friends and do precisely what you want.
On the other side of the country lies the Okavango delta, an extraordinary collection of papyrus islands mid streams and channels in an area the size of Switzerland. We flew into Maun, that Robert Ruark-style desert village where ranger and hunter meet client and take him off to any of 18 or so camps in the area.
After lunch in the Duck Inn, a rustic haven for the jet set, it was time to leave for Xugana, 20 minutes away. Owned by leading Cape wine farmer David Hartley, Xugana lies right in the delta on the edge of a lagoon. After chasing lechwe across the camps’ airstrip, we boarded a powerboat and raced through the narrow channels. The camp consists of eight luxury tents and an attractive bar and lounge by the water, all of them shaded by massive trees. Gert, who acts as ranger and fix-it man, takes guests for walks on nearby islands and drives from a point on the mainland not far away.
In this part of the world you learn as much about the unique ecosystem which has created the delta, and about birds and trees, as you do about wild beasts that roam free. The most unusual feature of Xugana is the houseboat Sitatunga, named after are buck in the delta, which was built in pieces in South Africa and put together in the channels.
Designed specifically for negotiating shallow water and narrow channels, the houseboat has two decks with four double cabins and two bathrooms, including hot showers, a living area, bar, library and galley. On top of all this there is a sundeck which proved to be the most idyllic spot from which to observe the birdlife, distant buffalo and elephant, especially in the picturesque sunsets as we went off on little “booze cruises”. The delta is a fisherman’s paradise too; tigerfish, bream, pike and catfish are readily available and will be turned into your dinner if you so wish.
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