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October to December 2006 Sanctuary Talking

GENERAL NEWS

Green Season Special - excellent value for money!

The luscious green season in Botswana is the perfect time to view newborn mammals, colourful summer flowers as well as a migration of rare birds. Predator viewing remains a highlight while days are warm and sunny with cool afternoon thundershowers. Sanctuary Lodges & Camps are taking bookings for this fantastic Green Season so call now to avoid disappointment.

Rates are valid for reservations between 01 December 2006 and 31 March 2007 with a minimum stay of four nights. Normal reservation and cancellation terms and conditions apply.

Sanctuary Lodges & Camps scoops Condé Nast awards

Sanctuary Lodges & Camps have received a number of prestigious Condé Nast Traveler, Readers Choice awards for 2006.

Chief’s Camp was awarded the number two position in the “Top 25 Africa / Middle East Resorts & Camps” category while Chobe Chilwero features at number three. A photo of the rebuilt main area of Chief’s Camp is also featured in the Condé Nast Traveler magazine, November 2006 issue, with the following caption "A-list Africa: Chief's Camp is one stunning reason for the rise of Botswana as a destination."

Living With Elephants

Morula, a member of the African trio whom guests are able to interact with, is named after a beautiful African fruit tree. Her strongest personality trait is one of great gentleness; she is mild-natured, sensitive and easily bruised emotionally. She can be described as a wallflower but she blossoms beautifully when love and attention are focused directly on her. Morula weaves a powerful magic of her own as in her quiet and subtle way she captures your heart with her sincere, loyal and sweet nature.

Uganda Gorilla Tracking Permits

The Uganda Gorilla permits for tracking have increased to US$ 500.00.

Happy Holidays

On behalf of the entire team we would like to express our sincere thanks to everyone for their support during 2006 and hope that 2007 is just as exciting. We wish you and your loved ones a safe, happy and joyous festive season and a prosperous new year.

EAST AFRICA

Gorilla Forest Camp

GFC Conducts Customer Care Training At Health Facility

The Gorilla Forest Camp management conducted a one week customer care training at the Bwindi Community Health Center which serves the entire population in the environs of Bwindi and Kanungu district. This training was aimed at improving the quality of patients care at the health facility and was the idea of Dr. Paul Williams, a VSO volunteer doctor from the UK when he visited GFC and was quite pleased by the quality of staff and excellent service he experienced. More amazing to Dr. Paul was the fact that GFC has employed 85% of the locals in its staffing and through training, they have excelled and are offering world class service. It is this fact that led him to approach the lodge management for the customer care training. Eighteen staff members were trained by the GFC lodge manager during the week long training.

Pictured above left: GFC Lodge Manager L. King presents the customer care training certificate to Richard Magezi, the Health facilities administrator.

Above middle picture: GFC manager Leopold King takes patients temperature readings as they wait to see the doctors during the outreach clinic in Byumba.

Pictured above right: GFC House keeping team Moses(left) and Michael (right) work at the dispensing pharmacy guided by Ms. Vicky Holt (bending) a VSO medical volunteer from the UK.

Mad Mike visits GFC

GFC was once again proud to host Mark Tennant the world famous wildlife conservationist and photographer popularly known as Mad Mark in the wildlife show “Mad Mike & Mark” on the animal planet channel. This was his second visit to GFC this year as a tour guide and his group was ecstatic with their Gorilla Experience in Bwindi.

GFC sponsors Batwa Pigmy Medical Outreach

GFC sponsored a medical outreach to the Batwa and local Bakiga community living in Byumba, Kanungu district for a day in November 2006. On the particular day, GFC staff also volunteered to work with the Bwindi Community Health Center workers on the outreach. The team was lead by Dr. Paul William’s who was the head of the outreach and Leopold King, the GFC manager who lead the volunteering team from GFC. Some of the GFC staff worked as interpreters, in the pharmacy and in crowd control. The Batwa pigmy community has been threatened by extinction after they were evicted from the Bwindi Impenetrable Forest when it was declared a national park due to difficulties of adjusting to a new environment, sickness and disease etc. There has been a lot of effort put in by the Bwindi Community Health Center in ensuring their continued existence and GFC was once again proud to be a part of that effort by sponsoring the days outreach clinic as well as providing free labour as volunteers. A total of 95 people were treated on that day. A new record in the history of the health centers outreach clinics……..just another example of GFC’s positive impact to the community and another first among Bwindi stakeholders.

Pictured above: GFC volunteers for the day pose for a memoir as Batwa children look on. From left to right (standing) Michael (housekeeper), King (Unit Manager) and Rogers (head driver). (L-R, sitting in front) Philemon (R&M assistant), Medad (sous chef) and Moses (Housekeeping and Laundry attendant).

Mutamaiyu House

Perched on a panoramic hilltop, with hundred’s of miles of sun streaked savannah spread out before it, Mutamaiyu is a spectacularly refined retreat in one of Africa’s last great wilderness areas – Mugie Wildlife conservancy. Named for the ancient, gnarled olive trees that grow around it, Mutamaiyu enjoys magnificent views over the 49,000 acres of the Conservancy whose mineral-rich springs have been drawing Samburus’ camel caravans for centuries.

Today, these rugged plains and lush woodlands are home to one of the richest diversities of wildlife on the continent including the big five, with both black and white rhino, cheetah, the rare Grevy’s zebra and stunning birdlife. There is a groundbreaking lion conservation project, as well as a fascinating immersion in the ancient cultures of our Samburu and Pokot neighbours

As well as interpretive game drives with your host, Luke Doig, you can join Claus Mortensen touring the ranch he has managed for over 25 years, or track the lions at the centre of the fascinating Laikipia Predator Project. Intrepid visitors can also enjoy thrilling camel walks, overnight fly-camping, botanical and bird walks or day trips to the sacred Mount Losiolo and our prehistoric archaeological sites.

Olonana

The rains have finally come to the Mara after raining everywhere else in Kenya. In the last few days we have had over 200mm of rain and fireball lilies have also started blooming.

The last month of the migration has passed and people as well as the animals were in a frenzy. The large herds are also streaming over the border. As they start on their long journey south we wish them safe travels and thank them for providing us with months of excitement, anticipation and pleasure. We also thank them for shortening the once very long grass and proving all the predators and scavengers with an enormous bounty. This, the most spectacular wildlife occurrence in the world, has been phenomenal this year – there have been many, many more animals this year compared to last year, providing our guests with a spectacle not be forgotten.

Some of the local animals send Jambo to our guests – one of them being the “Out of Africa” pride. Since the younger of the two brother dominant males was killed, the remaining one has teamed up with the two females and five cubs. He is much closer to them, either for companionship or protection and the cubs are growing by leaps and bounds.

There is however a concern that the dominant male might not be able to protect his pride from other nomadic lions. He has been in some serious fights but is holding on. The worry is that if another male takes over the pride there is a chance the new lion will kill the cubs – making sure that the lionesses come into estrus and breed with the stronger males genes. The cubs are now about a year old and are doing very well. We are keeping an eye on them.

Another pride that has been enthralling guests is the Serena Pride. They seem to have settled into the area for the past month or so - two females, five cubs and one to three large males. The cubs are still very small and enjoy playing and being boisterous – much to the delight of our guests. The Serena pride has been very active and we see new kills almost daily.

Over the past few weeks we have been seeing “Mary” the rhino and her calf much more frequently than before. It seems that the short grass is either helping us find her or she is happier with short grass and she does not hide so often. The male has not been seen as often but more regular sighting of him have been recorded.

The female cheetah that had five cubs is still holding on to her remaining three cubs. She has been moving long distances and was well on her way to Tanzania but thankfully decided to return closer to the lodge. The one cub was killed by a male lion and the other we presume was ill. She is an exceptional mother and we have regularly seen her taking down small wildebeest – a huge task for her.

The elephants always seem to get left out but they are now starting to congregate in larger herds and we often see herds of between 20 and 30. They do not have the lush green grass after the long rains so are found feeding on the remaining dry grass and the tender tops of trees as well as the bark of trees.

The leopard across the river decided to show herself to our guests again. Needless to say there was lots of excitement. Other leopard sightings have occurred - one very shy leopard visits the end of the runway close to the river, one has been spotted in one of the luggas and another leopard was seen close to the Talek River on the northern side of the Mara River.

Many of the animals such as giraffe, topi, hyena, zebra and warthogs have been dropping their babies over the past month – there is a flood of babies all over the Mara which makes for many ooohhhhss and ahhhs from very happy guests

We have had guests renew their wedding vows after 25 years, many birthdays as well as anniversaries in the past few months.

Kusini

Days have ranged from dry and dusty to cloudy in the afternoons. The beautiful open plains are still covered with gazelle and guests have enjoyed various cheetah sightings, exceptional lion sightings and some guests were thrilled to spot 2 leopards near camp. A few guests have also been lucky enough to see Black Rhino around the Moru Kopjes and went home after experiencing a true big 5 game drive in the Serengeti.

Quirky Story
Guests have on a few occasions, watched a cheetah mother training her 3 cubs in hunting. At one sighting, the cheetah mom caught a baby Thompson’s Gazelle & then handed it over to the cubs. Not quite knowing what to do with it, the cubs let it go. Then the mother gazelle got pretty mad and started charging the cheetah. The cheetah mom eventually managed to catch the baby again - it took a while, but eventually the cubs managed to kill it. Nature training in progress - amazing to watch!

We are laying gravel down on all the pathways and our Airstrip is under construction as it is being resurfaced to be all–weather.

Swala

Full day drives with picnic lunches is definitely the way to go. The numbers of animals up at the river during the hotter part of the day provides great entertainment to guests. There are large numbers of zebra in the north of the park as well as herds of elephants. Predators are also coming out of the woodlands following the game as they head for water along the river. Guests have also had regular sightings of a mother cheetah with 3 youngsters as well as numerous leopard sightings.

A very relaxed male leopard hoisted a young zebra kill into a tree very close to the road which the guests could watch and observe for 3 full days. There have also been sightings of the very rare Fringe-eared Oryx. Some guests had a very good view of both Mount Meru and Kilimanjaro on a very clear morning drive on the way up to the river area – wonderful!

Some lions killed an Oryx which is rather unfortunate as Oryx are very scarce. The resident pride has also been observed feasting on giraffe and waterbuck while cheetah sightings over the last month has been great.

“It was our last camp and we kept the best for last”
Marcel & Elizabeth Schaap

“Our every need was accommodated, the picnic was spectacular”
Owen Jacob

“Out of all the sites similar to this one, we found the Swala location, staff and management far more superior than any. Without any hesitation, Swala would be the number one experience that we would recommend to family and friends”
Gil & Tricia Cagua

“We want to thank the chef for the quality of meals served. The presentation of the plate is outstanding”
Mr & Mrs Biagi

Baines’ Camp

Excellent leopard sightings! On several occasions, guests had not even reached the camp from the airstrip when they already spotted one. A few good elephant herds are around providing entertainment and guests have enjoyed some good buffalo sightings too. There have been several cheetah sightings, including two males feeding on a lechwe. Lions walked through camp one evening caused some real excitement.

On our way to the mokoro station one morning an adult female giraffe was spotted, staring into the grass not too far from where she was standing. It was very strange as she didn’t take her eyes of the spot at all. There was also a Yellow billed kite (bird of prey) circling the same area, showing interest in something. Moving closer, we saw two spotted Hyena feeding on a carcass of a very young giraffe, and then we realized what had happened. The hyena’s faces were full of blood and we came to the conclusion that the kill didn’t happen too long before we arrived. The hyenas moved away as soon as the first vultures appeared. Within 10 minutes, there were approximately 50 vultures on the ground trying to get a piece from the carcass. It was great seeing three different kinds of vultures (Whitebacked, Lappetfaced & Hooded vultures) at such close proximity. After about 30 minutes we couldn’t believe our eyes when all that was left was only some skin and bone.

Quirky Story 1
Guests have high expectations for their game drives: elephants, lions, cheetahs and leopards are usually high on the list of the things they want to see. Few guests have heard of wild dogs, but those that have, are quite eager to see them. There was a sighting of dogs from the Stanley’s Camp guides a few days before, and our Baines’ Camp guests were hoping to have a sighting too. They were very amused to get to one water-crossing and not find wild dogs… but wild dog researchers - well and truly stuck with water pouring into their vehicle. Sadly, there were no wild dogs to be seen in the immediate vicinity, but the guests took plenty of photos of the wet researchers before kindly allowing their guide to pull them out!

Quirky Story2
As a manager of a camp in the bush, there’s always interesting things happening.

As Relief Managers we returned back from leave at Baines’ Camp. We had one day to spend with the permanent management couple, Glen & Karin du Toit, to show us everything of importance at the camp before they went on leave.

To our surprise, they handed us a small ball of fur, not even 5 cm. in size…….a baby tree squirrel! They found this poor creature on the ground, calling like crazy for its mother. Glen decided not to interfere as the squirrel’s mother might still come and pick him up. When they saw him lying in the same spot, about 5 hours later, they decided to help it since it would die if not cared for. A special food mix had to be made, with added egg white for that extra protein. Feeding had to take place about every 2 hours, and he soon started realising what the syringe is all about. He even started grabbing it with both of his front paws while feeding. He did spend a lot of time in the office when he was a youngster, sleeping in one of Karin’s old sweatshirts she left behind for him, but now, 5 months later, he’s as strong as an ox, feeding himself with seeds & small insects. He also thinks the office belongs to him, drinking out of our cool drink glasses and even steeling a “snack” from our lunch plates.

He is exploring further and further away from the office, of course trying to find some girlfriends, but very often being chased right back into the office by bigger, stronger and more experienced males. We are sure that one of these days he’ll find a female to start his own family with. It was a privilege to be part of the raising of a tree squirrel with all his comical moments which will stay with us forever.

The staff Christmas Party started off with a soccer match against Stanley’s Camp and some members of the board. With pure skill, Baines’ Camp drove home the winning goal with only a few minutes to spare of the last half. The village had been made very festive with balloons and streamers and a visiting DJ! There was a big buffet feast of goat, chicken, fish, vegetables and sweets followed by dancing late into the night.

The Winning Goal!	The choir singing at dinner	The housekeepers slumber party

Quirky story 3
Every night the housekeeping team tiptoes into the suites whilst the guests are at dinner to turn the rooms down. A normal procedure at most camps, but at Baines’ Camp things are a little different: open the verandah doors, wheel beds out onto the deck, drop mosquito nets, plug in bedside lights, and rearrange the furniture inside to make an attractive table for two with a decanter of port for a night cap. For the guests that want to enjoy the Sky Beds experience of sleeping under the stars, and most do, this is the procedure for the housekeepers. It is difficult to explain why guests enjoy it so much. So, the solution of how to explain it came about one quiet December day. Telling the housekeepers to be ready with their sleepwear and toothbrushes at 8pm, we collected them from the staff village. Too nervous to sleep on their own in a ‘strange’ environment, each brought a friend with them. Then it was to the rooms, with strict instructions to leave the beds out on the deck for the night, unless it started raining. Intercoms were ready with management staying in the central guest room to ensure that any nervous ‘guests’ could be reassured, and so that we could make sure there was no sneaky early wheeling in of beds! Wandering up the walkway to check everyone was ok; lots of giggles could be heard coming from each room - all seemed to be fine. The result – a happy team of housekeepers and colleagues who had a wonderful experience under the stars, waking up to a beautiful dawn with birds singing and hippos harrumphing in the lagoon. And now if guests want to sleep outside, it’s hard to stop the housekeepers from joining them!

“A very peaceful location. It met and exceeded our expectations. Wim & Magdel were very friendly & helpful. We enjoyed our stay”
Mr. & Mrs. Tuck.

“Everyone went out of their way to make the Baines’ experience exceptional” “to be able to sleep under the stars was an amazing experience” – Joe & Nancy Fields

“We would like to thank the management for the extra attention they gave to dietary requests. Their hospitality and good humour were greatly appreciated & good time was had by both of us”
Henry & Judith Geller

“This is one of the most extraordinary places I have ever stayed. You are to be complimented in the very high quality of your property and the staff that makes you feel right “at home”. A truly wonderful experience.”
Mrs. Elizabeth Preddy

Chief’s Camp

There has been a lot of giraffe and plains game around camp as well as a nice sighting of a hippo grazing out of the water in front of the main lodge deck area providing great photo opportunities. Leopards are definitely around with a number of other predators too. Some guests saw a female lioness charge a tsesebe, but alas, the tsesebe got wind of her plans and made a run for it. Our elephants have been back with “Solid Tusk” destroying a tree near the manager’s tent while “Broken tusk” has thrilled the guests on numerous occasions by showing up for tea time and placidly posing for photos close to the camp. Huge herds of buffalo have been seen from the front deck as well as giraffes crossing the flood plain. There have also been lovely herds of zebra. A hyena had killed a baboon close to the workshop one day while an impala was killed behind the generator room – fantastic photo opportunities.

A laptop has been installed in the reception area for guests to utilise and the curio shop has undergone some refurbishments while the pool has been tiled again and is looking so inviting!

Christmas was celebrated with a contemporary African theme at Chief’s Camp. Buffet tables boasted mud cloths with wooden African artefacts while the tables at the pool side were draped with white tablecloths, candles and water lilies with silver lanterns and floating candles in the pool to create the ambience. The choir sang traditional Christmas songs in the bar area before lunch was served. Dinner boasted rich bronze colours with crisp white on the tables while guests enjoyed a traditional African barbeque under the stars on Boxing Day. New Year was celebrated close to camp, with bush sundowners boasting a number of lanterns and candles.

“We cannot thank the staff enough for enabling us to have such an amazing experience.”
Phillips family

Chobe Chilwero

Temperatures are very high and the air is dry while general game viewing remains phenomenal. The boat cruises on the Chobe River are offering the best game experience one can ever wish for. There are very few places in Africa where guests are treated to seeing tons of hippos completely out of water in broad daylight. Elephants are a spectacle as they regularly swim across the Chobe River and not to mention huge herds of buffalo that are ever present on the flood plains. Crocodiles in the river grow to a monstrous size and can be seen basking in the sun all day.

Gilbert, guide, went out with his guests on a morning drive and came across a scene which he had not seen before. His guests where desperate to see a leopard and indeed got more than they expected. They stopped to look at a huge rock monitor lizard that was lazily basking in the early morning sun, when all of sudden a leopard pounced on the giant lizard. A vicious life and death fight ensued although the lizard was killed in the end - Gilbert and his guests could not believe the tenacity and determination this lizard had.

Poniso, guide, and his guests witnessed a rare occasion on a morning game drive in the park. Firstly, they came across a pride of seven lions taking down a buffalo bull. For many guests this was a once in lifetime opportunity to witness an actual kill in the wild. As if this was not enough their second sighting was even more spectacular - up in a tree was a mother leopard and two cubs feeding on an impala - magnificent!

Ishmael Simon, one of our guides, got married to beautiful Bontle earlier this year and we wish them everything of the best for a blessed married life.

Donations of old service stocks were made to the Old Lady Day Care centre, a centre that cares and looks after orphaned children.

Quirky Story
One evening as some guests were coming from their game drive they ordered a glass of white wine each. As I was doing my rounds, I found out that Rudolf said he had an “attack”. My initial reaction was that of shock. Upon reaching the guests, I enquired as to the nature of the attack he might have suffered - he only pointed to his almost empty glass of wine. Now that really got me worried and various questions ran through my head. He then said it was LALA. What on earth is Lala? I found myself even more puzzled. After a brief moment and sensing the bewilderment on my face, our guests burst out laughing saying that they got me. They explained what lala means - in the Netherlands it simply means that they need a top up as their glass of wine or beer is low. LALA stands for Low Alcohol Level Attack! I had a real good giggle.

“Many thanks for such an unforgettable, inspiring, beautiful experience of nature and hospitality.”
Campo family

“All your staff worked hard to make our stay relaxing and comfortable. Many congratulations on the way everyone has been trained, it is really noticeable that staff want to give first class service. I am sure we will come back one day. The other thing that was excellent is that you staff are smiling and full of laughter. It makes a lovely atmosphere.”
Peninah Thomson

Stanley’s Camp

The general game viewing has been great with plenty of leopard sightings and some magnificent cheetah sightings with a kill of a red Lechwe. Game drives have been fabulous with guests spotting two male lions who are actually brothers. We hope that they will be dominating the area and will let you know as soon as we have a name for them. There was also some real excitement when a pack of wild dogs were in the area and ran across the floodplain in front of camp – guests were thrilled with this spectacle. Stanley, the elephant, keeps hanging around quite close to camp providing some interesting moments for guests

Not far from the lodge we have a hyena den. On many occasions our guests visit the den whilst out on game drives and enjoy “the young ones”. It seems that the youngsters are getting used to our vehicles as they come closer and closer all the time. Guests are able to get very nice picks of these hyenas

Quirky Story
"Kill of the Month; A Story from Down Under - It's a Tall Tail But True"

Four Australian guests who had been on an evening game drive came back to camp suppressing laughter. I asked their guide what they had seen and he explained that they had seen their first kill. I enquired further thinking that they had seen a lion bring down an impala or some other game, but he replied that no – it was a giraffe that had killed an oxpecker to which the guests burst into uncontrollable laughter. It seems these guests had spotted a giraffe with a little oxpecker sitting on its back and the giraffe had proceeded to lift its tail and relieve itself. The oxpecker spotted something appetising in the dung, flew down underneath the tail for a closer look and seeing the dark orifice poked his head in for further examination! This bird has a sharp little beak so the giraffe, on feeling the probing of the bird's head within, tightened himself and the bird disappeared entirely. The ensuing internal sensation had the giraffe extremely puzzled for a few seconds - he turned his head from one side to the other trying to see what was going on behind him. Eventually the giraffe ejected the bird at high speed, but just as quickly and with precise timing, swung his tail with such force that the poor bird was knocked for a six! Amazingly, a week later some other guests said they saw an oxpecker fly under a giraffe's tail under the same circumstances but this bird was wise enough to keep his beak to himself.

Christmas was a “fairy” affair with fairy lights around the main tree and gold and bronze seedpods to add an elegant touch to the décor while candles and lanterns welcomed guests back to camp. Traditional eggnog was served with Mojitos’ (Moroccan Drink) and the choir entertained guests with traditional songs. Christmas cake was enjoyed by guests as well as an African feast in the boma while new year was celebrated in the bush with drinks and a buffet on the beautiful lawn.

“Thank you Jacky and Jonathan for being with us. We enjoyed you being so excited about Africa and especially Botswana. For the staff it is always nice to see happy and interested guests.”
Jacky Millar and Jonathan Collum

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