GENERAL NEWS
Selling Long Haul Travel Award
We are glad to announce that Sanctuary Lodges & Camps featured as a runner up in the Selling Long Haul Travel Awards 2004! Selling Long Haul is one of the leading UK travel trade magazines published monthly since 1990. The publication is circulated to every travel agent & tour operator in the UK & Ireland and carries extensive information on the travel industry.
Motorised Boat & Mokoro Update
As the water levels are receding and due to hippo pods residing in the remaining permanent water, as a precautionary measure, mokoro excursions will not be operational at all our camps until further notice.
Ballooning Update
Sanctuary Lodges & Camps would like to advise that the hot-air balloon flight s offered at Stanley 's and Baines' camps are no longer operational. This decision has been taken with your client's comfort and safety in mind. The prevailing winds have been unpredictable, and high water levels during the flood period have further hindered operations . Therefore, with immediate effect, we have discontinued operating the balloon excursions. Our reservations team will be in contact with any affected party to process the relevant refund. We apologise for any inconvenience caused.
Enchanting Elephant Activity
We would like to take this opportunity to remind you of the elephant activity available at both Baines' Camp & Stanley's Camp. The aim is to highlight the individual personalities of our 3 elephants, Jabu , Thembi and Morula and to initiate relationships between elephants and guests. This rare experience will be cherished & certainly never forgotten. Our resident ellies will be on a well deserved holiday from 15 January 2005 until 15 February 2005.
Accommodation Still Available
Just a reminder that we do have a limited amount of availability at the camps over the low season. Botswana offers the perfect luxury safari experience at this time of the year, as well as offering guests rates that are much more favourable as compared to many other destinations at this time. Book now to avoid disappointment!
BOTSWANA
Baines' Camp
Baines' Camp pool is open! This is the perfect means of relaxing and cooling off in the Botswana heat. The kidney-shaped infinity pool has two sala's on either side, which have just been thatched, where guests can relax and enjoy the expansive views over the Boro River & lagoon. The pool area is complimented with comfortable loungers & huge umbrella's to shade guests from the African sun.
Sanctuary Lodges & Camps would like to express our gratitude to the Bartlett family who kindly donated a complete football kit to the Baines' Camp Soccer Team! The Bartlett family, who were guests at Baines' Camp from 29 August to 04 September 2004, have also indicated an interest to contribute books, clothing as well as educational materials through their charity to our staff. Once again a HUGE thank you to the Bartlett family for the donations & kind consideration.
Baines' Camp new room now open! The new room at Baines' Camp, room 5, is fully furnished & functional. The room looks absolutely fantastic and we are pleased to advise that the first guests have already experienced the luxury of the new room.
A number of waterholes have dried up which has led to increased sighting of plains game. Unusual sightings include Pel's Fishing Owl sleeping in a sausage tree near the mokoro launch site, mating leopards close to the camp sharing a baboon kill as a pre-nuptial snack & three male lions feeding on a giraffe over three days! With the start of the summer rains many Impala and other general game are giving birth to new chargers, which has resulted in an increase of predator sightings.
Chief's Camp
The upgrade to Chief's Camp's private airstrip has been completed! Work commenced on 07 December 2004 when the entire airstrip was uplifted and new materials brought in. The upgrade included the airstrip being raised to ensure it remains above the flood level & also included a complete calcrete re-surfacing of the airstrip to accommodate all types of weather. As the team has been more than efficient, the full upgrade has been completed ahead of schedule!
It is certainly known that leopards are a species, which have perfected the art of adaptation and opportunism for survival. These pictures were taken at Chiefs Camp, Okavango Delta and display the true adaptation of a leopard to its environment and present circumstances in its ability to survive. The very interesting factor about this female leopard is that she was seen hunting successfully from a tree four times in one month.
This leopard has a badly injured front right paw which causes her to limp whilst on the ground, making her vulnerable to predators and affecting her ability to pursue prey at a high speed, on top of that she has two cubs to feed. The majority of our sightings of her have been in a tree, presumably waiting for her prey to arrive. Interestingly of all the trees she was spotted in, they were the biggest in that particular area, most of them sausage trees, kigelia africana, a sure sign of her knowledge of her territory. The Sausage trees were in flower and the impala would move from tree to tree feeding on their sweet flowers whilst seeking their shade, where she was waiting.
This sequence of photographs provided by Chief's Camp, were taken from the beginning where the leopard was resting in a huge marula tree, sclerocarya Berea, to the final moment of the kill. At about 11:00am a herd of impala started to move from the floodplains to escape the midday heat, seeking the largest tree with the most shade – which happened to be the tree in which the leopard was resting! On the impalas arrival she moved up into a pouncing position and readied herself. As the impala aprrroached within striking distance she dropped from the tree and leapt forward, successfully capturing one impala. The male baboon in the distance challenged her, forcing her to flee but the leopard later returned to feed on the impala.
Game has been vast & varied with very good sightings of big cats. Rhino's have also moved closer to camp & on two occasions could be seen from the camp deck. A large herd of breeding elephants have been visiting the camp regularly for mud baths in the channel.
Stanley 's Camp
It is that time of the year when everything is just springing to life! Baby impala, zebra, wildebeest and giraffe are wondering around the camp more & more each day which is a great opportunity to see the animals up close & personal! A funny incident was when we were to provide two of our guests with a nice romantic dinner at the pre-dinner spot, but a huge female hippo liked the set up so much that she decided to graze around the table!
EAST AFRICA
Olonana
Olonana in conjunction with Friends of Conservation (FOC) has established a special project aimed at curbing the deforestation of the Masai Mara. The Friends of Conservation have carried out a preliminary survey, which established that 96% of the local families in the Tralek trading centre in the Masai Mara prefer firewood to alternative sources of fuel largely on the fact that the firewood is more readily available hence more & more collectors encroach into the Reserve. In 1999 it was established that 50% of the 2000 tonnes utilised a year amongst the 400 households, came from inside the Reserve. As the human populations increase, so too will the demand for more firewood which exerts additional pressure on the natural forests especially the indeginous tree species: Euclea divinorium & Croton dichagamus, as there are far more trees being utilised than they are able to regenerate.
Adding to the pressure is the fact that most tourist accommodation depends on firewood for hot water boiler systems. Olonana utilises eco-friendly fuel & carbonised sawdust, which is brought in by truck from Nairobi . We have thus taken a step at Olonana, to make a postive impact at this very crucial stage. We are proud to advise that we are able to offer guests the opportunity to contribute through purchasing an indigenous tree that will be planted at our special tree nursery area. The tree will be tagged with the guests' details and the financial contribution noted. To date with guests contributing, over 1500 trees have been planted!
Kusini
The migration is currently in full force with hundreds of thousands of wildebeest in the Kusini area, treating guests to unbelievable game just a short drive from the camp. It is estimated that 1.2 million wildebeest are participating in this year's migration, with February being the carving period. It is estimated that February / March will see 60,000 wildebeest carves being born a day adding to this spectacular natural phenomenon. At this time the migration will be in the Serengeti within and around the confines of Kusini leading to increased numbers of predators, providing guests with exceptional game viewing.
We are thrilled to announce that the proposed upgrade of Kusini from 9 rooms to 12 rooms has been given the green light. Little Kusini has also been given the go ahead & will have 6 luxury rooms. We look forward to these developments and will keep you updated on the progress.
Swala
The word ‘swala' means antelope in Swahili, which aptly justifies the naming of the camp since the resident impala live here throughout the year. As the camp is situated in the mid-south / western edge of the Tarangire National Park and because it is unfenced, animals make their way in & out of the camp as they please allowing for wonderful & varied game viewing. An askari (security guard) is always on duty to provide assistance when required.
DISH OF THE MONTH
Chicken Liver Pate
(this recipe comes to us from Olonana, Masai Mara)
1kg livers
1 large onion chopped fine.
3 cloves garlic crushed
handful fresh basil
50gms butter
200ml cream
50ml port
seasoning
tree tomato coulis
whole wheat crustini