Early Risers
If you’re the kind of person who likes to sleep late, get up leisurely and chill out whilst on holiday don’t go on a safari! Many people combine a safari with a beach or city break. This can work well, as long as you remember to do the safari first and then have the beach or city time to recover. It doesn’t really matter what age you are, a safari of a week or so will probably leave you extremely happy but utterly exhausted!
Whether you are in Africa or Asia the organization of serious safaris tends to take a similar pattern. You will be woken in the dark about forty five minutes to an hour before your morning safari leaves. This means between five and six which I know some people don’t realize exists! Quite often there will be a knock on the door or a cheery good morning by the tent flap. Tea or coffee plus delicious biscuits will often be supplied and water, if it’s not piped in to the building. You won’t have much time to dawdle because it’s a case of brief wash, clothes on, sun cream and mossi protection slapped on, camera gear grabbed with hat and then head for the early morning warm fire meeting spot or your vehicle with driver and tracker.
The idea is to get out as the sun peeps over the horizon. The nocturnal animals may still be about, making their way home whilst the diurnal creatures will already be looking for breakfast or avoid being it. The first couple of hours are magical. It can be cold, especially in Africa and it isn’t that unusual to be supplied with blankets to help to keep you warm. I’ve also been on safari where, if at a reasonable altitude, I’ve been given hot water bottles to snuggle up to in the first hour or so. This can get very interesting when you see something worth photographing and have first to shed your blankets and hot water bottle before you’re capable of doing anything! The first hour is also the time when the light rapidly improves so you are constantly changing your settings on the camera to accommodate it. The first hour is “The golden hour”, a beautiful soft light that can enrich the colours in any shots you take.
Meeting around the fire pit is always a pleasant way of starting the day although it rarely lasts longer than it takes the slowest tourist to turn up. Hopes for the drive plus recollections on what was seen on the previous afternoon’s game drive are aired. Then it’s into the transport and the column heads out. I’m sure that some beginners worry if they are last in the convoy. The driver/guides have it all sorted however. They have been up for far longer than their guests and have had reports in of where some of the creatures are located. Often, they have already agreed what route they are going to take, so that between them, a large area can be checked. Consequently, within a few minutes, the other vehicles have turned off and you are on your own. When something of interest is found, such as a kill or a big cat, it is radioed to the rest of the vehicles who can decide whether to investigate or not. Depending on the reserve, some places like Sabi Sands have a system where only three or four vehicles are allowed at a location at one time. The others can ask for a number which will allow them in when the earlier vehicles leave. The first spotter controls the coming and going until they want to leave when they relinquish control to one of the others already there. The system works well, is fair, and stops creatures like cheetah from being surrounded by lots of vehicles, who often fail to leave an escape route for the creature to pass through, which can cause it considerable stress.
The guides/drivers and spotters are often very competitive in trying to find the creatures that their guests are desperate to see. This can mean that occasionally their determination to succeed is stronger than the will power of their guests. I once spent over five hours tracking a black rhino and calf. I wasn’t that worried to locate it but the guide took it on as a challenge. The way he triangulated the roads looking for crossing tracks was brilliant. Hours were spent slowly driving up and down dusty roads. Gradually he homed in on a small area of bush and found the hidden mother and calf. He was ecstatic whilst we were mightily impressed but also relieved to end the search.
The guide with the ultimate will to succeed is my friend Marc. When in Sabi and Phinda we were always the first vehicle out and the last one back in for a meal. Sometimes we were so late he had to grovel to the cook to get us anything. But the hours spent, and the lack of down time was so worth it. Time and time again we were the first to find a leopard or a cheetah family or a kill. Each time we had precious minutes to observe and photograph before some of the other vehicles, having been notified by us on the radio, made their way to join us. It wasn’t for nothing that I labeled him, his driver at Phinda and the tracker my “Dream Team”. That safari was undoubtedly my best to date and showed the advantage of employing top guides and trackers who really knew their patch. But it isn’t an exaggeration to say that when I got home I really needed a week to sleep and recover. So, if you want a safari, and can afford it, go for it. But remember, if you want to get the most out of your trip, you will not have much time for lazing around or for getting up mid morning!
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