Siwandu Camp
This is a luxurious camp with gourmet food and a personal chef. Its ideas for small groups, honeymooners, and special occasions
Upon arrival you are greeted by an enthusiastic and professional staff
Accommodations are excellent
You eat overlooking a lake
At the end of a morning game drive or walking tour they surprise you with breakfast in the bush
The walking tours are great with expert guides who show you all the little details you don’t see when driving in a safari vehicle
You can eat on a pontoon boat with a personal chef
This huge Baobob tree is over 2,000 years old. Poachers would hide in a hollowed out section of Baobob tree to elude the park rangers. The locals thought they were witches because they seemed to disappear out of thin air. The park rangers were not fooled and eventually caught them
The guides preparing our boat for a 4 hour lake excursion
Hippopotamus
These highly territorial and powerful animals are the cause of many human deaths in Africa. They feed on land at night, getting between them and their escape route back to the water is not advised. On the water you take a risk in a canoe as you float past their individual territories. They can bite a canoe in half.
We were in a reasonably large boat with an outboard engine and a guide that knows the lay of the land, so we were able to get close to them and get some good shots before we had to make a quick getaway. I wanted to stay until they got closer but the guide was having none of that.
The cows with calves always kept a wary eye on us. They were not the ones we had to worry about.
The bull of each group would come out to challenge us as we motored past them
They would jockey for position, submerge, and then appear somewhere near us
If we did not leave the area they would approach us partially submerged
A threat display would come next
If that did not deter us they would charge us ready to bite the boat
Crocodiles
This is crocodile country as evidenced by the skull at the reception area
When you get out of the boat and walk around you see skulls in the sand
These crocodiles did not seem particularly aggressive, although we never got close enough to find out.
African Fish Eagles