We have been hiking at a steady pace through montane forest for nearly an hour. Even with my jacket off it is cool at this altitude. Whenever we pause, the rasping calls of black-billed turacos echo from deep in the trees. I raise my binoculars and search for one of ...
Last December Dave led a safari to a new destination for us – Odzala-Kokoua National Park, situated in a remote corner of a country on the west side of Africa - the Republic of Congo (often abbreviated to ROC). There are two Congos. The ROC has a longstanding stable government, ...
We turned off the narrow tarmac road onto a dusty track at a roadside village with scattered makeshift houses roofed in tin sheets or thatch. The landscape was stunningly picturesque and simultaneously harsh. Thick thorny commiphora bush dominated the vegetation interspersed with sporadic grassy open areas. Ring-necked doves cooed and ...
It was August 2021. I made the most of a rare break due to the pandemic and travelled to Zimbabwe with my family. A highlight was our stay by the banks of the Zambezi River in the far north-east with Carl Nicholson, a keen younger professional safari guide. In 2019 ...
As I stand on the western slopes of Ngorongoro Crater looking out over the vast Serengeti Plain, heads of giraffes appear and disappear between the tops of the acacias. There are times, often in January or February, when I also see long lines of migratory herds of wildebeest and zebra. ...
Updated on 12 April, 2021 The Serengeti Plains and Ngorongoro Crater, normally almost overrun with visitors at this time of year, are now quiet. Few people are considering traveling abroad. Many parts of Europe and North America are sadly enduring another wave of the corona-virus epidemic. Most people will not ...
A safari in the African bush is likely to be one of your most memorable life experiences. It is like no other. Many of our visitors say that it was a unique, life-changing one. One of the phenomenal aspects of a safari is being in the wilds, in remote and ...
It is not easy to describe to someone who has not been what it is like to be in the midst of one of the greatest wildlife migrations on Earth. One obvious aspect is the sight of so many animals. However, the sound of this multitude is essential too; the ...
The highlight of our safari in August 2019 to Angola was a visit to Cangandala National Park, to find an animal that I had heard about and always wanted to see. The giant sable antelope (Hippotragus niger variani) is Angola’s national symbol. It is a subspecies of sable antelope and ...
December 2018 I looked out of the window of the Cessna Caravan 12-seater aircraft as it banked and descended. The aquamarine waters of Lake Tanganyika contrasted with the emerald vegetation of the fields. A couple of days ago Laurence and Alana, my two eldest children, were at university in opposite ...
When I was last in Namibia in January 2018 I was concerned about the chances of survival for the 3 one year old cubs, living along the Hoanib River in the Skeleton Coast National Park. They were the daughters of the desert lioness Margeaux (marked XPL-55 by Desert Lion Research) ...
Africa is still the Dark Continent. It is replete with mysteries, wonders and misconceptions, among other treasures. Consider Rwanda, for example. This is a tiny country in the Great Lakes region of Africa, a little to the west of giant Lake Victoria. Few people outside Africa know where it is, ...
