Africa Safaris & Holidays

This safari assists a private reserve in Botswana with the responsible monitoring of their elephant population, while giving guests a once-in-a-lifetime hands on experience! This safari affords clients the opportunity to be involved in an elephant immobilisation procedure in order to place a tracking collar on the elephant, which is vital for monitoring as part of a conservation based research program. The procedure will be carried out by a local veterinarian, with a Wildlife Veterinarian close at hand to assist clients and the local veterinarian. The elephant on this reserve are being monitored to try answer some key questions with regard to their impact on their environment and to try establish factors that naturally limit their numbers.  The time preceding and after the immobilisation allows time for traditional game drives and learning more about elephant in general, as well as preparing you for the immobilisation procedure.

Guests are given the opportunity to participate in the procedures being carried out, once the patient is immobilised, and it is thus safe to move closer. Guests have the option of a hands-on approach, or, if they prefer, simply observing from up close and getting those pictures of a lifetime! Guest participation covers all veterinary and satellite tracking collar costs, which are very expensive and unattainable for the project without assistance. So come join us for the experience of a lifetime and do something for wildlife research and conservation!

Day 1
This safari departs early morning from Johannesburg International Airport and the drive takes us approximately 6 hours north to the Botswana border. We arrive at our camp early afternoon, after clearing the border post, and settle in. Enjoy some leisure time in the beautiful surroundings and high tea, before heading out on a late afternoon/evening game drive. At this point half of the group will be accompanied by a local predator researcher, and your drive will focus on the elusive but exquisite leopard, but also taking in the other wildlife species which you may encounter during the drive. This is a chance to hopefully witness hunting behaviour….The second half of the group will head out on a conventional game drive with your local guide and a vet in search of the various species of animals that inhabit this reserve.  Tomorrow night the two groups will alternate, group one enjoying a conventional drive, whilst group two will then undertake the predator drive.  

Enjoy sundowners in the bush, before returning to camp after sunset to enjoy dinner and an evening of leisure in camp. Please note: Some foreign nationals require visas to enter Botswana and it is the responsibility of the guest to obtain these as required by the Botswana government. During our stay we explore some 75,000 acres / 30,000 hectares of pristine privately owned game land, whish has been set aside to preserve the unique, prodigious features of this exhilarating continent. The area covers a diverse wilderness of savannah, riverine forests, marshland, open plains and sandstone outcrops, and is the home of no less than seven of Africa's giants: the African elephant, the lion, giraffe, the baobab tree, the eland, the ostrich, and the kori bustard.

Nestled in the remote northern area of the reserve lies our luxurious tented camp. With never more than sixteen guests, this idyllic getaway provides accommodation in the form of eight twin tents. Although rustic in character every facility is provided. The tents are insect-proofed, have comfortable beds and each has an en-suite shower and W.C. facility. There is an open sided thatch dining area where meals are served and a traditional boma for intimate camp­fire dinners. This camp also contains a very welcome plunge pool. Your total comfort is the priority of your hosts. While on game drives, you will be taken care of by your ranger and on your return, the camp staff will gladly attend to your every need.

Clients may remove themselves further by visiting the hide, also overlooking the waterhole. The sturdy and shaded structure enables bush enthusiasts to sit quietly and to obverse animal species going about their day. And the best part – the animals are completely unaware that they are not alone. It is humbling indeed to be an observer, standing where the world is perfect.

Day 2
Early morning light breakfast/tea/coffee followed by a game drive in the reserve, focusing on the mighty elephant. We will be accompanied by the local elephant researcher and thus gain an incredible insight into the species and in particular their role in this environment. Of course we are bound to come across several of the other wildlife species found in the reserve too.

The basics of the research programme:
Elephant numbers are increasing in many parts of their range. In all of these areas, changes in habitat structure and composition are being observed. Elephants are commonly perceived as the major agents driving these changes. Emerging from discussions between wildlife managers on the effects of limiting elephant numbers and casual agents of change in elephant habitats is a realization that there is a severe lack of knowledge concerning four main issues. Firstly how elephant populations are limited; secondly, the relative importance of other herbivore species, climate and fire as determinants of systems structure, composition and dynamics; thirdly, how coexistence between elephants and trees was achieved in the past; and fourthly, how vegetation structure and composition influences overall biodiversity.

This research program aims to address all four of these areas of knowledge. We return to the camp late morning for brunch. After brunch there will be some informative talks on issues relating to elephant immobilisation and conservation/management issues, and the actual procedure, equipment, drugs, etc. This will also cover safety aspects and guests involvement in the procedure. The talks focus on the various interactive aspects of the immobilisation, to ensure that everyone gets the most from the experience in a manner that is safe for the patient, and safe and enjoyable for the guests.

Time permitting guests will be allowed to load tranquiliser darts with water and fire them at a target! (This activity is time dependent today may be done on Day 3 as it can take quite a while.) Mid to late afternoon we return to the reserve for another game drive, alternating the groups on yesterday’s evening drive, with the second group now being accompanied by the local researcher focusing on the elusive but exquisite leopard, whilst the first groups will enjoy a conventional game drive in search of the wildlife species which may not yet have been encountered during our stay. Return to camp after sundowners for dinner and to overnight.

Day 3
This is the day we have all been waiting for, and we set out early morning after tea/coffee and snacks, heading into the area of the reserve in which we anticipate finding the specific elephant(s) that need their collars changing/collaring. Once located, the elephant will be darted from a vehicle by the local veterinarian. This is a tense moment since the elephant could go down badly and there could be other elephant in the vicinity, making approach of the immobilised animal dangerous….

Once the patient is secure and it is determined that the area is safe, guests will be allowed to alight from their game drive vehicles and assist with basic procedures, as well as just examining the patient from up close, hands-on….. There will of course be time for photos since the whole procedure, until we wake the patient, takes approximately an hour. Once our patient is safely back up on his/her feet, we head back to camp, no doubt filled with adrenalin and smiles! We return to the camp for brunch and leisure time for the rest of the day.

If we have not covered any aspects yet due to time constraints, or guests want more talks/interaction, then we’ll happily oblige. After high tea we head out to try locate our patient and do a visual check up, while enjoying a game drive on route. Enjoy sundowners in the bush for the last time and before returning to the camp early evening. We enjoy dinner in camp and are sure to spend some time sitting around the fire discussing the day’s experiences!

Day 4
We start early again today, with tea and coffee before heading out on our last game drive, or simply lie in and wake to the sounds of the bush….. In the unlikely event that the previous day’s immobilisation attempt was not successful (weather problems/patient cannot be located, etc), there will be another attempt this morning. Brunch is enjoyed back at camp, before checking out. Late morning departure back to Johannesburg International Airport to arrive in time for connecting flights back home. Lunch en route for own expense. Your safari ends at Johannesburg International Airport, at around 5pm. If you are flying home today please do not book a flight departing before 8 pm. For guests not departing today, accommodation arrangements can be made on your behalf – not included in safari cost.

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Costing 2012:

Focus on Elephants and Rhinos: 26 August to 02 September 2012 EUR 2550

Please This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it for more guaranteed dates 2012.

Rate is based on a total of 14 guests participating in the safari. Different group sizes may be accommodated on request. Single supplements apply.

Includes: board and accommodation as laid out above, all land transfers in a comfortable air-conditioned mini-bus, guides (a wildlife Veterinarian  throughout the safari and various local guides and researchers), all tours, presentations and activities as laid out above, entrance fees, VAT and Government Tourism levies.

Not included: drinks, lunch on day 4, any visa costs applicable for Botswana, any optional additional activities, items of a personal nature, gratuities, travel insurance (medical insurance compulsory) and flights.

Please note:
•Due to the nature of this experience, times and plans may need to be adjusted slightly as we proceed, especially since elephants do not read itineraries very well! We will however always endeavour to complete all activities as laid out, but please bear with us should changes become necessary.

•Every effort will be made to ensure that the client participates in the darting procedure, as laid out in the itinerary, but the animal's welfare will not be compromised at any stage, and a procedure may have to be aborted and the animal revived in certain circumstances. The animal is the primary reason for this safari, and we need to bear that in mind and respect the patient.

Please note the following regarding the darting/other procedure/s:
While every endeavour is made to locate and dart the animal in question, factors such as severe weather conditions or illness involving the animal, which are unpredictable, may prevent the darting from going ahead. Every effort will be made to ensure that the client participates in the darting procedure, or similar, as laid out in the itinerary, but the animal's welfare will not be compromised at any stage, and a procedure may have to be aborted and the animal revived in certain circumstances. This may shorten the procedure/down time, and hence the close up experience for the client. The safari company, its staff, and appointed agents will not be held liable for any losses incurred by a client as a result of such situations, and accept no responsibility whatsoever. Every endeavour is made to ensure the health and safety of all our clients, but any procedure with a potentially dangerous wild animal is of such a nature that certain circumstances may be beyond our control. Should any such situation arise which leads to death or injury due to any reason whatsoever, the safari company, its staff, and appointed agents, will not be held liable for any losses incurred as a direct, or indirect, result of such a situation, or our actions in such a situation.