Sun Destinations

Jochen and Mira at nDzuti Safari Lodge in full view of the elephants at the waterhole.

Our very frequent guests, Jochen and Mira, return again and again to nThambo Tree Camp, Africa on Foot, and nDzuti Safari Camp. What is it that makes these camps so special for them, and why do they leave with happy hearts and a renewed appreciation for the Lowveld every time? Jochen’s latest message to us held the details, as well as some superb photographs from their recent trip! Enjoy.

Hey Chloe,

Your question is a very good one. What makes us return to the Lowveld camps each time? We’ve been there so many times now that we have lost count. So we should be able to come up with a swift answer right?

Well, not really. At first, the best we could come up with is “it’s complicated”. Like the dreaded Facebook status! So we had some thinking to do.

Mira said, “it’s the accommodation”. She was referring to the amazing semi-canvas, semi-wooden huts they have at nThambo, which – granted – are as close to perfection as a room can get for us, avid ecotourists. But then I reminded her that we’ve been to camps with similar rooms, and those camps are not on our list of favourite camps.

“How about the food then?” Well ok, there’s something to say about Gertie’s amazing cooking skills and enthusiasm at Africa On Foot, for example. But no one comes to the bush just for the meals, right?

Over the weekend we’ve been making suggestions to each other about what the reason could be for why we keep coming back to Sun Destinations camps. We also reviewed ideas like, “the atmosphere in camp”, “the amazing tracking skills of guys like Isaac at nThambo and Enoch at Africa On Foot”, and of course “the animals”. While those are all perfectly good answers, individually, none of them quite cover the load.

Ross Pride lionesses are sighted frequently at nThambo and Africa on Foot. Image by Jochen Van de Perre.

On top of all the above, there’s one other factor that’s essential for us, and that is the quality of guiding. Obviously this should be very important for any person going on safari, but it’s only when you’ve been to a few different camps that you start noticing little differences. Any guide can get you close to some magnificent animals, but the encounter can be very different depending on the guide.

Image by Jochen Van de Perre.

Let me illustrate with an example; at nThambo we were on a game drive with our guide, Matt, and we spotted some elephants a bit far off the road and in rather thick bush. We were eager to get close to them, but Matt just watched them for a minute or two, and then drove on, saying, “we’ll catch these guys later”. So our game drive continued. We saw plenty of other nice things (including the Ross lion pride), and after an hour or so Matt decided to stop for a morning coffee break at a small dam. The dam was deserted, so I asked him, “why here?” And Matt just said, “you’ll see in a few minutes”.

Image by Jochen Van de Perre.

We had forgotten the elephants by then, but lo and behold, all of a sudden there they were! One by one they popped out of the bush, and started to drink from the water. Matt had known, an hour beforehand, where the elephants were going. And he had positioned us at the other side of the dam to give us a perfect view.

Jochen captures the scene as nThambo guests enjoy their morning coffee at the waterhole with the elephants. Perfectly executed by guide, Matt Roberts. Image by Jochen Van de Perre.

Matt just went to stand sowewhere in between us and the elephants for a bit, as to tell them to what side of the dam they should keep. The elephants were very relaxed, and seemed to understand him perfectly. As a result, we had the most amazing sighting ever, much better than if we would have approached them in that thick bush where the were an hour prior. And I was able to take perfect shots of drinking elephants, from the waterline.

Matt, enjoying this special moments with the elephants. Image by Jochen Van de Perre.

Elephants captured from the waterline. Image by Jochen Van de Perre.

But perhaps best of all was the little bundle of joy that trotted into view, accompanied by his mom, as one of the last elephants. I’m not even sure we would have seen him in that thick bush. Cuteness overload!

The little bundle of joy experimenting with its newly discovered trunk. Images by Jochen Van de Perre.

Two young elephants interacting in front of nThambo guests on game drive. Image by Jochen Van de Perre.

It’s these kinds of encounters that we want to come home with. It’s this kind of experience that keeps us coming back, time and again.

And I’m glad to be able to announce that we’ve added another great guide to our list; Brett at nDzuti Safari Camp! I don’t know how the Sun Destinations camps do it, but they seem to have a sixth sense for excellent guides.

Brett gave us similar experiences to Matt, one of which was as close to perfection as possible. He spotted a rhino with a very young calf, but instead of approaching her at that time (which would have been from the wrong direction both in terms of the wind an the sun), he decided to drive around a whole block and wait for them, while giving them both time to relax.

Rhino and calf at nDzuti. Image by Jochen Van de Perre.

We spent a long time with them, and in the end the calf was so relaxed that it looked as if he wanted to play with us.

So, if you’re asking us, “what makes you go back to your favourite camps in the Lowveld time after time?” then the best answer we can come up with is this:

Most important is the excellent guiding and tracking skills of guys like Matt and Brett, combined with all the other factors mentioned above, which turn a lodge into a well-oiled machine.

Without further ado, here’s the “perfect camp formula” we’ve come up with:

…where…

qG = quality of guiding

qT = quality of tracking

aV = appropriate vehicle (don’t put us in a vehicle with a roof!)

pA = presence of animals

qA = quality of accommodation

nF = non-fenced camp

qF = quality of food

cA = camp atmosphere

 

Hope this helps!

Mira & Jochen

PS. You might wonder what that “cb” at the end is. It’s chilli bites. There must be chilli bites!

Zebras in the sunset shadows. Image by Jochen Van de Perre.

Old buffalo bull having a good old time at a mud bath near nDzuti. Image by Jochen Van de Perre.