News!

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Woodland

Hello to everyone reading this…friends old, new and in the future!

No promises, but I am going to try to keep up a random and occasional blog, giving news during the course of the season and in the off season.

Right now we are experiencing extreme heat and it is pretty dry. But this is the time when we look forward to the return of the migrant birds like the Paradise Flycatcher and Woodland Kingfisher (click on the audio bar above to hear what he sounds like), and the arrival of the impala lambs, wildebeest calves and nyala lambs. I saw the tiniest baby nyala in the garden just yesterday after having observed her expectant mother spending time alone close to the house presumably for safety from predators, for a few days. What a thrill! And to hear the Woodland Kingfishers is always a sign that summer has well and truly arrived.

Phil has been a great help booking our flights and hotels for the USA 2018 marketing trip. He has been spending time in his workshop of late and is very much enjoying working on a few proposed fishing trips to Botswana for next year.

We leave for Denver on the 9th of January and return home on Valentines Day! We’ll keep you posted on our home page regards our exact whereabouts while we’re in the USA, at a later stage. Please drop us a line should you wish to connect while we are over there…we already have quite a few dinner dates and other commitments to look forward to! 

I’m going to sign off now to check whether I actually managed to post this, and will try to add more over the weekend.

Take care and stay warm while we try to stay cool!

Leopard in the garden

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Some of you have been around in camp when we have heard the resident leopard calling. The sound they make is known as sawing, and this is done either to call a mate, or defend their territory. In our case the leopard is usually a male animal. It can be quite unnerving for those who are not used to such things, but for us, it is one of the most beautiful sounds in the bush and it gives us a thrill every time. In early August, we had Troy Sheldon, the ultimate gentleman of travel, visiting us on his own from Denver. During that period, we were particularly blessed and the leopard was very active while we sat around the campfire in the darkening hours when he would often serenade us, coming as close as 30 yards from where we were sitting! Then in September we had the lovely Yost and Johnson families here when he again became active close to camp. One evening, Kate was in the process of putting the final touches to the evening meal, and went out to her herb garden just outside the kitchen door to pick parsley, when she surprised our feline friend who gave two loud grunts and ran off into the dark! Don’t know who was more surprised actually…Kate or the leopard!

Another favourite leopard story, involved our delightful friends, Scott and Shannen Miller. We had completed a wonderful bow hunting and photo safari trip with Scott and Shannen and were staying at a small private reserve just outside Kruger Park before taking them to the Hoedspruit airport next morning to fly back to upstate New York. It was late in the season…early October and hot and dry. We were sitting out at the edge of the pool after dinner, when a leopard started to call very close to our camp. Phil and Kate exclaimed in delight at the sound, but Shannen and Scott were not so sure and we laughed like crazy people when Scott asked…”So is that a GOOD thing??” Our unanimous YES caused more hilarity. Next morning Shannen and I went to look for his tracks to ascertain how close he had been and it turns out he was just 25 yards away! It is incidents like these and many, many others, that add to the richness of the lives we are privileged to lead and share with our visitors.

If any of you have your own leopard story you enjoyed on safari with us, please share it on this forum.

Dung Beetles

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The thought of an insect eating any kind of dung, is probably very off-putting to most of you. But the integral part played by dung beetles in the disposal of animal dung, is vital in helping to erradicate transmittable diseases and reducing fly infestation. Dung beetles are seriously cool and interesting creatures!

Did you know:

  • That they can move a ball of dung up to 10 times their own body weight and size?
  • They feed almost exclusively on dung, but also some decayed plant material
  • Help disperse seeds and improve nutrient quality of soils by burying dung balls and turning the soil
  • Only push dung balls with their back legs
  • The famous Egyptian scarab is in fact a species of dung beetle
  • They mate underground and lay their eggs in the buried ball for hatching and for food storage
  • They are capable of navigating by the stars
  • Have an exceptionally well developed sense of smell

All in all, these harmless creatures are nothing but an asset to any environment. In the late 1960’s the Australian government imported dung beetles to their country from South Africa, to help tackle the enormous fly infestations and associated diseases they had as a result of their growing cattle numbers and unprocessed cow patties. The marsupial dung beetle was only capable of processing pellets like those of deer and sheep, and incapable of handling cattle or buffalo-like dung. This project has been a resounding success.

Fishing Adventures

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For quite some time now, Phil and Kate have been thinking about how they can extend their business and offer more activities for their friends and guest to participate in, on this wonderful continent of ours.

Phil’s passion for fishing a recent trip we did to the Okavango Swamps in Botswana, decided them to do more research in this direction. As a result of many hours spent on the web and speaking to potential partners, as well as two further trips to these venues, Bosbok Safaris can now offer some incredible fishing adventures.

Imagine fighting a big tiger fish (pictured above), from your tender boat while being observed by a herd of elephants, or a pod of hippos frolicking in the water not far away! All of this while an African Fish Eagle gives it’s beautiful call from a nearby tree. This scenario actually happened to us on a few occasions on the last few trips!

These destinations have not only been chosen for the excellent angling on offer, but also for the magnificent scenery, abundant bird life and overall African Wilderness atmosphere. This makes these ideal venues not only for the angler, but also for the non-anglers  who simply wish to enjoy a true adventure. Comfort and cuisine were also considered before making the above choices, and they live up to standard on every score.

It is entirely feasible to combine the fishing adventure with any of the other safaris we offer. Doing a combination of a fishing, hunting and photographic safari is very possible, and we already have a few of these lined up for 2018.

The accommodation varies from staying on a houseboat in the panhandle of the Okavango Swamps in Botswana, to luxury tented en-suite accommodation on the banks of the Zambezi River in Botswana, Zambia and Namibia.

Please check Bosbok Fishing Safaris for more details.