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Dear Bushwhacking friends,
This letter was meant to go out on September 1 as it
is supposed to be a Spring newsletter, however
Spring comes later in this area, and I can’t delay
this newsletter for much longer. I hope and trust
that you are all well and enjoying Spring wherever
you are.
Thanks to all our old faithfuls and all the
first–timers that visited TWT. We have had a really
busy winter and will continue to be busy through
November and December. Your support has been
fantastic, it is sincerely appreciated!!
As you will see in the top right hand corner of the
page, TWT now has a new telephone number (+267
71313449). This has been a godsend. It is a Telular
phone which we run speedy Internet, faxes etc. This
means that the office is now at home, and even
better is that we have don’t have to drive to Talana
Farms and wait for hours to download and send
e-mails anymore.
In June, I attended the signing ceremony of the
Memorandum of Understanding between Botswana,
Zimbabwe and South Africa for the formation of the
Transfrontier Conservation Area. It was a very well
organised ceremony and took place at the confluence
of the Limpopo and Shashe rivers - the exact spot
where the three countries meet. It was a memorable
day and a huge step in the right direction towards
having fewer boundaries in conservation. It makes
the whole area a destination of note.
 Earlier this month, after prolonged negotiations,
Tuli Wilderness Trails, Talana farms, Tuli Safari
Lodge and the Molema Community Trust finally signed
the agreements for the lease of Molema land (our
immediate neighbours to the West) from the
communities and this will increase our scope
immensely.
As I mentioned before, spring is not quite here yet
and this is for this part of the world, but the tree
fuschias, Dombeyas and flame creepers are all
flowering. The landscape is remains very dry and
rather severe. But even in these harsh months before
the rains come, the Tuli Game Reserve still has a
stark, mystical beauty about it. The sunsets are
absolutely stunning! It always amazes me how the
game manages to keep condition during these hard
times. I have only seen one Impala with mange in the
last month. As for everything else, you would never
say there was very little food and water around.
Makes me realise what an inferior species we humans
can be.
Our friends the elephants have been around TWT in
their usual large numbers. It is always a great
pleasure to watch as they move around this arid
landscape dramatising their interesting, age-old
survival tactics. The electric fence I put up a year
ago seems to have done the trick of keeping them out
of the garden, and for once, we have things actually
growing again
 On the subject of elephants, Gilbert had a hairy
experience with an elephant cow on the Eagle Rock
plateaux about six weeks ago. He and another guide
had taken a group of guests up via the long route to
Eagle’s Rock. Once they had all finished enjoying
the view and peace there, they decided they weren’t
in the mood for walking all the way back to the
vehicle. Gilbert decided to take a solitary trip to
collect the vehicle. The other guide and guests
would meet him at the nearby rendezvous point. There
hadn’t been much sign of potentially dangerous game
on the way up, but once again the African bush
reminded us not to underestimate it! Before long he
came upon an old tuskless elephant cow and a calf
about 20m to his left. Without any warning she came
at him full speed. He had no option but to run, and
very fast at that. The irate old cow was on his
heels after about 50m and closing. He managed to
jump up onto a rock, just out of her reach. In case
Gilbert hadn’t already got the fright of his life,
she nimbly rose up on her hind legs and put her
front feet on the rock to try and grab the
within-reach Gilbert. Mercifully he was able to jump
off the rock and high tail it to another outcrop,
the cow still on his heels. The spot where he hit
the outcrop was a sheer cliff, but adrenalin can
work wonders! Gilbert managed to start scaling the
cliff and got a bit of respite. But not for long;
the wiley old cow found a more gradual ascent and
was on her way to cut him off!! Fortunately Gilbert
then jumped down the outcrop and managed to sprint
to a safe spot in the reverse direction and managed
to lose her. When the coast was clear, he ran like a
bat out of hell to the vehicle and went to collect
the others. Gilbert’s guardian angel worked
overtime. Dave Joseph and guests – it was your lucky
day. A reminder to us all that TWT is in wild
Africa!
Both Steve and Gilbert have become very good at
finding leopards for their guests, and we have had
quite a few sightings of these elusive masters of
camouflage. Cheetah, as usual have been our most
often sighted of the cats. Twice in as many months,
they’ve been seen on Ostrich kills. Our lions have
been seen a few times and move between Eagle Rock
and the dam on an almost nightly routine. Their
tracks are always around and they are heard roaring
and communicating most nights. We should be seeing
them a lot more than we actually do.
Once again the Verreaux’s (black) Eagles laid eggs,
incubated and hatched them and, sadly, within a day
or two the chicks were gone. I think it was baboon
again this year. Winter birding has been limited to
the usual suspects and we are hoping that
spring/summer rises to its promise. Yesterday I saw
my first broad billed roller of the season and it
joins the migrant Wahlberg’s Eagle and Yellow-billed
Kites that have already returned.
Those of you visiting TWT during January, February
and March will enjoy the “extreme makeover” that
Mother Nature spreads with her rain over the area
(shown below).
TWT is diversifying. We are offering an affordable
all-inclusive package which consists of 4 days here
and another 9 days touring Chobe, Moremi, Savuti
etc. This package is aimed at foreign tourists
wanting the great African safari adventure. If you
know of any friends, family or colleagues looking
for this kind of package please put them in touch
with us.
Folks, in a nutshell, that’s about it for the last
six months. Doesn’t sound like it, but it has been
pretty hectic. Until next time, take care, and once
again thanks to all of you for being such loyal
supporters over the winter and we look forward to
seeing you all back to TWT soon!
Cheers for now
Craig
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