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We’re a varied group of friends
of all ages who love “the bush” (a Wall Street
analyst, a Eritrean geologist, a TV sports
presenter, 5-star hotel executives and Jo’burg
teenagers) who have visited Tuli Wilderness Trails (TWT)
on numerous occasions. No matter what the time of
year we find beauty, enjoyment and fun in the very
diverse seasons. There seem to be two distinct
seasons: the wet green summer season and the dry
brown winter season.
 In the dry season, we usually see much more game,
partly because the deciduous mopane trees have shed
their leaves and partly because more animals make
their way to the fast dwindling Molema dam for
water. The Limpopo River dries up quickly leaving
behind only small pools in its bed. Elephants often
dig holes into the river beds to get to the
underground water and these holes in turn benefit
other animals and birds. The daytime temperatures in
the dry season are cooler being more conducive to
walking trails and longer morning walks. The
evenings cool down rapidly, making jackets essential
on night drives! The bird baths in the camps are a
constant stream of avian traffic in this season and
a couple of hours of quiet birding in camp are
always well rewarded. Driving from South Africa to
TWT in the dry season is easy. Either Platjan or
Pontdrift border posts can be used to enter Botswana
and the Limpopo and Motloutse rivers are dry and one
can drive across them in almost any vehicle – no 4x4
necessary.
 Once the summer rains come and the rivers flow, the
wet green season transforms the landscape and we
find TWT strewn with a green carpet of foliage
patterned by pretty little yellow flowers. Naturally
game is more camouflaged by the now fully leaved
mopane trees and the occurrence of casual water
everywhere keeps the game more widespread.
Temperatures are much higher during the day and you
have to be out of camp early if you want to do
morning walks. Evenings, however, are absolutely
stunning and no jackets are required on night
drives! At the height of the wet green summer, both
the Limpopo and Motloutse rivers are flowing making
it necessary to cross the Limpopo by cable car at
the Pontdrift border post and the TWT staff have to
drive the very long extended route to cross the
Moutloutse River, at the only bridge in the area.
There is something special about watching sunset in
the African bush, and no matter what time of the
year you visit TWT the sunsets are spectacular. We
are always captivated when we stop on a night drive,
switch off the vehicle and take in the sounds of the
night and the splendour of the Milky Way. There are
so many stars; it almost hurts your eyes!! With all
those stars and planets out there, do you think
there is other life out there?
Mohave Camp is our favourite place to stay! Duikers
are resident around the camp. We never see them in
the green season stays, but see them constantly
during our dry season stays.
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The experience of lying in bed at night, listening
to a large herd of elephants feeding on the trees
and shrubs around the camp enroute to the dam and
water, is thrilling!
Pictures of Molema Dam make you wonder how the
animals survive without much water in the dry
season. It is amazing how Mother Nature looks after
her own, and when you next visit TWT all the animals
are still around!
For those that have only visited TWT once, we can
highly recommend that you plan your next visit in a
different season to experience the diversity and you
too will be back again and again and again, like us!
For those visiting for the first time – we recommend
that you also start planning your next visit as
you’ll also want to be back to enjoy it all again.
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