NEWSLETTER
DECEMBER 2008
That Time of Year,
A new moon appears and the clouds
gather. Days of blistering heat give way to flashes
of lightening and early showers. It is the end
of the safari season and the beginning of a long
summer. The equipment is packed away and the staff
enjoying well-deserved holidays.
We are left to complete accounts,
pay the bills and tie up loose ends before Xmas.
It is a time to reflect on the past season, remembering
the highlights but not forgetting the people;
the clients who made it all happen. They remember
the game but we remember them.
The season had begun quietly,
gradually picking up pace to a very busy period
in the last three months. Highlights included
scenes of buffalo crashing through the swamps,
breeding herds of elephant in palm thickets (and
the cow elephant that chased us), the curious
leopard who stared and stared. Memory recalls
golden lions with young, playful cubs, the big
male in the sage and the cheetah with two cubs
not more than a few weeks old.
The bird life in Moremi and Santantadibe
was exceptional as was the bream fishing together
with refreshing swims in the crystal waters of
the Matsebe River. Little vignettes of kudu bulls
gracefully crossed between thickets, the bow wave
of a charging hippo, the puzzled expression of
a elephant bull almost stepping on two crouched
humans, the excitement of a wild dog chase. How
could we forget the chorus of imapala alarm snorts
as a young leopard had to surrender his kill to
a hyena brute? Or the surprised and startled hippo
that plodded into a pride of lionesses on the
road only to turn back and find one on his tail
– he did a sideways bolt.
No safari is complete without
the other aspects of camp life, splendid sunsets,
starry skies, the crackle and spark of the campfire,
the smell of bush cooking (could anyone forget
Moshongo's bread or Pita's delicious meals?),
the tinkle of ice and happy chatter.
And, of course the stories of
adventure told around the fire while the stars
winked, the breeze stirred and the night stood
still to a lion's roars A nightjar's plaintive
warble, the smell of smoke, the furtive steps
of a scavenging hyena...
As the year ends and we contemplate
the next season we are mindful of the world economic
crisis. We can only hope things will get better.
Here is wishing all of you and yours a happy Christmas
and a peaceful New Year. Thank you for the friendships.
Do visit us again before we too close our chapter
here in the bush and our way of life passes into
legend.
Best wishes and looking forward
to seeing you in our beautiful country soon.
Lloyd, Storm and Daphne.
Wilmot Safaris (Pty) Ltd
P.O. Box 37,
MAUN.
BOTSWANA.
Tel & Fax (267) 6862615
Cell Phone : (267) 71697200
Email : lloydlws@botsnet.bw
