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Your Virgin Bushwalk
sn't it time you stepped the slow, dull hum of a 4x4's
out of the concrete jungle engine.
and into a wilder world,
the world of the African Guided by a tracker holding a
bushveld? This may be a major gun, you feel a sense of
step for most metro dwellers, as nakedness as the primeval
the city life offers a certain instincts your ancestors depended
sense of security, a place to on for survival slowly seep back
dwell, free from insects and the into your awareness.
dangers spawned from mother
nature's indifference to man. Large Trees Suddenly Take on a
Supreme Importance
What happens when the Landrover
finally stops and your feet meet You are reassured by your guide
with the Savannah floor? Do your that the roar of a lion can
preconceptions of an African literally be heard from up to
Safari drop away? Find out what five miles away. Large trees
Sabi Sabi's ultimate bush suddenly take on an importance
experience is all about! that had in the past seemed
rather arbitrary, they seem
Ambient Sounds of the Bushveld filled with a sense of
Come Alive reliability that was never quite
appreciated while living in the
On foot the intricacies of the city.
African bushveld become apparent, The acacias of Africa are a
the soft textures of yellowed wonderful sight to behold. Their
grasslands, the smell of the umbrella-like canopies imprint
earth and the ambient sounds of the
the bushveld come alive. Things bushveld floor with intricate
that would never be noticed above patterns matching the most ornate
Persian carpet. Occasionally, a bushwalk will
yield the grizzly remains of a
The tracker looks the part, years recent kill. Vultures hop around
of experience are demonstrated in in a frenzied and anxious
every move that he makes. fashion, with one eye focused on
You may be requested to abruptly the corpse and the other on the
duck, keep silent or place your uncertain and precarious
attention on a part of the bush surroundings. The hot air, from
that previously appeared time to time, carries the faint
insignificant, but that upon aroma of death.
closer inspection reveals an
anomaly, something foreign, a The Guide Nudges Your Shoulder
surprise that makes the bushveld and There It Is!
come alive.
Following in the footsteps of
Be Amazed at the Artful Eye of your guide, the bush parts and
the Tracker you suddenly come upon a half dry
drinking hole. You wait. Faint
The artful eye of the tracker rustles stir from the surrounding
hones in on the smallest details, bush. The guide nudges your
a track or spoor for instance. shoulder and there it is. Ever so
Once his cunning eyes have slowly, making their way to the
followed this sandy lead to its waters edge, timidly following,
conclusion, the reward of his one behind the other, a herd of
stealth and tenacity can be found impala come to test life and
at its end. His extended finger death by the edge of this
directs your eye to the dark crocodile infested bush puddle.
gnarled skin of a rhino or the
golden main of a sleeping lion. During the winter months game are
known to congregate around these
dwindling supplies of water, as various migration routes in a
the winter months are usually a characteristic pattern,
time of drought. identified with an uncanny knack
by the tracker.
Observing from a quite hide,
together with your guide, an Find Yourself in the Midst of
afternoon or a whole day can come an Untamed Land
and go as you take in the sights
and sounds at the water's edge. So much can be revealed when one
The attraction water exerts on understands the various behavior
the dry pallets of animals is patterns and intricacies
irresistible. No matter what, displayed by wild animals. Much
every living being needs water can be learned from the diversity
and, for this reason, the best of plant life and so much more
time and place to see game is in about being human, if you find
winter at a watering hole. yourself in the midst of an
untamed land.
What becomes apparent over time
is that the land and the life After many years of experience,
found there is continually Sabi Sabi's trackers take pride
revolving in a cycle. Soon a in the fact that no guest has
pattern is noticed in the ever been injured by any wild
behaviour of the animals. animal during a walking safari at
Patterns can be discerned in how Sabi Sabi.
they react, whether it be by day
or by night. How they behave, at The question is, when are you
rest or when at their most going to step out of the concrete
active. Even the paths they etch jungle and into the African
into the land, disclose their bushveld?
About the Author:
Sabi Sabi (http://www.sabisabi.com/) specialises in 5 star luxury accommodation and the ultimate bush experience. Situated within the Sabi Sand Reserve and located on the southern part of the Kruger National Park, each lodge is surrounded by hundreds of species of plants, birds and of course, the Big 5.
Source: www.isnare.com
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