Plan a Linkwasha Safari with vacationtechnician.com
Linkwasha Safari Report - June 2004
June has brought us a bit of everything as far as weather is concerned. The beginning of the month was freezing, our lowest temp being 2 deg C at 7 o'clock in the morning!!! Towards the middle of the month some cloud blew in from the south. This certainly warmed things up for us at night and early in the morning. The last half of the month the days generally started off with a cold breeze coming in from the south east and cloudy to begin with. Most clouds would have dissipated by midday. Our highest temp for the month was 27 deg C.
The Linkwasha concession looks in fine shape. The bush is full of colour now with the various trees leaves starting to turn, especially the bright yellow of the Ordeals behind camp. The grass on the plains in front of camp still fairly long and although mostly golden brown there are still a few patches of green grass. The plains at Ngamo have been well grazed by all the Wildebeest and Zebra but a good amount of grass still remains. Waterholes are all looking good and the unpumped natural holes still have good amounts of water.
Despite the constant change in the weather here this month, especially with the cold wind, our species total for this month stood at an impressive 38! Our daily average was 19,5 species and on our best day 23 species were seen.
The Bat Eared Foxes are all coming out just after midday now to escape the cold nights and mornings, and we regularly have a group of 6 feeding on the plains in front of camp.
Aardwolf have been seen on 3 occasions this month, twice near camp and the other from Back Pans. It seems the one near camp is becoming very relaxed with the vehicles now enabling guests to get a good view of this rare nocturnal mammal. Huge herds of Buffalo are now starting to reappear at the waterholes and are all in great condition. Most herds have a good number of young in them.
The big Eland herds have moved off the plains now and remaining are a few small herds of bulls. Elephants made a huge come back at the beginning of the month and we were starting to have them drink out of the swimming pool regularly at night. As soon as the cloudy weather blew in the bigger herds moved off.
Most of the Elephant sightings have been of small breeding herds or bulls. We darted and removed a snare from a 3 year old calf at Ostrich Pan on the 27th. All went well and the calf was seen again in the herd and doing well on the 30th near Back Pans.
Ngamo has been amazing this month for Giraffe where we have sighted some herds in excess of 20 animals. Hyaenas have been very vocal at night around camp and on one evening we were disturbed at the fire by some chasing Wildebeest right through the camp.
The young male Leopard is still patrolling the boardwalks in camp and one often picks up his sandy tracks on the concrete of the main building. One night guests driving back to tent # 9 & 10 spent about 15 minutes with him as he climbed into a Leadwood on the lookout for Spinghare. Lion sightings this month have been very good. We have been spending good time with the pride of 10 and also with the huge Black Maned chap who comes through to check that all's in order with his ladies. We spent a whole morning with the pride at Back Pans as they chased and harassed a troop of baboons for about 30 minutes before tuning their focus on a small herd of Buffalo coming down to drink. We positioned the vehicles on some raised ground and then patiently sat and watched as they stalked the grazing Buffalo. They approached the Buffalo from three different directions and after 45 minutes one young male started the charge. The Buffalo scattered in all directions and after 5 minutes of what seemed like total chaos 3 young males and a young lioness separated a cow from the herd. They jumped onto its back trying to bite the spine and only once the forth lion jumped on its back did it actually go to ground. As they are inexperienced hunters at this stage they were not able to kill the Buffalo and all the bellowing attracted the attention of the now gathered herd. They rushed back, charging, and chased the lions off the shocked cow. She was up in a second and staggered back, amazed at the change of events, into the safety of the herd. While all this was happening one of the adult lionesses killed a small calf that had also been separated. In a short space of time she too was driven off the carcass and the Buffalo would not let he lions feed for over an hour as they guarded the dead calf. All this happened within 30 yards of the vehicle and completely out in the open, a truly awesome experience!
Sightings of the Rhino have been great. He seems to do circuits of the concession and his favorite hang outs are in front of camp, Scotts Pan, Back Pans and Ngamo. We have had no further sightings of the cow with her calf.
Our sighting percentages for this month are : Aardwolf 13%, Bat Eared Fox 87% , Buffalo 83% , Eland 43% ,Elephants 100% , Giraffe 100% , Spotted Hyaena 43% , Leopard 13% , Lion 40% , White Rhino 33% and Sable 73%.
Birding Linkwasha
This months total was 137 species. The pair of Wattled Cranes which arrived late last month are still at Ngamo and with all the water still there are plenty of water birds hanging around on the fringes of the pans. Other interesting sightings were 8 Painted Snipe feeding together at the main pan, the pair of White-backed Ducks in the Hippo pool with ducklings, a White-headed Vulture on a nest near Scotts Pan, Arnot's Chats in the False Mopane Forrest at Ostrich Pan, A Southern Boubou at Ngamo in the Acacia Woodland and a female Cape Shovellor at Ngamo Pan.
Linkwasha Camp is divided into two luxury tented camps - one with seven tents, and the other with three. Linkwasha is situated in a private concession area within Hwange National Park. The area includes many diverse habitats, including Kalahari savannah, acacia woodlands, as well as palm islands and teak forests.
This habitat diversity attracts many different animal populations and over 400 species of birds. The area is known for its big game, particularly the predators, as well as large herds of Elephants and Buffalo during the winter months. Summer months offer a complete contrast, as many of the plains-game (and their predators) migrate to this section of the park to enjoy the lush grazing on the open savannah. Game drives in open 4x4 vehicles, hides and guided walks form part of the Linkwasha experience.
The tented rooms, built under thatch, are large and comfortable. Each room has en-suite facilities including a shower, basin, and flush toilet - and an outdoor shower. A raised walkway links the rooms, the lounge and dining room. Each room overlooks an expansive plain in front of camp - so different species of game can be sighted on the savannah.
NOTED GAME VIEWING
The area is known during our winter months for its big game, in particular large concentrations of Elephant and Buffalo. Lion, Leopard, Cheetah and Hyena are regulars, and their prey includes all the plains game. Roan and Sable are seen in the woodlands. Birdlife is abundant and diverse. During the summer, after the first rains, we see a large influx of the plains game - Eland, Zebra, Giraffe and Wildebeest arrive in large concentrations to feed off the new grasses and shrubs on the plains, closely followed by their predators.
LOCATION
o The camps are situated within the South Eastern section of Hwange National Park on a private concession bordering onto Makalolo Plain's concession in Zimbabwe.
PRICING
High Season: 1 July - 31 October
Low Season: 1 January - 30 June and November/December
Camp Descriptions
There are two camps next to each other. A three-roomed camp and a seven-roomed camp, which means we can accommodate 6,14 or 20 guests.
Linkwasha Camp Main:
There are seven tents in total consisting of:
six twin bedded tents
One honeymoon tent with outside bath
This camp can accommodate 14 guests.
Little Linkwasha Camp:
Three tents in total consisting of:
Two twin bedded tents
One honeymoon tent with outside bath
This camp can accommodate six guests.
Tour leader accommodation is in staff area, with shared bathroom
Tent details:
o En-suite bathrooms in tent
o Outdoor showers
o Fans
o Mosquito proof
o Wooden doors
o Luxury tents under thatch
o Gas radiator heaters in the winter months
o Soaps, shampoos and insect repellents are supplied in each room
CAMP DESCRIPTION
o Slightly raised decks under thatch
o Plunge pool in each camp
o Fantastic views across the floodplains and waterhole
o Curio shop
o Library
o Outdoor boma for dinner under the stars as well as regular dining room under thatch
GAME VIEWING
Lion, large herds of Elephant, Buffalo, Hyena, Giraffe, Sable, Wildebeest, Impala, Waterbuck, Reed Buck.
The large open plains allow one to see large quantities of animals. Summer game viewing is excellent with Wildebeest, Zebra and Eland found in abundance on the plains. In winter the water holes are magnets for Elephant and on some days each water hole can get up to 1000 Elephants coming down to drink.
ACTIVITIES
o Game drives in 3x7 and 1x9-seater 4x4 landrovers
o Walking safaris with an armed professional guide
o Hides
o Wind and water resistant ponchos are provided for game drives
SUGGESTED DAILY ACTIVITY SCHEDULE
Below is only a suggestion as to what may happen in camp - as daily wildlife sightings tend to throw the schedule right out of schedule.
summer/winter
05h00/06h00 - Wake Up
05h30/06h30 - Light breakfast
06h00/07h00 - Game drive, canoeing, boating, walk with drinks & snacks
10h30/11h00 - Brunch/lunch
- Option to rest or sit at hides
15h30/15h30 - Afternoon tea
16h00/16h00 - Game drive / walk with drinks and snacks
20h00/20h00 - Dinner under the stars or under thatch
ELECTRICITY & WATER
o Camp has 220v generator-powered electricity, power is stored in 12v batteries which power the lights and fans in the rooms
o Video camera batteries can be charged while on a game drive
o Water for showers etc is heated by solar power
DRINKS POLICY
All drinks are included in the nightly tariff, except for imported champagne and hard to obtain drinks such as Bourbon.
LAUNDRY POLICY
Daily service, weather permitting, included in the nightly tariff.
EXTRAS PAYMENT
Curios and/or tips/gratuities will be billed to the tent number and settled on check-out. Payment can be made by cash (US$), travellers' cheques, and Visa or MasterCard credit cards.
If guests wish to tip, our recommended tipping schedule is as follows:
Guides - US$5.00 per person per day
General camp staff - US$3.00 per person per day
Specialist guides (if applicable) - US$10.00 per person per day. This is the suggested gratuity schedule only and is subject to service standards.
FLYING TIMES
to/from Victoria Falls - 50-60 minutes
to/from Hwange airport - 20 minutes
Makalolo to Giraffe Springs - 30 minutes
AIR STRIP DETAILS
Linkwasha airstrip is located 45 minutes' drive from camp.
Linkwasha airstrip co-ordinates: S 19.07.93, E 027.11.79
1000m long, grass strip, can take King Airs 90's, provided that they have high flotation landing gear.
GUEST COMMENTS
P.S & S.S - CT - USA - "Thank you for the Rhino and the Lions. We were charmed by the peaceful surroundings and the troubles of the world seemed to vanish! Wish all people were able to experience this "wild" life!"
A.B - CA - USA - "What a wonderful time and super guides. Best sunset pictures ever!"
K.D & D.D - WA - USA - "FANTASTIC! INCREDIBLE! A piece of heaven!! Great rooms, incredible food and warm and hospitable hosts. We could not have wished for more. It has met our expectations in every way!"
*`�*-.,_,.-*`�*-.,_,.-*�
Vacationtechnician personalized luxury adventure travel transports you to the most exquisite wilderness and peaceful retreats on Earth. Conserving rare biodiversity through low volume tourism; our aim is your indulgence -at no one's expense. Plan now to be assured a rejuvenating escape at a restful pace -to an unspoiled gem in the purest sense.
.::. vacationtechnician.com = conserving the most enchanting wilderness chill out retreats on Earth .::.
Safari Field Reports
About The VacationTechnician Company
The VacationTechnician Company Conservation Campaign