Sunday, October 8, 2017

From Senyati's Hide

The hide adjoins the watering hole, and the elephants are just outside. They're clearly aware that humans are that close but seem not to mind...
Inside the hide







OK, a male saunters by...












And another



The hole is served by this (spring? bore?) outlet

At Senyati's Watering Hole

We arrived from Nata on September 5th, set up camp, and then walked the hundred meters to the watering hole, already crowded with elephants. No barriers, no fences, not even a ha-ha...



The groups are almost always females and their young;
sometimes generations of females; the males are kicked out
once they reach adolescence






A lone warthog passes by











They drink, bathe, socialize, and then proceed on, to be replaced
by another group; I counted 65...

Senyati Safari Camp

[Back in Europe/Spain/Catalonia now, near Figueres/Cadaques, with much catching up to do on the blog...].

Nearly all the camps we stayed at in Africa were memorable, mostly for good reasons, but Senyati Safari Camp, near Kasane, Botswana, is the memory that will last longest. Our rigs were there for four nights, more than anywhere else; from Senyati we visited both Chobe NP and Victoria Falls in Zimbabwe, with much ado; but...Senyati is on a wildlife crossroads, its bar/lounge perched over a sizable watering hole, and, best, it has a hide right on the watering hole: spectacular close-up views of elephants and all manner of other critters. See illustrations in following posts. Oh yes, getting from the highway to Senyati was also memorable...poor directions and deep sand in which many of us got temporarily stuck...but all agreed it was well worth the hassle.
The watering hole















The hide is the concrete bunker; seats 8-10















Bar/lounge; the entrance to the hide is the corrugated little 
building to the left
















Tunnel to the hide















Vicki stalking elephants















Afternoon matinee 





























Decor at Senyati



















Mahaogony, judging by their weight














Half a dozen chalets (?!) in addition to the camp sites (pitches)















More decor















Senyati do's and don't's



















Hot water is de-centralized at Senyati...each bathroom, chalet
(is that the right term for the bush?) has hot water provided by
a "donkey" such as this

















Thus















Staff lights each donkey each morning, evening















Part of our encampment at Senyati

The first of many memorable braai (Afrikaner for BBQ; both
a's are silent)

Not too many chefs...


Secondary entrance to Senyati; very fine print specifies 4WD



























Owl really liked Senyati