Big Game at a Gallop
Dawn at the Kwafubesi Bush Camp is an understated affair, with subtle pink and tangerine tones sneaking in across the savannah plains.
Stands of wild seringa and marula trees fade up from a hazy grey to snap into technicolour focus, looming in sharp relief against the eastern horizon. A couple of hundred metres in front of my tent, a herd of blue wildebeest drift into view, the plumes of breath condensing as they exhale into the morning chill.
I wander up to the boma, where warm coffee helps to banish the big freeze. Small tracks dot the stone floor … Moby the porcupine did his tramping the ashes thing again after we left for bed last night, it seems. After our delectable bush supper here in the wilds, he sniffled around our feet for leftover scraps, then made a beeline for the fireplace to soak up the warmth, there as we drifted off into dreamland.
Kwafubesi Camp at Mabula Game Reserve
Kwafubesi, situated in the exclusive Mabula Game Reserve within Limpopo Province, boasts an impeccable range of bush activities. An exhilarating overnight safari on horseback is just one of the many options allowing you a different perspective on these vast plains unfolding at the foot of the majestic Waterberg Mountains.
Upon arrival, you immediately set off from the stables after an informal check-in and a safety briefing. The pace is slow enough for all levels of riders, and a delicious bush lunch along the way will make sure you don’t waste away. This is Big 5 territory, and you may bump into any number of African big game, including rhino, leopard and buffalo, along the way. After a delicious meal, grilled outside on an open fire, retire to one of the romantic, en-suite tents.
From their raised platforms, you will have a ringside seat of sunrise arriving to saturate the bush in shades of gold and amber. And then it’s time to saddle up again as you head back onto the game tracks traversing the Mabula plains. Other activities here include hot air ballooning, day and night game drives in safari vehicles, guided bush walks and, not too mention, little luxuries such as a spa pool and high tea.
Traversing the Game Track
I slept through most of the bushveld sounds, although something big breaking branches outside my tent did wake me up at some stage. This is not necessarily a bad thing, as we’ve got another big day ahead of us. Behind the boma, Fritz and the guides are already saddling up our steeds for the second leg of our horseback safari.
We rode in from Mabula yesterday, traversing the game track network spider-webbing through this arid woodland, soaking up what must be one of Africa’s most rewarding wilderness experiences. Being on horseback morphs you from two-legged Homo sapiens into a four-legged creature of the wild, and you are straight away accepted into the outdoor fold.
Eland, waterbuck, giraffe and even rhino pay scant attention at your approach, allowing you to view the continent’s big game from a completely fresh perspective. This soon dawned on me after we bumped into a family of white rhinoceros within the first hour of yesterday’s ride. Up close they are incredible beasts, incontrovertibly prehistoric in shape and form, and they seemed very relaxed despite the presence of a tiny calf.
Here in the Limpopo’s bush veldt, it is no exaggeration to say that the full gamut of African game features on the viewing menu. We bump into the implacable rhinos (fortunately upon an open, grassy plain) again, then hold court with a few grumpy old buffalo bulls when we canter right up to Mabula’s breeding herd.
A final piece de resistance is 5 giraffes that join up with us upon a woody knoll overlooking the stables. They set off in ungainly arabesques as we canter along in their wake, towering above both of us and the trees like unreal beasts from some giant’s wind-up menagerie.
By Jacques Marais