Overall, the safari was an excellent experience. Aside from a couple personality differences, there really wasn’t any part of it I didn’t enjoy. It was such a different experience. It was truly an adventure, the likes of which I hadn’t had before and which exceeded my expectations. In truth, though, I didn’t have any expectations. I had no idea what to expect. It’s not that I had low expectations – don’t get that confused – I just had no idea it would be so enjoyable. Even now, when I browse back through the pictures, I get this pleasing feeling deep in my gut and I know I had a good time and I miss it.
I think part of it was Thimbi Thimbi. I think they have their shit together. For this client, me, anyway, what offer on this particular safari is geared almost specifically for my tastes. The guides themselves, Martin and Manilow, were another part of the successful pie. Their knowledge and skill kept us informed and comfortable and their interaction with each other was always entertaining. The group on the trip was great, I have a new appreciation for the friendliness and sense of humor Australians possess. The rest was all Africa. We traveled over 3000 km on our adventure through Namibia, Botwsana and Zambia and every inch of it was an unforgettable experience.
If anything, the trip was a bit more luxurious than I had imagined it would be. The tents were unlike anything I’ve camped in before. Not that they were unusual, they were extremely sturdy and easy to put up, with heavy collapsable black powder-coated steel poles and heavy khaki canvas material. The tent space was quite large – they slept two with plenty of room for our backpacks and gear, and were tall enough to fully stand straight up in and stretch even. The opening was quite large and there were three large windows, with canvas zip covers on the inside and out. Compared to all the tents I’ve camped in, which are quite a bit smaller (and lighter), these are industrial-strength. I guess the gear they use on the safaris needs to be sturdy to last a while. And, maybe the heavy canvas helps to keep animals out …
I was duly impressed by the vehicle – a 1996 Toyota Land Cruiser – which I think started out as a single-cab, long-bed truck and was modified with a large passenger compartment seating 8 people. The seats were fairly comfortable. Leg room was a bit scarce due to storage of daypacks and snacks and water jugs, etc. I was in the front row, left side next to the door. First out, last in any time we stopped anywhere for anything. It was kind of nice, but some times folks were a bit laggard when getting back in. There was a pretty big cooler in the middle of the passenger compartment for drinks, snacks and it seemed to always be half-full of beer. The roof of the compartment lifted up to allow us unobstructed viewing. It worked quite well, actually, other than being a little awkward at times trying to stand when the cruiser was in motion. The truck had an inline, 6-cylinder diesel with a 5-speed manual transmission. We also towed a 5′ x 8′ trailer (I’m guessing on the size) with all the camping gear and luggage. Considering all the passengers and the absolute heft of the trailer with those heavy tents and huge suitcases, the power and ability of the Land Cruiser was amazing. The most amazing stretch was 13 km of soft Kalahari desert sand two-track on the way to and from the Guma Camp at the Okavango Delta in Botswana. Even with the spindly tires, we made it through with only getting bogged once, and I almost think our guide Martin tried to get us stuck just so we could say it happened.
I won’t say it was a trip of a lifetime. Because, I think that implies it’s something I may never get the chance to do again. If I have anything to do with it, I will definitely be on safari again. Next time it will be longer, as this time a week wasn’t nearly enough. I think I’ll make it the trip, not part of a larger trip like I’m doing now. I’m already thinking a long, overland safari like Cairo or Kenya to Cape Town. That’s down the road though, after certainly after I’ve saved a lot more money than I have now. My advice is plan on doing a safari at least once in your life, you won’t regret it!
As far as posting my experience, here’s what I’m gonna do … this post is the overall introductory. Then I’ll post day 1, day 2, etc. I think all of day one’s photos are up on my flickr account, although I put the Namib dunes pics right in the middle of the safari pics … Check back!
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