Rwanda has a dark history with a civil war in 1991 and the tragedy of the 1994 genocide. Despite this, Rwanda appears to be a country that is turning itself around. There is certainly a conscious move within the country towards conservation and as a result tourism. Rwanda has a zero tolerance on plastic bags and is considered to be one of the cleanest, if not, the cleanest country in Africa. The world could learn a lot from this small land locked African country. Akagera Nati

It was a frosty early morning and the sun was yet to peek its head above the the Waterberg mountains. We left Marataba Safari Lodge wrapped in thick blankets, full of anticipation as to what the day would bring. There were fresh lion tracks close to the river, so fresh they were still wet from the lions crossing the water. As I rounded the corner I found two lionesses and their four cubs in the middle of the road! The cubs were full of life; chasing each other and pouncing o

I’ve always thought Disney’s portrayal of Pumba in “The Lion King” is the epitome of a warthog. Working as a field guide I am fortunate enough to see these funny characters on a daily basis. To me they are quite possibly the most comical of Africa’s mammals. Inquisitive in nature, warthogs typically stare at you curiously as you approach them. This is usually followed by a short loud snort as they turn on their heels and run away with their tails pointing straight up. Forget

Kaziranga, Assam India, is home to two thirds of the world's Greater One-horned rhinos. This fact alone had us travelling on a train for 9 hours followed by a five hour bus ride. Kaziranga is split into four zones: The Eastern range, the Western range, the Central range and the Burapahar Range We did three game drives at Kaziranga. Two in the Eastern range and one in the Central range. The Central and Western ranges tend to be more crowded with vehicles as they are closer to

I recently had the opportunity to visit Tiger Tops, Tharu Lodge, situated on the western side of Chitwan National Park, Nepal. This beautiful corner of the jungle is home to 12 Asian elephants. Tiger Tops set themselves above the rest by being the first lodge in Nepal to stop tourists riding elephants. Some of the daily activities include jeep safaris, safari by ox wagon and a river cruise. We were fortunate to see one horned rhino from the jeep and the canoe. Walking with th

Elephants are by far my favourite animal. They are the reason I left England and my family behind and moved to the African bush to work as a ranger. These magnificent creatures are highly intelligent and emotional. The bonds between herd members are very strong and I have yet to meet a person that didn't coo over an elephant calf. Yesterday morning I was driving in a very thick area close to the mountains in the Marataba section of the Marakele National Park. Several trees ha

African rock pythons can reach a length of five to six metres. Although they are not venomous they can deliver a nasty bite and hold their victim in a vice like grip whilst they begin to coil around it. They kill by constricting their prey. Larger specimens eat antelope and there have been several recordings of them eating humans. Pythons are well camouflaged so can be difficult to spot in the African bush. Impala alarm calling close to the river in the early morning signalle

Thanks to some recent rain the Waterberg is lush, green, the rivers full and the dams overflowing. Last week the Marataba section of the Marakele National Park received over 160mm of rain in three days. The day after the big rains I made my way along the Matlabas River in the late morning. It was nine o’clock and already over thirty degrees. On the road ahead I saw a large elephant cow cross the road towards the river. I approached slowly and parked where the road was close t

December and January are famous in the South African bush for the birthing period. Impala, wildebeest, hartebeest and warthogs are just a handful of the herbivores that give birth at this time of year. This baby boom period is how the herbivores ensure their success. Over 50% of the young will fall prey to predators. Recently I drove to an open plains and stopped, taking in the magnificent scene. Zebra, impala, blue wildebeest and warthogs all with their young grazing on the

It was late afternoon and I had been catching glimpses of a mother leopard and her three cubs in the long reeds for about 20 minutes. My patience paid off and I was rewarded with a beautiful sighting of four leopards in a clearing. Slowly they made their way into the tree line and began to play. I watched in awe as they tumbled over one another. Suddenly the mother began to stalk. A herd of impala made their way through the clearing towards the tree line. I watched as the cub

As we near the end of the dry season in the Waterberg many of the watering holes have dried up. Consequently animals are forced along the river system and major watering holes which can make for fantastic sightings. During the night an unaware impala coming to the water for a drink fell victim to a lion and lioness at KD watering hole. After the lions had had a good feed they lay up in the shade on the other side of the main road into Marataba Safari Lodge. Visitors to Marata

It has now been six months since we started working to familiarise a female leopard and her 3 cubs with game drive vehicles. All three cubs are still alive and doing well; two males and a female. Their mother has done a fantastic job in rearing, feeding and protecting them. I have been fortunate to have spent a great deal of time with the four of them and have watched the cubs grow and develop unique personalities. At first the female seemed to use a handful of den sites (we

Much to the rangers’ dismay the lion sightings had been very quiet for several days. Some nights we would hear them calling close to the lodge but come the morning they had disappeared into the thick bush. In the mornings we were taunted by tracks all over the roads but no lions. It was my guests’ first time in Africa and understandably they wanted to see lions. We were on the sixth game drive out of eight and I was silently starting to panic that we may not find any. Between

For the past few months we have suspected that one of the central pride lionesses had cubs. She is most commonly seen with two other females and we started seeing these two females without her; this change in behaviour is often a sign that a lioness is denning. To support our suspicions, about two months ago the female in question appeared to be lactating. What fantastic news! Our next question was. Where was she hiding the cubs? Last week a game drive spotted the female with

The Waterberg, South Africa, is not famous for leopard sightings. Sightings are generally few and even then are generally just a blur of yellow and spots. Before working in the Marekele National Park I worked for two and a half years on another reserve in the Waterberg. During that time I saw two leopards dashing across the road. We are very lucky in the Marakele to have a handful of leopards that are relaxed around the vehicles. About three months ago a tiny leopard cub was

My morning started at 4am. The cold morning air was broken by the roaring of lions just outside of camp. The black backed jackals were yelping in warning (as though we were deaf to the thunderous roaring that had woken us). Despite my eagerness to jump straight into the cruiser to try and find these giant cats, duty called. The hot water bottles were filled, the blankets folded and the tea and coffee was made. As soon as the guests had had their caffeine fix we were off to t

The Kruger National Park, South Africa, is the size of Switzerland. The majority of roads are tarred and any member of the public can drive around looking for animals. The big five (lion, leopard, rhino, elephant and buffalo) are on everyone’s checklist. It was early morning in December and we were on the look out for a leopard. December is a special time of the year in the African bush. Many animals give birth at this time of year as the rains bring lush grass to eat. This

To begin with it, it is worth mentioning that canoeing down the Zambezi River is a little more than an adrenaline rush. Around every corner lurks a hippo waiting to bump your canoe or a crocodile that eyes you hungrily before disappearing beneath the murky water. That said, the bird life is phenomenal and it is a treat to get away from the noise of the vehicle. On this particular afternoon we were floating down river with the sun setting behind us. It was the perfect scene o