byrnek2022
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Quite some time has passed since this trip to Makweti, and since I started writing this post, I wondered whether it would still be relevant, but of course it is, so here it is……|Makweti 30 January 2025 – its World Zebra Day and if the humans weren’t aware of this auspicious day, the Velgevonden zebras are ubiquitous, all the way from the main gate to the camp we encounter dazzling groups, welcoming us to the reserve.|The reserve has clearly had good summer rains, the grass is tall, the bush is thick and multiple hues of green. In one of the many pools, two little eyes on a bright green face peep out at us, a bull frog, chilling his giant self at high noon.|A light lunch on the deck at Makweti Lodge, to the sound of water gently flowing down the length of the gorge, and Brown-veined butterflies drift like fairies through the camp on their annual migration to Mozambique. The cue to extreme relaxation.|At leisure, guests can relax in their chalets, take a swim in their private pool, or the main lodge nature pool, or take a nap before the afternoon game drive. If one has a problem sleeping, your chalet at Makweti, with the most comfortable beds, will cure that. I feel out of town but not out of touch.|Joseph is in charge of our afternoon game drive. Joseph is a keen observer, and his knowledge of and real passion for his surroundings makes for informative game drives. The reserve is bathed in hot high sun and we’ll be out until the moon rises – perfect. |We head for the riverbed where a small group of Elephants are muddying themselves to keep cool and the flies at bay. Watching elephants is mesmerising, almost hypnotic, they are affectionate and caring towards each other. The silence with which they move through the terrain defies their size. All around we can hear the Woodlands Kingfisher’s rolling call.|After bush sundowners we head back to camp, on the road back we encounter three black-backed jackals starting their evening meal with berries from a Jackal berry tree, literally eating the berries off the tree. I kid you not, this is a new sighting for me.|Our early morning game drive takes us first to the plains of plenty (as I call them), which are teeming with game; impala, zebra, buffalo, warthogs, baboons, wildebeest, all tucking into the sweet grasses, you can literally hear the sound of collective chewing. Mommy warthogs on their knees yanking out the juicy clumps of grass as their piglets traipse along behind them harassing them for milk. |The season’s new babies abound. A white rhino, soon-to-be-mama, ambling up the road with her large swinging belly swinging from side to side reminds me of what a privilege it is to visit Makweti and why visitors travel across the globe to experience this paradise. |The abundance of game means the predators don’t have too far to scout for a meal. And we don’t have to go too far before we come across a fresh zebra carcass on the side of the road. A snack for a young male lion and two lionesses, who have retreated a little way into the shade to sleep for the day. |||An encounter with dung beetles doing their thing brings our attention back to the simple things. In this case beetles clutching comically to balls of poo and resolutely rolling them in the direction of the milky way. |As dusk becomes night, a Spotted Eagle Owl is eating a morsel in the road. An impressively large bird, it finishes its meal, silently spreads its huge wings and swoops off into the dark night. A last treat before we return to camp for our own supper. |I’ve come to expect the unusual on my trips to Makweti; on the last day of my visit, as we leave camp, a rusty coloured male Bush pig, is snoofling close to the road, a handsome fellow. This is a rare sight; in all my travels I have not seen this animal before, what a privilege|I always leave Makweti knowing I have enough joy to keep me going until the next time I can visit and recharge my soul
