Inkombe Camp

Historically Inkombe Camp was done as a selection programme for new guides whereby the candidates would undergo an intense week long training programme with minimal sleep, maximum walking and a menu fit for an army boot camp... This was all changed though as I arrived and it was decided that the camp would be for those that made it through their probation period and are worthy of their position within the company.

This meant that after 6 months at Sabi Sabi we would now spend 5 days out in the bush, away from guests with our Head Ranger Will and our trainer Malcolm Douglas. Malcolm is a treasure trove of information and is a walking encyclopedia of the bush and it is truly a privilege to spend time with him. Will is also incredibly knowledgeable and his enthusiasm and love for the bush is contagious.

Day 1

Our first task was to collect all the food and water we would need for the our camp. Thank goodness the menu was significantly spruced up from old Inkombe Camps, we went from bully beef to delicious chops and wors and all our breakfasts were eggs and bacon. We packed all our stuff into the vehicle and headed off to jabula camp which would be our home base for the next week. We did a quick unpack and set up of the camp and headed out on what was to be the first of many walks to come.

This walk was an information packed walk as Malcolm started to chat about the different trees and rock we were encountering. The first tree we learnt about was the sneeze wood...and after inhaling some shavings of the wood I very quickly realised why it was named the sneeze wood...African culture believes that sneezing assisted in releasing any evil spirits that may be inside you and I released a good 3 or four after one sniff...

The walk was not long but the broad range of topics that were discussed was awesome. After about 2 hours we returned to camp and started the fire to cook our well deserved meal. Then it was off to bed for a good nights rest.

Day 2

After a surprisingly good nights sleep we woke up and got breakfast ready. We needed the energy cause we would be spending the whole day out and were heading down to the Sabi River. Again Malcolm amazed us with tons of new information...one of the facts of the day was that an African Goshawk can get up to 75km/h within a metre of take off and reaches an amazing 120km/h at full speed!

When we reached the river we stopped to enjoy an awesome lunch which Rika had prepared and then made our way to the river where we bumped into 2 bull elephants grazing in the shade of the big trees running the length of the water course. We spent a good 2 hours down by the river learning about new trees and spending some time apart all spread out along the rivers edge just taking in the peace and tranquility that was all around us. We did have some unexpected visitors as we startled a herd of buffalo that was feeding along the rivers edge.

The day was topped off with dinner and then a sleep out on top of a rocky out crop in the middle of the bush. There is truly nothing like sleeping under the stars with each of us having to do a shift to ensure that nothing was going to surprise us while we slept. The sounds of hyenas, lions and all the nocturnal birds filling the air and we were visited by a herd of buffalo and a hippo during the night.

Camp Site Under The Stars

Day 3

The morning stated off with a 5.30 wake up, coffee and then cleaning up before morning game drives came past. Another hearty breakfast under the belt we headed out to do walking encounters into the big and scaries...our aim was to test the senses of the creatures and get a better understanding of their reactions.

Packing Up To a Beautiful Sunrise

We encountered 3 rhino first and while approaching, the mother with her young calf decided to walk straight towards us and we had to move off quickly! They thundered away into the bush when they figured out how close we were and we headed back to the car... The next rhinos we encountered were on a large open area and they picked up our scent from about 150 metres, Malcolm and I left the the other 3 guys to make an even closer approach and test out their vision. At about 50 metres we started waving our hands and definitely were seen by the rhino. Some people say that they cant see more than 10 metres but that was definitely proved wrong. As we started walking away the rhino started an investigatory charge to get a better idea of what we were and when he reached about 30 metres from us I had to chase him off with a clap and and a shout.

Next was a breeding herd of elephants which we cautiously watched walk past us and head towards a waterhole for a drink. We watched them frolic around in the water and then left them in peace. The last animals we approached was a herd of wildebeest which we attempted to stalk up on... we all leopard crawled trying to keep ourselves concealed but the wildebeest just watched. I can just imagine what was going through their minds..."What the hell do these idiots think they doing"...and needless to say we didn't get within 30 metres of them before they stated snorting and running off with Will and I desperately running after them!!

The River Camp site

The day was to be finished off with a walk along the Msutlu River where we bumped into a hyena and walked past mating lions that we would end up camping 300 metres away from. They entertained us all night long with their roaring and we went to go pay them a quick visit before going to sleep. We were fortunate to catch them in the act of mating once before we headed back.

Day 4

Again through the night we took it in shifts to ensure that we didn't get surprised by one of the many dangerous creatures roaming the bush. I had the last shift from 3.15am to 5am and then I had to wake everyone up so we could be packed up again before morning drives came past. At 5am I gave everyone a shout and had some water boiling on the fire for some coffee. Rika got up and we started making coffee while Ben and Will were still snoring away. Rika and I heard a couple of foot steps on the dead leaves that layered the river bed, looked at each other, then heard more steps...so I got up to investigate... as I shone the torch past where Will was sleeping I saw a leopard sniffing around no more that 10 metres from him...all I saw were the whites of his eyes when I called out that there was a leopard. After a couple of loud shouts and some clapping she moved up and out of the river and we then settled into some coffee and started the clean up.

We then had a presentation by the Bird Of Prey Centre from Dullstroom. They brought with them a Barn Owl, Spotted Eagle Owl, Greater Kestrel and a juvenile African Goshawk. We watched them flying and I got to hold the barn owl. We also learned a lot from the information that was given to us...the most amazing thing I learnt was that a Peregrine Falcon had been clocked at 415km/h when in a full dive, this makes it the fastest creature on the planet.

The handler, Mark and a Barn Owl

Barn owl

Juvenile African Goshawk

Greater Kestrel

Spotted Eagle Owl

Our full day was completed with a walk to explore more cultural beliefs and uses for trees. We learnt how to make rope and whistles from Silver Cluster Leaf Trees, found out how to stop the rain using wild asparagus and learnt the song sung by the Shangaan people when drinking marula beer that basically warns against getting promiscuous with another mans wife...

We were all in bed by 8pm that night as a result of the long days and minimal sleep we had got and also in preparation for the ridiculous day ahead...

Day 5

The camp was finished off with an outrageous boundary walk that is 40,6 km long!!! The 5:15 start to the walk was very cold but within the first hour things started to warm up and we were greeted by some giraffe early in the walk. The first 20 km went by with relative ease but everything after that became more and more difficult. With temperatures reaching 30 degrees Celsius we we drinking the water fast and had to filled up regularly...

After about 26km we bumped into a rhino which we only spotted when it was 40 metres away cause by this stage we were all concentrating on our next step and not on our surroundings. About a kilometre later we bumped into a herd of buffalo while again staring in despair at the ground in front of our feet.

By the time we reached the final straight which was still 8km we were all broken...we had been walking for about 8 hours and still had 2 and half to go... With all of us in agony we pushed on and all managed to finish. With a sense of accomplishment we got back to the lodge and all started removing the shoes that had caused horrible blisters on our feet.

I had to take some anti inflammatory pills to stop me walking like 90 year old man and to ease the pain a little. And all of the excitement was finished off by a initiation party where there were far too many funnels consumed and this all lead to an impromptu fertilisation of the flower beds...

All in all it was an AMAZING experience and would like to thank Will and Malcolm for all the effort they put in to make it such an unforgettable experience...and to the MC's of my initiation party...REVENGE IS A MEAL BEST SERVED COLD AND WITH LOTS OF BEER!!!!