As previously mentioned, my stay at Zimanga wasn't a happy one, but I did appreciate the chance to observe their cheetahs from close distance. Here are links to my other posts about my trip to South Africa:
Zimanga Game Reserve (Introduction)
Zimanga (Tamboti overnight hide)
As I upload these pictures, I'm preparing to embark on a trip to a very different part of the world; hopefully one where I will feel more comfortable.
Zimanga offers game drives, but their most sought after attraction are the photography hides. The majority of these are aimed at birders, but I did visit both mammal hides, which are of greater interest to me. You enter these in the afternoon and don't emerge until the next morning. They're situated next to water holes, and have artificial lighting. My stay in the Umgodi hide was most disappointing: I saw only buffalo, I suspect due to a technical problem with the hide's electric fence, which made a loud arcing sound outside all night. However, the newer Tamboti hide was more interesting, and whilst I didn't see any cats, I was lucky enough to have some wonderful Elephant encounters (see next post). Here, I present some of the other animals I saw during the night of August 16th and early in the morning of August 17th.
White Rhino
For me, the experience of lion viewing at Zimanga was less fruitful than at Rhino River Lodge just to the south, despite having a far shorter stay at the latter. However, I find this apex predator fascinating, especially since they are social creatures.
