South African safari: Still game

Published on Friday 6 March 2009 13:13

CHEETAHS and lions are back in the magnificent landscapes of South Africa's Eastern Cape after a decades-long absence. And with them come tourists keen for a really wild experience

BENEATH the high bluffs, the plains stretching into the distance, Les halted the safari vehicle. He stepped from the driver's seat on to the red-dirt track, and held the aerial high up in the air. A strong, solid beep came from behind and he swung around to indicate the direction we should go.

"Okay," he said. "We've got her. Keep quiet. Follow me. Single file." With Les leading, we set off into the veldt, through a parched landscape of ankle-high scrub and stunted thorn trees, the beeping ever louder. Somewhere to the left and disturbed by our presence, a cory bustard, the biggest flying bird on the Plains of Camdeboo, took off like Concorde and wheeled away towards the horizon.

Then, rounding a bush, Les came to an abrupt halt. Ten yards away lay Sibella, the object of our intentions. So good is the cheetah's camouflage that even on a crystal-clear South African afternoon, it was hard to focus on her.

First you see the long, spotted torso, then the belly swollen by the big cat's latest kill. Next the graceful head, ripping at the blood-red remains of the small antelope that had fallen prey to this supreme hunter. Sated, Sibella tolerated us and Les, our experienced and knowledgeable guide, motioned for us to form a semi-circle to take our photographs and marvel at being so close to such an untamed animal.

Many game reserves will only take visitors close to cheetahs within the safety of a vehicle. Here, at Samara, in the Eastern Cape, to get out of the jeep, feel the ground underfoot, walk up to the feasting animal and share her life for even a short time, takes the experience to another level.

Eventually, we backed off and returned to the vehicle where Les had laid out snacks – including biltong, the dried meat speciality – and served sundowners as the sinking sun blazed over the dark silhouette of the surrounding hills. Les, a local boy who loves this patch of land, raised his glass. "The end of another perfect day in Africa," he said. We could only agree.

Samara is an astonishingly beautiful 70,000-acre private game reserve about a three-hour drive north of Port Elizabeth airport. As one of the first areas colonised by Europeans during the 19th century, its wild animals were systematically wiped out as farming became the prevailing way of life. The vast herds of antelope – the characteristic springbok, kudu, eland, red hartebeest – were slaughtered for food and, as their numbers declined, so did the carnivorous predators, lion, leopard and cheetah. The herbivores, meanwhile – giraffe, rhino, elephant – also disappeared as thousands of miles of habitat was turned over to sheep and goats.

Samara sits just off the Mohair Trail, a tourist route to the picturesque regional centre of Graaff Reinet, famed for the quality of its goat-hair products. But on Samara, and a handful of other new private game reserves in the Eastern Cape, the goats are gone and the wild animals are returning, samara specialising in cheetah conservation.

Sibella, rescued from a farmer in northern South Africa, who had tortured her before handing her over for cash, is the star of the show, although two males, Mozart and Beethoven, run her close. Since arriving, Sibella has fully recovered and her cubs are playing a part in reintroducing the cheetah across South Africa.

Her range is best viewed from the edge of the flat-topped mountain which Samara's owners have acquired. It's a private world where they've reintroduced herds of the antelope that once roamed freely. Wildebeest dart away, springbok spot us and bound into the distance, memorable for their stiff-legged 'pronking'. Three mountain zebra, the biggest and most endangered of the species, regard us haughtily from a ridge top as baboons scramble for cover, while rare blue cranes circle above. From their vantage-point we could scan the plains below for giraffe, ostrich, white rhino and other species returning to their natural homes.

At the heart of the reserve is the magnificent lodge, a former farmhouse now converted into luxury accommodation and one of Tatler's top 100 hotels in the world in 2007. This is the world of Out of Africa come to life with large, comfortable rooms leading out on to cool verandas where you can watch monkeys playing in the trees, tortoises doing what comes naturally on the lawn, and, at night, if you're lucky, spot a foraging porcupine scuttling into the bush.

Samara is difficult to leave, so seductive are its slower-paced rhythms of life, but 90 minutes south is Blaauwbosch, another stunningly scenic former farm where conservation is a priority. Here, the approach differs in that Blaauwbosch has decided to import lions and elephants to complete what many safari visitors want, two of the key 'Big Five' animals. Lions eat cheetahs – a risk that Blaauwbosch has accepted. Elephants destroy trees, but the reasoning is that the property is big enough to cope. We encountered the elephants early one morning on the side of a ridge as they pushed their way through a clump of tall bushes. Hearing our approach, the giant matriarch raised her trunk and gave the call to gather the herd. Bunched with the babies and young animals in the middle, they advanced downhill in front of our vehicle, ears flaring to make themselves look bigger. They stopped three feet in front and proceeded to stare us out. Boyci, the spotter at the front of the vehicle, could have polished their tusks. Two more steps and the elephant herd would have been on top of our jeep but a few seconds later, the matriarch signalled and the herd lumbered off into the bush.

It made a tale to tell at the elegant Blaauwbosch lodge with its incomparable view south to the jagged peaks of the Winterberg mountains. Here you can take an early-morning shower on the veranda of your private lodge and, morning game drive over, enjoy breakfast on the lawn while watching giraffes at the watering hole a few yards away. The distinctive and ever-present call of the Cape Dove – "work harder, work harder" – has never seemed more inappropriate.

Fact file on SAFARI

Prices at Samara start at ZAR1,550 per person sharing (106 at current exchange rates) per night inclusive of meals, local branded drinks and safari activities.

Blaauwbosch starts at ZAR1,750 per person sharing (119 at current rates), per night inclusive of meals and safari activities.

Both reserves have private landing strips.

To book safaris in South Africa including flights and car hire, contact Aardvark Safaris in Scotland on 01578 760 222 or e-mail [e-mail]