Walking on the Wild side

Walking Safaris

If you think about it, human beings have shared the landscape with animals on foot for tens of thousands of years. Our ancestors, on becoming bipedal (the ability to walk upright on 2 legs) had millions of years of evolution to walk the environment with creatures great and small, developing hunting techniques and at times no doubt, avoidance strategies as well. In the so called modern day, for example, you will pass Maasai herders in East Africa whose cattle graze with zebra, wildebeest, while having elephants and yes, sometimes lions, coming through their turf. Hence the need for amazing organisations like http://www.kopelion.org

With this skimming stone of historical context, the point is that it’s not at all unusual for us to walk in the African bush, as a part of the landscape. To retrace the development of walking safaris in the conservation and tourism frame, its widely accepted that in Zambia, the beloved Norman Carr, a senior ranger and conservationist, started taking people on foot in the early 1950’s in the South Luangwa Valley. Norman worked with Chief Nsefu of the Kunda people to lay down the foundations for the safari industry as we know it today.

They were giants for conservation at a time when safaris were predominantly about hunting. Norman’s wonderful daughter Pam Guhrs Carr is a brilliant Zambian based artist continuing her father’s legacy https://www.instagram.com/pamguhrscarr/ Pam’s amazing hyena below.

These days, as bespoke safaris have become an art form, the walking safari is in big demand, with many of our Epic clients requesting destinations where walking can be incorporated into their trip. On occasions, we will run entire walking safaris with mobile camps that leapfrog the clients through the day, as our walkers might cover 20 – 25 km’s. As someone who’s done this twice with Brad, in Botswana and then Zimbabwe, I can say there’s nothing more exhilarating than arriving in camp after (on one memorable day 33km) a big trek. There is also nothing better than the first cold beer you pop in your new camp or a bucket shower to rinse off, before some boerewors cooked over an open fire. This is living.

Typically the group will be smallish, maybe around 8 people, bookended by guides when walking. The guides are trained specifically to conduct walks like this and take the safety of everyone very seriously. You are briefed and reminded about signals, protocols (very little chat) while walking … I think I can speak for most on this, it’s amazing how you quickly become attuned to sounds, visuals, smells and the feel of your surroundings. The experience is so amplified, so heightened, if that makes sense, compared to seeing the bush and wildlife from a vehicle. Perfectly wonderful though it is on a game drive, on foot it’s an entirely different world.

If Zambia is home to the walking safari, Mana Pools in Zimbabwe is somewhere it has been honed and perfected. Indeed for the Lower Zambezi on both sides, Zambia and Zim, the terrain is very similar and absolutely wonderful for walks. The photo below comes from a walking and canoe safari through Mana Pools. This was a grand old bull whom local people came to know as Slot, for what looks like the large coin slot you can see behind his right ear. He gave us a couple of memorable hours of interaction, at times within a couple of metres from our small party, completely unfazed by our presence, feeding, wandering. There is something almost spiritual about such a close range connection with a creature this big. I got a very touching note from one of the safari operators who knew him a couple of years after our safari, to say that old Slot had passed away, thankfully of natural causes. He taught us a lot that day.

At Epic, we are partnered with some incredible walking safari operators in Botswana, Kenya, Tanzania, Zambia, Zimbabwe, South Africa. People who have been doing this for decades. Some places where you will feel like your group are the only people on the planet, sleeping under those big starry African skies at night, listening to the sounds of elephant feeding and drinking near your tent in the dry season. Waking up to a coffee around a fire, before setting out on a new day’s adventure. Honestly, take me back now!

The video above comes from a mobile safari in an exclusive part of the Okavango in Botswana. Absolutely brilliant. Please contact us to find out more.

Then there are places like the Makgadikgadi Pans in Botswana where you can walk with the Bushmen tribe for a few hours, discovering the secrets of the land through people who know every plant, insect, soil type, what certain clouds mean for the weather ahead. This is a priceless experience.

Not far away the next day, you can be walking with a meerkat colony, as they forage near their burrows chirping and chatting away over scorpions and dung beetles, spiders and bugs. They have no issue with you, other than perhaps occasionally climbing onto your head and hat to get a better view across the grasslands. They’re on constant alert for predators from the skies or across the plain. For 2 hours you’re a family member, offering a viewing platform for free. Meerkats are simply magical.

In Rwanda and Uganda, you’ll be trekking in – with great anticipation – to make your appointment with gorillas. Similarly chimpanzees in Tanzania and Uganda. There are certain activities and experiences where a walk in and out is part of the day.

Depending on your level of fitness, depending on your level of adventure, we couldn’t recommend a walking safari, or elements of the walking safari, more highly. On foot and engaged with your surrounds, there is so much to learn from people who are deeply passionate about their patch and their country. Contemplating below, the nuances and engineering skills of an active termite mound, where you can feel the warmth of the colony in the walls. On foot, the experience feels somehow more valuable and special. It’s good for you and good for the environment.

An incredible Epic walk and canoe safari at Mana Pools in Zimbabwe.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e3usML5XGG4

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Photography:Simon Reeve + Brad Horn