Blog

There are many ways to celebrate Mandela Day. This year at Klaserie Drift, it was about coming together. In partnership with our friends at Seeds of Light, members of our team spent the afternoon at Ekurhuleni, a local drop-in centre supporting more than 200 vulnerable children from the surrounding community. The mission was simple: prepare a delicious meal, share some delectable treats, and spend time celebrating alongside the children and staff who make the centre such a special place.

Every great safari guide has a beginning.

Perhaps it starts with a child crouched over an interesting insect, a fascination with birds gathering outside the classroom, or the wonder of seeing wildlife in its natural habitat for the very first time. Those seemingly small moments can spark a lifelong passion for nature and, just maybe, the first steps towards a future guiding career. For a dedicated few, that journey eventually culminates in the incredible honour of competing among the industry's finest at the Safari Guide of the Year competition.

Ever wondered why lions have manes or why leopards seem to spend so much time in trees? Maybe you’ve found yourself questioning how guides know a track is fresh, or why some animals are spotlighted at night while others are left in the dark.

Our guides hear these questions all the time - usually somewhere between a coffee stop and a sighting! So, we thought it was time to put guides James and Khutso from Misava, and JV and Lola of Amani, to the test. In this new Ask Our Guides series, they tackle some of the wildlife questions guests ask most often and share a little insight into the fascinating world of the African bush.

It’s one of the most common questions we’re asked: how long should I stay on safari? The honest answer is – it depends. But if you’re travelling all this way to experience the wild beauty of the Greater Kruger, we would always recommend a minimum of two nights, with three or more being ideal. In our latest blog, we discuss the difference between spending one, two, or more nights on safari.

It started as a tracking conundrum. Though we often see leopard tracks following familiar routes as they cross the winding roads of the Klaserie, they rarely stay in one place for long - unless there’s a kill nearby. Every now and then, however, something doesn’t quite add up. A glitch in the pattern. That was the case one morning in mid-March. Little did Guide James know that he was about to stumble upon something quietly extraordinary.