Hikers Wool Blog

We have been fortunate enough in recent years to have traveled to Africa several times to take part in Walking Safaris.

We were encouraged to look at this way of seeing Africa by a couple of freinds and now consider it the most exciting way to meet the animals and learn about the flora.

Our first trip was in 2000 and along with a small group of 6 other like minded souls we set out for 2 weeks in Hwange and Chizarira National Parks in Zimbabwe. Our group also included our "fearless leader", Leon, his Matabele tracker, Obert, and 3 back-up crew who set up camp and cooked the meals.

We would set out each morning at about 7am after breakfast and walk for 4 - 5 hours. We would arrive back at camp for lunch and a siesta in the heat of the day and then at about 3-30 pm we would walk again for another couple of hours arriving back at camp (which sometimes had been moved to a new area by the back-up crew) in time for a hot bush shower, a drink and then dinner ending with us all sitting around the fire swapping yarns.

Our fearless leader was the most prolific in this department, drawing from his years of experienceas a Big Game Hunter and TseTse Fly Control Officer just to name acouple of his previous occupations. He also has a great repetoire of "poems" and ballads - most clean, some not!

Each day we set off in the early morning chill not knowing what adventures or animals we would encounter as the day unfolded under a perfect clear blue African sky. To come across wild animals while on foot is an awesome (in the true sense of theword) experience as you are ther in their territory and on their terms.

One may be 10 metres away from a bull elephant standing behind a fallen log - asleep; a lioness may suddenly snarl and move away from her resting spot beside the track (adrenalin rush here); flocks of beautifully coloured birds will fly overhead; and with all of this comes the smell and sense of Africa -  the grasses, flowers and trees.

Needless to say we took plenty of Hikers Wool with us and shared it around, saving the day for many and making the 30 - 40 km walks much more pleasurable. I must add that although we clients and the tracker all wore walking boots our fearless leader wore sandals and broken ones at that!

More on Africa soon.