It has been a bit of a wait since our last e-Drums newsletter! Of course this also means that quite a bit has happened, so please get comfy, relax, and enjoy our updates from Makutsi.

Makutsi Tented Camp

Although many of you probably know about Makutsi Tented Camp, we thought it would be a good idea to remind you of this exciting option. For return clients who enjoy a bit of walking, this is simply a must for you next visit.

Also important to remember, when we say "tents" we don't mean little tents which you have to crawl into :) The tents you will stay in are totally safe, built on a wooden platform with a thatch roof over the tent to protect from sun and rain. All tents have electricity, en suite bathrooms with hot and cold water and a flush toilet. So this is not camping, this is adventurous and romantic Africa!

Makutsi Tented Camp can only be booked as part of a Makutsi Package, or as an add-on excursion from Makutsi Main Camp. When you leave for your 2 night sleep-out at Tented Camp, you keep your bungalow at Main Camp, you just take the things you need and when you get back you return to the same bungalow with your belongings waiting for you. No checking in and checking out, Makutsi Tented Camp is simply an exciting and romantic 2 night excursion away from Makutsi Main Camp.

Here a short example of the itinerary at Makutsi Tented Camp:

Depart Main Camp early afternoon for Tented Camp
Short afternoon walk (2 hours)
Dinner & overnight at Tented Camp

Morning walking safari (3-4 hours)
Breakfast at Tented Camp-
Relax & Lunch at Tented Camp
Afternoon walking safari (3-4 hours)
Dinner & overnight at Tented Camp

Short morning walk (2 hours)
Breakfast at Tented Camp
Depart Tented Camp mid morning back to Main Camp

* Minimum age 16 years, and an average-to-good fitness level is required

Fresh coat of paint for the outdoor pool

One of the main attractions here at Makutsi are our natural, warm mineral springs. Water from these springs feed our swimming pools (both outdoor and indoor pools), and our clients get to enjoy relaxing, playing or exercising in these wonderful pools. Because they get used permanently, it makes it pretty hard to find time to give them a fresh coat of paint. After years of "we will do it next year", we have finally prioritised this matter. During the 3 weeks of camp closure, we first removed the old paint, gave it a good scrub, and put several coats of fresh paint to the outdoor pool. We think it made the already spectacular pool look even better!

Hippo mother and baby in the outdoor pool

It seems that the new paint job on the outdoor pool did not only impress our guests, but the wildlife as well!
Every now and then something very special happens, something that nobody really expects to see. We have had a hippo in our pool once or twice before, but this has only ever happened during the night. For this reason, we place a temporary electric cable around the pool at night (we prefer them not to use our pool, and leave behind many kilograms of hippo dung :)
This time however, a mother and very young baby came for a dip in the pool in the middle of the day...they strolled past, saw the very welcoming mineral pool, and simply jumped in!!
Of course we quickly made sure that all the guests close to the pool were taken to safety, and started thinking about how we can convince mother and baby to exit the pool again. We did not want to scare them away, as mother was with a very young baby and we did not want to stress them out. So we decided to simply empty the pool, and once the water level was too low for them to enjoy this nice pool, they used some rocks on the side of the pool to exit, and strolled away again.
To prevent this from happening again, we have now decided to leave the electric cable around the pool during the day, just until the rains come and the hippo have more food and water elsewhere again! Of course there is a gap so that our guests can get in and out of the pool without getting a shock from the cable :)

Only in Africa hey! Below some amazing photos, as well as a link to a video of the mother and baby walking away from the pool after their happy swim...

Video: Hippo mother and baby in Makutsi pool

Other ways of keeping busy

Of course painting the pool has not been the only activity that we had to keep us busy, a business like Makutsi never leaves you with nothing to do! Below a few pictures of other activities that we worked on during the June closure...

New uniforms

After a well deserved few weeks off, the staff of Makutsi were welcomed back to work with some nice new uniforms. It is nice to see how happy and proud they are when showing off their new uniforms :)

Last but not leaste - some wildlife images

To finish off this newsletter, just a few beautiful images to wet your appetite and remind you to start thinking about your next visit to Makutsi again! No words needed, let the images do the talking...(all images: Ralf Wellmann)

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Thank you for reading, and until next time.

Warm, wildlife regards from all of the Makutsi Team!