The sunrises at 6:07 and sets at 18:47 in Madikwe game reserve.

Morning activities starts with a wake-up call from your guide at 4:45. While our guests are waking up and getting ready for the day, the guide is preparing the lodge table with fruits and a selection of small snacks together with tea or coffee. The activity starts at 5:30 but we are lenient on some of our late comers as a lot of our guest have not yet climatized to the time zones nor the early wake up call.

On morning drives the water holes are normally not very active so our main objective is to follow up on sounds or activity of Lion, Leopard, Hyena or even the rare African wild dog of the night before. With the help of Mateya’s highly skilled trackers, we will drive the roads which lays like a news paper in front of us telling stories of what happened the night before. Once fresh signs have been found, our trackers will follow the footprints left behind like a blood hound. But sometimes these incredible animals can hide and when they do no one will find them. Madikwe has a great diversity in plant, bird and many other interesting creatures which will provide ample entertainment to our guest.

Afternoon activities starts with a delightful high tea which includes a variety of sweet and salty snacks accompanied by iced tea and coffee. Afternoon drives will be conducted very differently as because of the temperature being higher water holes are more active with wildlife coming to quench their thirst. So, the first half of the drive we explore as much water holes as possible before venturing into the feeding areas with the hope of finding different herbivores, birdlife and just exploring different areas than the morning drive. The large carnivores tend to be resting during the hottest parts of the day, so the second part of our drive often consist of us arriving at a sighting being it Lion, Cheetah or Wild dog as they become more active.  But if we can’t seem to find them, we are always able to find a suitable spot to have a sundowner and watch the day come to an end in spectacular fashion.

The Northwest province have been experiencing a heat wave, so temperatures has been as high as 41 degrees Celsius and a low off 25 degrees Celsius. Some rain has been predicted for this month which will bring some relieve from the heat. When visiting us over the month of February pack your suitcase for mostly hot weather but some clothing for potential cold and rainy days.

The Mateya family hope to see you soon!