Location: Botswana » Eastern RegionSouthern Africa’s Largest Private Game ReserveIt’s from any towering vantage point on Mmamagwa Hill that the great, primal stillness of Africa knocks you for six. For down in the valley, to the north and south, east and west, lies the flattened and sweltering Mopane plains of Mashatu, ‘Land of Giants’. For 360 degrees these sweeping wilds spread out, steadily and spartanly, but awesomely so, and merge into clean horizons. This land is lovelier than any imagining of it and to those who stand on Mmamagwa Hill, also resoundingly silent – for the ‘Land of Giants’ is an utterly unpeopled wilderness in eastern Botswana, at the confluence of the Limpopo and Shashe Rivers. But take a moment to listen to the rhythms of a land that beats to a different drum and you’ll soon unearth a diverse paradise thrumming with birds, plants, wild animals and insects. One that unfolds, like a lotus flower, into savannah, riverine forests, marshland, ample plains and sandstone outcrops.
Mashatu also provides a sanctuary to the world’s largest antelope, the eland; the world’s largest bird, the ostrich and of course, the world’s largest flying bird: the noisy kori bustard. Add the lion, the king of the beasts and the iconic baobab and voila! We present to you Africa’s Big Seven. Oh, and for good measure, we’ll also throw into the mix, at over 700 individuals, Africa’s largest elephant population on private land!
Our special spot under the African sun proudly boasts an ecological diversity uncommon in other reserves. Complementing three members of the Big Five – leopard, lion and elephant – are some of the more surprising species, including the aardwolf, bat-eared fox, African wild cat, honey badger and black-backed jackal. True to form, Mashatu is also an ornithological paradise, and plays host to 350 bird species, including the enchanting lilac-breasted roller, whose plumage features no fewer than seven different shades of blue!
Set out, at dawn or dusk, on a 4x4 safari guided by dedicated and experienced Tswana rangers and trackers. Or brave an adventure safari that strays from the traditional format offered by other southern African lodges: go bushwhacking on foot, gallop through verdant Mopane plains on horseback or confront Mashatu’s unforgiving terrain on a mountain bike.
Delve even deeper into this exceptional land with one of our specialist trips: participate in the predator drive, which offers thrilling insights into the ferocious lives of Mashatu’s big cats, or join an archaeological expedition, for Mashatu is the stuff of African legend and evocative of Ophir, the Lost City of the Queen of Sheba, who supplied King Solomon with diamonds and gold from her mines. The Pitsani Kopjes and Motloutse Ruins are the royal relics of just such a powerful African dynasty, the Leopard Kopje Dynasty, whose dramatic past is resurrected during an archaeological tour.
Or… dare to meet Mashatu, this ‘Land of Giants’, on its own terms, in the company of a wild elephant scientist; and commune with one of the world’s most awe-inspiring mammals, on an intimate level you’d never imagined possible in your wildest dreams.
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