It would be a shame if you lived in Africa and never went on safari every once in a while: especially if you have kids. But what happens when you’ve got a young baby? What are the options then?
About six months ago, my fiancé and I were faced with this very dilemma. We wanted to get out and experience some of the terrific wildlife that South Africa has to offer, but we weren’t sure how we could do it with an eight month old. Most of the guided game drives don’t allow children under a certain age, and let’s face it, you don’t really want to be stuck out somewhere with a fidgety screaming baby whose general noise could potentially ruin everyone else’s trip.
So, instead of giving up and choosing a more typical generic family adventure, we decided to fly up to Pretoria, drive through a few of the provinces up north and then eventually make our way towards the Pilanesberg for a self-drive safari of our own.
Opting for more of a rustic experience, we set up camp at the Manyane Resort’s camping area: sporting our own tent. The camp grounds themselves were nothing exciting. The (non-RV) camp ground had very little grass and was almost 100% dust. There were hardly any shady trees to take refuge under from the scorching sun, and every step we took we had to be weary of a biting troop of ants. In many ways we were roughing it “¦ but don’t let my complaining fool you, we still had a good time! The site provided us with adequate ablutions which included hot showers, a bath tub to wash the baby in, as well as clean toilets and sinks. There is a pool to cool off in, and a few tables and chairs with umbrellas set up near the restaurant where we could escape a couple of times throughout the day. There was even a corner store just down the road.
In the mornings, we piled into the car bright and early making sure to bring essentials for the baby: snacks, spare bottles, nappies, toys, and a cd case filled with repetitive children’s music – a must for any parent! As we set off through the park gates listening to “˜The wheels on the bus go round and round’ (for the hundredth time) we couldn’t help but feel that the whole experience was a bit surreal. Here we were surrounded by 580 km of stunningly beautiful bushveld and a variety of wild animals in their natural surroundings. We couldn’t help but wonder what they thought of us, not to mention our choice of music.
The Pilanesberg is home to a number of different animals (including the big five) and 300 types of birds. During our drives, we saw pretty much everything, elephants, zebra, buck, and even a lion that was chowing on a baby rhino – a little bit sad considering the poaching issues with rhinos, but certainly not something you get to see every day!
The scenery was spectacular: rolling hills, natural countryside, large lakes, and indigenous plant life. We were in heaven! The park has about 200 km of well-maintained roads to drive comfortably on, and the baby never once got woken up by a sudden jerk or bump.
There were sections throughout the park where we could get out of the car to stretch our legs, and give our baby a quick change of scenery: little restaurants, souvenir spots, and covered quiet viewing areas that were fabulous places to take a few quick quality photos from. When we were in the car we had the benefit of stopping or feeding him whenever we wanted to, and we didn’t have to worry about a tight schedule or about ruining anyone else’s trip. We could even sing to lull him to sleep.
On returning back to camp, we would quickly get our son washed and snug into bed, before enjoying a nice relaxing braai underneath a sheet of stars. Although a couple of the braais were cut a bit short due to the seasonal stormy weather, we were able to return home with some fabulous pictures and a lifetime of memories. We’d definitely recommend the self-drive option at Pilanesberg to other outdoorsy parents like us.
Contact
Manyane Resort
Tel 014-555-1000
Email [email protected]
