When Matt and Ashley Roth started looking at their “trip-of-a-lifetime” destination in Southern Africa, they had no clue where to start…. Read all about their wonderful experiences and journeys travelling through Mashatu Game Reserve.
When deciding where the travel to in Southern Africa, we considered a few destinations. Kruger National Park? The Okavango Delta? The Kalahari… All options were on the table. Through some of our friendly connections we discovered Mashatu and the rest is quite simply a journey of joy and everlasting friendships. If you have stumbled upon this blog – you obviously want a little deeper information about what to expect. Just so you know – I am not being compensated for this and its truly out of pure passion that I write this. But the short of it, enjoy….and just book your safari now.
Travel and Adventure to the Ultimate Destination
We had heard that getting to the most amazing places in Botswana was a trek – but it really was easy. We contacted Mashatu and they arranged everything for us once we landed in Johannesburg South Africa. We were picked up by our road transfer (Mashatu Connect) at our overnight hotel at the airport and whisked away with the most friendly of drivers. He drove us safely and comfortably around the 5 hour drive to the Pont Drift Boarder Crossing into Botswana. Mind you – our first trip was in 2019 and we have been back almost every year since – bringing friends, family, and others. So we are seasoned pros now.
The Experience of Mashatu
I think your first introduction really happens on the Botswana side of the boarder. You are picked up by the most amazing guides and trackers in all of Southern Africa after concluding the standard passport stamping and form filling. We sat together and came up with three things that we think are the magic behind Mashatu. 1. The Mashatu People 2. The Animal Sightings and 3. The Mashatu Moment. Let me break each one of those down in a bit more detail.
The Mashatu People
While it sounds like I am explaining a subset of Botswana people…I really am not, I am highlighting the staff here at Mashatu’s Camps. We have stayed at Tent Camp, Tuli Safari Lodge Mashatu, Mashatu Lodge, Kolokolo Safari Home and had a short stay at Euphorbia Mashatu too. Every single person you interact with is the most lovely and caring person you will meet. From the cooks and chefs, to the housekeeping staff, to the camp managers. It feels like everyone is family immediately. I have never travelled anywhere in the world where it feels like you are “home” more than Botswana. Maybe that’s because if you trace all humanity back…. we come from that area. Maybe its deeply rooted in our DNA or maybe it’s just how lovely the staff are.
The Guides and Trackers – Oh man, don’t get me started or I could write a whole other blog about how amazing they are. From their lead guide to the newest tracker – we have become lifelong friends with many of them. Learning about their weddings, children and so much more. Not to mention their absolute expert level of finding animals, landscapes, always putting you in the exact correct locations. Quite simply the best in Southern Africa. I am a fan of sitting next to the trackers and learning more and more about tracks, how to see what the animal is moving, and the tips and tricks they have used over the years. So much so that I started taking tracking courses.
Think of the tag-team of your Guide and Tracker like this. The Guide drives…gets you placed perfectly, makes sure you are comfortable, has amazing and incredibly deep knowledge about the flaura and fauna and your Tracker…the tactical guy looking at the forensic evidence to partner with the guide to get you to the sightings…and oh the sightings…
The Wildlife Sightings
So many Safari goers want to see the hailed “big five” and we have done those tours and sites. Trust me when I say I don’t think its about seeing the “big five”. I think its about the intimate, quality sightings that Mashatu Guides and Trackers work so hard to give the guests at Mashatu. In our years of visiting Mashatu we have been surrounded by Spotted Hyena, Sat under a Mashatu Tree with a female leopard, Went on a “Game Park” (what we called our drive instead of a drive – we just parked and sat quietly and allowed the animals to come to us!) at Fig tree Crossing and had a massive elephant dig for water surrounded by Impala and Kudu. Instead of having a traditional sundowner, we skipped it and were blessed with a pride of lions and cubs playing all around the game vehicle. The sightings are really treats. The guides respect the wildlife, observe but do not interfere, and educate you softly. We follow their advice, remain quiet and respectful and the wildlife feel like they accept you.
The Mashatu Moment
OK, this one is admittedly silly – but it’s a true thing that happens when you are in Mashatu. It could be a moment at Mmamagwa Hill Baobab where you can run your fingers over tens of thousands of years old game carved into the stone. It could be a sundowner at De Beers Lookout with elephant shrews trying to steal some snacks. Or, it could be just watching the sun set over the amazing landscape. The moment is powerful and so desperately needed. With all of the turmoil, stress, hustle and grind of daily life, ‘The Mashatu Moment’ will hit you when you least expect – where all of that melts away and you truly live in the moment. The joy of the wilderness, wildlife, and gravity of perspective are the only things that matter. It’s one of the main reasons why I keep coming back to Mashatu.
My Instagram feed before my first trip to Mashatu in 2019 was cars, watches, silly things that don’t matter…since then – it’s been infected – very much like me – with the absolute best bite from the absolute best bug out there – The Mashatu Safari Bug.