Sometimes a bush visit is not only about the animals, either predator or prey. Like a good piece of music, where it is the silence between the notes that makes the music memorable, it is the smaller moments that can often take our breath away. Or perhaps, give us pause for thought.
Like this Solefuge. Neither a spider nor a scorpion, but related to both, it will frighten the uninformed if they are caught unawares. They are also known as Sun Spiders, Camel Spiders and Wind Scorpions.
Night does not come gently in the bush. Darkness crashes in like an uninvited intruder.
In the short space of time between the light and the dark, the bush changes gear. Daylight hours are mainly spent seeking food and water… or shelter from the weather.
At night, both predators and prey can sense changes in dynamics and play out their evolutionary roles.
Some will perish, but many will survive. That is the rule. It is the way nature works.
A table awaits guests. There is nothing quite like enjoying an outdoor dinner under the stars, or even better, a full moon.
Yes, electricity boils water more quickly. But can you really build a story around an electric kettle? I don’t think so.
But put this blackened aluminium kettle on an open fire, pull up a chair, and you have the makings of a great storytelling time waiting for it to come to the boil.
What type of story might that be? Could it be something like this?
Sitting there, watching that blackened kettle whisper and sigh above the embers, you’d tell a story about waiting. About journeys measured not in kilometres, but in moments. Perhaps it’s a tale of an old ranger who knew every tree by name and swore that the bush speaks — but only to those patient enough to listen between the crackle of wood and the hush of wind through leaves. Or a story of travellers who arrived as strangers, drawn together by necessity, and left as something closer to family because of a single shared fire under a wide African sky.
It could be a story about the first cup of coffee brewed before sunrise on a morning drive, when the world is still silver and expectant. Or about a storm that once rolled in without warning, forcing everyone closer to the flames, where laughter grew louder to compete with thunder.
That kettle, scarred and soot-stained, has clearly boiled water for countless conversations. It has heard secrets spoken into the night, confessions softened by firelight, and dreams voiced more bravely in the dark than in daylight.
Around a fire like this, you don’t tell fast stories. You tell stories with pauses — stories that allow space for the crack of a log collapsing into ash, for the soft inhale before a memory is shared. Stories that remind everyone sitting there that while the world beyond the trees may rush and roar, here, for a little while, time waits for the kettle to boil.
Anyone for another cuppa?
Too late for a dentist.
If you are walking in the bush, then these are what you want to see in front of you.
Cleaned and ready for action, that guides hope will never come to fruition, but they are trained to handle situations where and when it becomes necessary.
When you are both on the chap and in the dwang.
This Dung Beetle rolled his ball into a puddle of rainwater and was now trying to figure a way out of his predicament.
While lion prides try to take down a meal, or wild dog packs hunt with a focus that is almost a superpower, there are dramas like this occurring all the time.
A storm roils over the vast plains of a Lowveld Game Reserve while the guests try to beat the rain back to camp.
These are the moments that speak to me the most.
The setting sun, a quiet waterhole and the last of the light caused the trees to reflect in the still water.
My breakfast companion…a tiny Jumping Spider.
Another marvel of nature that needs to be recognised rather than killed indiscriminately while screaming “Spider” at the top of your lungs.
A full moon and a sky heavy with storm clouds create an almost horror-movie-like setting.
What might this young lion be contemplating?
Perhaps it is the lesson learned, or not, judging by the scars on its face.
Always curious, this Spotted Hyena made certain that it could observe us as we drove past.
Hyenas, I believe, have been given a bad rep since Disney released The Lion King.
Much like Jaws did for sharks and the fear that it engendered in bathers for decades after the film came out, the 3 hyenas, Shenzi, the female leader, Banzai, the aggressive, reckless one, and Ed, the goofy, laughing one, have not done their species any favours.
Hyenas are a necessity for making certain that carcasses left in the veld are broken down and eaten, so as not to rot and cause sickness eventually.
Now THIS is a garden service that you don’t want to find when you open your front door.
Almost single-minded in the necessity to eat continuously, the herds will move great distances in search of food and water.
And while the buffalo might have to search for their sustenance, guests don’t have to go far at all. In fact, it will be served to them.
The perfect way to end any day in the bush…a glass of wine and snacky things. In this case, popcorn, crisps, nuts and dried fruit of some description. More often than not, there is both biltong and dried wors, and locals enjoy trying to describe these iconic delicacies to international visitors.
Travel & Things is the proud winner of these prestigious awards from the digital British lifestyle magazine Luxlife.
The awards are in the categories:
Best Travel & Experiences Blog 2024 – South Africa
Best African Game Reserves & Lodges Travel Review Site 2025.
Best African Resorts and Retreats Award 2025.
And the most recent accolade… Most Engaging Travel & Lifestyle Blog 2026.
See who the guests have been since the inception of this YouTube channel.
Click on the logo above.
Looking for something to read? Click on the logo above to visit the Off the Shelf YouTube channel for interesting and up-to-date interviews and book reviews.
“Hard work never killed anybody, but why take a chance?”
Edgar Bergen
All images are the copyright property of
and may not be used without permission.
All images used in Travel & Things posts are edited using Ribbet software. To learn more about the product and what it offers both amateur and professional photographers, click on the logo above.
