Greetings Everyone!

I’m so excited to write this newsletter, as I have such wonderful pictures in this month’s gallery to share with you. Looking at them just proves time & time again how awesome this bush and this Reserve are, and how privileged we are to have this on our back doorstep.

January began with a beautiful wedding held at Bukela. It was such a perfect day weather-wise, and everything went so smoothly. The gorgeous couple, Garth & Shelly, allowed us to share these fantastic photos of their special day. All photos taken by professional photographer Debbie Louw.

What a very special day it was. It ended with a romantic candlelit bubble bath in their room, with champagne, chocolates and roses petals scattered on the floor, to make for a special arrival back!

To Sandra & the team – well done for pulling out all the stops and ensuring they definitely went away with memories to last a lifetime.

Their comments: There are no words to describe how grateful we are to the staff at Bukela for making our wedding day more spectacular & beautiful than we had ever imagined. Every detail was accomplished with such unique thought and care, to a level that exceeded our hopes and imagination. You will forever be remembered and recommended by us. Garth & Shelly Cranston.

We have certainly had some fantastic groups in, each with their own special reasons for visiting the Reserve. One of our Rangers, Deanne, had her family book in and had the opportunity to be their ranger. The occasion was her very special 87 year old grandfather’s visit from the UK. They were blown away by their experience at Hlosi and (without being biased!) very impressed with Deanne’s knowledge. Well done Dee!

Thanks to the Alma-Ferrey family, who stayed at Hlosi, for sending in some great lion, cheetah and giraffe shots in this month’s gallery. They got to sit fairly close to the cheetah cubs having a good rough & tumble. And who wouldn’t ooh & aah over the two gorgeous lions in such fantastic condition?

We have been keeping nice and busy at Leeuwenbosch and had a couple of celebrations there too. Peter and Mary Fraser celebrated their 52nd Wedding Anniversary at the Lodge this month. They had awesome experiences on game drive, and were lucky enough to be at the right place at the right time, to see a cheetah kill take place. Arriving back at the Lodge already on a high, they had a special dinner prepared for their anniversary. The Leeuwenbosch staff choir also uplifted their spirits with their angelic voices, to give Peter and Mary memories that will last them for the rest of their lives.

We love these occasions when we can go all out and create nice surprises for our guests!

Other than all of the excitement on the human side, animal activity has also been thrilling. it has really been very hot on the Reserve and the animals know where to find green grass & a cool water hole. Check out this month’s gallery for pics of some of the beautiful beasts that visited us at Bukela Lodge, and made for awesome experiences for our guests. Don’t miss the pic of Stu clearing up after an elephant feast outside the Bukela office.

Our Head Ranger Stu kindly shared some awesome shots of our gorgeous cheetahs drinking at the Bukela waterhole.

Other great shots from our Rangers in the gallery include some beautiful new young ones. The jackal pup is a very rare sight, but boy he wasn’t shy to hang about and check our vehicle out! And it’s been a while since we shared an ‘aaaahhhh’ moment: we are proud to share with you some very special photos of the new baby white Rhino. I definitely get goose bumps looking at this perfect specimen, and what a joy for our guests. The size of the baby next to its mum, gives you some indication as to how large the adults actually are.

Lastly, we reeceived the fantastic shots of the cheetah on the tree trunk from one of our guests that stayed up at Bukela. Thanks to Justin Wood for sharing these with us.

I’ll end off with some of the guests’ comments from this past month, which keep us motivated to keep doing what we’re doing:

Bukela: Thanks for a wonderful experience – it’s hard to say something that hasn’t already been said, but we definitely agree with all the other visitors – this place is fantastic! All of the staff are wonderfully professional, yet friendly and welcoming. The room was superb. Thanks Rodger for the expert guiding. - Sally & Matt Greenwich, London, UK

Our stay was absolutely amazing. We saw all that the Reserve had to offer and are extremely grateful for that. Every one of the staff was extremely professional, friendly and unique in their own way. It was a most enjoyable experience. Thank You so much! - Justin & Georgina Wood

Hlosi: What an amazing experience. The service was excellent – Thank You. Roelof was very professional and your entire team made an incredible ambiance. Very friendly staff, hospitality excellent. we were treated brilliantly! *****Excellent! - Justin & Charmaine

Leeuwenbosch: It was a dream night and a honeymoon worth everything. We love you and thank you. - John & Leigh Brits

We had great expectations about this place and not only has it been met but you've exceeded them. - Betty, Jose, Jonzalo & Gaby

Lastly, a huge thank you to all our agents – new & old - for all the business you have sent us. To the new agents we have met, thank you for giving us a chance to prove we will show your guests a fantastic time. To the agents who continue to support us, thank you for your continued faith in us! To those who have taken the time to come out on a site inspection, it was great to meet you, and we look forward to working with you in the future.

Until next month, have yourselves a fantastic month ahead.

Take care,
Kerry