Memoirs on Safari by Peter Hayward
Dec 06 2011
What safari dreams are made of…
The Land Rovers bump and grind over the hard, red earth of the narrow rutted track winding higher and higher over the sweeping, rugged grassland of the Kromdraai conservancy. A kudu, merged into the patchwork of shadows and crevices under the deepening shade of an Acacia stills her browsing and watches the intrusive procession.
We crest the hill, below, to the right, through the veldt on the lip of a serrated, rolling valley, a cluster of tents. Then you sense it. You sense it in the breeze and the silence – the primitive, mysterious allure of an African campsite; a ‘sacred’ place isolated from the intrusions shrink-wrapped tourism. This, you feel is different. Old Hollywood in its brash, extravagant heyday would have set up a camp like this for Katherine Hepburn on location in East Africa. This is unique. This is special.
The motors cut. Footsteps crunch over the pebbles and stubble grass of a clearing encircled by flaming bamboo torches. Attendants robed in flowing white ‘kurtas’ crossed from the shoulder with red sashes meet the guests with trays of chilled refreshments. A man in khaki and a pith helmet reaches for your bag. ‘Hello,’ he says smiling widely and warmly, ‘I am Ian. Welcome to Hayward’s Luxury Safaris.’
‘Gin’ tents – linked double-lined marquees – conceal the kitchen, silver decked linen tables and candelabras, and an earth-embanked stage for entertainment. The fading sun silhouettes the smaller ‘cottage accommodation’ tents as Ian leads the way down steps formed by natural rock formations. Outside each tent, discrete and irregularly spaced for privacy, is a flickering paraffin lamp; inside a hissing Coleman, twin beds and an adjoining shower and toilet.
‘A luxury mobile Safari,’ Peter Hayward, the owner explains, ‘is for people who are tired of hotels but who want similar comforts; but comfort in remote, secluded and interesting places. Our clients can choose where they want to go and we will set up our tents, hot showers, soft beds and candelabras, serve you a seven course meal and entertain you. We access top musicians or motivational speakers and can mobilise for groups of 40 to 70 people in 
36 hours.’
