As November rolled on, we had a plethora of varying weather. It was almost as though we had all the seasons in one this last month! There are clear indications of the 4.5 inches of rain all over Magashi’s private wilderness area, with mud pools all over, and of course beautiful, lush green bush.
Sightings and Guiding Team
There was an abundance of rain this month, but the guiding team was still able to deliver some wonderful sightings for our guests. The guides took the opportunity to take guests out when they could between the thunder showers, and saw an abundance of animals – all seemingly celebrating the rain’s arrival.
Some of the more notable sightings this month would have to be the large number of leopards seen on the concession, with many guests seeing leopard kills right in front of them. On one occasion, a female and her youngster spent two days enthralling Magashi guests with all sorts of activity – from climbing up and down trees, to feeding, and hiding from the onslaught of hyenas waiting for leftovers.
The Magashi lion pride males Ntwari and Ngangare were seen on a regular basis patrolling the concession, defending it from younger males pushing in from the west. The main reason for the patrols and defensive behaviour of the coalition is likely because the Amahoro female has had their cubs in their territory. They will do everything to protect their new bloodline and its future on the Magashi Concession. Ntwari and Ngangare are considerably older than the new challengers, but with age comes experience, and only time will tell which of the two coalitions will dominate the area in the future. It’s a sad reality, but their reign may be coming to an end.
Wildlife Sightings
Service and Chef Teams
The Service Team continues to look after our Magashi guests in the best way possible. While the weather has put a short pause on some of the wonderful out-of-camp camp experiences that they create, they most certainly made up for it in camp, with a variety of cocktail evenings, Kugisha nights and culture shows!
The Chefs’ Team has also been working on a brand-new menu, with some delicious additions to the vegan and vegetarian options available to our guests. While we have added these to the menu, we have also looked to expand and improve the variations of many of the main dishes in an attempt to improve on the wonderful existing menu.
Fifty-seven Akayange families have each received a goat – and will give their first baby goats to the next 57 families… and the next… and the next…
Thursday the 4th of November was an exciting day for the Akayange community. Andrea Bolte, one of our most loyal Children in the Wilderness (CITW) donors in Rwanda – and before that, an unfaltering supporter of CITW Namibia and CITW Zambia – visited the village and donated a goat to the 57 most disadvantaged families!
Andrea stayed at Magashi for five nights, and one of the days was dedicated to this humbling donation.
The Akayange community is situated just outside Akagera National Park, so it was possible for Andrea to visit the village – together with Wilderness Rwanda Operations Manager, Ingrid Baas, and CITW and Community Co-ordinator, Aline Umutoni.
“The community committee that we work with in the Akayange area had requested goats for more families, after the implementation of a successful project in November last year. This was when CITW and Wilderness Rwanda facilitated the donation of a goat each to 78 families in the Akayange community”, noted Ingrid.
Together with the community committee and all families who received a female goat, the arrangement is that the first baby goat born to a recipient family will be donated to the next most needy family in the village – meaning that the project can keep supporting itself, as each family receiving a goat will continue to give its first-born to another family in the village.
“From the previous donation of 78 goats, many baby goats have already been given to other needy families in the village!” added Aline.
Goats are very low-maintenance livestock, surviving on even the poorest graze. Their manure is used for fertiliser, and they produce several litres of nutritious milk a day. They can have two to three kids a year, ensuring the ongoing success of the project.
The village leaders and the residents in the community offered their sincere thanks to Wilderness and CITW Rwanda, not to mention Andrea Bolte!
Guest Feedback
Thank you all so much! Every single one of you made our stay so memorable and enjoyable! We cannot thank you enough for your kindness and hospitality! J & K – USA
Dear Magashi Team – We are so grateful for our time here at Magashi. From the moment we arrived we felt taken care of. The camp is spectacular and so beautiful, but it is the people and service that we really appreciate – you all do such an amazing job of making sure we had everything we needed and more, during our whole stay. And a special thank you to Fidel and Gloria. Many thanks to all of you and God bless you. L, T, A, T & M – USA
Thank you for a wonderful experience! We thoroughly enjoyed your hospitality!! T & L – USA
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