The New Year received a Singita welcome with festive song and dance in the wilds (the fluke music notes photograph above captures the atmosphere of the evening), followed by a decadent and delicious 10-course tasting menu prepared by our dedicated chefs, a plentiful supply of fine wine selected by the sommeliers and as 12 o’clock struck the sabrage cork connected the sparkling wine to the stars. May 2008 be as fruitful as the Marula trees are at this time of year! Elephants have gathered in their droves to hoover up these nutritious golden treasures that contain four times as much Vitamin C as an orange!

“Stations we’ve located the two Othawa lionesses and four little cubs! Make that five cubs… Six… SEVEN!”

My excitement knew no bounds! There they were – seven tiny little bundles of fluff padding about on paws way too big for their bodies and with tummies so full the seemed to drag on the soft river bed sand…

We knew that two Othawa lionesses (Panthera leo) that we see from time to time had given birth to cubs but no one had seen them, and their mothers weren’t giving any clues as to their secret den site.

It was the 5th of January and we decided to try our luck across the mighty Sand River. We slowly inched our way down into a dry riverbed where tracks of the lionesses had recently been seen and were about to begin our ascent
when a backward glance around the bend revealed the two magnificent mother lionesses with their new cubs. We could see four of them, which I immediately announced over the radio, and then slowly but surely the curiosity of the little cats got the better of them and three more appeared to inspect us.

Time stood still as we greedily savoured the scene. The lionesses gave us that internationally understood look of any mother, regardless of species, that says, “Admire my beautiful children all you will but one false move and your life, as you know it, will be over.” The cubs viewed us with wonder as to what exactly this big green tin can with lots of eyes was, but then they settled down and began to play with one another, suckle from their mothers and attack precocious pieces of grass blowing in the breeze…