The Stone
Who in their right mind stops for a stone? We do, because a stone’s story is your story and it may add something of value to your life journey – perspective. In order to gain perspective, you will have to go from looking at the stone to looking into the stone.
Backpack Selection
Here’s the ultimate guide on how to select a backpack for your next Lowveld Trails Co. ‘Primitive Trail’. From capacity, features, fit, material, accessibility and brand reputation, we will guide you through the process of choosing a pack that fits your needs and keeps you comfortable on the Trail. Don’t miss out on the perfect backpack for your next adventure.
The Animal and the Cage
Imagine for a moment that the zoo keeper forgot the Lion’s enclosure open one night. The animal could easily step out and become free. However, its immediate surroundings will still be artificial and ecologically shattered. There will be no way in which this Lion can sustain itself and it will ultimately perish. The Lion can only ever be wild if the space it occupies allows it to be. Therefore, one could argue that space holds the spirit of the wild.
So, if a Lion’s state of being can range from captive to free, then the space it occupies can go from cagy to Wilderness. The idea that space can range in wildness may be more challenging to define, but it doesn’t justify ignoring such intrinsic value altogether.
Conserving Kinship
In the sudden stillness, I could hear the drone of bees. There was a hive in a large tree trunk just off to my right. “What are you waiting for?” I could hear the Honeyguide’s question as it stared at me from a nearby perch. “We have a deal, you and me. Don’t you remember?” I looked at the expectant bird. My lack of action felt like a betrayal, and I dropped my head in shame. What have we become? Have we forgotten our place in Nature? And if so, what terrible consequences await us?
Metamorphosis
A piece by Chloë Cooper. At first, your uncertain footing demands your attention. Your pack burdens your balance and your skin pinches between straps too tightly fastened – a precaution of your paranoid mind. Your feet are unfamiliar in your shoes, and your breath crashes like waves in your ears. The silence makes your thoughts even louder, while the melody of the bush lingers far away. Your thoughts are stumbling on the past, and leaping to the future. But they are not here, nor are they now.
Leave No Trace
Selecting an appropriate campsite is possibly the most important aspect of maintaining a negligible impact within the area of ‘Primitive Trail’ operations, as it requires the greatest degree of judgement and information. Deciding where to camp should be based on information about the fragility of soil and vegetation, the likelihood of wildlife interaction, and the assessment of previous impact.
Considering Trail Risk
It may seem that humans are preposterously vulnerable out in the African savanna. Nearly every large animal that occupy this space is stronger, faster and ‘toothier’ than us. So, how did it come to be that our species survived the savanna for hundreds of thousands of years, despite this imminent threat from dangerous animals?
Why Choose a Primitive Trail?
If there is one thing that we are certain of at Lowveld Trails Co. it is that immersive experiences in wild places changes the way that people think and behave. We are proud to be driving a travel option with a positive impact. Primitive Trails can improve the ecological integrity of a landscape while increasing participant’s well-being and support for Wilderness conservation. It’s not just tourism, its regenerative travel.
Trail de Akagera
There were two more sets of eyes reflecting back from a thicket nearby. “We’ve got company” I told Jackson as the pale shapes of two male Lions appeared in my binoculars. Nobody knew these Lions better than Jackson; one of the Park’s more experienced Field Rangers that had been tasked with monitoring the population since their reintroduction in 2015. The two male Lions were now striding leisurely towards us as Jackson and I held our position in front of the group.
At the End of the Rainbow
His noble arrival grew more gripping with each stride as he calmly moved towards the group. We happened to be positioned directly between him and the spring. Although he was still unaware of our presence, it became clear that interaction would be unavoidable.
