Spring 2013 Saddle Club Newsletter - Honourable Artillery Company

efore us punters and were a source of encyclopaedic knowledge of plants, treesand birds. October is the hottest and driest time of year but, even so, there wasplenty of water, hence the proliferation of wild life and the density of vegetation. Italso gave us the opportunity for frequent canters along the waterways, gettingthoroughly splashed in the process.Mercifully, the horses were sure-footed andthere seemed few under-water traps. Anotherthrilling part of the riding was gallopingalongside herds of giraffe or buffalo. Our onlydisappointment on what was otherwise aperfect holiday (very little evidence ofmosquitos!) was the failure to spot any lionor leopard, both of which are numerous inthe area as witnessed by frequent sighting ofpaw prints in the mud. Others staying at thesame time had a good sighting of a lion oneevening but only from a safari vehicle. When we finally took our departure we knewwe’d made a mistake in leaving so soon as our little 4-seater plane flew through athunder and lightening on its exciting 40 minute flight back to Maun.The Lodge is owned and run by African Horseback Safaris and although this is notan advertisement, anyone interested will find details through www.inthesaddle.comPhilippa Turner - Author11