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| Zebra |
During our stay in The Gambia, we took a day trip to Senegal, not just to get another country’s stamp in our passports (although that’s always a thrill to me!), but to visit Fathala Game Reserve. I had read mixed reviews about the place on Trip Advisor, but, on balance, the good outweighed the bad, so we decided to go for it. Most of the detractors in these reviews were comparing the reserve to similar ones in east Africa (Kenya and Tanzania for example) and they were left wanting. Having done a week-long safari in Kenya ourselves some years ago, we knew it couldn’t possibly measure up to that, but we hoped it would be somewhat more authentic than Windsor Safari Park, which one reviewer had compared it to!
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| The view from the back of our truck |
In the event, it was an amazing experience and I’m so glad we went! We booked the trip through Arch Tours and so were able to stay in our own jeep for the two hour drive through the park, rather than having to join lots of other tourists in one of the large trucks owned by the reserve. The advantage was that we were able to go along very narrow tracks or even go completely off-road. We were joined in our vehicle by a very knowledgeable park ranger, who was also an incredible ‘spotter’. Due to the time of year, the elephant grass in the 6000 hectare reserve was very high and we were warned that we might not see anything. We therefore consider ourselves very lucky to have seen almost all the animal species which live in the park, including rhinoceros, warthogs, giraffe, zebra, and antelope. The only creature we didn’t see was the western giant eland, the animal which the reserve is most famous for!
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| Our park ranger, Mamadou |
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| Giraffe |
As well as the animals, we also saw lots of different birds and insects. It was so exciting to be standing on the seats on the back of the jeep as we bumped and rolled over the uneven ground, stopping whenever our guide noticed something. It brought back so many good memories and made me want to get on the next plane to Kenya!
Once the drive was over, we went to meet two of the lions which the park has bred. They are kept separate from the main reserve, but the plan is to introduce them to a specially fenced off area when they are old enough. At present, they are three and a half years old and are brought out for tourists to see them, but they are kept a reasonable distance away, both for the humans’ safety, but also so that the animals do not become tamed.
The conservation work being undertaken in the reserve is second to none and warrants the high charge made to take a safari there.
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| Rhino |
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| The king of the cats |
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