Southern Horse Magazine June / July 2016 | Page 17

The Two Mashatus camp , the first camp of the the Tuli Safari , is in an area that the elephant frequent so you are almost guaranteed to see ele ’ s almost immediately on the first day . This camp is charming , nestled under a huge Mashatu tree , with dining and lounge rondavels thatched with palm leaves . A secluded swimming pool is also very welcome to cool down in after a long ride . After hours game viewing in the saddle , the guests were looking forward to supper . I know I had certainly worked up a healthy appetite behind the camera . To my astonishment , a three course meal was produced on an open fire , and not just any three course meal either : Fire roasted bone marrow , Tarzan lamb , followed by a delicious banana and chocolate tower ! But what any rider really wants to know is , what are the
horses like ? Personally , I ’ ve always steered away from ‘ horse riding holidays ’ after a terrible experience I once had on a riding excursion in Canada many years ago . Large ‘ clumpers ’ were produced for us to ride , and we were not allowed to even get out of a walk for fear of the company being sued ! Thankfully I can report that the horses you ’ ll ride on the Tuli Safari are certainly not ‘ clumpers ’, quite the opposite , and you will definitely get out of a walk . In fact you might actually be relieved to walk after the many , many extended canters through the bush . The only way to describe the horses to horsey people is that they are beautiful and look fabulous . More importantly , they are well schooled , athletic , brave and experienced around big game such as elephant , which just makes riding them a total pleasure . There is even a bush cross country country course to enjoy .
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