THE SILENT SAFARI
AN ELECTRIC EXPERIENCE IN KENYA
Clean, green, and serene: e-vehicles are changing how we explore the bush, transforming safari into the truly tranquil experience
We're gliding across a meadow of sun-ripened grass in the smoothest safari vehicle I've ever experienced. Suddenly, there's a thundering of hooves to our right. A 30-strong herd of buffalo is heading straight for us.
Uncertainty chokes me. Buffalo can be dangerous, but it's usually grumpy lone bulls that cause problems. What's provoked them? Could it be our electric vehicle? The elephants here in Kenya's Lewa Wildlife Conservancy took a while to get used to it when it first arrived less than three years ago. Is it emitting some kind of high frequency note that only buffalo can hear?
Gorgeous but pricey, electric safari vehicles (ESVS) remain rare in Africa's safari heartlands, with just a handful of operators trialling them. In Kenya, Botswana and Zambia, there are signs they'll catch on. But when I told a guide from South Africa that I was visiting Lewa's founding lodge, Lewa Wilderness, to sample an ESV firsthand, he scoffed. What if you get into trouble? he said. At the first sign an animal might charge my vehicle, I rev my engine to make a big, loud noise. What happens if you can't do that?
Perhaps I'm about to find out. The buffalo are getting close, the thunder rising to a roar. But, as it turns out, it's not our vehicle that's spooking them. A lion! says Frances Mayetu, my guide, gripping the steering wheel as the herd swerves past and the lioness comes into view - until now, she was invisible in the grass.
Denne historien er fra July/August 2022-utgaven av National Geographic Traveller (UK).
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Denne historien er fra July/August 2022-utgaven av National Geographic Traveller (UK).
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent? Logg på
Dianne Whelan
THOUGH NOT A SEASONED HIKER TO BEGIN WITH, THE FILMMAKER BECAME THE FIRST PERSON TO COMPLETE THE WORLD'S LONGEST TRAIL NETWORK
NIGERIA
The country's many communities come together over hearty meals with plenty of heat
Katie Hale
A VOYAGE TO THE GREAT WHITE CONTINENT IS BOTH A DREAM COME TRUE AND A CALL TO ARMS, TO PROTECT OUR ICY POLES AND, IN TURN, OUR PLANET
WILTSHIRE
BEYOND THE MAIN ATTRACTION OF STONEHENGE, WILTSHIRE HAS EQUALLY IMPRESSIVE ANCIENT SITES, GIANT CHALK HORSES AND COSY PUBS IN HISTORIC VILLAGES
BATH
Thermal baths and Regency heritage have put this Somerset city firmly on the travel map - and this year the spotlight will be on former resident and literary great Jane Austen, in celebration of the 250th anniversary of her birth
GRANADA
In this Andalucian city, flamenco is an art form as well as a way of life not just for traditional dancers and singers but also for hip-hop stars, classical guitar legends and street artists
India's Golden Triangle
LINKING DELHI, THE TAJ MAHAL AND THE PINK CITY OF JAIPUR, WITH DETOURS FOR TEMPLES AND TIGERS, THIS IS THE PERFECT ROUTE FOR FIRST-TIMERS. WORDS: POOJA NAIK
FORGED BY FIRE
A SUBTROPICAL ISLAND IN THE ATLANTIC, MADEIRA HAS RUGGED VOLCANIC MOUNTAINS THAT RISE ABOVE THE CLOUDS, NATURAL SWIMMING POOLS DOWN AT SEA LEVEL AND MORE THAN 1,900 MILES OF HISTORIC AQUEDUCTS TRACING THE LANDSCAPES IN BETWEEN
ADRIFT IN THE ARCTIC CIRCLE
A KAYAKING EXPEDITION THROUGH NORWAY'S LOFOTEN ISLANDS OFFERS WHITE-SAND BEACHES, ROYAL ENCOUNTERS AND THE CHANCE TO CHANNEL YOUR INNER VIKING
the RETURN
ON A PRIVATE GAME RESERVE IN SOUTH AFRICA'S KWAZULU-NATAL PROVINCE, AN UNLIKELY CREATURE IS MAKING A TENTATIVE COMEBACK - AND VISITORS ARE OFFERED A GLIMPSE INTO THE CONSERVATION EFFORTS TO SAVE IT AND OTHER NATIVE WILDLIFE
