The briefing recommends flipflops, sneakers, and hiking boots. Do I need all three?
I always wore hiking boots in the field, on the footprint ID and hippo walk. I wore sandals around camp and in town. Sneakers would be good to wear at camp, but I only wore the boots and sandals. You have to be comfortable in whatever you bring. You may need to make quick sprints to get away from animals, and possibly climb trees. The ground is uneven, so you need good ankle support. Aardvarks make huge holes in the ground, but the guards will point them out to you. “Chee-mo” means “hole” in Swahili, and you’ll hear that a lot! The gators recommended in the briefing are for ticks, not snakes. There aren’t a lot of snakes, but you want to prevent ticks from getting between your pants and socks. Q: Is the reserve fenced in? A: Yes, and it’s adjacent to a cattle ranch, which is part of the conservancy. There is a low stone wall that keeps the rhinos in their part of the conservancy. Q: Did you see any large wildlife? A: Two days, we saw elephants, but they’re very elusive. There was a tra
