Lion Sands Game Reserve

Sorry for the absence of blogs- I'm a bit burned out with all the photos in my life recently! Today's post is about the wonderful private game reserve that we stayed on for our Safari. Lion Sands Game Reserve was a luxury lodging and we loved it. This guy would greet you each time you went out or came in from a game drive. He'd do a dance, swivel his hips & wave a big wave to all the explorers.



At Lion Sands, there is the River Lodge, where we stayed, the more private, more luxurious Ivory Lodge for honeymooners or a large house for families. Our little bungalow was perfect & we really enjoyed the River Lodge.



So, even if they got H's name wrong, we were still waited on and pampered around the clock. We had a "butler" at every meal who knew what we wanted to drink & would serve us food.



We had a fun little outdoor shower that we took advantage of a few times.



I loved that we could lay in bed & look out our window across the river.



The deck was also great to sit out on & watch for animals. H wandered off the deck & down to the riverbed for a better view. It's not visible in the photo, but I promise there is an elephant over there.



From our room one day, we could see a whole herd of elephants tromping around on the far side of the river.



We awoke from a nap one afternoon, to find this guy about 5' from our back porch. I *think* it's a bushbuck.



The dry part of the river was a side tributary that was dry most of the year. You could walk across it to a small "island" and be on the river & enjoy the deck they had built out there.



On the deck, they have comfy chairs to sit and enjoy the babbling stream & shade of the trees.



It was really a beautiful area & I think they even have parties or cocktail hours some nights out on the deck.



This is the lounge, where we spent lots of time checking email (for work...bleh!) & the bar is just to the right. They'd have the fire going in the evenings to warm up & most of the guests would meet up here before dinner for a cocktail.



There was a lower dining area for breakfast, lunch & dinner which was perched just above the dry river bed.



This is the more outdoor gathering area- where we'd meet for early morning coffee and late-afternoon tea before our game drives.



They have an AMAZING outdoor bedroom built in a tree that you can spend one night in, but The Treehouse was fully booked while we were there.



You can see this wooden boardwalk at the bottom- it connected the main lobby and dining areas to all the bungalows. It was elevated above the ground about a foot & made for a neat stroll.



We'd awake at 5:30 most mornings in order to grab a light snack & coffee by 6 and head out with our group as the sun was coming up. Each game drive was about 3 hours long, so we wouldn't arrive back in the afternoons until almost 8PM, then dinner. We were exhausted & needed a few catnaps.



After breakfast, Tellie took us out for a bush walk, where we actually were able to get on the ground & see things up close. It's amazing how much bigger all the animals (impala were all we saw on the walk) appeared. Anytime she's off the vehicle, she has to carry the fire arm in case of a dangerous animal.



Heading out on the cool mornings, we'd find blankets & a hot water bottle to keep us warm. Arriving back from a game drive, we'd be greeted with cool towels to freshen up with.

GOOD NEWS OF THE DAY: Been a long, LONG week, but Friday is a-coming soon!