Travel Notes Being aware of the contribution made particularly by air-travel to greenhouse-gas emissions(an annual 4% of greenhouse gases come from planes), I do try to control my impulses to experience and photograph distant wonders of nature! If, as occasionally happens, these urges overcome me, I do feel duty bound to 'offset' these contributions through an appropriate organisation (see links page). I also acknowledge that perhaps travelling and visiting areas of wilderness rich in wildlife in a way may be helping to keep them safe. People seem less inclined to damage an environment when it is clearly bringing in money. In February 2006 I spent two weeks travelling in South Africa photographing wildlife in Kwazulu Natal. Time was spent at Thula Thula, Hluhluwe Umfolozi, the Kruger Park and Inyati in Sabie Sands. An excursion was also made to view the Victoria Falls from the Zambian side. Victoria Falls Although perhaps not the best time for game-viewing as the grass is still long from the rains, we were generally lucky with what we saw. Particularly in the evenings the light was unfortunately not ideal. It is perhaps better to visit this region in their winter months, which are drier. In November 2006 I had a further two weeks in this part of South Africa as my wife also had work there as a business coach. My time was split between Timbavati, Welgevonden and Pilanesberg reserves. Again the weather was not ideal but I came away with some good photographic studies of zebra, warthog and elephant in particular. Part of January and February 2008 were spent in the northern part of Tanzania on a relatively intensive photographic safari covering Arusha National Park, Lake Manyara National Park, the Serengeti, Ndutu Reserve and Ngorongoro Crater Reserve. Ngorongoro Crater The rains had come a little early and the whole region was already quite green. We had some wonderful sightings, including a female cheetah and her six cubs in Ndutu and a memorable elephant encounter in Manyara National Park. In February 2009 Lisa and I had the privilege of being able to spend a week in the heart of primary rainforests in Sabah, Borneo. We caught the end of the rainy season so unfortunately saw very little sunshine. Probably as a result of this we were surprised how little bird life we saw. However, through the skills of our fantastic guides, this was more than made up for by some wonderful encounters with primates and various species of endearing tree frog. Primary Rainforest in the Danum Valley Conservation Area We also spent some time visiting the Sepilok Orang-utan Rehabilitation Centre at Sandakan, and were fortunate to meet Hayley Bagnall who was working there representing Orangutan Appeal UK. From her we learnt a lot about the excellent work this Appeal is doing to support the rehabilitation process for orphan orangutans. Due in particular to the current rapid destruction of their habitat, many of these magnificent creatures need the help of this and other centres, which aim to give them the necessary assistance and opportunity to return to a healthy and safe existence back in the wild. For more information on the Appeal and how you could help, please take a look at their website: www.orangutan-appeal.org.uk or contact Sue Sheward, the Chariwoman/Founder, at info@orangutan-appeal.org.uk. In February of 2010, I spent two weeks in Tanzania and Kenya in the company of fellow professional photographer, Paul Renner. He had arranged an excellent itinerary and we had some wonderful sightings, particularly of the big cats. I am looking forward to returning again to East Africa to lead a photographic safari in Tanzania in February 2011 - see www.srsafaris.com/tanzania-safari for full details of this trip. The itinerary includes the Tarangire National Park, Ngorongoro Crater and the Southern Serengeti to catch the spectacle of the wildebeest migration - should be fantastic, so hurry to sign up as places are limited!     Home |About Richard | Galleries Prices & Buying | Articles/Writing | Travel Notes Links | Contact Richard