After dark at the waterhole, four lion cubs finally came out

Until one evening, when some co-owners sat patiently at a waterhole after sunset in their vehicle, waiting for the stars to come out and for whatever might happen. On earlier visits they had known nights of nothing but doves and sandgrouse dipping in to drink, and other nights when rhino and leopard came down hesitantly to the water. On this trip their patience had not really paid off yet. It had been quiet, apart from some beautiful barn owls flying overhead.

They were about to give up and head back to the lodge when, in the very last light before nightfall, a pale shape appeared between two bushes. They could not believe their eyes: a lion cub! Spotlight ready, camera in place, and then a second cub came out, a third and a fourth. But no mum.

So, the cubs were real, some four months old by the look of them, and brave enough to come and drink without their shy mother. They first darted about a little, played with each other, and then one by one they went down to the water’s edge to drink. In what can’t have been more than four or five minutes, cuteness overload and all, it was over and they slipped back into the thickets. But now there were photos to prove the cubs were thriving.

This is one of the quiet perks of being a co-owner. There is no schedule to keep and no other vehicles queuing up, so you can sit at a waterhole night after night at leisure and simply wait. Most nights it’s doves. Sometimes it’s this.

“Such a thrill and a privilege to see this as co-owners. Just us, surrounded by the dark and the sounds of the bush, and then this… It doesn’t get better than this!”

Want to be part of the adventure? As a co-owner of Limpopo-Lipadi, in Botswana’s Tuli Block, this waterhole is yours to come back to. For investment enquiries, email invest@limpopo-lipadi.org. To book a stay, contact reservations@limpopo-lipadi.org or WhatsApp (+267) 76770191.