A weekend in the Madikwe bush ... where we enjoyed the beautiful game!
So it’s clichéd, but there really isn’t much to beat a weekend in the bush to relax, recharge, reconnect. And what with gremlins in the IT works, too many late nights watching (and celebrating) soccer and fast-looming deadlines that (following said gremlins) were just too awful to contemplate, a two-night stay at Madikwe River Lodge was exactly what the doctor ordered.
The lodge, set on the banks of the Groot Marico River in the Madikwe Game Reserve, recently underwent a complete revamp, and has been the escape-the-city choice of a number of internationals out here to follow the beautiful game. We arrived on the tail of a group of rather glum English fans, who licked their wounds for a few days before heading home, and a group of Aussies, who were having such a fabulous time in our country that they waved off their team and extended their stay for a little longer.
They, and we, were hugely impressed with the new-look lodge. Smallish – just 16 rooms – it lends itself to intimate groups (and is apparently a popular wedding venue). 
The secluded, split-level thatched chalets surround the main lodge – each decorated with a rich African feel and with its own private wooden deck overlooking the tranquil forest and river.
Meals (and lets face it, weekends in the bush are planned around food!) are a treat. Brunch and high tea are served outdoors on the revamped deck under the acacia trees and overlooking the river; dinners are enjoyed beside the fireplace in the dining room when it’s chilly, or outdoors in the boma, which is located on an island in the river which you access by a wooden bridge. Very Indiana Jones. We finished one game drive out in the bush, where we sat around a bonfire and dined on eland steaks and Amarula pud and listened to the lions.
There’s a loft lounge in the main lodge, where we all rushed after dinner to catch the Paraguay vs Spain game on TV.
But for our new friends from Down Under, the real attraction was, as it should be, the game. And the animals pulled out all the stops and came out to play. Game drives saw guests frantically photographing the four lionesses with their 14 cubs (good grief, imagine trying to keep that lot fed), a brown hyena and a spotted genet. We saw a white rhino with her calf, as well as a whole host of ellies - one with a babe (who entertained by plucking up courage for a few mock charges and then, taking a hugely deep breath, gave a tiny little trumpet that scared him more than us). Our brilliant ranger Takura (‘call me Charles’) was thrilled when we spotted a spring hare ... ‘Madikwe’s version of the kangaroo’ he deadpanned, before tracking buffalo so the international guests could tick off another Big Five sighting. The leopards lived up to their reputation and remained elusive, but the solitary cheetah on the 75 000 hectare reserve more than made up for this by allowing himself to be followed for more than an hour while on the hunt before disappearing into the bush. And the Aussie who’d been keen on spotting hippo was delighted when four obligingly popped up in the river right outside the lodge, wallowing in the water throughout brunch before ambling off downstream.
For those who want, there are game walks after brunch ... we all opted instead for incredible aromatherapy massages, which are given in your room or, on warmer days, on your private deck.
In-between the game drives, massages and meals (what bliss!), we sat reading on the deck, which we shared with a family of mongooses, a trio of really gorgeous hornbills who looked over our shoulders from their perch on the deck railings, and a troop of monkeys who lost no opportunity to steal food off the dining room table ... we lost a jolly good, run-off-the-plate-ripe Brie to one tiny chap (who tossed it in the river after one bite ... obviously an acquired taste!). A small price to pay for a brilliant bush break.
Stuff you need to know
Madikwe River Lodge is in the malaria-free Madikwe Game Reserve, located in the North West bordering Botswana. It’s an easy four hour trip from Sandton, if you take the route up past Sun City. Rates a night until the end of August are from R1 730 a person sharing, with children’s rates R865. From September it’ll cost from R2 300 a person sharing, with children (six to 11 years) R1 150. This includes accommodation, brunch, high tea and dinner and two game activities each day. It excludes the gate entrance fee of R50 a person a stay (children R20). It’s fabulous for birders, with 350 bird species, and has the Big Five as well as wild dog. Details and reservations: 014-788-9000 or www.madikweriverlodge.com
We just love Madikwe Game Lodge's ice tea and coffee served at their high tea. They revealed these great recipes exclusively to Get It Pretoria.
Madikwe's ice tea:
Place Lipton tea bags (2 mint, 2 lemon, 2 orange, 2 rooibos and 2 five roses) in 5 litres boiling water, and 2 cups sugar, stir and place in fridge to cool. When cooled, add half a cup lemon juice and 1 punnet mint leaves. Add one sliced orange and one sliced lemon.
Madikwe's iced coffee:
Dissolve 1/2 cup sugar in 2 litres filter coffee, add 2 litres milk, add one full teaspoon vanilla essence and 1/4 cup fresh cream. Stir. Leave in fridge to cool. Place in a jug with ice. Ready to serve.
(Pssssst - This iced coffee is AMAZING but for those of you that want a skinny version, skip the cream, add 2 litres skim milk instead of full cream and finish it off with 4 sachets of Vanilla Canderel.)
