Onguma Tree Top Camp (Etosha National Park, Namibia)

On the eastern boundary of the Etosha National Park in Namibia lies Onguma Game Reserve; and within this reserve are four safari holidays camps, varying greatly in luxury and comfort.   I was fortunate in that I spent some of my final months in Namibia at this reserve working at Onguma Tree Top Camp; this surely has to be the most enchanting little camp that I had the pleasure of either working in or staying at in my six years in this amazing country.

The camp has only four guest rooms, and as the name might suggest they are situated at tree canopy level with elevated walkways linking the rooms to the main lounge and dining area which is also raised about five metres above the ground.   Luxurious it is not, the rooms are fairly small but intimate with a double bed and have a wash basin area, en-suite toilet, two bedside tables and an outdoor shower; that’s it, and to be honest that is all you need, if the rooms were any larger or had any more amenities it would detract from this camp’s rustic feel.   Due to the fact that the camp is raised it is quite safe to have the front canvas blind to your room open at night giving you the chance to see nocturnal animals such as Lion, Leopard, Black Rhino, and Wild Cat drink at the camp’s waterhole from the comfort and warmth of your own bed!

Game drives both day and night within Onguma Reserve are offered to guests staying at any of the four camps, and excursions into the national park itself are also popular and reward guest with sightings of the abundant wildlife of the park; however the main emphasis at the Tree Top Camp is on walking.   The guide that is resident at the camp has been fully trained to walk guests in an area where potentially dangerous animals inhabit so walking safaris can be offered in the morning and afternoon.   A walk in the African bush offers a break from the norm of the usual routine of game drive after game drive and the chance to enjoy the smaller aspects of nature often ignored on drives: - Birds and their calls, animal tracks and tracking, trees, plants and their medicinal properties.   Should you wish to see the large mammals of the reserve then there is no better place to see these animals than from the viewing deck at the camp or from your chalet.

The highlight of my time at Tree Top Camp was the relationship I built up with the chef and host of the camp Taurai from Zimbabwe; this jolly chap prepares sumptuous meals from a simple, open plan kitchen and entertains guests every evening with his amiable charm and humour.   Despite being a brilliant chef whose bread, malva pudding and roasted Springbok leg is bettered by no other chef I know, he is also a budding naturalist; often in our rare free time in camp we would gather on the viewing deck binoculars in hand, and I would help improve his knowledge on bird identification and mammal behaviour.   Those quiet moments sharing my knowledge with a very enthusiastic student and friend were among my most cherished memories of Namibia.