Forumite's list of what to take when visiting a SANPark

[Guinea Pig]

I remember Meg saying they once forgot their mattresses and had to sleep on the ground at Satara. I must admit we once forgot all the tent pegs at home . It was almost a question of begging , stealing and borrowing as we were at Shingwedzi.

[bert]

1. The blue plug adaptor for camping - without it you have a problem because it's much more expensive in the park.
2. Spotlight
3. Cameras/Binoculars
4. Reference books

And my 7 function pocket knife.
Has been with me on all my trips
Was the best tool when camping in Kenia.
It will be total havoc when i loose it

[Wild@Heart]

1. Castles
2. Binoculars
3. Camera
4. "Skottel" (NB! Very Important)
5. Guide Books
6. Mozzie Repelants

[Jock]

For us our lists goes something like this

1. Happy Box
2. Field Books and maps
3. Cameras and Video camera
4. Flask for early morning coffee
5. Charoal and firelighters for all our braais.

We have just purchased a little "fridge/oven" that works off the cigarette lighter. It can hold 9 cans of cold drink/beer and keeps them at 6 degrees C. With a flick of a switch it can keep things hot but I doubt we will use that feature too often. It can sit on the back seat and has a padded top so it acts as a arm rest as well. This has certainly become a essential item when doing to the parks.

[DuQues]

1. Camera equipment and film


long time nothing


2. Castle and wine
3. Sigarettes (well Shag actually) and my Kruger zippo
4. A few bits of clothing (I noticed that none of the Angels mention that? )
5. Soap, toothpaste and such.
6. A car is handy as well.

[Meg]

What are you always taking into the Park and would not dare to leave without?Even if it is superstition (e.g. not taking your 'lucky torch' with you, you will not be able to see any lions...etc. ).What about all the usefull stuff?

Things we always take which are useful...

Camera, lenses, binocs, matches, firelighters, sleeping bags, pillows, Ouma rusks, coffee, roasties, matjontjans, bacon, wors, sunblock, tent... of course, we almost always forget at least one item on the list

There is one thing I always take, which really isn't terribly useful, but I love it. When I was a kid my Dad allowed me to take ownership of a monocular in a leather case. It had been given to my great grandfather when he was young. It is almost as powerful as my binoc's, but not quite, but it's been my constant companion in life, along with a Swiss Army compass and penknife. Don't ask me why I carry all this sentimental stuff around the world with me though, Kruger included

[Bushmad]

I am one of those really organised people, perhaps a little too organised, when going to the Park.

I write lists of just about everything, that i have kept from year to year. I still manage to discover something that I should have taken, even if everything on the list gets remembered! During the trip, if anything comes up that I find could be made more convenient I write it down and put it in my Kruger File to remember for the next visit.

One small tip is to bring sugar in sachets. This way there is minimal chance of spillage, no ants, just tear and pour into tea or coffee and throw the paper away. Not major I know but something really convenient.

Another helpful one: We have all our meat v.packed (like most people) to take with us, the trick is that we have our marinade included with the meat in the v.pack. This results in brilliantly marinated food that does not have to stand out and is ready to be placed on the braai.

There are others that I cant remember now.

Im also something of a hygiene freak!

The first thing i do when we arrive at knew accomodation is: Boil the kettle, pour the boiling water over certain things that I know we'll be eating from, also over the sink and taps, then take (ozone friendly) Anti bacterial detergent (Domestos) and spray: Shower floor, taps, toilet (handle included), door handles of bathroom and entrance. I let it stand for a while then rinse off.

Finally before using the braai, I get a flaming fire going so that the flames clean off anything that might be lurking on the grill from previous visitors! I must say, the park staff are very good and usually very thorough!

Aaahhhhh, now I can sit back and relax........

I promise I'm not crazy!!

[lam]

We have a trailer that we try to keep fully stocked.

I often forget to take a dish towel, though, as they quite obviously have to come out at the end of the journey, and never seem to go back in.

I do find part of the fun of a journey is for a few weeks before hand and saying "I mustn't forget ..." and dashing down and putting it in the trailer.

[DuQues]

GPS receiver would be handy....

[Snoobab]

Success in anything depends on sound prioritising

Beer, Beer cooler, Coolerbox for Beer, Ice for coolerbox to keep Beers cold, more beers....I love prioritising

[Vonnie]

I once forgot to take the binoc's! With eyesight as bad as mine, it was a disaster! Forked out an inordinate amount at Skukuza for a new pair of binoc's!

Tip of the day: If you don't want to part with your money, take your binoc's with for goodness sake!!!!!

[Snoobab]

It's amazing how stupid we can be at times. I went out on a early morning drive and came across a mommy cheetah with 4 cubs. And guess what, I had the camera, lenses, filters, bean bag and everything else........but no film. It was all at the camp in the cooler box.
Points to remember, cooler boxes are for beers and no i'm not trading in my film camera for a digital.

[Meandering Mouse]

This is what I have forgotten in the past:
matches
bottle opener
cutlery
ID/passport
torch
brush/comb
pen/pencil and note book
little things that skip the mind.
Never, ever forgotten the beer

[sioux]

Hi all - Mods not sure if this topic has been covered before?
Travelling with young children and venturing out to the bush, I am often frustrated by the "why did I not bring along the .... and pack in this food ...". So on every trip, some of our the extra basics are:
Sharp knife
Salt and pepper
cork screw
tin opener
headache tablets
Arnica
Immodium
Band-aid

This is one of the meals my children really enjoy!
Bush pasta
Tin of peas (or frozen)
2 minute noodles - mixed together

Any other "survival" suggestions or quick-fix recipes?

[katydownunder]

Ok here is our list:

Salt & Pepper ( I am currently thinking about buying an outdoor Peppermill , certainly not needed in the bush but very tempting
corkskrew
cuttlery
bottle/tin opener
Leatherman
headache tablets
band - aid
iodine
pen
note book
binoculars
mamals and bird books
matches or lighter
and, and , and....
I did not mention the camera equipment, because I can forget everything but will never let anything of this equipment behind
As we are oversea tourists we always buy the cooler boxes in a supermarket close to the park and dismiss it/them afterwards
as well as small plastic boxes to store cheese and eggs for breakfasts

sioux, funny that you talk about bush pasta....
we always have Bush Potatoes:

Potatoes
Onions
Butter
Salt
Beef Stock
Put it in aluminum foil and afterwards on the braai

We just had a toasted chese and onion sandwich with a tin of bombay veggetable curry ( a tin we brought back from south africa)....
I think we are suffering from severe withdrawal symptoms