Hwange Bush Camp
Hwange Bush Camp offers an authentic bush experience in the wild northern section of Hwange National Park.
Hwange Bush Camp is owned by professional safari guide Dave Carson, who has been guiding for over 30 years. While Dave is not always in camp, the focus here is still exceptional guiding. The camp is located in the remote northern section of Hwange National Park and while wildlife may not be as prolific as areas further south in the park, with highly skilled guiding and flexible activities, guests are assured of a quality experience. The area of the park is also very scenic and lends itself well to walking safaris. The camp itself has minimal infrastructure but is very comfortable. The team is friendly and welcoming, the food very good, and with guides also hosting meals, Hwange Bush Camp offers an authentic and personal safari experience which will tend to suit experienced African travellers and, in particular, those with a passion for learning about wildlife and exploring Africa on foot. Zimbabwe guides were historically respected as being the best in the industry, and this is a camp that connects back to that era.
Rooms
Accommodation for 14 guests is provided in seven en suite Meru tents, each set on the ground and under a canvas awning. The tents are spacious with proper beds, a dressing area with luggage storage, and en suite bathroom including a flush toilet, basin and a safari ‘bucket’ shower (hot water on request). Each tent has a small verandah to the fore with safari chairs.
Central Areas
The central area includes a lounge and dining tent with bar, overlooking the campfire and bush beyond. The camp is built on a slight ridge and so the outlook has lovely views over open rolling grassland.
Facilities
Wi-Fi – No
Power for Charging – Yes
Swimming Pool – No
Habitat & Wildlife
Hwange is the largest of Zimbabwe’s wildlife areas. Situated in the south-western corner of the country at an average altitude of around 3,000ft, it covers an area of about 1.5 million hectares, along the border with Botswana.
The Park covers the transition zone between the Kalahari sands and the moist savannah woodland. The poor soil and harsh climate have not stunted or limited the variety of habitat: over 230 trees and shrubs and 138 grass species make up some of the more than 1,000 flora species found here. This diversity allows for more than 50 mammal species to co-exist.
Lacking permanent rivers, Hwange is managed with numerous man-made waterholes which are pumped to provide water for most of the animal species and which form the magnate around which most game-viewing takes place (many of the waterholes have hides). The park has a very sizeable and healthy elephant population (it is not uncommon to see over 150 at a time around the waterholes during the dry season), and other larger mammals to be seen include giraffe, impala, zebra, wildebeest, tsessebe, kudu, duiker, roan antelope, waterbuck, eland, gemsbok (along the drier western border), reedbuck, lion, leopard, cheetah, wild dog and hippo. Unfortunately, rhino are now seldom seen.
The area is also excellent for bird life, most represented by bush country species: babblers, starlings, bustards, ostrich, cranes, hornbills, francolins, guineafowl, shrikes, etc, although raptors are plentiful and storks, geese and ibis can be seen at the waterholes.
Game-viewing is excellent with good general game, big herds of buffalo and several different lion prides present year round. Leopard, cheetah and wild dog can also be seen. Night drives offer the chance to see nocturnal species such as genet, serval, honey badger, aardwolf and aardvark. However Hwange is perhaps best known for its huge elephant populations, and from June through to early November huge numbers can be seen visiting the various waterholes throughout the park.
Activities
Activities focus on a mixture of excellent walking safaris and game drives, with walking safaris sometimes incorporated into game drives if interesting tracks are discovered. Fly-camping is also available and is best done for a couple of nights in conjunction with a stay at Bush Camp, though longer fly-camps could be arranged. The fly-camp is simple but comfortable with 3x3m dome tents set up with twin stretcher beds, en suite short drop toilet and bucket showers, with activities focusing on walking although a vehicle is also available and walks generally start with a drive. An integral part of all activities is the super guiding provided.
Seasons
Hwange Bush Camp is open between April and November, though game viewing is best from July through to October.
Hwange Bush Camp does not have accommodation for families wanting to share a tent and although the minimum age is eight years, we feel the camp is better suited to older more adventurous families where children can stay in a tent on their own and make the most of the full range of activities including walking.
Owner of Hwange Bush Camp Dave Carson has been a professional guide in Zimbabwe for over 30 years and is currently chief examiner for the Zimbabwean Professional Guide Association. In this role, and as camp operator, he has dedicated time and resources to giving back to the guiding profession through mentoring the next generation and ensuring the legacy of Zimbabwean Professional Guiding not only continues in quality, but also in relevance by steering the profession towards inclusivity. Hwange Bush Camp has been an instrumental platform for apprenticeships for some of the country’s most respected guides.
During the Covid Pandemic Dave set up a WhatsApp group to ensure that learner guides weren’t missing out on valuable learning time. This group has continued beyond the pandemic, serving as a platform to connect guides and help the exchange of information.
Dave is a trustee of the Bhejane Trust and Hwange Bush Camp supports their work in the Sinamatella area of Hwange National Park which includes a black rhino monitoring project, including anti-poaching measures, assistance with the National Parks and running a wildlife conservation and research volunteer program.
Hwange Bush Camp also contributes directly to the Zimbabwe Parks Authority in Hwange, assisting with road grading, pumps for waterholes, donations of diesel and food supplies to the Parks work teams.
The team regularly help with information for lion, cheetah and wild dog research.
