After a fair few safaris I’ve developed a sixth sense for how a safari might go right from the initial communication with the organiser. Sometimes a safari might have great photos and look good on paper but I leave feeling hollow. This is usually why:
Transfers. As in they don’t offer them. Nothing says “give me your money but I don’t really care about you” like spending thousands on a holiday and then struggling to make it to the starting point - usually in some rural location no taxi driver has ever heard the name of. It’s a horrible start and stressful. I care so much about this that if they don’t include transfers I don’t list them on Black Saddle.
Meals: Riding safaris are a bit of an English export. Unfortunately sometimes this means you’ll sit down for a meal in an exotic location just to be fed the same as what you’d get at home in England. I’d like to taste the food of the country I’m visiting - its half the experience really. I suspect that the typical safari goer - a women aged 50+, is quite set in their ways and fussy, so probably likes being served gammon ham and cottage pie. But for well travelled, younger people, it ain’t it. One of the best safaris for food is Namibia. They serve game or something exotic every night as well as staples like barbecued chicken. Absolutely delicious.
Road Riding: Road riding is dreadfully boring. It’s fun for a little bit to ride through villages but it gets a bit samey after a while and walking for long stretches becomes monotonous. Sometimes I look around and we’re all on our phones… including the guides. An example of a great solution to prevent samey riding is Macatoo. They don’t have any roads but to avoid backtracking on routes the land rover will arrive full of grooms who ride your horse back to the stable and you have lunch in a beauty spot of continue by Jeep on a game drive. It’s a fantastic solution and keeps things interesting.
Going Slow: I definitely don’t need to canter everywhere. The rides are often about peaceful reflection and meditative moments. But, if it’s all walking, especially on grass verges and up hill, I start to get ants in my pants and wish I was elsewhere. A good guide will read the room and if everyone is a good rider and the ground is good - let’s go! Why not? Also, you get cold if you walk everywhere. Trot a bit and get the body moving. In Segovia, Namibia and Iceland you basically move the entire time. Fantastic fast riding for capable riders.
No context / bad guiding: A good guide will share the secrets and stories of a place with you. ‘The owner of this land breeds llamas and some have gotten loose into the forest’ or ‘200 years ago this was a hiding place for smuggled goods and even now locals come here for illegal parties and mischief’. It makes such a difference. We want to stop and take photos too. When guides rush along as if they are trying to get from A to B you feel like you’re really just a number and making their day longer. This is why all the rides on Black Saddle are owner guided. They actually give a sh*t. When the owner lets the imported guides lead the rides this is usually what’s lost - the context.
No vetting of other riders: It’s such a shame to show up to a holiday and see a very big person with no balance on a horse that’s too green for them and know that your holiday just slowed down a whole lot. Under-qualified riders get nervous, and often they get angry or complain a lot because they are afraid. It’s dreadful to be around. It’s one of the main reasons I knew there was a space for Black Saddle and advanced riding groups only. I’ve had some very dull experiences. Once in Kyrgyzstan we came across a 15 person riding group at a yurt camp. 14 were french speakers and there was one english speaker. She was so excited to see us. I felt terrible for her. She must have been so lonely thus far.
I will write up what makes a safari a knock out next to keep things balanced! The top safaris have some common themes that makes them so incredible. That next!