Bees, baobabs and baboons -a wonderful trio of treats for us at Chilo Gorge Safari Lodge…
Surrounded we are at Chilo and in the Save Valley Conservancy, by baobabs of all sizes and characters, some awesomely misshapen, some stately…
All of them are inspiring to me, fueling my art....
and fueling my body… the fuzzy fruits yield the tasty powder that I love to sprinkle on my muesli, adding tang and huge doses of vitamin C to start the day…
Smoothies made with yoghurt or milk and baobab powder are delicious; add a mashed banana and your day is complete!
and at Chilo our favorite dessert is Cheese Cake made with the lovely stuff….
But I am not the only one who loves this delectable powder….
Baboons go crazy for the fruits, amusing us with their antics, as in these fun photos by Gilly and Rich Thornycroft…
and bees attack the exposed powder with glee…
Not to forget the elephants and multitude of other eager users who seek out the pods
We have a local source of this delicious food, the mahenye community, who kindly supply us with fresh fresh powder from the trees in their village…
Chilo has hosted fabulous baobab weekends, one of which was the “Baobab Blitz” weekend with Sarah Venter, investigating flower pollination by bats, beetles or birds….
Sarah Venter of Eco Products and Gus Le Breton of B’Ayoba market the powder to eager local and international buyers,
About wineandwilddogs
Lin Barrie
The Save Valley Conservancy stretches along the upper reaches of the great Save River in the south east of Zimbabwe. The Gonarezhou National Park laps against the southern banks of the Save River and between these two nestles the Malilangwe Wildlife Reserve. These three celebrated wildlife areas form part of the Greater Limpopo Transfrontier Conservation Area, (GLTFCA)- a unique wilderness jewel which is home to the “Big Five” (endangered Black and White rhinos, elephants, buffalo, lion, leopard) and the ”Little Six” (Klipspringer, Suni, Duiker, Steenbok, Sharpe's Grysbok and Oribi). Endangered African wild dogs, Cheetah, Brown hyena, Bat-eared foxes and a host of special birds and plants contribute to the immense variety of this ecosystem. Communities around the GLTFCA contribute to innovative partnerships with National Parks and the private sector, forming a sound base on which to manage social, economic and environmental issues.
This is home to artist and writer Lin Barrie and her life partner, conservationist Clive Stockil.
Expressing her hopes, fears and love for this special ecosystem with oil paints on canvas, Lin Barrie believes that the essence of a landscape, person or animal, can only truly be captured by direct observation.
Lin Barrie states: “Through my art, and my writing, I feel an intimate connection with the natural world, and from my extensive field sketches of wild animals, people and landscapes, I create larger works on canvas.
Lin's work is in various public and private collections in South Africa, Kenya, Zimbabwe, Australia, England, Canada, Sweden and the United States of America. She is represented by galleries in South Africa, Zimbabwe, England, Kenya and Florida, USA.
wine and wild dogs 
Pingback: Baobab skins get a coat of chain mail; Elephants get something else to eat….. | wineandwilddogs