Here are a few items that we think are essential to pack for a safari.
Lens cover to protect against dust – If you have an SLR camera with a large, expensive lens, take some sort of lens cover to protect it against the dust. The Serengeti is very dusty and there is no escaping it. Murray’s lens has dust in it and we have to send it away to get cleaned, if it can be cleaned. To avoid possibly wrecking a lens, take a cover for it.
Binoculars for each person – Each person should have his/her own binos. This avoids having to share and potentially missing something.
Flip Flops – We wear flip flops in our rooms and tents so not to tread in bare feet. With unknown bugs, it is safer to have some protection on the soles of feet. We wear them into the shower for non slip protection and in case the shower is not so clean.
Rain Poncho – The best protection against the rain in an open sided safari vehicle is a rain poncho. It covers torso, arms, legs, shoes and bags (sitting on laps). A rain jacket would not provided this much protection. Pat, our guide in Botswana, uses a rain poncho!
Warm Layer, Fuzzy, Jacket or Sweater – Even if it is hot during the day, the evenings often turn cool. Evening game drives, when sitting in an open vehicle in the wind, can be cool, so a warm layer is essential.
Clear Lens Glasses – Murray had a hard time with bugs flying into his eyes in the open vehicle when he didn’t wear his sunglasses. This was a problem on evening game drives and cloudy days. He was wishing he had brought his clear lens cycling glasses to protect his eyes.