On a continent where few destinations can promise sightings of the famous Big Five, South Africa’s Timbavati Game Reserve has earned its bragging rights. Here, the wildlife has free range between the Timbavati and adjacent, unfenced Kruger National Park, including the five animals historically considered by big game hunters to be the most challenging to pursue on foot: the lion, cape buffalo, elephant, rhino and leopard. They’re abundant in this 53,392-hectare wildlife sanctuary. So too are other countless mammals and over 350 species of birdlife. Timbavati is also a privately owned park which, I’ve learned after multiple safaris in three