Friday, 22 November 2013
History from Nyalaland Walking Trail in Kruger
Paparatzi Game Drive
Kruger update again
Just when you can't seem to think there's another better sighting out there for you - like 5 wild dogs on the road trotting along - Kruger delivers!!
We travelled a road and a lady told us of 5 lion on the plains walking away - we spotted them with binoculars - they hunted a couple buffalo - far in the distance but we saw no less than 3 attempts of 1 lion on top of a buffalo's back - rodeo was on. Unfortunately it was too far to see the outcome! We were just a few metres down the road congratulating ourselves for the great time we had (alone in the sighting), when we spotted 2 more lionesses walking across the road. We followed them for a while - when they spotted a different group of buffalo and they started to hunt too!!!!!!!!!!! One lioness was so flat in the short grass of the plain, the wind was right, they were close to the road, the buffalo were grazing towards them - 2 pass by between us and the lions. Then 2 more. No move from the lions. (Cars are now piling up on the road!) the last buffalo was the closest yet - he spotted her as he was about 10m away! It was a chase and a half! But no joy for the lions - the buffalo hit the road and now we know what 'hightailing' it means! Those buff had the acceleration on! Sorry the photos are not downloaded yet....
But here are some other buff that we saw:
Diderick Cuckoo male - too beautiful
Black backed Jackals - (I think they need some flea control!)
Thunderstorm coming in
African Hoopoe
Female Waterbuck - Christo's favourite antelope - we love the little heart shaped nose!
Ok that's it for now - very little time in the bush left - we may need to upload the rest of the photos once we're back on the cold soil.....
We travelled a road and a lady told us of 5 lion on the plains walking away - we spotted them with binoculars - they hunted a couple buffalo - far in the distance but we saw no less than 3 attempts of 1 lion on top of a buffalo's back - rodeo was on. Unfortunately it was too far to see the outcome! We were just a few metres down the road congratulating ourselves for the great time we had (alone in the sighting), when we spotted 2 more lionesses walking across the road. We followed them for a while - when they spotted a different group of buffalo and they started to hunt too!!!!!!!!!!! One lioness was so flat in the short grass of the plain, the wind was right, they were close to the road, the buffalo were grazing towards them - 2 pass by between us and the lions. Then 2 more. No move from the lions. (Cars are now piling up on the road!) the last buffalo was the closest yet - he spotted her as he was about 10m away! It was a chase and a half! But no joy for the lions - the buffalo hit the road and now we know what 'hightailing' it means! Those buff had the acceleration on! Sorry the photos are not downloaded yet....
But here are some other buff that we saw:
Ok that's it for now - very little time in the bush left - we may need to upload the rest of the photos once we're back on the cold soil.....
Kruger Leopard
Today we had a great day - back in the relative metropolis of Skukuza camp. We went with a birding guide for the day to find only birds and found this amazing leopard female which allowed us to watch her for 40mins!
Saturday, 16 November 2013
Kruger Update
Hyena pup/cub! toooooo cute
The first leopard sighting - in a traffic jam to see him but we were lucky and he moved while we were in positon
Grey headed kingfisher going to the nest
And what is Africa without our closer relatives! Baboon! I love the hairstyle...
Ok - until we have a better connection that's it for now!
Tuesday, 5 November 2013
Video from Kruger
Here is a taste of blogs to come!
The closest I have ever been to a wild lion - without drugs being involved!
Hlane Royal Game Reserve - Swaziland
We spend one night at the Royal Hlane Reserve in the kingdom of Swazi. The border post was surprisingly smooth. The roads better than some we faced in South Africa!
It was a lovely camp - no electricity - lovely rondavel overlooking a waterhole. We were not allowed to drive our own car on this reserve and with the rains it was just as well! We spend a lovely afternoon at camp watching zebra, impala and a lone elephant drink while drinking some beverages ourselves!
We had a lovely dinner at the lodge - impala chops and wildebeest wors with pap (similar to polenta only much dryer) and salad - light by parrafin lamp and a small herd of elephants at the waterhole - could only hear them at that time!
A huge storm blew in that night! Thunder and lightning (and hailstones as we later realized when we looked at our cars roof......!) We woke up to a fresh clean morning for a game drive on a landdrover with our guide.
We were with an Austrian couple and they requested to see the lion - with persistent tracking we finally located the females - they weren't too impressed - by the tracks going every which where they were hunting and unsuccessfully so!
We had a lovely sighting of an elephant female with 3 of her various aged calves - very relaxed! Nyala, impala, and some bull elephant were great too!
We were just about to leave to go back to the camp when we bumped into the male on the way home!
He was a beautiful male -no scars (no other males) and it seemed like he had just been to the groomers!!! Haha! I can't even get my hair to look that polished!
We left for Kruger - another border post without issues!
I just have to share a photo from the road to Kruger - I love all the enterprising small businesses in the rural areas - this one is relatively fancy really!
Until I can get some more time online this is it for now!
Off for a swim and then a night drive tonight - guided again = maybe we can spot the 2 male lions we saw this am - one was SO close to the car he nearly touched it - I can say I have never been so close to a wild lion before... Christo wants to see another honey badger tonight!
It was a lovely camp - no electricity - lovely rondavel overlooking a waterhole. We were not allowed to drive our own car on this reserve and with the rains it was just as well! We spend a lovely afternoon at camp watching zebra, impala and a lone elephant drink while drinking some beverages ourselves!
We had a lovely dinner at the lodge - impala chops and wildebeest wors with pap (similar to polenta only much dryer) and salad - light by parrafin lamp and a small herd of elephants at the waterhole - could only hear them at that time!
A huge storm blew in that night! Thunder and lightning (and hailstones as we later realized when we looked at our cars roof......!) We woke up to a fresh clean morning for a game drive on a landdrover with our guide.
We were with an Austrian couple and they requested to see the lion - with persistent tracking we finally located the females - they weren't too impressed - by the tracks going every which where they were hunting and unsuccessfully so!
We were just about to leave to go back to the camp when we bumped into the male on the way home!
We left for Kruger - another border post without issues!
I just have to share a photo from the road to Kruger - I love all the enterprising small businesses in the rural areas - this one is relatively fancy really!
Off for a swim and then a night drive tonight - guided again = maybe we can spot the 2 male lions we saw this am - one was SO close to the car he nearly touched it - I can say I have never been so close to a wild lion before... Christo wants to see another honey badger tonight!
Mkuze Game Reserve
We are now sitting at our rondavel at Satara in Kruger - Very hot day today - +32 and rising! We finished a game drive this morning at about 11am and have been vegetating at camp ever since - even the animals don't move much in this heat! Loving it!
Next for our blog: Mkuze Game Reserve
These impala look shocked that we stopped and took their photos! They truly are beautiful but their downfall is that they are SO common!
Mkuze is more famous for its amazing bird life and we did enjoy them - although we saw more than enough general game and of course some more white rhino and elephant too. It was quite rainy during the night and in some parts of the park while we stayed there and our little honda car had to become more of a '4X4' car as the roads got quite challenging with the clay base! Actually the roads in the reserve were better than the ones leading to the gate...
A Casuality! We drove this road twice- once to town (supplies needed!) and then out to Swaziland -it really was an adventure....
See the roads in the reserve! Better! Even the giraffes were using them!
Back to the birds - I don't have enough time to put all my favs in but here are some!
I'm not sure you can appreciate the rain on these hippos in the middle of a huge dam - and the little egret was using them as an island to fish from! It was pelting down!! Warm rain is an African special!
We reluctantly said goodbye to our safari tent - with an open kitchen - we were visited nightly by some thicktailed bushbabies - I posted those photos on facebook- took them with my phone! The first night we weren't expecting them and I had a pineapple out on the counter for dessert and he had his hands on it - we chased him off but not before I saw him lick his lips! I think he thought he was home free and was just about to take a bite!!
Its calving season for the cows too - no fences in the rural communities that we drive through to get to the reserves - you have to be careful as they are super habituated to the vehicles! I couldn't resist these 2 nguni calves - too beautiful!
Off to Swaziland for one night!
Next for our blog: Mkuze Game Reserve
Mkuze is more famous for its amazing bird life and we did enjoy them - although we saw more than enough general game and of course some more white rhino and elephant too. It was quite rainy during the night and in some parts of the park while we stayed there and our little honda car had to become more of a '4X4' car as the roads got quite challenging with the clay base! Actually the roads in the reserve were better than the ones leading to the gate...
Back to the birds - I don't have enough time to put all my favs in but here are some!
Crested Francolin calling
Black bellied bustard male trying to dry out!
The greeting contingent at the parking lot! This male collared sunbird couldn't figure out why the other male was so aggressive!
With the brand new rain after the dry winter the lilies were blooming - so beautiful to see some colour in the bush!
A 'red' blue wildebeest - he's been rolling in the mud to get rid of ticks and a few oxpeckers to take care of the rest!
We signed up to do an escorted walk through a fig forest that has ancient fig trees -some as old as 600years - preserved through a taboo on felling fruiting trees from the local tribes. This is where we searched for some of the special birds only found in this area of SA. We got a broadbilled roller and bluemantled flycatcher but no Fishing owl! It was a fantastic walk and these suspension bridges helped get us over the worse of the clay mud patches!
There are a few bird hides on this reserve and we spend a lot of time at them just enjoying being in nature -
We reluctantly said goodbye to our safari tent - with an open kitchen - we were visited nightly by some thicktailed bushbabies - I posted those photos on facebook- took them with my phone! The first night we weren't expecting them and I had a pineapple out on the counter for dessert and he had his hands on it - we chased him off but not before I saw him lick his lips! I think he thought he was home free and was just about to take a bite!!
Off to Swaziland for one night!
Thursday, 31 October 2013
Umfolozi Wilderness Trail
We met our guides - Nunu and Jabulani and our fellow trailists - 4 from Germany and a couple from Portland, Oregan.
With only the essentials on our backs, no cells, watches etc... we headed into the bush after enjoying watching an elephant on the river. There is something about walking on foot in the African bush - makes you feel vulnerable and more sane at the same time.
We slept in a tent in a tamboti tree stand near the white umfolozi. Sipo was our camp cook and he produced some amazing food! The toilet was a spade! (one lady got lost as she went too far into the bush to do her business and lost sight of camp! ooops!)
Elephant on foot again.
The next day we went for a full out walk - with a record amount of white rhino sightings- large male sleeping only 60m away - and then a female and calf even closer - you know you are close when the guides both pick up stones to throw... in case..... Christo promises to sort some video to upload. General game - giraffe, impala,zebra, etc and loads of rhino further away. A breeding herd of buffalo and then closer in thicker bush was a few lone males - that made the heart pump! We were really close to a black rhino but the thick bush made tracking it too unsafe. That afternoon we got caught in a thunderstorm and hurried home - warm rain though - love it!
The next morning we were to leave camp but we had heard the lions walk past that night so decided to do a scout about for them - it was a coolish overcast day so they were likely still active - sure enough we found them - on the other side of the ridge and watched 9 lion - including a big male hunting blue wildebeest! Unsuccessfully! Was a great end to the trail. We really enjoyed our Zulu guides - they were super knowledgeable and gave us some nice Zulu history and culture. We exited the park by driving the length of the reserve and managed to watch this cheetah and cub on a fresh impala kill - when we got there they were just cooling down! Super fresh!
The last plains before the gate we had 14 white rhino in a 'crash'! It was a lovely end to our Umfolozi/Hluhluwe visit! Mkuze next!
With only the essentials on our backs, no cells, watches etc... we headed into the bush after enjoying watching an elephant on the river. There is something about walking on foot in the African bush - makes you feel vulnerable and more sane at the same time.
We slept in a tent in a tamboti tree stand near the white umfolozi. Sipo was our camp cook and he produced some amazing food! The toilet was a spade! (one lady got lost as she went too far into the bush to do her business and lost sight of camp! ooops!)
Elephant on foot again.
Nunu posing (means 'insect' in Zulu)
The next morning we were to leave camp but we had heard the lions walk past that night so decided to do a scout about for them - it was a coolish overcast day so they were likely still active - sure enough we found them - on the other side of the ridge and watched 9 lion - including a big male hunting blue wildebeest! Unsuccessfully! Was a great end to the trail. We really enjoyed our Zulu guides - they were super knowledgeable and gave us some nice Zulu history and culture. We exited the park by driving the length of the reserve and managed to watch this cheetah and cub on a fresh impala kill - when we got there they were just cooling down! Super fresh!
Umfolozi /Hluhluwe Game Reserve
Well we finally got some reception here at Crocodile Bridge in Kruger Park and we are cooking hot at 35 degrees with a lovely hot wind! Bit too hot to go on game drive just yet so have a few mins to do some uploading!
Here are some photos from Umfolozi game reserve in KwaZuluNatal - we stayed 2 nights at Mpila Camp in a beautiful cottage with Hester - Christo's mom, Felicity - Christo's sister and Ron - a friend. The view was amazing. Sunrise photo!
A highlight for us was a tour of the game capture bomas - where they were holding some white and black rhino and some babies until they go to their new reserves!
We enjoyed game drives that made us smile! New warthog piglets were a treat to watch!
The birds were amazing - we watched a sunbird make a nest and this pygmy kingfisher was happy to have his photo taken - he smaller than a sparrow!
We had no less than 23 white rhino sightings on the first day! The poaching is well controlled on this reserve, luckily! Elephant and buffalo were also plenty.
We signed up for a night drive where a lady ranger took us out with spotlights to see what nocturnal animals we could spot. We only missed the leopard from the big 5 in one drive and had the bonus of a black rhino sighting! A porcupine was the icing on the cake!
We had a few visitors to camp - there is only one strand of wire to keep the elephants out- birds, impala, warthog, nyala and every night a spotted hyena came to supervise the braai - South African BBQ! Cheeky!
Here are some photos from Umfolozi game reserve in KwaZuluNatal - we stayed 2 nights at Mpila Camp in a beautiful cottage with Hester - Christo's mom, Felicity - Christo's sister and Ron - a friend. The view was amazing. Sunrise photo!
A highlight for us was a tour of the game capture bomas - where they were holding some white and black rhino and some babies until they go to their new reserves!
A female white rhino in the boma.
We enjoyed game drives that made us smile! New warthog piglets were a treat to watch!
To be fair we did suprise this elephant and he took exception!
We signed up for a night drive where a lady ranger took us out with spotlights to see what nocturnal animals we could spot. We only missed the leopard from the big 5 in one drive and had the bonus of a black rhino sighting! A porcupine was the icing on the cake!
We had a few visitors to camp - there is only one strand of wire to keep the elephants out- birds, impala, warthog, nyala and every night a spotted hyena came to supervise the braai - South African BBQ! Cheeky!
Helmeted Guinea Fowl with Christo and Hester.
In an emotional and simple ceremony we buried Jan's ashes (Christo's dad) at Mpila camp - the place he loved so much.
Our trip with Hester, Felicity and Ron was over and we said a tearful goodbye and headed to the base camp for 2 nights in the wilderness on foot.
Saturday, 19 October 2013
Johannesburg
Well we are here in Joburg, 'safe' and sound. We had a lovely treat from Felicity - Christo's sister - and stayed our first night at the Fairways Golf Course and Spa Hotel. The shower was as big as our bathroom at home and was so welcome after more than 30 hours of travel time. We enjoyed our first braai with Felicity and some friends. Today I woke very early - jet lag continues but then realized that we would be waking up early in the bush to get the best game viewing and so started the day! Spent a nice morning relaxing and birding in the garden. We visited my uncle Barry and aunty Marlene with my cousin Guine and her 2 - Henry and Elisabeth. The thunder and lightening after a lovely hot day was a great show!
Hadeda Ibis - ubiquitous large bird with a LOUD call 'HAAA -DE DAAA' that for me means I'm in South Africa again. Actually has a lovely pink iridescence on the wing but the light was not right for this shot. Trying out the lens we rented - a 100-400mm Canon...
African Olive Pigeon - in Felicity's garden
Sitting enjoying the garden at Felicity's
Wednesday, 9 October 2013
Birding - more tastes to come!
We're also hoping to get some great birds in our sights too!
.JPG)
Brown hooded Kingfisher (Umfolozi)
Pinkbacked Pelican (Mkuze)
Common Waxbill (Mkuze)
Lilacbreasted Roller (Kruger) he is really feeling the heat (as will we!)
Natal Spurfowl (Kruger)
Just putting some photos in now as I'm not sure how many we're going to be able to upload while on the road!
Tuesday, 8 October 2013
A Taste from the last visit
A taste of things to come (hopefully!)
Umfolozi-Hluhluwe Game Reserve
Mkuze Game Reserve
.JPG)
Umfolozi-Hluhluwe Game Reserve
Zebra Stallion
Mkuze Game Reserve
Nyala females
Kruger National Park
Elephant
We are very excited to get to the bush again!
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