Profile
Blog
Photos
Videos
What an incredible 3 days we have had in Kruger. We could not have asked for much more that is for sure and it exceeded all our expectations of what we would see. Numerous lions, lion cubs, a lion kill, 3 leopards, wild dogs plus all the other amazing animals, birds and reptiles they have. They were all out on show for us so this blog is probably going to go on and on and on......
We arrived at Funky Monkey's, our backpackers in Nelspruit and who we booked our Kruger safari through. After checking in, mum tried to use her credit card to pay, the first time we've used it since being here. It kept being declined so we called ANZ to find out why. It turns out, they've had it on hold since 30 Sept because approx $2000 has been spent on it in Saudi Arabia and they were waiting to hear from her to find out if the charges were legitimate. Obviously not, which meant that credit card is now no good. Lucky we have others!! We got a taxi to the local shopping centre for a couple of hours - air conditioning was nice because it was pretty hot. Dinner was included as part of our package and we spent the evening chatting with Jenna & Andy who were going to self drive through Kruger over the next few days. At dinner time, we were briefed about what would happen the next 3 days and told to meet our driver at 5.30am the next morning for the drive to Kruger.
So Friday morning we headed to Kruger with two others. We were driven to the Numbi entrance gate and introduced to JJ, our guide for the next few days. It was about 6.30am and we had till 8am to drive around before we had to be at the campsite for breakfast. JJ took us to Circle Rock where he knew a lioness had been hanging around with her cubs. The lioness was sitting at the top of the boulders, just like a queen (it was like the setting out of The Lion King) but no sight of cubs (this time). We made our way to Pretoriuskop, the camp where Funky Safari's has their tents set up. There are quite a few camps in Kruger and they are like little villages. We met Nonic & Delse who work in the camp, cleaning and cooking.
After a good breakfast we headed out for the day. It was stinking hot and even the breeze as we drove around was hot. Not much relief and all the animals wanted to do was hang out in the shade. At lunch time, we drove to a picnic site near Sukuza camp and had lunch and then went to a pool area to hang out as it was no use driving around because there wasn't much to see during the hottest part of the day. JJ had forgotten to tell us to bring our swimmers with us but that didn't deter me. It was so hot I jumped in with my clothes on!! It was so nice to cool down. Before long, about 40 pre-school kids marched in with their teachers to the baby pool. I spoke to one of the teachers who explained they were on an excursion for the day to see the animals and learn about their heritage & environment. Well, didn't they love the water. They were having a ball. I asked if I could take some photos because I loved the expressions of enjoyment & fun on their faces. Soon they were hamming it up for me. Eventually I got into the pool with them and they almost drowned me with their enthusiasm. They were touching my arms, my hair, my legs and then I picked up one and then they all wanted to be picked up and then we started splashing each other. It was a great afternoon. We left about 2.30pm for more game viewing. JJ had heard about a leopard sighting so we headed to Lower Sabie Camp but no luck. However we did see a group of 8 lioness lying on the sand bank. We then had to race back to our campsite because the gates are closed at 6pm and if you are late you get fined. We did see a Black Mamba snake on the way which was about 2m long lying across the road.
Well, we were late but it was worth it because just as it got dark, JJ put on the brakes because right next to the road was a leopard. Could not believe it was just sitting there. He was so beautiful. He soon wandered off and off we went again. 500m from the camp gate, walking down the road was a beautiful lion & lioness. Mum couldn't believe that she was sitting in this vehicle with her head out the side as a lion & lioness walked along side her.
Saturday morning we left at 6am for a game drive. We came across the lion & lioness again, lying in the bushes. We also saw some beautiful rhinos and elephants too. At breakfast we said goodbye to the other two who were leaving and it was just JJ, mum and I for the day. We headed out for our day's driving (swimsuit in bags) and had a fabulous day. We headed to where a leopard had been sighted and we knew when we found it because there was a small traffic jam of vehicles on the road, with more pulling up all the time. Could not blame them though because there in the Amarula tree was a beautiful leopard in the typical leopard pose lying on the branch with legs hanging down and tail so long. We spent a good 20-30mins watching him. Very hard to tear yourself away but we did. Saw some good buffalo herds, with quite a few young and lots more including rhinos, elephants, birds, zebras, giraffes and so many antelopes.
Had lunch at the same place and went for a swim again. Not as hot as the day before but still very warm. No kids today. In the afternoon we headed down a road where there had been cheetah sightings. We came to a dry river bed and we could see a few cars on the other side. They were watching some elephants up at a water hole but one car was on the river bed watching an elephant with baby (JJ said the baby was about 2 days old). He was so cute and so tiny. Then, mum (of all people with her crappy eyesight) yells out "there's a cat there, it's a leopard, it's a leopard". We of course did not believe her because she is a champion at making branches & rocks into animals. However, it turns out she was correct. About 20-30m behind the elephant, a leopard was lying on the river bed. How lucky were we. We tried to point him out to the other car but they thought we were talking about the elephants. We soon got their attention though and before long there was a traffic jam on the bridge. Mum was so excited she had spotted it. The elephant pair soon made their way up the river bank to join the other elephants and then shortly afterwards the leopard got up and we thought it was going to head into the bushes. However, he started walking towards us and headed to a pool of water near the bridge to have a drink. It was another beautiful sighting. We had to leave though because we needed to get to camp on time so we didn't get another fine.
Sunday morning, another 6am departure. We headed to Circle Rock but on the way we came across our lion & lioness again lying in the bushes but then at Circle Rock looking up, I spotted our lioness and then I called out 'one of the cubs is there too'. Soon another one came and joined in and there they sat, up on their big rock. We had to leave and head to the gate to pick up 7 other people that were joining us. Once they were aboard, we headed back to Circle Rock. From a distance I could see her up there but as we got closer she disappeared. We soon found out why. She had made her way to the ground and was stalking a buffalo herd. We watched her and off she took and caught a buffalo calf. However, the buffalo herd charged her to scare her away. They went back and forth a few times but soon the lioness left in defeat - no buffalo for her or her cubs today. We watched her walk back to the rocks and she passed quite close to us. I then looked up once again and spotted one of the cubs. JJ quickly drove around the other side to beat the other vehicles and we were treated to 3 young cubs playing up on the rocks. The lioness had made herself comfy on a rock lower down and we could actually see her calling out to the cubs. They didn't come down to her but we watched them for quite a while. We eventually left and headed back down the road. We stopped and watched the buffalo herd that had been attacked and we could tell which calf had been attacked because it and the mum were about 20m behind the rest of the herd and moving slowly.
This was right near where we had spotted the mating lion & lioness earlier. Watching the buffalo, I caught sight of the lioness coming through the bushes towards the herd, followed by the lion. Before we knew it, they were attacking the herd too. The buffalo crossed the road but a stupid vehicle in front of us decided to move forward which stopped the lions from crossing the road. Idiot!!! But then, the lion took off and before we knew it, he was on top of the calf and he was not giving it up. The herd didn't even bother trying to attack him - I think they knew it would do no good. He sat there for a while and then he picked it up and started dragging it away. What a morning and all before breakfast.
While we were at the campsite, I saw Jenna and I told her about what we had seen that morning and where to go. Was hoping they may be lucky enough to see the cubs and possibly the lion with the buffalo calf. When we saw them later, we found out they did see the cubs and they were lucky enough to see the lion dragging the buffalo calf right next to their car. They got the most brilliant photo.
After breakfast we headed out once more and again it was a stinker of a day. It was a rather quiet game drive considering what we'd seen before breakfast but JJ had heard about a sighting of African Wild Dogs so he made his way there and sure enough, he found them. There were about 4 of them lying under a bush and they conceal themselves so well. They are quite rare as their population is endangered and you usually see them on a night drive when they are more active so we were lucky to see them during the day. On the way, he also spotted a hyena lying under a tree, quite well camouflaged as well.
To Lower Sabie for our lunch stop where one of the girls started showing the symptoms of heat stroke but she wouldn't listen to us. We wanted to get her into a cool shower to cool her down. She eventually started feeling better over an hour later after she started getting some fluids into her. I went and jumped in the pool to cool down and then we were off again. Saw some more lions and a mixture of other animals including another hyena and a baby vervet monkey pulling her mother's teat so far it must have hurt!! Back to camp again and on time once more with a few minutes to spare. Again, another lovely dinner and then a storm came across. The lightning was pretty awesome to watch and the rain cooled things a little.
One last morning game drive and it was the quietest of them all. We did come across our mating pair of lions again lying on the side of the road, but too many vehicles for them because they got up and wandered into the long grass. We went looking for cheetah one last time but no luck. Back for breakfast and to say our goodbyes and then we jumped in the van with Adrian, another guide who was taking us to Blyde River Canyon for the day. This canyon is the 3rd biggest in the world, about 22kms long. We went and checked out the Three Rondavels (rock formations that look like rondavels with a great view of the canyon) before heading to Bourke's Luck Potholes. The river has carved the walls so they look like mini pools. It's pretty spectacular. Back in the car to our next spot however we were involved in a minor car accident. We were driving and a car in front of us had pulled slightly to the left with his left indicator on so Adrian started pulling out to overtake him. However when we were about 20m away, the driver decided to do a right hand turn without looking. Adrian slammed on the brakes and pulled to the left but still clipped the back corner of the car. It could have been a lot worse. We are all going to be sore tomorrow from the jolt as he really slammed on the brakes and we came to a sudden stop. He did a good job as he was probably doing about 100kms per hour when it all happened. The other driver got out and said 'what were you doing' and I got out and said 'mate, you were pulled over with your left indicator on and then did a right hand turn'. He didn't say anything. He was a German tourist in a hire car. Probably not used to the controls.
We made our way to the town of Grasskop where we were going to have lunch anyway. Adrian showed us to Harry's Pancakes while he went to the police station with the other car to do a report for insurance. We had the best pancakes; mum asked if she could buy the recipe. Yeah, good luck with that. After Adrian re joined us and had his lunch, we headed back to what had been our next destination before the accident. A place called God's Window which has a spectacular view over the valley. We also stopped at a lookout over the Pinnacle; a rock formation which stands alone and is covered in plant life. Our last stop was Lisbon Falls where there were a couple of small waterfalls. The mist from the falls was nice and cooling. We've had some hot days here. It was then time to head back to Nelspruit which we were glad for. We just wanted to get out of the car. Back at Funky Monkeys we checked in, I put my swimmers on and jumped into the pool to cool down. It felt good. Had a look at our photos and very happy with them. The hostel has been overtaken with French students, we were lucky to get a room. Tomorrow we are heading out on the Baz bus to Joburg. Hopefully it is a little cooler!!
- comments
Carol Have loved following your travels. Thank you for the postcard. I will enjoy reading this all again. I hope you make it an e book Tanya. What wonderful memories you will have.