On Safari With Dean Starting 7 March 2013

7 March 2013

Route: Numbi Gate - Pretoriuskop - Napi road -H3 - Quagga Pan - into the camp

A slow day experienced with the only animals seen where a mating pair of lions 100 meters from napi boulders exit, impala and kudu between napi boulders and transport dam and some impalas and wharthog on the H3.

8 March 2013

Upon leaving the camp this morning we found a good buffalo bull on the camp access road, after watching him for a time, we made our way to Napi Road then in the direction of Skukuza getting more good sightings of buffalo, elephant, and rhino. After a break at skukuza, we made our way down to the Sabie river in search of hippos and crocodiles. We managed to find some on elloff street and then made our way down to the sabieclow level bridge and found a crocodile in the water. We made our way back up to the skukuza fourways, and got back onto napi as we made our way to Numbi gate to pick up more guests. After check in formalities, it was off to Pretoriuskop for lunch, before departing on an afternoon drive going down to shithave dam and napi boulders, before making our way to the camp in order for the guests to settle in before departing on their late afternoon / evening safari. Numerous good sightings were experienced during the day.

9 March 2013

Today after enjoying a good breakfast, we made our way onto napi road, and as it turned out to be very quiet, with only a couple of sightings of elephant and rhino as well as giraffe. We made our way in the direction of Skukuza going down watergate, where we found hippo and a cheetah lying in the river bed. After leaving watergate, we turned onto doispane and then Paul Kruger Gate road before going into skukuza for a break as the heat had already set in. After a good break, we made our way back down napi making our way onto the h3 going down as far as quagga pan, before turning around due to no animals been seen and going back in the direction of napi. We turned onto napi and made our way in the direction of transport dam, going down to see what we could find. A Great sighting of hippo as well as mating waterbuck were seen. We made our way back down napi in order to drop guests off returning to Johannesburg and picking up more that were starting their safari. We again made our way down to Pretoriuskop for lunch. After a well deserved lunch. It was out onto the albasini road and then doispane in the direction of watergate. All that was seen on these roads was elephant, rhino, buffalo, zebra and impala. We made our way onto watergate and after getting to the causeway, we came across the same cheetah lying in the river bed. After a good photo opportunity, we made our way in the direction of napi road and then onto Pretoriuskop as it was starting to rain. After dropping some clients off in Pretoriuskop camp, the rest of us made our way back to Nkambeni for the night and some well deserved rest, before going out again tomorrow morning to look further for some of the inhabitants of the Kruger National Park.

10 March 2013

The route was as follows today. This morning we drove out of camp down the Napi road getting buffalo and elephant, turned onto the h3 that was very quiet, we heard about lions on the s112, and went down and did not find them. We then turned around and went back to h3 and back up to Napi road. We Found more buffalo at Klipspringer Koppies and heard about a leopard close to that area we went down to see if we could find it and it was not long before he was walking close to the road in the long grass. After a good sighting we went back to Pretoriuskop for breakfast as the one guest staying over at the camp had not had anything to eat. After breakfast we left the park to meet Verity in Nelspruit who was dropping off clients and picked up the next ones to return. We then came back in and stopping at Pretoriuskop for lunch. After lunch made our way down Napi to the h3 junction and then turned back. Animals found were impala, elephant, kudu, zebra, warthog and the leopard from the morning, this time lying in the bush ten meters from my vehicle. On the way back more elephants, rhino and buffalo were seen.

11 March 2013

Today Verity is heading to the Kruger National Park to drop off more guests, keep watching for more updates on how the Safaris are going and what is being experienced.