The passing of a great friend

Marc, Dorothy and family, there are no words that can be said at this time, in the passing of your dad and brother "Franscois", there is never the right time for anything like this. We count ourselves so lucky to have had him as a friend. We are certainly going to miss the laughs, the chats, the hard times, the good times, but most of all we will remember the friendship we had.
Your dad loved his elephants, and we have certainly lost a man that was a great elephant in the tourism industry in South Africa. But always remember it is not for ever, as you will see him in heaven one day. Francois my friend, it is not goodbye, but see you in heaven, regards to your mom and dad and Katinka as i am sure they are really enjoying seen you again my friend.

On Safari from the 14 May 2013 With Mark

14 May 2013

Route: Napi - Napi boulders - Napi - back to Nkambeni

Not much happening out there. Very little general game seen.  1 very nice elephant bull on the road just before Napi boulders entrance. Good photo's taken by the guests. Many different sightings of rhino's throughout the drive with the largest crash of 7 together.

15 May 2013

Route: Napi - S65 - Tshokwane tar - Doispan - Albaseni - Nkambeni road

First animal seen was a large rhino bull lying sleeping 5m off the road. Napi was rather quiet this morning with only Kudu, warthog, impala, giraffe and waterbuck seen all the way along to the S65. A college informed me of wild dog 3.1km from napi on S65. We got to the sighting just for them to move right into the road and all 13 lie down 5m from our open safari vehicle. Fantastic photos taken. Received another call for a leopard at transport dam but no luck. While down there we had a brilliant sighting of a female hippo with a calf in the shallow water. This calf couldn't of been older than a couple of days. After stopping at skakuza, we drove up to marola exit and on the way got 2 lioness and 1 male lying in the river bed. Also very nice to sit and watch this for a while. Good general birding during the drive, with secretary bird, and southern ground hornbills been some of the species seen. No elephant or buffalo spotted on our trip until we got closer to camp where we at least got a small herd of elephant just before concluding the game drive for the day.

Guests are out on a sundown drive this afternoon and so we'll pick up with them again in the morning.

16 May 2013

Route: Albaseni - Doispan - S65 - Napi - S114 - little jock - H3 - Napi

At numbi gate we got a buffalo bull just lying enjoying the morning sun. Great hippo's at mestal dam. Just before mestal we got a small herd of elephant approx 50m off the road. Many different sightings of general game on Doispan - giraffe, kudu, impala, diulkers, warthog and zebra. Got a call regarding a pride of lions lying on the rock 8.3km down the S65 we took a drive and found the male, 2 female and 4 cubs. I know they part of the pride of 13 in total. Sure they were all there, just couldn't see them. We then heard about a male leopard lying on a termite mound approx 4kms from transport access road on the napi. On our way there Dean and Frank informed me that they have a leopard on the road and we got good visuals of that. We went down to the second leopard and also had good visuals of that. It moved of the termite mound and lay in the shade of a tree.  After skakuza we went down the S114 not much seen on the road just a couple of elephant , and general game. After lunch we headed up the H3 and at the S113 junction we found 4 cheetah lying under the shade of a gwari bush. Spent some time with them and then headed on towards camp. Distant visuals of herds of elephants near shithave dam and further to this it was rather quiet.

Minister Molewa Welcomes The Latest Rhino Poaching Arrests

Minister Molewa welcomes the latest rhino poaching arrests. follow the link for the full story http://www.sanparks.org/about/news/default.php?id=55501

Safari Starting 13th December Ending 17th December 2012

13^th December – Our guests arrived in Nelspruit where they were met by Mark who then proceeded to the Kruger National Park entering at Numbi gate. The route taken was straight down Napi into Skukuza for lunch. Good sightings were experienced such as Elephants just past shithave, 8 Giraffe together on the road at the Boulders entrance, 2 White Rhino which approached an elephant bull  and got the fright of their lives when the Elephant flapped its ears, a herd of buffalo at the Napi Boulders exit walking down the road and 3 wild dogs just before Transport Dam access road. We then proceeded to Nkambeni Tented Lodge for the evening.

14^th December – After a good breakfast we set out for the day when we spotted a male Leopard just past the Sabi River Low Water Bridge. We then proceeded on the Marola Loop where a Male Lion was marking his territory.  Other sighting for the day include Elephants, Rhino, 5 Giraffe lying down, a female Leopard who was stalking a Serval cat but after the chase the serval got away and the Leopard gave up, another 11 Lions down the S37, 3 male lions as well as fantastic sightings of general game.

15^th December – On this day we set out for another day in the Kruger. We turned onto the Kruger Gate Road where we got 17 Wild dogs lying in the road after a kill, still bloodied faces and stomachs full, we then made our way to watergat where we found 2 Lioness and 1 male Lion, after some time we proceeded onward with our route when we got good sightings of Rhino, Giraffe, General Game, another 3 Lions lying in the shade of a tree, a Leopard cub relaxing on a Silvercluster tree branch, a Buffalo herd of about 100 and Elephants.  After an exciting day we then made our way back to camp.

16^th December – Our route today is Voortrekker- S114 – Napi then back to camp. A great day experienced by our guests with a herd of Buffalo on their way to the first historical sight, 3 Wild Dogs on Voortrekker marking their territory, a Female Leopard walking parallel with the road,  5 Elephants on the S114, mating Lions on gwatamiri, 3 Lions on Napi, a Leopard in a morola tree just before the Transport Dam access road, 2 Rhinos and a female Cheetah having a afternoon walk before the Shithave entrance. After dinner we said our goodnights so our guests could have a rest before leaving the Kruger on the 17^th.

Dean enters the Park today with new guests. Sightings of Elephant, Rhino, Leopard, 2 different sightings of Lions, as well as Buffalo on the Nkambeni  access road to camp was spotted within two and a half hours of arrival.

17^th December – After their morning drive on their last day of their safari guests leave at 10h00 where they were handed over from Mark to Verity who would be bringing them back to OR Tambo to catch their flight.

Hippos Fighting for Dominance - 21 November 2012 - Latest Sightings

Jock Of The Bushveld by Sir Percy Fitzpatrick (Chapter 25)( Page 5 ) Our Last Hunt

I was still laughing at him, when he stopped and turning sharply round made a snap at his side; and a few seconds later he did it again.  Then there was a thin sing of insect wings; and I knew that the Tsetse fly were on us. The only thought then was for Jock, who was still working busily round the sable.  For some minutes I sat with him between my legs, wisping away the flies with a small branch and wondering what to do.  It soon became clear that there was nothing to be gained by waiting: instead of passing away the fly became more numerous, and there was not a moment's peace or comfort to be had, for they were tackling me on the neck, arms, and legs, where the thorn-ripped pants left them bare to the knees; so, slinging the rifle over my shoulder, I picked Jock up, greatly to his discomfort, and carried him off in my arms at the best pace possible under the circumstances.  Half a mile of that was enough, however: the weight, the awkwardness of the position, the effort to screen him, and the difficulty of picking my way in very rough country at the same time, were too much for me.  A tumble into a grass-hidden hole laid us both out sprawling, and I sat down again to rest and think, swishing the flies off as before. Then an idea came which, in spite of all the anxiety, made me laugh, and ended in putting poor old Jock in quite the most undignified and ridiculous plight he had known since the days of his puppyhood when his head stuck in the bully-beef tin or the hen pecked him on the nose.  I ripped off as much of my shirt as was not needed to protect me against the flies, and making holes in it for his legs and tail fitted him out with a home-made suit in about five minutes.  Time was everything; it was impossible to run with him in my arms, but we could run together until we got out of the fly belt, and there was not much risk of being bitten as long as we kept up the running in the long grass.  It was a long spell, and what with the rough country and the uncontrollable laughter at the sight of Jock, I was pretty well done by the time we were safely out of the `fly.'  We pulled up when the country began to fall away sharply towards the river, and there, to Jock's evident satisfaction, I took off his suit--by that time very much tattered and awry. It was there, lying between two rocks in the shade of a marula tree, that I got one of those chances to see game at close quarters of which most men only hear or dream.  There were no snapshot cameras then! We had been lying there it may be for half an hour or more, Jock asleep and I spread out on my back, when a slight but distinct click, as of a hoof against a stone, made me turn quietly over on my side and listen. The rock beside me was about four feet high, and on the other side of it a buck of some kind, and a big one too, was walking with easy stride towards the river.  Every footstep was perfectly clear; the walk was firm and confident: evidently there was not the least suspicion of danger.  It was only a matter of yards between us, and what little breeze there was drifted across his course towards me, as he too made for the river, holding a course parallel with the two long rocks between which we were lying.  The footsteps came abreast of us and then stopped, just as I was expecting him to walk on past the rock and down the hill in front of me.  The sudden halt seemed to mean that some warning instinct had arrested him, or some least taint upon the pure air softly eddying between the rocks had reached him.  I could hear his sniffs, and pictured him looking about, silent but alarmed, before deciding which way to make his rush. I raised myself by inches, close to the rock, until I could see over it. A magnificent waterbuck bull, full-grown and in perfect coat and condition, was standing less than five yards away and a little to the right, having already passed me when he came to a stop: he was so close that I could see the waves and partings in his heavy coat; the rise and fall in his flanks as he breathed; the ruff on his shaggy bearded throat, that gave such an air of grandeur to the head; the noble carriage, as with head held high and slightly turned to windward he sniffed the breeze from the valley; the nostrils, mobile and sensitive, searching for the least hint of danger; and the eye, large and full and soft, luminous with watchful intelligence, and yet mild and calm--so free was it from all trace of a disturbing thought.  And yet I was so close, it seemed almost possible to reach out and touch him.  There was no thought of shooting: it was a moment of supreme enjoyment.  Just to watch him: that was enough.

Jock Of The Bushveld by Sir Percy Fitzpatrick (Chapter 24)( Page 8 ) The Last Trek

The sun was out again, and in the straight reach above the bend there was every chance to watch the flood from the bank where I stood.  It seemed strangely long in coming, but come it did at last, in waves like the half-spent breakers on a sandy beach--a slope of foam and broken waters in the van, an ugly wall with spray-tipped feathered crest behind, and tier on tier to follow.  Heavens, what a scene!  The force of waters, and the utter hopeless puniness of man!  The racing waves, each dashing for the foremost place, only to force the further on; the tall reeds caught waist high and then laid low, their silvery tops dipped, hidden, and drowned in the flood; the trees yielding, and the branches snapping like matches and twirling like feathers down the stream; the rumbling thunder of big boulders loosed and tumbled, rolled like marbles on the rocks below; whole trees brought down, and turning helplessly in the flood--drowned giants with their branches swinging slowly over like nerveless arms.  It was tremendous; and one had to stay and watch. Then the waves ceased; and behind the opposite bank another stream began to make its way, winding like a huge snake, spreading wider as it went across the flats beyond, until the two rejoined and the river became one again.  The roar of waters gradually lessened; the two cataracts beside me were silent; and looking down I saw that the fall was gone and that water ran to water--swift as ever, but voiceless now--and was lost in the river itself.  Inch by inch the water rose towards my feet; tufts of grass trembled, wavered, and went down; little wavelets flipped and licked like tongues against the remaining bank of soft earth below me; piece after piece of it leant gently forward, and toppled headlong in the eager creeping tide; deltas of yellow scum flecked water worked silently up the dongas, reaching out with stealthy feelers to enclose the place where I was standing; and then it was time to go! The cattle had turned their tails to the storm, and stood it out.  They too were washed clean and looked fresher and brighter; but there was nothing in that!  Two of them had been seen by the boys moving slowly, foot by foot, before the driving rain down the slope from the outspan, stung by the heavy drops and yielding in their weakness to the easy gradient.  Only fifty yards away they should have  topped in the hollow--the shallow dry donga of the morning; but they were gone! Unwilling to turn back and face the rain, they had no doubt been caught in the rush of storm-water and swirled away, and their bodies were bobbing in the Crocodile many miles below by the time we missed them. In a couple of hours the water had run off; the flooded dongas were almost dry again; and we moved on. It was then that the real `rot' set in.  Next morning there were half a dozen oxen unable to stand up; and so again the following day.  It was no longer possible to take the four waggons; all the spare cattle had been used up and it was better to face the worst at once; so I distributed the best of the load on the other three waggons and abandoned the rest of it with the fourth waggon in the bush.  But day by day the oxen dropped out, and when we reached the Junction and branched up the Kaap, there were not enough left for three waggons. This time it meant abandoning both waggon and load; and I gave the cattle a day's rest then, hoping that they would pick up strength on good grass to face the eight drifts that lay between us and Barberton.

Jock Of The Bushveld by Sir Percy Fitzpatrick (Chapter 19)( Page 4 ) Jocks Mistake

No two days were quite alike; yet many were alike in the sense that they were successful without hitch and without interest to any but the hunters; many others were marked by chases in which Jock's part--most essential to success--too closely resembled that of other days to be worth repeating.  On that day he had, as usual, been the one to see the wildebeeste and had `given the word' in time; the rest was only one straight shot.  That was fair partnership in which both were happy; but there was nothing to talk about. There was very little wanton shooting with us, for when we had more fresh meat than was required, as often happened, it was dried as `bultong' for the days of shortage which were sure to come. I started off early next morning with the boys to bring in the meat, and went on foot, giving Snowball a rest, more or less deserved.  By nine o'clock the boys were on their way back, and leaving them to take the direct route I struck away eastwards along the line of the pools, not expecting much and least of all dreaming that fate had one of the worst days in store for us: "From cloudless heavens her lightnings glance" did not occur to my mind as we moved silently along in the bright sunshine. We passed the second pool, loitering a few minutes in the cool shade of the evergreens to watch the green pigeons feeding on the wild figs and peering down curiously at us; then moved briskly into more open ground. It is not wise to step too suddenly out of the dark shade into strong glare, and it may have been that act of carelessness that enabled the koodoo to get off before I saw them.  They cantered away in a string with the cows in the rear, between me and two full-grown bulls.  It was a running sho --end on--and the last of the troop, a big cow, gave a stumble; but catching herself up again she cantered off slowly.  Her body was all bunched up and she was pitching greatly, and her hind legs kept flying out in irregular kicks, much as you may see a horse kick out when a blind fly is biting him. There was no time for a second shot and we started off in hot pursuit; and fifty yards further on where there was a clear view I saw that the koodoo was going no faster than an easy canter, and Jock was close behind. Whether he was misled by the curious action, and believed there was a broken leg to grip, or was simply over bold, it is impossible to know. Whatever the reason, he jumped for one of the hind legs, and at the same moment the koodoo lashed out viciously.  One foot struck him under the jaw close to the throat, `whipped' his head and neck back like a bent switch, and hurled him somersaulting backwards.

Photos taken by Kyle Olsen while on safari in the Kruger National Park

Two photos of a leopard taken while on safari with Nhongo Safaris.

For more info on our Kruger Park safaris, please visit our Nhongo Safaris website