On Safari With Curtis From 29 April 2014

29 April 2014

The first day of the tour and after picking up my new guests, we drove down to Numbi gate. When we got there we only had a couple of hours before closing time so we did a quick loop around Albasini, Shabeni link and Shabeni loop. At Mestel the resident Hippos were in the water occasionally calling out and moving about, however most of our attention was on the other side of the dam where we had a solitary male elephant standing a couple of metres from the waters edge. I did think he might go for a cooling swim, in the heat of the day, but alas he was more interested in the succulent reeds. We also saw Reed cormorants and an African fish eagle at the dam. As we moved on we came across a herd of Cape buffalo, I could hear plenty of rustling and noise around us but the thick bush stopped us seeing much of the herd, we did see about ten of them close by. As we carried on driving we also Impala and waterbuck in the bush and then Vervet monkey' and Klipspringer both on the lookout on top of a rocky view point. As we reached Numbi tar we had a bit of time to spare and so I decided to take a quick look around a small loop, as we drove down the road we found a traffic jam and the cause was a male lion. As we watched him relaxing a second male got up and they then both walked past the vehicle. Time was pushing on and so we had to head down to our lodge for the night.

A great start to the new tour and hopefully plenty more tomorrow!!!

 

30 April 2014

As we left the camp we immediately came upon impala and giraffe standing in the middle of the road, we found two more giraffe a little further down the road. We decided to take a look around Shabeni loop this morning, as I thought the lions we saw yesterday might make their way to the rocks. We were in luck as they were both there and each took turns to get up and walk around. One of them even gave us an extra reward as he started to roar.

Continuing on we came upon four white rhino by the edge of the road, with so many cars around the sighting they were a bit edgy but we waited patiently and all four crossed the road in front of us. As we drove on we found impala, kudu, warthog and giraffe along the road as well as more elephant. We had a break at Skukuza before setting off again and we came across a herd, or maybe two, of elephants. At least 35 animals at the sighting and we again turned off the engine and waited for them to come closer. We were lucky that once again they obliged and we had some wonderful views as they crossed the road around us.

After lunch at the golf club I stopped off at Lake Panic where the guests saw hippo, crocodile, terrapins and Nyala. On the way back to the lodge we were rewarded again with another wonderful sighting of an elephant herd. They again crossed the road in front of us although one female along with a youngster was too busy eating to bother crossing the road and they wandered right up to our vehicle and gave a great opportunity for us to get some great photos. As we carried on we found more impala, vervet monkeys, baboons and warthog before we turned onto Albasini where we found a Side striped jackal standing by the edge of the road. We also saw Leopard tortoises, tawny eagle, an Bateleur, Lilac-breasted rollers as well as white-backed vultures.

 

1 May 2014

Another day and our first animal was again the resident impalas near the lodge gate, we also had a brief glimpse of a common duiker before he scuttled off into the bush. Today we headed down Voortrekker where straight away came across a large male giraffe and large male elephant. Although the road was quiet at times we again had many sightings of elephants along the way, both herds and bachelor groups of males as well as impala and a very nice buffalo resting in the shade.
After a break at Afsaal we headed along the H3 and Napi where we saw more elephants, hippo, waterbuck, impala and kudu. With the hot sun beaming down the Leopard tortoises seemed to be out in force as well as the terrapins sunbathing at Shitlave dam. A quick look around Shabeni and we saw a couple of dagga boys as well as three klipspringers.

 

This afternoon was quiet to begin with as we found impala and kudu then while driving around Faye loop we found a solitary buffalo having a cooling soak in a drainage line and as we drove on one of the guests spotted an African wild dog. They weren't too far in the bush but with the long grass it was hard to see them. We waited for a while and eventually a couple of them popped their heads up and now and again got up and walked around. We saw three at the sighting but I'm sure there were a few more in the grass. We carried on and found a family of dwarf mongooses hanging around on the edge of the road. We then found a nice herd of elephants just by Numbi road.

 

 

2 May 2014

 

An early start as for four of my guests it was the last morning of their safari. We headed down Albasini and found impala and kudu but not much else when as we approached the Shabeni link road a pack of eight wild dog came trotting down the road, they turned into the link road and we followed. We were able to follow behind them for quite a while before they moved into the bush. We set about trying to find them when suddenly we saw an impala leap right over the width of the road with 3-4 dogs in pursuit. They didn't manage to catch the impala as they soon regrouped on the road before heading back into the bush for good. We then took a drive around Shabeni loop which was quiet with just a couple of kudu, impala and klipspringer on it. Unfortunately it was then time to say goodbye to Martin, Petra, Sarah and Jasmine who are continuing their adventures around South Africa. It has been a pleasure having you on the tour and I'm sure you will have many more adventures to go with the ones we had in the last four days.

 

Myself, Leo and Patricia then carried on the drive and we found giraffe, zebra, hippo, a nice herd of buffalo close to the road, Vervet monkey' impala and kudu before heading back to the lodge for lunch.

In the afternoon we found three white rhinos deep in the bush, they seemed to be heading our way and so we reversed a little, to give them space, and waited. They moved closer to us and eventually came out of the bushes and walked across the road right in front of us. We also found a journey of giraffe although we only had a good look at one as the others were hiding behind their favourite Acacia trees. We also saw a couple of elephants, impala, kudu and marsh terrapins relaxing in the afternoon sun.

 

3 May 2014

 

This morning Kruger was a blanket of fog with visibility just a few metres but this didn't stop us from having a good start. We found the local territorial white rhino male resting in his favourite drainage line and got some good photos to start the day off. Then we noticed the spoor of the wild dog and after following them for a few minutes found the whole pack resting in the road. After staying with the dogs for a while we moved on. The morning can be summed up as missed opportunities as we missed leopard, by just a few seconds, on four separate occasions and we also just missed a lion sighting. However sometimes this happens and we kept preserving and were rewarded when we found two male lions sleeping in the bush. They were only about 8 metres from the road but with the tall grass we couldn't see much. They however were kind enough to pop their heads up now and again and one eventually got up and walked a short distance before collapsing back to the ground. This gave us all enough time to get some good photos.

Despite the disappointment of missed chances we did see many other animals throughout the day including plenty of elephants, waterbuck, giraffe, warthog, kudu, zebra, wildebeest, impala, klipspringer, steenbok and tree squirrels.

 

 

4 May 2014

 

It was the last day of this tour and after yesterdays disappointment of missing all those leopards we were hoping for a bit better luck. We only had a few hours before we had to get to the shuttle so we headed around circle road and Manungu koppies where we found plenty of elephants, and a beautiful male kudu walking down the road towards us. We then moved onto Shabeni loop and found impala before as we turned around a bend found a leopard quickly walking over the road. I anticipated him coming back out onto the road just on the other side of the loop and we positioned our car just in case he came out on the road again. We waited for a couple of minutes and then he appeared, he hung around, sniffing the area, before crossing the road. We followed to the place he had crossed and found him just by the road and were able to watch as he sniffed, looked and then slowly moved into the bush. We only had a look at him for a couple of minutes but the guests still managed to get some really good clear photos of him. After all the close misses of yesterday we were all ecstatic about this lovely sighting.

We only had a short while left so we headed down Albasini and Nyamundwa dam where we saw impala, zebra, giraffe, hippo and warthog. It was then time to leave the Kruger and head for the transfer. It has been a pleasure having Leo and Patricia on tour and I know they have loved all the wonderful sightings we got over the last few days, hopefully we will see you again in South Africa one day!!!

 

More coming soon!!

 

 

On Safari With Karen From 29 April 2014

29 April 2014

Today we started off with a white rhino lying in a drainage line right next to the road. It seemed like he was posing for us, showing off his horn, so we got some good pictures.

We went down Voortrekker to Afsaal, where the road was pretty quiet for animals. Especially compared to our luck yesterday. But we enjoyed the change in landscape and different trees and vegetation. On the way to our coffee break we did still see some animals though: warthogs, elephants, rhinos and a dark chanting goshawk.

After coffee we finally saw our first impala of the day, and then they came by bucket loads. We had another white rhino sighting of two white rhinos and saw a couple of brown snake eagles and a very nice kudu bull lying in the shade.

We took the S112 and S21 to Lower Sabie, where we spotted our first blue wildebeest and we saw a mother giraffe with her young. As Nelleke loves the birds, we stopped for a lot of them, like a grey lourie, various hornbills and starlings.

On the last stretch to Lower Sabie we saw plenty of elephants going to the river to drink and play with water. We had a herd of about 50 elephants of all ages cross right in front of us and some even behind us as well. This was brilliant to watch! The last stop before lunch was at Sunset Dam where we saw crocodiles on the shore, hippos in the water and impala and giraffe.

After break we drove back on the Sabie tar road, spotting martial eagles, fish eagles and bateleurs all flying over as well as sitting in trees. In the river bed or just on the other side there were also buffalos, lots of elephants, a giraffe, and more crocodiles and hippos. Baboons were on the side of the road making one hell of a noise, so we were watching closely to see why, but calm return after a while. No idea what the racket was about, but they descended from the trees and crossed the road all around us.

We were then tipped off about a leopard in a tree, which we were lucky to spot. He was quite obscured, lying with his back to us in the fork of a large Jackalberry. But we all did see him and even saw an ear twitch!

Furthermore we saw vervet monkeys, loads of impalas, a couple of bushbucks, woolly necked stork and had a brief sighting of some lions deep under cover in the bush.

We headed straight down towards camp, and continuing our afternoon luck we spotted a klipspringer, had 5 giraffes crossing the road in front of us, saw a crash of 6 white rhinos, waterbucks and zebras. Our progress was halted however by two male lions who had decided the middle of the road was the best place for a nap. When we arrived already about twenty other cars were milling around them, so we didn't really get a good visual. Once they got up and walked down the road, a procession of cars following them, we got some glimpses of them and the guests were even lucky to snap some pictures of the causes of the traffic jam.

All in all a long but very good and entertaining day!

 

30 April 2014

This morning we went searching for those two male lions that we saw walking on the road yesterday, thinking they might have gone up Shabeni. Before we reached the Koppies they were already seen by Frank and Curtis, so we had an easy find. Before we reached the lion sighting however we first spotted two klipspringers on Shabeni Koppies as well. Then we got to the lions, which were lying on the flat rocks. We sat with them for quite some time, while they got up and laid down somewhere else a couple of times. We also heard then roaring, but not at full power. Even though it was a bit half-hearted, it was great to hear.

We then took a slow drive around Fayi Loop, spotting our first elephants of today. A young baby elephant was drinking from its mother. We also saw a reedbuck twice, had another large elephant herd crossing, and saw a dark chanting goshawk as well as a lizard buzzard.

While we sat at the Boskombuis at Pretoriuskop the vervet monkeys were climbing all over the place, and a cheeky one even stole some leftover food from an empty table. After the break we drove down Napi, spotting even more elephants, kudus and a lot of lilac breasted rollers.

We sat for a while at Transport Dam, enjoying the scenery and the waterbucks, giraffes, zebras, hippos and all the birds that were hanging around at the same Dam. We then went up Watergat, which was fairly quiet with not many other animals than impalas. However we did get a good look of a buffalo in one of the drainage lines as well as a beautiful little bee-eater.

Before we got to the Skukuza Golfclub for lunch we saw a steenbok, had 2 elephant herds on the side of the road and saw a leopard tortoise crossing for which we waited patiently. While having lunch we saw a hippo munching on the grass on the other side, some more hippos in the water and a family of warthogs digging up the golfcourse with their snouts.

On the way back we stopped at Lake Panic where there were crocodiles, a huge terrapin was swimming by and we looked at the birds. Then we continued our drive on Doispane where more elephant herds decided it was time to cross the road when we arrived at the scene, plenty of bateleurs were flying over, we saw a harrier-hawk and a juvenile steppe eagle landed on the road in front of us to clean up some road kill. The last bit of our drive we saw another lot of giraffes that were feeding and we saw our one and only white rhino of today. It was another great day!

 

1 May 2014

Today was unfortunately our last day on safari. We packed our bags, loaded up the car and left after breakfast. On camp road we were welcomed by the impalas that like to hang around and even a duiker came to say a quick goodbye before running off. We turned onto Albassini which was full of tracks of buffalo and there was lots of fresh dung, but the herd remained elusive. At Mestel Dam however we saw some hippos playing in the water and a baby hippo that kept on popping up next to Mum.

 

Down Shabeni we saw some lovely African birds and then took a loop around the Shabeni Koppies. We spotted an elephant not far away, feeding happily and we saw half a buffalo. Just half, as his under-parts and head were hidden in the long grass and unfortunately he didn't want to grant us a good look. Yesterday's lions had moved off the rocks again (or at least they were lying out of sight, if they were there at all).

 

We continued on it had been rather quiet so far, probably the most quiet morning of this tour. But then our luck changed as we saw 3 white rhinos on the side of the road. One had already gotten up and started breakfast, but the other two were still lying sleeping in the morning sun. While watching they decided it was time to get up, but before breakfast they put in some exercise in the form of pushing (the bigger one) and being pushed (the smaller one). Even the third one joined in the sparring match, but there wasn't much strength in it. It was just all bravado, but for us, it just meant more fun to watch. Once they started having their breakfast we moved off and decided to have a quick look at Shitlhave Dam before coffee break. Except for a lone waterbuck, nothing was happening there so we drove to Pretoriuskop to relieve our bladders and fill them with fresh coffee.

 

The last stretch of this safari took us around a loop around Pretoriuskop Koppie. We enjoyed the wide view of the environment and a nice kudu bull that was browsing close to the road. As a farewell we spotted a young elephant bull. He was quite far away, but when he spotted us he came towards us. His swagger was indicating he was out for trouble. While showing his size and making one hell of a racket he came towards the vehicle, but after one good look and a shout he decided we were not to be messed with. Backing off with much bravura, he conceded to leave us alone and we conceded to the fact it now was really time to leave the Park.

Nelleke and Hubert, thanks for coming with us and I hope you enjoy the rest of your holiday as much as your safari!

 

More coming soon!!

On Safari With Karen From 27 April 2014

27 April 2014

Today the guests came with Dean from Johannesburg to Nelspruit, where we transferred in the open safari vehicle. A scenic drive through the plantations brought us to the Kruger National Park. We drove to Nkambeni Safari Camp, our home for the next few days. As soon as we entered the gate we were already on safari as we saw kudu, impala and waterbuck on the road towards the camp.

After lunch the guests, Hubert and Nelleke, had some time to unpack and relax, before going on a Sundowner Safari.

 

28 April 2014

Last night's Sundowner safari left when it was spitting a bit with rain, but it cleared up soon after they left. However it did stay cloudy, so there was no sunset. They did enjoy the view from the top, as well as the few animals they saw: thick-tailed bushbaby, buffalo and a spotted eagle owl.

This morning we had a cold start, a bit windy too, but the sun started warming up nice and quick. Upon leaving camp we saw the same impalas as we saw yesterday, a duiker and some waterbuck. We also saw some curious mongoose who kept on stopping and checking us out while we waited for them to pass in the grass on the side of the road.

On Numbi tar road we encountered some ellies, mostly bulls, but deep in the bush there might have been an entire herd. We didn't really see many elephants that occasion, just a couple of flapping ears, but we did hear lots of vegetation being broken or ripped. Just before Napi turnoff two bulls were having an uneven fight, where the little one kept on challenging a big bull. But once the big bull engaged he was no match for the smaller one and kept on pushing him back 10m each time with what looked like an easy shove.

We drove down Napi and stopped at Shithave Dam where we saw lots of waterbucks. Once again we saw a male making amok with the other males, chasing them off and fighting with one, before returning to the females. Those females were not impressed since instead of watching this male was showing off, so they just kept on grazing with their heads down.

On Napi we had multiple sightings of giraffes (once again, a pair of males fighting over a nearby female), zebras crossing, more dwarf mongoose, wattled lapwings in a rhino madden, a nice herd of elephants, vervet monkeys, a steenbok running away and a beautiful crested barbet.

We stopped for a break at Skukuza, where a bat was hanging over our table and a hippo was snoozing in the river. We continued to make a loop around the river. At Lower level bridge we had a nice sighting of a crocodile warming up in the sun and another lazily swimming by, a fish eagle, marabou storks circling above and a pied kingfisher.

On the other side of the river we drove Marula tar road and had baboons crossing in front of us as well as behind us, while some stopped to groom each other quite close to the vehicle. We also saw lots of impalas, including a massive herd crossing, two buffalos lying on the edge of the water, golden orb spiders and their massive webs, white-backed vultures drying in the sun after a bath and some bushbuck.

At High level bridge we had an awesome elephant sighting of a herd consisting of about 30 elephants that came walking from the bush to the water. First they drank and then some of them started playing with water, throwing it over their bodies. The youngsters were swimming. A baby elephant then was too tired and had a snooze in its mother's shade. Then suddenly two big bull elephants showed up. The matriarch instantly reacted, and while the older ones shielded their youngsters she led her herd away from the water and around those bulls to the safety of the bush, where one by one they disappeared from view.

Back up Elloff we saw 7 lions doing what they do best: snooze. Occasionally we saw a head come up, but no major movement. We had an elephant crossing real close to the vehicle as he was reluctant to walk in the sun and we were parked in the shade to watch him manhandle a tree. The tree, by the way, resisted and did not get pushed over.

We stopped at Skukuza again for a quick bite as we were running a bit late for lunch time. Then back on the road down Napi. This time the road was fairly quiet, seeing no animals for the first greater part of the drive. Close to the end we still saw warthogs, elephants deep in the bush, lilac breasted rollers, yellow-billed hornbills, zebras and a lone giraffe.

 

More coming soon !!

On Safari With Mark From 23 April 2014

23 April 2014

Route: Napi - Skukuza - Napi - H3 - Napi - Nkambeni

General animals seen: impala, waterbuck, zebra, warthog, kudu, common duiker, steenbok, klipspringer, giraffe, elephant and rhino

Highlights: early morning we found a large herd of buffalo still lying sleeping on the napi boulders. Great to see approximately 200 buffalo all together in the open.

On klipspringer koppies we found 3 lioness and 2 cubs right on top just sunning themselves and observing the traffic jam below created by all the cars on Napi.

After coffee we found 2 male lions approximately 15m from the road lying in the thicket eating a kudu that they must of just killed. Guests got great photos and we spent quite a while watching them protect it from the vultures that sat waiting for an opportunity to eat.  

On our return to camp, Karen gave me a call and let me know that the 2 leopard were at shitlhave dam. We found them and spent the last hour of the drive enjoying the interaction between the female and her cub.

After a long day we headed back into camp happy to see what we did today.

 

24 April 2014

Route: Albaseni - Doispan - Napi - Shabeni koppies - Nkambeni

General animals seen: Kudu, Impala, common duiker, zebra, waterbuck, chackma baboon, giraffe, hippos, Nile crocodile, warthog, rhino, elephant, buffalo and bluewildebeest.

Highlights: approximately 4kms from mestal dam on the Albaseni we came across a female leopard on the side of the road. Great to see such a beautiful cat so early in the morning. After a while she casually moved off into the bush and we lost visual of her. We waited around to see if she pop back out on the road, when all of a sudden out popes the Male leopard from our right. Guests got brilliant photos of him as he moved slowly in the same direction as the female.

On Napi just past transport dam entrance we found a massive Male Lion just lying sleeping approximately 20m from the road. Not much disturbed him as we were the only car for approximately 20min.

We returned to camp after another long day but hat a great day it was!