On Safari With Karen From 14 October 2014

14 October 2014

Today we started viewing the animals before we even got to the Kruger Park! As we left Nelspruit, somewhere halfway down the road to Numbi Gate, a small troop of baboons was hanging out on the side of the road and some even quickly crossed. However as it is a public highway, there was no time to stop and take pictures, as this would endanger other traffic.

At Nkambeni Lodge we stopped to check-in and have some lunch. While waiting for our food to arrive at the table we looked around and saw three buffalo. A bit later these were replaced by an adult elephant and a youngster. Around the lodge we got a glimpse of the hippos in the dam yawning away, bronze mannikins around the pool, barn swallows and common house sparrows hanging around in the bar and a flock of guineafowls in the parking lot. In the afternoon kudus also visited the bush around Nkambeni.

And now we haven't even been on a game drive yet! The Nkambeni Guide Pierre took the guests on a sundowner drive and as it was very cloudy this morning, we were happy to see the sun and mostly blue sky.

However, when sunset drew nearer it had gotten cloudier. It was a nice sundowner, but the actual sunset was behind the clouds and on the other side of the hill. Nonetheless they enjoyed their complementary sundowner drink! And one of the guests even saw a baboon sneaking past a guard while they were enjoying their drinks. It wasn't the only animal on this safari, as also giraffes, impalas, a buffalo and part of an elephant was spotted. Some movement in the bush could have been a leopard, but none of them was sure, so it is on the list for trying to find it on the rest of the tour!

15 October 2014

This morning we set off after some nice breakfast for our first morning drive. We spotted great sightings of big bull buffalos, a couple of groups of zebras, reedbucks, kudus and a great white rhino sighting that came closer and closer and eventually crossed the road.

Down Napi we went, seeing our first impalas before stopping at four female giraffes eating the green leaves all around us. Some of them crossed the road, for what was obvious reasons to us: the right hand aide had much more trees with fresh green leaves. However, one giraffe was oblivious and kept walking on the left hand side.

Before we got onto the Napi Boulders we saw a steenbok and on the Boulders two bull elephants quite far in the distance. However we studied them with binoculars and thus noticing that one of them had lost/broken off both his tusks. His companion had two great ones as if he was carrying them for the both of them.

Back on Napi we saw two endangered ground hornbills foraging for food and got some nice photos of cape glossy starlings as well as yellow-billed and red-billed hornbills. At Klipspringer koppies we noticed the klipspringer the koppies were named after, before turning around.

Before we took on the return journey it was out with the old and in with the new. As we did drive the same road, but the sightings were different! Shortly after turning 4 elephants came walking out of the bush and crossed the road in front of us. One older female with a baby and two youngsters of different ages was probably following her herd at a distance as she kept on calling them. Meanwhile they did stop to eat from a tree and following the lead of the older female they all munched on the same small one. By the time they decided to move on the little tree was much worse for wear!

This time around we also spotted a waterbuck and a sable bull before having a giggle at some dwarf mongoose being brave and come out to look at us while a tree squirrel hang around in the tree above them. One alarm call though and all three of them vanished out of sight within seconds. A slender mongoose crossed the road at a run and therefor was missed by some and a red crested korhaan on the side of the road showed us why we need earplugs to watch them up close. Or rather made us hear it.

Just before we got to Pretoriuskop for a quick, but well-needed pitstop, we saw some vervet monkeys foraging together with a warthog. Unfortunately we had to kill the Disney idylle of Pumba and Timon as in real life, amongst many differences, they don't have the same habitat. After the break back to Numbi it was as we picked up three new guests. We then saw buffalos in the distance, zebras up close and three rhinos, one of them a baby, put a roadblock in front of us.

In the afternoon we set off for a short drive. Unfortunately it had started raining so we had the ponchos at the ready. At first it seemed all the animals had shied away from the rain and out of sight. Then we saw a large herd of buffalos in the background on Numbi tar. We took a loop around Pretoriuskop area as there were rumors about a leopard, but no such luck.

Then we drove down Fayi Loop. Here we saw some more buffalos, kudus, waterbuck and a duiker before spotting a herd of elephants. Two females had very young babies with them. One baby being tired tried to lie down to rest a couple of times, but the aunties kept it up and walking to cross the road. We were still watching these elephants when the sound of hooves gallopping down the stretch was heard. Soon a small group of zebras came in sight and their sprint scared the herd of elephants into a frenzy. The whole herd turned around and starting sprinting back to us! Seeing this herd of elephant coming at the car at quite some speed got our attention! Some were shocked to see the road blocked in their tracks but luckily the matriarch of the herd let the elephants safely across the road behind the vehicle. A couple of deep breaths later we set off again as both the zebras as well as the elephants had disappeared from view (but not after two mad aunties of the little ones had charged the zebras as punishment for upsetting them, and two zebras kicking each other) and whatever caused the zebras to gallop like they were chased was nowhere to be seen either.

As you fall off a horse you have to climb back on to get over your fears, so the guests were challenged as our next few sightings were all elephants. We saw a great show of a large bull doing everything in its power to reach some of the higher branches to eat, but failed. And a younger bull coming quite close to investigate the car and then cross behind us with no stress.

We enjoyed more sightings of impala, kudu, zebra and a big old bull giraffe and saw an impala with a broken leg, enjoying that sighting a little less. We had some nice encounters with buffalos on the side of the road of Numbi tar on the way back. Even on the last road we were not done, as on camp road we saw even more buffalos, kudus, impalas and a harem of zebras with a little one, before reaching camp gate just before closing time.

Meanwhile, the new arrivals went on a sundowner drive. Due to the cloud cover they had no sunset, but nonetheless they enjoyed the drive. Animals seen along the way included rhinos in the distance, buffalos, kudus, zebra and giraffe and an animal that came out of the bush next to the car but then walked away from them into the dark which might have been a lion or a leopard or a hyena...

More coming soon!

Two Foreign Nationals Sentenced For Rhino Poaching

Today, the Acting National Head of the Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation, Major General Yoliswa Siyotula, applauded the Organised Crime Unit of the Hawks in Mpumalanga for securing two convictions against two rhino poachers.

Yesterday, the White River Periodical Court handed down an eight-year sentence to Alvao Fagustino Sifundza from Mozambique for rhino poaching. Sifundza, aged 31, was arrested in the Tshokwane area of the Kruger National Park on 12 April 2014 after a chase by the park's field rangers. His accomplice fled. He was found in possession of a high caliber hunting rifle, rounds of ammunition, a silencer, an axe and a number of items of clothing. Yesterday, the court sentenced him as follows: One year’s imprisonment for trespassing, five years’ imprisonment for the possession of unlicensed firearms and two years’ imprisonment for the unlawful possession of ammunition. The court further said that the sentence on the trespassing and unlawful possession of ammunition would run concurrently with the sentence of the possession of unlicensed firearms. Sifundza was also declared unfit to possess a firearm.

In another case of rhino poaching in the Nelspruit Regional court on Monday this week, a Vietnamese national, Ngoc Cuong Pham, was sentenced to five years’ imprisonment and fined R1 million for dealing in and for being in possession of a rhino horn. Ngoc was also sentenced to another five years for racketeering, of which three years were suspended for five years. He was arrested with his 13 accomplices in Bedfordview in May 2012 after they were found to be in possession of a rhino horn. The case against the other accused has been postponed to 4 November 2014 for a trial date.

General Siyotula said: "We have a responsibility to protect our wildlife from people such as Sifundza and Ngoc, and to warn other poachers out there that we mean business."

Issued by:
South African Police Service

Six Suspected Rhino Poachers Arrested In Kruger National Park

The South African National Parks (SANParks) announced the arrest of six suspected poachers in the world famous Kruger National Park on Tuesday the 7th October 2014.

The first arrest took place in Kingfisherspruit when patrolling rangers made contact with three suspected poachers. They called for support and the SAPS Helicopter was despatched as well as the Special Operations Unit of the SANParks Rangers Corps. Three suspects were apprehended and found to be in possession of a .458 rifle, ammunition and an axe. In the second incident, rangers in the Crocodile Bridge Section made contact with three suspected poachers. They followed the spoor and called for Helicopter backup, the three suspects were then apprehended. They were in possession of a .375 hunting rifle, ammunition and an axe.

The park has been under tremendous pressure from illegal hunters and has already lost over 500 of these magnificent animals to poachers this year alone.

Congratulating his men on a job well done, the Commanding Officer SANParks, Major General (RET) Johan Jooste said he is glad that the dedication from his team is not wearing thin and that they continue making inroads. “Every individual we arrest, and all the weaponry we confiscate from the suspects, gives us more energy and hope that one day, we will be able to contain and start rolling back this onslaught,” concludes Jooste.

Issued by:
South African National Parks

On Safari With Robbie From 25 September 2014

25 September 2014

I collected my guests an proceeded onto Pretoriouskop camp where we had a brief rest before heading out to see what we could find.

We headed out on Napi where we spent a hour and a half with 7 elephant bulls who  at one stage where 5m away from our vehicle, they then walked parallel with us for over 5km. it was a superb sighting with ship mountain and the setting sun as a backdrop.  It was one of my best elephant sightings yet. Just before camp we got 2 male lions snoozing.

26 September 2014

Today we had phenomenal sightings of rhino with a total of 17 spotted. Along the sabie the elephants herds were prolific as well as the buffalo.

We also came across a hippo carcass by the river with 6 lions feeding on it. Suddenly a much larger male arrived on the scene and chased all the others off the carcass.

It has been great so far, we will see what awaits us next!

On the sundowner drive my guests had a amazing time spotting porcupine, genets, bushbabies, civet cat, hyena and two great sightings of the sabi river lion prides.

27 September 2014

Today we journeyed north, our destination was Tshokwane about 46km from Skukuza.

General game on the way was great including a herd of about 30 Kudu, a banded mongoos family was observed for 30 min, buffalo and elephant.

After breakfast at Tshokwane we carried on a little further north where we came across a 12 strong lion pride attempting to kill a zebra which they failed. The pride then joined by some 7 cubs who unbeknown to us had been sleeping in the river below. It was a fantastic sighting.

We drove slowly back to camp with excellent general game sightings and the highlight being a pack of wild dogs resting in the shade.

28 September 2014

Today the rain didn’t affect our sightings as we spotted superb leopard, rhino, buffalo and elephant. With one species short of the magnificent 7 we are hoping for a sighting of the slender feline (cheetah) tomorrow!

29 September 2014

Driving out this morning in pouring rain I was a little apprehensive about sightings but it turned out to be our best day! To sum it up we got 18 rhino, 3 herds of 200+ buffalo, 3 magnificent leopard sightings and elephants everywhere as well as brilliant bird sightings. To top it all at the end we saw our resident white buffalo right next to the road!

30 September 2014

If one believes in fate then it has occurred 2 days in a row. Due to the fact that my one guest had to move to another camp I have been leaving at different times for the safaris. Yesterday the leopard sighting was perfect timing and todays “operation cheetah” was no different. When my college called in a cheetah sighting we were still at breakfast. On route to the sighting it came across that the cheetah had gone! My heart sank and so did my guests. Suddenly 2km from the original sighting popped out 3 beautiful male cheetahs (known as the 3 brothers)  it was the last species for us to accomplish our “magnificent 7”  and to top it all off  for the first 30 minutes we had them all to ourselves. It was truly one of my best cheetah sightings of 19 years doing safaris in Kruger. Miraculously my guest Gary picked them up on return to camp 5 hours later where they had moved 3km north.

The day was so focused on the cheetah that we kind of forgot all our other magnificent sightings of elephant, buffalo, rhino, and a magnificent sable bull.

Timing wise today was epic!

31 September 2014  

Our final short morning drive was very relaxed and topped our birding list to 66! The guests left Kruger very happy having seen the magnificent 7 and had a fantastic time!