The Kruger!


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Africa » South Africa » Mpumalanga » Kruger National Park
September 10th 2008
Published: September 12th 2008
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Elephant!Elephant!Elephant!

We saw so many! Over 20 elephants roaming around!
5am. Somone is knocking on the door to my hut. I opened the door to see two large security guards with a clipboard, and just as panic began to rise, one of the guards said, "Wake up call" in that delightful South African accent. Time to get ready for our first drive into the Kruger National Park. (As a side note, I've been here long enough now that I'm starting to talk to myself in a South African accent. Is that wierd? Probably.)

I grabbed a pre-made breakfast at the lodge and boarded our new, hopefully improved, bus. Sefapane Lodge is in Phalaborwa, just outside the gates of the Kruger, so it took minutes to enter the park. Our Go Africa Guide, Mark, was at the front, helping us spot animals and identify them, and he told us to "look through the bush, not at it." WIthin a few minutes of looking "Through" the bushes and scraggly bobani trees, I saw dark shapes moving maybe 30-50 meters away. "I think I see something," I said to no one in particular. "I think I see something big!" I shouted from the back of the bus.

What I was looking at
Kruger National ParkKruger National ParkKruger National Park

It was so cool to see the signs after waiting to get here for months!
was a slow moving herd of buffalo (not like our bison-- these a buffalo look like really large cows with curled horns). I spotted the first of the Big 5, and our guide would later make good on his promise to buy a drink for whomever spotted a Big 5 animal first (Big 5 are buffalo, lion, rhino, elephant, and leopard. Or is it cheetah? I always forget that last one, but it's a cat.)

We drove for most of the day, spotting white-backed vultures and impala (these are everywhere), a few giraffes who looked as quizical about our blue coach bus as we did about them, and so many elephants! Male elephants (bulls) usually travel alone or with one or two other bulls, so we'd see one here, a pair there, but once we had to slow the bus for elephants to cross the road, and there were 14 Mr. Elephants lumbering around together! Our guide assured us that was rare.

We stopped for a break at one of the camps in the park. Think of a campground, but with mini huts instead of tents (although tents may be allowed, I just didn't see any). These camps
giraffesgiraffesgiraffes

Our first game drive!
seem to be the only way to stay inside the park. They are fenced off from the park, to avoid random lion attacks as you do some pre-dawn yoga, but most have some type of overlook wher you can sit and wait for the animals to come to you. From that overlook, we saw some giraffe, a few wildebeast and some water buck. A family we met said that they saw a pride of lions about 5 kilometers from the gates-- info sharing as a form of bragging seems to be all the rage. =)

Towards teh end of our drive, everyone was getting sleepy, but we'd snap to attention when the bus driver hit the brakes-- a sign that there was something to see. We spotted hippos cooling off in th eriver, baboons, warthogs, and a yellow-billed hornbill (like Zasu from the Lion King!) Considering I wasn't sure we'd see anything at all, it was a good day.

Back at the lodge, a few groups got ready for a sunset bush walk, and I relaxed by the pool and watched two of our students take over bartending duties, which they continued all night. For the record, the
ImpallaImpallaImpalla

Rangers call the impalla the "McDonalds of the park" because everything eats them.
manager loved it because guests were buying more drinks (did I mention they were in bikinis? That might have helped the business increase...)

We had an amazing meal of bobotie (the same thing we had during our pre-departure sessions) and I retired to my mosquito netting for some sleep. This morning, I'm having tea on the portch of my rondavel (hut) while I write this-- I always write my blog out, then type it, to speed up the time on the internet-- and later my last full day with the group will be spent on a sunset walk, then a game drive in an open air vehicle then a braai (bbq) in the bush with the entire group. We'll see if it's really a good idea to cook meat out in the open where hungry animals are roaming! Until that post, it looks like Courtney's flights are on time so far, so I'm looking forward to seeing her in Cape Town on Friday night!




Additional photos below
Photos: 10, Displayed: 10


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Eagle Eagle
Eagle

An eagle perched in a tree.
ZebrasZebras
Zebras

South African zebras have a "shaadow stripe"-- a brown stripe between the black ones.
HipposHippos
Hippos

Chilling in the water on a 100+ degree day
My rondavelMy rondavel
My rondavel

Each rondavel at Sefapane was an individual room with a kitchenette and bathroom inside.
My roomMy room
My room

Mosquito nets and all!
PoolPool
Pool

Hanging out at the pool and swim-up bar


12th September 2008

Lions, tigers and bears...wait...Elephant! Oh my!
Jen!!!!!!!!! This is all so incredible! And your pictures...love it! I know there was a part of you just giggling about the mosquito netting...
12th September 2008

Wow!
Lions and tigers and bear, oh my! Love these blogs! Love you, Mom
13th September 2008

OMG
I can't even believe all this Jen. How amazing. Love you , Eileen

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