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A tower of giraffes
Songimvelo Game Reserve, SAToday is more or less a carbon copy of the previous day. Wake-up at 5:30 am, coffee and rusks at 6, departure on safari at 6:30. Richard wants to see if we can find the elephant herd that lives in the next valley over. To do that, of course, we have to get over the mountain.
As yesterday, we start in almost pitch blackness but the sun rises swiftly. Again, beautiful mists from the valley as the sun gradually illuminates and warms us.
Highlights along the way include a beautiful kudu and a large herd of giraffes that materializes out of nowhere. I'm still not sure how giraffes do the magic trick of appearing out of thin air. They give us a stern visual inspection, then gracefully lope off in a row. Incredible creatures.
We have now got over the mountain and are driving through mostly flat grasslands. Because the grass is long and the road seldom used, Richard loses the path a few times. That's an excuse to go off-road looking for the path. We have to pass through a couple of gates for which Richard has a key. However, there are no sign of elephants today.
We stop for a pit stop at the top of a small rise, under the shade of an amarula tree (darker bark) that is being slowly strangled by a parasitic fig (light bark). This is a fairly common scenario but we hadn't realized what was happening until Richard explains it.
Robert and Jo-Jo introduce us to what they claim is a traditional contest. In our case, they propose to pit Richard's jeep against Jo-Jo's jeep (ours). What is this contest? To see how far one can spit little round pieces of giraffe dung. At first, we think they're kidding, but they're not. Richard and Jo-Jo demonstrate. You select a smooth round ball of giraffe poop (which is everywhere), pop it in your mouth, give it a bit of moisture, then spit it as far as you can. Volunteers? Ah, c'mon! It's only processed grass.
You know me; I'll try anything. One of the crazy ladies from Richard's jeep also steps up. But it's no contest. If there's one thing a man knows how to do, it's spit. Same result for the second round. Jo-Jo's jeep is victorious!
Continuing on, we spot a herd of wildebeest in
An impala harem
Songimvelo Game Reserve, SA the distance. Our guides manoeuvre us closer and we get a good look at these remarkable creatures. A lovely herd of impalas is also nearby. These herds are actually harems, consisting of one male and up to a dozen females. The male jealously guards the females and mates with them repeatedly to make sure they become pregnant. This is actually mating season for many animals in South Africa.
Impalas are very common at this time of year. Jo-Jo tells us they are called the MacDonald's of antelopes because they have a black stylized M on their rumps and because they are everywhere.
Our next discovery is zebras! We had seen a few before as tiny dots on a distance hill, but this valley has lots of zebras. They are beautiful. We also encounter a mother giraffe and her calf, approximately a month old.
Our quest for elephants has failed but we certainly have knocked several more animals off our checklist. We head for home.
As we reach a clearing not far from Humala, we find that the staff have set up brunch for us in the wild. Porridge, eggs, sausages, yoghurt and fruit. A lovely treat.
Zebra
Songimvelo Game Reserve, SA Like yesterday, we have the afternoon free to recover from the very early morning, and we have a late-afternoon game drive scheduled. The latter has no new surprises in store for us: We see impala, blesbok, kudu, wildebeest and, of course, some giraffes. The sun is starting to set and I get a cool photo of the dark silhouette of a giraffe's neck against the pastel sky.
Richard and Jo-Jo turn the land rovers towards the top of a hill. We stop at the summit and are rewarded with a beautiful view of the valley below, bathed in the light of the setting sun. Libations are produced from coolers and we toast our adventures. The crazy Toronto ladies are moving on tomorrow, although we will see them again. We take turns taking group pictures of each other, and we sing some songs.
Back to Humala for supper. Little appetite on our part to party as we are severely feeling the effects of the cumulative early mornings, so we head for bed. My cough has settled deep in my lungs and I am concerned. I decide that I will start using our emergency antibiotics.
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