Southern Africa Part I: South Africa

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Southern Africa Part I - South Africa, May 29 - July 2, 2015

YOU CAN CLICK ON ANY PHOTO TO ENLARGE IT, THEN GO BACK TO THE BLOG OR GO THROUGH THE PHOTOS (48 TOTAL - CLICK ON THE NUMBERS AT THE BOTTOM OR ARROWS IN TOP CORNERS) IN THAT ENLARGED FORMAT. I PUT LOTS OF INFORMATION IN THE PHOTO CAPTIONS SO YOU CAN SKIP THE NARRATIVE, JUST LOOK AT THE ENLARGED PHOTOS AND CAPTIONS AND YOU'LL STILL GET MORE INFORMATION THAT YOU EVER WANTED. TO RETURN TO THE BLOG ENTRY, JUST CLICK YOUR BACK BUTTON OR ON THE NAME OF THE BLOG, BELOW THE NUMBERS ON THE LEFT.

As you have probably figured out, these travel blogs are a way for Bernard and me to keep track of our adventures. I can't tell you how many times we've referred back to one of our over 60 travel blogs looking for various details, maps, dates, etc. That said, feel free to enjoy the photos and just skim the text - I've highlighted a few interesting events, so look for those in bold.

As many of you know already, we are traveling in Southern Africa (South Africa, Botswana, Namibia and into Zimbabwe to Victory Falls) this summer. This blog covers the first part of our trip in South Africa. The map is pretty sparse with details, so most of the places we'll be stopping aren't on it, but it will give you a feel for our itinerary. Note all the blue squares in all the countries - those are premier game parks; we'll be in almost all of them, plus quite a few smaller national/regional parks.





We spent the first week in South Africa with my sister, Mary Jean, her husband Buzz, their son Matt and a friend of Matt's, Shawn, in Kruger National Park.



From Kruger Jack, Sherri, B & I headed east via Ithala Nat'l Park & Ladysmith to Durban on the coast. Locate Durban on the map - we followed the coast road south from there toward Port Elizabeth (to Kei Mouth, Morgan Bay, Port Alfred, St. Frances Bay, Tsitsikama, Knysna), around the Cape of Aquila (the southern-most tip of Africa/southeast of Cape Town) to Stellenbosch (wine country), and then Cape Town and the Cape of Good Hope.

From Cape Town we head north to Augrabies Falls Park, then Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park on the SA/Botswana border. Yes, there is a road even if it isn't shown on the map. Then into Botswana, Namibia, across the Caprivi Strip (right below where it says 'Angola') of Namibia to Zimbabwe/Victory Falls; back into Botswana and then back into Namibia. From Namibia we drive back to Johannesburg to fly home mid-Sept.



We have a mixture of accommodations: camp sites, vineyard stays, river lodges, safari lodges, B & B's and hotels. We are traveling in a Toyota Land Cruiser 4-wheel drive vehicle that was fully outfitted for camping by the rental company and has two tents on top. It has a deep refrigerator and a smallish freezer that runs on an auxiliary battery, but can be plugged into a regular outlet when available.



After SA we'll be doing more camping than 'soft accommodations,' and also covering rougher terrain, hence the 4WD vehicle - lots of sand tracks in Botswana and rough roads in Namibia. SA's roads are first class and MUCH better than AZ roads.



As you might remember, we did a similar trip in 2006. After living in Pretoria, SA for a year, friends from Charleston, Ernie & Kaye, and we used the truck Bernard and I had for our year in SA - went to many of the same places we'll return to on this trip. We didn't have 4WD, which was limiting, so this time we'll be going into more remote areas. Hence the tents on the top of the vehicle. In 2006 we camped in tents on the ground, but we were mostly in protected compounds (with notable exceptions) with little fear of wild animals (again, with NOTABLE exceptions). This time, particularly in Namibia and Botswana, we'll be on 4WD tracks and camping 'remote.'

South Africa

We left the USA on May 28, 2015 and arrived in Johannesburg, South Africa on May 29th. Nope, wasn’t THAT long of a trip, just a huge time difference.





We were traveling with Jack & Sherri, friends from Alaska (we met in Atlanta for the 15-hour non-stop to Johannesburg) who are our companions for the entire 3-month southern Africa trip. In fact, Jack & Sherri planned Botswana and Namibia (we did South Africa) because they have much more experience in remote camping. The tracks were rougher, maps scarcer, info harder to find, so Jack worked with companies in Botswana and Namibia - easier for one person to coordinate.



We were met at the airport by a driver from our accommodations: the African Moon Guesthouse. We had stayed there in 2012 (after the Pictet competition in SA; with friends Stuart & Susan) and the driver, Bright, remembered us and warmly welcomed us back.



We had a few days before our first game park, Kruger National Park, to get outfitted before my sister Mary Jean, husband Buzz, son Matt and Matt’s friend Shawn arrived (details below) to join us in Jo’burg and caravan with us to Kruger.



We’d rented a 4WD Toyota Land Cruiser, with two tents on top and completely ‘kitted out’ as they say here. Our first day in Jo’burg, Cristo (our friendly SA safari outfitter) delivered the vehicle to us.



After getting everything ‘sussed out’ and eventually ‘sorted’ with Christo, we drove to Pretoria to visit Sue & Peter, good friends from our year of living in Pretoria (2005 - 06). In their large, secure property, we took the vehicle apart, including all the equipment Christo had provided and went over it - discarded some of the things he had provided (the thin sleeping bags) in favor of buying better quality. Cristo came over later to collect the things we had rejected and agreed easily and amicably to our substituting some items and even agreeing to buy them from us at the end of the trip.



Sue & Peter were gracious hosts - as always. Sue had prepared several typical South African meals for us, so thwarted our attempt to take them out. They have a lovely home which they opened up to not only us, but Sherri & Jack, our traveling companions whom they’d never met. Super, super friends.



We were glad we’d allotted so much time in Jo’burg/Pretoria to get sorted because we did have to replace equipment (sleeping bags, pots & pans), as well as provision for a week in Kruger as we were camping there. My sister and her group were staying in accommodations so had less provisioning to do.



When Mary Jean, et al., arrived on June 2, they rented a car at the airport and we all congregated at the African Moon Guesthouse. The jet-lag after such a long flight is stupefying, but they had arrived in the a.m., so by the time we returned to the African Moon from Pretoria in the late afternoon, they’d gotten some sleep. After going out to a nice seafood dinner, they collapsed again, but were up bright and early for an 8 a.m. departure/caravan to Kruger National Park - a six-hour drive.



June 3 - 9, 2015 Kruger National Park

Some fun names for groups of animals: a dazzle of zebras; a tower or journey of giraffe; a rumpus of baboons; an implausibility of wildebeest; a curiosity of mongoose; and a crash of rhino.



We had a great time in Kruger National Park. At our first stop, which was on Crocodile Bridge before entering the park, we saw elephant, hippo, a huge crocodile (yeah, go figure), storks and all kinds of other birds. In Kruger you are not allowed out of your vehicle except in the compounds or on a walk with rangers. We took the opportunity before entering the park to stretch our legs (still had a ways to travel in the park to Lower Sabe, our first rest camp/compound) on the bridge, but the abundance of wildlife was a bonus. The look of amazement on MaryJean’s face was priceless.



Kruger continued to please. We saw the Big 5 (elephant, hippo, leopard, lion and rhino) within a few days. A few minutes after entering the park, we saw two white rhino - it was thrilling. Every day we saw something new, a lion pair right outside our first compound; leopards on night drives.



We did several morning ranger walks, but those are more educational than for game viewing. Don’t get me wrong, we saw game, but we also learned about animal tracks & skeletons, plants, birds, insects.



The rangers were wonderful and personable. We usually met at 5:15 a.m. for the drive to where we were going to walk, and then walked for about 3 hours. It was an amble really because we stopped so often to look at tracks and dung. We know so much about dung now!!





EXAMPLE of a typical night drive sightings in Kruger: two civets (catlike animals), a side-striped jackal; four hares, a hyena, a leopard, buffalo, impala, steenbok, elephant, hippo, wildebeest, kudu, duiker, a giant eagle owl, a martial eagle, a brown-hooded kingfisher.





The only bad bit of Kruger was that we had a fender bender. There was a huge giraffe feeding very near the road, but we didn’t see him until we were slightly past him. Naturally we stopped and backed up slowly (so as not to scare the giraffe), but another vehicle had seen the giraffe also and to maximize their view, had pulled up inches from our bumper. With so much equipment in the body of our vehicle, we are dependent on the sideview mirrors, which did not pick up a vehicle so close behind us. It was barely a tap, but as you know, vehicles these days are not very sturdy, well, except for the one we were driving - didn’t have a scratch, but the ‘cow catcher’ on the front on the brand new Toyota SUV just caved in and damaged the hood. The Toyota drove up beside us and we agreed to go to the nearest rest camp (Olifonts) and sort things out - you you can’t get out of your vehicles in Kruger.





We had insurance through the rental company, so after going over the details with Derek, the driver of the other vehicle, we all went on our ways. We called Cristo with the details and everything was handled by him.





Mary Jean, et al., had a week in Kruger then drove back to Jo’burg and flew to Cape Town for another week.



June 9 - The Kingdom of Swaziland



Our next stop after Kruger was at Maguga Dam in Swaziland. We hadn’t intended to go into Swaziland (an independent kingdom), but Sue and Peter said it was beautiful drive (it was!!) and so we made an adjustment to our plans to include a night in Swaziland. The back road we took was slow going, but stunningly beautiful. We chose Maguga Dam for our over-night because of the logistics, but it turned out to be a lovely lodge and we had a 2-bedroom, 2-bathroom house.



June 10 - 12, Ithala Game Reserve (back in South Africa).



On a very similar 3-month trip we took in 2006 with Ernie & Kaye, our first night camping had been in Ithala. We had so enjoyed the park and the camping there, we chose to go again. It was as lovely as we’d remembered. Funny story: on the way to Ithala Sherri was checking on her iPad to see if there was more than one entry point. She didn’t find that information, but one of the first things to come up when she googled “Ithala, camping” was my blog from 2006 detailing our first night of camping and extolling the outdoor shower - still there and still wonderful.



June 12 - 15, Nambiti Game Reserve, Cheetah Ridge Lodge.



I had wanted Sherri & Jack to have a private game lodge experience, but I had no idea what a wonderful surprise we all had in store. The price was more than reasonable, so I had expected a nice, but not exceptional experience. Boy was I wrong.



Cheetah Ridge Lodge is within the Nambiti Game Reserve, as are nine other lodges, some of which cost R3,500 - R5,000 ($292 - $415) per person, per night. At Cheetah Ridge we rented a 5-bedroom, 3-bathroom house (huge kitchen, dining room, living room, yard, private braai (BBQ) area called a boma, private swimming pool) for $120 per night - not per person per day, but for all of us per night. The price included one game drive per day - so we got 3 game drives with a wonderful guide from Kenya, Julian. We saw lots of animals, but the highlights were a black rhino in full view (they are browsers and so not easy to see; white rhino are grazers), an elephant family at a waterhole and a lion pride/family (lioness, three cubs, two beautiful males) on an eland (antelope) kill.



Other South Africans at the lodge were curious how we found out about it because it was a well-kept secret evidently; they told us South Africans can’t afford private game reserves normally because of the exorbitant prices. When I told them I’d found it on the internet a year ago, they were gobsmacked.



I asked our Julian why Cheetah Ridge was so reasonable, and he said it was because the owner wanted to keep it affordable for South Africans and also it wasn’t well known yet. Julian suspected the prices would increase drastically when they were ‘discovered.’



Adjacent to Nambiti is Kwa-Cheetah Reserve which is a breeding center for cheetahs. Turns out cheetah are in more trouble than rhino - have different problems. One of those problems is that there are so few their gene pool is not good, which results in a high rate of sterilization - breeding is a problem.



They emphasized that the reserve was NOT a ‘petting zoo’ and then they let you pet some of them. We also saw an African wildcat, a serval and mongoose who terrorized the visitors trying to get into our packs, under our clothing and hanging off camera. Good fun.



June 15 - 18, Durban.



We were loath to leave Cheetah Ridge, but headed to Durban on the Indian Ocean anyway. We had accommodations in a hotel on the beach, adjacent to a wonderful promenade and walking distance to a wonderful aquarium and lots of restaurants. The day time temperatures were around 80˚ F. (27˚ C.) and the evenings cool. Durban has a huge Indian population, so we had amazing Indian food for my birthday (June 15) - one of the best meals of the trip.



June 18, Kei Mouth.



We had remembered Kei Mouth as a lovely seaside community so I booked accommodations “three kilometers from Kei Mouth.” What they forgot to tell us was that it was then 11 kilometers down a 4WD track. It had rained recently and was dark when we arrived, so the ride into the lodge was concerning. We got bogged down in mud several times - Jack had the Toyota in 4WD so it wasn’t a problem, but hair-raising none-the-less.



Upon arrival we had to search for the host, who appeared inebriated, had an extraordinarily strong Afrikaaner accent and a speech impediment to boot. He showed us to our cabin (rustic but nice) which was very cold. I asked about heat; he showed me the fireplace, but no offer of wood. Since he knew we were coming, a fire in the hearth would have been welcome, but noooooo. As I’d been wandering around the hosts cabin trying to get their attention I’d noticed wood by their outside braai - Jack fetched it for us and started a fire. That helped a lot, but the cabin was a summer one complete with spaces between the logs - no hope of really warming the 3-bedroom cabin. We fixed dinner, which included lots of wine and giggled through our repast. We agreed that there was no way we could spend 3 days in a summer cabin; that we’d leave money for one night and head out the next morning, early. We did just that.



June 19, Morgan Bay



We drove a short distance into the next seaside village, Morgan Bay, and found a lovely, snug little inn right on the water. Our highlights there were surfing dolphins and whales breaching and blowing and wonderful walks along the ocean. Oh, add one more to that. We had dinner in the inn’s restaurant, which is also very popular locally. Just as we were finishing our meal the party (5) behind us asked if we were Americans - they’d heard our accents and wanted to chat. We had a most enjoyable time with these three sisters, two with husbands, all originally from Jo’burg, but the two couples had moved to Morgan Bay after retirement. The single sister was visiting from Cape Town. It is always nice to talk to locals and South Africans are friendly, forthcoming and often entertaining.



June 20, Port Alfred.



Our inn in Morgan Bay was booked solid for the next day, so we reluctantly packed up and drove down the road to Port Alfred where we found a nice accommodations at Kelly Beach - sea-facing with lovely sand dunes and nice surfing beach to walk.



June 21 - 23, St. Frances Bay.



I’d booked another **self-catering cottage for our stay in the beautiful seaside town of St. Frances Bay. We’d been having lovely weather along the coast, which continued here. Bernard had received exams from the university in Germany where he lectures and wanted to get a start grading them. Jack & Sherri rented bikes and spent the entire lovely day biking around the area. I sat in the garden and took advantage of the fast wi-fi.



**Many of our accommodations were ‘self-catering,’ which means in addition to all the normal accouterments, they have kitchens equipped with cooking and eating utensils - some better kitted out than others.



June 24, Garden Route National Park/Tsitsikamma/Storms River Village



Our self-catering cabin in Tsitsikamma was beautiful and perched right on the rocks. From our front porch we watched whales breaching time and time again. This is the mating and/or calfing time for the Southern Right Whale - they come up from Antarctica. We also had a nice hike - the weather continued to favor us.



June 23 - 24, Knysna, Tree-top chalet.



Still in the Garden Route National Park, but in the forest now we had another wonderful self-catering (2-bedroom, 2-bathroom, huge) house. Bernard took advantage of this beautiful spot to finish correcting exams.



We visited Knysna Elephant Park which was started as a home for injured and orphaned elephants. It has grown into one of the foremost centers for studying captive elephants. They have many elephants ready to return to the wild - you cannot interact with them. People can interact with other elephants that are not suitable for release - you can walk, feed and ride them. This is a revenue source to continue the educational program.



We chose to take a sunset ride on elephants - what a hoot. We fed them and got to interact with them before and after the ride. Sounds hooky, but interacting with elephants is waaaaaay cool. Keisha, my elephant, responded to commands such as ‘trunk up’ so I could feed her directly (instead of her taking food out of my hand) and I could see her teeth, tongue, etc.



In Knysna we also visited a bird aviary (Birds of Eden) - fabulous!! It is one of the largest enclosed aviaries in the world and is full of amazingly interesting birds.



June 26 - 29, Stellenbosch - Wine Country



Stellenbosch sits in some of the most beautiful countryside SA has to offer. The vineyards are numerous and beautiful; have great restaurants and wine tasting. We stayed on a wine estate (also bred horses) in a beautiful cottage.



June 29 - July 2, Cape Town



We are in Cape Town now and I’m trying to publish this before we head into Botswana on July 2nd. We have fast wi-fi here. So, please excuse any grammar or spelling errors as I’m not proofing this thoroughly. (I reserve the right to edit the text and add more photos.)



We had a lovely dinner in Hout Bay, just outside of Cape Town, with friends Joan & Doug; Doug is the brother of Peter, our friend in Pretoria. We met Joan & Doug in 2005 when we lived in Pretoria and they visited us in Tucson some years later - on their way to live in Atlanta for Doug's work.



July 3 - 5 Augrabies Falls via Springbok




From Cape Town we headed north, but still in South Africa, to Augrabies Falls park with a stopover in Springbok for the night because of the long drive. The waterfall and hiking were the attractions in Augrabies - both wonderful.



List of animals seen in SA:




elephant, buffalo, crocodile, hyena, spotted, zebra, giraffe, warthog, wildebeest - blue & black, impala, porcupine, hippo, rhino - white & black, kudu, leopard, common duiker, klipspringer, lion, waterbuck, bushbuck, blesbok, jackal - side-striped and black-backed, steenbok, civet, hare, vervet monkey, baboon, eland, red hartebeest, nyala, bontebok, at Nambita: serval, African wild cat, cheetah

DON'T FORGET TO LOOK AT THE PHOTOS BELOW (VERY BOTTOM, BELOW: THE AD, OUR PROFILE, THE BLOG OPTIONS, NORTH AMERICA, TRVELBLOG AWARDS, TOP PHOTOS - YES, RIDICULOUS!!) AND GO TO THE OTHER PAGES (CLICK ON 'NEXT' AT BOTTOM OF EACH PAGE) AS THERE ARE MORE PHOTOS (48 TOTAL) AT THE BOTTOMS OF THE PAGES.

Stay tuned for Southern Africa, Part II - Botswana.

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Photos

White Rhino
We saw these upon entering Kruger NP. A few days later we saw the carcasses of 4 rhinos who had been poached, killed for their horns. It is devastating to think one of these magnificent creatures may no longer be alive.

The Gang
In Tsitsikamma with Jack & Sherri - our companions for this 3-month southern Africa trip

Peter & Sue
In Pretoria with good friends: Bernard, Sherri, Peter, Sue, Jack, & Kathy

Birthdays/Anniversary Celebration
We celebrated Shawn's (left), my and Buzz's (blue shirt) birthdays, plus Bernard's and my 32nd wedding anniversary in Kruger. Matt is next to Shawn and my sister, Mary Jean, is between Buzz and me.

Lioness
A beautiful lioness upstaging her mate (behind her)

Crocodile Bridge
Entering Kruger National Park - Bernard, Kathy, Mary Jean, Buzz, Shawn and Matt (in his manly pose)

Nambiti Sunset
We had several sunset game drives in Nambiti (our lodge within the reserve was Cheetah Ridge Resort) with great people. On the hood of the vehicle are Georgie & Holly, sisters and both students in Stellenbosch.

K & B at Sunset
In Nambiti Game Reserve

Kwa-Cheetah Breeding Center
Bernard with one of the male cheetah

Cheetah
Gorgeous animals!!

Camping
In Ithala Game Reserve - notice the vehicle with a tent opened; that is where Sherri & Jack slept. Bernard & I chose to pitch a ground tent whenever possible - making night time ablutions easier.

Ellies
Elephant family at a waterhole in Nambiti just before sunset

Giraffe Drinking
Giraffe are never more vulnerable than when they are drinking so this big guy looked around for a long time before bending for a refreshing sip

Durban, Bernard begging food
We were in Durban on Youth Day - lots of music and speeches and grilling on the beach. Bernard went over to ask what they were grilling and they gave him a chicken leg.

Morgan Bay
Walking the coast - lovely. Jack & Sherri saw dolphins surfing from this overlook; I only saw whales breaching and spouting

Knysna Elephant Park
Bernard with his ellie - we rode for about 1/2 hour, but the best was getting to pet and feed these amazing animals. Respect!

Knysna Elephant Park
Most of the orphaned or injured ellies at the Park will be reintroduced to the wild. The ones we rode were domesticated and will never be wild again, which was sad, but they seemed EXTREMELY happy

Bernard feeding his 'ride'
Click below on subsequent pages of photos - LOTS more photos!!

Feeding Kasha
After riding the elephants, you must feed them - what a hoot!

Giraffe w/oxpecker
A face only a mother (or an oxpecker) could love.

Comments

[Jill Sare]

thanks for the lovely tour!
I so enjoyed sharing your safari journey -- brought back many memories for me of my1999 'honeymoon' safari in Kenya & Tanzania. Your wildlife photos are spectacular!! Sending big hugs -- I still await your return to Ecuador!!!

[Mara]

Tour de Afrika
Hi Kathy-- Thanks for allowing me to tour Africa with you! This is probably the closest I'll ever get. Your photos, as always, are great. I look forward to Part II. Be well and have more fun!

[Shondra Frye]

Natural Beauty
K & B....these photos are stunning! The images bring back so many memories!! One day I hope we can all reunite and do a similar trip in the coming future. Miss you still! Hugs, Shondra

[suzie hawkins]

wonderful so far!
bermie and kathy, what a trip!..first part..i loved reading about it all...suzie in tucson.....