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Published: June 17th 2017
01 Wildebeest
A herd of wildebeest among the long, dry grass.Geo: -28.4965, 29.9048
This morning we were woken up at 5:30 and it was already light. Then we quickly got dressed and met the others in the main lodge. Here I had a green tea, rusk and yoghurt as I sat on the deck of the lodge and watched the sun rising. At 6am our guide Kingsley led us to the vehicle and then we were off for the morning game drive. It was freezing, but Kingsley was prepared and we each had hot water bottles to help warm us up. The hot water bottle and the blankets made it a much more comfortable drive. What wildlife wonders would we see this morning?
We drove to an open plains area where the grass was very long and dry. Here we saw a herd of wildebeest that were on the move, zebras, an eland, a solitary steenbok and grazing impalas. In between the animal sightings we enjoyed the hilly scenery of this game reserve.
For our coffee break we stopped near a small dam. It was good to stretch our legs. About ten metres from us there was a giraffe that continued to eat as we walked near the vehicle. It was not
03 Zebras
A pair zebras looking at us. afraid of us even though we were out of the vehicle. In the dam we could see a few hippo heads sticking out of the water.
In between eating rusks I sipped my Amarula coffee, while Paul and Max were busy looking at dung. The giraffe was still near them eating leaves from the top of a small tree. A few moments later it began to walk along the road. On the other side of the road it continued eating from a tree.
I then looked over at the hippos. They were moving around near the edge of the dam, it seemed like they were getting themselves into a comfortable position. At one stage, the mother hippo looked in our direction and widely opened her mouth. They then sat down at the edge of the dam. A few minutes later it was time for us to get back on the vehicle and continue our morning game drive. We drove along the dam and could see the three hippos resting by the edge, as well as another hippo floating in the dam. Near the floating hippo, there was an African Darter sitting on a rock, with its wings spread and drying in
04 Eland
An eland eating grass. the sun.
We came across a pair of kudus and watched them eat leaves from the same tree. Then we drove past a dam and started to slowly drive up a steep hill. On the side of the hill we spotted an elephant and after looking carefully we realised that it was a breeding herd. At first they were difficult to spot amongst the dry bushes. Then we noticed the young ones hiding behind their mothers. Kingsley stopped the vehicle so that we could enjoy the elephants. The herd were eating as they slowly walked towards us and eventually crossed the track just behind our vehicle.
Right beside our vehicle a mother and her young little calf stopped to eat from a bush. This gave us an amazing, close sighting. It was fun to watch the cute young elephant as it learnt how to properly use its trunk.
We left the elephants and continued our drive. The area we were now in was very open, few trees and very dry grass. The track then led us to a dam that was on the reserve's border. Here there was a herd of grazing wildebeest, a pair of warthogs and waterbuck. We were
05 Zebra
A zebra and a windmill in the distance. on the move again as it was time to head back to the lodge. Just before we arrived back we spotted an eland and a zebra.
Arriving back at the lodge at 9:30am, we were greeted by the staff with a cool drink and a warm face cloth. I really enjoyed this luxury treatment! We all quickly freshened up and then met back on the deck for brunch. There was so much to eat for brunch – fruit, cheese, yoghurt, muesli, toast as well as a hot breakfast. I overate.
Today was turning into a warm, sunny day. For the next few hours we all went our separate ways. Paul and I relaxed in our room and enjoyed the peace and quiet of the bush. I sat on our deck for a little bit and looked around with the binoculars to see if there were any animals nearby. In the distance there was a dazzle of zebras. It was lovely sitting on the deck, the winter sun was nice and warm. I also tried to have a nap, but because I had too much coffee to drink this morning, it took me a long time to relax and fall asleep.
06 Eland
Another eland - this one is right next to the track. We all met back at the main lodge at half past three for afternoon tea. Although I wasn't hungry, I still ate! At four we left for our afternoon game drive. It wasn't long before we came across some wildlife. It was a herd of wildebeest. We continued on in the hope of a more exciting sighting. Then we saw it! A trio of white rhinos, they were the same ones that we saw yesterday. Kingsley stopped the vehicle and we stayed a little while to watch them. One of them was very muddy. They weren't doing very much, just slowly walking around. One of the rhinos began to graze, although to me, there didn't seem much to eat. It looked like it was eating dirt, as the grass was very low and sparse. Being so close to them is always a great, privileged experience.
We then drove past a herd of wildebeest and saw a beautiful Sable antelope in the distance. We also saw impalas, warthogs, giraffe, zebra, kudu, steenbok, grey duiker and gemsbok. Driving along the hills we came across four elephant bulls and followed them as they slowly walked along the uphill track. They were walking so slowly.
08 Steenbok
A small, solitary antelope - steenbok. We looked ahead and saw that these male elephants were walking towards a breeding herd that were on top of the next hill. Possibly the breeding herd that we saw on this morning's game drive.
Max then spotted two male lions halfway up the hill that the breeding herd were on. Luckily the elephants walked off the track and we sped on towards the lions. Kingsley drove off road so that we could get closer to them. As we got closer we could smell it. The lions were sitting next to a carcass. It was a dead, male kudu and it smelt putrid. Then one of the lions starting eating, while the other one just looked at us. Only a few metres behind the lions, one of the elephants had stopped walking and was eating from a tree.
The lions weren't very active, they stood up, walked a few metres, sat down, got up and then took a few bites and repeated the pattern. We stayed with them for another ten minutes and then Kingsley drove us about 200m away and stopped the vehicle. Here we were having our sundowner stop. We got out and stretched our legs. As I
10 Seed Pods
Interesting looking grass seed pods. sipped my G&T and ate snacks I frequently looked in the direction of the lions, as they were not that far away!
Luckily we didn't see the lions walk our way. When we got back on the vehicle it was time to use the blanket. On the drive back to the lodge we saw scrub hares, lots of pairs of eyes belonging to general game and a pair of jackals. Back at the lodge, we enjoyed another huge three course dinner. As we ate we discussed the day's sightings. It was another great evening with too much food! Although food is so much more enjoyable when it is cooked for you!
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