27th - 28th - Horror and return

As my flight departed in the evening I still had a day available to do something before leaving, and as I was not the only one we ending up being a small group wanting to go to the Apartheid Museum. We were told it shouldn’t take the driver more than half an hour to get there, but unfortunately it took him double that. This included going too far on the highway which resulted in him reversing (!) to get back onto the off-ramp. Yeah, we felt very safe.

Arriving at the museum we only had a couple of hours due to some of ours departures, so we ended up rushing through. We could easily have spent 4 hours there without feeling we were wasting our time. The museum was very interesting, but it was – naturally – very uncomfortable to read and study some of the things. It is highly recommended – but I would suggest to not do it as the last thing when in the country because you would want something a little more bright and optimistic to conclude your visit with.

We wanted to take a quick drive through Soweto before returning to the lodge, but we hadn’t gotten the company’s best driver. 20 minutes after leaving the museum we came past it again, and it wasn’t until all of us pointed it out to him that we were back where we started that he actually realized why we were yelling at him.

We changed our minds and asked to go straight back to the lodge. At least that only took half an hour this time.

We were told to have plenty of time to check in and get through customs and security. The fact was, though, that it took 10 minutes to drive to the airport, and less than half an hour after leaving the lodge we had gotten through all the steps and were now facing quite a few hours to walk around in the departure areas.

Oh, well – rather that than stressing and being late.

Flew home the same way I came, and Sunday morning I arrived safely back in Copenhagen, concluding another successful vacation.

26th - Return

In the early morning we packed up and left the site to go and visit a local school that has been established and financed by the Planeterra organization, a volunteer program under G Adventures. Here we got to see the facilities and meeting the kids (2-5 year olds) arriving in the morning and having their first class.

After this we were back in the truck and in a straight line towards Johannesburg.

We came back to the Airport Game Lodge at around 1600 where we had a couple of hour’s rest before we took a taxi to a place near the airport that best can be described as Johannesburg’s version of Cesar’s Palace. Casinos, restaurants, bars, whatnot. Here we had our final dinner together – a not bad buffet with plenty of local foods to choose among. Especially the amount of desserts was lovely (not if you ask my arteries, though, but who cares about them anyway?).

Not much else happened during that evening. We had a good time and slowly began saying our goodbyes if we wouldn’t meet the following day.

25th - Kruger, part 2

Today we were picked up in the morning by two safari vehicles. While the wildlife watching from the truck yesterday was good, we were limited by the fact that it is only allowed to drive on paved roads. These specialized safari vehicles (similar to those in the Serengeti, just slightly bigger) are able to drive on any road, paved or not, giving us more chances to get closer to the animals.

The day was to be a mixed experience, though.

Our driver/guide had from the beginning been informed that lions were the only one of the bug five we hadn’t seen yet (in the wild), so focus was to be on those. Also, having seen so many elephants already, we wouldn’t need to stop every time we saw a new group wandering about.

Up until lunch we had a good drive; saw quite a few animals, no new ones, unfortunately. We even stopped for a break for half an hour. While there was a nice view of the area from the seating area in the café that also was there, it all felt more like a way of getting us to do some shopping in the souvenir shop. But we kept driving around, until we at lunchtime parked at another site in the park after which the driver left us – without any plans or arrangements of when we were leaving again. Slightly confusing, but we ended up relaxing on a patch of grass for an hour while having lunch before returning to the cars.

At the various sites in the park there are large maps of wildlife sightings the last couple of days. We had seen that the last couple of days lions had been spotted daily in an area a couple of km east of our lunch spot. We pointed this out to our driver, and therefore he did the sensible th… no he didn’t. He drove west. We started complaining about this, and the only real reaction was to circle around, look at some elephants (yes, you do get tired of looking at them in the end, especially when you know there might be lions nearby) and continue west.

Later, we had another clash with the driver; someone spotted a leopard in the bushes and told him to stop. Being on the phone he had a very long reaction time, so we all ended up yelling at him to stop before he reacted – after which we yelled at us for scaring the animals away. He reversed quite a bit, and we did just manage to see the leopard disappear deeper into the thicket.

Not too happy about the afternoon’s drive, we exited the park and drove to our last camp site before Johannesburg.

The site was almost like a small amphitheatre where we set up the tents on the top level. After setting up camp Jaco pulled out a sling and played around with that for a while before showing off his whipping skills again. No twigs in mouths this time, but still very entertaining.

After dinner a group of locals came by and danced and sang for us. A little like when we were in the Delta, but not quite as frivolous.

Giraffes always run in slow motion.

Bateleur eagle.

Greater blue-eared starling.

Turtles.

Elephant (again!).

An eagle of some kind.

Zebras and wildebeast.

Kudus.

Ground hornbill.

A.... bird.

Leopard tail.

The rest of the leopard.

23rd-24th - Kruger, part 1

The 23^rd was eventless. We had a 7 hour drive getting into South Africa and our next camp site. As usual the long drives on the trip were eventless and even crossing the border this time wasn’t a big hassle. Or we are just getting used to it. In any case, nothing to report.

The 24^th we had our first full day in Kruger. The day was spent in the truck, going from a northern entrance into the park and getting quite a bit south into the park to get to the site where we would be spending the night. While the drive was interesting enough in the sense that there was wildlife to look at and look for, the drive itself was just, well… driving.

The sightings today were quite a big mix of various animals. We saw plenty of elephants – many more than I would have expected. While in some areas the elephants are threatened, they are apparently have so many in Kruger that there are discussions on whether or not they should be culling some of the families. They are reaching a point where the number of elephants is reaching an amount where the areas will not be able to sustain the large number of herds walking around. It is quite interesting, especially considering what you usually hear about elephants in Africa.

We saw two small hyena cubs lying in small hole. Despite not being very pretty when grown up, the two cubs still managed to get some awww’s from the truck.

And we saw a cat today, more precisely a leopard. Not very visible, but it was definitely there! The 5 five was thereby crossed off for the trip (even though I would have preferred seeing lions in the wild and not just in the sanctuary).

Getting to the camp site – big fenced in area with supermarket and good toilet facilities – we had an early dinner as we would be leaving again at 1930 to go on a night drive trying to find animals that tend to be more active during the night than day. We were given two projectors which would then be used to light up surrounding areas in an attempt to spot anything that wasn’t a rock. Yes, we saw plenty of impalas. And a bunch of elephants. No cats, but a group of hyenas playing around. Generally the drive could be considered a success.

Zebras.

Saddle-billed stork.

Yellow-billed hornbill.

Buffalo.

Two hyena cubs.

You might not be able to see the leopard, but the leopard has definately seen you!

The leopard got tired of the attention and got up to walk away.

Elephant under the moon.

Hyena.

22nd - Horny animals

We had a late start today with a 0730 breakfast, so Jaco informed us that as the sun would be rising at 0610 we would have plenty of time to see the sunrise before any of the day’s plans took place. Silly me was the only one to get up early. Walking around in total darkness with only a head lamp, eyes looking everywhere (reflected from the light) and having been told that there was a high density of leopards in the area made the solo morning walk one of the scariest things I had ever done. Combine that with complete overcast and lacking a good viewpoint I was back in my tent at 0620.

A couple of hours later we were picked up by the day’s guide (Ian) who took us for a hunt for rhinos in the Matobo NP. The two cars driving us around stopped a couple of times so that we could continue on foot in an attempt to locate and get close to the rhinos. The white we should be able to get as close to as 2-3 meters, while the black… not so much. We were told that seeing them from 100 meters away they would either be seen running away or towards us (and not in a polite welcoming way).

Ian was very competent and could hardly stop talking when had warmed up. He was obviously very dedicated to his work, something he had been doing for almost 30 years. Africa’s version of Steve Irvin, basically.

When exiting the vehicles he was very clear about the fact that we could very quickly end up in (extreme) danger if we saw any black rhinos when on foot, but he was also very good at telling us of what to do if something went wrong. Basically be quiet, stand still and crouch down. Be a rock. Only in extreme situations should we ever have to run, and he pointed out it would be very clear if he ever wanted us to do so. None of this ended up being necessary, though. He had plenty of experience in all situations with rhinos and could kill the myth that they cannot make sharp turns when running at top speed. He could from his own practical experience confirm that they could make sharp turns; as much as making turns with a radius of less than a body length. You wouldn’t think it when looking at them, but they are very nimble.

He also informed us that up to 28 poachers were caught or killed (shot) in the NP. Not since the establishment of the park, but every month.

After two walks we were driving down a road and when turning a corner we suddenly saw three white rhinos scurrying away from the road. We jumped out of the cars and slowly followed Ian into the bush, following the rhinos at a careful distance. We ended up app. 20 meters away from them until they decided that enough was enough and ran further away that it was practical to follow.

Satisfied with the sighting we had lunch and afterwards we were brought to a cave where bush men had been making drawings that were thousands of years old. As with the rhinos and wildlife in general Ian was very passionate about this.

Following, we went to a village to meet the locals. Here we were introduced to the elder, an 80-something year old dressed in a leopard’s skin belonging to a leopard he ended up killing in a fight. He was a great character. Generally all the people in the village (30-ish, quite a few small kids) were very friendly and we had a great time there before we had to take our leave again.

Back at the camp Ian had a couple of anecdotes from years back (note; lighting a lion’s tail on fire is NOT the correct way to get rid of a lion when it’s sitting outside your tent when you want to sleep) before taking his leave, had dinner and prepared for tomorrow.

Today’s joke; Jaco admitted that the sunrise wasn’t until 0710. Oh well, I’ll be saving money on tipping, obviously.

The mood is set when entering the park.

Family of warthogs.

Peek-a-boo!

Hello there!

Is that a big horn you have or are you just happy to see us?

Cave paintings. The drawings at the top are 3-ish meters from the ground.

Ian getting passionate.

Leopard.

Haha, he was a great character!

21st - Onwards!

The first day of the second part of the trip was spent driving. Another long day of 9 hours was required to get us to the next camp site, so no time was wasted in the morning. All and everything got packed, a few previous group members showed up to say goodbye and off we were heading for the Zambia/Zimbabwean border.

The border took slightly longer than the previous crossings, but compared to what one could expect from the crossing it went very, very smooth. So lucky us!

In the afternoon we reached our destination where we are going to stay for two nights. Tomorrow we will be going on a game drive the entire day and mixing in a couple of walks trying to get close to the park’s rhinos and hippos. Hopefully the leopards will also make an appearance, but not too close.

If anyone wasn't aware; the moon.

20th - Day off

Today we had the day off as this day was spent getting people detached from their truck in the morning and getting presented to their new group (if doing so) in the evening. The resort had a large variety of activities so one had no excuse for not doing something.

I started the day going on a lion walk in the early morning. You would be brought to a lion sanctuary where they take care of lions that are born in captivity and prepare them to give birth to kittens that effectively won’t have any contact with humans – like “normal” lions. With guides and assistants we followed 3 7-month old lions around and saw them interact with the environment and briefly get to pet them. It was, honestly, a money/tourist trap, but it was interesting to hear what they had to say about the process and getting that close to them wouldn’t have been possible in any other situation (unless you had a death wish).

When the lions reach an age of app. 15 months the get too big for the tourists – and keepers – to get close to them, so they are moved out into a large fenced area where they get to be on their own and establish their own social ranks without having humans as dominants. They will still be assisted in form of food drops if necessary. When they have established themselves in stable relationships, they are moved out in a much larger area whey they are by themselves and are fully dependent on being able to catch all their food by themselves. Here they will also get their cubs, which will therefore be growing up without human contact. When old enough, the will be removed and put out into the wild, where they will be “normal” lions. The ones they came from the sanctuary will never be put out in the wild as they will not have the instinctive fear of humans.

In the early afternoon I went on a 15 minute helicopter ride over the Victoria Falls. While it was more expensive than the morning’s lion walk it felt much more worth the price. And I got to strike out “ride a helicopter ride” from my bucket list. So, win/win all around.

After an afternoon with nothing planned the evening quickly approached. An introductory meeting was held for the new group and afterwards we had dinner which would also include inviting the old group members to the table, getting to say the last goodbyes.

The 3 lions we followed.

"Rawr, I'm big and dangerou... Oh look! A stick!"

The Falls from above.

These monkeys were all over the place at the camp.

19th - Livingstone, I presume?

Early in the morning at 0530 we were picked up to go on a morning game drive in Chobe NP. We saw plenty of animals, none we hadn’t seen before, and unfortunately no cats even though we saw several lion tracks and a spot where a leopard had been seen the day before.

Coming back to the camp at 0930-ish we had a quick breakfast before driving an hour to reach to border to Zambia. First we checked out of Botswana, took a ferry 5 minutes across the Zambezi River, got into Zambia, got our visas and in the end fighting ourselves through hordes of salespeople (which we actually never – except from here – really had any issues with).

Back on the road we aimed for Livingstone and a couple of hours later we arrived as planned. We didn’t stop but continued on to Victoria Falls where we spent a couple of hours admiring the sights and having a walk.

Going back to Livingstone we found our camp site, established the tents and went for a sunset boat ride. The name of the ride, the Booze Cruise, sounded more dangerous than it actually was. The concept was a sunset cruise with game watching including dinner and a free bar for 2-3 hours. We all enjoyed the trip, some significantly more than others, but firmly back on land we ended up in the resort’s bar where we spent the rest of the evening and half the night.

This night was also the last night we would have with this group, hence the more than average intake of alcohol. The trip I’m on is in reality two trips; one from Johannesburg to Livingstone, and one going from Livingstone to Johannesburg. This site is where 3 different G trips converge (Cape Town – Livingstone, Nairobi – Livingstone and Johannesburg – Livingstone, with the two former taking the same path back and forth and the latter (my trip) following a circular route with Livingstone being the middle point), and people mix up, change trucks, arrive and leave, depending on where they will be going next (e.g. Nairobi – Cape Town, Johannesburg – Nairobi etc.). In total we are 5 people doing the Johannesburg – Livingstone – Johannesburg trip, and after being 22 up until Livingstone we will now only be 20.

Some of the elephants got awfully close that morning.

Warthog.

Hippos having a rest.

Victoria Falls.

The border crossing to Zimbabwe - and also where they do bungie jumping.

Victoria Falls.

Crocodile close-up in the evening.

18th - I’m on a boat!

Out next destination was 6 hours’ drive away and we were supposed to be there for lunch which meant that we had to leave the camp at 0600 in the morning. A couple of people had been visiting the camp’s bar the previous night so some of them were struggling a little more than usual when getting up – but despite this the departure from the camp went as scheduled.

Driving was eventless and at lunch we arrived and set up camp.

A couple hours after arriving in the early afternoon we went on a cruise on the Chobe River from where we saw a lot of elephants, hippos, crocs, buffalo, monkeys, baboons plenty of birdlife, a couple of giraffes and a single monitor lizard. Being advertised as a sunset cruise the last minutes of the trip meant that we had a good view of the sun setting over the plains.

Coming back to the camp we had an amazing spaghetti bolognaise. It doesn’t sound very local, but Jaco adding a couple of local things into it including some various spices and herbs made it an absolutely overwhelming meal. The best part was the dessert he had conjured up; a cheesecake with pistachios and mint.

Having the Chobe River going right past the camp we were standing in Botswana looking across the river into Zimbabwe.

(Another) elephant.

A something-something bird.

I believe these are young kudus.

Baboon.

Crocodile.

Elephants crossing the river.

Giraffes.

Monitor lizard.

Hippo.

Sacred ibis.