On safari in Kruger National Park

Last week I ditched the research for a few days and headed off with Richard to Kruger National Park, in South Africa’s north-east.  As we drove from the tiny shack airport in Hoedspruit to our accommodation at Jackalberry Lodge, our driver Jimmy told us we were on the last road north before Mozambique.  (Although Jimmy also told us that the army used to use tame cheetahs to chase the animals off the airport runway, and a few other tales we later found out to be a bit suspect…)  But the warthogs and giraffe that we spied on the short drive to our lodgings were certainly enough to tell us we were a long way from Joburg!

When we initially decided to go on safari I thought it would be a great thing to do.  But I had no idea just how incredible it would be.  It was quite possibly the most amazing thing I’ve done in my life, and I have spent hours every day since looking through the photos, imagining I am back there and pondering a career change to become a ranger.

As an animal lover, being up close with elephants, rhinos, lions, antelope, giraffe, wildebeest, warthogs, mongoose, kudu, wild dogs, waterbuck, hippos, hyena, buffalo, crocodile, terrapins, zebra, nyala and impala was breathtaking.  Kruger is apparently renowned for how close you can get to the animals.  Because the land is mostly scrub and trees, you can literally turn a corner in the dirt road and find the road blocked by a herd of elephants (which is exactly what happened to us!)  And coming across a herd of buffalo on foot was quite an experience – especially when our ranger, Dumay, told us that they are the most dangerous animal on foot, because once they start charging they never stop (and I thought they just looked like friendly cows!)  The bird life was also amazing – while South Africa covers 1% of the world’s land mass, it has 10% of its bird species.  I think I may have discovered my inner twitcher…

But it wasn’t just the animals that made it amazing – in fact, while other guests at the lodge were eagerly ticking the ‘big five’ off their list, we had to ask what they were (they are the lion, rhino, elephant, buffalo and leopard, so named because they are the five most dangerous animals in the world) – it was the whole environment.  Heading out from the lodge at dawn, or in the late afternoon, on the back of an open truck surrounded by soft sun light, the open sky, pristine bush and all manner of furry friends, was pure magic.  So much so, that when Richard asked me where the best coffee I’d had in South Africa was, I didn’t hesitate to say it was the instant coffee served with home made rusks off the back of Dumay’s truck at 7 am in an open patch of grass in the bush.

Oh and in case you’re wondering, we did see four of the big five.  We’ll just have to come back again to find the leopard…

Flying over the Kruger on our way in.

Our home in the Kruger National Park - if you ever visit, I cannot recommend this lodge enough.

Coming across a herd of elephants

Half an hour in to our first drive we turned the corner to find a whole herd of elephants walking in front of us.  The fella at the back is apparently the largest elephant in the park - he was enormous!

We also came across a crash (the collective noun) of bachelor rhinos - here is two of them.

A lovely female elephant - it was amazing how close we could get to the animals.  They were totally unfazed by the vehicles, they don't see them as a threat and paid almost no attention to us, which was very heartening.

A herd of buffalo blocking our path - they don't move for anyone!

Our ranger described the buffalo as 'like a big cow with a bad attitude'.

A young giraffe female giraffe - you can tell she is female because she has fur on her horns.

An old male giraffe.  This fella is about 24 years old.  Giraffes live until around 27 so he is nearing the end of his life.  He was such a graceful and distinguished old gentleman.  See how much darker he is than the young giraffe.

Waterbuck

Warthogs, the funniest looking animals in Kruger

Me hanging with the pups

Wild dog pups on a mission

We saw quite a lot of zebra, but they were always a little bit elusive.

The male lion and his sister chilling out by the lake.  It looks innocent, but in fact....

The lions above were facing off with a big group of hippos in the water.   Unsurprisingly
the hippos, who included a number of young, were not happy about the proximity!
We watched them form a wall and start moving toward the lions.

The large male hippo just reminding the lions of big his teeth are!

A very full, very fat young lioness - only the lions would have the luxury of sleeping this deeply.  Amazingly, Richard saw this lioness and two others chase and kill a Nyala earlier the same day.  I can't say I was sorry to have missed it, though seeing this lioness so blissed out with a full tummy did make me feel a bit better about hearing about it.

This is my favourite photo from the whole safari - it captures exactly what it felt like.

This was the view on our walk through the park on foot.  We received two instructions from our ranger Dumay:
1. Never, ever run.
2. Do everything I say.

Sunset in the bush

Our fellow safarians at breakfast.  We were really lucky to have a great crew to share the experience with.

A great way to end a day on safari!