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22nd January – “The 2012 Floods”

2012-01-23T17:01:00.002+02:00

Photo of the Day

The Flood coming past the lodge...bearing in mind this river hasnt flowed past the camp in 7 years!

Daily Synopsis

Little over 12 years ago, Cyclone Eline hit the east coast of Mozambique and dropped it’s watery contents over vast parts of South Africa’s Lowveld, including the Timbavati, in what was from that point onwards referred to as “The 2000 Floods”; they were quite devastating, especially in poverty-ridden Mozambique, and its destructive force was still evident until last week Wednesday. However, from the 18^th January 2012, we had new floods to refer to, as Cyclone Dando made it’s unforgettable mark on the Timbavati.

Cyclone Dando above South Africa's Limpopo Province

I had been happily sitting at home in Johannesburg enjoying my last day of leave, and via Facebook and Blackberry Messenger, I was getting updates of a lot of rain in the area, and reports were that it had been raining all day on Tuesday; not all that unusual, so I didn’t really pay much attention, and woke up on Wednesday expecting to go back to work...that was until I started seeing reports that the rain had not stopped at all on Tuesday night, and was still bucketing down on Wednesday morning. I thought the guys were joing when they said I would only be coming back to work if I had a boat. At that stage I didn’t realise it was so bad, but slowly figures of 250-300mm of rainfall were being reported in the news...and then I saw the image of Cyclone Dando, and it all suddenly made sense, and I knew I wasn't getting back to the reserve anytime soon!

I eventually had contact with the lodge and heard that despite my pessimism that the rain would have missed us as it usually does (and once more leaving our lodge dam empty), I was quite wrong. So wrong in fact that not only did our dam have water in it, but it had so much water that our pool was flooded; and I was asked to try get back to assist Dave and the staff at the lodge.

This would not have been an issue had Hoedspruit, the closest town to Motswari not been totally cut-off and isolated by the floods! All roads in and out of Hoedspruit were blocked off by rivers, and there was no way to access the town, and that meant no way to access Motswari...well, not by road anyway!

Although I tried to get in, it wasn't happening on Wednesday, and I spent the night in the nearby town of Graskop, and organised to get in via helicopter on Thursday morning, and after meeting Godfrey in town, we did just that.

Getting into Motswari in style - Godfrey and I catch a helicopter back to the reserve

Flying over the reserves in the area, we really started to get an idea of the damage that had been caused as every river in the area had flowed; and not just a trickle! The tiniest drainage lines that one barely noticed became 20m wide rivers, and the large riverbeds that are normally sandy masses carrying no water, burst their banks and flowed over 100-150m wide!

Flying over the reserve - flooded roads, breached dams and little drainage lines running like rivers, the weather we had to fly through, and finally a herd of buffalo!

As the rain had stopped on Wednesday, the rivers had all subsided and didn’t look all that impressive from the air; but on seeing how dams had burst, roads had flooded, and camps been totally washed out, I began to realise that looks can be deceiving, and the little streams we saw from the air were not quite what had been present less than 24 hours earlier.

Klaserie River running through the Klaserie Private Nature Reserve adjoining the Timbavati

Klaserie Head Quarters

Destruction of a camp in the Klaserie

That was Vyeboom Dam, the biggest dam in the reserve!

The Nhlaralumi

Motswari Private Camp - safe and sound on higher ground

The Sohebele River in front of Motswari Game Lodge

View from the breakfast verandah

Debris indicating high water mark up to the lunch verandah

View from the pool

Where the camp dam wall was breached

Patterns in the mud

The pathways around camp had turned into rivers and were quite badly damaged, but only three rooms were affected by the water, but there was little structural damage, and considering how others in the area fared, we got off lucky; a neighbouring lodge – while not being washed away totally –was much more severely affected.

Damage to my families bungalow on the neighbouring Ingwelala property...

The other side of Motswari's dam

Andrea and I trekking to Ingwelala to see the state of my bungalow

So that was my first impression of the damage, but once I got a chance to sit down and chat to the people that had been around during The Flood, the real ferocity of the story came out!

Arriving at Motswari, Dave met us and took us around the camp; the water in the main camp dam was there, but as the earth part of the wall had been washed away, much of the water was pouring out, but the level was greatly reduced from where it had been yesterday, as we could see from the debris lying on the lawn.

It started early on Wednesday morning when the Sohebele started flowing, but as the morning pushed on and evidently dams upstream started breaking, the situation started to deteriorate, and the river kept on rising, and rising. When the telephone lines and power went down, and the water still hadn’t stopped rising, the decision was taken to get our guests out of the area via helicopter. While there was no danger to their lives, the logistics of trying to feed people and keep them happy in this weather was quite daunting, and we were not sure what the next 24 hours would bring, as the rain was still pouring down!

Staff village

New river running through camp

Our camp dam fills for the first time in seven years

A torrent down the paths

The flood reaches the pool

A wet looking Thea and Pete

Our poor pathways

A 180 degree view of the paths that became rivers in camp

The main pathway in camp

Flooding down to the pool

So with the guests safely out, there was little that could be done at the lodge, besides watching this amazing spectacle. And man alive, from the videos I saw, it was something to behold. Imagine this dry riverbed...

The usually dry Sohebele Riverbed in from of Motswari

...turning into this!

Our pool!!!

River in front of the verandah, now with one less tree!

The water rose above the breakfast verandah’s lower deck, and all the way up to the steps of the lunch verandah, the pool was inundated with flood waters, and the last rooms of the lodge were also in the water!

Water gushing past the breakfast verandah - the speed of it was unbelievable!

Our pool!

More views from around the pool and verandah

Elephant Room's deck surrounded by water

The strange part was that it was not just the river that was flowing so heavily! Even where there was no river, water was gushing everywhere! The pathways were knee-deep rivers!

As Wednesday afternoon pushed on, the rains slowed and eventually the waters slowly began residing. After all that fell in the space of less than 36 hours, we measured 425mm of rain, with a little more having actually fallen, as at one point, our 100mm rain gauge had overflowed. That is the equivalent of our annual rainfall in a day and a half!

The following days were spent assessing the situation; the guests, the staff and the camp all survived well. Guests at Motswari Private Camp were safe on high ground, but we airlifted them out early on Thursday morning, and our Java guests were escorted out in 4x4s on Friday morning.

The latter task sounded easy, but early on Thursday, it became apparent that it wasn't an easy task at all. People went to check the river crossings on the tarred Argyle Rd, and while both the Nhlaralumi and Nyosi were crossable, the problems arose further south on the road, strangely at spots where we had never even noticed drainage lines before...now they were hard to ignore as the road had totally been washed away!

Argyle Rd - not getting around those holes!

Driving guests out, we really got to see the power of nature, as even little streams like the one at Voel Dam had totally ripped through the dam wall and the damage below the dam was hard to imagine! However, we pushed on and managed to get our guests out, albeit it in a roundabout way!

A breached Voel Dam

Devestation down stream from Voel Dam

Voel Dam Panaramic (click for full image)

The great thing about such crises are how well people work together, and the days following the floods showed just this; Eskom had our electricity back within 3 days, the bridge heading out of Hoedspruit was fixed within a day, the holes on Argyle Rd, while not being fixed, can now be bypassed with 4x4s as temporary dirt tracks have been made around them, and we have been busy in the camp getting everything ready for our guests!

Pathways that were totally washed away are now back to normal, our rooms (barring the last two) are all functional, we have power, water and a fridge full of beer! The pool is almost full, and we have a picturesque setting in front of the lodge!

Views from the Lodge with our waterhole partially full!

Heading out from the camp, the roads on the reserve are badly affected and still very wet, so we are not even considering game drives for a while, and off-road driving will be a no go for at least a couple of weeks! Crossing have all been washed away, so we will be busy with those jobs over the coming weeks, and until the situation improves, we have decided to keep the lodge closed until the 30^th January 2012, just so that when our first guests do arrive, we will be in a good position to provide them with a great experience!

Now I know that many of you have been worried about us and the animals, and again, we all made it through safe and sound, and while it is too early to tell about the animals, it seems they doing well! A few impalas and bushbuck were seen floating down the river, but we have had some good viewing, even without doing game drives! Wild dogs spent the day around the camp yesterday, having a fight with the hyenas in the evening, we have heard the Mahlathini males roaring, seen fresh tracks for Kuhanya crossing the river near camp, and even driving too and from the hole the other day, I had three different rhino sightings, zebras, wildebeest, elephant, giraffe, impala, kudus, jackals, and even a hyena with three cubs! So they seem to be coping just fine!

Rhino

Hyena family

A new species int he Timbavati...the lesser spotted fridge! Washed out of an ingwelala bungalow!

A little banded mongoose rescued from the flood waters and returned to its family

So that is where we stand at the moment; a lot better position at this stage than many of us expected, and it was really great to see how everyone pulled together and did what was needed to do to get us here! We will definitely keep you all posted on any changes, especially if any of the further cyclones predicted in the Indian Ocean head towards Mozambique, but at this stage, they seem unlikely, and the weatherman doesn’t predict any rain for the next 7-days, so we should be good!

Views up and down the Nhlaralumi from the Ingwelala Bridge

Views up and down the Sakarongonzo on De Luca Bridge

Until then, I hope you all stay safe, and thanks for all the wonderful words of support and offers of help that we have received! Really very kind of all of you!

Chat soon!

Regards

Chad Cocking

17th January - The Floods!!!

2012-01-18T09:53:00.001+02:00

Greetings all!

Just a quick one, I am stuck in Johannesburg, but from what little information I have received from the Lodge, its been raining...a lot! More than half of our annual average rainfall in the last 24 hours! This has caused all of the rivers to flood, including the Sohebele River in front of camp to a level that hasnt been seen in over a decade! In fact, that river hasnt flowed past camp since 2004/5!!!

This rain is the result of Cyclone Dando that hit the Mozambique coast two days ago; the forecast is for more big rains today, but dying down tomorrow! Over 260mm have already fallen in the area in the last 24 hours, so you can imagine the effect of that much rain!

All of the rivers are flowing insanely strongly, and it will be interesting to see if the dams can withstand the amazing force being put on them!

The telephone lines are down, and i wont be surprised if the internet is down as Hoedspruit is also largely underwater!!!

It is difficult to know exactly what is going on being 500km away, but I will be heading back tomorrow to see all of this for myself (I should be on my way back now, but there is no way to get into the reserve)! There are also understandably no game drives in this rain, so the blog updates will be down for the next few days until the rain stops and the bush dries up!

If you are visiting the lodge in the next few days, please feel free to contact our head office if you need to make enquiries about the situation on 011 463 1990.

While we can never complain about rain, this is just a bit crazy! Going to make for an interesting year ahead, that is for sure!

Until next time, stay dry!

Cheers

Chad

16 January - Lion Cubs!

2012-01-17T10:52:00.000+02:00

Photo of the Day

Morning Drive

(Herold)

Lion (2 Mahlathini males, 1 female, 3 cubs) / Motswari –Shlaralumi River Road

Buffalo (3 dagha boys) / Motswari – Bush Braai Road

Afternoon Drive

(Herold)

Lion (2 Mahlathini males, 1 female, 3 cubs) / Motswari –Shlaralumi River Road

Elephant (1 Kambaku) / Peru – Long Road, Flooded Crossing

Daily Synopsis

After Herold told me that he had seen cubs thismorning, I was dying to get on afternoon drive. It explained why the lionesshad been so unhappy with Herold and Diff’s presence on foot yesterdaymorning. Herold got all new gueststoday, which meant we could go back to the sighting. By Three ‘o clock, theFoam Nest Frogs were chirping and the wind had picked up, it didn’t take longfor the heavens to open, and although we desperately need the rain I can’t sayI was too chuffed with it. However, taking this blog seriously and not wantingto miss out on cubs, I wrapped up my camera in a black bag and even donned aponcho! We headed straight for the area of the lion, where they had now draggedtheir buffalo kill into the riverbed. As we approached, the rain lifted and thesun peeked briefly through the clouds…I couldn’t believe our luck! One adultmale was tucking into buffalo ribs (we could hear the crunching!) while theother waited his turn. A few meters away lay the proud mother lioness with herthree cubs. The cubs had been a little nervous this morning with the presenceof the car, but this afternoon they barely seemed to notice us as they playedwith each other, fought for milk and groomed. The buffalo kill was almost finished, so Ireally do hope they will stick around, as it was a beautiful sighting!

There had been a pre-drive sighting of Kuhanye near to camp,so we decided to investigate. We had also heard bushbuck alarm calls and startedin that direction first. We found the bushbuck, doing what it does best; hidingin the bushes! And although we searched for quite a while, all we found wasKuhanye’s tracks. Hopefully we will have more luck tomorrow!

Herold then decided to follow up on theJacaranda Pride that had been spotted earlier. On the way, we bumped into asolitary bull elephant, who was clearly not in the mood for paparazzi and hemoved off. General game was sparse due to the weather and all we found was asmall bachelor herd of waterbuck. Once again, we only found the tracks of thelion, which had unfortunately moved into a very thick area. On the way for adrinks stop at Lover’s Leap we came across a small python resting half on theroad. It wasn’t very mobile due to the cold and we were able to snap away.Although the rest of our drive was relatively quiet, the lion cubs certainlymade up for it.

15 January - Lion Around

2012-01-16T10:42:00.001+02:00

Photo of the Day

Morning Drive

(Herold.)

Lion (2 x Mahlathini males and 1 Timbavati female with buffalo kill) / Motswari - Wedge River Road

Afternoon Drive

Herold's shot of Makepisi

The trackers and myself followed the lion tracks right back towards concrete crossing where we suddenly heard the low growl of a lion warning. Not even 10 meters in front of us the Jacaranda pride stood up startled, stared intently at us and moved off. I think they got just as much of a fright as we did. It was certainly a satisfying dose of adrenaline for the afternoon and once back on the vehicle, we were able to have a wonderful sighting of them lying around in an open grass patch. As the sun went down, the pride became more active and prepped themselves for their evening hunt.

We headed back to camp, finding a Lesser Bushbaby jumping from tree to tree on the way. As we arrived back at camp, just to top off a wonderful drive, Diff spotted a tiny chameleon off on its nighttime endeavors.

I am also posting a couple of other pics of Makepisi from previous sightings; he really is one magnificent cat!

Buffalo (breeding herd) / Argyle - Peru Entrance Road

Lion (Mahlathini male with buffalo kill) / Motswari - Wedge River Rd
Lion (Jacaranda Pride; 2 females and 3 cubs) / Argyle – Peru Entrance Road

Leopard (Makepisi) / Mbali – Java Mbali Road

Daily Synopsis

Hello everyone, It is Andrea here, the ‘blossoming apprentice’….thanks Grant! So I am just helping out for the next two days until Chad gets back. I don’t get to go on all the drives so I am posting a couple of images from the drives I do go on in the next few days, as well as sharing a couple of photographs that I have taken over the last 3 months. As you know from following the blog, Motswari is an incredibly special place and I cannot even begin to describe how amazing it has been working up here for the last while, so hopefully my photos will do all the explaining.

Herold’s cat finding mission continued this morning and as Herold and Diff followed the tracks, the lioness came charging out at them! I wish I had been there. They found the three lions on a buffalo kill not far from camp.

I joined in the afternoon and we started by heading straight to the buffalo kill. The lion had dragged the kill deep into thick bush and all we could get was a brief visual of one of the males. We then headed towards Argyle where we found a small breeding herd of buffalo. One of the males looked very nervous and started sniffing and running, Herold thought it was a little strange so we followed him and came across fresh lion tracks. I joined Diff and the rest of the trackers to follow up on the tracks while Herold took the guests for a sighting of Makepisi, the young male leopard. Just as well I left my camera in the car and Herold got a great shot!

14 January - In Search Of Cats

2012-01-15T12:23:00.002+02:00

MorningDrive.

(Herold.)

Leopard( Kuhanya) / Motswari – North Motswari Camp.

AfternoonDrive.

(Herold.)

Leopard( Makipi's Brother – Name Pending.) / Mbali – Dead Marula Rd.

DailySynopsis.

Heroldsmission for the day was to find cats whether they be spotted ortawny. He got off to a good start when he found tracks for one younglionesses thought to be the White Timbavati Female, around Motswari.With there being very few vehicles driving we sent out a trackingteam to help. They spent their entire morning plus a good part of theafternoon following the tracks in a complete circle and by the end ofit they had tracks going everywhere as the White Lioness tried totrack down the Jacaranda Pride who's tracks turned up during themorning. Although they did not have success with Lion some good didcome of tracking them around camp as they found our local residentLeopard Kuhanya sitting up in a Marula Tree North of Motswari,watching them walk around in circles.

Withone of his cats in the bag Herold was focused on once again followingup on the Lions. Being very warm there was a good chance they wouldhave moved to a water source in the area. Unfortunately a heavyafternoon downpour ruined those chances and washed away the tracks aswell as giving everyone a good shower. The afternoon was to be aquiet one and shortly before sunset they picked up on Makipi'sbrother which was an afternoon saver.

Tomorrowis D-day for Herold as the majority of his guests leave after morningdrive, lets hope our Lion come to the party.

I'llbe heading on leave early, take advantage of the quiet time, so I'veleft the sightings updates in the more than capable hands of ourblossoming apprentice Andrea. As she will join at least one drive aday I'm sure she will be able to bring you a story or two, plus allher beautiful photo's. Till next week, ciao.

13th January: A Time To Rest!

2012-01-14T11:27:00.000+02:00

Pic of the Day.

MorningDrive.

(Herold & Andrea.)

Elephant( Breeding Herd) / Peru – Mbali Dam.

AfternoonDrive.

(Herold.)

Buffalo( Dagha Boys) / Mbali – Buffalo Kill Rd.

Rhino( 2 x Males)

Elephant( Kambaku) / Peru – Lion Pan Rd.

DailySynopsis.

Withall the lodges quietening down after a very busy Christmas Season thebreak from drive was a welcome rest to most of us. It would howeverappear that our animals have also felt the effect of constantlyperforming for the past couple of weeks and are now also taking adeserved break.

Onmorning drive the guys once again found the large breeding herd ofElephant bathing in Mbali Dam nearly in the exact same spot as theyhad been found the past two drives! They must be the cleanestElephant in Africa! None the less it is always a special sighting andone that guests don't often get to experience, so a lot of time wasspent with them. Although the rest of morning drive was quiet on the“ Big Five” front their was a lot of general game about to keepthe guys busy.

Afternoondrive once again saw even fewer vehicles head out but at least thesightings picked up. Herold was after Rhino and that is exactly whathe found himself so once again his guests were very happy and hecould spend the rest of his afternoon taking in whatever came hisway.

Tomorrowwill find him looking for cats, lets see if he has them as welltrained as he does the rest.

I'veposted a couple of pics below from some of my drives during last week, givethe blog a little colour!

12th January: Life Is Good!

2012-01-13T17:09:00.000+02:00

Pic of the Day.

MorningDrive.

(Grant, Herold, Shadrack, Johannes & Andrea.)

Elephant( Kambaku) / Java – Broad Street.

Elephant( Kambaku) / Peru – Lily Pan Rd.

Elephant( Kambaku) / JayDee – Makulu Rd.

Elephant( Breeding Herd) / Peru – Giraffe Kill Rd.

Buffalo( Breeding Herd) / Argyle – Crossing Below Vyeboom Dam.

Leopard( Machaton Male) / Mbali – White Syringa Link.

Leopard( Kuhanya Female) / Motswari – Motswari Airstrip.

AfternoonDrive.

(Herold, Johannes & Andrea.)

Elephant( Breeding Herd) / Mbali – Mbali Dam.

Rhino( 2 x Males)

Buffalo( Dagha Boys) / Motswari – Marula Pan.

Lion( 1 x Unknown Male) / Mbali – White Syringa Rd.

Leopard( Machaton Male) / Mbali – White Syringa Rd.

DailySynopsis.

Afteryesterdays amazing afternoon it would take a lot to beat and usuallythe drive after a great one is a bit of a wet blanket. Also with thecurrent trend of the afternoons being incredible and the morningsbeing very quiet the odds were stacked against us. Being my guestslast drive and having seen so much we were under no pressure and werenot looking for anything specific, Wilddogs would be a nice addedbonus though.

Withus all heading our separate ways having different missions toaccomplish. Johannes and Andrea were after Zebra and Giraffe andheaded to the South. Herold was keen on following up on the JacarandaPride so he stuck to the North around Argyle and Sohobele Dams, whileShadrack found himself in the same boat as us and pretty much took inwhatever came his way.

Weheaded out to the West to check along our traversing boundary see ifthe dogs had perhaps returned. The first part of the drive was veryquiet on the actual mammal front but the roads were alive withtracks. We picked up the Jacaranda's tracks heading to the South Eastwhich Herold spent his morning following up on. We then found Leopardtracks also heading South along the Tsharalumi River, while wefollowed them up for a while Johannes found tracks for a singlefemale Lioness, more than likely the White Timbavati female, on theEastern side heading to the South East. She must have walked a fullcircle as when she eventually left Motswari our night watchman sawher heading to the North West.

Nothaving any luck with our Leopard tracks we continued to the West werethe tracks for cats were replaced by Buffalo and Elephant tracks.Still no actual physical animals though apart from a couple loneElephant Bulls we picked up heading South. Shadrack had the firstmornings luck with finding a massive herd of Elephant approaching andthen swimming in the Tsharalumi River very near to Mbali Dam.Apparently this sighting was amazing and lasted most of the morningas the guys visited them hearing they were not going anywhere fast.

Herolddid not have any luck with his Lion tracks but he did pick up on aImpala carcass that was hanging in a Maroela Tree with Machaton Malefeeding from it. Unfortunately due to his shy daytime behaviour hesoon climbed down from the tree ad hide himself in the surroundingthick vegetation. With there being a fair amount of meat left on thecarcass the guys will try again on afternoon drive after dark when heis far more relaxed.

Ourmorning looked like it was one to be filled with the signs and tracksof all living things but no actual physical animals. Still on theWest and nearing our Southern boundary we picked up on the tracks forthe other White Timbavati Female and her cousin. From the tracks itlooked like they were from the morning before,after the rain, so notreally worth following up. We did however check on them for interestsakes and they led us directly West towards our traversing boundaryand it would appear they have returned to the Klaserie. This meansthey are moving away from their sister and it could be some timebefore the big reunion we all are willing for.

Turningback to the North we picked up on Rhino tracks but no Rhino, this nowcompleted our “ Big Five Signs,” for the morning. The challengenow was to see the actual animals that made them!

As wegot further North we started to pick up on a fair amount of generalgame and even got to see the large herd of elephant that most of theguys had been watching all morning. They had finished with therebathing and had moved off to sand bath while still wet and begin tofeed again. We spent a fair amount of time with them before having tohead off to camp for breakfast.

Nearingcamp we received a message from Andrea that she had found Kuhanya onthe airstrip up one of her all time favourite trees. Not havingclosed down yet and thinking of no better way to end our Safari thanto see a relaxed female Leopard lying in a Marula Tree we responded.

Witha sighting that typifies Africa etched into our guests memory wereturned to camp on last time. With things quietening down at thelodge after a very busy Christmas and New Years, come to think of itthe last six months, I'll be off drive until I go on leave next week.This does however mean that the blog will not be as detailed as usualbut I'll keep a daily sightings report plus add the highlights of theguys drives.

Sonot being out on drive this afternoon things kept to their trend oflate with it being a bumper full and the “ Big Five Drive”available should you wish. The highlight though must surely go toHerold who returned to the Impala carcass he had found high up in aMarula Tree during morning drive. He returned late hoping the Leopardthat had hoisted it up there would be a bit more relaxed with itgetting dark. He was right and the new big male in town was far morerelaxed with their presence. It may have had to do with him beingpreoccupied though, as he stood back and watched while a male Lionclimbed, Herold said it was more like clawed, his way up the MarulaTree, breaking a massive branch on his way, dislodging the carcassand then proceed to feed on it under the tree after falling out! Hewas not sure of who this male was as he had a dark mane, indicatinghe is not that young and was alone. He was also very shy of thevehicle and everytime they approached he would move off with hismeal. Some day for Herolds guests as they not only got to see theLeopard but also the bonus of a tree climbing Lion, a very rarecreature indeed! Could only happen with Herold! So Chad........ it isnot only you who misses out on the great stuff!

11th January: White Lion Walks Through Motswari Camp.

2012-01-13T08:27:00.000+02:00

Pic of the Day.

Morning Drive.

(Grant, Chad, Herold & Shadrack.)

Lion ( 2 x Maghlatini Males) / DeLuca – Drongo Drive.

Lion ( Jacaranda Pride: 2 x Females & 3 x Sub Adults) / Argyle – Straight Rd.

Lion ( White Timbavati Female) / Peru – Xinzele Rd.

Elephant ( Kambaku) / DeLuca – Drongo Drive.

Buffalo ( Breeding Herd) / Peru – Sohobele Dam.

Buffalo ( Dagha Boys) / Argyle – Mfene Crossing.

Leopard ( Argyle Jnr Female) / Argyle – Mangova Rd.

Afternoon Drive.

( Grant, Herold, Shadrack, Johannes & Andrea.)

Lion ( 2 x Maghlatini's Males) / Deluca – Drongo Drive.

Lion ( White Timbavati Female) / Peru – Long Rd.

Leopard ( Ximungwe Female) / Argyle – Peru Entrance.

Leopard ( Kuhanya Female) / Motswari – Sharalumi Access.

Rhino ( 2 x Males)

Buffalo ( Breeding Herd) / Peru – Xikhovanian North.

Buffalo ( Breeding Herd) / Peru – Pan Rd.

Buffalo ( Dagha Boys) / Peru – Mvubu Crossing.

Buffalo ( Dagha Boys) / Motswari – Sharalumi Crossing.

Elephant ( Breeding Herd) / Peru – Woza Woza Cutline.

Daily Synopsis.

Greetings to all it's Grant here. I'll be maintaining the blog for the next week while Chad is away. Enjoy the break and a big thank you for all the great sightings, stories and pictures over the past month!

My morning started off a little earlier than usual with John, our night watchman, whispering at my window, “ Grant, Grant! ” I guess when a gentle giant whispers it's still enough to wake one. John had not come to wake me in a while so immediately I knew he had something exciting. Flying out of bed grabbing a shirt and flops simultaneously I made my way out into the damp, dark morning. We had received gentle rain since midnight and it looked as if it had just let up. John led me towards the verandah where his surprise was given away by the distinctive contact call of Lion. Not to have his thunder stolen John proceeded to tell me it was the White Lion as he had found tracks for her walking down the path in camp. Initially he thought it was a large male Leopard it was only when he rounded the corner to the verandah area that he saw her standing in the riverbed. She slowly made her way backwards and forwards sniffing the entire area while contact calling the entire time clearing trying to locate on the rest of the pride. When I arrived she had moved out the riverbed and we could not see her on the opposite dark, thickly vegetated riverbank but we could hear that she was still literally the other side of the bushes as she once again walked backwards and forwards calling softly. We both sat there a while hoping that she would make her way back into the riverbed slowly but surely her calls headed further and further North. We could also hear in the distant South the calls of other Lions and maybe it is them that she is looking for.

With so much excitement before drive we were all very keen and eager to get out there and piece together the puzzle. Between the four of us we divided up the area around camp and all had our areas to check. Within minutes we were the first to find tracks that were after the rain, this was however complicated by the fact so had everyone else. It would have not been a problem had they been heading in the same direction but the fact that they were heading in all different directions and were of varying sizes and composition we immediately knew we were looking at more than one pride, the puzzle just became more difficult. At one point we had tracks on top of tracks that were heading in opposite directions and were of different sizes. If that was not enough there was a herd of fresh Buffalo tracks in the area as well, which all the Lions seemed to ignore. Let the games begin!

While we continued to check North of the camp, Shadrack began following up on tracks for two males and thankfully it was not long before he located the two Maghlatini Males a little East of camp heading to the North East. One piece of the puzzle down, a little unexpected but we should know by now that when the White Lions appear so do the Maghlatini's. While the guys followed them we continued to check for the piece of the puzzle that we knew was in the area but had now somehow disappeared without a trace. With the Maghlatini's heading into some thick Mopane and living up to their names we popped in a quick visit before they settled into the very thick vegetation.

While we viewed them the guys took over looking for the White Lion. On both occasions it was Shadrack who found first tracks for a pride of Lion and then for an individual female. While he concentrated his efforts on the lone female Chad and Herold began following up on the pride. Once again the tracks led us in all directions often crossing one another but luckily heading in the same general direction. After our visit with the Maghlatini's we decided to check the periphery of the area to see if we could speed things along but not finding anything we knew we were close and it would only be a matter of time.

Unfortunately Chad had to head back to camp for an early check out and on his way back to camp he mentioned the moment he closed down we would find what we were looking for, he could not have been more right! With him closing down, we were checking a road South of where Shadrack was heading in the general direction of on foot and we found our lone White Female lying next to the road. Again she like the Maghlatini's was not in the ideal photographic position but for viewing it was near perfect. She looks in great condition and although it would appear she had herself a eventful night she showed no signs of it and was awfully calm and relaxed. While we spent some QT with her, Herold continued to follow up on the pride determined to find the last piece of the puzzle and thus solve it.

As is Herolds way when following tracks it never takes him long to succeed and we received a call letting us know that he had found the Jacaranda Pride, which the White Lion has been associating with over the past couple of weeks, about two kilometres to the North of her position. It now confirms our suspicions that it is actually the older females and their young that need the White Lion more than she needs them and that in fact it is them that are following her and not the other way around. After our visit with the White Lion we popped in at The Jacaranda Pride to complete the picture for our guests and give them a little insight to the very complicated Lion dynamics we have going here in the Northern Timbavati at the moment. Throw in the fact that we had the White Lion's sister and cousin a couple days ago and things could become very,very interesting. It must be the closest they have come to one another in a while and although we don't know what has come of the other two over the last days we are all secretly hoping that they are still in the area and that they are able to locate one another. One can dream they reunite and join with the Jacaranda's, stranger things have happened and you never know what the bush will deliver next! Lets see what happens on afternoon drive.

Our top priority for afternoon drive was to find Leopard closely followed by a breeding herd of Elephant and if time allowed a couple of Warthog would do nicely. With many of the guys receiving new guests they would all be trying to relocate on the buffet of Lion we had in the morning as they were more to the East we had the West to ourselves. Drive started under extremely uncomfortable conditions as the sun had broken through and turned our little paradise into a sauna. We headed for the waters of the Tsharalumi River, which by the way has started to flow again after last nights good rains, hoping to get lucky with Crocodile and Hippo. Even they were feeling the heat and took shelter out of sight, so the first part of our drive was to be quiet.

With a sighting of an unknown female Leopard not far from us we took a chance in responding. This seemed to ignite the afternoon and suddenly the radio came alive with sightings all over the North. Not knowing the Leopard the guys kept their distance for fear of disturbing her and loosing the sighting for others. As we were close we got to get in the sighting almost immediately and also kept our distance while trying to id her. Slowly but surely we would make our way closer and from the fifty metres we started at we eventually found ourselves at twenty metres with her paying us no attention at all. She was clearly also suffering the heat and did not want to give up the coolness of her Marula Tree. We sat with her for about thirty minutes waiting for the next stationn to arrive and inthatat time we think we have identified her as Ximungwe, Argyle Jnrs female cub from last year, we do stand to be corrected though.

With our prime objective in the bag we could relax and take the afternoon as it came. Hearing about a nearby herd of Elephant everything was seemingly falling into place. Making our way slowly in their direction we found ourselves a nice breeding herd of Buffalo which were heading to the East towards the Tsharalumi River for their afternoon drink. With them entering into a very thickly vegetated drainage line we left them to be on their way while we turned our attention to bigger things.

Arriving in the area the herd had been left we found they had not moved much and they were very slowly feeding in a Northerly direction. With it being a nice open area we could see it was a very large herd with a lot of small and adolescent youngsters which makes spending time with even more special. With the afternoons golden light being perfect and all the little one's being in a playful mood we sat with the herd for the rest of our afternoon as they fed about the vehicle often coming within metres of the vehicle. While mom's totally ignored us there were a few young individuals that included us in their afternoons antics and would run at the vehicle with their ears spread wide and a determined look in their eyes. As they got closer to the vehicle though and we began to tower over them they lost their nerve and would turn and run to mom's side. After a couple minutes they would regain their confidence and go through it all again. How could you not love these animals and I think the time we spent with them won the hearts of all our guests and a spot as their favourite animal. Personally it was one of the best encounters I've ever had and endeared them to me even more, if that were possible!

The only hard thing left to do now was to match our sundowner spot to the unbelievable afternoon we had, had. We first chose Mbali Dam Wall but with the overflow flowing and a herd of Buffalo a hundred strong drinking from the dam this unfortunately was not possible so we continued South down the river and took our drinks on the rocks below Giraffe Kill Lookout along the Tsharalumi River. With the sun setting down the river to our right and the Hippo's calling off to our left we could have not asked for a better spot.

Reminiscing about the days many highlights we eventually headed back to camp where one more surprise lay in store. During dinner my guests and I snuck out after being tipped off by John that the White Lion had returned to camp. Sure enough as we stood on the lawn in front of the verandah we could hear her calling to the North of camp. With the calls becoming progressively louder she was heading our way and after a short while she popped out directly opposite us. She then turned to the East and walked along the opposite bank to the dam wall where she sat and continued to call. It was as if the camps presence comforted her while she called for her missing sister and cousin, clearing missing them terribly. Lets hope tomorrow brings them closer to reuniting!

10th January – As if By Magic!

2012-01-12T12:12:00.001+02:00

Photo of the Day

Rhino splashing in the mud

Morning Drive

(Chad, Shaddy, Grant and Herold)

10 x lions (Machaton Pride – 3 lionesses and 7 cubs) – Tanda Tula, Vulture Crossing

2 x rhinos (relaxed females)

1 x breeding herd of buffalo – Scholtz, Kudu Pan Rd South

1 x breeding herd of buffalo – Peru, Voel Dam

1 x buffalo bull – Tanda Tula, Machaton Dam

1 x breeding herd of elephants – Jaydee, Makulu Dam

8 x elephant bulls – King, Sibejane Rd

1 x elephant bull – Argyle, Great North

1 x elephant bull – Vielmetter, Vielmetter Access

Afternoon Drive

(Chad, Shaddy, Grant and Herold)

3 x lions (Mafikizolo Pride – 2 males and 1 female) – Vielmetter, Bluewaxbill

2 x rhinos (relaxed females)

1 x breeding herd of buffalo – Scholtz, River Rd

1 x breeding herd of buffalo –Mbali, Giraffe Kill Lookout

1 x buffalo bulls – Viemetter, Vielmetter-Alberts Cutline

1 x breeding herd of elephants – Jaydee, Tamboti Pan

1 x breeding herd of elephants – Peru, Elephant Crossing

Daily Synopsis

This is not the first time I have started off a blog about how our lions frustratingly all wither leave the area together, or, as if by some magic force, they all come back together! After a frustrating four days of having no lions at all, suddenly we had four potential prides to follow up on (Mahlathini males, Machaton Pride, Mafikizolo Pride and the Xakubasa White lions) on Tuesday morning!

I decided to head east in the morning, but only as a slight detour to the south that was so productive yesterday morning, and as you shall see, equally so today! There wasn't a great deal about, but we ticked off some impala herds before coming across a breeding herd of about 100 buffalo near Scholtz camp that we spent some time with.

Buffalo herd

Herold had then picked up tracks for lions coming from where the Mafikizolo’s had been yesterday and began tracking them to our direction. Grant picked up tracks for lions coming from the north, but turning back north, and Shaddy had tracks for two of the Mahlathini males coming from the north, moving through the central regions. We all began our own tracking, and I picked up tracks for Herold’s lions, so assisted him. It was then decided that these tracks were not worth following up on, and that the trackers should rather go help Shaddy with the impressive Mahlathini males, so Herold took them there. Over an hour later, it was realised that the tracks were one and the same!!!

I had left the trackers to do their thing on foot and moved south as per my own mission. There was not a great deal about, and I went to check on the leopard with his wildebeest calf kill, but found nothing there, so carried on just as Giyani found some rhinos nearby, so I pulled in to join him, and spent time watching them grazing about.

Rhinos

Tanda Tula then invited us to go and see the Machaton Pride down on Tortillis Plains, so I headed over there, and enjoyed some nice sightings on the way, including a group of elephant bulls in the company of a female and calf, as well as some zebras, but not much else.

Elephants and zebras

Sadly, the lions had moved down into a steep and tricky portion of the Machaton riverbed, and there was no access to them, so we had to view them from the high bank, and to make matters worse, they were fast asleep!!! Still, we got to see them, and they were looking in good shape!

Machaton Pride resting in the Machaton Riverbed

I headed back north to have some coffee, bypassing a buffalo bull at Machaton Dam, but again, not much else in the far south. Giyani had better luck on his way home, and found Rockfig Jnr leopardess who had gone back to her den site – still hoping she moves the cubs further north to Vielmetter soon!

The trackers had no luck with the lion tracks, and lost them in the dry, hard soils of the east, but at least they had a mission for the afternoon, and I headed back to camp, only ticking off impalas and a couple herds of kudus on the way.

I drew the short straw and had to go drop the trackers off in the east, but Shaddy hung around for a while to help out, and they soon found tracks for the male lions heading straight for the buffalo herd I found earlier in the morning. Long story short, after an afternoon of tracking, we were still unable to locate them, and when the trackers walked into the buffalo herd as darkness was falling, they decided to call it a day!

So, a failure of an afternoon? Of course not! I headed off to look for elephants and giraffe, and got lucky in relocating a few giraffe that were near a herd of elephants not far from Makulu Dam.

Elephant and giraffe

The elephant herd moved to a mud wallow, and we spent some quality time with them watching them as they splashed about in the mud! It was a very entertaining sighting that was probably the highlight of the afternoon!

Elephant bath time!

Grant, trackerless too, spotted some lions chasing wildebeest from several hundred metres away as he drove over a ridge, so he rushed over to relocate on the Mafikizolo youngsters! They had not moved far last night, and were looking like they had eaten – possibly a leopard’s wildebeest kill? They moved to a mud wallow to drink, but settled there for the afternoon.

Knowing they weren’t going anywhere, I headed over to see some rhinos in another mud wallow (clearly mud wallows were the place to be today!) as they lazed about cooling themselves off, and splashing about, totally oblivious to the sad news that another 8 white rhinos had been poached in the Kruger National Park the last couple of days!

Rhinos also having a mud bath

It is sad that such amazing animals can be so ruthlessly shot for the horn that grows on the front of their face.

Ignorance is bliss - totally unaware of the demise of their species

Leaving the happy sighting, we moved over to the lions, and found them still resting near the wallow, fat bellies and breathing hard.

Makifizolo youngsters also resting near a mud wallow

As darkness was approaching, we left them to go and fetch the trackers and have a drink at Scholtz Big Dam before carrying on homeward, still checking around for the male lions that had walked across the entire distance of the reserve last night and this morning! We found the buffalo, but despite checking the area, the thick bush of the east made it a fruitless mission – we did see a nice pearl-spotted owl, and Petros could see a black-backed jackal that ran off.

Pearl-spotted owl

Going to bed to the sound of falling rain, 14mm in all, I was awoken to the sound of a lion calling in the middle of camp...without ruining what is bound to be a good blog later today from Grant, here is a picture from the morning’s drive...although, that wasn't the main surprise!

Mahlathini males make a return...see tomorrows blog!

I am currently sitting back in Johannesburg uploading this as I am on my monthly leave, so I will leave the blog in the capable hands of Mr Murphy! I hope that you all have a fantastic week wherever you are in the world, and look forward to sharing some more stories when I return next week!

Take Care

Chad

9th January – Vielmetter on Fire!

2012-01-11T08:06:00.002+02:00

Photo of the Day

Rockfig Jnr drinking

Morning Drive

(Chad, Grant and Herold)

2 x buffalo bulls – Argyle, Mfene Crossing

3 x buffalo bulls – Peru, Lion Pan Rd

1 x breeding herd of elephants – Vielmetter, Mangawaan Rd

1 x breeding herd of elephants – Vielmetter, Western Sharalumi

1 x breeding herd of elephants – Jaydee, Vielmetter-Alberts Cutline

Afternoon Drive

(Chad, Shaddy, Grant and Herold)

3 x lions (Mafikizolo Pride – 2 males and 1 female) – Vielmetter, Hide Dam

1 x leopard (Rockfig Jnr female) – Vielmetter, Bluewaxbill Rd

1 x leopard (unidentified relaxed male with baby wildebeest kill) – Vielmetter, Bluewaxbill Rd

1 x leopard (Argyle Jnr female) – Peru, Boolala Rd

1 x breeding herd of buffalo – Java, Back of Java

4 x buffalo bulls – Peru, Mvubu Crossing

1 x buffalo bull – Vielmetter, Elephant Dam

2 x buffalo bulls – Jaydee, Tamboti Pan

1 x buffalo bull – Vielmetter, Hide Dam

2 x buffalo bulls –Mbali, Mvubu Crossing

1 x breeding herd of elephants – Vielmetter, Western Sharalumi

1 x breeding herd of elephants – Vielmetter, Entrance Dam

1 x breeding herd of elephants – Peru, Elephant Crossing

4 x elephant bulls – Vielmetter, Western Sharalumi

1 x elephant bull – Jaydee, Vielmetter-Albert’s Cutline

1 x elephant bull – Argyle, Hennie’s Rd

1 x elephant bull – Java, Back of Java

2 x elephant bulls – Argyle, Peru Entrance

Daily Synopsis

After a fair start yesterday, we still had some good game to tick off, and I was keen for leopard – as Makepisi male and his brother had returned to their favourite spot along the Nhlaralumi last night, I thought I would head there to check it out.

Visiting Argyle Dam, we ticked off some lovely waterbuck and impala sightings in the area as we headed to the river. There were also some good birds, and we bumbled about and enjoyed.

Waterbuck and impala near Argyle Dam

Reaching the riverbed, things remained quiet, but we saw more waterbuck, kudus, impalas, and even some distant giraffes; but sadly our luck with the leopards was not happening, and despite attempting to track them, we eventually gave up – even the three buffalo bulls we saw in the area didn’t play along!

Giraffe and kudu

As the south has been the place to be, we headed there and for once, even that was quiet, with only a few hippos and a herd of elephants to be found. Grant was attempting to track the white lioness, but had no luck as the morning drew to a close.

Elephant herd

So while it lacked the excitement I hoped for, we did tick off eight new mammal species and plenty birds – also, I only briefly saw the back of Grant’s vehicle after three hours of driving – it was so nice feeling like we had the reserve to ourselves!

The afternoon needed to pick up though, and my plan was to head south towards the latter part of the drive, and I spent the first half in the north – the warm day didn’t do much to improve the game, and we saw almost nothing the first half-hour, before finding some impala and a couple sightings of impressive elephant bulls after having had a mud bath.

Elephant bull

Carrying on to the riverbed, we found a group of four buffalo bulls resting in Peru Dam, and spent time with them. Only Giyani’s call to let us know he had found Argyle Jnr about 2km from our position caused us to move off, but sadly the sighting was a disappointment, as she was in extremely thick bush! Still, we got to see her, and I wondered if this meant that her cubs were perhaps closer than we thought?

Buffalo bulls in Peru Dam

As Rockfig Jnr had been found (and lost) on Vielmetter, I headed that side, hoping for better luck – when Shaddy also found a nervous male leopard that had sadly killed one of our wildebeest calves in the area, I knew at least I had a potential back-up.

Arriving at the northern end of the green belt on Java, we found impalas and zebras on the airstrip, and decided to enjoy a drink, leaving the others to enjoy the leopard that had been relocated by Difference and Herold!

Zebra's on Java Airstrip

While finishing with drinks, a lone hyena came walking past, and we followed her for a while back past the impalas and zebras.

Hyena popping in for a drink

Carrying on after drinks, the drive turned around! We saw 4 of the big 5 in about 3km! It started a lone elephant bull, and then with a herd of buffalo as it was getting dark, but as Grant wanted to leave the leopard, and Shaddy had returned to his male leopard to find him actually quite relaxed and feeding on his kill, I was the only one to take over the Rockfig Jnr sighting.

Buffalo herd

She got chased by a hyena, and we arrived as the hyena walked off and the leopard came down to drink before moving along the road straight towards the male leopard! We didn’t follow her in the thickets along the river, but rather moved along to Hide Dam where a further surprise had been found by Herold!

Rockfig Jnr paying the north a visit :)

Three Mafikizolo lions were found there watching a lone buffalo bull, and we arrived in time to watch them as they got active and moved to Hide Dam to drink.

Mafikizolo Pride youngsters

The lions then picked up the scent of the buffalo and went stalking off after it. We lost the lions, but located the buffalo on the other side of a drainage line, and decided to wait for the lions...we had to wait about 10 seconds, as the buffalo had no sooner stepped out of the thicket when, literally 10m behind him, the young male lion came following in his footsteps! The buffalo was oblivious, and we thought we were in for some action. Sadly, the big male lion wasn't as keen, and he stood at a distance and watched the younger lion stalk, but the buffalo eventually got wind of this and ran off in a huff! The lions settled and I left them to make the long trip back to camp – late as usual, but so worth it!

Mafikizolo's having a drink before stalking after a buffalo

8th January – Shaddrack’s Magic – The Other White Lioness Returns

2012-01-10T11:49:00.004+02:00

Photo of the Day

The 'other' white lioness returns - looking in great shape!

Morning Drive

(Chad, Grant, Herold and Shaddy)

2 x lions (Xakubasa Pride – 1 white lioness and 1 tawny male) – Jaydee, Madala Crossing

1 x breeding herd of buffalo – Peru, Umbabat Cutline

1 x breeding herd of buffalo – Jaydee, Makulu Dam

2 x buffalo bulls – Argyle, Mfene Crossing

1 x breeding herd of elephants – Vielmetter, Dizzy Drive

1 x breeding herd of elephants – Jaydee, Makulu Dam

1 x breeding herd of elephants – Jaydee, Jaydee River Rd

1 x breeding herd of elephants – Java, Back of Java

1 x elephant bull – Peru, Hippo Rocky Rd

Afternoon Drive

(Chad, Grant and Herold)

2 x lions (Xakubasa Pride – 1 white lioness and 1 tawny male) – Jaydee, Madala Crossing

2 x rhinos (relaxed females)

1 x breeding herd of buffalo – Peru, Woza-Woza Cutline

1 x breeding herd of buffalo – Java, Machaton Wedge

2 x buffalo bulls –Mbali, Mvubu Crossing

1 x buffalo bulls – Vielmetter, Elephant Dam

1 x breeding herd of elephants – Vielmetter, 1^st Sharalumi Crossing

1 x breeding herd of elephants – Jaydee, Makulu Dam

1 x breeding herd of elephants – Java, Peter Pan Access

1 x breeding herd of elephants – Peru, Mbali Dam

1 x elephant bull – Vielmetter, Grasslands Rd

1 x elephant bulls – Jaydee, Makulu Dam

1 x elephant bulls – Jaydee, Tchwala Rd

Daily Synopsis

This morning was D-Day for Grant – his guests had been in Africa, at two premium reserves for 8 nights and hadn’t seen lions; this morning was their last morning, and almost giving up, 5 of them stayed at the lodge, so Grant went out with only one of his guests – a perfect recipe for something magic!

With the whole reserve in desperate need of lions after 5 lionless drives, we all set off in different directions, checking all our boundaries. I headed to the north-east, and enjoyed an hour of mopane trees before eventually seeing my first animals in the form of a lone wildebeest and a herd of impalas on a private airstrip in the east. At the other end of the airstrip, we also had a kori bustard, the world’s heaviest flying bird!

Wildebeest, impala and Egyptian geese!

The east was dead. Nothing. Even tracks were not being found, so I was losing hope, as was everyone else as the morning wore on, and I stopped for coffee with some hippos at Scholtz Big Dam – although, to be fair, the impala sightings picked up prior to this! Leaving coffee, fresh tracks for a herd of buffalo sadly crossed our southern boundary, and the warthogs and zebras we did find moved off quickly. The morning took a turn when tracks for two lions were found heading towards another herd of buffalo at Makulu Dam. With the trackers on foot, we had some hope, but this hope was realised quite quickly, and not long after my drinks stop, I heard Shaddrack had found the lions at Makulu Dam...and not the lions we thought they would be.

Cheered up, I slowly headed in that direction, waiting for the line-up to clear, and I bumbled about Vielmetter looking for elephants, which I did eventually find after spotting loads of impalas and a pair of black-backed jackals.

Elephant herd

The elephant herd moved to a mudwallow and had a drink there before I left them and continued to the lion sighting, which I had told my guests about, just to cheer the mood up...what I didn’t tell them was which lions they were!

Drinking at a mud wallow

Arriving at the sighting, there in front of us lay a beautiful white lioness, right in the middle of the road! The “other white lioness” and the tawny cousin that had, only yesterday, been on a buffalo kill with another young male lion in the Klaserie, had returned home!

Welcome home to the other white lioness!

The male barely showed himself, but the white lioness groomed and was at least awake, so we viewed her before making the long trip home as e passed kudus, impalas and a lone elephant bull! The other guides enjoyed good elephants this morning, and Grant returned to camp, fetched his guests and made the long trip back down to the lions; he was rewarded with a fantastic sighting of lions, buffalo and elephants in one sighting – the young male lion even caused the buffalos to stampede back across the dam after they crossed right where the lions were sleeping!

White lioness

I had new guests in the afternoon, and with the lion pressure gone, I had a relaxed afternoon, and as they were here for three nights, I didn’t need to rush about. Starting off with wildebeest and impalas at camp was a nice way to ease into the drive.

Wildebeest and impalas

I did venture south, seeing not all that much along the way, but once south, we had some distant zebras, a nice herd of wildebeests, and plenty of impalas.

Wildebeest herd

Not much further, we got to see those two relaxed female rhinos, and spent time with them before moving towards the lions.

White rhinos

We came across a small breeding herd of elephants and enjoyed their company before deciding to stop for a sundowner before going to see the lions, hoping they would be a bit more active in the cooling evening.

Elephant herd

Hippos at Makulu dam were not all that obliging, but as it turned out, more obliging than the lions that disappointingly just slept in the long grass and barely moved for the duration of our sighting – not quite that riveting, but hey, more “lion” than we have seen for the last three days!

Heading home was quiet, but it was still a good and pleasant start to my guests stay. Hopefully tomorrow has a bit more action!

7th January – Out of Luck with Lions

2012-01-09T09:30:00.000+02:00

Photo of the Day

Makepisi male in the shadows

Morning Drive

(Chad, Grant, Herold and Shaddy)

2 x rhinos (2 semi-relaxed males)

2 x elephant bulls – Motswari, Hanger Rd

1 x elephant bull – Argyle, Long Rd

1 x breeding herd of buffalo – Peru, Illegal Crossing

1 x breeding herd of buffalo – Motswari, Xinatsi Dam

2 x buffalo bulls – Motswari, Ingwelala Crossing

Afternoon Drive

(Chad, Grant, Herold and Shaddy)

1 x leopard (Makepisi male) – Java, Broad Street

2 x rhinos (relaxed females)

1 x breeding herd of buffalo – Peru, Lion Pan Rd

2 x buffalo bulls –Motswari, Xinatsi Dam

2 x buffalo bulls – Vielmetter, Elephant Dam

5 x buffalo bulls – Vielmetter, Western Nhlaralumi

1 x buffalo bull – Peru, Argyle Rd

1 x breeding herd of elephants – Vielmetter, Elephant Dam

1 x breeding herd of elephants – Jaydee, Makulu Rd

1 x breeding herd of elephants – Jaydee, Double Highway

1 x breeding herd of elephants – Mbali, Garage Rd

1 x elephant bull – Peru, Peru Entrance

2 x elephant bulls – Motswari, Xinatsi Dam Rd North

Daily Synopsis

The morning saw us all looking for the return of some lions, so heading to the north-west seemed to be our best chance of picking up the Jacarandas...well, that was until Grant found out that they were tantalisingly close to Argyle Rd, but just out of view on a kudu kill – in the same spot they had killed a baby giraffe a day earlier west of Ntsiri Airstrip! The good news is that the one white lioness is with them, and the other white lioness and tawny cousin are apparently united with a young male of a similar age, eating a buffalo in the Klaserie – so while we might not have our lions, at least they are doing well and we are ever hopeful of their return!

Starting with two lone elephant bulls and impalas near the lodge as I tried to track a herd of buffalos, the morning seemed positive as I slowly drifter towards Vyeboom dam; that was a picturesque sight with the brewing clouds in the west, but my favourite sighting was that of all the birds gathered below the dam wall to feast on the large number of fish stuck in drying pools below the dam wall – fish eagles, little egrets, great white egrets, marabou storks, grey herons, pied kingfishers and more, all of which were relishing this bounty, and seldom missing a fish – like shooting fish in a barrel I guess?

Scenery and wonderful birds at Vyeboom Dam - Marabou storks and pied kingfishers

As I was passing the dam, I was informed by Andries that he could see two rhinos from his camp, less than a kilometre from my position, so I headed over and found two males amongst some impalas and waterbuck. They were semi-relaxed, and while they didn’t run off from us, they did move off. We didn’t put pressure on them, but did relocate them on the otherside of the terminalia thicket, and enjoyed a fair sighting as we waited for Shaddy to arrive.

Two new male rhinos

Carrying on to Mbali Dam for morning coffee, we saw impalas, waterbuck and the now resident hippos in the dam.

It didn’t take us long to locate on a herd of buffalo that we began tracking as they bathed in the mud wallows that Makepisi male leopard normally frequents, but as he was still at the little remains of the kill, we knew he wouldn’t pop up! The herd seemed rather nervous and soon moved off.

Buffalo herd wallowing in the mud to help with the irritating midges

Heading back to camp saw us ticking off giraffe, waterbuck and impalas, as well as the tail-end of a herd of buffalo at Xinatsi Dam – the same herd that eluded us this morning!

Buffalo herd leaving Xinatsi Dam

The afternoon involved checking the Wedge for any sign of leopard, but we didn’t even find any sign of life! The warm day was keeping the animals hidden, so I stopped off at Motswari Private Camp to show my guests this beautiful lodge.

Resuming drive, we ticked off waterbuck and impala near Argyle Dam and then headed south. Herold and Difference worked their magic and somehow spotted Makepisi male leopard resting under a fallen tree some distance from where he had finished his kill in the morning. He was still relaxing there when I arrived.

Makepisi male leopard

On Java Airstrip, we had a nice herd of impalas with a zebra that we spent time with, before making our way further south.

Impala and a lone zebra

A herd of elephants disappeared into a massive mopane thicket as we arrived, but we still had a fair view before bumbling along to see two female rhinos feeding on the banks of the Nhlaralumi.

Elephant without a tail dustbathing

We stopped there for drinks after they moved off, and actually bumped into them further down the road when we continued with drive. The trackers had been busy with lion tracks, but the number of elephants and buffalo bulls in the area made it a bit too risky to track further, and we resorted to trying Argyle Rd for a chance of seeing the lions on Ntsiri airstrip, but as Grant saw nothing but impala, wildebeest and hyenas there, I took a shorter route home, only adding black backed jackals to the list, as well as some zebras and impalas before arrive at camp, albeit a bit late!

Female rhinos

6th January – Lovely Leap of Leopards

2012-01-08T12:19:00.002+02:00

Photo of the Day

Makepisi male resting on a termite mound while his brother feeds not far off

Morning Drive

(Chad, Petros, Herold, Shaddy and Grant)

3 x leopards (Klakisa female, Makepisi male and Klakisa 4:4 young male with hyena and stolen impala kill) – Java, Java Airstrip

1 x leopard (Ximungwe’s brother) – Argyle, Buffalo Pan

2 x rhinos (2 semi-relaxed males)

1 x breeding herd of elephant – Jaydee, Makulu Dam

1 x breeding herd of elephant – Vielmetter, Dizzy Drive

1 x breeding herd of elephant – Jaydee, Peter Pan Access

1 x breeding herd of elephants – Java, Buffalo Kill Rd

2 x elephant bulls – Motswari, Airstrip

1 x elephant bull – Mbali, Fallen Tree

1 x elephant bull – Java, Java Access

1 x breeding herd of buffalo – Peru, Peru Entrance

1 x buffalo bull – Scholtz, Kudu Pan

1 x buffalo bull – Peru, Peru Entrance

1 x buffalo bull – Argyle, Buffalo Pan Access

Afternoon Drive

(Chad, Grant, Herold and Shaddy)

2 x leopards (Makepisi male and Klakisa 4:4 young male with stolen impala kill) – Java, Java Airstrip

2 x rhinos (relaxed young males)

20 x buffalo bulls – Buchner

1 x breeding herd of elephants – Jaydee, Vielmetter-Alberts Cutline

1 x breeding herd of elephants – Java, Leopard Rock Hide

2 x elephant bulls – Motswari, Xinatsi Dam

1 x elephant bull – Jaydee, Tchwala Rd

Daily Synopsis

So it didn’t take me all that long to fall behind on my blog posts now, did it! So apologies for that, but almost four weeks of solid driving are taking their toll on me! Also, we had such a fantastic day today that it did take me quite a while to sit down and sift through all the images I captured!

It didn’t start off great, and as I headed to the Kruger boundary in the east, we saw very little besides a rhino...well, it was a rhino until it turned out to be a bush, but I swear I saw it move!

I swear i saw a rhino there...somewhere

At Majambi dam, we had some nice impalas and a lone wildebeest drinking, but there was no sign of the zebra herds in the area.

Impala, wildebeest and dwarf mongooses

At Kudu Pan, we found a lone buffalo bull having a drink. While watching him, I had to listen to Herold back on drive; this is only annoying because in his second drive back, he found a leopard after about half an hour! To make it worse, while following the leopard, he found two rhinos there as well (in fact, that is the third time in 4 days that cats in that area have led to these rhinos being found)!

Buffalo bull and guineafowl

I was half tempted to go there, but I really owed my guests a good elephant sighting, so I was heading towards Makulu Dam area where the herds have been hanging about of late. It was a bit quiet. Very quiet in fact, and as I approached Java Airstrip, the tracks on the road caught my attention, and I soon realised they were for leopard. Patrick then said “Two Ingwe’s (leopards)”, and I thought to myself, “wow, that is pretty impressive that he can see that the tracks are for two leopards...” it was then I looked up and saw two leopards sitting in the grass 10m from the road!!!

Two leopards!

They weren’t too fussed with us, as they were watching a nearby hyena more intently, mainly because the hyena was eating their impala kill! It didn’t take me long to identify the small leopard as Klakisa young male (4:4 spot pattern), and I assumed the much bigger leopard was the mother, Klakisa.

I watched the hyena for a bit, then repositioned on the other side, both leopards still quite unfussed by us. I was well impressed with the mother’s leopards behaviour, and explained a lot about mother-cub relations before Patrick informed me that the “mother” had, um, man-parts! This leopard was so relaxed because it was Makepisi male! I couldn’t believe how much bigger he was than his brother!

The gorgeous Makepisi male

The brother moved off, and then Makepisi tried to stalk up to the carcass to retrieve it, clearly not seeing that the hyena was still there, so he got a big fright when the hyena suddenly sat up, and he ran off to go sit on a mound, where I left him. Later in the morning, some stations found that the mother had joined them, to make it a full leap of three leopards!

Stalking up the kill, not realising the hyena was lying in the bush!

Resting on a mound watching his kill get eaten

I then moved to Makulu Dam where our enjoyable morning continued with a wonderful elephant sighting as the herd splashed about in the water.

Elephants at Makulu Dam

They then moved off at speed, and we followed them for a while until they moved down into the Nhlaralumi and we stopped for coffee.

Elephants on the move to the Nhlaralumi

Heading back to camp, we passed more elephants, giraffe, waterbuck, a glimpse of a Sharpe’s Grysbok and also some kudus before arriving back for breakfast.

Male giraffe

In the afternoon I received some new guests, and being South African and having spent 5 days in the Kruger, there was not the usual pressure to find everything, so we could take it easy.

Drifting past Argyle Dam we saw impala, warthog, waterbuck and some gorgeous carmine bee-eaters, while Sohebele Dam had more impalas. I stuck to the Nhlaralumi, hoping it would give us some buffalo and elephants, but it was quiet along its course, and knowing that we wouldn’t see Makepisi male took some of the magic away, as he had managed to get his kill back and put it up a tree!

Impalas at Sohebele Dam

We did see more waterbuck, bushbuck, impala, hippos and giraffes scattered about, as well as an enormous rock monitor lizard clinging to a tree! The bird life was also fantastic around the water, particularly with all the fishes trapped in the puddles below Mbali Dam.

Rock monitor, saddle-billed stork, hippo

Hearing that elephants were near Makulu Dam, I headed in that direction, and ended up having a magic sighting of this herd.

While feeding on the lush green grass of the south, they ambled up to the vehicle. Right up to the vehicle. The one large cow must have ended up feeding less than 1m from us, totally oblivious to the joy and excitement she was causing! It really was a special treat to be so close to such majestic beasts!

Stunning elephant sighting

Carrying on towards the leopard sighting, we saw more giraffe, wildebeest, and zebras, but didn’t spend long as the light faded.

Giraffe, zebras and impalas

Arriving at the leopard sighting, we found the brother up the tree feeding, while Makepisi was resting on the very top of a termite mound, looking a bit uncomfortable, but that could have been from the fat belly!

Makepisi male - king of his castle

We couldn’t understand why, but when the hyenas started walking past, he remained on top, safe in the knowledge that the hyenas couldn’t get him.

Scavenging hyenas around the mound and kill

The brother carried on feeding, and Makepisi eventually ambled over to the tree, but we left him when he went to rest again, and after a drink, we headed back to camp after another wonderful day at Motswari!

Makepisi's brother feeding on the kill in the tree, while Makepisi rested nearby

5th January – Kuhanya Injured

2012-01-06T09:33:00.001+02:00

Photo of the Day

Kuhanya resting with her injured foot

Morning Drive

(Chad, Petros, Shaddy and Grant)

1 x leopard (Ximungwe female) – Argyle, Woodpecker Rd

2 x rhinos (2 relaxed females)

2 x rhinos (2 relaxed males)

2 x rhinos (2 semi-relaxed males)

1 x breeding herd of elephant – Jaydee, Makulu Dam

1 x breeding herd of elephant – Vielmetter, Dizzy Drive

1 x breeding herd of elephant – Vielmetter, Bluewaxbill

1 x elephant bull – Java, Palm Crossing

1 x elephant bull – Jaydee, Hlaramisa Rd

1 x breeding herd of buffalo – Java, Java Airstrip

1 x breeding herd of buffalo – Jaydee, Hlaramisa Rd

4 x buffalo bulls – Jaydee, Madala Crossing

1 x buffalo bull – Peru, Lily Pan

Afternoon Drive

(Chad, Petros, Herold, Shaddy and Grant)

1 x leopard (Kuhanya female) – Motswari, Airstrip

1 x breeding herd of buffalo – Java, Buffalo Kill Rd

3 x buffalo bulls – Motswari, Camp

1 x buffalo bull – Motswari, Sharalumi Eastern Access

1 x breeding herd of elephants – Java, Airstrip

1 x breeding herd of elephants – Borneo, Mananga Cutline

3 x elephant bulls – Motswari, Airstrip Link

1 x elephant bull – Mbali, Garage Rd

Daily Synopsis

Today was a day that typically went against the trend of late, with the morning being busier than the afternoon; perhaps it was the windy weather that played havoc with the animals? Anyway, it was a fair day of viewing for the guests and guides.

The morning was a morning full of sightings, but they were quite polarised between the far north and far south, with little in the middle. Petros stayed in the north and got to see the slightly nervous Ximungwe female, and a crash of two male rhinos while following her!

I headed a bit further south, but not far enough – the southern stations were treated to sightings of two breeding herds of buffalo, elephants, Umfana male leopard, Mtenga-tenga male rhino, and best of all, Rockfig Jnr that showed her two new cubs for the first time, but they are all the way south on Tanda Tula!

I was a bit more central and didn’t tick off all that much (sorry, I also accidentally deleted my photos before downloading them!!!), but did see my first White Storks of the season, impala herds, impalas, hippo and waterbuck.

Impala and white storks

A trip down Giraffe Kill Rd showed little besides impalas and leopard tracks, and even Makulu Dam was dead quiet. Grant picked up two rhinos nearby, so I went to join him, and while watching them, a herd of buffalos came feeding past, surrounding the rhinos, and an elephant bull also joined the scene!

Shadrack had some lovely elephants near Hide Dam that I was heading to after coffee, but I ran out of time, and simply skirted past the herd, as well as all the wildebeest, giraffes and zebras that were scattered in the area.

Heading back north I also had a new appreciation for just how dry things are getting in our northern traversing! I do hope that the rains come back soon to even out the food and water with the south, otherwise it will be a long winter!

Expecting a lot from the afternoon, I headed to the north-west to see if we could get lucky with some lions returning to our area, but had no luck, in fact I wasn't seeing much at all – impalas, a few kudu, giraffe and waterbuck, along with the hippos at Mbali Dam, but it was a quite first hour and a half to the drive. Most stations were gravitating towards two rhinos and some buffalo bulls near Makulu Dam, but Marka changed that when he found Kuhanya leopardess on our airstrip, so the stations went towards her (ironic then that Mbali was later found near the rhinos!).

Giraffe, hippos, elephant bull and kudu

I also moved back north, seeing only an elephant and impalas on the way. I arrived to find the leopard stalking a lone male impala, but when he ran off to join a nearby herd, her urgency ceased, and we then got to notice that she was limping.

Kuhanya - looking good, but nursing some wounds, particularly on her front left paw

Wounds on her belly and torso speak of a recent fight, but her swollen and injured front left paw were of a concern for us, and she simply spent the rest of the evening sleeping just off the airstrip.

Kuhanya licking her wounds

Grant and I were a bit concerned about her injuries, but John soon reported back that despite her limp, she was doing well! Our star night-watchman had found her after she caught and killed a bird and took it up a tree right in the middle of camp, only to have a large male leopard come in and chase her away...all of this while we sat enjoying our scrumptious dinner in the boma about 80m away!

Despite her wounds, she is a fighter, so I am sure she will pull through!

4th January – Familiar Pattern!

2012-01-05T14:31:00.002+02:00

Photo of the Day

Elephant calf

Morning Drive

(Chad, Petros, Shaddy and Grant)

2 x rhinos (2 females)

1 x breeding herd of elephant – Jaydee, Jaydee River Rd

6 x elephant bulls – Motswari, Trade Entrance Pan

5 x buffalo bulls – Motswari, Bush Braai

Afternoon Drive

(Chad, Petros and Shaddy)

5 x lions (Jacaranda Pride – 2 lionesses and 3 x sub-adults) – Ingwelala, Argyle Rd

1 x leopard (Mbali female) – Java, Machaton Cottage

2 x rhinos (relaxed males)

1 x rhino (relaxed male)

1 x breeding herd of buffalo – Peru, Hidden Away Pan

1 x breeding herd of elephants – Vielmetter, Dizzy Drive

1 x breeding herd of elephants – Java, Back of Java

1 x breeding herd of elephants – Vielmetter, 2^nd Nhlaralumi Crossing

1 x breeding herd of elephants – Java, Peter Pan Access

1 x breeding herd of elephants – Java, Java Old Airstrip

4 x elephant bulls – Motswari, Camp

Daily Synopsis

This rather strange pattern of quiet mornings followed by great afternoons that has been about the last few days continued, and my very quiet morning was followed by another Big 5 Drive!

The morning saw me slowly drifting south, past Argyle Dam to see if Argyle Jnr was around, but all I got was wildebeest and impalas. Criss-crossing Mbali and Java produced annoyingly little, and so I headed to the south to look for some rhinos that had been seen earlier, and managed to find them after a bit of searching, so spent time with them as they fed about.

Rhinos

Carrying on, we found some zebras and giraffe, but as the morning was ticking on, we went for coffee and then headed back to camp, not managing to see any of the elephants that the others had picked up on.

Zebra and giraffe

The afternoon started off with a mission to go look for three lions a staff member (that wishes not to be named) had seen on the main tar road whilst taking Dave and Thea to the airport. This anonymous person said it was three lioness, and I was a bit confused as to who they could be; I asked this person if she was sure there were only three and not five lions, to which she said yes, only three; as if to clarify her point, she retorted that there were three youngsters and the two adults...I couldn’t help but laugh! Anyway, I took this aforementioned person out, and all was forgiven when we were lucky enough to find the lions!

Jacaranda Pride...one, two, three...five lions

Sadly they were on Ingwelala side and we couldn’t off-road to see them, so the visual wasn't great, but we got to see them. They then approached a waterhole on Ingwelala, and through all the trees, we also saw a male rhino and a buffalo there!

Carrying on south, we responded to a breeding herd of buffalos and spent some time with them, but there wasn't much else about in the west.

Buffalo herd

I then headed to the Machaton Riverbed to see all the elephants that had gathered there, and was sitting enjoying them when Mbali leopardess was found not far off from our position, so after viewing the elephants, we went to see her.

Elephants aplenty in the south

Sadly she walked right onto the porch of the Geiger’s Machaton Cottage as we approached, and that was the end of our sighting before it even began! I persisted after we saw a bushbuck run to the opposite bank, and in the fading light, Patrick spotted her tail sticking out of a bush and we at least got to see her! While watching her, a hyena came walking past, and Mbali dropped to the grass and disappeared, and the hyena never even saw her and walked off!

Mbali

We went for a drink and then headed back to camp, seeing only a small-spotted genet and more elephants along the way, but once more, the afternoon saved our day!

02nd January: A Great Swan Song.

2012-01-03T13:17:00.000+02:00

Pic of the Day.

MorningDrive.

(Grant, Chad, Godfrey, Shadrack & Andrea.)

Elephant( Kambaku's) / Motswari – Motswari Airstrip.

Elephant( Kambaku) / Vielmieter – Grasslands Rd.

Elephant( Breeding Herd) / Peru – Pan Rd.

Elephant( Breeding Herd) / JayDee – Tchwala Rd.

Elephant( Breeding Herd) / Vielmieter – Blue Thorn Rd.

Elephant( Breeding Herd) / Java – Java Dam.

Buffalo( Breeding Herd) / Scholtz – Scholtz/ Karans Cutline.

Buffalo( Breeding Herd) / Peru – Voeldam Southern Access.

Buffalo( Dagha Boys) / Vielmieter – Western Tsharalumi.

Lion( Jacaranda Pride) / Peru – Woza Woza Cutline.

AfternoonDrive.

(Grant, Chad, Godfrey, Andrea & Petros.)

Elephant( Kambaku's) / Motswari – Xinatsi Dam Rd North.

Elephant( Kambaku's) /

Elephant( Kambaku) / Motswari – Trade Entrance.

Elephant( Breeding Herd) / Peru – Pan Rd.

Elephant( Breeding Herd) / Java – Peter Pan Access.

Elephant( Breeding Herd) / Vielmieter – Khona Bobesi Rd.

Elephant( Breeding Herd) / JayDee – Enkombi Pan Rd.

Elephant( Breeding Herd) / Vielmieter – Albert/ Vielmieter Cutline.

Rhino( 2 x Males.)

Rhino( Rose & Maria)

Leopards( Klakiso, Mhakipi's & Brother) / Peru – Mbali River Rd.

Leopard( Umfana Male) / Kings – Eagle Owl Crossing.

Lion( Jacaranda Pride) / Peru – Woza Woza Cutline.

Buffalo( Daghaboys) / Motswari – Xinatsi Dam.

Buffalo( Daghaboys) / Motswari – Bush Braai Rd.

Buffalo( Daghaboy) / Vielmieter – Entrance Dam.

DailySynopsis.

Withonly three of my guests choosing to go on drive and having seen afair amount in their three days we could afford to drive the roadsless travelled in the North. So we headed to the North East cornerfirst to check if we could get lucky with some male Lions that mayhave ventured South into our traversing area. Seeing very little inthe area we returned to the North of camp to check if Kuhanya maystill be around. Once again we came up empty handed and after aboutan hour, felt like ten, we had seen very little, actually nearlynothing on the mammal front. I say nearly, as we are classified asmammals! Choosing to stay in the North we headed towards the Westmaybe get lucky with the Jacaranda Pride who were heading in thatdirection from the night before. Driving around Vyeboom Dam wechecked all the possible places they could cross but found nothing.While wondering where to check next we received news that the pridehad actually been found a little to the South East of us not far fromwhere they have spent the last couple of days. Judging from what thetrackers told me about the tracks it sounds like they were trying tocross the Tsharalumi River to the West but found no way across andended back where they started. Visiting the sighting we found thatthe two older females had rejoined the pride, as they had beenmissing the whole day yesterday, they may have been off hunting. Thistime round though the White Female was missing and we could not findher anywhere in the vicinity. There were tracks for a Lion walking upand down the river very close to Mbali Dam wall, maybe she crossed onthe dam wall and continued West, as another station found tracks fora lone female a lot further to the North West. Alternatively, she didnot cross and is lying up somewhere not to far away from the pridealong the river bank somewhere. Lets hope this afternoons drivereveals the secret, my money is on that she is in the surroundingarea.

Therest of our morning was spent looking for Kuhanya around Motswari aswe received a message from Dave telling us that our resident VervetMonkeys were alarm calling in the direction of the drainage linerunning alongside our soccer field. Scouring the area we came up withnothing, not even a track, seemed to be the story of our morning.

Therest of the gang headed South and had relative success finding whatsounded like a fair amount of General Game plus a lot of Elephant andBuffalo. Unfortunately they did not find the Rhino which was theirmornings mission. Having time though there is always this afternoonand you never know!

Wellif I thought yesterday afternoon was busy this afternoon was manic!Receiving all new guests we were looking for a quiet afternoon in theNorth wanting to introduce them slowly to the wonders of the bush.Our initial plan was to spend time around camp looking for Kuhanyafollowed by heading out towards the Tsharalumi River to follow up ona herd of Buffalo that were heading in that direction from themorning. We would then finish off by visiting the Jacaranda Pridehoping that the White Lion would have rejoined them by lateafternoon.

A bigpriority on Andrea, Godfrey and Chad's agenda was Rhino but they didnot seem that positive as no signs for them were found in the morningand all their favourite area's had been checked. None the less theyheaded out once again to check those same area's to see if they couldget lucky.

Itwas not long after setting off that the first Rhino was found in thefar South, being so far away we were not even tempted to respond andcontinued with our plan. Andrea, Godfrey and Chad however made quickadjustments and turned South. When another two Rhino were found tothe West we were tempted, as you never know when and where they willpop up. So also adjusting our plan we headed in their direction.Thinking back on it, it was a little bit of a misjudgement on my partas it was a little further than I'd like to drive on a first drive.Getting there though and watching these two very impressive specimensfeed out in the open next to the car made the whole trip worth it.

Whilesitting with them we could hear a whole lot of trumpeting to theSouth West of us, so finishing up with our sighting we headed in thedirection of the commotion to investigate. It was not long before wefound a nice breeding herd of Elephant. They had calmed down and werenow slowly feeding to the North. While following them we could seeanother herd not to far to the North of us and when we eventuallyleft the sighting we bumped into another herd to the South East ofthem, heading in opposite direction. We guess that all the commotionwas the coming together of the three different herds as we could findnothing else in the surrounding area that would upset them.

Havingnow drifted even further South it was time to return to the originalplan and head North for the Lions. While heading North along theTsharalumi River we hoped not to bump anything else as our time wasrunning short and we could not afford to many more distractions.Thinking this brought Murphy's Law into action and a sighting ofthree Leopards was called in along our route. We did not hold muchhope in seeing them as it was the very nervous Klakiso and her twoelusive son's. They are very relaxed but whenever we seem to respondto them they always slip off into an area you cannot view them. Nonethe less we responded hoping our luck would change. Nearing the areathere was no surprise when we received news that the three of themhad joined together and with the mother being somewhat shy they hadmoved off at pace and been lost. None the less we thought we wouldtry counteract Murphy's Law with the luck of the Irish and drove offinto the block that they had been lost in. Technically it was lookingfor a needle in a haystack but everything else had gone our way thisafternoon so we held hope. Driving around in a large circle we workedour way inwards but had no joy. We decided to give it one more tryand increased our search area this also went without any luck. It wasonly when we tried to find our way back to the road that Eagle- EyeJacky picked up on Makipi's Male who was been followed closely by hisbrother. They were moving quite fast obviously following the trail oftheir mother and it was not that easy to keep up but ass fortunewould have it they both came to a halt around a raison bush. Thisallowed us to get a great view of them and we were able to approachcloser. It was only when we settled ten metres away from the thicketthat we realised that mom had hidden herself in there. On realisingher cover was blown she gave us a skin chilling growl and charged outthe bush towards us smacking the ground with her paws on reaching theopen she veered off and made for the cover of another thicket to theSouth of us. Her two sons seemed pretty unperturbed by the wholeincident and continued to move around in the area. We gave them theirdistance as we followed them amazed at how relaxed they were yet hownervous and shy their mother was. We continued to follow them andthey once again joined their mother. In stark contrast this time shehardly acknowledged our presence and continued to lead them to theSouth. I guess given her distance and keeping out of her personalspace she is approachable. Not wanting to disturb them further wechose to head off as we still had one last visit to make.

Withthe sun having slipped below the horizon it was now the perfect timeto visit the Lions as they should be awake and social. Making our wayto where they were we found that they had moved out of the thickcluster leaf thicket from the morning and out into the open. The onlyproblem was that they were still a little inactive only raising theirheads to acknowledge our arrival before flopping down once more tonap. Spending what time we could with them they roused themselvesfrom slumber on a number of occasions and it would only be a matterof time they would get mobile. We had hoped we would be there for itas we wanted them to lead us to the White Female who has been missingthe whole day. I guess our luck had to run out some time as well asour time and we had to return to the lodge or face the wrath of thekitchen.

Asyou can see from the sightings details above, all of us had anamazing afternoon, one of those rare treats that arrive totallyunexpected.

I'llbe handing over the blog duties to Chad for the next week so thankyou for all your support and I look forward to bringing you moreadventures next week. Ciao4now.