Orpen Camp | Diary of an Adventurous Retiree

6 July 2014 – Orpen

We made a fairly early start today leaving at 6:45 at 15 degrees c so not too cold. The temperatures rose to the mid twenties by mid-morning.
The sightings of game were fairly frequent and we enjoyed coming across zebra, giraffe,wildebeest and kudu at regular intervals. During the spells of nothing we would stop to see the odd bird but we certainly have not seen as many birds as we normally find at other times of the year.

Yellow-bellied Eremomela

Pipits are difficult to identify but I think this one is a Bushveld Pipit

White-browed Scrub Robin

Emerald-spotted wood-dove

Travelling long distances, slowly through the park we sometimes start to lose concentration and drift into dream mode. During such a period Earl suddenly slammed on brakes and reversed slowly backwards. I’d seen an odd looking dove sized bird fly into a bush and we soon found it well hidden amongst the foliage. Heather managed to get a reasonable photo. A tiny pearl spotted owlet. Our first owl this trip. It is a diurnal bird unlike most owls that hunt at night.

We also came across a traffic jam and were irritated that cars were blocking the road to state at sleeping lions. They had huge cameras pointing out of their windows. Lions lie and sleep 20 houses a day. Take the photo and move on for Goodness sake. Come back later if you are so desperate to keep company with the king of the beasts. We were stuck behind two cars on the left and unable to see anything but a flicking tail or to pass as a car on the right blocked the way. We finally managed to persuade her to move on, slipped into her spot, took a quick photo and moved on. Half an hour later the front car caught up to us. During this time we’d stopped to commune with steenbok, giraffe, elephant etc. He raced past looking for the next lion or leopard I would imagine.

Lion deliberately ignoring his admirers

We stopped at Muzandzenzi Picnic spot where We hired a slotted for R20 and Earl cooked us a divine breakfast. We had fun watching the cheeky hornbills and starlings beg for tidbits.

Kruger Cook

Yellow-billed Hornbill by Earl

This picnic site has no amenities other than a long drop loo which is very clean And well maintained. There are tables and chairs and it is shady and pleasant.
Here are some of the critters we saw today