Sani Valley Lodge Day 3 and 4

2015-05-14 | puppy1952

Wednesday 6 May 2015 Sani Valley Lodge

Today we woke up to overcast weather and it was way colder than yesterday. But this did not dull our spirits. Earl was up and out on the water just after 6. I went back to sleep! When I woke up I had a long and leisurely hot bath.

Today was a lazy day as far as physical activity was concerned but I did have some Bird Club work to do and also worked on the Birthday Photographs.

At half past 11 our masseuse arrived, Earl had a fire going in the grate and we each had a hot stone massage – Earl first and then me. Wow – she was outstanding and we paid way less than we would in Cape Town for half the quality. I was finished for the rest of the day and just relaxed and watched the birds and animal at the dam.

Dinner tonight is braaied chops and sausage, cauli mash and salad. Yes – we are being very good with our Banting diet. Well – I am – Earl had biscuits for tea!

Yellow-billed duck with ducklings

Thursday 7 May 2015 Sani Valley Lodge

Sadly today is our last day. It is misty and cold so we decide to pack up and leave early.

Before we leave we chat to a French couple who are staying I Sunset 2. It is their first visit to South Africa and they are here to visit their kids who are staying in Stellenbosch for six months. They have done the Garden Route and are now exploring the Drankensberg. Today they will go up Sani Pass with a guide. We have a chat about the birds they have seen and I show them the French words on the Roberts App on my phone. They are delighted.

We also plan to go a short way up Sani Pass before we head back to Kokstad. On our way out we spot two beautiful reed buck.

He has a broken horn

She is beautiful

Our neighbours overtake us as we slowly climb the pass. Then they stop and indicate to us that there is a bird in a tree. We are thrilled to find the Gurneys Sugarbird – this is one of the few places to find them. They are similar to the more common Cape Sugarbird which we see often at home.

Gurney Sugarbird

View from Sani Pass

We turn around after seeing this our target bird and take a scenic drive to Drakensberg Gardens passing a place we once went to with the kids – Lake Naverone.

Giant’s Castle

On our return we stop at The Olde Duck for lunch.

We have been there before with the kids who always enjoy the petting farm. We did find the donkey adorable.

The food was excellent too. Earl had a fetta and spinach pancake and I had a hot chicken salad.

We then drove back to Kokstad and spent the night with the Mackenzies. It was great to catch up and spend some quality time with them.

Sani Valley Fly Fishing and Game Lodge Day 2

2015-05-13 | puppy1952

Tuesday 5 May 2015 Sani Valley Lodge

We were awake at dawn. The sun rises quite early here – and it is beautiful. I look out on the still, mirror of a dam and see a single dabchick with a wake training behind it. Earl is up and off to fish and I don’t go back to sleep. I sort out a few emails and then get up and shower. There is a lot going on outside my window and soon I am clicking away with the camera.

Early Morning view from my deck

I go for a long walk at about 8 – the morning is fresh but I’m comfortable in shorts, t-shirt and a fleece.

I love Autumn

The Mountains are stunning

Stone chat

Female Buff-streaked chat

I return at 9 to find Earl back from fishing and disappointed that he caught nothing but I think he just enjoyed the stunning surroundings.

He goes out again in the afternoon and I go for a walk to the dam just over the hill behind our cottage. There are many animals dotted about the hillside and in the veld. But when I try to get closer they move away. I still manage to get some photographs. This place is just too beautiful. One can never tire of it.

Zebra drinking in front of our lodge

The gorgeous Autumn Colours

Vibrant and beautiful

Blesbok seen on my walk

Eland at a distance

Zebra grazing on our lawn in the evening

Our braai on the deck

Sani Valley Fly-Fishing and Game Lodge Day 1

2015-05-12 | puppy1952

Monday 4 May 2015 Sani Valley Lodge

It was chilly this morning but the sun was shining brightly. I checked the forecast and it looks like we’re going to have sunny weather for our 3 days at Sani Valley Lodge.

We left around 10ish and enjoyed the scenic drive to Underberg. Wow but those mountains are beautiful.

Long crested eagles were on many of the poles along the way.

Showing his crest

Looking for prey

In Underberg we shopped for supplies and fishing tackle. The Spar shop is great but the parking is cramped. The new centre just outside of town has failed miserably. Apparently somebody from Kokstad has now bought it and hopefully people will support the shops there. The story goes that the previous owner did not get the locals on his side and they boycotted him. If this centre takes off, it will be fabulous as there is plenty of easy parking. I think Spar should think about moving in where the previous supermarket was.

The approach to the lodge is always interesting. The views of the dams are stunning and we usually see some bird and animal life.

Pied kingfisher

Common Fiscal

Black-headed heron

Buff-streaked chat

View across to the boathouse

The bottom dams

We met a number of other visitors at reception – all arriving around 1:30 for checking in at 2. Our lodge is Sunset 1 – upstairs to 2 and 3. We have a German couple for neighbours and this is their first visit here and to South Africa. They have done the Western Cape – Cape Town, the wine route and garden route. They are loving their trip.

On arrival at our lodge we found zebra grazing on the lawn – how cool is that! There was also quite a lot of bird activity. The crowned crane were a bit too far for a good photograph. A kingfisher caught a frog and there were Egyptian geese and dabchicks on the dam. A grey heron also lurked in the reeds.

Baby zebra having a rest

The best thing about Sani Valley Lodge is the tranquillity and peace. The surroundings are stunning – the combination of mountains and lake just make this place a little bit of Paradise. It is Autumn now but we have missed the best of it. However, the colours still linger in spite of many of the trees being already almost bare of their leaves. I am so enjoying the richness of the oranges, yellows and reds contrasting with the green of the mountains. In summer it is just green, green and more nauseating green. I think I like the Autumn best!

Earl was out on the lake before I could blink. There are quite a few fishermen here and he worried that he wouldn’t get a boat – but we booked ages ago and Gareth knows how keen a fisherman Earl is – so there was indeed a boat ready for him. He was out for the rest of the afternoon but unfortunately the fish weren’t biting!

View from our lodge

Tomorrow is another day!

A Quick Visit to Hluluwe Game Reserve Day One

2015-05-04 | puppy1952

28 April 2015

For some reason Earl did not want to fish any of the dams in and around Kokstad but was itchy to do something. I suggested a day trip to Tala Private Game Reserve – “Too tame,” said he. “Well then what about Imfolozi/Hluhluwe?” “Yes -that sounds good. Will we get in?” “I can only try,” I replied.

After some lengthy waiting until Emzevulu Central Bookings got round to answering my repeated attempts to call them we managed to get two nights at Hilltop, Hluhluwe. With the coms being so poor at Lauren’s we’d done all the organising at a coffee shop in town – while having a hearty breakfast of course. We returned to the farm and told the kids of our plans. Oh dear – we were meant to go to one of the nieces for dinner on Thursday! We will have to re-schedule!

29 April 2015

We were up at a very rude and freezing hour, dressed in layers as we knew we would be stripping later in the day and set off Northwards in the dark. We stopped at Gateway for breakfast and then arrived at the bottom gate and made our way through the park to Hilltop. It was only 11 o’clock so we took a slow game drive before checking in. The park looked lush and we found out later that there had been recent rains after a worrying drought.

There was not much game about but this is what we saw.

A Female Village Weaver

White-crested helmetshrike

One of the many zebra

Female Nyala trying to hide from us

A distant rhino

And a heap of buffalo with a warthog in the background

We checked in at 4 pm and sat outdoors and enjoyed the beautiful, shady surroundings. The monkeys paid a visit and we heard the birds but they kept hidden in the foliage.

Earl relaxing outside our very luxurious cottage

We were in non-self-catering accommodation – very comfortable with tea and coffee facilities and a bar fridge but no kitchen or braai. Breakfast was included but other meals were extra. Dinner on our first night was a buffet and the food was stunning. The starters included vegetable soup, marinated calamari, tuna salad and a variety of salads. I opted for the calamari and salads. The mains were roast impala, chicken curry and something else that I don’t recall plus a variety of cooked vegetables. I tucked into impala, chicken curry and the veggoes – no carbs at all! Earl is not Banting properly although he tells everyone that he is!

Dinner at the restaurant was excellent

Visiting the Kids in Kokstad – Wattle Crane Cottage

2015-04-27 | puppy1952

Monday 27 April – Week 2 in Kokstad

It has been another pleasant week in Rural KwaZulu Natal. What a pleasure it was to suddenly come upon a flock of crowned cranes landing and grazing in a wheat field near Lauren’s place.

Crowned crane landing on a hay bale

We attended Glynis’s birthday tea on Thursday. In the evening we enjoyed a delicious ‘Banting’ dinner at Nicoline’s. Lauren and Allan ‘bant’ most of the time too and they are all looking fabulous. Nicoline lent me her book and said – Just read it this weekend and see what you think.

Tucking into Nicolines delicious HFLC food

The weather was beautiful on Friday. Nicoline dropped her two kids, Scott and Robyn off and lent Lauren and Alan her 4×4 bakkie. With both cars packed to the hilt we set off at about 3:00 pm and arrived at Wattle Crane Cottage an hour later. Shannon and Robyn travelled with us and did an excellent job of taking turns to open and close the gates. They appreciated the sparkles they received in payment for the task.

Wattle Crane Cottage is on the Raw’s farm and is next to a huge dam. The drive up is picturesque as it can only be in the mountains of East Griqualand!

Calves hoping for a treat

Beauty everywhere

As soon as the unpacking was done Allan and Earl went straight to ‘sea’ in the boat. Allan caught two lovely trout.

For supper I cooked my very own version of bobotie as we forgot to pack some of the essential ingredients like sultanas and other dried fruit! So I just threw in a can of tomato and onion and sliced in some fresh bananas. I hoped the custard topping would not clash with the tomato and to my relief everybody enjoyed it. The rice was also forgotten so I served it with mashed sweet potato which went down a treat.

Where there are dams there will be frogs. On Friday night we hardly slept as the glorious amphibian choir entertained us till the early hours of the morning. Allan was up early and took Scott and Simon out on the boat. They returned triumphant each proud catchers of a trout each!

Earl cooked us a delicious breakfast of scrambled eggs, bacon, banana and two cheeses and as I had begun to read the Tim Noakes book I’d already decided that Banting might not be a bad idea so I skipped the toast. Lauren and Allan usually cut out carbohydrates but include them in their diet when on holiday and some weekends. I am embracing the new regime with the fanaticism of a new convert! (Although it goes totally against my previous low fat convictions I am always one to try something new and Tim makes a lot of sense.)

Robyn and Simon with his lovely trout

The girls on the lake

The boys and the boat

After breakfast Earl went fishing on his own, Allan went back to Kokstad to play Golf, the boys fished from the jetty and the girls rowed on the dam in the canoe. Lauren and I cleaned up and then relaxed with our books.

I did go for a long walk before lunch though. How divine to ramble in such gorgeous surrounding your only company being the cows on the mountainside, the beautiful, crickets, bugs and butterflies and the variety of birds that refused to pose for photographs!

Red-collared widowbird in transitional plumage

Ant-eating chat and lizard on a rock

Another beautiful dam on the farm

The results of the fishing were gratifying – Simon caught two from the jetty! Earl got a few nibbles and caught and released one or two.

Allan returned from Golf and then went for a cast with Earl and was triumphant with another catch!

We had a lovely braai in the evening which was very Banting friendly!

On Sunday Allan took the boys fishing – there were more catches – Shannon tucked into bed with us and wouldn’t let her grandfather up. She has become just as much as a tease as he is!

Finally he managed to escape and went off in the boat to get his last catch. The packing up did not take long and after lunch we were on our way down again. Lauren had to ride on Monday and the girls had a music practice to attend so another day was not possible. At lunchtime we went to the neighbours for a braai. Simon got involved with the cooking of the excellent meat.

Shannon got a chance to practise her music as she doesn’t have a piano at home.

Today is Freedom Day in South Africa. We commemorate the first ever democratic voting in South Africa. What a long way we have come since 1994.

Visiting the Kids in Kokstad – The First Week

2015-04-25 | puppy1952

Thursday 16 April 2015 Mountain Zebra to Kokstad

It is freeing when we wake up – 3 degrees C. We get up quickly and pack, take the keys back to reception, get our exit papers and leave the park. Earl is suffering from Gout again and we have no medication so we stop in Queenstown, find a pharmacist who gives us a special combination of tablets to be taken every two hours. Fortunately this helps. We then go to Wimpy for breakfast. The parking attendant begs us to bring him a hot coffee when we return! There is a power outage but we manage to enjoy an omelette and coffee and remember to take the car guard his order too. He is over the moon with gratefulness.

The rest of the trip to Kokstad is reasonably uneventful for Transkei and KZN roads. We play dodge the pothole for an hour or so and then the roads improve. We arrive at Lauren’s at 3:30. Alan is there to welcome us and the rest of the family arrive home from school a few minutes later. They’d seen us on the road in but Earl says he was probably concentrating too hard on the road to notice.

It was really cold so Alan lit a fire and we spent the afternoon chatting and enjoying our rural family.

Friday 17 April 2015 Kokstad

The weather has not warmed up and we slept under an extra blanket last night. Lauren will put an electric blanket on our bed tonight. The kids woke us up with a lovely cup of hot coffee and then Lauren and Shannon went off to school. Simon said he wasn’t feeling well so Lauren allowed him to take the day off. I think he just couldn’t pull himself away from Granny and Grandpa. His dad made him have a sleep at midday though. He said he was tired and needed a rest. After breakfast we walked up the hill with Alan and he showed us where they plan to build their new house if they don’t move to the Midlands. It will have a fabulous view of the valley. Later we went to town to get some warm t-shirts for Earl. We bumped into Ann in Woolworths.

Saturday 18 April 2015 Shan’s hockey match

The skies were clear and sunny this morning and I hoped for a higher temperature. But that was not to be! There was frost on the ground early this morning. Lauren and Alan woke us with our usual hot cup of coffee and then informed us of the plans for the day. Shannon was at Bible Camp but had a hockey match so we all went off to support her. I made sure to dress in a denim skirt, tights and boots with a warm jacket and felt quite comfortable while I watched Shan captain her team.

After the match we went to The Wimpy for breakfast and then back to the farm where we relaxed for the rest of the day.

Sunday 19 April 2015 visit to Glynis and Hilton

Earl, Simon and I went to visit Glynis and Hilton at their beautiful home in town this morning. It was a tad warmer and we sat outdoors to enjoy a cup of tea and chat with them. Hilton and Earl have both their careers and hobbies in common. It was interesting to note that Hilton had also just bought a Land Rover Disco 4 although he had the more luxurious SE model.

Lauren and Shannon joined us at lunchtime and Glynis organised Nando’s chicken for lunch. We had a really good time.

Monday 20 April 2015 lunch at the Mackenzies

Before we made our way to Brooklyn Farm we stopped at Imbali Guest House for breakfast. We bumped into Patty and Brian Clarke there. Patty walked in first and chatted to us and then Brian came in – he greeted us but we could see he didn’t quite know who we were. Patty reminded him that we were Lauren’s parents and then he came over to chat!

The weather was much warmer today. We sat on the patio in the sunshine and it was really pleasant. Ann’s two little ones were spending the day with Granny. They are too cute and we enjoyed watching them play. Caitlyn is almost five and James is three. She is a real little girl and loves to wear dresses and is totally into pink and fairies. James is a typical Kokstad farm boy!

Caitlyn and James having fun

Barbara and Me enjoying a chat

Great-Uncle Earl showing the kids pictures of his fish

Murray joined us for lunch and then took Earl and Andrew to the dairy at which he works to see the milking. Earl was hugely impressed with the technology and the perfect running of the plant.

We shopped for dinner on our way home and I cooked a bobotie for supper.

Tuesday 21 April 2015 Trip to Durban

This morning we were woken once again with excellent coffee and rusks. Lauren then went off to school with Simon and left Shannon to sleep a little longer. She returned at quarter to nine and off we went to take Shan to Musgrave Medical Centre to consult a maxilla facial specialist. She has been having problem chewing and her jaw gets sore from time to time.

The plan was to meet up with Niru and have lunch with her while L and S were at the doctor’s. It is a 3 hour trip to Durban. The weather was lovely. I was at last able to wear a summer dress although I started with leggings and a jersey in the early morning. They came off well before we hit Durban.

We stopped at Port Shepstone to refuel and get muffins and coffee for breakfast and arrived at Musgrave at around 12:15. We parked at the medical centre and then walked to Musgrave Mall. A quick call to Niru and w met at Woolworths Coffee Shop. Lauren and Shan ordered quickly and then left while we stayed to chat and have a meal with Niru. It was so good to catch up with all her news. The kids are doing well and they’ve just had an amazing holiday in Thailand.

Niru and Me at Woolworths Coffee Shop, Musgrave

Lauren and Shannon were done by 2:00 p.m. so we walked back to our parking and then made our way to Shirley to pick up a donation of four boxes of clothing for a charity that Andrew supports. We had tea with them and then were back on the road.

Grandfathe and Granddaughter sharing a joke

Grandfather and Granddaughter sharing a joke

It was not a bad trip at all. Simon was with Nicoline and Sean so we stopped by there to pick him up, had a quick drink with them and were back home at 6:45. Alan had a delicious stew ready for our dinner. We were quite tired so were in bed by 9.

Visiting the Kids in Kokstad – Getting There

2015-04-23 | puppy1952

Yes – another trip! We certainly are enjoying our adventurous retirement. We saw our rural kids in Struisbaai and Cape Town in December/January. Our last visit to them in Kokstad was a year ago so really another visit was due. We also had the excuse of our brother-in-law, Andrew’s 80th coming up in May so after less than two weeks at home after our Kgalagadi trip we departed Cape Town yet again.

Our new home is going to be Struisbaai but we haven’t had time to move there yet! Therefore we decided to stop there for two nights to see that everything was still in order at the house and to check what needed to be done there. Earl sorted out the garden, I checked the inventory and we decided that a new Convection Oven should be added to the kitchen equipment.

Of course we also checked out the birdlife in the area.

Cape bulbul

Common Waxbill

Common Fiscal

African Pipit

Female Southern Black Korhaan

A visit to the harbour is compulsory and on the Sunday the day was clear and beautiful and the stingrays were having the time of their lives

On Monday 13 April we made our way to Great Brak to visit Diane and Carey. What a piece of paradise they have found. Carey was just out of hospital after a back operation but he was up and about and keen to show us everything. On Tuesday Diane and I took a very steep walk to the river planning to get a ride back with Earl but the pet calf followed us so we had to walk her back! It was a steep climb but I certainly needed the exercise.

First bird we saw – swee waxbill

Diane’s fishpond is a source of delight to the cat

He fell in trying to get a catch then swam to the edge without suffering too much trauma

Very pretty walk

Even the calf enjoyed it

But, boy was it steep to get back

Although it was only a day and a night with Carey and Diane we had an amazing time and are so impressed with what they have done with their place. Carey custom builds campervans and has set up an amazing workshop on the plot. Diane has taken to the country life like she was born to it. Next time we will stay for longer.

Visiting the Kids in Kokstad – Stopover at Mountain Zebra National Park

2015-04-23 | puppy1952

Our next stopover was Mountain Zebra National Park. We spent two nights there. Our accommodation was a family cottage and it was amazing. The beds had down duvets – very necessary as it was freezing! The cottage was spotless and well equipped, the towels snowy white and everything worked! We had a beautiful view and the monkeys were our most frequent visitors. We had one breakfast and one dinner at the restaurant and we were hugely impressed. The service was friendly and efficient and the food excellent.

The lovley thing about Mountain Zebra National Park which is situated near Cradock in the Eastern Cape is that it is totally unspoilt. It is a small park set in the mountains, with plenty of mountain zebra and other mammals including 2 male lions (we did not see them) some cheetah (didn’t see them either) black rhino (dipped of these too) buffalo, red harteest, gemsbok and variety of other buck species. The birdlife is also varied and we were well entertained on our drives. The scenery too is magnificent. We checked out the campsite and were impressed. We will come here with the caravan on future visits. The only reason we did not bring the caravan this time was because we were to be staying with Lauren and going to a few places where we could not camp.

Tuesday 14 april 2015 Mountain Zebra National Park

The drive to Mountain Zebra National Park near Craddock is a pleasant 5 hours. We stop for breakfast at Uniondale. We find a restaurant but are told that it is no longer functioning and she directs us to the hotel. It looks very bleak and uninviting but we are welcomed and shown into a large dining room with beautiful paintings of Italy on the walls. The coffee is excellent and we order omelettes which are lovely. The melon and ginger jam with toast is quite delightful. We are the only patrons but as we are leaving I see a woman of about my age and her mother approaching the restaurant. They look a little unsure. I ask if they’re going for breakfast and the younger woman says – We just want coffee – is it any good. Ï assure that it is and tell her that if she doesn’t want breakfast she could just order the toast and melon and ginger jam. She looks relieved and ushers her ancient mom, walking with a stick, into the restaurant.

It is overcast and cold at first and freezing in Uniondale but the weather gradually warms up. It is 24 C when we get to the reserve. We drive around for a while and see Mountain Zebra, Red Hartebeest, Kudu, monkeys and a variety of birds including scaly-feathered finch, common fiscal, white-browed sparrow-weaver, Cape sparrow, white-backed mousebirds, Rufous-cheeked warbler, blacksmith lapwing, spoonbill, Egyptian Geese and yellow-billed ducks.

This is why it is called Mountain Zebra National Park

We then check in and have a short rest in our cottage – number 6.

At 4:30 we drive out again and it is very cold. We see a variety of animals and birds and then return and have a braai for supper.

WEDNESDAY 15 APRIL 2015 MOUNTAIN ZEBRA NATIONAL PARK
We wake up without the alarm at 6:30. Gate opening is 7:00. We are out by 7:10 and take the mountain pass route. There is lots of game about – buffalo, black wildebeest, blesbok, springbok and eland. Birdlife is good too. A little pond produces spoonbills, yellow-billed ducks and red billed teal – rare in the park. The monkeys in the park are very naughty as moneys tend to be – we were amused to see them try to chase a pair of blue crane. By the end of the drive we had our bird list up to 35 – not as many as I thought but we seem to see the same species over and over again.

Back at camp we have breakfast at the restaurant – we are the only guests but the eggs and bacon for Earl and omelette for me are excellent.

Earl takes a nap and I go for a walk. I find a woodpecker, chestnut vented tit-babbler, mouse-birds, cliff swallows, a double-collared sunbird and lots of Cape Buntings. The walk is lovely and I want to do the longer, Black Eagle one but decide that it’s not idea to do it on my own.

Earl wakes up from his snooze at 2:30 and we go out for another drive. We take the 4X2 Loop which is very scenic but does not produce much game or birds. Towards the end we do see lots of baboons, black wildebeest, blesbok, zebra and springbok.
The birding toward the camp is good and once inside camp we find a few golden breasted bunting. Our list is now up to 42 species.

We return and it is getting really cold. Earl can’t seem to warm up and his gout is bothering him. I take a hot shower and put on a long sleeved dress and leggings. We go to the restaurant for supper. Earl has lamb shank and I order two starters – springbok carpaccio and chilli chicken livers. The meal is amazing. I am hugely impressed with the standard of the restaurant. Much better than the Bug ‘n Mean in Kruger National Park.
When we return to the chalet Earl has a hot shower and hops into bed. I put an extra blanket on to ensure that he doesn’t freeze to death. Later in the evening I have to get up and it is absolutely freezing! The temperatures really drop here at night – not that they are that high during the day!

Caravanning in the Kgalagadi Twee Rivieren Monday 30 March 2015

2015-04-21 | puppy1952

It rained during the night and it is quite chilly when we wake up this morning. However, I still think shorts will be okay. Luckily I take a fleece with me as the weather does not warm up above 20 degrees C.
Earl goes ahead to wait in the queue while I go to the loo. As I walk towards reception I notice that two cars are already lining up at the gate. This means that they did not hand in their permits last night and are illegally up front! The rest of us wait for the gate staff to arrive and check us out before we can drive to the game area gate! Jim should be first but is now third and Earl is fourth. We take the Rooiputs road and have a brief encounter with some playful jackal.
At quarter to eight we see the illegal starters stopped on the side of the road – they are looking at lion.
The first one I spot is a big male.

then Earl points out two females near to him. They are just lying there in on the dune.
Another male is short way away fast asleep. While we watch, the females get up and go up onto the ridge. Then three more come over to meet them. We can hear roaring and suspect there is another male somewhere.
We watch the male get up take a walk and find a puddle to drink from but nothing else special happens so we move on.

A few kilometres on we find a female crouching in hunting mode at the crest of the dune. We watch her for a while but do not see what she is stalking so we move on.

Martial Eagle

We stop at Melkvlei for a loo break and then decide to retrace our route and take the Dune road to Achterlonie. We find the same female and hear a roar. At first we think a male is calling her but then see that she is the one making the din!
On the Dune road we are delighted to see that beautiful yellow flowers have sprung up after the rains. I think they are called Dubbeltjies.

We see korhaan and Kori Bustards and two Spurwinged geese fly overhead. Some ant-eating chats don’t like the tawny that perches in their territory.

Two jackal puppies are exploring unattended by their parents. They seem nervous of the car at first and then ignore us and continue their antics. They are so cute one feels that one can pick them up and take them home for pets.

We have breakfast at Achterlonie and take a look at the old historic cottage. It is so cold that we eat in the car.
The rest of our trip produces very little and we are back at camp by 12:30. At half past three we decide to go to The Kgalagadi lodge for a late lunch instead of cooking supper tonight. We are delighted with our meals – pepper steaks for Jim, Maureen and Earl and I have an Adam and Eve – Rump steak with green fig and blue cheese sauce.

When we return Earl and I decide to take a quick drive to the waterhole – but stay out longer than we planned! We try to find yesterday’s caracal without success but enjoy a bit of bird-watching. The highlight is a martial eagle and when we get back into the gate we find black-faced wax-bills.

Caravanning in The Kgalagadi Twee Rivieren Sunday 29 March 2015

2015-04-21 | puppy1952

There is great resistance to rising early this morning and Earl lies in a little later while I am off to the showers at 5:30. I hear later that Jim felt the same way! As we wait in line for to collect our permits, Maureen says – It’s so overcast today – we probably won’t see very much – not the right conditions. Don’t be so sure, I say, anything can happen – the bush is unpredictable! We go through the gate as dawn is breaking and a brilliant red sky greets us, Earl says – I don’t see the point of these early starts! No self-respecting animal will be at the waterholes and there is so much water lying about they don’t even need to be near the roads! Blah-blah, moan-moan. I smile sweetly and offer to drive which is met with firm no thank you. It is 7 am and what is this up ahead. Jim and another car are stopped and as we approach I call out – Lion – no cheetah! Three are crouched together chewing something in the dirt. The animals tend to lick the dust for its salt content. We cannot make out anything else edible. We watch the three interact and have fun and the scene is on the correct side of the road in the golden light! There is a single gemsbok on the dune watching carefully, fully aware that he could become breakfast. The trio suddenly get up and one by one start walking towards the dune. We follow and hope to see a chase but not today. The gemsbok decides that caution is the better part of valour and gallops off. A little further on we Jim stops. We catch up and see a jackal taking off. But wait there are two more and they’re on a kill! Did they take down this springbok on their own – I think not. It was probably a leopard. The jackals tear at it and one by one as they satiate themselves quickly leave the scene. This is a pretty good start to our day. Let us content ourselves with birding now as there can’t possibly be anything more exciting in store. It is 8:30 and what do we see? More cheetahs – but on the East side of the road – into the sun. There are 5 of them – Mother and four teenager kittens. And they are eating a fresh kill of Gemsbok! How lucky are we! We watch them and photograph them for ages. The cheeky jackals are hovering and trying to get a paw in. But the mother chases them off. The tawny eagles – three of them fly in and try to make a grab but Mom jumps into the air to frighten them off. The little ones scrap and fight for dominance of the kill. Then Mom comes to get her share, disciplining the greedy kids. Every now and then she chases the jackals away. Then all of a sudden all five of them take off across the road with us following and disappear over the hill. We realise that something has frightened them off and return to the scene to find a male lion making a meal of the left overs. Clearly the howling of the jackals have alerted him to the fact that a canteen is open nearby. We watch the lion feast and then walk off. He finds a puddle of water and drinks for a while then walks back and over the dune and disappear. What an amazing sighting. We continue to Melkvlei for breakfast and then retrace our steps to find the kill site awash with vultures and tawny eagles. Wow! Jim and Maureen are ahead of us but we waste time watching baby ostrich and then slowly follow on. At the site of the jackal kill from this morning we find more vultures and take photographs of three different species. At Rooiputs waterhole we find the wildebeest having a Sunday afternoon nap. We try to catch up with Jim but he is way ahead Earl yells – Lynx – and a caracal crosses in front of us with a ground squirrel in his jaws. Omigosh! I am beside myself trying to get a photograph but he darts up the dune and disappear. I’ve lost my opportunity. Let’s wait and see, I say to Earl. He may appear and sure enough he emerges from behind a tree and looks at us – kill hanging from his mouth.

Poor ground squirrel

We keep him in our sights until he settles under a distant tree. The squirrel is behind him and he is panting to regain his breath. We manage few poor photographs and watch to see if he will feast upon his prey – but clearly he is saving it till later.

Tired after the chase

No other car comes by and we need to move on. Around the corner we see “Boshuisie” – grandparents in a campervan with their little grandchild. We stop them and tell them where to find the caracal. Follow us, we say, we will turn around and show you exactly where Two other cars appear and we show them all where to find the caracal. I persuade Earl to turn into the waterhole and we find two birds – a greenshank and double banded plover. Back at camp Jim and Maureen are just tucking into their lunch. We tell them about our special sighting then make chicken sandwiches for our own lunch. We plan to bird in the camp but the rains come and we only manage to get the pearl spotted rain lets up enough for me to cook and for us to eat our meal. Earl and I drive to the ablutions to shower and do our teeth and by the time we return the rain is coming down – much needed in this dry environment.

Caravanning in The Kgalagadi Twee Rivieren Saturday 28 March 2015

2015-04-20 | puppy1952

The rain seems to be holding off and there is no wind at all today. We go out early as usual and take the Mata Mata Road until the Dune Road turnoff and then take that. It is a very successful drive as far as birds are concerned. Once again I will let the photographs tell the story.

An early morning Tawny Eagle

Black Shouldered Kite

Elegant Giraffe striding up the dune bank

Earl has not yet filled up with Diesel so we do not go any further than Melkvlei which is largely flooded but we find a table that is on dry ground and have a late breakfast there. On our return trip we have some interesting sightings. A tortoise and springbok find the road puddles convenient drinking places.

The Springbok eyes the tortois with suspicion

The tortoise decides to make way for the springbok

The thirsty bokkie can now take a drink

Soon after this Earl nearly jumps out of the window when he spots a cobra right in front of the car. We get some good photos of him before he slithers off into the bush toward a secretary bird. They haven’t seen each other but if the sec bird spots the snake he will become lunch!

The secretary is contemplating something – lunch or a bath?

No – the secretary is more interested in his abutions.

Refreshingly cool on a hot day

Tip toe out

And shake the feathers

Back at camp we go to the shop which is better stocked than Mata Mata and Nossob. We get hot pies and ice creams for lunch – what a treat!

We spent the afternoon in camp catching up with chores and diary writing etc. For supper we pooled ingredients and Maureen cooked us a delicious chicken stew.

Caravanning in The Kgalagadi Friday 27 March 2015 Polentswa to Twee Rivieren

2015-04-19 | puppy1952

Friday 27 march 2015 polentswa to twee rivieren

It is a long drive to Twee Rivieren and we are packed up and ready to leave by 6:40. We stop off at Nossob to refuel and find out if the road south has suffered any damage from the storm There is no diesel! Fortunately we have enough to get us there with some to spare!

The sightings are mainly bird. There are the usual gemsbok, springbok and plenty of red hartebeest about but otherwise nothing particularly exciting. The pictures below will tell the story.

Red Hartebeest

We find the campsite very full at TR. Our site is small and we are cheek to jowl with other campers but we all have sufficient shade. We do not have an electrical outlet nearby but we have two long leads and so the men make a plan with a long extension lead.

Once we have unpacked we check in at reception and then drive 5km to the Kgalagadi Safari Lodge where they have a wonderful shop with fresh produce! What a treat to find a variety of fruit and vegetables as well as bread, yogurt and plenty of other things that are unavailable in the park! We are like kids in a candy store as we pick and choose – goodbye canned food!

After our shopping we sit on the deck and enjoy sundowners before returning to camp.

To our surprise and delight we find that the Bush Lapa Caravan next to our site belongs to Daan and Jeanette. We do not realise it is theirs until they return from their game drive. It is their last night in the park and we all braai together – Maureen does the butternut, Jeanette the potato salad and I make a Greek Salad. We have a delightful evening around Jeanette and Daan’s table and a firm friendship is forged. Hopefully we will catch up with them in Wellington sometime in the future.

Diary of an Adventurous Retiree

Making the most of the South African Lifestyle

Tag Archives: South African Lifestyle

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Tuesday 5 May 2015 Sani Valley Lodge

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Monday 4 May 2015 Sani Valley Lodge

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Monday 27 April – Week 2 in Kokstad

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Thursday 16 April 2015 Mountain Zebra to Kokstad

Friday 17 April 2015 Kokstad

Saturday 18 April 2015 Shan’s hockey match

Sunday 19 April 2015 visit to Glynis and Hilton

Monday 20 April 2015 lunch at the Mackenzies

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Friday 27 march 2015 polentswa to twee rivieren

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