SA Diversity Tour (24-26/01/2014) Day 9 to 11

Marula Rest Camp, Kruger National Park

Made an early start from Letaba to go to Marula Camp which is the camping site near Orpen Gate. It is small and I have been there many times before but it has always remained one of my favourites.  A huge elephant peaks out from behind a bush. Despite their size, they are not readily seen at times as they blend in so well with their surroundings.

There is one spot on the sand road which I take that has a small pool of water on the side. In it is a crocodile of about 2m (6’) in length.

It lives comfortably with what I have called “attack terrapins”. The strange thing is that when one stops there, not a single terrapin is in sight but sit there for a minute and you begin to see them coming up from below the  water and swimming towards you. They even start to get out of the water onto the road next to your car. These terrapins are found in most of the pools and dams in the Park but this is the only place I have come across where they do this. They are Serrated Hinged Terrapins and have a protrusion at the bottom of the mouth which looks like teeth, hence my name for them. I have asked an expert what these  “teeth-like” tentacles are and he suggests that they may have a sensory function which helps when grubbing around in the mud but not much is known about them.

Crossing the Olifants River, the water level is high from all the recent rains.

A hippo crosses the sandbank to get back in the water after being out for the night feeding. They have skins which are 5cm thick and constitutes a large percentage of their body weight.

This has to be one of the smallest Flap-necked chameleons I have found. It’s tongue can dart out to catch prey at a speed of 20km per hour. I just love those little feet which is so like our hands!!

 I wonder though where he puts it as I cannot see it in this picture and I know it is the same length as his body? LOL!! It must be curled up in that bottom part below his jaw. J

Young Impala born last November/December are everywhere. At three months old, the males are just starting to get their horns.

It has been a full and long day with many more exciting sightings besides these. At Marula, we manage to find a lovely spot next to the fence where a Hyaena prowls along the fence at night in hope of someone feeding it scraps from their braai (BBQ).

 The rain clouds were building up and on the second night we had a storm like no other. By morning, my tent and mattress were soaked through. When I picked the mattress up, the water poured out of it like a sponge. The whole of the next (and last day there) there was intermittent rain with no chance for anything to get dry so we decided to head for Satara Camp where we could get a chalet and have a chance to get things dried out.

SA Diversity Tour (22-23/01/2014) Day 7 and 8

Letaba Camp, Kruger National Park

We decided to go and stay at Letaba Camp. The northern part of the park is still very dry but at least they have had some rain since I was there last, the first week of December.

 Then, there was not a blade of grass or a leaf to be seen and my heart cried at the thought of the hardship in store for the animals this coming winter with no food.

 Many of the plants had not even bloomed there yet and the Marula trees which should have been dropping the ripening fruit, was only then getting a few new leaves.  

 

What a devastating sight it was.  http://youtu.be/CkuTCYjCa-M (Please review this for the full dialogue)

An early morning drive saw us crossing the Letaba River with many hippo and storks on the sandbanks. This hippo decided that it was good fun to chase them off HIS patch. LOL!!

Ebenezer Dam is located nearby and when built, the authorities made sure that there were fish ladders in place in order to allow them to migrate downstream. Because of the constant water, this area is alive with all species of game and one could spend all day sitting on the banks watching the animals come and go.

A wonderful little caterpillar belonging to a moth of some sort. Such a pity there is so little known about their early stages.

During the heat of the day, buffalo, warthogs and even vultures make good use of the mud holes in order to cool themselves down. Women pay thousands for mud treatments and I wonder why as it does not seem to make the buffalo and warthogs prettier? LOL!!

When I was there in December, there was an elephant which had died on the banks. Now, all that remains are a few bones. The rest has been cleaned up by the scavengers.

 The sand road between Letaba and Olifants winds along the river in some places with a fabulous lookout where one can get out of the car. A hear of elephant was approaching the banks and Gaelyn was eager to get pictures of them.

Amongst the herd was a little one and it was interesting to note how they helped and protected it during the crossing of the river.

During this trip we came across many HUGE buffalo herds, some of which people estimated to be in the region of 800 but my guess would be 300. It is nice to see how they have recuperated since their decimation by Bovine TB in the 1980’s.

SA Diversity Tour (20-21/01/2014) Day 5 and 6

Hills and valleys

What a wasted day!! We broke camp early with the intention of spending half the day in Pilansberg and leaving at midday to go to Madikwe Game Reserve but after travelling for three hours, arrived there to discover that there are NO CAMPING AREAS!! Well I guess that this is our fault for not doing our homework and checking before we went up there. As our next stop was going to be Marekele National Park, decided to check this out on line first only to discover that most of the roads there are suitable to 4x4 vehicles so once again we were stumped!! It was getting late and decided to go back as far as Groot Marico, spend the night and decide what to do next. Great disappoint and many miles wasted...... 

In our search for a place to camp, we stopped at the local drinking hole called Wag ‘n Biekie to ask directions and the owner very kindly offered to let us camp for free in the gardens. What a lovely thing to do!! We gladly accepted as we could see a storm approaching on the horizon and wanted to set up camp before it hit us. Camping next to a bar was a new experience for me but as it was Sunday night, the only sounds we heard were from the traffic on the road nearby. Thank you so much Herlaas for your kindness and hospitality!!

Besides a high wind, the storm did not develop but seemed to blow over and we set out early the next morning for our next destination which of course was Kruger National Park. It is a long way from Groot Marico and camped that night at Hans Merensky Dam near Tzaneen. The dam is situated on the banks of the Letaba River and the Reserve offers a huge variety of birds and wildlife with great hiking trails.

In one way it is a really lovely camping site but totally run down. There are lovely shade trees to camp under but the roads were bad and the grass almost as tall as the car. The dam itself is beautiful and quiet but unless you are willing to spend a night without a shower/bath, do not stay over. There are bathroom facilities but not ones I cared to use.

We made an early start through Magoebaskloof Pass to Phalaborwa Gate entrance and as we wanted to see more of the northern areas of the Park, decided to stay for a few nights near the refurbished Mopani Camp.

 

Magoebaskloof Pass is situated on the R71 between Polokwane and Tzaneen. It is part of the Drakensberg Mountain range and the drive through it shows tea plantations and fruit farms of avocado and blueberries amongst others.

 Mopani Camp does not have their own camping grounds situated in the camp itself but have it about 8km away. Tsendze Rustic Camp is wonderful!! There is no electrical outlets there so all facilities are gas. Each camping area is demarcated with bush between them so you do not have someone on your doorstep.

(Above: Gaelyn taking pictures at the lookout over Magoebaskloof.)

SA Diversity Tour (18-19/01/2014) Day 3 and 4

A most peculiar incident
At this time of year the gates open at 06:00 so after an early wakeup call (for Gaelyn) with coffee and rusks, we set out to see what we could find.

Our first stop was at a high picnic spot overlooking Mankwe Dam in the centre of the crater and the first thing I found was this interesting baby cricket.

 

  The Park covers 55,000 hectare and because of the hills surrounding the crater, has many wonder vistas from the higher areas.

This late in the summer season there are not many flowers left to be seen but this was a very unusual one.

We followed the road north then west, stopping at the different hides along the way with Wanda Lust getting her fair share of the sightings.

Birds, especially around the watering holes, were plentiful and at one, a huge flock of Marabou Stork sat on the banks.

The day ended on a high note with us finding lions near the camp and a most peculiar incident ........ Gaelyn noticed that her towel was missing when we got back to camp but walking passed her tent, I noticed that it was inside. I told her about it and when she came over to get it, she unzipped her tent and discovered that her bathroom bag had been zipped open and all the things in it were thrown out on the floor. She showed this to me and I could not understand it. Never in all my years had I heard of someone going to riffle through someone else’s tent!! And what would they want to go through her bathroom bag for?? Very puzzling!!

Two young ladies from a nearby camping spot came and solved the mystery for us .... apparently a baboon had come over, unzipped the tent and her bag as he probably smelt the nice scented shampoo she had just bought and thought it was something to eat. The neighbours had chased them off, put the towel in the tent and zipped it shut. Puzzle solved! Gaelyn had a big laugh when we rode out again later as I took a small lock I had and put it on the zipper in case the baboon came back. LOL!!

Animals seen: Elephant, Kudu, Klipspringer, Dassie (Rock Hyrax), Giraffe, Zebra, Blue Wildebeest, Impala, Springbok, Steenbok, Grey Duiker, Red Hartebeest, Tsessebe, Hippo, Crocodile, Lion, Waterbuck, Warthog, Wild Cat, White Rhino, Baboon, Vervet Monkey and many more.

 

SA Diversity Tour (17/01/2014) Day 2

Rocks and rabbits

Coffee at daybreak, watching the sun come up over the bush, has to be as close to heaven as I will ever get, then an early start to our first stop. Gaelyn had not been to Pilansberg Game Reserve before and it did not disappoint. Within the first hour there, we saw almost everything the park has to offer except lions and this was a magnificent start to our tour. The weather was hot and sunny with just a few clouds in sight.

We headed for Manyane Camp and set up tents in a quiet spot (or so we thought). It was right next to the fence and had a procession of Scrub Hares and Impala passing through and grazing the whole night. On the other side, the Kudu wandered and at one time, we caught a glimpse of a Wildcat.

Due to the heat, we did not go out for a drive until 4pm and saw the plains filled with large herds of Impala, Zebra, Blue Wildebeest, Elephant, Giraffe and more. What a magnificent sight it all was. There has not been much rain in the area so the dams are not very full.

Pilansberg has in its centre a volcanic pan which is always filled with water and one can spend the whole day sitting in the hide build to one side. Passing a huge outcrop of rocks, the white markings left from the holes in it tell me that this is the home of many Rock Hyrax’s (Dassie) who are best seen in the early morning when they come out to sun themselves in the early morning rays.

A quick stop at a small pool to see the Hippo’s and time to head back for camp. The first time I visited this pool there was only one Hippo in it and people stopping there had to be careful as it did not like visitors and would frequently charge at the cars parked on the bank.

 

The night was quiet and a million stars were in the skies. Another great day had passed and the Impala and Hare were back to their nightly feeding close at hand.

Birds of Pilansberg - Part 1
Pilansberg wild flowers - Part 1

SA Diversity Tour (16/01/2014) Day 1

Amarula and smiles

 An early morning start to pick up Gaelyn at the airport to get there before the morning rush. The plane was delayed by 35 minutes and due to not finding her luggage, was about last to come out but there was great joy at seeing her again and knowing we would be travelling together for the next few months.

A trip to Pretoria with breakfast at Wimpy (of course! LOL!!) a chance to do shopping for some needed things then back to where I was camping at Roodeplaat Dam as I figured she needed to recover from her flight the first day. As you can see we started off with the right spirit. J 

The rest of the time was spend sorting out things and relaxing with an early supper on the cards then off to bed to catch up on lost sleep.

Augrabies Falls National Park

Augrabies Falls National Park is situated on the Orange River in the north of South Africa near the Namibia border. The name Augrabies was given to the Water Fall by a Swede, Hendrik Jakob Wikar, when he passed there in 1799.

 The Khoi people called it ‘Aukoerebis’, or place of Great Noise, as this powerful flow of water is unleashed from rocky surroundings characterised by the 18km abyss of the Orange River Gorge. The 55 383 hectares on both the northern and southern sides of the Orange River provide sanctuary to a diversity of species, from the very smallest succulents, birds and reptiles to Hartmann's mountain zebra, springbok, gemsbok and giraffe.

 In 1954 the Upington Publicity Association requested the National Parks Board to proclaim the water fall a national park. After the Minister of Lands approved the Park in principle in 1955, the Department of Water Affairs objected to the proclamation of a national park. After a series of negotiations, Augrabies Falls National Park was eventually proclaimed on 5 August 1966. The park currently consists of 55 383 hectares.

As the Orange River approaches Augrabies Falls it divides itself into numerous channels before cascading down the 56 meter high waterfall. The sight and sound of the power of the water will not be easily forgotten. There are many wonderful views of the gorge at Oranjekom and Ararat.

A visit to Echo Corner is a must and do try it out. :)

 The ancestors of modern history have inhabited the area surrounding the Orange River since the Early Stone Age. During this time, there is evidence that early man had developed weapons for hunting animal like hippopotamus. They knew to establish themselves near good water sources like the Orange River. During the Middle Stone Age man had created more formal work tools and began to utilise fire. The Late Stone Age, which dates back 22 000 years, is characterized by tools that are smaller from the previous periods. The most prolific archaeological features are the stone cairns or graves from the later Stone Age. Excavations have shown that not all the cairns contains human skeletal remains.

 As there are no predators in the area, one is able to walk anywhere but there are also marked trails of various lengths to suite everyone. Some of the things to keep an eye out for are the lovely Augrabies Flat Lizards which are only found there, Rock Hyrax (dassies), Mountain zebra, Klipspringer and giraffe.

 The Quiver tree is a highlight on the landscape as well as many wonderful succulents and plants. The quiver tree is perfectly adapted to the dry desert and semi-desert areas on the rocky hills, the extreme temperatures and the infertile soil. It grows three to five metres high. The tree gets its name from the fact that the San used the soft branches to make quivers for their arrows. The trees flower a canary-yellow in the winter. Swarms of birds and locusts are attracted to their copious nectar, and baboons tear the flowers apart to get the sweet liquor.

 The Park has picnic facilities with ablutions, barbecue facilities and a swimming pool for day visitors, with shops and fuel available as well as a lovely restaurant.

Many delicacies unique to this area may be enjoyed here, like homegrown raisins and dried fruit. Traditional dishes like “puff adders” (named after the snake); are intestines with the fatty portion inward, stuffed with minced liver and skilpadje (tortoise) stomach net fat wrapped around a small piece of liver are always popular.

Accommodation: Caravan and camping sites are available in shaded areas, with communal kitchen, ablutions and laundry. There are various self-catering chalets all fully equipped including a kitchen. Some chalets have 2 beds and range in size to family chalets of two bedrooms. All chalets have bathrooms and barbecue facilities. They also cater for handicapped guests in special accommodation.