Day 282 May 14 2015 Satara Rest Camp Kruger National Park South Africa

one of our lunch time visitors

a stop for lunch near Satara

just another giraffe

just another warthog

just another elephant

just another tourist

Day 282  May 14 2015  Satara Rest Camp  Kruger National Park  South Africa

The temperature reached 38 deg C today; we were very happy we had air conditioning in the car.  On the drive from Orpen to Satara we saw many elephants, giraffes, buffalo, zebra, impala and a troop of baboons.  When we stopped at a picnic spot we saw a few dwarf mongooses.   Once we reached Satara we signed up for another 3 hour sunset drive which left camp at 4:30 pm.  On the drive we very lucky and saw 2 cheetahs and a leopard while it was still daylight.  The first cheetah was fairly far away but the second one was only 20 meters away from us and sitting down watching.  The leopard crossed behind the truck did not seem in a rush to go anywhere so we got a good look at it as well.  Once we got the spot lights out we saw 2 civet cats, an african wild cat, 2 spotted hyena one of which was using a culvert for a den and was lying down at its mouth only a few feet from the truck.  We also saw giraffe, zebra, buffalo, blue wildebeest, warthog, waterbuck, elephant and a few other animals.  It was a great drive.

Day 281 May 13 2015 Orpen Rest Camp Kruger National Park South Africa

A kodak moment

outdoor kitchen at Olifants

reading and waiting for animals at Olifants

at a view point close to Orpen

from this to fighting in 2 seconds

getting ready to enjoy a glass of  Amarula at Orpen

Day 281  May 13 2015  Orpen Rest Camp  Kruger National Park  South Africa

I got up at 6 am and sat on the outdoor couch drinking coffee and watching the animals coming to drink at the river.  I saw a pack of elephants, zebras, bush bucks, a hippo, and some beautiful birds; it was a very nice start to the day.    We drove to Orpen taking mainly the gravel roads and going slow arriving at 2:30 pm.  On the way to the camp we saw may impala, giraffes, kudu, elephants, buffalo, crocodiles as well as a troop of baboons that were all around our car.   We went out for a drive at 4 pm and saw the standard animals as well as 8 dwarf mongooses.  The new animal of the day was a tree iguana.

Day 280 May 12 2015 Olifants Rest Camp Kruger National Park South Africa

there are 15 hippos in this pic

guess what just happened!

the start of the sunset drive

some buffalo 

on the sunset drive

watching the sunset

Day 280  May 12 2015 Olifants Rest Camp  Kruger National Park  South Africa

We left the camp at 7:30 am and went for a 3 ½ ride.  We returned to the camp around 11 am, ate lunch and the kids did some school work.  We saw many elephants from our outdoor kitchen as well as giraffes, impala and many birds.  We also had our first sighting of a bush buck which was eating leaves 30 feet from where we were sitting.  We went of a sunset drive which left the camp at 4 pm and got back shortly after 7 pm.  On the drive we saw the regular animals as well as a troop of baboons, a side stripe jackal, a banded mongoose, a spotted hyena, and a spotted eagle owl.  Just as we were about to enter the camp we came upon a large hippopotamus walking down the road.  

Day 279 May 11 2015 Olifants Rest Camp Kruger National Park South Africa

enjoying the view from our outdoor kitchen at Olifants

horn bills

a couple of blue wildebeests

herd of elephants going for a drink

on the bridge over a river

one of the many small giraffe that we saw

Day 279  May 11 2015 Olifants Rest Camp  Kruger National Park  South Africa

We saw many animals today including many elephants and buffalo.  The new animal we saw today were tsessebes.  We also saw 4 southern ground hornbills.   We got to Olifants about 5:10 pm which did not give much time to spare as the gates to the camp close at 5:30 and you get fined if you are late.  The cottage we rented has a great view overlooking a river.  We should be able to see animals from our kitchen in the daylight.

Day 278 May 10 2015 Mopani Rest Camp Kruger National Park South Africa

stopping for a snack

at the Tropic of Capricorn

we could not get him to stop reading the book

once again Evy is suitably dressed for a hike!

showing some atttitude

the start of a tradition

Day 278  May 10 2015 Mopani Rest Camp Kruger National Park  South Africa

We saw many elephants, giraffes, buffalo and impalas on our drive from Bateleur to Mopani.  We also saw our first hippos, water monitor and crocodiles close to Bateleur rest camp.  Later in the day we had to drive by a fairly large herd of elephants that were crossing the road.  I got a little to close to the elephants as we were waiting for them to cross and a big one towards the back of the pack swung toward the car and looked like he was about to charge.  I quickly backed up and he turned and continued on his way.  The threat of being charged by an elephant that towered over the Nissan x-trail got everybody’s adrenalin pumping.  During the day I looked at the right rear tire and discovered that it has a plug in the sidewall.  The rear right tire has a slow leak and the left rear tire is bald.  I am really hoping we do not get a blow out when we are traveling down the highway at 120 km/h as patching a side wall is not safe.  I wish we had noticed the tire problems when we checked the car.    In the evening the kids went swimming in the pool and Evy and I did laundry.

Day 277 May 9 2015 Bateleur Rest Camp Kruger National Park South Africa

the water hole at Punda Maria

herd of elephants crossing the road

looking down at us

outdoor kitchen at Bateleur

making dessert

Day 277  May 9  2015 Bateleur Rest Camp  Kruger National Park  South Africa

The kids started the day by visiting the blind overlooking the waterhole where the saw elephants, impala and wart hog as well as many water buffalo.  We left Punda Maria at 10 am and arrived at Bateleur at 4:45 pm.  The only stop was a 45 minute lunch stop at a picnic spot about half way to Bateleur.  We only drove a distance of 107 km but it took all day as we were driving very slow looking for animals.  We saw over 50 elephants, over 20 giraffes, lots of water bucks, african buffalo, impalas, a sharps grysbok, a dwarf mongoose as well as other animals and many colorful birds.  When we got to the camp we went to the waterhole and witnessed a baby elephant chasing after impala.  The speed at which the impala ran away from the baby elephant gave the impression that they did not want to play.  The cabin we rented is nice but not a good as last nights.  It has 2 bedrooms and 2 bathrooms but the kitchen is outside and as I writing this I am watching a little mouse clean up our crumbs and little bits of carrot that we dropped on the floor.  We also had to move a frog from the dish draining rack before we could use it.  I love this place as it is an amazing experience to see all the animals in their natural habitat.  It is just depicted on all the documentaries I have watched over the years.  There is very little light pollution and unlike most of the other places we have visited there is no smog so the starts are bright and beautiful.

Day 276 May 8 2015 Punda Maria Rest Camp Kruger National Park South Africa

first animal we saw in the park

a couple of more kudu

swimming pool at Punda Maria

Day 276  May 8  2015 Punda Maria Rest Camp  Kruger National Park  South Africa

We arrived at the Punda Maria gate and had to drive 10 km to the rest camp.  By the time we reached the camp we had seen a Kudu, lots of impalas, elephants, a baboon, and a vervet monkey.  The place we rented was beautiful and well beyond our expectations with 3 bedrooms and 3 bathrooms a patio and a deck off of the upstairs loft.  In the night we went for a game drive from 8 to 10 pm.  We saw lots of spring hairs, civet cat, little genet, chameleons, impalas, badger, zebras, rabbit some kind, african buffalo, elephants, sharps gemsbok plus a few other animals that I can’t remember their names.  When we got back to the camp we went to the waterhole we saw an elephant come to drink as well as a brown hyena.  It was a very good day.