3 Days in S Africa's Kruger National Park

Klipspringers check out the US Tourists

We are fortunate to spend 3 days here at Kruger National Park, the largest of South Africa's parks – 7,500 square miles of protected land, one of the largest parks in the world! We're in Buffalo Rock Camp located on the southwest corner, not far from Mozambique. We have guides that drive us around in Safari (jeep-like) vehicles on dirt roads through the preserve. They are skilled in spotting animals. The goal of most tourists is to spot the BIG FIVE: Elephant, Cape




Joanne with the handsome park guides

Water Buffalo, Rhino, Lion and Leopard. There is no guarantee to see them, but they do their best! And, there are many other fascinating animals to see and unusual birds to spot.

Elephant grazes in "the wild"

The camp is made of individual tents with indoor bathrooms, comfortable beds with soft blankets. There are 12 people in our tour from all over the U.S. Most are retired or semi-retired, active and interesting people. Food is spectacular. There is a camp chef who tries to please. Meals are outdoor affairs that rival anything you can find in a nice restaurant. As an example, breakfast was eggs, waffles, fruit, fresh coffee and teas – you get the idea! Lunch was fresh salads, a pan fried mild white fish called hake, grilled chicken, salads, etc. Dinner around the campfire consisted of appetizers, Greek salad, charcoal grilled steaks with stuffed baked potatoes, veggies, bread, wonderful S African wines and beer, cheesecake and flan. Awesome!

Last night, we had a camp visitor: a young male elephant decided he liked our tree outside our tent. We were told to be quiet and let him enjoy his dinner. He was a noisy eater! We were told this only happens occasionally so we felt lucky that he chose us. This morning we went on a bush hike. We had to stay close to our guides (who carried loaded rifles) just in case...We saw a small herd of elephants and water buffalo. He pointed out female leopard tracks. It was really fun. Later today, we'll go on a sunset drive to spot some of the nocturnal animals.

Does anyone know what FEMALE ABLUTION means?

Richard's favorite zebra

 
 We still have another full day here. We will then fly to Zimbabwe to visit Hwange National Park which is known for its herds of sable antelope.

African sunset