The last few days have proved to be quite demanding wile searching for animals. With the combination of rain and cold, the animals seems to be hiding and find shelter in the most “unreachable” places.
We knew the lions have been in an inaccessible area through a sodic site on which we cannot drive, and the elephants kept on the move since the birth of a new calf into the herd. Maybe they are trying to show the new addition to the herd the area in which he will spend the next 60 years. We’ll never know!
I had the privilege of driving a group of German guests who, after running the Two Oceans marathon in South Africa, decided to come on a short safari here with us at Kapama Lodge. The first three drives were somewhat difficult because of the weather conditions, but this morning everything came together nicely and we had an awesome drive which more than made up for the previous “slower” ones…
About five minutes into the drive we finally found a breeding herd of elephants with the new born following closely behind mom’s heels. After spending some time here we found a Rhino mother and calf, just waking up after spending the night sleeping in a dry river bed.
Upon leaving them we all then decided that we could do with a nice cup of coffee and we stopped at one of the many scenic waterholes on the Eastern side of the reserve. When we were just about done and ready to go a whole herd of Buffalo came wandering to the waters edge for a drink and what a fantastic sighting this was.
It soon became time to head back to the lodge for breakfast, but not before we spotted 3 young lionesses sleeping under an Acacia tree a mere 5 metres from the road.
This dramatic end to a two day safari was as memorable for me as it was to my lovely German guests…
Tim Verryenne
Ranger – Kapama Main Lodge
