🙂 Trip with the Coe’s including our 3 godchildren
🙁 A bad day in the bush is better than a good day in the office!
We headed off from Ants Nest for the drive to Ngwenya where we were meeting Rob & Jo. We were all dreadfully hungover and had to stop evert 30ms for Charlotte to be sick – not great! We arrived at Ngwenya where our groceries had already been delivered and had a lovely reunion. We had fantastic views over the Crocodile River.
Our first drive yielded some delights!
We could not believe our luck as we approached Lower Sabie!! A Black Rhino!!
When we stopped at Lower Sabie for lunch we had seen a big male lion across the river but did not have time to get a photo. The sunset was beautiful. so was the sun rise …
We found a stunning hyena den where we sat for over an hour enjoying the sighting…playing with sticks – we LOVE hyenas!
This giraffe also kept us entertained!
Paul got a good shot of this fork tailed drongo farmed between his legs!
Kudus are such magnificent creatures.
Lilac breasted rollers may be common but they are stunning!
This glossy starling is nearly as beautiful. He is accompanied by a black eyed bulbul.
Wire Tailed Swallow
White Crowned Lapwing
We spotted lions on the river bank just south of Lower Sabie.
Maribou stork in flight
Some beautiful water birds including a Black Crake, Jacana, Giant Kingfisher, Hooded Kingfisher, Fork Tailed Drongo and Woodland Kingfisher.
The black collared barbet is beautiful too.
The Giant Kingfisher fishing.
We stretched our legs at Mathekenyane Hill…. such a stunning vista.
Crested Barbet – nature’s paint pallet! Bateleur Eagles are so majestic.
This herd of elephants ran excitedly towards the water.
We headed back to the hyena den and were rewarded. The backlighting was superb …magical.
The next day we were up a 04h00 ready for our bush walk from Croc Bridge. It was a misty morning …it was just incredible – the elephants were so close we could have reached out to touch them … we could smell their musky odour … Pure bliss…. the best way to immerse yourself in the bush.
The wind was in our favour and the elephants were completely unaware of our presence … but I think the giraffe may have clocked us!
Impala lilies are such stunning plants.
We had a resident bat in our house – too cute!
The sunsets at Ngwenya are always a sight to behold…
Dawn was beautiful …
We were delighted to spot a spotted creature! We may have disturbed his nap!
Long tailed bush shrike. A gorgeous steenbok was on high alert. Guinea fowl
Our brunch at Mlondozi Dam was as wonderful as it always is…the dam was full of water!
We had some lovely zebra sightings.
We then bumped into some of the heavy weights in the park.
A gentle waterbuck
We heard them before we saw them in the distance.
On our night drive we spotted a lesser bushbaby, porcupine (Yay!), dagga boy and a hyena.
The following day would be a good day for lions…but first a photo of the Ibiss or as locally known, the Ha-de-da – an iconic sound of Africa. The dwarf mongoose was pretty cute too.
The it was time for a lion fiesta! Look what big teeth I have!
The big male was magnificent. A wonderful sighting.
There must have been a kill nearby as there were hooded and lappet faced vultures hanging around.
We found some elephants playing boisterously…
The general game kept our attention. The giraffe’s ossicones look like a crown!
These elephants were digging for water … amazing to observe.
Our final treat – a crash of rhino – so precious … we must do everything in our power to conserve these animals.
A glorious end to another glorious visit to Kruger.
Go to: Kruger National Park
