Kruger Park

From Limpopo we took a beautiful route along the Soutpansberg travelling East to the top end of the Kruger National Park.  We have never visited this wonderful park this early in the season.  It meant that everything was still green and lush, and not the best time for game viewing according to old established thinking.  What a surprise lay ahead of us.  Not only are the National Parks Camps beautiful, they are also well equipped and very comfortable.  On our first day driving south from Punda Maria to Mopani Rest Camp we had the most eventful day.

Not only did we see more game than we anticipated, we also saw unusal behaviour, like a secretary bird catching a snake, an elephant trying to mate in the river, as well as beautiful plants we could not name.

  A ground hornbill

 The secretay bird with the snake in its beak

A well deserved beer after a day's game viewing

Limpopo

Our next stop was an overnight stay in Johannesburg to visit our new granddaughter on the way to Limpopo.  I am sure that all grandparents will understand that one has to use any opportunity to visit family that is not living close to you.

Little Eva, 5 months

Then we were off to the Mogalakwena River Lodge that is owned by our friends.  It is a beautiful place on the Mogalakwena River, far in the northwestern corner of Limpopo close to Alldays and the Tuli Block.  The Research Centre on the farm hosts students from all over the world to do research on various subjects while studying for their masters or PhDs. On the adjacent farm is the well known Arts and Craft Centre that employs local woman to produce beautiful embroidered scatter cushions, wall hangings, napkins as well as beaded items, one of the most charming being the baobab tree.

The ladies of the Craft Centre singing goodbye to us

When we stay there we go for game drives or lovely walks in the bush,as there are no predators to be worried about a really beautiful experience.  It makes us look at the smaller creatures as well as the flora, and there is always something new to discover.

When we return we can relax on the beautiful deck on the river, where we can watch waterbuck coming to drink, as well as a host of birdlife, and this time at last we saw the African Finfoot for the very first time!

Autumn Safari

It has been a while since I last posted something, and I cannot believe how long ago that was!  Nevertheless I did think about my blog often and now at last have settled down to continue.  
Chris and I love going into the bush, and traditionally we visit the Limpopo Farm of our friends every year during the quiet months.  This year was earlier than usual, so the weather was still warm in the Lowveld and the autumn colours had just started coming in.
We had decided to use this opportunity to drive up to the farm that is in the northwestern corner of South Africa and then continue our journey from there. We took the road to Kimberley that we had not used for quite a number of years and stopped just outside the town famous for it's huge hole created by the diamond rush of last century.  When we left the town we saw two dams on either side of the road with one of those absolutely pink from hundreds, maybe even thousands of flamingos.  It was still cold, so most of them were stationery, but some started moving through like a column of soldiers, and some even started flying.  It was an amazing sight and a fantastic start to the day!