Satara, Shengwedzi & Olifants

May is a good time to escape chilly Knysna . Kruger on the other hand is hot with temps of 12 in the morning to 34 degrees during day. I must have been thinking of Scotland again as somehow got my packing all wrong - far too many warm tops and track pants and not enough tee shirts and shorts! Well if that's all I had to worry about then as Carol would say, "shut the front door" or something similar ending in ...up!!! Life could not be better in the wild and we really feel for those who are stuck behind desks or doing the mundane things like playing in the traffic or traipsing through shopping centers - even a round of golf does not compare"! :(

It's a demanding job being a passenger with TK on long journeys as he continuously needs messages to be sent and to be supplied with snacks and when they are depleted he will even go so far as to eat a cold day-old green mealie, which to me is as appetizing as an old boot lace! Thank goodness he is not a fussy person to feed! Top of his snack list is biltong then dark orange chocolate - for that matter, any chocolate and he would kill for a fresh braaied mealie! Not the sweetcorn variety but the real McCoy type that ends up like mealie meal in your gut once you have pried off and chewed the kernels until the cows come home! Thanks to our very kind hosts back at Rocks & Roses B&B who supplied TK with a small stash of mealies which had not yet been harvested on their small holding . He was salivating just thinking of the cobs he would be able to braai on the camp fire over the next few days.

On the road north from Pilgrims Rest (Limpopo) to Hoedspruit we travelled past the beautiful Blyde River Canyon mountains, up the Abel Erasmus Pass through the lichen- covered cliffs and lush gorges to the J.G. Strijdom Tunnel and took in the vistas of the Blyde River and many forests along the way. No time to visit the wonderful tourist attractions and waterfalls like the 200km Kadishi Tufa Waterfall , 2nd tallest tufa fall in the world - tufa means it is created when water running over dolomite rock absorbs calcium and deposits porous limestone formations more rapidly than the erosion of the surrounding rock - ok enough scientific geography for today!! So much to see in this area but not enough time! Kruger was beckoning but not before we had appeased our ravenous appetites with a stop at Kamogelo Tourist Village where we stretched our legs, had a delicious Brunch from Cala la Pasta washed down with Lavazza Coffee and off we headed for Orpen Gate then the final stage of our day's road trip to Satara where we screeched into the gate with 10 mins before closure! Whew that was some sunset to capture in a hurry!

Game through the park has been rewarding with sightings of huge herds of buffalo, plenty of Elephants, Zebra, Hippos, Crocs, Impala, Kudu and two sightings of very skittish Rhino and the pretty variety of Lilac-breasted Rollers and Grey Loeries and the not so pretty Kori-Bustard and Southern Ground Hornbills but for us two, no large cats as yet! Did however have a wild African Cat saunter past our campfire at Satara who hung around for any tidbits that perhaps might come his way - not likely - as there is a strict policy in the Kruger for not feeding any animals .

With our one night lodging at Satara, Shengwedzi and Olifants now history, we finally set off for Balule and in our mad rush leaving Olifants, we took a wrong turn, so for our sins (seems the Kelly's are notching up the mampara stakes), we were sent ahead to secure the best campsite at Balule as there are no reserved campsites allowed at this Kruger venue. Meanwhile, back on the S89/90, Carol and Peter did their own little game drive en route. For this Kruger trip, the men each had a new toy to play with (no it does not benefit the women or take batteries) in the form of two-way radios which have a range of +- 3 km. While Peter was frantically trying to raise us, we were already at Balule checking out the best 2 camp spots to set up our tents and trailers for 4 nights of 'glamping' in one of only two 'wilderness' campsites in Kruger.
Seeing their faces at the Balule gate - we knew we had missed out on something special - yes they had spotted 3 lions in close view - a picture tells the story! We were robbed of this sighting!

Let it be said that we 4 are well organized with pre-cooked meals to take the hassle out of spending too long over a chopping board or gas plate ! G&T's and gees around the fire take preference after a long day on the road . Many hours of bush whacking under some testing conditions, teaches one to capitalize on freezers and fridges, of which the Kelly's had 4, and to stock them to capacity before leaving home! Little did we know that at each Kruger Camp like Skukuza, Satara, Shingwedzi and the rest, there is now the famous Mugg & Bean franchise - forget small - nothing is small about M&G - and their menu is just like the Brand - huge! Kruger just went up a notch and full marks to Sanparks for pumping money throughout the reserve to up the standards of all the facilities including the shops, some bungalows, and public ablutions not to mention the comfy beds and lovely hot water. For fellow travelers to Kruger, when booking your accommodation, make sure you check out the camp plan on Kruger's website and do not choose self catering units unless you have everything down to the last teaspoon with you, as those units generally have no stocked kitchens other than a fridge. Any other info required, phone the Kelly's or Emmanuels!

The definition of camping is : you spend a bloody fortune on equipment and gadgets to live like a hobo! Well if living like a hobo means we get to see and experience wildlife and nature as we have done through our bush excursions in Zimbabwe, Botswana, Namibia and Kruger, we don't mind swopping the city life for the hobo life! Hyenas, Lions and Hippos come to life after sunset and the pleasure and excitement of being in close proximity, far outweighs the plush comforts of home. Maybe the bedtime hour of 9pm when most of the Oldies hit the sack, is a big adjustment for someone who only needs 6 hours sleep, but with all the mod cons of latest technology in solar reading lights and kindles etc it's considered 'chill time' to delve into a good novel or catch up with emails/blogs. City slickers will laugh at this but please remember most of the bush mad campers have been up at the ungodly hour of 5am so they are all knackered after straining their eyes, craning their necks and peering into binoculars all day to find the elusive big 5!