On the way back from Mozambique to Johannesburg to return our rental car, we decided to head to Kruger National Park, South Africa's biggest and best game preserve.
After driving for 10 hours from Tofo, Mozambique (where we went surfing and scuba diving in the Indian Ocean), we crossed the South Africa border around 10 pm. Unfortunately, our directions to the lodge were missing one critical detail, so we found ourselves driving down a dark, dirt road that was getting more overgrown and muddy every moment. By the time we realized we needed to turn around, our car was stuck in the mud. We just get out and push, right? Wait, all those predators next door in Kruger Park... there's a fence, right? Fortunately our car was so small that we could almost lift it, so after several minutes pushing in ankle deep mud, we were able to get the car moving again, turn around, and find the signs to our lodge.
We stayed at the thatched-roof Buhala Game Lodge (highly recommended) on the border of the park where we could see hippos and impalas across the Crocodile River while eating our very civilized English breakfast on linen tablecloths ("May I have more tea and crumpets, please?")
We joined a couple 3-hour safaris guided by park rangers (including a night safari where a startled elephant started charging from about 40 feet away, motivating our ranger to step on the gas to get us out of there quickly). We were fortunate and got to see a lot of game. A partial tally: elephants, hippos, giraffes, zebras, water buffalo, gnus, giant snails, tortoises, and many more. We saw more impala than anything else. The park ranger said that the impala are so plentiful and that so many animals eat them that they are jokingly called the "bush burger". We also saw a black mamba, a snake so poisonous that the venom in one bite can kill 20 people.
The highlight of the safaris was seeing several lions. Rounding a corner, we came upon a fully grown male lying lazily in the middle of the road, unfazed by any approaching vehicle. He looked completely content. Perhaps he was digesting a recent impala snack. We were within 20 feet of him for about 15 minutes until he heard another male lion roar, prompting him to get up to defend his territory, including an awesome warning roar to the other lion. Later on the night drive, we came upon an adult female lion and her 3 cubs, also conveniently by the side of the road. We were able to get about 10 feet away to see these magnificent creatures up close.
Here are some more photos to give you a taste of our safari in South Africa:
After returning our car in Johannesburg, we flew to Kampala, Uganda for our next adventure.
- Steve
