The first day of spring and it was … raining. The tour guides cooked up a storm for us last night and we were hoping for some sun today but alas it was not to be. It was the worst kinda of rain. Not pelting down so you just write off the whole day, curl…
It’s been raining for 2 days. The kind of rain that’s quite annoying. It rains a bit, stops. You think you’re good and go outside for it to start up again. The sun decided to peek through the clouds late in the afternoon so we decided to take advantage of some nice afternoon light and…
Today was a bit miserable – cold, overcast and threatening to rain. After the morning feed we gave the servals some new hay for their beds. Each group inspected the new bed for approval. Ubuntu and Upendu decdided they weren’t quite happy about the location of the couch etc. The moved their own water tray…
Thursday was showery so didn’t really take any photos so combining posts. After the morning feed we took advantage of the gorgeous light with Diesel. He was a bit too playful so we didn’t stay long. We moved onto Ola who was quite content to lay in her grass and have her picture taken. Finished…
This morning we were left to prep and feed the cheetahs by ourselves. Must say they are way scarier when they are hungry and you’re the one having to toss the chicken to them. After our chores Diesel was looking a lot more friendly so we went in to introduce ourselves and take a few…
Up for a 7am start. Cut, powder and feed the cheetahs and prep meat for the other cats for the afternoon. Done… Bit of a break till 9am..where we go an clean the enclosures which is fairly easy when these cats have certain spots they like to use. Everyone is looking a bit sleepy so…
We didn’t need to be in Port Elizabeth till midday so it meant we could take our time or sleep in this morning. We chose to leave the park slowly, through the park. Up early for a drive just after sunrise around a few of our favorite spots in search of some more animals to…
Early morning today to go on a game drive. We opted to pay someone to drive us around as 6am is the best time of day to see and be able to photograph animals and they get access to parts of park we don’t and know where the animals were. We were hoping to cross…
Another decent day of driving to Addo Elephant National Park. With our permit we get a park map and a bingo card (also known as a species guide). Don’t think I want to fill this card as I would leave perfectly happy having never ticked off Puff Adder We drive around part of the park…
Today was a massively busy day of animals. First we were up bright and early to seem some wild meerkats with Meerket Adventrues. You’re taken to a property just after sunrise (bit later in winter) and have a welcome cuppa before walking down to the burrows. The we sit and wait….until one appears. It stands…
We left Cape Town today and drove to Oudtshoorn. It was 5 or so hours of driving through some pretty countryside. We found a nice morning tea stop at the Rambling Rose – awesome food. We had a few hours to kill in the afternoon so we went to one of the Ostrich farms. It…
This morning we got a bit of a “sleep in” as we were getting picked up at 9;30 to go for a cycle along the Cape Town Coast. After being stuck in the car for a week and off the bike for 2 it was good to get out for a ride. It took me…
Another early morning (I know…there’s a pattern developing here) as we fly to Cape Town today. We’re on a teeny tiny plane (which freaks me out) – an Embraer but at least it has jets rather then propellers. So small there’s only overhead space on one side and only small cabin bags fit. Few upset…
Today we had a 550k drive ahead of us and had to decide whether to leave early or do a few hours in the park and pay for another day permit. We’d only really missed the cheetah (which we’ll get to see plenty of in Port Elizabeth) and leopard. Both of which you have to…
As we’re already inside the park gates it means we can actually be at the waterholes for good light. Their definition of “sunrise” means there’s been some light for 45 mins before we’re allowed out (I think it’s mainly so the paid game drives get the best light). We head to Chudop which is a…
Another early morning and off to Etosha again. We leave our lodge to spend the next 2 nights inside the park. Today we’re exploring the Halali area on our way to the other side where our accommodation at Namutoni awaits us. It’s a slow drive through the gate this morning as they are taking full…
Our first morning in Etosha and we had a fairly smooth run through the gate. We headed to Nebrownie waterhole. We spent an hour or so there. There were a few ostriches, a few impala and some jackal. We shifted to Oliffantsbad and sat here a good hour. After a bit of a snooze these…
Today was another big day of driving – 500+ km to Etosha. Fortunately it was a tarred road for a lot of the way. The roads have a 120 km/hr speed limit which also helps get you there a bit quicker. The downside is they aren’t dual carriage way so John to got practice his…
It was our last night in the dunes and we had some spare time so John played around with some longer exposure shots of the stars. Milky Way looks so cool out here with no lights to drown out the stars. It was a 300k drive today to the coast and apparently you aren’t allowed…
We had another cool sunset this evening and even resisted the temptation to go onto the road and do a few donuts to kick up some dust to make the sun look even cooler. Fairly early to bed as I want to get to the gate a bit earlier and head for Dune 45 tomorrow….
