Although the drive took over four hours we got to see a lot of the countryside and were given a free historical and sociological tour by our very knowledgeable driver Wyatt.
The drive took us past Pretoria towards Rustenburg through undulating plains with the imposing Drakensberg Mountains on each side with some citrus-fruit plantations and some cattle farming but mainly mining areas with chrome, platinum and vanadium being the main resources.
We arrived at the Abjaterskop Gate just after mid-day to find that it been destroyed by fire but not as we thought due a mishap during the controlled burning of some 8000 hectares of the reserve (about a tenth of the 300 square mile reserve).
The first animals that we saw were four languid Giraffe and a White Rhino cow and her calf nibbling at the bright green shoots of grass that were already forcing their way through the scorched earth.
Our room was in the North Lodge with extensive views of the Drakensbergs to the South and we had an enjoyable lunch of Line Fish washed down with a nicely chilled bottle of Chardonnay.
NORTH LODGE
We met our Safari companions – Kiwis Noel, Heather and their grown-up children Matthew and Amelia as well as Doug and Monica, both doctors from Boston, USA. Our Ranger was Marc who we had met briefly on our previous visit and he was to prove indefatigable in his pursuit of the animal spotting demands we placed on him.
SUNDOWNERS
Our afternoon Game Drive started at four and we were soon into the ritual of trying to identify birds, sometimes from just fleeting glimpses. Everything was so stark compared to the foliage of Summer in January. Before the sun had set we had seen Southern Yellow-Billed Hornbill, beautiful Crimson-Breasted Shrike, Lilac-breasted Roller, Pied Babbler, Red-Crested Korhaan, Grey Lourie (Go-Away Bird) and an African Hawk Eagle. Towards dusk we went in search of a large pride of Lions and stumbled across 4 White Rhino grazing at the side of the track.
LILAC-BREASTED ROLLER
We found the Lions, the same pride of 18 that we had seen previously but were distressed to see them in such a shocking condition. The sleek, muscular animals that had ruled their range were now thin and bedraggled – victims of the own success. They are hemmed into the North-East corner of the reserve by the boundaries and by other prides to the West and South so they are slowly running out of prey. We watched them for a long time expecting them to hunt and kill but with no joy.
Marc took us in search of Leopard, close to a previous Kudu kill but there was no sign. We returned to the Lodge to find our path blocked by a small herd of 5 Elephant. The night was exceptionally cold and we were grateful to warm ourselves before the fires in the Boma where we ate a hearty meal of Pork Kebabs, Oxtails and baby Chicken with a fruity Syrah.
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