Sunday, 10th August After sending off my Satara blog we spent our last Satara evening north along the main H1-4 road. 15km from camp we came across a scene so typical of Kruger – three lovely lions sleeping in the road oblivious to the attendant cars all jockeying for position.
Monday, 11th Today we are heading for Skukuza. First stop is the excellent Nkaya Pan, some 16km south of Satara.
Proceeding further down the road at Kumana Dam we come across the remains of a giraffe in the road.
Nearby in the grass a pair of mating lions lie concealed in the grass.
Near Maziti Dam three cheetah have just feasted off their own kill.
At Skukuza we are very fortunate to find a level, comfortable site for our rather outsized caravan.
My favourite afternoon drive in Kruger is out along the H1-2 main road – over the Sabie and Sand Rivers. The section that runs alongside the Sand river is especially attractive.
Late afternoon and where the NE end of the Maroela Loop S83 rejoins the main H1-2, we come across this beautiful male leopard.
One can’t do much better than that – a truly magnificent sight.
After our bad experience with Satara’s roads, we stick to the main roads along the rivers.
Ratels (Honey Badgers) are usually so difficult to photograph. This one kept moving behind grass and eventually scuttled over the road right next to us.
One morning we pushed on further down the H4-1 Sabie river road to the Nwatimhiri Bridge. Our Saddlebill Stork dam which featured in my first blog has shrunk in size and one can just imagine how many barbel lie entombed in the hardening mud.
Those of you who know Kruger will be aware that the Nwatimhiri Causeway road S79 has been closed following the damage caused by the floods at the beginning of 2024. I have since wondered what in fact really happened there and my curiosity got the better of me. Helped by a little bushcraft I managed to take this photo of the causeway – or rather what was the causeway. It no longer exists.
De Laporte Waterpoint 8km from Skukuza out along the road to Pretoriuskop H1-1 is this water trough – so beautiful in the late evening light. How pleasant to enjoy one’s coffee whilst watching the passing show.
Whilst staying at Lower Sabie last month, we four times drove the beautiful Salitjie road (S30) – rather unsuccessfully. We decide to give it a final try from the Skukuza side. But… nothing doing, our lean run continues. Joining the S128 at Mafotini we come across three lion cubs in the long grass.
A little further on our way is blocked by this huge bull elephant. Amazingly this carload of Japanese people drove right up to this old chap and hardly backed off when he turned on them. “Ignorance can sometimes be real bliss”.
At Lower Sabie we enjoyed breakfast on the deck.
Today is Saturday, 16th and the weekend crowds are here. The great H4-1 Sabie river road is not the place to be from 9am onwards.
Websites such as this seem to attract spam. I was receiving hundreds of messages every week and whilst at Ballito I had the settings changed to try and block them. Unfortunately, it seems as though all comments have now been blocked so if anyone has commented and I haven’t acknowledged you, I apologise.
And that followers marks the end of our month in Kruger. It has been a superb time and we have been truly blessed and privileged to be able to enjoy what must be one of the world’s great destinations.
