On Safari

Arriving at Hoedspruit Airport, we were met by a most surprising sight – a person in a pilot’s uniform held the sign for our names and led us to a 4-seater Cesna. Instead of a 2-hour bumby car ride, this was our 15-minute transport to the Elephant Plains Guest Lodge in the Sabie Sands Game Reserve. Unfortunately, we were not met by our bags. 30 hours later, after our first incredible safari drive, our bags arrived.

The afternoon and early morning safari drives were fascinating. We glimpsed just how the animals of the African svelt lived in their natural habitat and amongst their typical neighbors. The guides talked about all aspects of the animals with which we got up close and personal: what they ate, why they socialized, how their behavior affected the svelt, when they could be approached and when it was best to leave them alone. Some animals were used to the open-topped trucks, walking within feet of the vehicles and more or less ignoring us, and others were unused to them, keeping their distance and keeping their hunches raised. We also took a bush walk around the lodge, learning about the plants and insects of the svelt.

During the walk we watched two dung beetles duel over a dung ball. We saw 4 of the “Big Five” animals including Leopard, Cape Buffalo, White Rhinoceros, and Elephant. On the final afternoon, we actually came across a herd of elephants that feint a charge at us when we got too close to the elephant calves. The one we missed was the lion, but apparently the local pride of lions had moved on. We also saw impala, giraffe, water buck, kudu, doecher, baboons, hippos, zebra, wildebeest, white tailed mongoose, exotic birds, and huge spiders.

After Elephant Plains, we transferred back to Hoedspruit for a short stay at a riverside mountain lodge. On the drive to Otter’s Den, a leopard literally walked across the road in front of our car! The main reason for staying at Otter’s Den was to take one of their hot air balloon rides over the nearby game park. Rising at 3:30 am, we spent a peaceful morning suspended in the air with nothing but a basket between us and the trees below.