South African National Parks (SANParks)

An Addo Odyssey

An Odyssey according to the Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary is a long exciting journey. Just how long and how exciting a journey should be to qualify as an odyssey and what qualifies as exciting, the dictionary however does not state.

I would like to think that each person gets to decide for themselves if the journey they completed qualifies as an odyssey or not. Who would be better at determining if the journey was exciting for them or not. Therefore our recent trip to Addo Elephant National Park might qualify as an odyssey, maybe not in the same league as a Kingsley Holgate odyssey, but an odyssey all the same.

As I am standing on the veranda of our chalet looking towards the lit waterhole on the boundary fence with Addo Main camp, I realise one thing though, no two actually; First of all that weather frontal systems do not read reservation confirmation letters and secondly that animals do not read weather prediction maps.

My first visit to the Kruger National park was at age 3 months and since then I visited many times and still today try to visit at least once a year. So as a third generation Krugerite it was a leap of faith making the decision to exchange the well known and loved roads, smells and places of Kruger for a first time visit to the Addo Elephant National Park.

After some research on the SANParks website a booking was made for the period 21-25 May 2007. Now as with any new destination one tends to be a little nervous at what might lay ahead but also exited at the thought of experiencing something new. As the booking was made in January a 4 month count down started to our “mid year” break. I even had a count down timer going in my web browser at one stage but for some reason to me it seemed to be counting down to slow so I removed it!

Having a great love for and interest in wildlife and nature in general it is my intention to instil this same love in my children. So the thought of introducing our 7 month old baby daughter, Dominique, to wildlife added to the anticipation for this trip.

And so after close to 120 days, departure day arrived amidst one of the first real bad cold front systems moving across the whole of South Africa! Rain, rain, rain, cold, cold and more cold travelled with us from Gordon’s Bay all the way to our overnight stop in Knysna. The morning of 21 May broke with more rain and reports of even lower temperatures and snow on the mountains.

It is in these overcast, rainy and cold conditions that we arrived at the Matyholweni gate at Colchester. After a quick, efficient and friendly gate check-in we proceeded to make our way through this yet animal scares section of Addo. Travelling along a very good gravel road we arrived at the gate to the game area after about 16 kilometres.

After travelling for about 1 kilometre we saw our first game, a family of Warthogs. The first of many more and a fascinating and very exiting first sighting for Dominique who jumped up and down when she eventually fixed her eyes on the forms close to the vehicle. Looking at the warthogs closely a new saying came to my mind which goes along the following lines: “It is so cold even the warthogs have goose bumps!”

We slowly made our way past places we have never seen before with names like Marion Baree waterhole, Spekboom hide, Lendlovu Pan and Woodlands eventually finding ourselves at Addo Main Camp at 12:00. Still raining at times, cold outside, being told we can only enter our accommodation at 13:00 and being very tired the three of us took a nap in the car.

When I booked the trip we could not get 4 consecutive nights in a chalet in Main camp due to the fact that all units were booked for the Wednesday night. So we had a Chalet booked in Main Camp for the Monday, Tuesday and Thursday evening and a Family Cottage in Matyholweni camp for the Wednesday evening.

The chalet we stayed in was one of those coded CH2/4 by SANParks and consisted of an open plan area with 2 single beds moved together, a double sleeper couch, kitchen with all utensils including a full sized 3 plate stove with oven and a fridge/freezer. The bathroom had a shower and bath. The latter proved very useful to get Dominique cleaned. On the parental side only two notes; firstly there is one power outlet that is on crawling-baby-eye-level and secondly the unit has a tile floor that can get pretty cold for bare feet and crawling babies.

We stayed in Chalet number 31 and as with all the chalets it is close to the fence and has a good view of the game area. Although the rondawels have the best view of the Nyati waterhole, most of the waterhole was visible from the veranda of our chalet although one needed binoculars for a good view.

In an effort to restore some warmth to their bodies Magdeline (my wife) and Dominique opted to stay at the chalet and spend some time in front of the little fan heater we brought along, while I decided to take a afternoon drive by myself.

Not being as vast as Kruger finding your way around the couple of loop roads (circular route roads) in the game area is made easy with the very good fold-out map handed out free of charge at reception.

So in pouring rain which was only briefly interrupted at times I made my way firstly onto the short Domkrag Dam / Woodlands loop quickly adding kudu, zebra, ostrich, warthog and the first of many black-backed jackal sightings to my list. My list of birds also grew ever so slightly. After receiving a message from the wife that she and the little one are planning to take a nap, I thought there is no good reason for returning to camp now and made my way down to Zuurkop lookout point.

At the lookout point, where one may alight from your vehicle, there is a sign to warn one against the possible presence of lions. Looking at the sign I thought to myself “The chance of getting frost bite outside is now more real than getting bitten by a lion”. In the distance I could see a number of cars on the road leading down to Carols Rest waterhole and also a large elephant bull standing on the grass plain in the valley below so I decided that Carols Rest will be my next destination.

Slowly making my way down the hill and unto the open grassland area I see more kudu (they turned out to be what impala is to Kruger), warthog, zebra, ostriches and the first Red Hartebeest of our trip.

Being used to the sometimes ill tempered and impatient elephants of Kruger I can just described my first real close encounter with Addo elephants as amazing. As I turned a corner I find the road in front of me occupied by two elephants with no intention of getting out of the way. They seem to be leisurely making their way to the waterhole via the gravel road smelling all the elephant droppings in the road as they go along. Being cautious to pass them I decide to hang back and follow them at distance. When some cars approaching from the front pass them without any incident I decide to see if I can get pass them.

They give way and as I approach Carols Rest I am just in time to see a herd of elephants moving off after having a drink. I just missed the herd drinking within meters of the road and even with the bad weather conditions surely missed a good photo opportunity! As gate closing time was getting nearer I turned the car around as the rest of the Gorah Loop was closed, I assumed due to the rain and accompanied muddy conditions of the road ahead.

Rounding a corner I come face-to-face with a herd of elephants strolling towards me also using the gravel road. As there were some young elephants with them I thought the best thing to do will be to pull to the side of the road and keep as quiet as possible. The first group passed within 2 meters of the car and seemed at ease with me being there, seeming to glance into the vehicle to look at the human inside. Then a cow with a young one approached and I could hear my heart beat with excitement and nervousness. Without giving me too much notice they passed the car and I could hear their breathing, rumbling stomachs and the sloooff, sloooff of their footsteps in the muddy road as they walk pass. What and experience having these majestic animals so close.

Below photos taken in bad weather conditions just showing how close they passed.

Back at camp I could not wait to share the photo and video footage with my wife. No braai fire tonight as the rain and cold put a stop to any thoughts of spending time outside. As a matter of fact we did not braai at all during our visit!

Lying in bed later that evening listening to the rain against the windows and slowly slipping off to dreamland I briefly relive some of the experiences of the day. The animals, the birds, the plants, the smells and all those things that make South Africa such a special place to explore. And then darkness, the first day has ended.

Tuesday morning arrived overcast and cold but at least the rain has stopped, albeit for only a while. Having Dominique with us and this being her first long car trip we tried to keep her normal routine e.g. sleeping etc. as normal as possible. So she would wake us at 05:00, then we had to play and eat and then she wanted to sleep again at about 08:00 waking up at about 09:30. So our game viewing days only started around 10:00.

As we had no baggage in the car we decided to fold down the back seats of our Tazz to create a flat surface where Dominique can play and sleep and set of on our drive. An arrangement which was put to good use.

We travelled down the tar road past Lendlovu Pan taking the loop past Hapoor Dam and back up the gravel road towards Main Camp. Game viewing was slow and we added a couple of kudu, zebra and warthog. After a quick biological stop at camp we decided to make our way down to Carols Rest. I really wanted Dominique to see elephants close up and taking the previous day’s sightings into account this seemed to be the best route to accomplish this mission.

For the second day running this road was very productive and we got to see most of the species mentioned before but no elephants. We did come across a herd of buffalo close to the waterhole. They seemed not the least bothered with the rain which was coming down in buckets again at this stage.

As we re-entered the grassland area there they were. A herd of elephants close to the road. Magdeline got Dominique’s attention focussed on the big forms not to far from the car and once they moved they caught her attention to great delight of both parents and baby.

And here are some photos of the elephants that caused her great excitement.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We arrived back at camp around lunch time and decided, since the rain abated, that we would take a quick stroll around camp. The Nyati waterhole is right next to the perimeter fence and can be viewed either from a “platform” or from the underground hide. Below Magdeline and Dominique is standing on the “platform” with the waterhole in the background. During our visit to Addo we only saw an ostrich and some warthogs at the waterhole and I did get to see two jackals on the last evening from the veranda of our chalet.

After spending a couple of minutes on the platform We made our way down to the underground hide but once there the cold wind blowing into our faces saw to it that we did not stay long. Outside the entrance to the hide Dominique’s little hands explored some of the local flora which was encouraged although Dad did not approve of the attempt at tasting the leaves.

After a lovely lunch at our chalet we took an afternoon drive along the loop road to Domkrag Dam / Woodlands and again down to Carols Rest to see if we can add some more close animal encounters to Dominique’s first nature reserve experience.

Just outside camp we came across a Black-backed Jackal running down the road with a dead Porcupine in its mouth. One can only guess as to how he got hold of it. Did he brave the quills and kill the porcupine himself or did he just happen to come across the carcass.

Down on the plain we got close encounters for Dominique with ostriches, warthogs and zebras which she enjoyed immensely and we also saw a pair of jackals.

At Carols Rest waterhole the remains of an elephant was visible in the background and one just wonder what the last minutes of such a magnificent beast must have been like.

It is with a sense of accomplishment that I go to bed. Dominique got to see a number of animal species and she enjoyed it very much. Quite a relief I must add as I was walking with the unspoken thought “What will happen if she is not interested in the animals?”

Wednesday morning broke and it was time to pack up and move down to Matyholweni camp. The day started overcast but it cleared later on and the good weather continued into Thursday. Although the weather cleared it seemed as if the animals also cleared the area as the number of animal sightings drop dramatically over the last two days of our visit giving the impression that the animals enjoyed the bad weather more than we did.

As we could only book in at 13:00 we took our time to get down to Matyholweni. Magdeline took up the driving responsibilities for the day. As there were not a lot of animals around to keep her occupied Dominique opted for a nap on Dad’s lap.

The area of Addo in which Matyholweni is situated is currently not stocked with animals but do offer some good birding along the road leading from the game section to the camp. We did however find warthog in this area and there are reports of kudu as well.

In Xhosa the word Matyholweni means “in the bush” and as can be seen by the photos of our unit below this is exactly what you get at Matyholweni.

We stayed in unit 10, one of the family cottages. The unit is equipped with good quality bedding, furniture, crockery, utensils etc. The kitchen has a small fridge and a 2 plate counter top stove. Having gotten used to the full sized stove/oven and fridge/freezer in Main Camp this was a bit of a let down, but not a problem as such.

The bathroom consists of a shower, toilet and wash basin, all of good quality material. No bath here so Dominique had the first shower of her life.

Outside on the deck is a table and chairs as well as the braai area. Your view is of a hill with dense vegetation. During our stay we were the only guests in the camp. A really great camp and once the area is stocked with game it will surely be a favourite of many people. We also enjoyed good birding from our veranda and by walking up and down the road in camp.

Thursday, the last full day of our stay in Addo arrived with the call of Southern Boubous to be heard all over the camp and clear skies a welcome sight. The only problem of only staying one night at a specific camp is all the packing and unpacking that accompanies it.

We made our way back to the game area and as with our previous drives in the vicinity of Spekboom hide Dominique was asleep so we decided once again to skip the hide. There is a proverb that says let sleeping dogs lie and I believe the same goes for sleeping babies!

During the course of the day we travelled most of the roads in Addo with no great sightings and only 2 elephants seen. Once back at Main Camp we unpacked and strolled around camp looking at the location of the various accommodation units and exploring the camp in general.

We made a quick visit to the SASOL Red Bishop Bird hide which is situated in the camp close to the restaurant area. This hide was constructed as part of a joint project of SASOL and the Honorary Rangers of the Addo region. No Red Bishops or any other birds seen at the hide unfortunately.

The Park map describes the hide as follow: The large Bird Hide at Addo Rest Camp overlooks a reed filled wetland where you will be able to observe an interesting variety of birdlife.

Below a panoramic view from inside the hide to show the “wetland”. I assume that once there is some more water in it that birdlife might pick up, especially weavers. Some of the other water associated birds might be chased off by the traffic on the road that passes next to the wetland but I stand corrected.

After our walk we sat outside on the veranda looking out over the park and soaking up some sunshine. While I tried to get some shots of the Fiscal Flycatcher that was about Dominique investigated the items on the veranda. Some common day items is very interesting to a little one when they have never encountered something similar before.

Before retiring to our chalet for the night we decided to take a walk along the fence. We walked all the way from our chalet down to the underground hide, up to the shop and back again. Dominique enjoying every minute of being outside, seeing the plants, the birds, the animals and feeling the cool afternoon air against her face.

Mission accomplished. We have succeeded in leading Dominique in her journey of discovering the beauty of South Africa’s wildlife and in particular those areas under custodianship of SANParks. Next up Kruger in September

And as the last of these memories go through my mind, I look down at the waterhole far down below as the sun is setting thinking to myself that although weather frontal systems do not read reservation confirmation letters and animals do not read weather prediction maps we had a really great visit to Addo Elephant National Park.

And, Yes, for us this was an odyssey.