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Great news!!!

In exactly a month from today the movie crew will depart for their "filming" of a exciting new movie called:

Adventures in the southern part of Kruger

The movie will be about a family (Stephan, Junita and baby Antonique), embarking on a camping adventure in the Kruger National Park. Expect lots of wonderful sightings, great stories and funny stories as the family will be camping in a caravan for the first time in the KNP.

We are the actors and the movie crew ("a low budget film") We will spend 14 nights in the park, "filming" on location. Each day we (actors and crew) will travel on different roads in the park, "filming" the whole way. These wonderful images and scenes will be stored in our memory banks as we are the only ones on "location". However being a forum and KNP addict myself, I know your pain so we will store great images and videoclips on our cameras which will be presented to you in the form of a trip report.

"Filming" all these wonderful things in the park is truely amazing and we cannot wait. We as the "filming crew" would like to bring you daily updates in the form of SMS's. If there is any forum member who would like to post daily sms's on this current thread while we are in the KNP, please PM us so we can organize this.
We will give a full report when we return!

Start buying the and prepare for the movie event of the year!

More later...

Thanks p@m, billyf, Scipio and TheunsH for the nice comments

Adventures in the southern part of Kruger
Behind the scenes update ("preparation is key"):

Hi all,

Thought i'll let you in on a little behind the scenes action. As you know the producer of this upcoming "movie" is +-4 weeks pregnant. Yes, and I am the proud daddy. Anyway those of you out there who had the privilage to share a house with a pregnant woman will know that this isn't always a walk in the park (Kruger park, so to speak!). Add to that our very busy and creative director of this "movie"(aka baby Antonique), who is +2 years old, then Preparation is the keyword here. For the record, I love my wife with all my heart, she is a loving wife and a amazing mother to our wonderful baby daughter. Anyway back to the update.

As preparation is vital for this trip I made a plan... I decided to do a test run this weekend on "Setting up camp". I will practise how to pitch the tent, how to connect the pipes to the basin outside the caravan etc. As our producer and director will find it difficult to help at the various camps in Kruger, I must be prepared. The producer will probably run after the director, who will be exploring the area (Probably just looking for a nice spot to "film a scene".) But believe me, there will be a major "scene" if the producer will try to pick up the director who will be busy exploring

So this is the current update. Will give more info later...

29 days and counting...

Thanks kids@camping and Petra Jacobs for the wishes.

VACANCY STILL AVAILABLE!!!

Job description:

The successful applicant should be a lover of nature and wildlife. Knowledge of cellphones, sms messages, internet and the sanparks.org forum is a must.
The job requires posting of "live sms messages" onto the forum on a daily basis. These sms messages will serve as a trailer to the movie - "Adventures in the southern part of Kruger"

Salary:

Nothing - all of this will be done to keep other forum members happy.

Applicants should send their applications via a PM to Stephan & Junita. Our company will employ the "first come first serve" principle.

Thanks.

25 Days to go...

Hi everyone,

Thanks to everyone for their comments/responses

Yes... not long now. Only 4 days to go...

Thought I'll give you the "Wishlist" for the producer, the director and crew member(myself).

We just want to be in the park to experience that amazing Kruger atmosphere and to bring back some incredible footage for our "movie"

Each of us has our own little "wishlist":

Producer: (Junita)
Cheetah
Black rhino

Director: (Baby Antonique)
Wild dogs
(Or as she calls them... "Woefas")

Crew member: (Stephan)
Leopard

Wow a wildebeest! A rare sighting
I don't think I'll be that lucky

If all goes according to plan we ("movie crew") should enter at Malelane gate at 15:00 tomorrow.

28 hours to go...

Thanks to DinkyBird, our other movie crew member who will post sms reports while we are away filming

Talk to all of you in 16 days time...

Hi all,

Thanks for all the comments. We are sitting in the camping area at BnD... JUST ENJOYING THE BUSH...

We will not prolong your suffering, and after consultation with the producer, we decided that a preview to our upcoming "movie" will be in order

We had a awesome sighting yesterday. The Berg en Dal pride of lions killed a buffalo just next to the BnD tar road. We took lots of photos and video clips, which I'll post later in our full trip report.

But for now... just one photo to give you a taste of what's to come!

Hi all,

The movie crew is back home safe and sound.
We had an amazing time filming in the bush and we have some great stories to tell.

The movie will be released this weekend.

You can prepare yourself for a real African adventure with a lovely storyline and wonderful wildlife scenes.

Please note:
This movie do carry a PG13 (V) age restriction...

See you at the movies!!!

The producer is doing fine - morning sickness is much better
The director is also doing great! We all enjoyed the park a lot. Antonique can correctly identify most of the animals we saw on our trip, she really loves the animals, and are very fond of the birds too.

Adventures in the southern part of Kruger

Day 1 : 4 July 2009

It was a very cold Gauteng morning. The movie crew packed all their camping gear, filming equipment, clothes and food for the next 14 days the night before. The caravan was packed with everything – from boerewors to the director’s toy motorbike!

Even though it was cold the excitement levels were very high. Camping in Kruger has been the movie crew’s dream for a long time, and now it was a reality. There was a bit of a concern as the director wasn’t totally well that morning. She was still ill from an ear infection, which can be drawn back to the terrible air pollution levels in the Vaal Triangle. The movie crew could not wait to get out of this polluted place they called home.

The crew departed at 7:00am. According to Nelson (the GPS navigation voice), the crew were 489km from their destination, Berg en dal (also known as “Heaven on earth”). Towing for the second time in his life, Stephan was doing very well. Not much traffic to speak of, and the company in the car were great. Antonique, the director was sleepy from her medication and the producer didn’t seem to suffer from morning sickness that day.

The crew travelled slowly, as regular pit stops was the order of the day. The fact that a cold front had the whole country in its icy grip also didn’t help much. After a few hours the movie crew arrived at Malelane gate. Checking in was swift and they entered their home for the next 14 nights at approximately 3:00pm.

There aren’t enough words to explain that special feeling of entering the Kruger National Park. Smelling the bush and just escaping the real world outside is totally awesome.

The movie crew started filming on day one. They travelled on the S110 tar road to Berg en dal camp. Impalas, giraffes and warthogs were there to welcome them that afternoon as they entered the park.







Checking in at Berg en dal was quick and now it was time to set up camp.



Stephan was a bit nervous as this was his first time setting up camp. He didn’t want to look like a complete idiot in front of the producer. The director was very keen to help, although it wasn’t always constructive help. Moving tent poles around, after Stephan placed them were they should be, really tested his patience.





Well, setting up camp that evening took Stephan about 3 hours. When he sat in his camp chair later that evening, he was dead tired, but very happy. He was about to sleep in Kruger and when the sun rises the next day the movie crew will be on the road, capturing incredible wildlife scenes.

Roads travelled that day:
S110 tar road

Sightings that day:
Bushbuck (At the dam at Berg en dal)
Impalas
Giraffes
Crocodiles (At the bridge at Malelane gate)
Hippo (At the dam at Berg en dal)
Waterbuck (At the dam at Berg en dal)
Warthogs
Southern Yellow-billed Hornbill
Lilac-breasted Roller

Adventures in the southern part of Kruger

Day 2 : 5 July 2009

If the movie crew thought that the previous night would be a peaceful and restful one, they made a big mistake. Antonique had quite a fever and Stephan and Junita was starting to think that Antonique must be allergic to the Kruger National Park.
(On a previous trip in October 2008 at Tamboti camp, baby Antonique was very sick. She had a fever of 40 degrees Celsius the first night at Tamboti. The crew had to take her to a doctor in Hoedspruit the next day.)

Anyway, back to this trip. Remember that Stephan, our cameraman and regular crew member, was wasted the previous night from travelling and setting up camp, (P.S. not from drinking!). He was really looking forward to a good nights rest, but he had to settle for 3 hours sleep that night. Luckily the director felt much better the next morning and that was the most important thing. The crew had their routes planned for the whole trip in Kruger, but it must be said that the director has the power to change any planned route instantly, as 2 year tantrums in a car will scare any animal away, which will result in a clear and empty sighting board back at camp!

Wow!, there aren’t a lot of things that can beat the feeling of waking up in Kruger. The night sounds and atmosphere is totally out of this world. Believe it or not, it was raining quite a bit the previous night, so the area around camp was still wet early morning. The crew packed everything for their morning drive and left camp at 6:30am. They drove the Matjulu loop, starting on the tar road.
There was still a slight drizzle that morning and the visibility wasn’t that good. A few kilometres from camp they came across 5 lions next to the road. Males, females and cubs were relaxing just a few metres from the road in very dense bush. It was difficult to see how many lions there were, but we counted 5 in total.


(Not good footage, but you can see it is a lion if you use your imagination!)

The crew also encountered impala on this section of the S110 road. It was a quiet morning but everything was so crisp and clean after the rain the previous night, it made up for the absence of the animals. On the S110 gravel road the crew saw a duiker, impalas, giraffes and waterbuck.



This is one of the best camera shots of the day!



Birds were also something the movie crew focused on during this trip. They did their homework on all the different kinds of birds, got themselves a pocket guide birding book, and really made an effort to identify and record as many birds as possible. They parked their camera van next to the Matjulu waterhole and they were pleasantly surprised on the number of different birds they could spot at the waterhole.

Exclusive footage of the bird sightings:












The crew were back at camp at 9:00am, started breakfast and by 11:00 all the energy levels were restored. Our lovely pregnant producer took an afternoon nap in the caravan and the cameraman volunteered to take the director on tour in the Berg and dal camp.

The tour was a huge success as the director enjoyed an ice cream at the Berg en dal dam and fell asleep on the cameraman’s shoulder halfway during the walking trail.





The crew departed for their afternoon drive at 14:45pm. They caught elephants, giraffes, white rhinos, kudus, impalas, a duiker, warthogs and a meerkat on film.

Some of the filmed footage:







(A dangerous and frustrated elephant bull!!)




(At Berg en dal dam)


The birdlife in this area of the park is prolific and it was amazing to observe all the different kinds of birds in camp as well.
That night the movie crew had a nice “braai” under a starlit sky.

Roads travelled that day:
S110 tar road
H3
S110 gravel road
S121
S114

Sightings that day:
Impalas
Duiker
Giraffes
Waterbuck
Warthogs
Lions (5)
Kudu
Elephants
White rhinos

Southern Yellow-billed Hornbill
Red-billed Hornbill
Lilac-breasted Roller
Pied Kingfisher
Helmeted Guinea fowl
Crested Francolin
Blue Waxbill
Burchell’s Coucal
White-fronted Bee-eater
Marabou Stork

Thanks billyf, Micetta, p@m, lorrainepring and TheunsH for watching our movie Hope you find it entertaining.

Now for Day 3

Adventures in the southern part of Kruger

Day 3 : 6 July 2009

The crew had a restful and peaceful night and they were ready to face the day. It was the first time they camped in Kruger and they really enjoyed the experience. The atmosphere around a campfire in a caravan park cannot be beaten.

The crew left camp at 6:30am that morning. All the camera and filming equipment were on standby… ready for action.
Sightings early that morning were scarce. The first animals showed themselves only after the sun appeared through the clouds later that morning.



The crew managed to take a few nice pictures of this elephant eating his breakfast.





The director decided to take her morning nap while the rest of the crew stopped at Afsaal picnic spot where they enjoyed home baked rusks with their coffee.



The crew left Afsaal and headed back to Berg en dal. On the S110 tar road to Berg en dal they saw a massive buffalo herd. Their guess was anything between 200 and 300. It was really special to see so many of them wandering up and down the hills around Berg en dal.









Back at camp the crew dished up a wholesome brunch for themselves while they enjoyed the bush atmosphere in camp.

The afternoon drive was fairly quiet with regard to sightings. Still the crew managed to take some beautiful photographs:



(This kudu played hide and seek!)








The crew also took a few pictures of offenders in the park.




Apparently they saw lions. The movie crew didn’t see the lions, but then again… the crew didn’t try to climb through sunroofs and windows.

The movie crew returned to camp just before the gates closed. The day was rounded off with a nice braai while they discussed the sightings of the past three days.





More exclusive footage:





(Hamerkop)




Nothing could prepare them for what they saw the next day. Even National Geographic would be envious of the footage they captured on that day…

Roads travelled that day:
S110 tar road
H3
S110 gravel road
H2-2
S114
S120

Sightings that day:
Impalas
Baboons
Buffaloes
Giraffes
Warthogs
Kudu
Elephants
White rhinos
Dwarf mongoose
Meerkat

Southern Yellow-billed Hornbill
Lilac-breasted Roller
Helmeted Guinea fowl
Burchell’s Coucal
Hamerkop
Magpie Shrike

Thanks for all the responses!

Hi Elsa, billyf, p@m, Meandering Mouse, lorrainepring and DANKBAAR. Hope you all enjoy the upcoming scene!

TheunsH, hope you enjoyed our other trip reports. Yes we are a blessed family and we love our to bits.

Micetta, the bird you referred to is a Burchell's coucal

Yes GavinW, that is a Two Oceans shirt! Well spotted I'm a runner and I've done 7 Oceans and 9 Comrades

Hi roaneric, Antonique is a healthy child, but winter months are always tough because she is attending a nursery school. We normally visit Kruger in the winter months.

Adventures in the southern part of Kruger

Day 4 : 7 July 2009

The movie crew decided to drive up to Pretoriuskop to explore the fauna and flora in that area. The crew got up very early to start packing and to get everything ready for the long day that was lying ahead. At 6:15am the movie crew were out of the gate and they eagerly searched for some action.

Nothing could prepare them for what awaited them a few kilometres up the Berg en Dal tar road.

A few kilometres from Berg en Dal camp, the crew came across a major traffic jam in the road. The crew were stuck in this traffic jam and it just grew bigger and bigger and bigger…



Suddenly, two very angry lions appeared out of the bush. Their faces were covered in blood and you could clearly see that the one lion didn’t enjoy the other lion’s company. The crew’s first thoughts were that they were busy fighting, as there were quite a commotion.



The movie crew patiently sat and waited for the cars to start moving again… but NOTHING happened!
The crew were very aware of the fact that lions can cause a major traffic jam, but from previous experiences they also knew that after a while the cars will start to move. Normally, at lion sightings, the people will park in such a way that others are still able to pass. Not at this sighting!!!

The movie crew rolled down their window and started to talk to some of the other people at the sighting. Within seconds everything made sense. There was a lion kill right next to the tar road!!!
The lions killed a young buffalo just before the gate opened early that morning. There were so many cars and the people literally parked everywhere. It was very clear that some visitors to the park thought that special sightings meant that the rules of the park don’t apply anymore.

The crew were very excited and they couldn’t wait to get a glimpse of this amazing sighting. The crew patiently waited for more than an hour, before they captured some very special footage:





















The movie crew travelled on the H3 and then turned onto the H2-2 towards Pretoriuskop. A quick pit stop at Afsaal where they enjoyed a nice breakfast and Antonique posed for this special photo:



The movie crew took a few nice pictures of the following animals on their way to Pretoriuskop:















The bush around Pretoriuskop was very dense, animals were around, you just had to look more closely.
The crew took this picture of the director exploring Pretoriuskop camp.



The crew decided to take the H1-1 back to the H3 road and from there back to Berg en Dal camp. They took some amazing photos on the drive back to camp:





The lions were still busy enjoying their breakfast. The buffalo looked very different… so did the lions! Their tummies were ready to explode…





The crew arrived at camp just after 15:00pm. The cameraman booked a sunset drive with Raymond at Berg and dal. It was very nice to meet Raymond in person, as Stephan doesn’t miss a single report from him on the “Berg en Dal sightings” thread.

The cameraman took the following pictures on the sunset drive:

(Remains of a buffalo killed by lions a few weeks earlier!)


(Vultures waited patiently in a tree for the lions to finish the buffalo)




The cameraman captured more footage of the lions feasting on the buffalo:

























Part 1

Part 2

That night in the caravan, the producer and the cameraman shared their thoughts on another wonderful day in the Kruger National Park.

Roads travelled that day:
S110 tar road
H3
H2-2
H1-1

Sightings that day:
Impalas
Blue Wildebeest
Giraffes
Warthogs
Lions
Kudu
Elephants
Steenbok
Zebras

Lilac-breasted Roller
Bateleur
Southern Ground Hornbill
Vultures

Thanks Pumbaa, TheunsH, Petra Jacobs, lorrainepring, Chickadee, billyf, tiggercat, p@m, Micetta and Johan N for watching!

Raymond was the guide on our drive lorrainepring. He knows the bush very well and he is an excellent guide

Adventures in the southern part of Kruger

Day 5 : 8 July 2009

As usual the movie crew were up very early. They prepared coffee in a flask for their planned stop at the Matjulu waterhole. The morning drive was fairly short, travelling on the S110 gravel road, then onto the H3 and back to camp on the S110 tar road.

It was the crew’s last day at Berg en Dal and the last day that they could explore all the wonderful fauna and flora in the Berg en Dal area.
Compared to the previous day, sightings were scarce. The crew took a nice picture of this giraffe:



Just before the crew turned onto the S110 tar road, they found another traffic jam. “A leopard with her two cubs crossed the road about 5 minutes ago” - was the excited response from the people in the other cars. The crew switched off the engine and waited by the side of the road for more than 30 minutes, but the leopard was gone.
They left the scene wondering if they will ever be so fortunate to see a leopard in the park.

The vultures were the only visitors at the buffalo kill. It’s amazing to think that within a time span of 24 hours the kill took place, the lions finished the buffalo and now the vultures frantically picked up the last pieces. There was no sign of the lions or the carcass. Everything was gone.







The crew saw this rhino just before they entered the camp gate:





Took this nice picture on the S110 tar road:
(What a beautiful bird!)


Back at camp it was time to wash up and prepare breakfast. Since it was their last day at Berg en Dal the movie crew decided to spend some time in camp. The director took full advantage of this opportunity and explored every inch of the camp.





Later that afternoon the crew were back on the road looking for more potential movie footage. Footage that was taken included the following:







The crew returned to camp, just a few minutes before the gate was closed by the guard. They decided to take a few pictures at reception that will remind them of their wonderful stay at Berg en Dal.







Will they ever have the privilege of placing a black magnet on a sighting board?



Roads travelled that day:
S110 tar road
S110 gravel road
H3
S114
S121

Sightings that day:
Impalas
Giraffes
Warthogs
Elephants
White rhino

Lilac-breasted Roller
Eagle (not sure what kind)
African Fish Eagle
Vultures

Thanks AtlantaJoe and GavinW for watching.
GavinW, we will let you know when we visit Cape Town again

Adventures in the southern part of Kruger

Day 6 : 9 July 2009

The movie crew got up very early and started to pack. By 8:45am everything was packed neatly into the caravan, the caravan was hooked to the car and the director and the producer waited patiently next to the car. The crew really enjoyed camping at Berg en Dal and they were sad to leave this wonderful area.

After they left the gate they saw lots of different animals. The crew took these pictures on their way to Skukuza:









The crew arrived at Skukuza at 11:30am. They found a very nice camping spot where they started to set up camp. The director was fast asleep which made setting up camp much easier and quicker. When the director awoke from her afternoon nap, the producer and the cameraman were finished setting up camp.



They decided to take the director for a nice stroll around Skukuza camp. Skukuza is a very nice and peaceful camp, even though a lot of people like to call this camp “Joburg in the veldt”!

The movie crew decided to take an afternoon drive. They travelled on the H4-1 then turned onto the H12. From the H12 they turned right onto the H1-2, and decided to drive the S83 (Marula loop). There wasn’t much animal activity on this road though.

On the H4-1 they saw an impala in a tree!



Yes… the impala was dead, they waited for a while but they couldn’t find the culprit responsible for dragging the impala up into the tree.

More footage from the afternoon drive:

















The crew was truly amazed to find the Sabie River full of water. There were much more water in the river compared to the same time last year.

Later that evening the crew had a nice braai while listening to a hyaena’s “whoop” somewhere in the bush.

Roads travelled that day:
S110 tar road
H3
H1-1
H4-1
H1-2
S83 (Marula loop)
H12

Sightings that day:
Vervet monkeys
Baboons
Impalas
Giraffes
Warthogs
Elephants
Hippo
Waterbuck
Kudu
Buffaloes
Blue Wildebeest
Water monitor

Lilac-breasted Roller
Eagle (not sure what kind)
Hamerkop
Giant Kingfisher

Thanks Nurse Bev, Katja Voth, DANKBAAR, Elsa, Micetta, roaneric and p@m for watching!
Keep on watching this movie, as things are about to get even more exciting…

Adventures in the southern part of Kruger

Day 7 : 10 July 2009

The movie crew were up bright and early to get everything ready for the day ahead. The producer got the director sorted out and by 5:55am the whole movie crew waited patiently in line for the gate to open. The crew travelled down the H1-1 when they suddenly saw movement in the bush. It was still quite dark… they couldn’t believe their eyes!

They saw their first Honey Badger. The crew managed to capture the following footage:

(Apologies for the poor picture quality)


They were very excited. They never imagined that they will see a Honey Badger, but it just proofed the age old saying: “Being at the right place at the right time”. The crew travelled to Mathekenyane lookout point where they watched as the sun rose over the horizon.



The cameraman got out of the vehicle and he just stood on top of the hill enjoying the splendid view and listening to all the animal and bird sounds.





It was a very special moment for our cameraman, he felt so small and insignificant and he realized all over again how powerful and almighty our God is. Every single day is created by Him.

The rest of the morning drive was fairly quiet, but still very enjoyable for the crew.
More pictures taken that morning:





Back at Skukuza the producer went to the Laundromat service inside the camp to do some much needed washing. The cameraman and director spend some father - daughter time together which resulted in the director getting injured.
She fell and hurt one of her knees while she played with her daddy. The two of them ran from the ablution block to the caravan and she picked up too much speed for her little legs to handle, and she fell on the paved road.



Luckily there are things called “mommies” and after some TLC the director was ready for round two:



At 14:30pm that afternoon the movie crew were also ready for round two! They left Skukuza camp and headed for Lake Panic. There were lots of other people visiting the hide. As the crew walked in the fenced pathway to the bird hide they took these pictures of an elephant. He was so close to the fence, you could literally touch him. (if you wanted to…)







More pictures taken at Lake Panic:







The crew left the hide and continued onto the S1. They saw lots of different animals on this 10 km stretch of road before they turned onto the S4.







(Shot of the day!)




The S3 and H1-1 roads also didn’t disappoint:





Back at camp the crew prepared supper and they planned their route for day 8 in paradise. They decided to change their initial planned route around the Skukuza area and rather travel up to Satara the next day and give the S100 a bash. They haven’t seen any lions in the last 3 days and their cat addiction grew stronger and stronger. They were yearning to see more cats… It was a decision that they won’t regret and a turning point in the movie!

More on that later…

Roads travelled that day:
S114
H3
H1-1
S112
H11
S1
S3
S4

Sightings that day:
Blue Wildebeest
Buffaloes
Impalas
Giraffes
Warthogs
Elephants
Kudu
White rhino
Meerkat
Crocodile (Lake Panic)
Common Duiker
Klipspringer
Steenbok
Zebras
Honey Badger
Dwarf Mongoose

Helmeted Guineafowl
African Fish-Eagle
Brown Snake-Eagle
Southern Ground Hornbill