SANParks.org Forums

Bushbob, I have done the S100 and seen everything and done it and seen "nothing".

Regardless of the sightings, its a lovely road to travel.

The S39 in that area must be one of my favourite roads and was voted one of the top ten roads in Kruger by "Getaway". It goes through many eco systems, each bringing its own magic. I also have a soft spot for the Timbavati picnic site.

thanks for the advice meandering mouse, will definitely check them out!

On Sunday, we sat for almost 2 hours at Ntsemani dam, watching a pride of lions between 20 and 30 big, with cubs of all sizes, males and females. They were all over, both sides of the road, and the cars were spread for about 300 m and everybody got a chance to see the lions as they were all visible at times. Were supposed to go from Orpen to Letaba and back that day, but only made it to Satara, a little bit on the S100 (where we found more lion again) and returned to Orpen. Also saw 2 leopard and wilddog before we reached Ntsemani.

Thats great PetrJ,

Seeing 3 'special sightings' on 1 road in 1 day just shows the value of the H7! Hope I will have just as much to report on as you.

Considering an extra night at maroela

Hey everyone.

Roughly how long does it take to drive from orpen to satara?? i looked on the SANParks website and they say it takes roughly 1h15min but i don't believe that

Thanks

Hi K-4S. The usual time is correctly displayed at about 1 to 1.5 hours.
However, we travelled that route about 6 weeks ago and it took us up to 4 hours... 34 lions, 12 wilddog, 2 leopard, and numerous other wildlife in one morning.
It all depends on what sightings there is on the road, how bad is the "road-blocks" at these sightings, and how long you want to spend at each sighting.

Agreed that you don't want to be in a hurry on that road!
But if, for some reason, you are, 1:15 is about right.
The camps are 48 km apart and the maximum speed allowed is 50 km/h.

We are planning to drive between Shingwedzi and Tamboti in August. Is this too big a distance? We will leave at 6am and stick to the main tar road until the right turn onto the H7! Also plan to go from Tamboti to BnD or Biyamiti (cannot decide which) a few days later? This one looks more manageable distance-wise, sticking to tar..

Graham_5000, you are looking at +- 223 Kilo's between Shingwedzi and Tamboti by tar @ 50Km/h

Thanks Philip. So 5-6 hours including a lunch stop. 7-8 hours if we take our time!

I did that exact trip last June! Did it easily, even with a sunrise of Lions on the H7 Didn't rush at all and still got there with time to pitch the tent and head to Kannidood

Hi all.

Will it be possible to travel from Punda Maria to Satara in a day, or should we exit the park and enter at Orpen gate.

Thanks in advance.


Dikkes

Hey Dikkes, Ecojunkie does Punda to Malelane in one day.

Eish, sounds like that other Debbie movie.

Hi Scipio

Thanks for your reply. Agree with the movie. HA Ha

But it is a stretch of note, I would try and break it up. I did Shing to Satara not long ago, and it was a close call.