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Hi PeterPM

Just caught up with you and Addo. Yes, I was also absolutely surprised at the neatness and stylish accommodation of Addo during my first visit It is really a pleasure to stay there, staff also very accommodating and friendly

So glad you saw the lions that escaped us at Easter. Your photos are really great, keep coming

Kruger is waiting for me, LS from 14 - 21 July

@PeterPM - thank you for the trip report and beautiful photos - glad you enjoyed your stay. Hoping to have good sightings there on Friday.

@Leanawel, that lion sighting was all thanks to RonnieL. Without him there we would have missed them completely. I am hoping to get back to Kruger next year, it is quite a long haul from Somerset West Here's to a great time with fantastic sightings for you.

@Carolynn - another PE'er. Have a blast and thank you for reading my TR.

I was perusing Ronniel's TR about the lion kill at woodlands over the weekend, and both my wife and I said the same thing - "Imagine being able to pop into Addo for the day" I suppose the same goes for those living in Phalaborwa and Nelspruit. Lucky Fish!

Hi PeterPM,
Thank you so much for the wonderful compliments you posted about Addo Elephant National Park. I have forwarded these to the management and staff as it is always encouraging to hear of good service and experiences from our visitors.

GURU

Count me in with PeterPM. Addo and the staff, the accommodation, roads - just everything is 5 STAR.


Leana

Thanks Leana, I'll convey your compliments too

stayed in Addo for two days and wanted to confirm what a beautiful park it is. We saw 6 Secretary birds in about a half hour, the famed group of three lions that seems to roam about unabated on both days, and a caracal crossed the road in front of us while on our way to breakfast. Wonderful place to just sit and watch wildlife or enjoy the views since it's pretty easy to get back to camp from almost anywhere in the upper half of the park.

Our 3 day stay in Addo from 26 - 28 June was most enjoyable, although we had a rainy trip from Wildernis NP to Addo the Sunday, but as we arrived in Addo, the rain was gone, but it got colder. The Rondawals where we stayed was most comfortable and we experienced the service and food at restaurant par excellence. We explored the Hapoor and Rooidam areas first and found a number of jackals, kudus, a dugga-boy or two and a number of ellies around. Then we explored the Gorah loop and Carol's rest areas where we enjoyed thew beautiful landscape with open field with the pajama-guys breaking the green with their white and black stripes and eland in the far distant - too far for a nice photo.
The second day - after a trip around Gorah loop, midday we decided to explore the southern part i.e. from Hapoor dam to Vukani, Mbotyi and Ngulube loop and it was interesting to see the changes in vegetation and enjoyed the landscape with a few of the normal antelope and warthog. On our way back on the hill between the south gate (middle of park) and Marion Bree waterhole we got a beautiful lion sighting male in the grass and a collared female came and lay in the road in front of us. Time ran out and we had to head back to camp.
The next morning we went back to this patch and was rewarded with a sighting of 2R's. We watched them for a while and then the secretary bird appeared searching the long grass, where the lions were the previous day. On our way back, we encountered a elephant in the road walking towards us, so we reversed for more than 2km as we had a hairraising encounter in Kruger a year ago, so we have learned about the ones that are alone. Eventually we got an open area so we could demonstrate that we are not in competition for the road which he respected. Just further down this same road, an hyena approached us walking past us and into the bush. We also observed a whole herd of eland on the one hill and a number of buffalo grazing next to the road next to small stream. So this section of road was our 'golden patch for the 3 days' as we thoroughly enjoyed the time in Addo. Next off we went to Mountain Zebra for 2 days.
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Kruger: 10-18 Dec'11

Nice TR there Kaapsedraai. We had friends who went to Addo a week after us and they too had fantastic lion sightings near the Marion Bree. Those Addo ellies are lot more docile than their Kruger and Pilansberg cousins but their shear size can be very intimidating.

@kemit, I so desperately wanted to spot caracal. I got my wish, believe it or not, on the Rooi Els road a week later when I got back.

I am looking forward to Addo in January 2012.

PeterM, I have never seen a caracal in the wild and was rewarded with my first sighting in MZNP (I have posted a pic there).
Another first for me was a sighting of a secretarybird - there is/was one at World of Birds in Houtbay with a woodenleg. In Addo, I got 2 sightings of them as per the pic.



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Kruger: 10-18 Dec'11