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Think it was "Memories of a Game Ranger" by Harry Wolhuter .

Thanks Ndloti.

Some visitors to Kruger are quite familiar with marula trees. The elephants like to eat the bark of the tree and it is said that marula oil is more than 40 times stable than the very best olive oil. I once tasted beer made from marulas but it is a bit sour to my taste. I rather like the following Kruger cocktail - mix 3 tots amarula liqueur, 3 tots orange liqueur and 1 tot brandy well and serve with lots of ice but do not drink more than one of these.

Grantmissy
I like the cocktail, however a bit of advice:
When drinking this cocktail always sit on the floor.
You won't hurt yourself when you roll over!!
Regards
JDW

JDW. Very good advice indeed . I guess those amounts are excellent for a swinging safari but 1 tot Amarula, 1 tot orange liqueur and one tablespoon brandy is very good for an ordinary Safari

Harry Wolhuter's "Memories of a Game Ranger", must be one of my favourite books.

He talks a lot of the decimation of game and the slow regeneration of Kruger. In this passage he makes a remarkable discovery.

"One early morning, about this time, as I rode down towards the Olifants I saw what I at first took to be two huge rocks away out in the sandy bed of the river. It struck me as strange that I had not previously noticed these rocks, as I had passed that very spot many times; and then, as I watched, one of the rocks moved distinctly, and with a tremendous thrill it dawned on me that of course in reality they were elephants! I obtained a good view of them before they disappeared from view in the bush; I think that these were the first elephants seen in the game reserve."

You will enjoy the first warden of the KNP (1902 -1948) , James Stevenson Hamiltons "African Eden" just as much.

Meandering Mouse once told us some time ago just after I have joined the forum about her visit to a grave in Satara of a ranger who passed away and I think she took the remaining family of the person who died along with her. I remember how it made an impression on me and I wanted to ask her a question but the post that she made was locked and one couldn’t ask questions, I think it was under the old compliments and complaints but I remember she said that the grave was very well cared for. I do not remember the name of the ranger but MM said it is was a very long time ago, most probably in the period of the last book mentioned by Ndloti above. The question that I wanted to ask MM was did she see the remains of the house where those people lived as, if I remember well she said that the person who passed away was buried near the house. Did they had a garden and are those signs of domestic live – the house and garden - still visible or not but perhaps only the grave has been kept by the Satara management as a person can understand that it is a nature conservation area?

Ranger Lloyd .. MM can relate,he was buried at Satara by his wife about a century ago,the house has long since been demolished.

Once MM has replied I will if necessary quote the passage from African Eden .

Ndloti, I would love to hear more, thank you. Its a book that I must get.

I also enjoyed Jane Curuther's book on Stevenson. What a great man. We owe him so much debt. He was a man untouched by ego and a superb administrator.

Two years ago I booked a week in Kruger over new year. We were going to stay in Punda, camping. I told my children that friends were allowed. My one daughter, who was still studying at the time mentioned that one of her friends was particularly keen to go, as her great grand father had died of Pneumonia shortly after taking up a post as a ranger in the Satara area.

This was a time when there were no roads. The main mode of transport was horse, donkey or foot. He had not been there for too long when he fell ill. With no antibiotics or suitable medicine, he died rather quickly. A black guide/worker had to travel through veld to Skukuza to let Stevenson Hamilton know of the tradgedy. By the time he arrived at Satara, the young widow and her three young sons had buried their father.

My daughter's friend and my daughter went on their way out of Kruger to visit the grave at Satara. It is in the staff village. The staff at Satara could not have been more helpful. My daughter tells me that the grave had been well looked after. It was gratifying to see such respect.

I asked about the way the family remembered the affair. I believe the wife was some tough cookie. There was little time for sentiment when death was such a close reality.

MM your post is so very interesting. It really sounds like those times were tough. It is understandable that the people living in Kruger during that period could not afford to be sentimental. It is sometimes difficult to imagine how they survived as I guess access to fresh water and fruit and vegetables were non existent unless there was a fountain nearby and they perhaps had a fruit and vegetable garden and some livestock. Thank you for sharing

Grantmissy, I think for many, Guinea fowl was the vegtable.

The loneliness could be a challenge. Whiskey and rum were never in short supply. In actual fact, our famous Duke waterhole is named after a ranger with a particular love for the "spirit" of the bush. James Stevenson Hamilton was deeply fond of Duke, but also worried about the level of his drinking.

Many of the early rangers were from Steineker's strange brigade. He was a diminutive German officer who fought for the British in the boer war. Harry Wolhuter was also a member of this group. When I have the time I will write from Harry Wolhuter's memoirs of his experience of Steineker.

I think that by the time the boer war was over, the Sabie area was very game depleted and the soldiers had saddle bags for livers.

:lol: MM. I think a mistake that a person makes when trying to "imagine" those days is that our mindset is overshowed by what we know and have today. In those days they were perhaps not overly concerned and whisky and rum and what the veld provided were sufficient and considered healthy enough

Grantmissy, Kruger was certainly not developed by a group of saints this was not a monastry of Benadictine monks intent on a mission.

It was built on the most harem skarum bunch imaginable. Many had been great at the art of poaching, many never knew what a sober moment meant. Many died of Yellow fever or Malaria. It just reminds me of what a miracle this was.

Conservation was such a foreign and sissy concept. For a long while the understanding was that this area would be set aside so that game could be rehabilitated for future hunting. In the early days, predators were killed indiscriminately.

Stevenson Hamilton was a shrew diplomat and reader of people. He managed to introduce conservation ideas slowly and to the right people. Not even he had a clear idea. What shaped him in many ways was his deep and growing love of the bush and the growing passion to save it for the future.

I try to visit his memorial regularly. You can almost feel him standing beside you, gazing over the vast plains.

What you say is very important MM as I think a person should not only think about that bygone area as “good for future nature conservation, pioneering, bravery and adventurous” but as you say it was also a very rough and tough time in the history of Kruger and the Kruger as we know it today developed gradually through a lot of vision and foresight and many different people had to play a part and many people after them is still playing a part today. Very interesting thanks