Umtali1's Reis verhaal from Kruger 'Bush' Camps. KNP, May 2016

[umtali1]

Out of Bateleur - our final night.

Before sitting down to a yummy braai and peaceful evening, we had to attend to this detritus on the bedside table.

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Those who are familiar with Bateleur know that you are advised to keep all your food out of sight and behind the gauze doors in the vegetable rack provided.The authorities have recently recovered the thatch on all the chalets with wire mesh as well as sealing any holes underneath to keep out the squirrels . Having followed the advice to the letter, we discovered, on our return, some avocados and naarjties had fairly large bites taken out of them. Too big for a mouse. Squirrel How did it get in? Perhaps the maid left the door open while cleaning? Surely she would have noticed? Oh well! Putting the evidence aside to show the reception staff as we leave, we got on with the business of eating and drinking.

Time to show you some of the other visitors to our chalet. After all we are in the bush.....

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And so to bed, perchance to sleep, perchance to dream........

of water trickling down your face........

That's what happened to Inyanga 1! What's going on? In the end we decided it was a squirrel weeing on him...... I wasn't going to stay there a moment longer. I was off to the other room while he shifted to my side of the bed.

We told our tale of woe to the receptionist as we left. I have to say she handled it very well. We were more concerned about the next occupants not being quite so understanding. For us, it was more of an inconvenience and all part of the bush experience. She promised that it would be dealt with immediately.

Next visitors to no 6 - we hope you were squirrel free!

Before setting off for Shimuwini, we paid a fleeting visit to Rooibosrand dam. This was the other site I couldn't remember!

A few pictures

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There are several crocs in this photo

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We saw fork tailed drongos, LBRs, fish eagles, spoonbills, yellow billed storks, large egret, blacksmith lapwing, crocs, waterbuck, yellow billed hornbills in the vicinity as well as
a double banded sandgrouse - a lifer for us.

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Two 'go-away' birds, but no, we shall be back.

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Thank you Bateleur.

Shimuwini.....here we come..........

[umtali1]

Bateleur to Shimuwini.

Off we set for Shingwedzi to get that diesel that we didn't buy the previous day.
One last glimpse of ellies in the river before saying farewell to the north and heading south.

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Joining the only tarred road towards Mopani, we slowed down as we approached the hyena's den. Someone had left a very important clue as to whose 'poo' this was!

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The road was very quiet with glimpses of ellies, giraffe, zebras and impala at various locations along the way. However we did come across a stationary car with the driver watching something very closely. I'm glad we slowed down to enquire as it was

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I didn't know they came this far north, not far from the northern end of the S144. Much as we would have like to we couldn't stay for long especially as she was sleeping and there didn't appear to be any others about.

We never miss dropping by Tihongoyeni waterhole on the Tropic of Capricorn loop, as it is always so productive. With such dry conditions, we didn't expect to see much. Again, we were rewarded with ellie, wildebeeste and zebra as well as tsessebee

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An LBJ - help please! Is it a sparrow-lark

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We think this is a lanner falcon. If so, it's another lifer!

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We were very excited to see a Temminck's courser - another lifer

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A kittliz's plover

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Despite every where else being so arid, we were pleasantly surprised to find the vegetation close to the waterhole more lush.

Moving on to Mopani for lunch we passed lots of herds of grazers at the Nshawu Marsh area where the vegetation was much greener.

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After enjoying a very pleasant lunch in the restaurant at Mopani, we departed for Shimuwini, situated on the northern side of the Letaba river in fairly dense mopane and bushwillow.

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[Karin Mitton]

Lovely episode with beautiful birds! Always so cool to see lifers!

An LBJ - help please! Is it a sparrow-lark

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I would guess either a female or immature Chestnut-backed sparrowlark? Maybe someone else will confirm.

[inyanga 1]

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Another great episode with super sightings........love all the birdies,Ellies ,Hyena plus his poo and can't believe all the green grass ......the South looks like KTP

Thank you for sharing

Thanks, Jan. We were amazed at how green the north was.

Unless the rainfall patterns changes much in the next ten months,

guess where WE might have to be focussing on to see more wildlife,
than vultures and hyenas, in early spring 2017 ???

Older guidebooks were out of date this year and....

As Paul Simon and Art Garfunkel have sung (oh how so dated are we)...
"the times they are a' changing"

[umtali1]

Out of Shimuwini - pt.1

Shimuwini is one of our favourite camps with its green lawns cascading down to the Letaba river and the Kruger inhabitants on the other bank.
We noticed that the latest floods had completely washed away the reeded sandbanks close to the fence. The powers of nature.

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For me it is the closest I shall ever get to Mahlengeni, immortalised by Kobie Kruger in her books about life in the Kruger; that sense of remoteness and tranquility in a small 'eden' created out of the African bush must be harking back to my childhood. A little bit of heaven on earth!

Rather than stay in camp (it was very tempting), we decided to head out via the river road onto the H14 to explore the dirt roads between the H14 and H9 despite our guide book describing the area as featureless mopane veld, with the exception of the extreme west near the Ngwenyeni waterhole. Who knows what we might miss? Lunch would be at Sable Dam.

Experience had told us that the river loop road was more productive. Pulling up at one of the look-outs we saw
a black stork (which we only noticed on closer examination of the pictures!! )

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with openbills and spoonbills for company

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A pair of cape giraffes were on their way down to the river

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Otherwise, there was indeed very little to see except for a pair of double banded sandgrouse (funny how you go for years without ever seeing them and then they appear like the proverbial bus )

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a hamerkop

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and this amorous kudu bull

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Sable Dam was not not as full as we had seen in previous visits, but at least there was some water.

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Nevertheless, who can tire of watching fish eagles interacting with each other

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and other comings and goings when eating your lunch? Not us!

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Wild life isn't just restricted to the exterior of hides!

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Time to start heading back towards camp.......

tbc

[umtali1]

Out of Shimuwini - pt.2

The return journey seemed to be much more varied despite driving through the same ecosystem.
Aren't ants so clever building these astonishing edifices - all part of the Kruger landscape. They could teach us a thing or two about construction. The whole area is called 'Anthill City' in our household!

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A red crested korhaan hung around long enough for the cameras. Inyanga 1 keeps asking why it has this name. We have yet to see it display! Then all would be revealed!

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A Kruger visit isn't complete without seeing steenbok and klipspringers

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Look at me as I reach out for a tasty morsel

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Aren't I just handsome?

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An interesting fact about these small antelope is that pairs mate for life. Also, both species are not dependant on a water supply as they get enough liquid from the plants. What beautiful little antelope occupying totally different terrains!

The day's adventure wouldn't have been complete without an ellie

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Despite the drought conditions the trees here were in full leaf.

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A view of one of the tributaries of the Letaba as it runs alongside the main road with a couple of giraffe in the distance

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while back on the dirt road another tributary was dry. Despite that, the hamerkops were congregating,

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some with the next generation in mind!

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One last glance at a beautiful scene with a buffalo included for good measure

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before returning to the tranquility that is Shimuwini.........

tbc

[umtali1]

Around Shimuwini

The river is full of bird life including egyptian geese, spoonbills, openbill storks, hamerkop while we spotted african green pigeons, babblers, go-away birds and crested barbet in the wonderful trees. BIG SIGH!

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Preparation for packing the car came to a halt when we heard a very tuneful fluting song . What bird has such a melodious song? To our astonishment it was 2 pairs of grey hornbills! What a super call accompanied with the gentle bowing! Only one hung around long enough for the picture gallery

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Of course, there were hippos and crocs.

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We thought that a few pictures of the layout of the camp might be appreciated especially as it is so different from the other bush camps on our itinerary. The chalets are well spaced, all with a view of the river and plenty of open space for wandering around. Notice that some have semi-enclosed verandahs, presumably to protect you from wild weather.

Chalet no 13 - our home for two nights.(One we had requested. Well done Shimuwini! )

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The bird hide - outside and in.

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The interior of no 13

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with a river view. Perfect!

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Is there a better way to end your day gazing out at this view while enjoying a braai

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in the company of a moth. Only one.......lots of evenings

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With the moon rising over the Letaba life in the wilds of Africa is just magical

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Who would want to leave this early morning scene but......

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Talamati was calling.......

Remembering to collect our frozen goods from the freezer hut by the gate, we bade farewell to Shimuwini with the intention of returning and knowing we would be exchanging one type of 'eden' for another.

tbc.......

[umtali1]

Shimuwini to Talamati - pt 1

Are you sitting comfortably in your little pods!

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Time to get the convoy on the move again.

I shall not bore you with details of the ecosystems as I described them during our journey north. Leaving the mopane/ bushwillow woodlands behind, we headed towards Letaba via the H14 and the H1-6 where the bush can be described as mopane shrubveld.

Unlike previous visits, we were amazed at the number of hyenas we encountered during the entire trip. This guy was just resting in the shade. Perhaps it had been a hard day's night!!!! The eyelids look very heavy!

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OK guys! Just checking you out before we carry on grazing on leaves (rabbit food to isinkwe!)

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On approaching the Oliphants river we noticed that the grass was much greener than elsewhere

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but still plenty of thickets to conceal an elephant

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A close-up of those eyelashes. Ladies- eat your hearts out!

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A river view with a pod of hippos indulging in a little sunbathing

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and close up

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Butterflies were enacting a dance of the flower fairies

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while a fish eagle took to the skies

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Time for a short, but very busy, break on the Oliphants bridge - within the yellow lines of course!- in the next episode.

tbc

[umtali1]

Shimuwini to Talamati - pt 2.

Any opportunity to escape from the car and feel the warmth of the South African sun on your back is always welcome. With that in mind we enjoyed observing all the bird activity around the bridge as well as the views of the river.

On first glance there never seems to be much going on, but then you let your eyes become accustomed to the light and all manner of creatures start appearing, like this pied kingfisher for instance.
I love the view of his streamlined head.

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The side on version

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This young croc was just below us.

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A young pied wagtail youngster was flapping its wings to be fed. 'Feed me!' Lazy thing

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A spoonbill flypast

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and successful landing

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They really are quite handsome birds, despite the bill shape. We were amazed at the large numbers of spoonbills on all the water courses this year.

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They were joined by a group of little egrets. I know that by their yellow feet!

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We marvelled at the effect the flowing water had on the weed. So artistic.

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With a last view of the river it was time to move on for lunch at the Timbavati picnic site.

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tbc

[umtali1]

With a last view of the river it was time to move on for lunch at the Timbavati picnic site.

Sorry folks if I misled you over this river.......This was the Olifants river view. We were leaving this behind us to move on to the Timbavati picnic site.

Moving on..........

Shimuwini to Talamati - pt 3.

It was most noticeable how the vegetation was turning much drier as we headed south.



We had a choice of roads to take to Timbavati. Our choice was excellent as we discovered a waterhole where there were large herds of zebra , impala and giraffes present. It was new to us.

Sharing this oasis were two large elephant who must have a wonderful splash as they were two shades of grey.

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After much deliberation ( as ellies do) they eventually crossed in front of us. A little close for comfort! So reverse gear was applied quite rapidly even though the driver behind was not giving me much space! After several hand gesticulations, we were all at a safe distance. Whew!

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This picture was taken on Inyanga 1's big lens!

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Watching all this from the opposite direction were two ladies, who were obviously camping (by the amount of gear on their car), which had a flat tyre. We hope they didn't have to wait too long for assistance to arrive.

The temperatures were rising under a azure blue sky as we departed for our picnic lunch.
Gosh! How arid the mopane veld is compared to the lush grasslands of the north. Despite the sparsity of vegetation the hardened locals were hanging around, maybe on their way to established water supplies.

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We know these little things can survive in these desert-like conditions.

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All was very quiet and restful at Timbavati, both among homo sapiens and the residents

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After satisfying our three basic requirements - peace, food and drink - it was time to make a move towards Talamati. The remainder of our route, which I am not specifying, was very quiet. I am sure this must have been due to the dry conditions. However, there were a couple of notable sightings

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After being shaken, rattled and rolled by some very badly corrugated roads (grrr) the very welcome sight ( which I am sure a lot of you will recognise) that tells us we are approaching our destination.

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Then, our other 'eden'

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tbc

[umtali1]

Talamati - another bit of heaven on earth

We have one of our daughters and her SO to thank for introducing us to this little treasure eight years ago.
Three years later we brought the whole family here. This was the first visit to South Africa for our other s-i-l. At the end of that visit during which we stayed at main and bush camps, he was asked 'Which was his favourite camp?' Without hesitation he replied 'Talamati'.
That speaks volumes.

Set in moderately dense bush savanna compromising mostly of bushwillow, Talamati camp lies alongside the Nwaswitsonsto river. Although the river is mostly dry it is lined with jackalberry and other trees, giving wonderful shade to the camp. There is a raised hide close to the entrance with a floodlit waterhole which is very popular with the wild life.

We were allocated chalet no2, as requested ( thank you Talamati ) called

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It is close to the entrance and the hide and the baboons' sleeping quarters as those who know the camp will understand.( I will post pics of the accommodation before leaving the camp)

Before settling down for the night, the obligatory visit to the hide allowed Inyanga 1 to play around with his camera using torchlight (provided by yours truly!!)
He achieved some fab shots and effects. BIG SIGH!

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At dusk we heard the local baboons settling down for the night in a jackalberry tree on the perimeter behind chalet no.1. They must have all gone to their allotted 'beds' without any fuss as peace descended on the camp very quickly.

I was woken in the dead of night by the most almighty shrill scr-eeeee-am,,which ended abruptly, ringing through the veld, followed by all hell breaking loose within the troop.They continued their barking and shouting for ten minutes or more before settling down.

Could it have been the local leopard springing on a youngster in its sleep? It sounded very much like it..........Who knows.......

The next morning the air was very still and the sky crystal clear

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Armed with mugs of coffee it was time to take an early visit to the hide.
Early visitors were an impala and some zebras.

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After being on the road constantly for over a week, we decided that the two days here (with the exception of a sunset drive) would be spent in the camp.

There was a constant procession of thirsty creatures to-ing and fro-ing at the waterhole.
Pictures speak a thousand words, so (on Inyanga 1's advice!) I shall shut up.

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tbc.

[umtali1]

Around Talamati - first morning

The pods will remain in camp to give you prime viewing at the waterhole

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Sit back with your favourite tipple and enjoy the show (no commentary needed)

Who would want to leave this view?



The show continues......

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tbc.......

[inyanga 1]

Just perfect. Can you park the pod I'm in close to the waterhole for the night so I can listen to the night sounds???

you have your own pod now

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suitably positioned...
just watch, listen and enjoy...

[umtali1]

Around Talamati - first morning (cont)

Time for a little romance......Just checking that the lady's interested.......

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Hmmmm.......

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I just have to chuckle at the ellie stretching for his drink.....
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with that bum shot it was time to go for lunch!

tbc

[umtali1]

Around Talamati - first day after lunch

Spot the butterfly?

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The bushbuck were two metres away!

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As the shadows lengthen at the waterhole,

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it was time to embark on our sunset drive.

(The butterfly was very close to the step )

tbc