Kruger, One Last Look

It is like Kruger didnt want me to go. My last morning in the park was one incredible sighting after another. I guess all the animals had the short period between dawn and sunrise to move around because of the intense heat of the day lately. This morning I had a lot on my mind, will the car rental give me a break on the extra kilometers, will my mom's plane ticket work out, where can I clean up the car, will I make it in time to see my mom at the airport before her flight...
Well things have a way of working out. Waking up at 430am I figured I had time to do everything. I headed out under the cover of darkness, which was perfect for finding hyenas moving around the road just outside of camp. I paused and thought about stopping when a little baby hyenas popped out of the den. I was ecstatic. I had been wanting to see baby predators this whole 100 day trip...and here they were on the very last day. I took some pictures and another baby emerged...and then another. Three baby hyenas. Now hyenas aren't the most beautiful of Africa's creatures but when it comes to babies, puppies, they are pretty damn cute. It was still pretty dark outside so pictures were tough but I tried my best.
I was pretty happy when I saw a car stopped in front of me. To my amazement I rolled up on 2 lionesses with 5 young cubs! Lions babies. The day was amazing already and it was only 5 am. A big 20 seater safari vehicle drove up and gave me the perfect picture opportunity with lion in front of safari-goers. With the sun just rising it cast perfect light on the lions and their cubs. I hung with them for a while and they lazily moved off the road into the tall green African grassland. I was set and satisfied then something even more amazing...
2 Cheetahs lying right next to the road. Basking in the sunrise with only one other car there. The other drive and I looked at each other and smiled, realizing how special a morning this was. I had not even hoped for a cheetah sighting this close. I was 20 feet from them as they yawned, rolled, and stared off at the sunrise. Magical is the only way to describe it. Cheetah are rare predators to encounter. Kruger Park, being one of the premier places to see them, only boast about 180, compared to 2000 lions within its massive borders. This was the way to finish up my hundred day African safari. Now I can fly back to place where December means winter and snow, coats and hot fires...that is until I move someplace tropical. It might be sooner than you think. What can I say, the adventure continues.
To all a very merry christmas.
-Dai Mar










g

Comments

Post a Comment

Leaving a comment is a great way to provide feedback, ask further questions, and inspire more answers...so go for it.

Popular posts from this blog

Secret Maui Waterfall

Image
  No matter how quick a trip to Maui might be there will be hidden gems found and great times had. After a little snafu with my flight I made it standby to Maui, picked up my rental car, and rushed off to meet my friends on the road to Hana. We met at Frog Pond, one of our favorite swimming holes near the beginning of the road to Hana. After some rock hopping and cliff jumping here we decided to check out the hidden waterfalls at mile 11. I'm not sure what the name of these falls are but there are two of them, each with their own swimming holes. It is just off the highway but separated by lush jungle. A rope swing beckons the adventurous and rocks warmed by the sun give you more than enough reason to while away the afternoon.
Read more

Hidden Ulupalakua Lava Tube, Maui

Image
  High above the crowded beaches of South Maui lies a hidden secret adventure that only those in the know will ever experience. Hidden only a thousand yards or so off a well traveled road around 4,000ft in elevation sits a massive cave which angles slowly down the side of Haleakala volcano. The amazing formations inside and the cave itself were formed by lava, creating an underground tube to transport the lava farther down the slope of the volcano. The same thing can be seen actively happening on the Big Island currently. Luckily this lava tube is all dried up making it much safer to explore. However the loose rocks and obvious cave ins leave some cause for concern.   Part of this adventure is just finding the entrance. This included a dirt road, a jeep trail, jumping an old stone wall, then bushwhacking through dense brush for about tweny-five minutes before finding the lava tube entrance. It was surrounded by ferns, just like the famous Thurston Lava Tube in Volcanoes National
Read more

Search for Chameleons, Maui

Image
  You never know what might be hiding in your backyard. Here on Maui there have always been tales of people finding Jackson's chameleons in their bushes. The trick is to travel a few thousand feet up Haleakala volcano to Makawao, Pukalani and Kula towns where the temperature is a little cooler and it is a bit wetter, perfect conditions for chameleons.   There are no native reptiles on Hawaii. These beautiful chameleons were released or escaped from the pet trade. Luckily they have not become invasive like many other introduced species, however they have increased in population and seem to be doing quite well in the higher elevation areas. Heidi and I went on a search the other day at our friend's house in Kula and were shocked to find a dozen different chameleons in her side yard hedge. They were mostly at eye level, and were curled up asleep for the night. We found them easily enough with flashlights since they seem to sleep near the outer edge of the hedge at night.   W
Read more