Sixty, and stuck in the sand. KTP summer 2018

[Lisbeth]

What type of tree are they in?

The leaves look like those of a kind of acacia

[GavinW]

Thanks everyone, once again for all your feedback


Peaceful Polentswa

For a change we woke up late and only got out of camp at 6.30. We decided that we would head north, as we had not had a chance to do so as yet.

Our first sighting for the morning was this herd of wildebeest grazing in the early morning light.







The road was terrible, but we endured it as far as Kannagauss before we decided to turn around.

With the road conditions being as they were we tended to concentrate on the road rather than on the riverbed, and as a result we saw pretty well nothing.

Returning south we decided to go down to Kousant before going back to camp

There we found a trio of spotties enjoying a day at the spa





As is always required,before returing to camp, we had to stop in at the Polentswa waterhole to see what was going on

Nothing much, besides this Lapped Faced Vulture, But that’s cool



As well as this secretary bird coming in to land



Back at camp we decided to rest. It was really hot so I put up our new hammock under the A frame, which was great.

While we were chilling (ok so that’s not the word, surviving is probably a better description), we had quite a few visitors to our campsite.

A striped mouse checking out as to what he could find around the A Frame



And then, after we put some water out in a bowl for the birds, this chap arrived

A Chestnut-vented Warbler



As well as this Violet eared waxbill



A red headed finch



And this sociable weaver



What really amazed me was the congregation of birds sheltering from the heat under our trailer.
I did mention that it was really hot. Like 42 degrees hot!!



After spending the afternoon trying to cool down in camp, we took a drive down to the waterhole for some sundowners
This juvenile bateleur joined us while we enjoyed the quietness of the Kgalagadi



And this sunset ended our first full day in Polentswa

[RogerFraser]

Hmm that SPA treatment looks really relaxing

The juvenile bateleur looks very seriously watching you

Lovely sunset

[Richprins]

Fascinating stuff, Gavin!

Does it at least cool down at night?

What is that dark bird, a starling?

Also love the spa!

[Lisbeth]

A lot of nice birds visiting

Red-headed finch and southern grey-headed sparrow

Nice pic of the hyena

Great portrait of the juv. bateleur

[Dindingwe]

So many birds sheltering in the shade

I think the dark bird is a Chestnut-vented Warbler, mainly grey with a streaked throat

[Alf]

Wow what a great sunset

[Lisbeth]

I think the dark bird is a Chestnut-vented Warbler, mainly grey with a streaked throat

Sure, that's what it is! I was getting yesterday trying to remember the name. Dindingwe

[GavinW]

An early morning trip down to Nossob

Whilst we were in Nossob, we had a problem with our solar panel and as a result our fridge freezer was not working optimally.

The previous evening we had had a mini divorce (as one does when camping in the Kgalagadi), and we decided, once we had calmed down ,that we needed to return to Nossob the next day to get some ice for the next few days so that we could use the freezer as a large cool box.

December in the Kgalagadi has it’s challenges, but gin and tonic without ice does NOT make the cut!!

(Never mind the meat in the freezer)

We woke early to a hot and humid morning. We had had a few drops of rain overnight, but nothing more than to dirty the windscreen of the bakkie

We were met with this sunrise as we crossed the river bed.



The waterhole was quiet, so we headed down south as was our plan

When you get to the waterhole at Kousant, you need to drive into a road leading to the waterhole, and we always wonder what, if anything will be drinking as you only see water hole at the last minute

This morning we hit the jackpot!!

A Brownie






He seemed to be stuck in the mud, and was looking really stressed about it as only a brownie can do





After a while, he moved off towards the dunes, and suddenly picked up this old eland kill, which was hidden from view by the long grass





He grabbed a piece and trotted off over the dunes to the west

We carried on

Just before Bedinkt we came upon another brownie on the road, heading south.



We followed it for a while, trying not to chase it away, but after a while it moved into riverbed and we lost it.

We hoped it would go to Bedinkt to drink, but after travelling south for a while we realised that Bedinkt was a bit too far away.

Kwang is one of my favourite waterholes in the park, but this year it appeared as if it was dry, and as a result the usual big herds of antelope were absent.

We had in any event, decided to stop there for some coffee and just enjoy the tranquillity of the place.

As we drove into the loop at the waterhole, we were met by this dignified old lady



She was in a sorry state, but you could still see the pride in her eyes. No doubt she had seen a lot in her lifetime, but it is never nice to see an aging lioness



We decided to skip the coffee and leave her in peace

It was only 9.30 in the morning when we arrived in Nossob

[Mel]

for the lioness.