Africa Wild

It was such an incredible sighting and we were over the moon and so must have been all the other cars which stood now in masses at that waterhole and still admired the drinking giraffes,



and the lone wildebeests who decided that the giraffes drank meanwhile enough



and now to our luck finally also the wild dogs showed up more and more as earlier they mostly stayed hidden under bushes or between the high grass.





Obviously we did something right that day as we were rewarded with such a fantastic time at that waterhole which we visited during our stays already so many times but this will be a once in a lifetime sighting that will be unforgettable



We now stood another 1 ½ hour here and did not notice that we were extreme hungry so with a last look onto the wild dogs and finally the whole spectacle we waved out good byes



and drove slowly back to camp via the tar road and in one of the loops we noticed a yellow billed stork congress in the river,



a hungry little elephant



and more along on our drive back to camp where we today went straight to the restaurant for a late lunch.



Due to the lack of sleep the previous night and the heat we today had a nice midday break inside our bungalow but not that long as Timon decided to do a short walk close to the fence where he found this little chap which I think is an African dusky flycatcher.



Although we had after that thrilling day today not much energy to pull ourselves together for a late afternoon drive but as tomorrow we will already be on our way to Skukuza we decided to pay at least a visit to Sunset dam and to the Lower Sabie causeway and luckily we did that visit as now one or two African spoonbills could be seen extreme close to where we stood and for sure we again took quite a lot of shots from that bird.



Finally same even stood on a small rock in the water and posed so picturesque for us in the evening light

and whilst changing our position at the dam we were now also lucky in capturing one of the black winged stilts a bit closer, there was a juvenile one



and an adult in reachable distance for the camera,



we could not take away our eyes from the african spoonbill on the rock and one of the many white faced ducks who decided to photobomb that shot,



also discovered a yellow billed stork busy on foraging



and had a good laugh seeing the black winged stilt played duck which looked so funny.



After we got our shots we paid the Lower Sabie causeway a vist but today there was not much to be seen there besides this water bird



and a lone buffalo in his private spa so we did not stay that long and returned back to camp



where we enjoyed the aircondition in our bungalow for the rest of the evening and today as well as for the rest of our stay in South Africa during that trip I always could fell asleep immediately and even slept very well.

Wednesday, 14. February 2024 – Lower Sabie - Skukuza

Explored roads: H4-1 – S128 – S30 – H12 – S83 – H1-2 – H1-1 – S66 – H1-1 - S65 – S1 – H4-1 – H12 – H1-2 – H4-1

After the obligatory brewing hot coffee on our verandah we packed everything together and even skipped a visit to Sunset dam and straight crossed the Sabie at the causeway without anything interesting to be seen and turned into the S128 where right at the beginning we heard the similar noise of a red crested korhaan who even showed up and stayed long enough visible for a couple of shots



before same decided to hide in the thicker bush.



Luckily also today we could enjoy such a beautiful Kruger sunrise,






followed by a beautiful lilac breasted roller



before we noticed something came running into our direction.



to be continued...............................

You dropped Sunset Dam!

A black-winged stilt on stilts They already have long legs and double looks incredible

The Fly-catcher is a Spotted one

I think that the waterbird is a common sandpiper.



When are you leaving for SA.....if? Hopefully all the roads will be open by then....if I wish I could be there *sigh*!

Catching up, Pumbaa!

What an orgasmic procession at the waterhole! I am so


All you needed was a beer!

I don't think we've ever seen giraffe there...

Love the spoonbill, and the stilt reflection makes the legs look a metre long!

Glad you slept well, makes all the difference!

Lisbeth wrote: ↑Sun Jan 12, 2025 3:27 pm You dropped Sunset Dam!

A black-winged stilt on stilts They already have long legs and double looks incredible

The Fly-catcher is a Spotted one

I think that the waterbird is a common sandpiper.



When are you leaving for SA.....if? Hopefully all the roads will be open by then....if I wish I could be there *sigh*!

Most likely we are scheduled to depart in 19 days Hopefully Timon's back will be okay until then

Richprins wrote: ↑Sun Jan 12, 2025 5:59 pm Catching up, Pumbaa!

What an orgasmic procession at the waterhole! I am so


All you needed was a beer!

I don't think we've ever seen giraffe there...

Love the spoonbill, and the stilt reflection makes the legs look a metre long!

Glad you slept well, makes all the difference!

Totally right about the stilt legs refelction - Only noticed it now

We allowed the hyena to come closer to where we stood but same neither looked right nor left



but simply carried on walking in its own trot.



It was once again such brilliant morning light and we could not resist in taking pictures from a couple of zebras we met along that road



and they just posed perfectly.



Also this lone elephant bull was willing to pose



luckily for us he stayed in the bush and only turned a bit around



so we got shots from nearly each angle of the elephant as he was extremely relaxed.



Birdingwise a lot of magpie shrikes



as well as red backed shrikes could be seen along that road as well.



The S128 is a nice road to drive but in summer the grass is always extreme high and despite the dryer summer this year the grass was nevertheless high but luckily giraffes are not that small so same are still good visible here



love that shot of the giraffe with the typical vegetation along that road and on top that road is extreme straight along a couple of sections



and where one giraffe is they are normally more not far away.

More birds showed up as well such as a forktailed drongo,



unfortunately the white winged widowbird was too far away but the weavers were in reachable distance



and so were the queleas.



It was extreme less traffic carwise so we had the road nearly all to ourselves and so we could stay a bit longer at the turn off into the S30 to enjoy the view there



at least a bit water was still left here at the causeway



so we simply stood there and drank the rest of our coffee



and whilst standing there and looking around we even deteced a brown hooded kingfisher who was sitting a bit hidden in a dry bush.



We also noted a Wahlberg eagle a couple of meters away



and whilst carrying on we even found another one now extreme close.



We just turned into the S30 which is not always open during summer so we were again a bit thankful for the not so wet summer as we still remembered our last year’s stay were all gravel roads in the South were closed and now a couple of elephant herds appeared out of which this mom and her youngster were the cutest



followed by the rest of the herd



and members of another herd were hiding under bushes and trees.



to be continued..........................

So peaceful, Pumbaa!

The light really is lovely, and I also love the straight road pics!

It makes a big difference if one is alone on a road for hours!

And what a restful water spot!

Richprins wrote: ↑Sun Jan 19, 2025 5:49 pm So peaceful, Pumbaa!

The light really is lovely, and I also love the straight road pics!

It makes a big difference if one is alone on a road for hours!

And what a restful water spot!

Simply love those restful waterspots in Kruger - Sigh