Up early for a walk in the bush. On the drive out, we encountered a large pride of lions, with about 20 lions from cubs on up in the group.
Alighting from the truck, the two rangers loaded rifles (just in case) and gave us instructions to remain quiet unless threatened by an animal. The group set off (single file) into the savannah. The two guides were at the front, while I started off in the rear (1). One's senses are heightened when walking in a game park with lions, leopards, elephants, &c. A pause at the riverside offered time for a snack and to watch the hippos in the river.
On the ride back, a member of the large Spanish group on the walk asked me more about Hlane Park in eSwatini, where rhinos are common and which I had mentioned to him last night (2).
The larger animals tend to be quiet in the heat of the day, so we watched a lot of birds, )including the fly catchers with their extravagant long tails) on our mid-day self drive. We got out of the car at the Mlondozi dam overlook (where alighting is permitted), watching the waterbok at the edge of the dam below.
At dusk, we set off for a braai (3) in the bush. We took the long way there, spying animals as we went. As it happens, the picnic was at the Mlondozi dam. An Australian family with two boys joined us; one of the boys even occasionally looked up from his game boy on the drive. The husband had done anti-poaching work through Africa over the previous decade, so he was very knowledgable. The atmosphere was fun eating in the unfenced picnic area, while hyenas howled far below.
(1) Each member of the group is in the rear in rotation.
(2) Encountering the same people on multiple activities is not uncommon on Safari. While Afrikaaners are frequent visitors to the park, foreign travelers seem more likely to take organized game drives.
(3) Barbeque in South African English.
At the Sabie River on the bush walk
The wildest thing we encountered at close range: a scrub hare
On the walk
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