Category Archives: Mpumalanga Province

Our experiences in the reserves of Mpumalanga, South Africa

Autumn in Kruger: Berg-en-Dal, May 2014

Along came the 1st of May, and we had another long drive southwards from Orpen to Berg-en-Dal Rest Camp, in the far south-west corner of the Kruger National Park. The three nights we’d spend at Berg-en-Dal would conclude our autumn visit to the Park, and though the thought that our time in Kruger was coming to an end weighed heavy on our minds, we were looking forward to finding out what was still lying in wait for us.

Lions between Orpen and Satara

As expected, we had wonderful sightings along the way and we enjoyed a nice lunch with good friends at the Skukuza Golf Club.

Lions between Orpen and Satara

Buffalo near Satara

Giant Eagle Owl near Satara

Elephant near Tshokwane

Kudu near Tshokwane

Crocodiles at the Sabie River

Skukuza golf course

Roller

White rhinoceros

Spotted hyena near Afsaal

Mlambane Spruit

Berg-en-Dal means “Mountain-and-Valley”

We’ll dedicate a special post to Berg-en-Dal soon, but wanted to include some photos of the camp and our accommodation (Wielewaal Cottage, #26) as a little appetiser.

Wielewaal Cottage

Educational displays in the Rhino Hall

Apart from the wonderful array of wildlife in the Berg-en-Dal area, it is one of the most scenic parts of the Kruger Park.

Mlambane spruit crossing

Egret at the dam in front of Berg-en-Dal’s reception

Chameleon trapeze act

Mlambane spruit crossing

Steenbok

Cone-headed Mantid waiting for us to return to Wielewaal cottage

Berg-en-Dal sunset

Taking a morning drive to the Biyamiti weir turned out to be one of our most enjoyable drives of the trip.

a very determined hyena came rushing past

Elephants crossing the road near Afsaal

Giant Plated Lizard baking on a rock

Dainty klipspringer

Biyamiti River

Mozambique Tilapia in the Biyamiti

Biyamiti Weir is a beautiful photography spot

How Marilize managed to spot this boomslang at a distance of about 50 metres still has me amazed!

Can you spot the snake?

In camp, the Rhino Trail offers up close-and-personal encounters with a variety of wildlife; big and small, furry and feathery.

Waterbuck

Beautiful African Leopard (Phalanta-butterfly)

The marabous are rather suspicious of the approaching crocodile!

Time for one final afternoon drive:

Wire-tailed swallow

Kudu teenager

Pearl-spotted owlet

Heading for the hills

Nature’s beauty abounds

And as it often does, Kruger keeps the best for last. Heading back to camp on our final afternoon, with the sun almost at the horizon, we come across a pack of wild dogs in the road, one of them heavily pregnant. These are among Africa’s rarest animals, and it was indeed a very special treat to have such a close encounter with these top predators.

Wild Dog stretching for the hunt

Wild Dogs are very social

Wild dogs on the Matjulu Loop

It was the morning of the 4th of May and our autumn 2014 visit to the Kruger National Park has come to an end.

Thick-knee (Dikkop) in camp

On the way to Malelane Gate we had a splendid sighting of more hyenas in the very early morning.

Spotted hyena on the way to Malelane Gate

Eight nights of serene peace and quiet flew past in the wink of an eye. And of course we’re counting the days till we return!

Autumn in Kruger: Orpen, April 2014

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We had started our autumn trip through the Kruger National Park up in the far north of the reserve at Shingwedzi, and after three fantastic days there it was time to move camp again, heading south to tiny Orpen Rest Camp in the central regions of the Park.

We were in for a long drive down at leisurely game-viewing pace, stopping en-route at Mopani, Letaba and Satara to stretch our legs.

Reflections in Pioneer Dam, at Mopani

The wide, sandy Letaba riverbed

Elephant having a good stretch!

Old friend Masthulele was a bit shy

Waterbuck

Serrated Terrapins in the Olifants River

Natal spurfowl and chicks

Korhaan

Black-backed jackal are quite common near Orpen

Very near Orpen we received a nice reward for a long day of driving, encountering a beautiful cheetah just as dusk was descending over the lowveld.

Orpen cheetah sighting

Having spent most of the previous day in the car, on the 30th of April we decided to take only short morning and evening drives and spend the hotter hours of the day relaxing in the camp.

Orpen sunrise

Kudu bull

Kudu calf

Bobbejaankrans is a viewpoint close to Orpen, overlooking the Timbavati River

Green, or Red-billed, Wood-Hoopoe

Red-billed hornbill

Rock monitor in camp

Giraffes aplenty

Red-billed oxpeckers on a giraffe’s back

We’ll dedicate a special post to the Orpen Rest Camp in another blogpost, but for now just a quick introduction. We spent two nights at Orpen, in the very spacious Oasis Cottage (number 15) right in the corner of the camp, with a clear view of Orpen’s famous waterhole (which is floodlit at night, and you can follow the action live via a webcam!). Enjoying an early morning cup of coffee and a rusk or two on the veranda and watching first a pair of leopard and then a pair of lion walk past within half-an-hour was undeniably one of the highlights of our visit! The game viewing in the general vicinity of the camp is always excellent, though the road network near camp is rather limited.

Orpen Oasis Cottage

View from the veranda

Orpen’s waterhole is floodlit at night

Come May Day, and it was time to head on again, to Berg-en-Dal in the far south-west of the Park.

Misty Orpen sunrise

Work of art

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Misty sunrise in the Kruger National Park

Work of art

“Work of art” is this week’s photo challenge from WordPress

Mountain-and-Valley

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02 May 2014, Berg-en-Dal Rest Camp, Kruger National Park

We find ourselves in the far south-west corner of the Kruger National Park, at Berg-en-Dal Rest Camp, on the last leg of our current visit to the reserve. Translated from Afrikaans, “Mountain-and-Valley” is a very apt description for these beautiful surroundings.

Berg-en-Dal 02052014

What a way to end a day

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29 April 2014, Orpen Rest Camp, Kruger National Park

We had a long drive southwards today, moving from Shingwedzi to Orpen Rest Camp in the central Kruger National Park. A long drive, but richly rewarded, with sightings of hyena, jackal, lion, elephants (including big tusker Masthulele), various antelope, warthogs, zebras, giraffes, baboons and monkeys.

And to cap off our day, a splendid cheetah sighting at sundown…

Orpen 29Apr2014

Threshold

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At the threshold into a prehistoric world; the entrance to the Sudwala Dinosaur Park which we visited in March 2013.

Threshold

“Threshold” is the theme for this week’s WordPress Photo Challenge

Blyde River Canyon Nature Reserve, February 2014

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The Blyde River Canyon in the Lowveld of South Africa s the world’s third biggest canyon, and one of our country’s most diverse and scenically spectacular conservation areas.

We had the pleasure of spending four nights at Forever’s Swadini Resort during our recent visit to this beautiful area. The resort has all the amenities you’d associate with a family destination of Swadini’s calibre, yet there’s no feeling of being removed from the natural splendour that completely surrounds it.

Swadini

Swadini Accommodation

Kudus roam freely through the resort

Swadini

Swadini nightlife – Lunar Moth

Several easy-to-follow trails meander through the enchanting riverine forests around Swadini and it’s not difficult to forget all about time and the daily rat race while exploring these unique surroundings. Be sure to visit to the nearby Blyderivierspoort Dam, where you may join a cruise on the Dam’s deep waters and encounter hippos and crocodiles, or have a picnic at the viewpoint that overlooks the watery expanse.

Blyde River Canyon Nature Reserve

Firefinch in Blyde River Canyon Nature Reserve

Blyde River Canyon Nature Reserve

Kudu in the Blyde River Canyon Nature Reserve

Blyde River Canyon Nature Reserve

Blyderivierspoort Dam

We’ve dedicated several other posts to the Blyde River Canyon Nature Reserve – have a look here if you’d like to learn more about this fantastic destination. It’s one of our favourite South African wild places, and when you visit you’re sure to fall under its spell as well.

Street Life

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Not your everyday street life scene…

These photographs were taken near Crocodile Bridge Rest Camp, during our October 2012 visit to the Kruger National Park.

(You can click on the images for a bigger view)

Lion pride near Crocodile Bridge in the Kruger National Park

“Street Life” is the theme for this week’s WordPress Photo Challenge

Just another day in the Kruger…

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… as if there’s such a thing!

While touring the Lowveld in February, we concluded our trip with a stay at Swadini in the Blyde River Canyon Nature Reserve – more on the time we spent there in an upcoming edition of de Wets Wild. Having first explored the Pafuri area in the far north of the Kruger National Park and then spending time at Letaba in the Park’s central region, we wanted to make one more day visit to the Park, and Swadini being only 70km from the Orpen Gate made that an easy undertaking.

Our route took us from Orpen Gate down to Muzandzeni Picnic Site for breakfast, past Nhlanguleni Picnic Site to Tshokwane Picnic Site where we had lunch, and back to Orpen via Satara Rest Camp. Despite it being an overcast day with regular downpours, we still managed great sightings, as evidenced by this little gallery of images we took on the day (you can click on any of the pictures for a better view).

Black-backed jackal at the turnoff to Tamboti

Honeymooners on the road

A contented King

A satisfied Queen

Overcast and drizzly morning

Sandgrouse

Red-billed hornbill

Giraffes near Nhlanguleni

Giraffes near Nhlanguleni (Kruger)

Kudus near Tshokwane

Rare and endangered white-headed vulture

Plains zebra drinking from Nsemani Dam

Egyptian geese at Girivana

Impala at Girivana

Neatly arranged elephants

Big brother has something to share with the youngsters

Elephant at Bobbejaankrans

Impalas at the Rabelais Pan

Abandoned

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This little museum hut is all that remains of Kruger National Park’s erstwhile Rabelais Rest Camp, long since abandoned when the Parks’ central-western boundary was moved to its present position at the Orpen Rest Camp & Entrance Gate.