Sunday, May 15, 2016

Kruger: Timbavati Nature Preserve 2

We are very excited about our last game drives in Timbavati. 





We continued to see more wildlife sightings including animals we had seen before and those we hadn't.

The now-familiar Kudu. 




Another Steenbok. 

Black-backed jackal. 


Hippo leaving the water for the evening.


We saw more Rhino.




The sound of our Land Rover roused these two young males who were sleeping together in a depression.







One morning, Herman and Gideon noticed this drag mark across the road. They deduced that a leopard had killed an impala nearby and then dragged it off and up into a tree. Of course they found it.




We watched as the leopard deftly climbed into this tree.






They also found the impala kill in a nearby tree - it is the lump on the trunk.


Many impala still roam the bush of course.



We enjoyed the morning coffee breaks.



We saw yet another type of antelope, the wildebeest!




Giraffes from near and far.




And of course, more elephants.



One morning, we saw a large herd of elephants drinking at this watering hole.






They had learned to drink from this water pipe like a straw.


In addition to destroying plumbing, elephants also destroy the trees as they walk and graze. 






More zebra!









We continued to see incredible birds.

Lilac-breasted Roller.


Yellow-billed Hornbill.


Marabou Stork.



An endangered Saddle-billed Stork (next to a Grey Heron).







Cape Starling.

Fish eagle.


Notice anything else in this picture?


A sleeping rhino!


We saw many more Cape Buffalo.








This one hosts many Red-billed Oxpeckers.


Water buffalo skull.


Our last afternoon rest stop. Gideon and Herman picked out a great place overlooking the bush for the sunset. The hills in the background are the northern end of the Drakensberg, a mountain range that runs all the way to Cape Town.




The last game morning drive was cold and rainy, so we used the provided ponchos.

We learned a lot of things on our game drives, including this plant that can be used for toilet paper if necessary. Here's Gideon explaining, and letting us know that there's another plant that looks remarkably similar and is a skin irritant.



We loved safari!


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