November Photos

Here are some of the pictures from November...

November Photos



ENJOY

Chaos around little bush

The last month marked the start of the first serious summer rains. These rains paired together with the large areas that were burnt led to amazing lush green grass, which in turn led to the attraction of very large herds of buffalo. And where the meat goes so do the cats. 

Our lions have been going through some very interesting changes since the death of our pride male about 5 months ago. We have since had a pair of new males move in and take over the pride. Just as a refresher, our pride consisted of 4 adult females, 5 sub adult males and 4 sub adult females. The new pride males however have no tolerance for the 5 young males as they pose a risk as they get older and have chased them off. only 1 of the young females has stayed with the adults and the other 3 have joined with the younger males forcing the pride into 2 separate entities. They do come across each other on a regular basis and the relations all depend on the presence of the new males. If they are there all you see are young lions being chased all over and if not you can see the rekindling of old maternal bonds as the youngsters are welcomed back. The new males have been doing a great job so far and seem to have successfully impregnated at least 3 of the females, one of which is off currently giving birth. 

With the arrival of the large buffalo herds there was a definite change in behaviour in the lions and the need to cash in on the major abundance gave way to an uneasy truce between the 2 prides. The dominant males were less prone to chasing off the young males on sight but instead waited for them to assist in bringing down a nice size meal that he could then steal from the rest. 

In the space of 7 days the lions managed to pull down at least 7 buffalo that we knew of and all this happened within one kilometre from Little Bush Camp...this is an unbelievable number but when compared with the numbers that passed through the property it doesn't even hit 1%. In my estimate there were times over the 3 weeks that the buffalo were passing on and off Sabi Sabi that we could have had near on 2000 buffalo on the property. This meant that there were literally more buffalo than impala and guests were getting a little bored by the sight of these beautiful creatures. Also due to the fact that a lot of the buffalo were hanging around our camp we often encountered these guys on foot while on bush walks as well as bumping into the lions on 3 separate occasions. One of which was a mating pair which were not to happy with our presence and hit some very low growls as we approached. Once we had got to safety we headed back to the lodge where we got the vehicle and went to enjoy the sighting from the safety of the vehicle.

The lions were not the only cats entertaining us around the lodge. The leopards were in full cry around the lodge with the little bush female paying regular visits to the lodge both day and night. Our young male that was staying around bush lodge has moved into our area. He managed to kill a bushbuck about 40 metres from my house in the river bed so for the next 3 days the guests saw more of my place than I did! He then also managed to kill a bushbuck in the camp and thought his food would be safest if he stashed it in the outside shower of Suite 3. Our dominant male, Sandriver, has been looking a little worse for wear and looks to be losing a bit of condition. This has meant he hasn't been marking territory as frequently and this has invited a huge new male from the east onto the property and he seems to be making a home of our area. He was responsible for the death of one of the cubs but this just means that the mother has pushed further west into the middle of the property. He has been trying to mate with another one of the females which has come into oestrus and we witnessed her trying to attract him by calling incessantly for 2 hours marking territory every 10 metres leaving a trail of bread crumbs for him to follow.

All very complicated but madly interesting to see the dynamics of these amazing creatures. Seeing their interactions, territorial changes and movements based on various stimuli and situations. The longer I stay in the bush the more I learn, the more I learn the more I understand and the understanding just leaves me gob smacked by the intelligence that underlies the entire system. And as I sit here writing this from the comfort of my home in Johannesburg on my holiday, I get home sick to be back in the bush and back to the complex simplicity that prevails! 

But for now it is time to recharge the batteries to prepare for the Christmas and New Years rush through the lodge...

Merry Christmas to you all and a happy New Year...

Catch up

WOW...It has been a really long time since I last posted on my blog and finally today is the day that we catch up on the last month... SO HERE WE GO...

The two weeks after Inkombe Camp were again filled with outrageous sightings. With the bush being so dry the animals are having to move around a lot more to find adequate grazing and water. With the herbivores moving around this much there is sure to be a great number of predators following them.

We have had an increased number of cheetah sightings from the male who frequents our property as well as seeing 3 young male cheetahs that have not been seen at Sabi Sabi before. This was a thrill for all the rangers and on the morning that they arrived some of the rangers witnessed these boys try to tackle a bushbuck in a river bed and come off second best. From all accounts the bushbuck male didn't run away from but instead ploughed over the males and managed to chase them off.

That afternoon was my first drive after the camp and my plan was to see if I could find the cheetah. I eventually got a turn to get in and see the three guys as they were setting up for a hunt. The target was a herd of impala and the set up took about an hour. As we were about to pull out due to failing light we saw the one guy set off at full speed toward the impala...hitting 110 km/h he forced the herd straight towards his brothers and in the blink of an eye they had pulled one down. We had to get a red filter for the spotlight so we could see all the action without disturbing the animals. They had near finished the impala within about 15 minutes and was definitely one of the highlights to the cycle.

We also had the privilege of watching our dominant male mating with one of the females for about an hour.  These guys were mating as frequently as every 3 minutes for 3 days. This is always a heated affair as the female ends the mating session snarling and attempting to slap the male. This is all because the male has barbs on his penis which face backwards and as he pulls out he hurts the female and this is meant to stimulate ovulation. Unlike humans, leopards only ovulate when there is a chance of fertilisation so as to maximise efficiency.

I was then fortunate enough to have some family come visit and we saw some amazing things. The first drive we went out we saw wild dogs hunting, we saw a leopard and her cubs on a kill other leopards and lions. But the highlight of the whole time was the last drive when the dogs made a duiker kill and we watched as it was being devoured by these ravenous predators. This was also my last drive of my cycle so I left on holiday on a high.

My first guests back were a big Nikon Gear photographic group and we had 6 days of photography to look forward to. From the moment that the group arrived the cameras were clicking. It was a ridiculously hot day with the temperature soaring to 40 degrees Celsius and our plan was to go see if we could catch a glimpse of the cheetah that had been close to the lodge. We hadn't driven 400 metres from the lodge and there was a rhino with her calf on the same open area where the cheetah was meant to be. The cheetah in fact was a stones throw away from the rhinos sleeping under a tree. It sounded like full on war behind me as the cameras were firing in all directions trying to capture all the animals. We were then joined by a big bull elephant, kudu and impala and the latter of the three caught the eye of the cheetah. He started to stalk but came up against a wall of rhino and after a brief stand off he slipped past and made a run for the impala. Hitting full speed the cheetah was flying at 110 km/h and the cameras were all clicking at 9 frames per second. The other ranger, Rika, managed to catch the best shot of the lot though and I have popped it below.

Unfortunately the cheetah didn't get his target but just the sprint was enough to put a huge smile on everyone's faces. 

The next morning we set out to find a leopard...and boy did we find our leopard. We found our female with her 2 cubs at an impala kill near a dam that was surrounded by giraffe, zebra, impala and warthog all drinking. The cubs were stalking the impala, mom was lying under the tree containing her kill and to top it off there was a hyena sleeping 30 metres from the leopards. 3 hours and 400 photos later we left the waterhole to head back for breakfast.

Unfortunately this would be the last time I would see the cubs together. A male leopard from the next property caught, killed and ate one of the cubs and since then we have not seen the other one. 

The rest of their stay was spectacular with many more big game sightings, stunning sunsets and tons of little things to photograph. 

All in all it has been a successful start to the cycle and I have posted a bunch of the photos from the 6 days with the photography group for your enjoyment.

Inkombe Camp

Historically Inkombe Camp was done as a selection programme for new guides whereby the candidates would undergo an intense week long training programme with minimal sleep, maximum walking and a menu fit for an army boot camp... This was all changed though as I arrived and it was decided that the camp would be for those that made it through their probation period and are worthy of their position within the company.

This meant that after 6 months at Sabi Sabi we would now spend 5 days out in the bush, away from guests with our Head Ranger Will and our trainer Malcolm Douglas. Malcolm is a treasure trove of information and is a walking encyclopedia of the bush and it is truly a privilege to spend time with him. Will is also incredibly knowledgeable and his enthusiasm and love for the bush is contagious.

Day 1

Our first task was to collect all the food and water we would need for the our camp. Thank goodness the menu was significantly spruced up from old Inkombe Camps, we went from bully beef to delicious chops and wors and all our breakfasts were eggs and bacon. We packed all our stuff into the vehicle and headed off to jabula camp which would be our home base for the next week. We did a quick unpack and set up of the camp and headed out on what was to be the first of many walks to come.

This walk was an information packed walk as Malcolm started to chat about the different trees and rock we were encountering. The first tree we learnt about was the sneeze wood...and after inhaling some shavings of the wood I very quickly realised why it was named the sneeze wood...African culture believes that sneezing assisted in releasing any evil spirits that may be inside you and I released a good 3 or four after one sniff...

The walk was not long but the broad range of topics that were discussed was awesome. After about 2 hours we returned to camp and started the fire to cook our well deserved meal. Then it was off to bed for a good nights rest.

Day 2

After a surprisingly good nights sleep we woke up and got breakfast ready. We needed the energy cause we would be spending the whole day out and were heading down to the Sabi River. Again Malcolm amazed us with tons of new information...one of the facts of the day was that an African Goshawk can get up to 75km/h within a metre of take off and reaches an amazing 120km/h at full speed!

When we reached the river we stopped to enjoy an awesome lunch which Rika had prepared and then made our way to the river where we bumped into 2 bull elephants grazing in the shade of the big trees running the length of the water course. We spent a good 2 hours down by the river learning about new trees and spending some time apart all spread out along the rivers edge just taking in the peace and tranquility that was all around us. We did have some unexpected visitors as we startled a herd of buffalo that was feeding along the rivers edge.

The day was topped off with dinner and then a sleep out on top of a rocky out crop in the middle of the bush. There is truly nothing like sleeping under the stars with each of us having to do a shift to ensure that nothing was going to surprise us while we slept. The sounds of hyenas, lions and all the nocturnal birds filling the air and we were visited by a herd of buffalo and a hippo during the night.

Camp Site Under The Stars

Day 3

The morning stated off with a 5.30 wake up, coffee and then cleaning up before morning game drives came past. Another hearty breakfast under the belt we headed out to do walking encounters into the big and scaries...our aim was to test the senses of the creatures and get a better understanding of their reactions.

Packing Up To a Beautiful Sunrise

We encountered 3 rhino first and while approaching, the mother with her young calf decided to walk straight towards us and we had to move off quickly! They thundered away into the bush when they figured out how close we were and we headed back to the car... The next rhinos we encountered were on a large open area and they picked up our scent from about 150 metres, Malcolm and I left the the other 3 guys to make an even closer approach and test out their vision. At about 50 metres we started waving our hands and definitely were seen by the rhino. Some people say that they cant see more than 10 metres but that was definitely proved wrong. As we started walking away the rhino started an investigatory charge to get a better idea of what we were and when he reached about 30 metres from us I had to chase him off with a clap and and a shout.

Next was a breeding herd of elephants which we cautiously watched walk past us and head towards a waterhole for a drink. We watched them frolic around in the water and then left them in peace. The last animals we approached was a herd of wildebeest which we attempted to stalk up on... we all leopard crawled trying to keep ourselves concealed but the wildebeest just watched. I can just imagine what was going through their minds..."What the hell do these idiots think they doing"...and needless to say we didn't get within 30 metres of them before they stated snorting and running off with Will and I desperately running after them!!

The River Camp site

The day was to be finished off with a walk along the Msutlu River where we bumped into a hyena and walked past mating lions that we would end up camping 300 metres away from. They entertained us all night long with their roaring and we went to go pay them a quick visit before going to sleep. We were fortunate to catch them in the act of mating once before we headed back.

Day 4

Again through the night we took it in shifts to ensure that we didn't get surprised by one of the many dangerous creatures roaming the bush. I had the last shift from 3.15am to 5am and then I had to wake everyone up so we could be packed up again before morning drives came past. At 5am I gave everyone a shout and had some water boiling on the fire for some coffee. Rika got up and we started making coffee while Ben and Will were still snoring away. Rika and I heard a couple of foot steps on the dead leaves that layered the river bed, looked at each other, then heard more steps...so I got up to investigate... as I shone the torch past where Will was sleeping I saw a leopard sniffing around no more that 10 metres from him...all I saw were the whites of his eyes when I called out that there was a leopard. After a couple of loud shouts and some clapping she moved up and out of the river and we then settled into some coffee and started the clean up.

We then had a presentation by the Bird Of Prey Centre from Dullstroom. They brought with them a Barn Owl, Spotted Eagle Owl, Greater Kestrel and a juvenile African Goshawk. We watched them flying and I got to hold the barn owl. We also learned a lot from the information that was given to us...the most amazing thing I learnt was that a Peregrine Falcon had been clocked at 415km/h when in a full dive, this makes it the fastest creature on the planet.

The handler, Mark and a Barn Owl

Barn owl

Juvenile African Goshawk

Greater Kestrel

Spotted Eagle Owl

Our full day was completed with a walk to explore more cultural beliefs and uses for trees. We learnt how to make rope and whistles from Silver Cluster Leaf Trees, found out how to stop the rain using wild asparagus and learnt the song sung by the Shangaan people when drinking marula beer that basically warns against getting promiscuous with another mans wife...

We were all in bed by 8pm that night as a result of the long days and minimal sleep we had got and also in preparation for the ridiculous day ahead...

Day 5

The camp was finished off with an outrageous boundary walk that is 40,6 km long!!! The 5:15 start to the walk was very cold but within the first hour things started to warm up and we were greeted by some giraffe early in the walk. The first 20 km went by with relative ease but everything after that became more and more difficult. With temperatures reaching 30 degrees Celsius we we drinking the water fast and had to filled up regularly...

After about 26km we bumped into a rhino which we only spotted when it was 40 metres away cause by this stage we were all concentrating on our next step and not on our surroundings. About a kilometre later we bumped into a herd of buffalo while again staring in despair at the ground in front of our feet.

By the time we reached the final straight which was still 8km we were all broken...we had been walking for about 8 hours and still had 2 and half to go... With all of us in agony we pushed on and all managed to finish. With a sense of accomplishment we got back to the lodge and all started removing the shoes that had caused horrible blisters on our feet.

I had to take some anti inflammatory pills to stop me walking like 90 year old man and to ease the pain a little. And all of the excitement was finished off by a initiation party where there were far too many funnels consumed and this all lead to an impromptu fertilisation of the flower beds...

All in all it was an AMAZING experience and would like to thank Will and Malcolm for all the effort they put in to make it such an unforgettable experience...and to the MC's of my initiation party...REVENGE IS A MEAL BEST SERVED COLD AND WITH LOTS OF BEER!!!!