The past week in Kruger really exceeded our expectations! Not only were our guests very lucky in their sightings, but the animals played along to show the agents who joined our educational safari a good time too!

Our agents started off with a night at Outlook Lodge and being in a quiet gated community in Benoni & right next to a golf course, it set the tone for a good safari, with around 10 different species of bird counted just during breakfast, including the stunning paradise flycatcher!

The sightings have been amazing starting with a pack of wild dog lying around on our way in. We saw the same pack twice, with another wild dog sighting the next day. Although we could not see them that well since they were in a ditch next to the road, we could clearly hear them crunching on the bones of whichever poor sod happened to turn into lunch - a rather chilling sound!.

We were spoiled with two sightings of a leopard in a tree on the same drive, lion so full they could hardly walk, elephants taking a mud bath, a huge herd of buffalo crossing a plain, a couple of rhino and loads of plains game including zebra, giraffe, blue wildebeest & impala. We also saw several kudu, several leopard tortoises and a chameleon crossing the road which was really nice!

On the birding front we saw a pale morph Wahlberg’s eagle very close to the vehicle, with a tawny eagle on the other side of the road equally close! The carmine bee-eaters are still around, as are the European rollers. With lots of predators in the area, we found several white backed vultures and a scrawny looking hooded vulture too.

From the deck in camp at Skukuza, our agents were treated to some hippo frolicking in the water right in front of them, with the fish eagles calling in the background.

On our way back we had breakfast in the living museum village of Pilgrims Rest. It is a treat being there early in the day before it gets busy and to be able to take in the rich history of this little village. Our next stop was at Lisbon Falls, which is always beautiful but at the moment even more so because of the volumes of water still in the system after the recent floods. Of course the curio sellers were also happy to see us & I bought some new candle sticks and salad servers for the lodge. Next came Three Rondavels with its spectacular scenery! what a stunning country we live in! Our last stop before heading back to Jozi was for lunch in Dullstroom. We wandered through several little shops and discovered the magic of the Old Transvaal Inn. With not only a restaurant but also a home made sweets shop, book store and various odds & ends, it was a pleasant experience.

How lucky we are to have such an amazing weekend!

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This entry was posted on Wednesday, February 15th, 2012 at 1:08 pm and is filed under Birding, Kruger Park wildlife, Outlook Lodge, Recent sightings. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.

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