Saturday started very early when I left the camp as the gates opened at 04h30. There were two cars on my tail and I quickly let them pass. i slowed down until they were out of sight. it was not yet dawn and the Park was just waking up. The only sounds were that of the bush. There were no man-made noises whatsoever. For a while I felt like I was the only person in the Park. It was the best feeling in the world.
My first order of business was another familiar activity – driving along the H4-1 to Lower Sabie.
I love this stretch of road. Sometimes you can drive for stretches without seeing much, but the winding route along the Sabie River is one of the most scenic in the park. And even with some quiet stretches, there are also often many moments of magic.
The first little while it was still too dark for photos, but I had a few really great bird sightings. It started with a pair of African Hawk Eagles in a tree next to the river. While looking at them through the binoculars, I saw a Cardinal Woodpecker in a nearby tree. A little further along I found a Jacobin Cuckoo.
The rising sun painted the sky with the most beautiful colours. A kudu browsing captured the sunrise beautifully.
I saw some really tiny impalas nervously following their moms into the undergrowth. I also saw a little duiker.
I cannot resist driving on the bridge crossing the Sabie River. This morning there was a Purple-crested Turaco and a young Wire-tailed Swallow..
A Goliath Heron was pretending to be a rock jumper in the river bed.
I reached the other side of the bridge to turn around when I saw some giraffe and a kudu. Unfortunately a car passed me in a bit of a hurry and spooked them before I could get more pics.
A Red-billed Oxpecker played peek-a-boo on a giraffe’s neck.
Just before I turned back onto the H4-1 I saw this hyena sniffing around in the grass next to the road. It looked as if he found a tasty snack of some sort.
I continued on to Lower Sabie and found a troop of baboons with some cute youngsters.
I saw my only Southern Ground Hornbills of the trip when I found a pair of them. They are such cool birds and always bring a smile to my face when I see them.
The H4-1 is a really great road for elephants, and this morning it did not disappoint. There was a fairly large breeding herd close to the road. They were so relaxed and I really enjoyed spending time with them.
The elephants were on either side of the road. It was magical to be surrounded by elephants, the only noises coming from the sounds they were making as they were feeding.
There is something really special about elephants in a river. It is one of the most relaxing sights you can hope to find, ever.
I decided to drive along the N’watimhiri causeway for a change. It was quiet, and the only “sighting” was a few rangers on patrol. I stopped for a chat and they happened to mention a couple of leopard sightings on the H4-1. That was great news after a few quiet kilometers.
The presence of stationary cars told me there was something feline to see. It wasn’t the best sighting, but any leopard sighting is great in my book.
Almost exactly 1.3km further along the road there was another huddle of cars. The 2nd leopard was also in a tree, lying almost on top of his kill. Unfortunately I just could not get a view of his head, no matter how I positioned my car.
Two leopards in less than 2 km – It was a good day!
I was ready for a body break, but before I popped in to Lower Sabie, I had to stop at Sunset dam for a few minutes.
Sunset dam is another of those very familiar places in the south of the Park.
I just stopped for a few minutes and scanned the area. I saw a Little Egret and an African Jacana.
A Water Thick-knee walked quite close to the car.
There was also an immature Black-winged Stilt foraging along the edge of the dam.
I made a quick stop at Lower Sabie. There were more elephants in the river bed.
The leopards changed my original plans for the day.
But before I headed back to them and Sunset dam, I drove to the low water bridge, another of those familiar places I love so much.
There were some crocodiles and hippos in the river. I had heard many Diederik Cuckoos by now, and finally saw one in the reeds.
Wire-tailed Swallows just love to sit on the edge of the bridge.
I stopped at Sunset dam again – it was impossible not to. A White-crowned Lapwing and Common Sandpiper joined the party.
But one of the sightings of the trip belonged to a Gabar Goshawk.
It led to my next new experience – attempted murder at Sunset Dam.
The Gabar Goshawk was jumping from nest to nest, looking for chicks. Surprisingly, there were no weavers mobbing him, which could only mean that there were no chicks in the nests.
It was very entertaining to watch.
After a while he gave up and flew off.
I continued on to the leopards and saw more elephants in the river bed.
Then I saw my first Double-banded Sandgrouse of the trip. They are such pretty birds.
The leopard tahat had been lying on his kill was nowhere to be seen. The other leopard had moved deeper into the tree, and only a part of his kill was visible.
Since there was not much to see at the 2 leopard sightings, I decided to stick to my original plans for the day, and that was to drive the Salitje Road.
I had not driven the Salitje Road end to end since 2007, so I considered this a “new experience”.
At first the road was a little quiet, but soon I saw some warthogs and a Steenbok. Then I saw some Paradise Whydahs and my first European Roller.
Then I hit a mini jackpot. Dung Beetles! Watching these little guys is one of the most entertaining things to do.
I discovered that I wasn’t alone in watching the Dung Beetles – a stunning Violet-backed Starling joined me. 
He wasn’t as entertained by the Dung Beetles as I was and quickly flew off. I continued to enjoy their antics a little longer.
After that the sightings on the Salitje Road increased exponentially. A large elephant disappeared into the bushes.
Then I saw movement in a tree.
A little Tree Agama peeked at me from the tree.
I reached a little pan and found quite a lot of activity. A Buffalo was wallowing.
Some Zebras and Blue Wildebeest arrived. The wildebeest had some cute babies.
The Blue Wildebeest babies weren’t the only cute babies at the little pan.
Loud conversation in the tree next to the water caught my attention. A Pair of Woodland Kingfishers were hanging out in the shade.
The cutest sighting at the little pan came from a Terrapin. These guys always look like they are smiling.
The sightings continued with more baby impalas.
At a little loop near the end of the Salitje Road I stopped under a huge tree for coffee. A pair of hippos were grazing on the other side of the river.
After enjoying the peaceful scene for a while I continued on. I spotted a couple of elephants. While watching them I could hear the rest of the herd splishing and splashing just out of sight behind the reeds.
It was the perfect end to what had been a really pleasant drive.
The familiar continued with a drive along the H1-3 to Skukuza.
At the bridge I noticed a very large flock of White-backed Vultures. I started counting, but stopped at 80.
While I was counting, more and more birds arrived. In the end there must have been at least 100 birds.
A saddle-billed Stork joined the group as well.
I had been hearing Orange-breasted Bushshrikes all over the place. I heard one call very close to the road and finally managed to catch a glimpse of one.
An elephant caused a bit of a road block. I waited for a bit until he moved to the side of the road. He was incredibly relaxed, and I was able to stop almost right next to him and watch him browse.
Between the Sand and Sabie Rivers there was another road block. This one took a little longer to clear as the large herd of buffalos crossed the road one by one and two by two.
After a quick lunch at Skukuza, I made a short stop at Lake Panic. A Squacco Heron in stunning breeding plumage was looking for food in the grass next to the hide.
It was another extremely hot day, and the hippos were all relaxing in a cuddle puddle.
I also spotted some dragonflies. The Long Skimmer and Phantom Flutterer were both new dragonflies for my list.
The Dragonfly lifers continued with this Violet Dropwing.
The view from the hide is always perfection.
A new trip bird appeared in the form of a Giant Kingfisher.
All of a sudden an enormous hippo entered the water on the left side of the hide.
He gave me quite a look.
A Green-backed Heron posed nicely on the log.
There were also a couple of African Jacanas around.
After leaving Lake Panic, I decided it was still early enough to visit another familiar place – Transport dam.
The drive was quiet. Until I reached the hyena den where I found two cubs in December 2020. While driving there I wondered if the little hyenas would still be there. It was a year later, and I know hyenas move dens every few months, so the odds were low. But I stopped next to the den, hopeful. And I found these eyes looking at me.
And then I saw the 2nd one peeking out at me. I was so happy I laughed out loud. I don’t know if they were the same cubs from 2020 or a different litter. I didn’t care. In my story they were the same 2 that have grown a lot, and that is how I will think of them.
I have a very soft spot for hyenas, and when it comes to hyena cubs, I just melt into a puddle of happiness when I find them. I could not think of a better sighting than this one.
Transport dam was completely quiet. I added Red-breasted Swallows and White-faced Whistling Ducks to my trip list. But other than a couple of Egyptian Geese, there was not much else. It was not as hot as the day before, but the temperature was still in the mid-thirties, and without shade it was impossible to sit there for too long. I drove to the little loop at the back of the dam. when something in the shade caught my eye.
My new experience of many, many babies was about to continue.
I have never seen baby Thick-knees before, and these two were so adorable! But they were very skittish and were quick to sneak into the long grass. But even this short sighting was so incredibly cool.
I was in two minds whether I should take the S65 back to Skukuza or not. An oncoming Safari vehicle told me that the road had been very quiet.
I decided to rather go back to Skukuza via the S112 and S114. The road was again rather quiet. The only sightings close to the road belonged to a Steenbokkie and some elephants.
Just before I reached the tar road there were some European Bee-eaters.
The rest of the drive back to camp was quiet. I was enjoying the drive and wasn’t really looking for anything in the dense vegetation when a flash of orange in a tree next to the road made me slow down. The African Hoopoo disappeared quite quickly, but I reversed back to the tree. I saw some eyes peeking out at me.
More babies!
It was my first baby African Hoopoo ever! It wasn’t the best visuals of the young bird but it was very exciting to get a small glimpse of the young bird.
The camp gates close at 18h30, but I find that if I stay out until then the evenings are just to short an there isn’t enough time to relax, have a braai and go for a walk. I was in camp just after 17h00. As I was getting everything ready for my evening braai, I heard the call of the Gorgeous Bushshrike. I was after the sound in a flash, but despite searching for some time, I could not spot him. But I was not going to give up, and decided to look for him again the next day. The cold beverage I had while staring into the flames of my little fire was very welcome after the heat of the day.
Being me I had to go for another evening walk. I found a few new creatures, starting with this Thread Snake near the shop.
I get goosebumps just looking at these next photos. These ginormous Common Cockroaches and Black Velvet Cockroaches were everywhere. Yuk.
I found many of these Wall Crab Spiders near the restaurant.
These cute Tropical House Geckos were everywhere where bugs were attracted to light.
I ended my day with a large Ground Beetle and a Cicada.
My first full day had been perfect. But I had another exciting new experience first thing in the morning so I called it a night early.