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Cheetah
Rainbow Skink aka Five Lined Skink
Giraffe
The Skukuza Camp's fruit bats
Hi
I am visiting KNP during the month of September 2010...first time in Africa. Staying at Marc's treehouse lodge for 6 days followed by 3 days at Tremisanna Lodge.
Can anyone advise on tipping the wildlife guides/trackers or anyone else that expects it...what is an acceptable amount per day without leaving myself rand less!!!
Many thanks
Tipping is not mandatory- but it is a nice gesture if good service is give. Usually about R20-30 would be sufficient, depending upon your financial position. More would of course be welcome. (it works out to be about A$5.00)
Sometimes the slightest hint could be the big find. If you look on this picture carefully - this is how I discovered a leopard - just by its tale hanging from the tree. Other cars looked at it and drove on - just to miss a spectacular sighting of a leopard feeding of an impala in the tree - given a few minutes later when the animal came fully into sight.
So if in doubt - stop and watch for a few moments - you never know what might appear!!!
If you're interested in watching the lions, leopards, etc actually hunting, you should go outdoors in dawn or dusk.
During the sunny hours, you may have the chance to see them, but they will be probably resting (which is also amazing...).
On 26 March 1898 President Paul Kruger signed a proclamation establishing a sanctuary for wildlife between the Sabie and Crocodile rivers.
It was an auspicious day for conservation.The first national park in the world had been created by the Americans at Yellowstone in 1872 - but the Sabie Game Reserve (The original name of the Kruger National Park) was the first in Africa.
In a continent where man and wild animal had been fighting a war of extermination since prehistoric times, this was man's first offer of the hand of friendship.
The Kruger National Park has an extraordinary colourful history.
François de Cuiper was the first explorer and led a Dutch East India Company expedition to the area . The expedition party was attacked and driven back by local tribes near Gomondwane.Later, around 1838, Voortrekkers (who were former Dutch settlers) trekked to the same region - led by Lous Trichardt and Hans van Rensburg. They were able to successfully establish outposts.
Lured by the promises of gold, ivory and animal skins, hundreds of Europeans and farmers followed to the Lowveld. During this period, the animal population dwindled dramatically due to hunting parties.
After being made aware of the situation regarding the diminishing animal population, President Paul Kruger succeeded in persuading the Transvaal parliament to establish a protected area for the wildlife in the Lowveld region.
Sabie Game Reserve , bordered by the Crocodile River in the south, the Sabie River in the north, the Lebombo Mountains in the east and the Drakensberg Mountains in the west, which is now the southern part of the Kruger National Park, was established in 1898. These reserves would eventually expand into today's Kruger National Park.
During the Boer War , further development of the reserve ended, but the British, after their victory, proceeded to develop the Sabie Game Reserve and instructed major James Stevenson-Hamilton in 1902 to protect the animals against hunters, ivory poachers and cattle farmers. The Park was opened to the public in 1927 for visitors to view animals and plant life in a protected natural enviroment.
After the Anglo-Boer War, James Stevenson-Hamilton was appointed as the first park warden. He spent the next 40 years protecting his park. His contribution to the Kruger National Park's current existence is of course invaluable.
In addition to his animal conservation, James Stevenson Hamilton was also responsible for acquiring great tracts of land for the reserve. After World War I, the Kruger National Park was protected by the government of South Africa and remains under the watchful eye of the government up to the present day.
The very first ranger in the reserve was Paul Bester who made his residence in a rustic rondavel (hut) which is now the site of the headquarters camp, Skukuza. Documents concerning the History of the Kruger National Park can be viewed at the Skukuza Library.
Half a million years ago, the first San stone age hunters roamed the plains in search of game. These original San and later bushmen have left intricate and colourful rock paintings in many parts of South Africa, and Kruger National Park contains over one hundred sites of these paintings. The rockpaintings mostly depict the wild variety of wildlife, abundant at the time.
The Kruger National Park is a living monument to President Paul Kruger, the conservationists, and those who have upheld his vision of a protected wilderness reserve which will forever remind us of that which we are so dangerously close to losing.
Boerewors: Another South African taste sensation…Boerewors (farmer’s sausage) is another South African delicacy and no braai is complete without a few strings of boerewors sizzling over the coals. You could describe it as one long, coiled sausage, stuffed with spices and ground beef. Again, like with the biltong, there are quite a few varieties on the market and I highly recommend you buying a few packets for your sojourn into the bush. What better accompaniment to your sundowner?
The best way to eat boerewors is to cut up the well-cooked meat into manageable portions, slip it into a freshly buttered bread roll, slather on your sauce of choice: tomato (ketchup) brown sauce, mustard or all three - and down the hatch it goes!
No self-respecting South African throws a braai together without this tasty treat. A must have to compete your South African experience.
You can buy your wors from any supermarket or butchers in South Africa - and even the camp shops stock a packet or two in their freezer - go on, give it a try!
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