THE BEST OF THE REST

This is the end of my african safari blog. Please go to the first post in May and travel to South Africa with us.

I hope you will enjoy the accounts of our hunt and photo safari with Frikkie du Toit Safaris.

                                                                     John Straitiff

HORSE PLAY IN THE BUSH

Xanthe, you are so cute. "I KNOW!"



MY BUDDIES....FJ & XANTHE

GAME ROOM IN OUR CHALET





 





ELEPHANT PROBLEM



Our first encounter in Kruger

The first citing of elephants in the African wild was a real shocker for me. We had just left the elephant museum in Kruger. Frikkie was driving on a dirt road running near the river looking for hippo and buffalo. Suddenly in the bush just yards off the road stood a herd of elephant. I knew elephants were big but they seemed giant peering over the bush at us. The herd was headed for the river in the mid-day heat and we were in their way. Several trumpetted loudly in protest as the herd went crashing through the bush. We had many other encounters with elephants. One close encounter that stands out was when we came around a bend to find a herd standing in the middle of the road. One young bull decided he did not like the look of the  Fortuner or the people in it. He flaired his ears and walked towards us blowing all the way. Frikkie camly slipped the Toyota into reverse and backed up slowly. I guess the teen bully figured he had proven his point as he trumpetted and trotted into the bush. One evening we came upon a big bull in some open grass land working his way toward the road. He approached our car very slowly and calmly. Suddenly he flaired his ears. Frikkie slipped the car into drive and told Di the time to snap a picture was at hand. The bull was making a threat and we needed to go...NOW!  Actually, Kruger has an elephant problem. On one occassion we watched a bull elephant push over a tree, then only eat a mouth or two full and move on. There are more elephants now in the park than the food chain can support. In many areas of the park damage to the trees and the habitat is clearly visible. Many conservationists and professional hunters in Africa feel the park needs to cull the herd numbers. Good intending bunny huggers have some crazy solutions including birth contol. Sounds good on paper but not very practical in a park this massive. These are giant wild animals in a huge wild place. Not the poor elephants you see at the zoo or circus. Some people want nothing done at all. In this case, I think just letting nature run its course would be a monumental error. The battle over the elephant population within the park is a very heated issue on both sides. I feel the only way to save the land now for all animals of the park and future generations is to thin the elephant herd numbers. Without man getting involved the elephants will simply continue to breed and eat themselves out of house and home. These magnificant creatures deserve better.



Please back up

Point proven

Take the picture now!

Youngster follows his mother at the river crossing

ON THE ROOF

DINING CHALET WITH THATCHED ROOF


Who knew grass could make such a strong and weatherproof roofing material? In the bush, almost all structures have a traditional thatched roof. Frikkie was building a new lodge and we got the chance to watch the fascinating thatching process close up on a daily basis. A truck first delivers bundles of grass/reeds. Workers then climb on thin long sticks as makeshift scafflolding to attach the grass to the wood framed roof. Two workers on the outside of the roof catch bundles of grass that are tossed up to them from the ground. They work the bundles into place and fasten them with a wire.  The workers feed the wire through while another worker on the inside feeds the wire back through to the workers on the outside. They use a large brush to comb the grass into position and to keep the ends even. It really was amazing to watch these skilled craftsmen apply their trade. The South African style of thatched roof is very strong and durable. With a combing every year or two it can last for up to 50 years.

DINING CHALET INTERIOR



BUNDLES OF GRASS

WOOD FRAMING

THATCHING CREW






I HATE SPIDERS

We encountered some huge spiders on our safari. The region we hunted for bushbuck had what I thought was a really cool looking one. I called it the Steelers spider but the real name is Golden Orb Spider. To me it seemed massive as far as spiders go. It sported a sleak shiny black body and legs with bright gold markings. When hunting the river bottoms in the evenings, we drove down some very over grown narrow roads with thick brush just teaming with spiders and their webs. Stretched across the roads were hundreds, maybe thousands of strands of webbing. In the right lighting, it looked like a kids fishing trip gone really bad, as the thick tangled web strands danced in the sun. During daylight hours the web strands were a pain. But, at least you could dodge or move most of them. Near dusk and after dark they took on an entirely new type of creepiness. As you drove along  the spider webs would constantly hit your face and arms. It drove me nuts but that is the price you have to pay to hunt bushbuck and nyala. Huge spiders make some pretty darn strong webs too. Frikkie commmented, "With three strands I think you could bind a guy." Thank god my wife decided to ride up front with Marco in the safari truck instead of in back on this hunt. She would have flipped out with her well known love of spiders...LOL!

GO STEELERS!

FOR THE BIRDS

 

LILLAC-BREASTED ROLLER
When most people think of Africa, images of the great cats, elephant, rhino, crocs, hippo and other animals come to mind. More often people think of great migrations and wild creatures than they think of birds. Africa is a true bird lovers paradise. You will find birds of every size, shape, and color... from the Grey-Lourie that has blown many hunts with its GO AWAY call, to the ugly looking and goofy sounding flightless Southern Ground Bill, from stunning to odd, and everything in between, Kruger Park is home to 238 species of wild, wonderful, and exotic birds.

KORI BUSTARD



SWAINSON'S FRANCOLIN






AFRICAN HOOPOE



WHITECROWNED LAPWING

MARTIAL EAGLE





AFRICAN FISH EAGLE


SOUTHERN YELLOW-BILLED HORNBILL





SOUTHERN GROUND HORNBILL...PICKING IN ELEPHANT DUNG

More African bird photos:
http://www.outdoorphoto.co.za/gallery/showphoto.php?photo=43537

 

IT'S RAINING SAUSAGES

At the small parking area behind our chalet at Crocodile Bridge in Kruger Park was a sign reading "WARNING, Please beware of falling sausage fruit." We started to chuckle as that is just something you don't see every day. Frikkie said to be careful because getting cracked on top of the head with heavy rockhard sausage fruit falling out of the trees above could really hurt you. As soon as I stepped around the front of the chalet I could see what he meant. There beside our chalet hung dozens of what looked like fuzzy salami sticks. Not long after we settled in, I was outside talking with Xanthe when I heard a loud thud. It reminded me of the time I was fox hunting at night with my friend Dave. We turned on the call and a medium sized bear jumped out of the huge oak tree we were sitting under. The sound was like a bowling ball falling out of the sky. This time the thud had come from a sausage fruit crashing to the ground. Little Frikkie and I decided to try and open one. After some considerable effort we finally broke it in half. I would say it looked sort of like a zucchini packed full of fiberous strings.   

SAUSAGE FRUIT

NOTHING BUT BLUE SKYS

SCANNING THE BUSH FOR GAME

The South African sky has a bright blue cast that fascinates the eyes. Deep in the bush you are far away from pollution, both light and air. The clear air in the Kalahari and Kruger Park lets you see the true richness of the blue sky without any haze. The cooler more moist air of the mountains between these two regions can be hazy and even foggy at times. At night the lack of light pollution enables you see to thousands of more stars in the sky than you can see in the states. All the tiny stars that are not bright enough to shine through the American light pollution just pop out and come alive in the deep black African night. There are few things  in life that are more relaxing than sitting around a fire after dinner with a drink in hand and just looking up into the stars. One evening just after dusk, Di and I watched a distant thunderstorm approach across the Kalahari for at least an hour. The tops of clouds were a deep purple and the lightning danced across the sky. At times the entire horizon would come to life. It was better than any fireworks show. A sky this clear and amazing can only been seen in places that are still truly wild.

CLOUDS BUILDING OVER A RIVER IN KRUGER

THE BUSH





SUN JUST STARTING TO GO DOWN IN KRUGER



SUN SET ON THE AFRICAN PLAINS