Ximongwe Greater Kruger : Lockdown Day 141 - Friday 14 August

We skipped heading out to see the lion kill at daybreak. At about 8.30am Johan heard there were wild dogs nearby so we dashed off to see them. There's a group of five ranging between Parsons Balule and Olifants North Game Reserves. One is collared and one has no tail, so they are easy to identify. Sadly there were only four in the group now, with no sign of what happened to the fifth.

A little up the road we spotted vultures on the remains of an impala carcass.

In the afternoon we headed back to the lions. One lion was at the carcass and the other two were lying about 50m away. We chose to have our drinks a little way along the road watching a herd of elephants in the river. No sooner had we returned to the carcass; the other two came back to eat. We were parked pretty close but they ignored us, taking turns eating and resting. 

Then a large elephant bull made his way down the hill and into the road and a standoff ensued. The elephant charged at the lions a few times with us in the middle of the fray. We held our collective breathe, still and silent, with our hearts pounding in our chests but the lions weren't that concerned. One lion did move past our vehicle rather too close for comfort and lay down on the road behind us. It was after dark when we got home in need of a stiff drink, a braai and a good "kuier" around the fire.