Talamati Bush Camp : Kruger National Park

Sunday 22 November

Lockdown Day 241

Talamati is another not-so-hidden gem of a camp in Kruger and not far from Orpen Gate. We have been so lucky to spend a lot of time in Kruger recently and have decided we prefer the smaller camps and the central and northern areas. And we will be avoiding long weekends and school holidays in future. Late October and November is a great time of year to travel in South Africa. It's the least popular month for local holiday makers who are all waiting for the big break over Christmas. The great thing about Talamati Camp is the flood-lit waterhole. This time we stayed in unit 12 which has been renovated and is very clean and comfy. (Last time unit 15 was in need of an overhaul.)

We did see lions near Satara - the same pride of young males and females we had seen during lockdown in the same area.

Our Lockdown Bird List stands at 286. Soon we will be heading into KZN and I think I will have to start a new trip list. All these changes!

www.sanparks.org

Shimuwini Bush Camp : Kruger National Park

Friday 20 November and Saturday 21 November ( Lockdown Day 239 and 240)

Our first visit and we have decided that this camp is the best in Kruger. One of the smaller bush camps with a beautiful setting on the Letaba River.

The closest entrance gate is Phalaborwe. We really love the fact that this Northern part of the park is so much less busy. The concentration of game may be lower due to the Mopani habitat but we still see plenty of interesting game and birds. Sitting on our verandah we have seen hippo, crocs, elephant, buffalo and plenty of antelope.

There's a pearl spotted owl in our tree and the greater bushbabys are all around us at night. There are quite a few 4x4 only routes in the Phalaborwe area of Kruger and we didn't see another car. Sitting at Sable Dam we watched over a hundred elephants come and drink and swim in the water.

We had phone calls to make and emails to send and it's the only place with a data or phone signal in the area. ( Another good thing about Shimuwini; no signal)

We made Welsh cakes for afternoon tea and had roast lamb for dinner. The gas oven has two settings - "roast in hell" and "off" but I did manage even with hundreds of beetles swarming around and landing in the food.

www.sanparks.org

Tamboti Tented Camp : Kruger National Park

This post would have been Lockdown Day 237 to 238- funny how it is not that easy to let go of this - Wednesday 18 November to Thursday 19 November.

This is a small, delightful and rustic camp just a few kilometres from the Orpen Gate. The luxury tents have bathrooms and kitchens but we could only get a tent with communal facilities, which was fine. Each tent is built on a wooden deck overlooking a dry riverbed.

The fans in the tents are a welcome relief from the heat at night and guests can use the swimming pool at Orpen Camp. Monkeys are a real nuisance in the camp each morning. On the first night we were visited by a small spotted genet on the deck and hyena on the other side of the fence. We heard the lions roaring all night. On the second night a honey badger visited. The monkey- proof bins are no problem for the badgers.

It started raining in the early hours of the morning so we chose not to get up early for a game drive. Later on we saw the cutest black-backed jackal pups ever.

The area from Orpen to Satara and North and South of Satara is the best part of Kruger for varied game viewing and is far less busy than further South.

www.sanparks.org

Lockdown Day 231 to Day 236 - Thursday 12 November to Tuesday 17 November

We are back at Ximongwe for a week. Our home.

After this we won't be returning for quite a while. It's hard. Today I feel sad that we are moving on more definitely; lost and adrift on a sea of  pandemic insecurity. We have plans, some loose and some fixed until mid- Feb 2021. It's tough living in an uncertain world but move on, we shall, with this traveling life that is our passion and our destiny. In lockdown we have had a glimpse of a more settled life at the end of this track but we are not ready to park off in any one station just yet.

Di and Marjo joined us for a few days of RandR - a lot of good food and good wine with great friends. Ronell and Johan we will miss you and this little piece of paradise a lot.

Hopefully when all this Covid madness is over you can come and enjoy a bit of our travelling life with us too.

As hard as it is, I am calling this my last Lockdown in Paradise post - 236 days - almost 8 months. I started on my first day at Ximongwe and I am ending on my last day at Ximongwe. I will continue to post on Facebook every few days and return to my usual travel blog so you are not going to get rid of me just yet. And hopefully we'll see you on our travels again soon.

Lockdown Day 228 to Lockdown Day 230 - Monday 9 November to Wednesday 11 November

Monday was our 35th Wedding Anniversary! Somehow we have made it this far! Life is a journey and traveling and discovering the world has always been a big part of our lives. From the early days of camping holidays with mates to living it up as expats all over the world to more than a decade on the road as full time travelers with no fixed abode, we really have gone that extra mile together. Lockdown has been a bit of a pit-stop but it's by no means the end of the race for us. 

"On the road again,

Just can't wait to get on the road again,

The life we love is making "music" with our friends,

And we can't wait to get on the road again.

Going places that we've never been,

Seeing things that we may never see again,

And we can't wait to get on the road again.

Like a band of gypsies we go down the highway,

We're the best of friends,

Insisting that the world keep turning our way,

And our way,

Is on the road again." Willie Nelson.

And where did we celebrate 35 years? Witbank, South Africa!😄Where we lived soon after we got married! Thank you Terry and Andrew for hosting us for a few nights in your barn and thank you Charlaine and Johan for celebrating with us.

On Wednesday night we drove up to Phalaborwe Gate and spent the night in Sable Hide in the Kruger Park with Johan and Ronell. It's a great thing to do, staying all alone in the middle of the bush.

Lockdown Day 225 to Day 227 - Friday 6 November to Sunday 8 November

A weekend at the farm to unpack, reorganise and repack the Cruiser for a few more months of living on the road. We are traveling a bit lighter this time, which is good. I also got the chance to tackle my project of digitising all our old photos. The first step is to remove them from the albums, transfer the comments and dates onto the back of the pics and store them in ziplock bags.I have only done a few hundred photos which are with me now. You will surely see a few of these as I get them done. 

Pam, Richard and Ann were also at the farm and it was lovely to see them after so long. It felt so normal to braai, chill and kuier on the farm.

When will we be able to have a big party at the farm again? Hopefully by March/ April of 2021?🤞

Lockdown Day 222 to 224 - Tuesday 3 November to Thursday 5 November

Some people have asked me why I'm still doing Lockdown posts while gadding about. South Africa is still in Lockdown Level 1. Life is still very much restricted. Up until now we have chosen to stay predominantly in Limpopo province and in remote places and only in self catering accommodation. We choose outdoor restaurants and off peak shopping times.

We haven't been on a plane or to a pub or gathering of any kind since 19 March. We have stayed together with small groups of friends for days at a time and it has been so lovely to feel the normality of cooking together, enjoying wine together, braaing together and camping together.  Being in the bush and in Kruger Park has been fantastic and we are planning to continue living like this for a few more months. We have to. We just spent 2 days in Joburg to visit family; keeping our distance and wearing masks indoors. Yes, life is still very much locked down but we are trying to make the best of it!

Some random thoughts I've been sent lately...

Lockdown Day 221 - Monday 2 November

I just had to post today because on this day one year ago the Springboks won the Rugby World Cup 2019. We are the reigning champions!

 We were in Phuket. We had just been in Japan. Life was bloody awesome! I glanced through my 2019 calendar and I really can't believe how full it was and how many places I went to and how many people I partied with. I want my life back. My exciting, fun-filled, carefree, travelling life back. This is who I am. It's me. I am your fairweather party-planning friend. I am not your crisis go-to girl. That's someone else's calling. I was happy being me. Very happy. Now what? Can the crisis go-to girl in the group please help?

We drove through to Dullstroom. Limpopo province is so green. ( Remember that rain we camped in a month ago?)

The farm is quiet and I am trying to get my admin and planning up to date.

Planning keeps me sane. And cooking. And planning what to cook.

Kruger National Park : Pafuri and Mopani : Lockdown Day 216 to 220 - Wednesday 28 October to Sunday 1 November

We are back in the Kruger Park for a few days. In at Phalaborwe gate and up to Pafuri Border Camp; we  stayed at the Doctor's Cottage again. It was hot but the pool was a real godsend. We did an evening game drive with Carel, the wonderful guide and camp manager at Pafuri.

We had a wonderful sighting of the Pels Fishing Owl. The picture is Jane's.

We were also lucky to spot greater and lesser bush baby, quite a few genets, hyena and a mother jackal with four young cubs. In the morning we also did a walk up to the Thulamela ruins; linked in history to the Great Zimbabwe and Mapangupwe settlements spanning 400 years from the 1300s to the 1600s. 

Then we travelled down to Mopani Camp for a few more nights. It was actually good to get a day or two to chill without an agenda.

The elephant picture shows the whole family sleeping; bums together and eyes closed. Elephants usually sleep standing up and only for a total of two hours a night.

Sunday we stayed overnight in the Shipandani Hide with Johan and Ronell. It's a great experience. You arrive at 6 pm. Bedding, crockery, lamps and water have been delivered for you.There's a boma and braai area. After dinner, inside the hide you fold the beds down onto the benches, make them up and sleep dormatory style inside the hide right next to the river. It was a little windy which kept mosquitoes at bay but the hippos, elephants and various birds disturbed our sleep with all their noises. You have to be up at 5am to pack up the beds before day visitors arrive to use the hide. We enjoyed coffee in the boma before heading out.