After the wonder of the Serengeti I was worried that Kruger would feel second-rate, but far from it – it’s a completely different experience, and I absolutely, 100% loved the day I just had. The park has both paved and unpaved roads, allowing for interesting route options when going from A to B. The benefit of the paved roads is that they are slightly smoother, and you get to see what animals others have found since people will stop their cars when they see an interesting animal. The benefit of the dirt roads is that they are in great condition, you only see a handful of cars each hour, and when you find an animal you pretty much have it to yourself. Guess which type of road I primarily drove today?
There were a huge variety of animal sightings today, but three in particular stood out. In Kenya and Tanzania the greater kudu was elusive, but the huge and incredibly impressive antelope made numerous appearances today; hopefully before I leave I’ll get a picture worth sharing. My first cats of South Africa were two cheetah that were lounging under a bush for several minutes before something sparked their interest and they went into stalking mode. Based on the lessons learned further north I moved the car approximately where they seemed headed, and after a minute or so had the sleek cats within spitting distance. Shortly thereafter they gave a half-hearted charge towards some waterbuck and I lost them in the bush. Finally, twice today elephants decided to create traffic jams, including a herd of about twenty that occupied a bridge for twenty minutes – when an elephant wants to stand in the road, you let the elephant stand in the road. Earlier in the day a mother elephant with a baby gave me the staredown, and while there might have been a tiny, tiny voice inside saying “you want a piece of me?”, the overwhelming chorus of voices called for a quick and hasty retreat, and I backed up promptly. Elephants continue to be fascinating, and I hope to see many more before leaving this country.
Kruger is a gigantic park, and with their regulations forbidding anyone from being on the roads before 6 AM or after 6 PM, as well as a 50 km/hr speed limit, it is a challenge to see all of it. In the three days that I’m in the park I’ll barely scratch the surface of the far southern region – the upper two-thirds of this 350 km long park will remain a mystery until I come back some day. For anyone considering a trip to Africa, if you don’t want to spend the money for a safari in Tanzania but still want an incredible experience, this seems like the place to go.
