The Big Five

if a trip to south africa is on your bucket list, a visit to kruger park is a MUST!

it is wildly and breathtakingly beautiful, anxiously exciting, amazing, thrilling, edgy at times and truly touches the heart and soul of africa.

kruger is a game reserve about the size of the state of new jersey where you are free to roam and explore in(side!) your own car, at your own risk, along paved or dirt roads searching, searching, searching for game.  there are hides and waterholes to head to and during one visit we took a side trip over the border into mozambique.  its always an adventure.

we spent 3 days and nights at the park this time and at the end of each long but exciting day, we must head to a camp for the night as the gates close precisely at 6:00 pm to eat, swim, gather supplies, sleeping in a traditional thatched-roofed rondavel.  the camps are located next to water holes which make it exciting to watch and wait for animals all through the night.

each morning, while gabi chooses to sleep in and meet us later for breakfast, paul, with camera and binoculars in hand, is biting at the bit for the gates to reopen at 5:30 am.  

it's one of the best times to spot game.  let's go..........

this beauty made her way right up to our car and with her golden, wild orbs, 

looked paul straight in the eye.

while HE carefully monitored the situation.

this safari we are counting as our most successful as we spotted and photographed each of 

"the big 5"!

lion, white rhino, elephant, water buffalo and leopard.  

the leopard has been elusive until this trip and it is not a given that you will see lion. but after 30+ years of visiting the park together, (we became engaged on my first trip) paul and i are 

getting better at this game. 

last s.a. post still to come........