Submitted by SafariADV on Sat, 2018-11-03
Even this morning the alarm rings before dawn, at 5.10am; for nothing else in the world I would get up so early, but to go on safari this and more!
We have breakfast, we get ready, close the car and leave the Satara Rest Camp; we are in South Africa, in the Kruger National Park.
We go immediately to the S 100 that is one of the two roads where we saw the lions yesterday.
We drive it all but no trace of the lions, they probably moved, maybe they are those we heard roaring tonight, if so then they are closer to the camp and no longer in this area.
The light of dawn is spectacular, it is almost more beautiful than that of sunset, illuminating with its warm colors the earth, the trees and even the animals.
We continue along the S 100 that runs along a river and suddenly we hear an unmistakable shrill scream: an African fish eagle, but where is it?
We look around us, searching for it on the branches and at a certain point we see it fly until it rests on a dry branch in favor of light: perfect to be photographed!
We also find some kudus, partially hidden in the bushes, and then we also see another bird of prey, but this time it is against the sun, we only see the black silhouette; it is impossible to identify the colors of the plumage, the eyes, the beak and the legs, its species of belonging will remain a mystery.
We turn left on the S 41, we want to go and see if the other lions are still at the pool where we saw them in recent days; along the way we see several kudus.
We arrive at the pool and find a beautiful and terrifying scene at the same time: the members of a large clan of hyenas contend what remains of the giraffe that was killed by the lions days ago, there are also vultures that claim their share, but hyenas always have the best and you can see them running around with a bone or a piece of skin or other parts of the giraffe that are difficult to identify.
We stay here for a while to observe what happens and then we go back and take the S 100 again; the warm morning light illuminates the road and it looks more beautiful than it already is.
We meet a group of kudus just at the side of the road, they are so busy eating some bushes that they do not run away as usual, so we can watch them for a while in silence and then continue.
We also meet zebras, giraffes, waterbucks, impalas and a bushbuck hidden in the bush.
We arrive at the area where in recent days we have seen the lions and here they are, it is almost certain to find them, for them this is the perfect place, near one of the few pools of water with all the animals that come here to drink; they basically have food and water at their disposal!
We take a bit of photos but then we have to go, today we have to get up to Skukuza; we have a bit of kms ahead and, hopefully, other sightings.
