Safari at the Kruger from the Crocodile Bridge to the Berg-en-dal

This morning we woke up at the Crocodile Bridge Rest Camp campsite and, after breakfast, we left; this will be our last day of safari in the Kruger National Park in South Africa, at least for this trip.

We take the S 25, but only to reach the S 27 that ends near the Hippo Pools that, as you can guess from its name, is a pool where many hippos are found.

The scenery around the pool and along the way is very beautiful and deserves to come up here.

We go back and take the H 4-2 which heads North; we decided to go this route again and not a new road because the H 4-2 and the H 4-1 have given us a lot of satisfaction in the last few days.

After a few km some hyenas cross the road, they are a fairly large clan, they are running somewhere, only one of them stopped in the middle of the road to look at us, it almost seemed to pose, an invitation to photograph it.

Along the way we see a lot of impalas, but how many are there in the Kruger? We have seen so many everywhere!

Continuing on our right, at the point where the road runs along the Sabie river, we also see some buffalo herds and several elephants.

Also in this portion of the road we see five lions near the river, they are lying down but they are awake; they are in the best position to hunt, with all the animals that go to the river to drink, they just have to wait for the right time.

We arrive at Lower Sabie and decide to go to Mugg&Bean for a cappuccino, our instant coffee is good but the cappuccino is something else.

Then we continue along the H 4-1, we stop, as usual, at the Sunset Dam to see which animals are there today; the sun is already high and the light is spectacular, the sky is blue and the pool is beautiful.

There are several waterbucks on the edge of the pool, in another point there are many crocodiles that are warming themselves in the sun; today, however, the hippos are in the water and, unlike the other days when they were quiet, they are very quarrelsome and fight with their jaws wide open.

Today there are also several Egyptian geese that fly or are perched on the very choreographic dead tree, that is located in the pool; although it is very common to see them on safari, the Egyptian geese are still very beautiful.

There are also several waterfowls such as the black-winged stilts, the yellow billed storks and several herons including the gray herons.

We leave the pool and continue along the H 4-1 and, shortly after, on the rocks along the river, we see a lioness, it is beautiful and proud, who knows if it is the same that we have already seen around here; from that position it has a privileged view of the river and the potential prey that goes to drink.

Along the river we see several herds of buffaloes, they are animals that depend on water, so seeing them here is practically a certainty, the Sabie river is one of the perennial sources of water in the park.

Continuing along the way we sight some lions hidden among the trees, you cannot see them well with the naked eye, but with the binoculars we can observe them well; shortly after we also see two cheetahs, as well hidden in the bush, they are a bit far away but they are very beautiful.

As always we choose to take the S 79 that runs along the river, here there are always many herbivores and even today it is not far behind: we find many impala and kudus, we are surrounded by these wonderful creatures.

We go back to H 4-1 and see a lion sleeping along the river, it seems only, but it is a female and usually live in a pack, so, somewhere, there are also other lionesses, but we cannot see them.

Everywhere we see impalas and kudus, we’ve never seen so many all together; we also see many families of elephants, we realize that some specimens are sleeping.

It is not easy to understand when an elephant is sleeping, we must observe it carefully, because, first of all, it does not lie down, as many might think, but remains standing motionless and supports the proboscis on the ground because it serves as support for the head; they usually take short naps during the day.

When we arrive at the intersection with the H 12 we turn and go on the bridge on the Sabie river to see if we spot something from that privileged position, in fact we see in the distance a lion that is drinking at the river; it's too far to make great shots, but with the binoculars we can admire it very well.

We go back to the H 4-1 and see a lot of movement, there are a lot of cars, there will certainly be lions or other big cats.

It is very difficult to reach the sighting because there are many cars, so we start to observe and to photograph the vultures and the Marabou storks flying in the sky or that are placed on the branches of the trees; their presence is an unequivocal sign that, somewhere, there is a killing killed by lions or other predators.

When we can get closer we see seven lions sitting and lying on the roadside, some of them are young males whose manes has not yet formed completely; a couple of them have their faces stained with blood, a sign that they have just finished eating, that is understandable even when looking at their swollen bellies.
 

The killing is on the opposite side of the road and they look at it with their eyes fixed between one car and the other, because they fear that other predators can take it away from them.

We find a position where we can stop to take photographs without hindering traffic and without taking the view from anyone.

After a bit of shots we decide to continue and, shortly thereafter, we see other elephants that are on the street, they are eating by the roadside, so we stop and wait for the whole pack to cross and head towards the river; we see them go down, drink and then cross the river, there are several puppies playing with water, they are too funny.

It's almost time for lunch, so we decide to go to Skukuza.

We park, take our lunch and sit at the picnic tables that are located along the river; we are taking advantage of the Skukuza structure more now than when we stayed here.

While we have lunch we spot several birds, including a kind of barbet that we have never seen before; this place has proved excellent for birdwatching, both today and in recent days.

When we leave from Skukuza we take the H11 and, as it happened the other day, we do not see animals in this stretch of road, but we have to go through here because we have to go and take the road that leads us South, where we find our camp for tonight, the Berg-en-Dal Rest Camp.

Before turning South we decide to cover a section of the S 1, that heads West and ends at the Phabeni Gate; we arrive at the Nyamundwa Dam to see this part of the park.

Along this stretch of road we meet zebras, wildebeests, elephants, kudus and, at the puddle, there are some hippos immersed in the water; we also see some very scenic kopjes.

We go back and take the S 65 that is unpaved and heads South; here, as along the other secondary roads, there is no one and it is really pleasant to drive.

At one point on a tree we see two Southern ground hornbills, they are near a killing of a leopard and are pecking; they are probably eating insects that are on the killing, but also shreds of the meat itself.

We try to wait a bit, the killing is still fresh and therefore has not yet been abandoned by the leopard, it is probably around but could return; a safari guide that arrives shortly after tells us that the killing is from yesterday and this supports our thesis.

Unfortunately we wait more than an hour but the leopard has not been seen, it's a shame because the branch and the killing were in a nice position to take pictures.

We cannot wait any longer because we have to get to the Berg-en-Dal and the road is still long.

Continuing along the S 65 we go to see the N'waswitshaka, a beautiful waterhole.

The surface of the water is completely covered with a bright green substance; in the water there is a hippo that some terrapins have exchanged for a stone where they can warm up in the sun, they are many and the hippo can hardly be seen.

On the edge of the waterhole there is a giraffe that bends forward to drink, its neck and its body are home to many oxpeckers, these birds are often found on the back of the herbivores, they feed on ticks and other parasites that lurk in their mantle, they perform a toilet function in practice.

This waterhole has given us a scene and beautiful shots, it is true that in the savannah, where you least expect it, you discover hidden wonders.

The S 65 ends on the H 1-1, we turn left to take the H 3 and continue our journey South.

This area of ​​the Kruger National Park is characterized by the presence of kopjes and rocky hills, it is very scenic in particular with the late afternoon light and with the sun starting to descend on the horizon.

When the detour that will take us to our camp is not far, on the slope of a hill we see two white rhinos in the bushes; we stop immediately and look at them.

The rhinos are walking and soon they come out of the bush, and they are not two but six; white rhinos, unlike black ones that tend to be solitary, are sociable and form small groups.

They are quietly browsing as they walk along the ridge of the hill, two other cars stop to see what we are watching; there is no one else, probably the safari cars that enter for the day have already gone out and few people go to this part of the park at night, most of the visitors go to Skukuza, Lower Sabie and Satara.

After observing for a while the rhinos we must continue, the sun is going to set and we must get to the Berg-en-Dal Rest Camp before 6.00pm because then their gate closes.

We turn onto the SS 110, here many hazel grouses, bustards and guinea fowls cross the road; they are all terrestrial birds, so they rarely fly, they usually walk or run on the ground.

This road winds through the rocky hills and from here we see a spectacular sunset, the last, for this journey, inside the Kruger National Park; we meet several zebras, many impalas, a solitary old buffalo and several elephants that accompany us almost to the gate of our camp.

This is our last night at the Kruger, we are a bit sad to go out tomorrow, but there are still many wonderful destinations waiting for us during this trip!