Leopard 2012 Safari

I have a group for a September 2012 safari. I would like to name this safari LEOPARD. That is the most prized sighting on safari and we have not had a safari named that yet.

However, I need help in selecting the meaning for the name LEOPARD. Would you brillant people out there help me please.

Here's a quick one just to get the momentum going:

Lions & Elephants On Parade As Rangers Drive.

Sounds pretty good to me, Fred.

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Eugene

Thats a perfect one Fred.

The lucky winner will almost receive this lovely leopard teapot :)

Please send that brilliant virtual leopard teapot Freddie's way

Cheers, Anne

Love it Freddie!

Freddie has a winner here!!

Too bad we can't make it. :(

We're on the wait list...anyone else ?

I am wishing and hoping...

(and pleading) :jester:

We're on it too :ch:

Is there a roll call since it already has a name ?

No roll call yet I have a list of people who have been waiting for this to be organized for some time but it is up to them to post their own names of course.

I was waiting to confirm details until I completed ROAR lll before I decided the camps and program I wanted to use.

This will be a smaller group with ONLY Ken and I as escorts and we wont be switching camps so space is limited.

Still initial planning stages at this time just needed a name from the very beginning.

Pretty tickled with your name Fred unless something else come to light that will do very nicely.

Oh, Ngaire, LEOPARD is so tempting..... especially after ROAR III postings.

Fred, Great wording for LEOPARD.

Carolyn

Great job Freddie. That is a great one.
Oh how I wish we could. :nw:

Hi.

In what country is Safari going to be?

Marcia

It looks like Freddie doesn't have any competition and wins by default! That was a tough acronym to beat, congrats Freddie!

Fred's was so good no sense messing with perfection it is already all over preliminary paperwork.

South Africa for the September safari that to me is the BEST place to go on safari particularly for a first time visit.

Can't wait to hear the details!

Cheers, Anne

ditto Anne....

Hi Ngaire.

I am interested. Waitlist?

Marcia Slomowitz

great job on the name Freddie! I too cannot wait for details.....

Great name.

Great name.

Just FYI look at the price of the $$ to the Rand now. Way higher than I thought it would go before we went on Leopard. When we confirmed it was at 1.00 USD = 6.5 ZAR

1.00 USD = 7.74097 ZAR

1.00 USD = 8.43061 ZAR

Cannot believe this increase in the exchange rate it just keeps going and going. I honestly did not think it would be at this level. When we booked it was 6.5. Huge difference.

Just a KUDOS to all those Leopard participants who took advantage of that good exchange rate. Not been checking since I was on ZODIAC I looked today and it is 7.5 now. It seems to rise slowly and drop back quickly. Hope it does not sink any lower!!

Final payment coming up and fate is smiling on us on Friday the rand exchange was 8.13. It started climbing a few days ago (not sure when and on the Riviera so not checking using my time wisely before I get kicked off).

Susan will be getting final notices out for those that not paid off yet next week. She is in the process of checking everything with K&D.

Always is a great thing to hit the exchange rate at a good time instead of a bad time an issue we cannot control!

It's hard to believe that in 2 1/2 weeks we'll be in Cape Town. We're so excited for our 1st safari! Can't wait to see some old friends and really excited to meet some new ones!

Yes I am ready been away from Africa for FAR TOO LONG!
Ken had some his photos put on Canvas for the office and a lot are of course from Africa. Really got me in the mood for the excitement that is to come.

Kathy, you all will have a marvelous time. Hope someone will send us Safari Mail!

Kathy, I can't believe how quickly this trip has come up, we leave in less than 2 weeks (extra nights in Cape Town). Been busy with major home remodel and now we have kids/grandkids coming here for 6 days.

We are so excited for LEOPARD. Like Ngaire said, we've been away from Africa waaaaay too long.

Yes we will need lots of safari mail! It has been so long since we have been too, so can't wait for mail and pics. Who else is on this one?

Ngaire, I would be interested in seeing Ken's photos done on canvas....They must be awesome! Wasn't aware it could be done....is there an address for it?

Looking forward to HeeHaw!

I've had several penguin/bear photos put onto canvas. It's terrific! one vendor is canvaspop.com. They usually have specials

Costco's photo shop is where we have had these done and they have done a super job

Thank you, Diane and Ngaire....I think we have a few photos that might look nice on canvas.....we also have a Costco nearby.

Pat, I've seen the canvas photos at some of the local drug store photo shops. They look really nice.

A lot of the photo book companies, like MyPublisher, are now offering canvas prints.

Just got an email from MyPublisher - 50% off canvas prints sale on now

Costco has the BIGGEST size I could find at 40 x 60 the leopard looks unbelievable in that size.

The nice thing about Costco dont like it take it back no questions asked even on a custom item!

That is the best store, best prices and best customer service attitude on returns.

They are all over the place now as Leslie said, check pricing it varies a lot.

We love Costco happy to hear they have photo matting service - I remember being in Rancho Mirage CA with friends and getting a Costco urge - bought yummy soup, wine and Hawaiian shirts for men - memories thanks Costco!!!

Today is the dry run for packing. Off to see the giant herds in Tanzania before we join up with the rest of LEOPARD in Joburg on the 7th. Weight limit 33 lbs pp; one softside duffel plus one backpack for each of us.

*New passports;
*travel documents;
*cash for the Tanzania tips (and any bargains we find that come home with us)
*credit cards
*yellow fever vaccine proof;
*malarone;
*the bare minimum for toiletries
*sunscreen;
*bug spray;
*moisturizer;
*hat;
*sunglasses;
*spare glasses;
*camera equipment;
*flashlight;
*converter plug for electrics;
*travel computer to store pictures during trip
*battery charger
*cords for rechargeable stuff
*cell phone
*warm hat and gloves for early morning/late evening part of drives;
*fleece (ideally with lightweight hoodie underneath it)
*lightweight rain coat with hood;
*ziploc to keep camera dry


no room for clothing

cheers, Anne

who needs clothes?
we'll have to watch the tennis for you

Diane is right Who needs clothes?? I cannot wait to read your reports Anne. Safe travels to all

Have a great time in Tanzania. Look forward to seeing you with or without clothes and hearing all about it on the 7th. We leave next Saturday for Cape Town, can't wait.

Anne & Gary- Have a wonderful trip. VERY much looking forward to your reports and pix.

I think packing should be easy with just one duffel bag each, definitely the lightest we've ever traveled !! I'll just follow the list and hope some clothes fit in.

We leave Wednesday for our 30 hour journey - BA; LAX via Heathrow (w/ long layover) to CPT. We'll see ya all soon.

Thanks for posting the packing list, Anne. Gave me the incentive I needed to start packing today! It really doesn't seem too hard.....not many options, so I'm pretty much just taking 2 of everything plus some warm stuff.

Can't wait to meet up with everyone either in Cape Town or later in the week in JNB. We leave Friday from Dulles.....direct to JNB and then on to Cape Town late Saturday. Safe travels and see you all soon!

Taking only carry on. With 4 plane changes seems wise. Thank goodness for laundry

We are trying to pack today as well. Don't know what I will end up with in the end. We also leave on Friday traveling from ATL-Dulles-JNB-CPT. Looking forward to seeing everyone.

SOooo looking forward to Safari Mail! Have a great time everyone!

Bon Voyage, Leopardies! I am looking forward to the safari mail as well!

I emailed a couple of other LEOPARDS. I just find this very amusing.

We have two duffles we are checking for clothes and toiletries. One weighs 18lb and one weighs 21lbs. Then we have a carryon that has ONLY electonrics Ken's cameras and computer - this "carry on" weighs 32 lbs. It is our heaviest bag.

We will not look fantastic but he will get good pictures! We will try and post but it is VERY hard to post any kind of picture from the game parks the internet is spotty at best. There are always great experiences though and I will try and post our "adventures"

I leave on Tuesday, tomorrow is the last day in the office before I go to the bush to commune with nature.

Our best to all our friends on this trip. Wish we were there!

Susan, we wish you and Paul were with us too - we will miss you!

What a great group of people. Wish we were with you all!
Have the best time!

Doug

Mark and Cheron, wonder if we are on the same flight....SAA #208 leaving at 5:40?

Yes, Kathy we are also on SAA#208 and we are connecting to SAA#367. We will look for you!

I know everyone will have a great time. Oh, I, too wish I could be joining you all!!!

Me too!!!!

Sitting in the lounge in Lhr we have a 12 hour layover, so ready to board the plane and get back to SOuth Africa. w hen we arrive we fly to a game park we are checking out and go on the afternoon game drive. First time using an iPad to communicate I am pretty slow. I type about 90 words per minute but not on this hopefully I will get faster this is painfully slow.

We're all packed and excited....Need to take our dog Charlie in this morning for a re-check for an ear infection then ready to roll.

Cape Town here we come

How exciting! Wish we were there with all of you. We are ready to go back. Safe travels everyone.

I so wish we were along on this one too. Have a great trip

Count me in wishing we were going too!

We're 1/2 way there sitting in Concorde Lounge at LHR. Our flight here was so nice, first time I've ever flown BA and started at the top in 1st Class...WOW ! I slept well and feel rested.

We just took showers here and have booked a massage. They have complimentary cabanas, like little bedrooms too. Anyway, with a long layover we couldn't ask for anywhere nicer to hang out. They even have a full menu you can order from. May go browse at Harrods and get sticker shocked. Our next flight is a non-stop to Cape Town...yippee.

Now I really feel like our vacation has begun.

Just heard Gary Parker will be leaving Leopard Hills Friday to move to Durban. wish him all the best but we will miss him

We are IN THE BUSH at a camp called MALA MALA. Been here about an hour and about to leave for our game drive. It is long way here and we were starting to perk up now we are going out.

The vehicle we will be in this morning saw a Leopard take down a kudu right in the middle of the river (a pretty dry river) very close. Only our first safari in Kenya we saw a kill - a lion taking down a zebra but we were jammed in standing up in those silly vans with the open tops they have in Kenya with tons of vehicles around.

We should have come ONE DAY EARLIER--- oh well!!

First it was Marius -- he was great, then it was Hanis he is now manager at Madiwke then it was Gary. I knew he would not be there on our safari but did not know he was leaving. I hear this new guy Heinrich is supposed to be a star and we still have Dave I love him too.

Life changes constantly in the bush in more ways than one. Amazing that Duncan is still manager at Leopard Hills and Warren is still manager at Kings Camp. Been that way since my first trip to those camps.

Those little leopard cups from Roar have had many babies of their own by now if they are still with us.

Small world....here we are in Concorde Lounge LHR and who does Tom run into....just spent the past hour or so laughing, catching up and reminiscing. Victor and Roseann look great, just back from their Nile cruise and on their way to Rome to hook up with Roseann's parents before going home to Toronto.
What a wonderful surprise.

How funny that you ran into Victor and Rosanne!!! That picture is wonderful, I am glad you thought to take one!

Great pic of you all.

Ngaire, I feel your pain about typing on an ipad. I too can type about 90 wpm on a regular keyboard, but no way on the ipad. However, it does get better. One of the problems with the ipad though is the auto correct/auto complete. It will type stupid stuff for you if you let it.

Have a great time, everyone! Marcie, you always mangage to meet interesting people in airport lounges

It really is a small world! Can't wait to hear about your arrival in CP and so look forward to safari mail - CP and Hermanus was one of our favorite trips

Small world isn't it Marcie!

We're here in beautiful Cape Town, I guess the first to arrive. The Ker & Downey agent was right at the gate when we arrived so that was comforting. We gathered our duffel bags, hit the ATM machine and off we went to the Victoria & Alfred Hotel. We have a lovely corner room facing the waterfront harbor as well as Table Mountain. It was drizzly when we landed but it's cleared up now, just cool which feels wonderful after the SoCa heat we had last week.

We're taking it easy today, off to find a pizza place for lunch and then we've booked 90 minute massages for this afternoon. As much as I dreaded the long journey to get here, it really was easy. I have nothing but rave reviews for British Airways...outstanding service. We are right in the harbor where we docked on the Voyager World Cruise as well as on SAMBA so it seems like we're "right at home".

Yeah, Marcie!! Let the safari mail begin!!!

WOO HOO! I am so jealous!!!!! Let the fun begin - trip over sounded painless now we get to enjoy your safari mail sooo excited for all of you!

Ngaire - could you post about the weather for those of us joining later?

WARM during the day it is getting quite hot and even at night it is warm. We stayed out tonight with a lion male that was roaring until 8.00 pm. Did not even need my jacket just my long sleeve safari shirt. Ken was wearing a short sleeve shirt and had his coat but did not put it on.It is colder in the morning but I only wore my long sleeve safari shirt, wind jacket (not my fleece), and gloves with a blanket over my legs and I was fine. Much warner than I expected that is for sure. It could change of course but more likely to get warmer than colder. ONE FLEECE maximum, long sleeve shirt and windbreaker type jacket and I think you wlll be fine.

Since we have been here we have seen two female lions, 5 cubs,same big male lion twice, male leopard, female leopard and cub, rhino, cape buffalo, giraffe ( a young one) adult hyena, and at a den a young hyena, more elephant than you can imgaine.My favrorite thing was a owl in a tree. It was night and we stopped underneath the owl and he looked down at us. His eyes were SO big and he/she was really beautiful.

So tired been going like a freight train with zero down time. Today we moved camps to try both main camp and the more expensive Rattrey Camp. So that blew any downtime today. Every camp has it pros and it cons and this is definitely a camp I will use in the future. Either main camp or Rattrey camp depending on the group.

Tomorrow we have our last game drive here. Have a sensational ranger, Adam and we were out with him alone today and had a super time. Tomorrow we are going back to the sight of a kudu kill but not sure much will be left. They have a large pride here of 18 lions who were all feeding on the kill and it does not take that long for that many lions to finish off a kudu. We were too far away to go to that sighting. Then race back , pack and small plane flight to Mapupulunga and then a SA flight to Cape Town. We should arrive at the hotel about 5.00 pm and then meeting Marcie and TOm for dinner at 5.45 pm. Everyone else is coming in late tomorrow night.

The next day while everyone else is sightseeing Ken can post some pictures and I am on the hunt for a new safari windreakers. Some down time! Then we all eat at Baia and I am ready for those fantastic lagastinos! Then two nights at Birkenhead House and two nights at La Residence. Those that have been there before know how great that experience can be.

Oh we had such a great dinner at Baia!!!! Now I am really jealous!

We'll be thinking of you all - enjoy the animals & wine!

In BA lounge at Heathrow. They have five different champagnes on offer tonight - including Bollinger Rose.


We are meeting up with Anne and Gary in Tanzania first - only 33 pounds of luggage allowed on the little plane! Somehow we made everything fit - I don't think we've ever traveled in such a minimalist fashion before. Anne is my packing guru.


So looking forward to this trip!

I wrote this on the airplane from Kruger to Cape Town. I am like a zombie at this stage so any errors forgive me. We only bought one computer and Ken is "itching" to look at his pictures tomorrow. So I will post this now "as is" and Ken can have the computer in the morning

We had a great dinner with Tom and Marcie tonight, then Linda and Chris arrived so they all met. Then coming back to our rooms who was about to go in their room - Ken and Sheila. They introduced us to their friends Dave and Claudia. We gave hugs all round and then everyone was pooped and we all went to bed.

Here is my "airplane" post

What a great two days at Mala Mala. This lodge is in the Sabi Sand area, bordered by other properties we have used. Chitwa Chitwa in the north, Lion sands in the South and the Londolozi, Ulusaba, Leopard Hills area in the west and Mozambique in the East. No fences between these areas. Mala Mala has 27 miles of river front in their area which is a big draw for game animals particularly in the dry months.

The game was fantastic, and the first two game drives were good we saw the big five, elephant, rhino, lion, leopard and cape buffalo. Including a stunning male lion during the day and then roaring at night. Plus a really great night sighting of a mother leopard and her cub very close to our vehicle. They have so many elephants, the best was a young elephant that came right up to the car we thought he was going to put his trunk on the car. Plus many tiny baby elephants.

We also saw a hyena den with a young hyena, a baby giraffe, zebra, waterbuck, dikers, kudu, and of course impala.

Plus others saw some spectacular sightings. The morning we arrived our assigned vehicle saw a kudu taken down by lion in the middle of the river bed. A huge pride of 18 lions arrived and were consuming the carcass. Then a herd of elephants that were quietly grazing on the river bank and suddenly charged the lions and pushed the lions off the kill. The pictures were absolutely amazing. That same large pride took down a kudu the next night as well and some vehicles were able to see that after the kill.

The last morning was OUR turn for amazement it is was incredible. We started out going to the kudu kill from the night before that was literally a few minutes drive from our room. We saw three lionesses with five cubs. One lioness was eating the carcass and a three month old cub was digging in too. The others cubs were nursing, climbing all over mom and having fun. Perfect light for Ken he was in heaven. In the trees were vultures patiently waiting their turn to feed. I really did not want to leave but on the other side of the river was a single lioness and Adam our WONDERFUL ranger said we need to go and investigate as this lioness has the youngest cubs just three weeks old. Was he ever correct we were in for a great experience.

Success was ours, we found two three week old lion cubs in clear site with no obstruction to the sighting. It is very hard to see cubs this young they were still having trouble walking around, they had faces of angels it was such a special moment. Climbing on sticks and each other, so much fun to watch we were totally enthralled. They were the most adorable cubs we have ever seen it was magical. Mom left and the cubs retreated to their den we they would stay hidden until their mother returned.

The lions we had left crossed over the river as well while we were watching these tiny cubs so we went down the river a short distance to look at them again. We were sitting there with the lions and Adam said, “there is a leopard approaching the kill site on the other side of the river” In a few seconds the vultures went flying up into the air, the leopard had arrived at the kill site.
The three female lions instantly reacted and one lion raced crossed the river. We saw her chase the leopard off the kill, the leopard jumped into a tree then fell out of the tree. We could see the lion at the base of the tree but not the leopard. Another lion crossed over as well and we could see them hunting for the leopard. We were afraid the leopard had been killed and we crossed back over the river to see what had happened. This was really thick bush and trees and on a fairly steep bank. It took a lot of skill to maneuver in this thick bush. Adam saw the leopard, Ken and I could not see it. The leopard was on the ground in thick bush. We were all surprised it had not climbed into a tree for safety. Adam knew the leopard from past sightings but had not seen it for about 9 months. It was a 3 year old male leopard not doing the things he should be doing in this situation his inexperience was showing. Adam parked at the carcass that the leopard had stolen and dropped as he felt the leopard would return to get the “stolen meat”. Adam was right again, the leopard returned and he picked up the remains and we thought he would take it up a tree. No this leopard just moved it into an area we could not see well and started eating on the remains. Not a smart leopard!

After a short while and lots of vehicle moving on our part the leopard left and moved down to the river bank to go back to the main kill site. We followed and the leopard ate for while and then abandoned the kill and went to drink from a close by pool of water. Ken got some great shots of him drinking.

After the leopard had his drink he walked into a clearing stopped in the middle of the clearing and looked directly at the lions. It seemed like he was flaunting his success at stealing the kill and outsmarting the lions. The lions immediately perked up and we thought it was all going to happen again. I do want to see a kill but NOT see a lion kill a leopard. It is okay to kill their regular meat source but not a leopard. Thankfully the lions did not cross again and the leopard went off into the thicket.

A truly amazing morning almost all in sight of our room!

MALA MALA

We visited all three camps in Mala Mala staying in the standard Main Camp and then staying in the upscale camp Rattrey’s. I have always heard this place described as a “camp” not a lodge and even Mala Mala describes itself this way. We had heard that the rangers were young and inexperienced with a high turnover. These are the reasons I had not visited before. However I decided I needed to check it out as I have been to pretty much all the other camps I have wanted to consider and I am SO GLAD that I did come here. I should have come sooner!

What I had heard was true but not the problem I had anticipated.

CAMP instead of a LODGE
None of the lodges are all inclusive. All meals at all camps are buffet so no fancy gourmet sit down dinners. This is part of the concept of it being a CAMP not a lodge. Breakfast is standard fare cooked to order eggs. Lunch is salad items and three set hot dishes. Dinner is soup, appetizer served at the table and the main is a choice of two main and vegetables from the buffet. Then they serve dessert at the table. The food is good and tasty nothing fancy. Meals are in the boma or on the deck. They seem to use the dining room only when weather dictates outside is not possible. Bush breakfasts are simpler and the ranger is the chief cook and bottle washer. He cooks the eggs sausages and bacon over a fire. No fancy set up but a table a log seat and some breakfast items in Tupperware containers. The basic set up and clean up is done by rangers that do not have guests that day. It was a ton of fun but again not the “elegant bush breakfast” of a lodge. No morning coffee on the morning game drive, sundowners a simpler affair and no trackers. Afternoon tea is simple with one plate of goodies. Dinner is very late at 8.30 pm, they will not go all inclusive, this camp has been run the same way for years and things will stay to the same schedule and program. If you take a WHOLE camp then you can do things differently if you wish. There are other small differences like this but this is NOT a big thing if you know this going in. Price point is very competitive in comparison to what we use now. Main camp about the price of Kings Camp and Chitwa Chitwa and Raffety’s about the price of Leopard Hills.

THE YOUNG INEXPERIENCED GAME RANGERS
I will agree with the young part but I find a great group of highly enthusiastic game rangers that were so in love with their jobs it was very infectious. They all have full ranger training so they are mostly young but sprinkled with more seasoned rangers. Only Mala Mala vehicles are on the property and the co-operation between them all was the best I have witnessed. We were with a young ranger for two game drives and a more senior ranger for two game drives. Both were really good and I would be happy going out with either of them. Every ranger was happy, communicating with all guests the enthusiasm was bubbling up everywhere. I can see the turnover situation as these guys work SO HARD. They greet you on arrival, they show you the lodge, they handle any problems they are the social host eating breakfast, lunch and dinner with the guests. They are the waiters, the cooks on bush breakfast, the ranger and the tracker. They are also involved in many duties with the animals and work on the reserve. I saw NO down time during the day for these guys. I think they may burn out and move on it is pretty inevitable. They all seem to love doing “it all” and Mala Mala is creating young rangers that will have fantastic skills on all levels as they move on to new lodges. It is a very personal experience that one person is your “everything” but it must be hard on them after a period of time, they burn out and move on.

THE LODGES
All rooms are large, with two full size bathroom, one with bathtub and one with a shower. The rooms have air conditioning, fans and a view. Wireless internet is free and accessible in all the rooms. Laundry is included but a limit on the pieces per day. Not all inclusive they provide bottled water and all drinks are extra. Main camp is not fenced and Rattrey’s is fenced/

THE CAMPS AND ROOMS

MAIN CAMP
Divided into Buffalo and Sable camps, a BIG lodge holds 50 people. Sable can be taken privately by up to 20 people with its own bar, lounge, meal service.

Main Camp has great rooms. All the rooms have two nice sized bathrooms one with a bathtub for the lady and one with a shower for the man. Each bathroom has a closet with 8 drawers. Good sized bedroom room with two lounge chairs facing the river or the water hole. There are three desks in the room, a big mini bar area and a small reading area with couch. A wall of windows looks out at the view and Nyala were eating the grass and shrubs right at our window. There is a large deck with two lounge chairs.

RATTREY’S CAMP
Maximum capacity is 8 rooms for a total of 16 people. The lodge area is very spacious for this many people and with a more upscale public areas.

The main two bathrooms it is just bigger beautifully decorated a stunning room in every way. I have been to so many top lodges and this room rivals the best I have seen. An absolute pleasure to stay there is not only classy but extremely practical as well. I loved this room. Ken has pictures and we will post these on our smugmug site later. There is also a large deck with a large plunge pool. From our room number 8 we saw lions and cubs crossing from one side of the river to the other. Probably visible from the other rooms too we were just closest to the crossing area. We saw giraffe and other animals drinking on the other side of the river. This room is the largest distance from the lodge and if you want it there is a golf cart to take you to and from the rooms. It is not that far though about 4 minutes and totally flat.

Ngaire, as this is the closest I think I'll ever be to an experience like yours, I just want to thank you for such a great report. I could almost see those little cubs and no, I haven't been drinking! Can't wait to see Ken's photos. Lee

Great review Ngaire. Cannot wait to see Ken's pictures. I don't think I have the link to his smugmug would you mind to post it?

The game drives sound phenomenal I hope to go back one of these days!

Ken wont post on our smugmug site until he gets back he will post some pictures here though. Other pictures smugmug from past trips and the address www.ngaire.smugmug.com

The Cubs:

love the cubs
the birds are scary

All I can say is WOW!

Looks like there wasn't much of that carcass left by the time the leopard took possession of it! Cubs are too adorable!

I sure hope I can convince my DH to go on one of these Safaris with you guys someday. I'm certainly ready, but I have to to convince David!

Those lion cubs are precious! I know you had an amazing time watching them and the leopard! As Diane said, the vultures do look scary.

Loving all this safarimail!

Cindy, I am trying to convince George too!

Love the pics, ESP the cubs. So cute. I got to hold a 3 week old lion cub once, and even at that age, they are all muscle, not a cuddly kittie.

Ngaire, Great reports, especially about the lions, lion cubs, and the leopard. And all the specific and interesting information about these camps/lodges.

We'll be interested to see if you decide to select some of these new places for future safari trips. As you say, as long as you know ahead of time what's in store, there are no surprises. That's why it so great that you personally check all these possibilities out.

Wish we were there.

------------------------

Gail and Eugene

Biltong or Bust

We left early this morning for JFK. Found a new off airport lot (Park Plus) that was terrific. Arrived at Terminal 4; good news - could carry on all of our bags. Swiss Lounge offered a selection of 0 champagnes. You could score a beer if so inclined. Had enough time to grab a shower in the lounge before we left. Floor super slippery - stayed on towel to avoid falling. Boarded on time and lifted off around 11:30. The South African nonstop is the way to go - very good in all respects. Only problem is getting a competitive fare vis a vis the Europe stopover routings. I scored the holy grail - frequent flier tix - and am very grateful.

Meet and greet was perfect on arrival. We are holed up at transit hotel for a few hours, then get boarding pass to Kigali for a 3:45 pm departure (tho the transit visa officer remarked "that flight is ALWAYS late"). We'll find out soon enough. We overnight in Kigali (hoping Theo our driver from last year's gorilla trip will be there to meet us) and get up at 4 am or so to make our 6 am Coastal Air connection to Sasakwa. There IS no easy routing to get around Tanzania, it seems. Going through Dar is a 7 + hour elapsed time light aircraft flight via Zanzibar, including 3 hours to cool your heels in Arusha.

Gary will be unnecessarily cranky if I don't stop typing soon. More later, and can't wait to see the whole group in Joburg on the way to Federal Air and more adventures.

Editing to add: what's biltong? See the wikipedia entry here http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Biltong

Cheers (soon to be Pleasure), Anne

Bon Voyage, Anne!.

Ngaire, those babies!! I MUST go back. Jerry and I have been yearning to return, so look forward to all of your reports.
--------------------
Helen

Ken, your photos are fantastic, as always! Can't wait to see more.

Have a wonderful safari, everyone. Hi to Kathy and Al!

Mixed review on transit hotel in Joburg airport. Rooms better than I expected from recent Tripadvisor reports (shower and sink are in the bedroom area for standard rooms; no tub) but beware stone floors. Sound travels EVERYWHERE. First cleaning crews, then repairs (sledge hammers, drills, etc), someone who needed to whistle while they worked ... ugh! Were moved to upper floor - but by then, it was time to collect boarding passes.

True to form, boarding passes were not available as advertised. Gary did a bit more digging and found out the South African reps issue the RwandaAir/RwandaExpress boarding passes in the transit area. Headed back out, picked up a sandwich, ate & got last of stuff @ hotel, checked out and then returned to transit lounge. Boarding passes are a GO. No where to check our probably overweight duffels per RwandaAir's max weight of 15 pounds for a carry on piece in coach. Flight only half full; several folks were bringing everything but the kitchen sink on the flight as well.

Flight goes on "indefinite delay" status. Fortunately, that mean an hour's delay. I slept for nearly the entire flight. Our driver was from the same group who took us on the gorilla trek last year - Primate Safaris. We asked Joachim to send our best to Theo and Patrick.

We are staying at the Serena Hotel this time, which it turns out is the same Intercontinental we stayed at last year. Significant improvements in the physical plant were a welcome surprise. Front desk is located just as you walk in the door; the upstairs lounge is far more elegant; the restaurant down near the pool is still wonderful; and the service level much improved. I've not touched down in Dar Es Salaam yet, but if I compare a compulsory overnight in Nairobi to one in Kigali, I'd take Kigali every time. The front desk clerk was all over getting box breakfasts for the 6 am departure tomorrow morning, and called in our 4 am wake up call without being asked. Duty manager was keeping track of guests & visited for a few minutes while we represented the Return of the Gorilla Trek team at our favorite table in the poolside bar and restaurant. Food was better, too - tho the pizza is missing from the menu.

Time for my shower, a quick nap and then Return to Faru Faru. I am SO psyched!

Cheers, Anne

Annie nice to hear you have arrived on the African continent safe and sound. I glad to hear our Rwanda hotel is flourishing. I really fell in love with Rwanda and I had such low expectations initially. Thanks for posting I was happy to hear from you.

We had a PERFECT day in Cape Town on our first day beautiful sunshine. I talked as many as I could into going up on Table Mountain and they all enjoyed it. We went to Baia that night and many of us ordered the wonderful lagastino platter, YUM YUM.

Today we did the Cape Point tour and ended at Birkenhead House. Weather was partly cloudy and windy and a little cold. The guide was the best I have had and I will definitely use him again. He did not think we could arrive at Birkenhead House by 5.00 pm but I told him I be we could do it. We stopped at the Ostrich farm, went up the cable car at Cape Point and most walked down. We went to the Black Marlin and I suggested we all just order a main to speed things up. Then to Boulders to see the penguins and we arrived at Birkenhead at 4.50 pm. Perfect!

I always forget how lovely it is when you first arrive at Birkenhead. Shane was on hand to welcome us and it was so great to see him. We had an hour to freshen and then met for drinks before dinner. We asked Shane if we could take a picture with him and all the girls that Ken can post tomorrow I told him it was for "all the girls he;s met before!

Yes you guessed it rack of lamb on the menu and it was cooked perfectly medium rare as I requested. I did manage to have an extra lamb chop from some else's plate I traded a bread roll for a lamb chop I think that worked in my favor. The staff this time are really a lot of fun it was a noisy dining room

After dinner some of us stayed up and have a wonderful time in front of the fireplace, finally we all decided we had better hit the sack.

Six are going on the shark tour tomorrow and the rest plan on just enjoying the house and taking the walk. The weather is supposed to be warmer tomorrow and hopefully less wind.

The internet is wireless in the rooms now and working GREAT that is a big improvement from our last trip.

Be back later.

Greetings from Singita Faru Faru. It is amazing - quite different from the Sabi Sands area in South Africa. The reserve is adjacent to the Serengeti and has spectacular vistas and wide open savannah. Anne and Gary have arrived and are resting up in preparation for their first game drive.

The lodge overlooks two watering holes and there is a lot of activity. This breeding herd of elephants spent quality time with us yesterday afternoon. This is the view from our deck - I took this with my blackberry! No "real" camera required!


This afternoon we had some giraffes stop by


Lots of cats to watch. We followed this pregnant female cheetah for about 30 minutes yesterday. She was auditioning for Africa's next top model - just striking pose after pose.


She needed a little rest after wandering around


There are a few lion prides in the area. The one we were visiting with yesterday had killed a giant gazelle the day before and they were really lazy - and conveniently located just off a main path.

Great images, Ken & M'Ellen! Africa just never ever disappoints no matter where!

M'Ellen & Annie, give Kate & Brad our best at Faru Faru..

Wonderful reports and pics. Wish we were there with you all.

Ditto what Michele and Andi said! LOVED those pix of the cubs!

Wonderful photos!

Loving them and yes we wish we coud be there too

lovely reports from all of you.
awaiting Anne's glorious prose.
enjoy and enjoy

I absolutely have to make the trip to Africa one day. Anyone want to join me?

Two wonderful days at Birkenhead House. Sunny weather every day and again this morning not a cloud in the sky. Lots of walking along the pathways and in the morning lots of close in whale sightings.. In the afternoon the whales seem to have gone further out.

Those that did the shark trip loved it and all but one went in the cage. We were all ohhing and ahhinb about their pictures last night.

Food and staff have been terrific no one wants to leave but La Residence is next and they will love that too!!

Ken has not had time to post the picture of Shane with the girls yet but hope to get that up before we go to the game parks as it is harder to post pictures from there.

Ngaire

Cape of Good Hope & Birkenhead House:

The fun continues here at Faru Faru. We've had some wonderful game drives.
The khaki crested safari companions settled nicely into established behaviors


The terrain here is different to what we have seen in South Africa - it's vast and there are hundreds of elephants and zebras and thousands of various antelope species.




Many kinds of birds. Anne added four new ones to her life list. This is a Marshall Eagle.


There are only three groups allowed at any sighting and they always park so that everyone has a clear line of sight to the animals with no vehicles in the background. Lots of laughs at dinner - eventhough it's wonderful here we are looking forward to joining the rest of the group.

We had two great cat sightings. I will upload those photos in a separate post.

Crazy cat lady reporting in. We spent quality time last night with a cheetah and her three young cubs. The cubs are just about three months old. We found her sleeping in the grass, listened to her call for the young ones and then watched their joyous family reunion.

Thanks so much for all the photos and reports! We're loving all of it!

Great pictures! Thanks

Great pix!

The cubs are adorable - but they will grow to be "teenagers"!

Sounds Abound

Faru Faru free standing villas are composed of solid walls and canvas tent-style roofing. This allows the night sounds to permeate one's personal space. The climate control, if left on at night, serves as adequate white noise to filter out garden variety sounds and rhythms of plains life in the dark of the night. After only one night, we are acutely aware the prime time bird chatter is 3:27 am - and Lordie, it is anything but garden variety volume. No sooner did the birds go off than lion calls boomed nearby. Cool! Lions before breakfast danced through my head.

I made a halfhearted effort to go back to sleep as those lions teased us with more calling, creeping ever closer to our camp. Did I fail to mention we were unhappily hosting an univited applicant for House Pet, September 2012 who took it upon itself to out-sing the entire avian population from the depths of our bathroom wall?

Despite the Sounds Abound early morning interruption, we about jumped through said roof when startled from a sound sleep by the safari wake-up telephone call at 6 am. I shakily headed over to heat water for a fresh french press coffee; voila! the kettle was full of water and rocking with a rolling boil in no time. We made our 6:20 pick up time and advised staff the House Pet applicant (be it rodent, insect or avian in nature) required removal and relocation in a remote region. We left, confident we'd be back to 2 occupants by breakfast time.

Today was cooler, overcast with a beautiful blend of blue/purple/gray skies, and bright and fast sunrise and soft clouds gracing the skies. No doubt the pictures would be tougher; but the upside was a different look at animal behavior in preparation for a storm. The line of fire ants, according to our Ace Ranger, foretells the arrival of rain. We thought it quite possible it also foretold painful ant bites if one didn't step carefully over the column of soldiers on a pilgrimage to somewhere. The vastness of the yellow short grass mixed with sprouts of green contrasted beautifully with the sky and cloud cover.

We're going on a Lion Hunt!

Aboard our trusty Land Rover with Ace Ranger, we were indeed heading out to look for the lions who called in the wee hours of the morning. First off, we prepared to find the perfect spot to ford the Grumeti River. But wait .. we first had to check in on Momma Croc, who was stretched out on a sand bar in the rising tide of the river. Ace Ranger explains she's lying on top of her nest, where the Baby Crocs are soon to hatch. Soon enough, we arrived at the river crossing, noting the river's level had risen in the few days since Jim & Mary Ellen arrived. We assumed the brace position, inched down the short, steep incline and successfully made the crossing.

Bionic Gary spots tons of game at long distances with his cataract replacement enhanced eyesight and is jointly responsible for photographic coverage of the day's spottings. Canon Specialist and Cat Lady Mary Ellen is also on photographic coverage and lead deputy ranger responsible for cat behavior during sightings. Superscout Jim is catching the close-in sightings, adding photographic highlight coverage and engaging Ace Ranger in excellent discussion points on all things wildlife. I've been subdelegated for possible sightings of previously unseen avian species and relaying our day's activities on LCT in a timely fashion. A Well Run Land Rover is a Happy Land Rover.

We looked on the plain where the Big Male lion typically hangs out; but alas, no signs (yet) of Lion Life. Ka-Ching! Griffith's Vulture sighting. The impala and zebra mix on the plain seem awfully relaxed for a hungry lion pride in the vicinity. We press on. Three more Ka-Chings! on the bird life list: Van Doren's Hornbill; White-Browed Coucal; and and Striped Kingfishers. A breeding herd of restless elephants (almost all of whom are looking for a bull) passed the time while we diligently tracked for Lions. Just over the ridge, we find the holy grail for lion spotting:
Safari vehicles from several directions slowly making their way to where a lone vehicle is stopped on the plain.

The first group saw the first act: an injured Thompson's Gazelle who was playing dead in the grass, hoping to avoid the featured role in the Lion Breakfast Lineup. It logged 30 minutes before one of the lionesses dispatched it to its maker. The Big Male promptly grabbed the gazelle and ate his fill. Safari vehicles change places: Second group sees Lioness bat cleanup with very little to show for her effort. Safari vehicles change places again: Last group (ours) sees Biggest Cublet still with the pride grabbing the lion's share of what is left over, forcing two Teen Cublets to dejectedly wait their turn and hope for a lone bone. Teen Cublets were extremely thin. "A Gazelle A Day Won't Keep Hunger At Bay".- a sizeable zebra is more like that pride's minimum daily requirement.

We swung around to follow Biggest Cublet, who opts for the comfort (?) of the nearest tree. Tree Climbing Lions! Who says being last is a bad thing in life? Cameras click; Biggest Cublet finds the Sound Abounds disturbs HIS sleep. He leaves the tree, muttering, and heads for a better tree.

But wait! Along the far side of the river another Lion Hunt is underway. Have faith, Teen Cublets! There may be a mouthful left over for you. Alas - Lioness makes a mockery of the warthog chase. Gazelles are outracing the warthogs - after all, they have already donated a mere hour ago. Lioness stops, sizes up the odds and drops over to snooze.

We start muttering about our own Breakfast Lineup. As we head back .. a lone Safari Vehicle is stopped on the plain. The drama repeats itself. Another lion under a tree. Belly looks pretty empty. A second lioness approaches, with a pretty empty belly. They briefly greet each other and .. the newcomer quickly hoists herself up 10 feet into the vee of the tree.

Woo hoo! Two shots at Tree Climbing Lions? Lion Hunt in Last Place is a very good thing! Other safari vehicles arrive. Time for us to leave .. Ace Ranger turns to start the trusty Land Rover for our traverse back to the lodge with their signature, crepe-like omelettes made to order.

We're Not Afraid

"And Now for Something Completely Different" crosses through my head as it is clear the Land Rover battery is every bit as dead as the gazelle. Discussion ensues with other safari vehicle. Lions remain approximately 50 meters away, one in the Vee of the tree and the other at its foot. Lions are clearly thinking this is another stupid human trick designed to disturb their sleep. Humans are thinking that was one VEERRRRY small gazelle shared six ways and, at top speed, we could outrun .. not much of anything.

Ace Ranger and the other safari vehicle (now dubbed Rescue Ranger with Rover) work out a plan. These guys are very brave, indeed. Rescue Rover is to push us from behind, whilst Ace Ranger puts the car into neutral and pops the clutch at the perfect moment to jump start the engine. I haven't done that since high school, and oh that came in handy when I got dropped off soundlessly in front of home past my curfew. But I digress.

We are waving and making friends with Rescue Rover guests, counting seats to see if we all fit should we need to hitch a ride home. Conversation is crossing the airwaves in the plains.

Engine Sounds Abound with an eerie resemblance to a dying zebra. Lions are again losing sleep. Not a good thing. Superscout Jim has trained every fiber of his being on watching lions. I am thinking of Barney Fife begging Sheriff Taylor to give him the bullet, Andy, and hoping the pop the clutch trick works.

The pop the clutch trick does not work. Ace Ranger and Rescue Ranger, get out of car, drop the tow hook and line from Rescue Rover, and walk behind vehicles to secure it to front of Land Rover. Rescue Rover is moving at higher speed BACKWARDS as we try one more time to pop the clutch and go. A ditch looms behind Rescue Rover. We all shout "LOOK OUT!" as Rescue Rover stops just in the nick of time. Lions are still hanging out. Rescue Rover slowly tows us well away from lions and clear of ditches. We unhook the tow line. Ace Ranger tries to replace battery (stowed under tracker seat) but technical difficulties ensue. Lions continue to keep an eye on the whole scene. Jim keeps an even keener eye on lions.

Hills, that is. Swimming pools .. movie stars

Rangers decide it's time for us to kindly drop in on board the Rescue Rover with our new found fellow guests. The assembled party looks just like the opening sequence from Beverly Hillbillies. Fortunately, we are only a short distance from camp. On a hill .. with a swimming pool. Fellow guests josh "see, it WAS within walking distance" and we joke about it ensuring a cardio workout we would not soon forget. Staff greeted me with the great news that Larry the Lounge Lizard had decamped from our villa to the great outdoors.

The movie stars? None other than our two very brave rangers, who took utmost care to bring us to the best of the daily wildlife action and take very good care of all of us - and, ladies, are really easy on the eyes

Mary Ellen will follow up with the pictures worth at least 1,000 words after proper consultation with the photographic contributors.

Pleasure, Anne

Back to the photos on canvas discussion...
I saw this deal in today's Groupon email:
http://www.groupon.com/deals/gg-16x...nvas-on-demand&p=2&c=deal_button

Wow, what pictures and what posts! Thank you, all. This is a truly fascinating journey ... even from in front of my computer!

Priscilla

OMG that cheetah with her cubs!
Dead Rover Battery: An experience to last a lifetime.
Thanks for the posts
-------------------------
Helen

BRAVO ANNNE


You had me on the edge of my seat laughing! Cannot wait for Mary Ellen's pictures!!

Love the second by second commentary, and glad you are still alive to write it instead of being lion lunch.

WOW Anne, this is really a thrill....the Cheetah and her cubs, it doesn't get any better than that.

We're here at La Residence and it is beyond belief. I didn't see how it could any better than Birkenhead House, but it does (both owned by the same family). This is the most amazing place I've ever stayed, like a giant castle with views in every direction. Each suite has a different theme and decor, all with a patio or a balcony. They're gorgeous with such detail, huge and the service is top notch.

We had a wonderful group lunch when we arrived yesterday so hopefully Ken will post a picture. It was spectacular. I could live here forever. Today we're off to wine tasting. The weather is clear and sunny with perfect temperatures, life is GOOD !

Hi Marcie - sounds like the PERFECT introduction to South Africa. It is SUCH a good idea to take a few days once you land to acclimate to the time & relax. Birkenhead House is remarkable; a dramatic setting and terrific staff. We have yet to stop at La Residence, but know how much Jim and Mary Ellen enjoy it. The safari experience is that much better if you are rested, a little more settled in to the environment and on the local time zone.

Today is the trip over to Sasakwa for lunch, then tomorrow we'll be lunching at Sabora (the tented camp) prior to our flights to Johannesburg.

We'll see you on the 8th and look forward to saying hello to the rest of our merry band of explorers and explorettes.

Pleasure, Anne

A message from South Africa to LCTers all
The first 16 LEOPARDS have answered the call.
First came Sheila and Ken with his big camera sack
With Aussies Claudia and David closely in tack.

Next joining this fun loving Australian quad
Were Cheron and Mark and their out of shape bod's.
Marcie and Tom followed, looking always so cute
Just before newbies Rich and Joan who were in close pursuit.

Later we found lounging veterans Linda and Chris
Sitting with Kathy and Alan, who looked slightly amiss.
It turned out that Al's look was merely a gaze
As he stared at Table Mountain and was truly amazed.

The only ones missing, the ones we sought most

Were our leaders,our mentors, our experienced hosts.
It turns out that Ken and Ngaire were always around
Protecting their flock, keeping us safe and sound.

From Cape Town to Hermanus to Franschhoek and beyond
We've been made to feel at home, like we really belong.
I must say the Birkenhaus and La Residence
Are really quite awesome and worth every pence.

(POEM CONTINUED)

Everything about LEOPARD so far is serene
But a word of caution to Marc, Gail and Eugene
To Peggy and Mitch and all you trivia group
I have some special advice and it's a real scoop.
They don't play trivia in South Africa I've learned
And if you want to play pooch, you will really get burned.
If you come all this way and lust for a card game or two,
Skip LEOPARD in the future or you might feel blue;
But if you seek friendship and laughter and lots of great sights,
Try to make LEOPARD II with all of your might!

Love it, Mark! Obviously great inspiration can be found in this beautiful spot! This is truly a little bit of heaven....everything about our trip so far has been beyond amazing.

That's a terrific piece of poetry, Mark. Have a safe and easy flight to Joburg. We are so looking forward to seeing all of you on the 8th.

The Softer Side of Safari

We are finalizing our packing in preparation for an early breakfast, game drive, lunch at the Saboru camp and then day rooms until our flight around 4 pm to Kigali and onward journey to Joburg.

Our hosts have been delightful. We played "who do you know?" in the South African camp management world at tea today, and lo and behold we've got several connections at the first and second degree of separation. I've located Marius Coetzee's first camera up here in the vast plains of the Grumeti reserve.

Last night's dinner featured Tapas, Tanzania style. Our maitre d' Paul was pleased as punch to have us try the local cuisine, served 4 ways. The dishes were lightly spiced, with a dollop of spicy sauce on the side for those who wanted the full local effect. Jim assured us the local sauce could put Dave's Insanity Sauce to shame.

Chris has gone out of his way to help us with wine pairings at dinner. As a result, we have gone out of our way to limit the alcohol prior to dinner. A duck sous vide main course was simply irresistible last night - and damned if I can remember the terrific blend of wines chosen for that dish. It was a really interesting pairing.

This morning our maitre d' nicknamed Gary's coffee melange as 'cocktail coffee'. How perfect - mix up decaf coffee, hot chocolate mix, a little milk and top it off with amarula cream liqueur.

Today's non-game drive entertainment was vervet monkeys playing hide and go seek with me through the locked door to the outside shower. They bounced around on the tented roof as if it were their personal trampoline. The water hole was slow on entertainment, except for the tiny warthog piglet who was born to play. He got dangerously close to a baboon, who thought a tasty morsel of warthog would be just fine as a post-lunch snack. Wham! out of the grass charged four - count 'em, four - adult warthogs at full speed. Two tore after the baboon, who quickly dropped the piglet. The other two tore after the piglet, who was running in full evasion mode. The baboon was chased far, far away much more easily than the piglet was redirected towards the safety of the den.

After sitting on the edge of my chair watching the outcome of this interspecies battle, it was time for a facial. I promptly fell asleep and woke up to a very dewy complexion.

We've enjoyed a number of jackal and bat-eared fox sightings on this trip. Zebras were calling up a storm today; could the 12 lions in the immediate area who periodically were eyeing the herd be the cause of the commotion? Inquiring minds wish to know.

Yesterday's non-game drive entertainment was all about the watering hole. Several water fowl - yellow billed storks, the giant Maribou storks (a/k/a funeral directors), the unusual African spoonbill storks, a grey heron and an African pied wagtail were busy grabbing all the insects and other edible waterborne creatures in the watering hole. The African fish eagle swooped in to make his scheduled landing around 2:30 pm. The various storks flew up by specie, riding the thermals, until each of then had left for the day.

Today's game drive featured the cheetah brothers back from a failed kill run. They were snoozing up a storm in preparation for a hopefully successful kill run in the early evening hours. We enjoyed a number of giraffe sightings, complete with babies. The topis are an Eastern African centric species, and they have lots of babies. They are a bit like hyenas with longer front legs and a loping gait. The babies look like bobble head dolls as they run; hopefully, their necks grow strong enough sometime soon. The lions were also in full on snooze mode. Two warthogs trotted within 30 feet of them; only when they got close did they realize their mistake. One took off at top speed; the other was a little slower to realize the danger. Only after at least seven of those lions perked up and stared it down did it depart as fast as its little legs could carry it.

It will be tough to leave this lovely place .. but it's made so much easier knowing we'll be joining the South African Sixteen.

PS Mark - brought my Pooch Addict pin

Pleasure, Anne

Mark that was a GREAT poem, I think your best so far. Since I did not turn up to play cards this afternoon you were all treated as it gave Mark time to create this poetic masterpiece.

We visited Le Pettie Le Ferme winery today and had the wonderful winery owner John, treat us to his version of a cellar tour that is so different to any other wine tour. We tasted wine right out of the barrel. Followed by a lovely lunch with a view and I had fresh mountain trout. I ate mine and half of Cheron's I love friends that share!

We all chilled out and sat in lounge chairs at pools edge and gazed at the beautiful mountain scenery. Ken Simpson asked if I wanted afternoon tea. I said kiddingly "only if I get fresh scones, with jam and cream" Off disappeared Ken to come back a few minutes later to tell me he "had a word with the chef". The chef was whipping up a fresh batch of scones especially for us and they would be ready with english breakfast tea in 15 minutes. They were REALLY good, I did my usual piggie imitiation and had three totally smothered in jam and whipped cream and that yummy cream appeared to have fresh vanilla added. HEAVEN - great company, scones, tea served in fine bone china cups, gorgeous scenery and a perfect temperature.

Now we are all eating here at La Residence for the last night I think a tradition started by Ralph. That man knows a good thing when he sees it and has some very bright ideas. It will be another stuning four course dinner with great wines, roll me out of here in a barrel.

Anne you get the most out of everything and so happy the waterhole has been providing you with entertaiment as you rested your shoulder. Chitwa Chitwa has a HUGE lake that should have some activity for you as well if you decide to take some game drives when we are there. We are all looking forward to seeing you on the morning of the 8th.

Some time I'll have to have a poem-writing contest with Mark. Pretty good. I'm very much enjoying the posts from both groups on the Dark Continent and trying (without much luck) not to be too jealous.

--------------------------

Eugene

WOW for poem and WOW for scones!!!!!

Awesome poem!
Is there going to be a LEOPARD II? If so, sign me up!!

poetry and Anne

writing like the angels

I am just loving every report I read wherever it comes from! Packed up tonight for a week at Outer Banks with my entire family, so can't envy too much, but sure am enjoying the read!

Oh to have been able to do this trip! Alas, Anne and Mark bring it all home to us don't they?

I think Mark is the new Bard of the Bush! As Anne continues on with her wonderful prose we have all enjoyed in so many trips to Africa, from Egypt and the Nile to Rwanda and the gorillas, Kenya and/or Bostwana I think, and now to Tanzania. Keep it up, both of you! And of course, Ngaire's wonderful commentary, and Ken's and Mary Ellen's pictures!

Kathy, I just knew you and Al would love this trip! My ROAR's and SAMBA are two of my best ever travel memories, thanks to Ngaire's perfect planning.

La Residence at Franschhoek:

Richard and Lori checked in at City Lodge ORTambo Airport.

Well I'm with all you Leopard people in spirit. I have on my Singita T-shirt that I bought during our ROARing adventure.

May all the memories you derive from your South African adventure fit comfortably in your memory bank.

Cheers! Ray

I sure am missing posts from our LEOPARDs - guess they must be deep in the bush - no WI-Fi signal and certainly no time to post!!

Did you Leps do the White shark tour in Hermanus? Would love to see pics

I imagine the LEOPARDs are having Internet issues. It's pretty difficult at the Camps. Yes, a number of them did the Great White Shark tour and several went down in the cage. I'll see if I can provide further information.

-----------------------------

Eugene

I saw on the land mail that they were going to do it, but never saw any reporting on it. I was hoping to hear their tales! Thanks, Eugene.

Cape Town to Chitwa Chitwa to Kings Camp

We're done with Cape Town and have headed out east
To look at leopards and lions and wildebeests.
Off went Joan and Rich to Leopard Hills they say
We all wished them well for a pleasant stay.
In their absence eight new people did come
All of these people were safari alums.
There was Lori and Richard, Pamela and Jim,
Mary Ellen and her Canadian (who is looking quite slim).
Also from Tasmania came Anne and Gary
To look at the wildlife, some tame, some scary.
At Chitwa Chitwa we saw leopards and such
But lions and rhinos not all that much.
The rangers at Chitwa named Tristan and Surprise,
Harli and Rexon, all wonderful guys
Their knowledge and skills got us all elated
Watching a cheetah kill after leopards mated.
All you LCT'ers might have taken note
That the group has failed to lately post.
It's not for a lack of interest to tweet
It's just the local internet is unconsciously weak.
When we arrive at King's Camp people will answer the call
(And Anne can recover for her posting withdrawal).
Life continues to be great and everyone's jolly
As we move along in our South African folly.
Everyone here hopes you are all doing fine
As we journey out in hopes of seeing lions dine.

Yay! They're alive!! Thank you Mark! Very fun, creative post! That really is cool how you do that.

Oh, Ann.....?????

Internet is so iffy on trips like this. Photos almost never have the ability to post. We should be happy with short text write-ups and the sometime photo.

Hope everyone is loving S Africa as we do. Can't wait for our 4th trip back!

Doug

we're here, we're here ! At Chitwa Chitwa we didn't have wifi, just one very slow community computer. Now we're here at King's Camp. I love it here, such a nice lodge. We had great morning drive, came back to scrumptious breakfast and now I'm finally checking in while sitting on the open patio with a cool breeze thinking to myself....it just does NOT get any better than this.

I know I always say that "every" trip is/was my favorite but being here in the bush really is the VERY VERY BEST. I think everyone should experience this at least once !!!!

Linda and Chris Bailey are on LEOPARD. (They also went to Victoria Falls.) Linda is doing a Shutterfly blog for their trip. I heard from them overnight, and as I suspected and Marcie confirmed, Internet at Chitwa Chitwa was almost non-existent. The Bailey's gave me permission to post the link to their blog (below). Chris also indicated that he thought that Linda would be able to post some time today from King's Camp. There are some very nice photos, including from the shark excursion where both she and Chris went down in the cage! See
Linda Bailey's Blog.

----------------------------

Eugene

Also checking in from King's Camp. We absolutely love it here! I'll leave the details to those who are far more eloquent than I. Just suffice it to say, Olivia, you are right. This is absolutely the trip of a lifetime. If you are ever lucky enough to do this with Ngaire and Ken, it just doesn't get any better!!!

Ken is on the computer with his pictures so I am trying to type on this laptop. I am so fast on a regular keyboard but this is so difficult for me. So I will make this brief. So far the sightings have been fantastic. I will let Anne tell the stories and I will just cover the highlights.

At chitwa chitwa we had two pairs of mating leopards in close proximity to the vehicles it was really stunning. We have never had such a spectacular display before. Then we saw cheetahs and we were fortunate enough that our vehicle was in the right spot to see a cheetah chase down an impala and the chase literally encircled our vehicle. We saw the cheetah leap but could not see the impala at that moment but the ranger said he could. Different angle makes a difference. The kill was made and then three cheetahs were eating away. All four of our vehicles were there I was so happy everyone got to see this sighting. We were able to stay a little longer and we knew there were four cheetahs but only three were at the kill. The cheetahs starting calling and one went off into the push calling and did come back with the fourth cheetah. It is time for lunch a lot more to say but have to go now.
.

This is just a fabulous trip. Every day is a new adventure! King's Camp is wonderful - very comfortable and we had a great game drive this morning. I'll let others describe it for all of you.

Just catching up with Anne's last posting from Tanzania. Here are the photos to illustrate her story of the tree climbing lions, ace ranger and the rescue..............

The biggest one strolls away with the remains



And jumps into a tree to have a little rest



He's not the only one who likes to hang out in trees.





Cats - whatever their size - really spend most of their days resting



Except when they are disturbed by the constant noise of shutters clicking and electronic sounds from digital cameras................Not to mention those odd, two legged critters moving around the range rovers



Did you know that the battery is under the passenger seat?



When that didn't work, the rescue vehicle attempted to tow us...............at high speed..............while driving backwards into a big hole........



Just another day here in Africa

Great posts, poems and pics, thanks. This is the first trip we've missed. Not going to happen again! We're going on the next one!

A couple of photos from Kings Camp before our evening drive:




Same Leopard

Nice tongue!

-------------------

Eugene

Love hearing from all of you - the pictures are wonderful!

Just catching up... wow, Mary Ellen - those cheetah pix are terrific!

On to the Safari:

After gathering in Johannesburg and taking the quick trip to Federal Air, LEOPARDS stuffed two Caravans to the gills. Some were spotting large game from the windows; others were snoozing or passing the time on our way to Chitwa Chitwa. The camp mascot is the giraffe; the camp name itself is in honor of a longtime resident bull giraffe. Every time he passed, a sound best described as "Chitwa Chitwa" eminated from those creaky knee joints.

Our game drive staff and luggage folks whisked us away to our new home away from home. Chitwa Chitwa is remarkable for a unique mix of individual room decor. Shade management is better here than any other camp I've visited. Public areas offer ample shade, and a huge lake supports hippos, yellow billed storks, African fish eagles, crocodiles, African spoonbill storks, Egyptian geese, water buck, nyala, yellow and red hornbills and a few itinerant species (more on this later). The outside dining area is completely shaded with thatch roofing as breezes flow through the space. The deck space is beautiful, spacious and our camera pros photographed the latest and greatest developments along the banks of "Lake Chitwa Chitwa" - where the men are beautiful, the women are strong and the animal action is above average.

We settled in for lunch as Ngaire and Ken took photos of each room, followed by un-"pack and play" of safari life. Tristan, Reckson, Hali (pronouned Harley) and Surprise led us on game drives, and what a store of surprises they had for us. Open seating was the order of the camp, and we all enjoyed getting to know each ranger. Day one's highlights ranged from the large (breeding herds of elephants, a lone rhino who posed perfectly for our photos) to the uniquely small (a pearl spotted owlet). All well and good, but we need some Big Ranger Action. Crackle .. Shagan language .. crackle .. "Copy" and off we speed. Hmmm ... Lion? Leopard? We knew something really good was nearby. It turned out to be a giant sundowner fest. Everyone could compare notes .. some seeing one type of animal, others picking up on something else .. and enjoying the opportunity to be sharing friendship, drinks and snacks as the sun settled in for the night. The stars gradually took over the night sky as we returned to camp.

We had made a solemn pact .. no going back to your rooms or changing clothes for dinner. We hoofed it straight to the bar and swapped stories until the tom-tom drum announced our dinner. Table for 22, please! It was great fun.

Safari on Steriods

The next morning, we straggled in for a quick coffee and compared notes on our first night in the bush, fueled by Big Game wishes and Malarone dreams. Note: check a watch FIRST when one thinks one has heard the ranger knock on the door to ascertain it's not a Malarone fueled moment. If it's not 5 am, it's not time to get up. The day's game drive was taken up with finding 2 .. count 'em 2 .. leopards who were playing the mating game. Theres nothing serene or sweet about this behavior. The female harasses the male with side swipes and the occasional smack in the face until either he mates or smacks her back. Mating definitely involves growls and bites on the neck. The path to these leopards was fraught with trees, grasses and hang on to your roll bar moments. The sighting was well worth it .. and we wish all the best for the happy couple when the stork arrives with leopard cubs.

After a return to camp and breakfast and/or lunch, we returned to our game drives. The leopards had moved a short distance, and everyone got to see the leopards who had missed them in the morning. More mating leopards! WOO HOO! Dinner was our boma night .. certainly the best I've experienced in Africa. All of us wore a native African cloth over our clothes, and the setting was simply magical.

On our second day, we observed more terrific wild life sightings. No lion, but all the rest of the big five were ticked on our species checklists. The afternoon drive featured nursing young elephants near the water hole, elephants splashing in the water hole, a gorgeous male leopard surveying the hunting terrain on a termite mound .. incredible! We found another rhino and then moved on towards the camp to end the day. Surprise got a real surprise .. saying "but we're HERE" on the radio and quickly reversed course. We got the last slot on a CHEETAH sighting at sunset. Four .. count 'em four .. cheetahs had arrived. They moved onto territory without traversing rights, but not before 2 of our four vehicles had enjoyed a quick sighting.

Next morning, we were off on a cheetah hunt. They kindly crossed back on Chitwa Chitwa property and took their time to scope the landscape for prey from the top of termite mound. Hmm .. possible breakfast prey were in their sights. They took off down the hill with us in pursuit. Sure enough, they landed an impala.

It's one thing to want to be there for a kill .. it's altogether another thing to have it happen. Three of the cheetahs aggressively started at the rear of the impala and worked their way forward. Unfortunately, the suffocation throat hold had only stunned the impala. It passed away fairly quickly thereafter, but not before a gruesome few moments and a lot of gruesome noise. We left the sighting and headed off to heed the call of another set of leopards mating. Along the way, a few other camp vehicles passed by on their way to the cheetah kill.

This second sighting was in a much clearer location. The female wasted no time smacking the male across the face to get busy and attend to her needs. He snarled, mated and shook off the whole process by taking a short walk before falling over in a heap. This scene repeated a few more times before we left for coffee and muffins.

Half of the group left on the morning flight to King's Camp, while the other half had lunch at Chitwa Chitwa before heading out to the airstrip.

Welcome to Beautiful Downtown Timbavati

We were all reassembled at King's Camp by the 3:30 evening game drive.

Patrick and tracker Albert were on the hunt for less than 20 minutes when we came across the two new lion bossmen in the Timbavati. The bigger of the two tips the scales at 261 Kg (about 572 lbs)! Albert had helped with a research effort (one of the two had a radio collar that was getting much too tight as he grew; it needed to be loosened for his safety). The paw of the larger lion was as large as Albert's face. Ahem .. pay your respects as there are new sheriffs in town, lionesses.

After that amazing sighting, we enjoyed a large elephant herd and a very rare sighting of a baboon spider (that's a taratula for the US audience) before a lovely dinner.

The next day, we rolled up to another incredible safari moment: leopardess Tumbela had nailed an impala overnight, dragged it up a tree and was chomping away whilst two hyenas patiently circled for scraps underneath her feeding. The lighting was decent and many good pictures are going home with the LEOPARD guests. We also came across the southern ground hornbill .. an endangered bird who we saw on the wing before they disappeared into long grass. All in all, another wonderful day drive on safari.

Our company is starting to lose enthusiasm for the 'eat or go hungry' mentality of the bush. Lunch attendance is slowly declining as more of us hit the 'food coma' wall after breakfast.

This afternoon we found Tumbela, who had also hit the 'food coma' wall panting in the grass and doing her best to lift her head to look at the incoming range rovers. She gave it up and flopped over for a well deserved digestion session in the waning light of day. The hyena den after Mom returned to very young cubs and a couple of older ones who are about 9 months of age was our final sighting of the day. It was a fascinating sighting. We went on a rhino trek to no avail, but others spotted the rhino. I hope that's on our agenda for tomorrow.

Pleasure, No. 7

Finally finished all the posts to date - Great photos, reports and poems! Wish we were there!

Thanks!
Wonderful photos & tales made better by the telling.

Doug

Loving the kitty pics!

Yay, the posting continues! I was going into withdrawal.

Sign me up for the next safari, I have to do this!

Oh my! Incredible pix, poetry and Anne's inimitable prose!! Quite overwhelming what y'all have seen!

Thanks so much and continue, please!

FYI: Linda Bailey was able to post a new entry on her Shutterfly blog with narrative and a number of photos from Chitwa Chitwa.

-------------------------

Eugene

WOW! I am enchanted by the terrific photos! And Anne's wonderful report. Thanks gang! What a time you are all having!

Chitwa Chitwa Photos:

Wow great pictures Ken.

Wonderful pictures, Ken! Your work just keeps getting better and better! (if that was possible!)

Doug

And X-rated, too!

-----------------

Eugene

Altered Perspective

Marius (former Leopard Hills ranger) is here as a consultant to assist our wildlife photographic results. The LEOPARDS took turns gettting tips on exposure compensation (where do I find THAT on this camera?), aperture priority, portraits need an F-stop of 8 .. the list goes on. We've got the true SLR specialists along with those of us in the digital point-and-shoot stock in trade. No matter - Marius is up to the task!

Marcie won the award as our most improved photographer. She asked everyone with the long lenses to donate to her picture collection on behalf of "Photos for the Poor". Brilliant, creative . that's our Marcie!

We headed off in the early morning light into very fresh weather. Back where I come from, we'd call it downright cold. But I digress .. Remember got the call about leopard, adding wind chill to the mix as he barrelled down a tarred road. The leopard just crossed over the area where we cannot traverse; so we snuggled more tightly into the blankets and hoped our fingers will regain their feeling. Why does a leopard cross the road? ... The highs and lows of the safari drive had begun.

We then worked out how to improve our sunrise photos on the way to finding two of the remaining members of the Machatten pride of lions. The grandmother and a 1-1/2 to 2 year old male cub were doing what lions do best: snooze. It's a sober wake up call for me .. the Machatten pride sightings just 16 months ago were among the highlights of that trip. There were about 20 lions in all, strong and filled with cubs. With new male lion sheriffs taking over, the culling part (gruesome but necessary) of rebuilding the pride is well underway. The cub is thin and unlikely to see his next birthday; the grandmother is battle worn and approximately 18 years old. Her sister has already died, leaving her to shoulder the entire burden. Her time is running out.

A comfort stop occurred on the way to our next sighting. All the males in our rover hopped off towards an enticing bush; the females were channeling their inner camel so as to wait for proper toilet facilities.

Next up was the rhino calf. Her mother is sharing space with a bull rhino, all the while reminding him to stay away from the calf and to give her plenty of space. He seemed pained she didn't appreciate his good looks and companionship. The calf was doing what calves do best - be cute, curious and serve as wonderful photo subjects. She was talking to her mom; it never fails to surprise me how such enormous animals were equipped with only a high pitched, soft squeak and squeal. A barking chihuahua could drown them out without much effort. She obligingly needed to nurse in perfect light, then used her milk coma to lie down for a well-earned nap. What could be a better safari sighting than that?

Marius suggested we stop for the bush coffee and comfort break; yet Ranger Remember had a different plan. We drove past many a suitable drink stop location. It was near 9 am and the need for a comfort break was alive and well throughout our range rover. Hmm .. where IS that coffee stop? We turned a corner to find a gorgeous bush breakfast set and ready for our company. The females made fast tracks towards the proper toilet facilities and we enjoyed a lovely cold buffet with cooked to order hot items. Nikon Ken put his new photo knowledge to use, taking a magnificent picture of Marius and Ngaire. He assembled many montages of the LEOPARDS in small and large groupings. All in all, a delightful morning's drive.

Next up for those interested (ie, everybody) was a short slide show in the library by Marius showing many different ways to create a memorable photograph. Bottom line: an altered perspective produces exceptional photos. My favorite was the pan shot around motion. Translation? Blurred pictures. They are all the rage! Delete no more - your blurry picture may be the next cover of National Geographic.

A warm shower led to a two hour nap. One has to prepare for the rigors of camp life, and the next great challenge was Comfort Food Fest. Yep - American style hamburgers, fries and beer. The King's Camp staff rose to the challenge and
served up gorgeous burgers on a freshly baked, toasted bun, accompanied by trays groaning with tomato, onion, pickle, lettuce and condiments to build the perfect burger. Crisp french fries were served in espresso cups, followed by a hot tray for each table to devour. Contentment was achieved.

Go grab your cameras, coats and hats to giddy up for another push through the bush. Ranger turnover time began. Patrick was off to enjoy his two week leave, and tracker Albert was following after our drive. Cynite (pronounced sign-it) took the wheel, laughed at our outlandish requests and pointed out his version of ostrich every chance he got. The big sighting was a lone bull elephant with awesome tusks on the river bed, using his trunk to dig a well and find water. It was fascinating to watch him plunge his trunk into the sand, screwing and extending it ever deeper, pull it up to hose down his mouth and then spew the rest from his trunk, so he could do it once again. We went to the boundary of the reserve, spending time near a dam with hippo, birds (saddlebill storks! haven't seen those since Botswana, 2006) and great possibilities for the sunset shots. We teamed up with another rover for joint sundowners and then made our way back to camp.

Our farewell cocktails were underway in no time. Those handy flashlights meant we could all safely find our way to and from the party and dining room. We finished off dinner with a celebratory toast to Richard and Joan on the occasion of their 37th wedding anniversary. As Richard so eloquently said, they were glad to share their special day with us, and to be accepted into such a fine group of fellow travelers. I can safely say we all share that sentiment. This has been a
remarkably congenial group of fellow travelers, and I am most grateful to share our safari with them. Our heartfelt thanks to Ngaire and Ken for organizing such a wonderful trip. We REALLY can't do it without them.

Breaking Up Is Hard To Do

This morning, single sex range rovers were sorted and we headed off for the last King's Camp game drive. It would not be a Ngaire trip if we didn't have acronyms for this adventure. The men chose DUNG: Dudes Unearthing Nature's Glories and the women chose GALPALS: Great African Ladies' Princess Approved Luxury Safari. Vive la difference!

Ngaire was all over winning the prize for largest number of documented animal sightings. She imposed a stiffer rule on her rover than the rest of us - no feathered creatures to be included in the tally! They zipped from animal to animal, thoroughly confusing the ranger who is used to long photo stops with the call of "GO! GO! GO! We've already got the Cape Buffalo!!" The gents were virtually playing the river course and scoring their virtual strokes, while our range rover was enjoying the considerable skills of Cheron as Range Rover Director and not bothering to document much of anything. We included birds in our count and enjoyed a large herd of elephants. I did get my new favorite ever elephant photo, so it was a complete success.

The PHOTO group (Picture Heaven: Occupants' Total Objective) got the Rockfig Jr. leopard sighting, along with Ngaire's group. We crashed around looking for RJ after she gave everyone the slip into dense foliage. As Morne reminded us, "It's said we only see 6% of the creatures that see us." And on THAT note .. EEK! Can we return to camp? Please??


Breakfast was lovely, as Ngaire digested the news she'd won the competition because the rest of us forgot to participate. Gary gave her plenty of guff, though, about the guys having won, so all was not lost. Congrats to Ngaire and her highly effective, well run rover.

We're at the point where the King's Campers now split and head in many directions. Sixteen are on their way to Leopard Hills; six are headed to Johannesburg and points beyond. Gary and I are here until tomorrow; then whisk ourselves back to Joburg International and make the no so long journey home on the South African JFK nonstop flight.

Spoiler Alert:

Internet is iffy at Leopard Hills. Further communication is guaranteed to be sporadic. Band width matters!

Thanks for following our travels - hope you can be here next time!

Pleasure, No. 7

Well...this fantastic trip is almost over. Many just left to fly on to Leopard Hills. Anne & Gary are staying here at King's Camp one more night but 6 of us are flying to JNB at 2:00. Jim & Mary Ellen are spending a few days in/around Cape Town and Joan & Rich are heading home. In order to avoid a 30 hours in JNB (no ff seats), we have a driver picking us up at Fed Air then off to "Walk With The Lions" this afternoon. Link: Walk With the Lions .

We will overnight at their lodge and do the lion programs tomorrow morning (thanks to seeing Ralph & Andi's photos it immediately went on the bucket list).
After lunch there we will continue on to the elephant sanctuary for the afternoon. Link: Elephant Sanctuary

From the sanctuary we'll go back to JNB and begin our journey home at 7:00pm tomorrow evening on British Air connecting at LHR, then on to LAX.

This has been the best trip with a wonderful group and lasting memories never to fade. Ngaire & Ken never cease to amaze me at how they put together such fabulous escorted trips albeit on land or sea. Always A+++

The good news is that we'll be welcoming a 4th grandbaby any time...just hope he doesn't arrive before Sunday night when we get home.

Marcie, safe trip. Have a fantastic time walking with lions. I understand the elephant sanctuary is also fantastic. It's on our bucket list for the next time. Glad it was wonderful!

I am so envious of the cheetah sightings! Sure wish we had been able to do this trip.

Hi everyone!

Anne has covered most of the aspects of this safari we have truly had some outstanding sightings and great weather.
One thing to add was at Chitwa Chitwa and the antics of the resident crocodile.

Chitwa Chitwa has a huge lake in front of the lodge and all guest rooms. Each day at 3.30 pm the crocodile would start chasing the little fish into the corner of a shallow pool just right next to the lodge. The fish would then jump out of the water and the crocodile would rise up and catch them mid air. Like clockwork each day for afternoon tea.

We also saw him do this at about morning tea time when we were waiting to leave for Kings Camp. A very civilized croc he must be of english decent.

We arrived at leopard Hills unfortunately it was drizzly and over cast. It has not dampened the Leopards spirits though and we have had great sightings.

An exciting situation is at hand. The lion coalition called the Majingelane boys are threatening to take over the territory of the resident four line strong Selati coalition. There has already been a fight as we saw three of the Selati boys and they are banged up but the rangers believe the Selati boys will be victorius. The Majingelane boys are on an area we cannot drive but should move over to our side to fight the Selati boys.

In the meantime the pretty boy of four strong Selati boys is very busy having an affair with the most beautiful lionness, and not joining in the fight. We had a pretty pornographic sighting of the action of these two gorgeous lions.

As always Leopard Hills muffins RULE. The new rooms the stunning amazing difference.

Okay more later.

Greetings!

We are in Cape Town at the ever lovely Cape Grace. This has been one of our most memorable trips ever. Special thanks to Ngaire and Ken for this most amazing journey.

The weather was a bit stormy yesterday so we departed from the airport at Eastgate instead of the landing strip near Kings Camp. We did get to experience an aborted takeoff due to a family of warthogs who really needed to get to the other side of the runway just as we began to accelerate! Marcie had the best view of them trotting along with their tails held straight up.

Ngaire had arranged for Marius to join us and deliver real time photography lessons. As many of you know, he is an enthusiastic teacher and he provided hints and tips for everyone, no matter their level of expertise. For all you Canon people, the best tip for me was to shoot in AI servo instead of one shot. Also, use aperture priority AND when confronted with bright, glaring light and high contrast shadows deliberately UNDER expose by 1/3 or 2/3. We also spent time working on backlighting.

Some results of the tutoring for your viewing pleasure.

Mama and "baby"



Baby elephant (AI Servo helped nail this one)



At the watering hole





Anne described our last game drive above. The ranger was a little confused with our cries of "enough watching the elephants, we want rhino" and "never mind the hyenas, we need giraffe". We did manage to see 15 different species in our rapid fire "Ferrari Safari" Including some interesting specimens of the two legged variety



As a final flourish, we went crashing through the bush to track a leopard. By now you all know, that I am always happy to see cats





It was a sunny, warm day in Cape Town and we made the journey out to Robben Island. One more full day here with a visit to Franschoeck and then the long journey home and back to reality.



We are looking forward to the reports from Leopard Hills and plotting our return to Africa!

Wonderful pictures, Mary Ellen.
Yes, Al Servo is the 'hidden' gem in the Canon camera.

Glad everyone had such a great time!

Doug

Thank you everyone for the wonderful reports and pictures.

What a wonderful 24 hour whirlwind we've had. Landed in JNB after the funniest thing watching a semi aborted take off delay waiting for family of watrhogs to casually stroll off the runway. They showed no fear as airplane was coming straight at them...dumb!

We were greeted by a driver and off we went to "Walk With The Lions". We were late arriving but the owners and staff couldn't have been any nicer. They made us lasagna dinner, salad, desert, bottle of wine and escorted us to our cabin for the night. Our cabin was rustic,a clean free standing unit with sparse furnishings but a very comfortable bed, adequate bath and just fine for our 1 night there. It reminded me of going to camp as a child.

We were awakened early the next morning by roaring lions...they sounded like they were right outside our door, yep, they really were! Our guide "gathered" us at 8:00 and off we went to walk with the lions. This group of lions approximately 4-6 years old, the teenager group not quite fully grown and a bit mischievous. It was amazing, a bit scary but with the guides we both felt comfortable. It was such an experience I'll never forget.

Back for a 3 course breakfast around 9:15 then off to learn and see more about all the research they're doing and seeing 3 day old baby cubs. Just a quick glance as not to make "Mom" nervous. We were able to play with a group of approximately 12 "toddler" lions under 1 year old. They had a thing for "jeans" and continued to try to tug at Tom's leg. It was hilarious. I could have stayed there all day with these playful pre-schoolers. They also have 2 rescued tigers that are huge and so pretty. We met Emma, a resident cheetah and I was able to pet her which was very cool. The final program of the morning was cuddling with the babies. OMG, you've never seen anything cuter. So precious, you want to bring 'em home. This is an amazing facility, doing so much good work for the betterment and future of lions and in depth studies especially re breeding of white lions (recessive gene).

There are other animals within the compound (zebras, impala, and such) so the lions are able to practice and learn hunting skills. There are lots of volunteers from around the world and and a very dedicated group.

After our farewell with the lions our driver drove us about 1 hour away to the Elephant Sanctuary. Another fantastic experience spent learning all about elephants, hearing the stories about how they came to be there (some so sad). We were able to feed some, touch them and really feel them. We spent several hours there, I got a kiss from one male. It made me giggle.

We were then whisked from the sanctuary to JNB airport for the beginning of our journey home. I just can't begin to tell you what a special 24 hours we had being able to visit both the lions as well as the elephants and all because we had a 30 hour layover due to unavailability of ff seats. What a Blessing! I would highly recommend visiting both of these if you ever have the opportunity, would be difficult to have to choose one over another. Both have lodging facilities, I did take photos of some of the cottages at Walk With The Lions and peaked in the windows of one of the rooms at the elephant sanctuary and it looked nice.

Now in the Concord room here at Heathrow waiting for our final leg home.
I uploaded photos if anyone would like to see them here. Walk With The Lions

Elephant Sanctuary

More Photos from Leopard:


Male Rhino marking his territory.


Cape Buffalo in early morning still resting.


Baby Giraffe and Oxpecker.


Fly away bird.


Shiela, Ngaire, & Linda having Rover service.


Wait for me Mom.




Elephants running.


We tracked down this leopard just before dark.

Wonderful photos Mary Ellen, Ken and Marcie!

Ken,

That Cape Buffalo pic is Nat Geo stuff. Amazing! Wish we were there.

Maddy & Paul

Sadly, the remaining 16 of us parted ways today. Sheila, Ken, David and Claudia are heading home to Australia. Al and I are in the SAA lounge in JNB waiting for our 9 pm flight to JFK and the remaining LEOPARDS are off to walk with the lions. What a wonderful adventure this has been. We've seen such incredible animals and learned so much about them. As an added bonus we have made so many new friends! This has been such a great group! Our hats off to Ngaire and Ken for the trip of a lifetime. Many, many thanks to you both!

By the way, Marcie, the picture of the lion going after Tom's jeans had us all in hysterics this morning! Glad you had such a great time!

The Princess has demanded a final poem be done
To reiterate that the LEOPARDS had especially great fun
We viewed leopards and lions doing their mating thing
While unlucky males only dreamed of such flings
In total 24 LEOPARDS took part
And there was laughter and kidding right from the start
Brown,Keene and Hutyra, a great travel team
Put together a trip extraordinarily supreme
As we come to the end of this South African pursuit
Ken and Ngaire we heartily salute
We went on safari and the Big 5 we saw
Now we look forward to seeing LCTer's at Hee Haw

Bravo, Mark! Thanks to all for the pictures and updates, and we wish you a safe and uneventful trip home.

Cheers, Anne

Obvious to us that it was a special adventure you had and look forward to hearing about it from those of you who will be doing Hee Haw.

In the meantime, pleasant dreams as you fly home.

Cheers! Ray & Penny

Now that all the Leopards are home, looking forward to seeing everyone's photos.

We already miss everyone

I always get sad when your wonderful trips end

Posting for Kathy:

Happy shoppers!

Ah those lovely coats in the V&A Waterfront Mall. Fast purchase by Marcie as she was lusting after the coat I bought that afternoon. The coat was too big for me but I did not care I loved it.
All originals only one of a kind. All the group were waiting outside the store we were on our way to Baia. Fastest purchase EVER!

Beautiful!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

While the majority of LEOPARDS were at Kings Camp Richard and I were at Royal Malewane (sister property to Birkenhead House and La Residence). Here are our photos.
http://s145.photobucket.com/albums/r220/cruzaddict/Royal%20Malewane%202012/

Very nice pix Richard and Lori. Thanks for sharing them.