The Journey Inward

We woke up at 5 am and made it to the drive vehicle by 5:15! There were probably 10 of us as we set out. I do not like waking up early, but I had absolutely no problem, bounding out of bed and getting on board for this!

We started seeing animals right away, and this time they were much closer than they were Thursday night.

One sad note here is the rhino remains we saw. Poachers sneak onto the reserve, sometimes even by lighting a fire in a different part so that they know the Rangers will be busy. They kill the rhino and cut off its horn. They grind it down and sell it as an aphrodisiac. The nature reserve tries to counteract this by dehorning the rhinos, but they do grow back every year. Rhino skin is so tough that they actually had to cut it open so that the scavengers could do their job. The nature reserve never communicates with other vehicles about the location of rhinos for this very reason. Despicable.

The rhinos were plentiful today! And it just felt like every animal was much closer to us.

We stopped at Pilanesberg Center for a bathroom break. The driver always sets up snacks and drinks and this morning it was a South African biscuit, coffee, tea, and hot chocolate. We saw there that the Cape Buffalo had not been spotted in over a month. Our tour guide said they spent a lot of time up in the north western corner of the park and there aren’t many roads there. I enjoyed looking at the map of the park.

The kudu was easily one of my favorite animals. It is the second largest in the antelope family. The male has gorgeous horns and the female has a whimsical face. Both have beautiful white markings on their fur. We also saw some lionesses sleeping out a ways and a lion sleeping behind a tree.

On our way back to the lodge, the driver pretended that she needed to check the tires. One of the men on board asked if he could get off and go to the toilet. He asked his girlfriend to stand watch. When they got just outside the vehicle, he got down on one knee and proposed! We all cheered!

Back at the lodge, we had a hearty breakfast at the buffet and looked out over the mountains. So many local birds came to visit!

After breakfast, I trampolined for a little bit and then Walter went to meditate and I took a 2 mile walk, checking out the grounds thoroughly. I went down to the high to see if anybody was at the watering hole, I lifted some weights at the gym, and I went by the gift shop.

When we reconvened, we decided that instead of paying for a second drive that day, we would take Walter’s huge truck, Betty, out into the park. So after a 4 Hour drive that morning, we set off on a five hour exploration that afternoon! Having the freedom to go at our own pace, stay longer in spots, and just generally take our time paid off! The guides are moving quickly to get you as many of the big five as they can, but they miss so many of the birds and antelope and interactions that the animals have.

As we passed the high rocks and caves, we were pulled to the side, watching a rhino and her baby. Suddenly, we heard the soft meowing of a cub. It sounded like it was in the bushes to our right. We immediately put up our windows in case we were between it and the mother. It was the absolute sweetest thing to hear.

We rounded a corner and saw a large group of elephants together. One of the females came forward and raised and lowered her trunk, so we backed up and gave them space. They seemed happy with that and went about their interactions. And, more babies!!!!

A couple passed us just after this and said they had been stuck for a half hour when 45 elephants took over the road!

Our next stop was a bathroom break at Pilanesberg Center. I was able to buy fridge magnets to add to my collection! We also saw some wonderful animals at the salt lick nearby.

We decided to climb the mountain next and get some sweeping views.

We needed to be out of the park by 7 PM, so we beat it down the mountain and across the bumpy paths. It was so much warmer and a gentler ride in the truck.

Back at the lodge, it was another amazing dinner night, plus a beer!

One of the best stations was six different plates of raw fish fillets. You took whichever ones you wanted outside to the chef, who grilled it to order.

Back in the room, I was able to speak to each of the girls again. We had all spoken briefly yesterday on Thanksgiving, which was very bittersweet. G and T hosted their first holiday, having T’s brothers and Mom and Mom’s partner. G and G were in Charleston with their and his partner and her son and the son’s girlfriend. I enjoyed all the pictures that came in.

We walked down to the hide to see if any animals were there at night. I recorded the frogs and crickets and it was amazing!

I slept so deeply that night!