During the March school holidays, we took a little road trip with my folks up to the Northern Cape, to the Kgalagadi National Park. It's actually a trans frontier park, crossing into Botswana and Namibia too. The drive is about 10 hours, without breaks. We took lots of breaks, like one every 1 1/2 - 2 hours. My dad needed them and it made for a much more pleasant trip. The pic above was taken in Keimoes, very near to where our friends, Wes and Lizelle live. They were out of town, so we missed them this time. We also spent a night in Upington on our way up and Calvinia on our way home. The region we visited is probably the warmest in all of South Africa and we had days where it went up to 44 deg C! Talk about melting. Thank goodness for air con, in the car at least.
We had a good night's sleep and were on the road by mid-morning. We made a quick stop in the little town of Askham. If you blink you'll miss it, the town is that tiny. We'd read in a magazine somewhere about the amazing milkshakes and milk tarts served at the Diamond Tea House, so made a point of stopping there on our way to the park.
Jake loves being wild and free. After a good night's rest and the promise of a milkshake and milk tart, he was a happy guy. And look at the magnificent red Kalahari sand...
He's so sweet when he's away from the pressures of home and I love the time we share making memories together. Look how short I'm getting...
The milkshakes were well worth the stop - simply divine. We stopped again on our way home (we had to) and all settled for strawberry shakes on the way home...
Jake enjoyed a coffee shake...
By far the yummiest milk tart I have ever had...
My next bunch of photos are in no real order - sorry for the overload, it is just such a beautiful part of the world and it was our first real visit to the park. Jacques and I spent 1 night there in about 2000 and all I remember is going for a night drive on my own and coming home to find Jacques and Wes sitting next to the braai in their underpants and an empty bottle of brandy next to them!
This is a little African Wild Cat. This one had made himself at home below our hut at Kieliekrankie...
The photos don't do the view justice! This campsite is unfenced, has it's own waterhole and only accommodates 8 people. Peace and quite at it's best...
Two huge secretary birds at the water hole at Kieliekrankie. Pic by Jake...
Cheetahs...
One of the highlights of our trip, for me, was seeing meerkats (suricates) in the wild for the first time. They are unbelievably cute, very busy and super vigilant of their surroundings. One will be digging and foraging, while another watches the sky for raptors. Just wonderful to see them...
One minute, he's sitting watching his friends scratching for food...
And the next, he's up on his feet looking behind him...
Beautiful meerkat. Pic by Jake...
Ever on the look out. Pic by Jake..
The Kalahari is barren, but that's what makes it so beautiful...
These are sand grouses. I can't tell you which one, but they puff out their feathers to collect water to take back to their nests for their babies. When they have babies, of course...
A very long snake - we saw 5 during our holiday, all of them deadly. This one was a black mamba...
There's the goshawk on the left and 3 ground squirrels on the right - the snake is almost in front of the squirrels, who did not move a muscle for fear of both predators. Pic by Jake... 
This is a pale chanting goshawk, bravely trying to catch the above black mamba...
This is a pale chanting goshawk, bravely trying to catch the above black mamba...
The Kgalagadi used to be know as the Kalahari Gemsbok National Park, before it became a trans frontier park. These are the beautiful Gemsbok...
Unlike Kruger, Kgalagadi doesn't have the big 5. They have lions, leopards, but no rhino, elephant or buffalo. We were super lucky to see a leopard. It wasn't a great sighting, but we were still thrilled...
My handsome teen...
Jake at sunset. Pic by Pa...
A beautiful Crimson Breasted Shrike. We saw some really beautiful, new birds. I think Jake added 14 new birds to his list...
This lion was passed out in the road next to a waterhole. We were told he was ill and not doing well. We saw him twice after this at different locations...
Lions in the dry river bed...
Kalahari lions are famed for their black manes...
The river view bungalows at Nossob - that's the wild on the other side of that little fence...
It gets so hot during the day in Kgalagadi. All the animals literally run for shade. Trees in themselves are a scarcity...
Female Violet Eared Waxbill...
And there's her boyfriend...
Another beautiful young lion...
And another...
And more cheetahs - we were very lucky. The beautiful part of Kgalagadi is that when you see something, you see it well. Kruger has a much wider variety of animals, but the park is often crowded and you have to work through traffic to catch a glimpse. The vegetation is also completely different in Kruger...
This lion was near to our camp and he was thirsty...
It's very intimidating when a lion stares at you like this. You just know he's wondering whether he can eat you up...
OK, so if I'm honest about this photo, the lion was making a poop. But look at the light and aren't you glad his paws were in the way of actually seeing more...
Keeping an eye on the surroundings. Pic by Jake...
And roaring his heart out. Pic by Jake...
A thick knee something or other with her babies...
A thick knee something or other with her babies...
Look how stunning this crimson shrike is...
The circle of life...
A ground squirrel...
This is the same lion that was pooping earlier - we saw him again later in the day...
He was roaring up a storm again. Must've been looking for love...
A swallow-tailed bee eater...
A huge heard of giraffes. Pic by Jake...
It's very funny to watch them manoeuvre into position to drink. It's a long way down. Pic by Jake...
Giraffes are also very cautious animals. They've got a long way to go when they need to come up in a hurry...
Giraffes are also very cautious animals. They've got a long way to go when they need to come up in a hurry...
Whoo-hoo - I managed to catch the water flick...
Play fighting and learning how to defend themselves. Pic by Jake...
My dad and Jake at the braai at Kalahari Tented Camp...
A lunch time braai at Kalahari Tented Camp...
Jake and his Nini...
Jake, me and my dad. Pic by Nini...
My mom and Jake swinging on the gates to our drive way of our hut at Kalahari Tented Camp...
A little Cape Fox at the entrance to it's burrow...
A little Cape Fox at the entrance to it's burrow...
A Bateleur - this is Jake's favourite bird...
Ooooh - I almost forgot about these guys. We saw a breeding pair of lions up close. Like 3m away from our car! I love how he's checking her out in this photo. She'd just stood up to give him the sign that she was ready to go. Again...
Lions mate 50 times a day. We saw them mating 3 times before a truck came and we had to move out the way so he could pass and the lions got up and moved off...
Mating is hard work. Pic by Jake...
This funny animal is a Wildebeest (or gnu, if you prefer)...
Oh yes! And this. We saw puff adders mating in the middle of the road as well!!
I can't tell you who's who, but it was entertaining. This sequence is all Jake's shots, they're incredible...
Another of our very exciting sightings was a beautiful brown hyena. You do get these guys in Kruger too, but they are so rare. Even in Kgalagadi, their numbers are low and we had such a beautiful sighting of this lovely lady...
Beautiful early morning sunshine...
Another animal that resides in the Kgalagadi, but not in Kruger is the Springbok. I've never seen them in the wild before, so that was a real treat too... They are so super cool when they do their springing thing. And look at this baby...
Jake with my parents at the entrance/exit to the park...
And me and my giant child. Pic by Nini...
And Nini with us. Pic by Pa...
More springboks. Pic by Jake..
A cape cobra in the "grass". Pic by Jake...
Gemsbok. Pic by Jake...
There were so many gemsbok, they have such beautiful markings and socks. Note the duelling pair in the background. Pic by Jake...
A black backed jackal at a picnic site. They're real scavengers and people are so bad at dropping bones and leaving waste behind, it's a bit of a problem, but does let you take photos up close. Pic by Jake...
Springboks springing...
And again. They waited so patiently to cross the road and we waited patiently for them to cross the road, we just knew we'd see some jumping...
Jake teasing the visiting birds with their calls on his cell phone. Pic by Jake...
A mongoose at our bungalow at Kalahari Tented Camp. Pic by Jake...
And this one. Pic by Jake...
This jackal was resident to Kalahari Tented Camp. We nicknamed her "Bitch". It's actually quite sad, because these animals all hang around the campsites because people feed them. Gosh, they make you feel so guilty when you're sitting enjoying your dinner while they're watching you. Pic by Jake...
This was quite frightening. This baby cape cobra (they come in different colours), was hiding in the rocks at the lady's bathroom at a picnic site. Someone eventually caught it by the tail and flung it into the bush. Pic by Jake...
They are very pretty, but so deadly. Pic by Jake...
Clever geckos waiting for bugs around the light on our stoep. Pic by Jake...
The lizards (and snakes) enjoy the sunshine. 44 degrees is not a joke though. The weather in this park is extreme - frost in winter time and unbearable heat in summer. We were there at the beginning of autumn and it was killer hot. Pic by Jake...
This male cheetah was so fat from feasting, he looked pregnant. Pic by Jake...
One afternoon, we came back to camp (Nossob) and Jake was driving, so I jumped out the passenger seat and danced my way to the gate to open it for him. I ushered him in and then we stopped at the little shop to buy some cool drinks. There were a few people there and one stopped me and said - you obviously didn't see the lion outside the gate. He was apparently just in the grass next to the gate. When we went to look, he'd moved off, but was lying in the road just in front of the gate. He must've walked right past me. Fortunately for me, he was the same sick lion that we'd seen a few days earlier at a waterhole. We couldn't believe that he'd made it all the way to our camp. Pics by Jake...
OK, so there's the lion lying in the shade and where the road turns left midway in the picture, is the gate to the camp...
Game viewing from our stoep at Nossob...
Pink gins with lots of ice on the stoep with my Nini...
Picturesque. Pic by Jake
A Martial eagle in flight. These are the biggest of our eagles and their wingspan is nearly 2.5m. Pic by Jake...
This is Africa's largest flying bird, a Kori Bustard. Pic by Jake...
This is the nest of a sociable weaver. There are hundreds of birds living in a communal nest. Pic by Pa...
There's Jake behind the wheel. He's a really good driver, but tends to get a little bored and then doesn't concentrate all that well. In 2 years time he'll be a legal learner driver and in 3 years time a full on driver. Pic by Pa...
Unlike Kruger, where you can rent a skottle braai for your picnic, Kgalagadi's picnic sites are barren and open. There are no rangers to protect you from the animals, so you don't move too far away from your vehicle. This pic was taken from the ablution block. Incidentally, the park has installed new doors that slide open at the ablution blocks, because the lions used to go sleep inside the loos for coolness. Imagine walking in and finding one of them!! I think I'd wet my pants. Pic by Pa...
Some of the scenery at a waterhole. Pic by Pa...
Another waterhole, with evidence of lions having visited. Pic by Pa...
It's remote and dry and dusty and I was really glad we visited in autumn and not summer/winter. The roads were sandy, but decent, although I have heard from people who visit this park often, that we were lucky. Pic by Pa...
This is a korhaan. Pic by Pa...
A huge centipede. I recon that they're longer than my hand, not that I was ever going to hold one. Pic by Pa...
Lots of hot and thirsty wildebeest. Pic by Pa...
Vultures waiting in a tree at sunrise. Pic by Pa...
Lunch time! Pic by Pa
And, oh wait! Here's that sick lion again. Although other people had seen him trying to kill a pangolin, he has no teeth and was unsuccessful. Still, he managed to cover a fair bit of ground from one day to the next. This waterhole was about 8km away from our camp. Pics by Pa...
Well, that's it from me and this wildlife photo overkill!! Thanks to my parents and Jake for the amazing trip, it was such a happy one and full of good memories! Kgalagadi is so completely different to Kruger, but there's something about it that gets under your skin. Jake and I will be in Kruger again in less then 4 week's time and we're super excited. Jake absolutely loves the Kruger, as do I, but it is much busier and far more commercialized than Kgalagadi. There's something within me that is longing for the beautiful Kgalagadi, so I'm sure we'll be visiting there again in the not-too-distant future!
Sending love,
Sue xxx
