Africa Diary: to Lower Sabie and Pretoriaskop, Kruger National Park

(NOTE: this is not one of our own tours: I’m exploring Kruger NP before attending two conferences in South Africa)

Diary continued…

I drove cautiously past a big herd of Buffalo on my way south from Satara, Kruger NP

I drove cautiously past a big herd of Buffalo on my way south from Satara, Kruger NP

 

... and a few minutes later two lions crossed the road!

… and a few minutes later two lions crossed the road!

This is an animal I'd missed out on on both previous visits.  The little Klipspringer, a tiny antelope that lives in much the same habitat as our rock wallabies and apparently just as good at dashing up steep cliffs

This is an animal I’d missed out on on both previous visits. The little Klipspringer, a tiny antelope that lives in much the same habitat as our rock wallabies and apparently just as good at dashing up steep cliffs

 

White rhino near Lower Sabie.  The name is a misnomer, the British misunderstanding the Boer word for 'wide.' It is a grazer, with a wide mouth. The ;black' rhino has a narrow mouth and browses on leaves of shrubs and trees.

White rhino near Lower Sabie. The name is a misnomer, the British misunderstanding the Boer word for ‘wide.’ It is a grazer, with a wide mouth. The ;black’ rhino has a narrow mouth and browses on leaves of shrubs and trees.

Lower Sabie is in an excellent position  for hippo watching!

Lower Sabie is in an excellent position for hippo watching!

My tent in Lower Sabie

My tent in Lower Sabie

Baboons really do make their presence felt, as I found out the next day

Baboons really do make their presence felt, as I found out the next day

Sunrise on the Sabie River

Sunrise on the Sabie River

 

I was thrilled to see two lionesses just after dawn

I was thrilled to see two lionesses just after dawn

 

On the way back towards Sjukiza (which I passed through on route to Pretoriaskop) this baboon opened the door of the shop at the picnic area. Another, bigger one was already inside not allowing shopkeepers access to the cash box

On the way back towards Sjukiza (which I passed through on route to Pretoriaskop) this baboon (in the tree, watching the shop at the picnic area)  opened the door and dashed around inside until hunted out with a broomstick. Another, bigger one was already inside not allowing shopkeepers access to the cash box

 

This monkey looks all innocence, but after this photo he leapt to another table and stole a cake.

This monkey looks all innocence, but after this photo he leapt to another table and stole a cake.

 

Animals at picnic areas are a problem, not just for the humans, but for the animals themselves.  If they get too demanding, as they can do after learning how profitable picnics can be, the rangers may have to remove them, even putting them down if they are dangerous (as large baboons certainly can be, and hyenas even more so: the strength of their jaws is second only to crocodiles).

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