Wild Basil, Impala Lily and Hammerkop Nests on Morning walk at Satara
It's just too early for me and in winter too cold. Gareth however being only 17 and very keen was happy to be at Satara reception at 05.15 to be met by the 2 armed guides, Marius and Chester, and on this occasion 2 other people from Germany. They drove to the morning walk get-out point.
Normally I say to Gareth (who goes on a walk every time we visit the
Kruger) where did you go and the answer is normally very vague because
it's difficult to find your way around on foot. But I still wanted to
know so this morning he carried the
Garmin
GPS and the truth is revealed at least for the Satara walk.
This picture shows the track they took working in an anti-clockwise
direction from the top left crossing the river going south and again
going north. This is pretty much the complete 6km walk (3 kms each side
of the river) ...
A Walk on the Wild Side: Close Up with Giraffe
Waypoints 252 to 253
The morning walk map shows where the vehicle was parked before the group of
5 set off in an anti-clockwise direction to walk some 6 kms on both sides of the
N'Wanetsi River. The second map on the smaller scale shows the walk relative to
the Satara Camp (251) and the main Satara to Tshokwane road to the east. Here's
Gareth's short report on the walk. The map here is from Google Earth and shows
the area the group walked in around the N'Wanetsi. The marker shows where they
had a stop for breakfast in the bush. Compare this map to the one above to get a
correlation between the total walk and the area in general. Use the shape of the
river to get your bearings.
Shortly into the walk a Verreaux's Eagle-Owl and a Pearl-spotted Owlet were heard in the tree thickets. And just before a stop for breakfast a Serval was also spotted in the distance. As you can see from the map above the walk is close to the river and there were signs of lion as well as White Rhino and Black Rhino in the whole area. The group were warned by the ranger to be ready to climb trees in the event of being told to do so should an encounter with a Black Rhino be experienced.
Marius and Chester introduced the group to a range of interesting fruits and plants including Wild Basil and this 40 year old specimen of Impala Lily (Adenium Obesum).
An old bull Giraffe allowed the walking party to get very close to him. Other Giraffes and Impalas as well as Wildebeest were seen.
One of the great sights explained by the rangers was the Hamerkop nest shown in the picture. Look at the size and complexity of this nest. And apparently they are only ever used once (by the Hamerkop).
