On 23rd we flew to Nelspruit to visit the famous Kruger Park. The area is astonishingly varied: six rivers feed the park which houses 1980 plant species and 300 tree species.

Deborah and Chuck arrived there on the evening of the 23rd. Chuck went immediately on a 3-hour game drive while Deborah decided to rest for a while. When she went to find others, she realized that others had already gone. Oh well, a little bit of extra R&R harmed not one, Deborah thought and had a relaxing session drinking wine with like-minded souls.

The next day it was a five-hour game drive in the morning starting at 7am in a vehicle that accommodated seven people, each with a window seat. The main attraction of the park is what they call the “big five”: elephant, buffalo, lion, rhino, and leopard. We had an opportunity to see them all, except for the rhino. In addition we also saw many interesting animals and birds+ giraffes, zillions of impalas, hippos, many varieties of birds. Deborah, who was in a different vehicle also saw some snakes. The main attraction was wild dogs. We saw a pack of wild dogs resting under a tree, perhaps after having had a huge meal. They look mean and they are vicious hunters. They were so relaxed that Deborah thought they were like a group of guys high on marijuana who couldn’t care less about what’s happening around them. After five hours, we stopped for lunch at Skukuza Rest Camp for lunch. After lunch, there was another three hours of game drive according to the schedule. Chuck, after having been to Masai Mara in Kenya a couple of times where one could see a lot more animals in lot less time, found Kruger Park much less exciting. Masai Mara (unlike Kruger) did not have many trees and consisted of mostly bushes, which made it easier to spot animals from a distance. Another major difference was that in Kruger Park, you are allowed to drive only on paved roads. Unless animals obliged us with their presence by the roadside we were out of luck. In Masai Mara one could drive to where the animals can be found. Deborah also decided that she had seen enough. Both (and host of others) skipped the afternoon drive.

In the evening we had dinner. African dancers entertained us with music and dance.

The next morning there was an early morning optional game drive. There were no takers.

Is Kruger Park worth visiting? Yes of course. But don’t visit more exciting game drives such as Masai Mara first!