Wilkinson's World

Archive for the ‘Botswana 2010’ Category

We changed campsites three times at Rooiputs as we couldn’t get bookings at one particular site for the whole duration of our stay.  In fact very often the campsites were purported to be fully booked and we ended up being the only campers there.  Travel agents apparently make block bookings and then fail to come with clients.  This is unfortunate as people are turned away when in fact there are sites standing empty.

The birdlife around the campsite was always interesting.  Rob managed to track down the Barn Owl that we had found in the A-frame.  It had taken up residence in a nearby tree, obviously not planning to come back until we had left.

Another lovely bird to photograph is the little Pygmy falcon that is so prevalent in the Park.

We had a very productive game drive on our last afternoon of the holiday.  We took a drive a short way past the Kij Kij waterhole and Rob spotted an African wild cat (Felis lybica)  in a tree.   (How he  saw it amongst all those branches is still a mystery!)  These wild cats, that closely resemble domestic tabby cats, are mostly nocturnal, which made our daytime sighting all the more gratifying.

On the same drive we came across a pair of Tawny Eagles in a tree, which we photographed.  We later found out that they had caught a snake, that can be seen pinned under the foot of one of the eagles.  Amazing what one could miss with the naked eye!

Another bonus was a Honey Badger, known in Afrikaans as a ratel (Mellivora capensis).  The Honey Badger, which gives off a foul smell like a polecat when threatened, is tough and aggressive, so has few enemies.  They mainly hunt at night, but are often seen in the early morning or evening.  Their gait is rolling and they keep their noses close to the ground as they hunt for food – bees, honey, fruit, scorpions and reptiles.

We saw literally dozens of leopard tortoises in the Park.  This tiny one was battling to climb to safety from the road.

Everyone knows that awful feeling when a wonderful holiday has come to an end.  The sadness at knowing that we’d be leaving behind wonderful friends, amazing birds and animals and the freedom of the great outdoors.  Our special evenings around the campfire chatting about the day’s sightings would be sorely missed, as would the jovial sundowner times at our various ‘lone tree pubs’ out in the bush.  But we had so much to be grateful for and we always had next year to look forward to – wherever the next adventure would be.

The Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park is truly one of Africa’s great game reserves.  If you have the right vehicle and don’t mind bad roads, then it really deserves to be on your list of ‘must do’s’.

When we drove into the Rooiputs camping area the first thing we saw was a small tent tucked away in a thicket of trees and bushes.  It belonged to the engineer working on the new road – a site he had occupied for more than a year.  Apparently he chose this unconventional habitat in preference to proper digs at Twee Rivieren/Two Rivers and because of this he was very knowledgeable about the comings and goings of the lions in the Rooiputs area.  He told us that Rooiputs was the best place in the Park to see lions and warned us that they came through the campsite at least three times a week.   He spoke of a pride of thirteen lions in the vicinity.

We didn’t have to wait long before the deep roar of a lion really close by broke the silence of the night. The next morning Jon was up at first light and noticed lion paw prints in the road within a meter or so from where we were both camped.

We wondered at what stage of the night it had passed by – was it while we were asleep or when we were enjoying a braai outside the A-frame?  Had we been sized up for dinner and found wanting? (Note:  We always had a car parked near where we were sitting for quick refuge in case of a visit by lions)

Morning ablutions forgotten we dived into Jon’s car and headed down the short track to the Rooiputs waterhole.  Lions can be quite difficult to spot as they blend into the bushveld scenery and at first we didn’t see anything.  Luckily campers from a nearby site pointed out the lone lioness on a dune quite near the waterhole.

Our delight at seeing her magnified when we heard a loud roar and she jumped up and made her way to greet a magnificent male lion accompanied by three other lionesses.  She was obviously expecting them and they had a joyful reunion.

We couldn’t believe our luck when one of the females later left the group and made her way a short distance along the road in front of us to greet yet another male lion.

Now there were six of them.  We later learned that the Park rangers kept tabs on these males and they were named Moertoe and Mfaas – Moertoe being the younger male who now headed the pride.  Old Mfaas, although respected, kept his distance from the pride when they were cooling off in the heat of the day.

The lions spent the rest of the day lying under trees, moving only to follow the shade as the sun rose in the sky.  The jackals gave them a wide berth as they came cautiously down to drink.  One lone springbok made off at great speed when one of the lionesses stood up and did a small charge, but she obviously wasn’t too keen on hunting as she quickly flopped down to the ground again.

What a magnificent lion sighting.  Any other animal activity on offer that day would pale into insignificance after such a display.

Our six night stay at Rooiputs turned out to be the highlight of our Botswana 2010 trip.  This idyllic spot is less than 30 kms from the Twee Rivieren border post and sits on a hill just above the Nossob River.  One has to take a detour to this camp but the road is no challenge and it doesn’t take long to reach the six well-appointed campsites.  The sign maker either had a sense of humour or didn’t know how to spell!

Within hours of settling in we had dramas unfolding before us that had us grabbing our cameras to catch the action.  We were sitting in the wooden A-frame having some tea when Hillary noticed an animal movement behind us.  It was a mother polecat carrying her baby to a new hiding place.  Rob and I positioned ourselves next to the hole, cameras in hand, and had rather a long wait until she briefly popped her head out to see what was happening.  After doing that once or twice she decided to remain in hiding until she could get away under cover of darkness.

Back in the A-frame we heard a scratching noise above us and were excited to discover a big barn owl in the broken rafters.   Birds are always a priority for us so Hillary filled a pan with water and attracted some of the many sociable weavers in the area,

but she hastily had to move it away from their van area when she realized who else was partial to a drink.  Check out the trail that the puffadder left in the dirt leading to the pan.

That evening we took a drive along the road to the Kij  Kij waterhole and saw our second lion of the trip – a very emaciated cub that didn’t look like it would survive very long.

Back at the campsite later we were having a braai when we saw a Cape fox sniffing at the hole where the polecat and her baby were hiding.

Hillary was most upset and wanted to intervene to stop the baby polecat being eaten.  The mother, who had been very wary of us in the afternoon, suddenly decided that we could help her protect her baby and , acting as a decoy for the fox, she ran right into the A-frame where we were standing.  Soon we had fox and polecat running around us totally oblivious of our presence.  Funnily enough the Cape fox wasn’t interested in eating the mother polecat – his main aim was to get the baby.

This went on for quite a while until the polecat decided it would be safer to deposit her baby in a burrow right next to our braai fire, which she duly did when the fox was distracted.  We never knew the outcome of the polecat saga, whether the baby was moved safely during the night or eaten, but the Cape fox came back to our campsite night after night.  These were both truly magnificent animals and all the more pleasing to see because they are not so common.

A short stay in the bush makes one very aware of the food chain and how every animal is in danger of being eaten.  One soon understands why the animals are so nervous, or  alternatively, relaxed around other beasts that don’t pose a threat to them.

Our stay at Rooiputs had certainly started on a very positive note – we looked forward to what the next few days had in store for us.

To say that the roads in the Kgalagadi are bad is an understatement.  They are atrocious.  If one is not bouncing over bone-shaking corrugations, then its heavy sand that makes the going tough.  We had left Nossob at first light and headed across the dry riverbed into Botswana for the Mabuasehube leg of our trip.  Driving through thick sand is best tackled early in the day as the sand is harder and more compact after a cold night.  As the day heats up the sand becomes softer and more difficult to drive through.

The scenery along the way in the early morning was magnificent.  There were lots of paw prints along the track and one occasionally had glimpses of shy buck and other animals as they moved away into the cover of the bush.  In spite of the sand and corrugations we were in good spirits, looking forward to this long-awaited part of our holiday.

We stopped a couple of times along the route as the corrugations were making my ears sore from the vibrating.  About forty kilometers along the way we suddenly smelt smoke in our car.  This caused instant alarm.  Had a fire started under the vehicle – a distinct possibility if grass had caught somewhere in the undercarriage and ignited.  Rob and I both jumped out and inspected the scene. No fire, luckily, but I heard a number of swear words when Rob saw oil pouring out of the right front wheel area.  When Jon drew up and inspected the damage he pronounced that our problem was a broken shock-absorber.  Not good news when we still had about 110 kms to go on a road that probably wouldn’t improve.

By now Jon and Hillary were also very concerned about their Oryx van.  It was taking a pounding from the corrugations and after a brief chat we decided to head back to Nossob with a view to getting our car repaired.  Easier said than done.  Turning around on this road was a nightmare, not only because of the soft sand, but the whole area alongside the road was undermined by rat burrows.  Eventually we found a suitable place and managed to get both vehicles facing in the right direction.  No mean feat with a caravan.

Our next problem presented itself very quickly.  Rob and I were ahead and came to a rather steep sandy hill with a turn at the top.  We managed to get about three quarters of the way up before we bogged down in the thick sand.  Fortunately we were able to reverse out and make our way backwards down the hill to try a second time.  Jon told Rob to go up at speed and keep the momentum going as he went around the corner at the top.  Strike two was met with the same result as our first attempt.  We got stuck in the same spot.  Once again Rob was able to reverse down.  The situation was concerning as we weren’t towing a van and we were busy churning up the road for Jon.

Rob let the tyres down even further and I elected to stay out of the car as he made his third attempt at crossing the dune.  Hillary had walked to the top of the dune to watch proceedings – obviously wondering how Jon was going to fare with the caravan if Rob did make it over.  With the engine roaring Rob sailed over on his third attempt.  My heart was in my mouth when Jon, knowing he had only one chance, took to the hill at great speed.  With the van swaying dangerously as he neared the top, he made it over – to great cheers from both Hillary and me.  If he’d got stuck on that hill it would have been a disaster.

At Nossob we decided that we would spend two nights at Twee Rivieren whilst Rob and Jon took our car to Upington for repairs.  The corrugated drive to Twee Rivieren further pounded both our vehicles but we were treated to magnificent red dune scenery along the way.  As we came over the hill and saw the Auob River bed filled with animals, our depressed spirits lifted somewhat. A pair of giraffes gave us a magnificent ‘necking’ display.

This part of the Park, although much busier, abounds with wildlife and we would have an opportunity to explore the area once the car was repaired.  We saw this collared cheetah sitting under a tree.

Rob and Jon had all four shock absorbers replaced in Upington whilst Hillary made alternative arrangements with the Botswana Parks Board for the balance of our trip.  Our new destination would be Rooiputs where we would spend the next six nights.

Having spent seven nights on the wild Botswana side of the Kgalagadi, it was time for us to head to Nossob to restock with provisions and fuel for the next leg of our trip, which was the Mabuasehube area.  We were very excited about the Mabua leg as Jon and Hillary had, on their last visit, watched in amazement as a pride of lions trashed their belongings in their campsite.  (They say the young lions were probably just being playful, but such a close encounter was an enormous adrenalin rush for them – we hoped to have a similar experience.)

Nossob is a big camp on the South African side of the Nossob River.  It’s a relatively short drive from Polentswa (58kms) and the road follows the dry river bed the whole way there.  Apart from the amazing birdlife en route we came across our first lion sighting at the Cubitje Quap watering hole – a lone young lioness, who looked a bit battle-scarred but who was obviously hot and hungry and hoping to catch one of the wildebeest taking a drink.

When she plonked herself down in the shade beneath Jon’s car door, we had to wait until she made a half-hearted attempt at stalking the wildebeest before we moved on.

We much prefer the Botswana campsites without any facilities, but I have to admit that it was a treat to have two good long hot showers and to be able to wash our clothes.  The campsite was practically full (mainly with pensioners) and we were able to glean some information from others who had just arrived from Mabuasehube.  To our dismay, we learnt that there were no lions to be seen there as a sickness had wiped them all out.  We were heartened to hear that grass seeds didn’t pose a problem on the road.

Although we hadn’t been overly keen to stay at the busy Nossob campsite, it proved to be very enjoyable after all.  We took advantage of the small swimming pool to cool off from the relentless March heat.  Even the resident squirrels were hot.  They would sprawl out on the ground and then use their front paws to scrape cool sand over their backs.   Their burrows were quite a menace – I almost broke my neck when I  stepped into one in the dark.

We found the animal hide overlooking the Nossob watering hole to be amazing.  Rob practically took up residence in there and managed to add some wonderful pictures to his bird and animal photo collection.  He will blog about the falcons that had us enthralled with their skill at catching other birds.  Incidentally, SAN Parks have a web cam trained on the watering hole at Nossob and this can be seen on-line at any time (if it is working).

Although it is fenced off and security is tight, there are many birds and animals in the Nossob campsite itself.  We photographed both these owls in the same tree.

The shop at Nossob is expensive but perfect for stocking up with provisions.  One can even buy fresh home baked bread rolls (at an exorbitant price) and there is fuel for the vehicles.