Tag: South Africa

The Otter Trail

· Leave a comment ·

In 1986 my husband and I did the Otter Trail near Gqeberha, formerly Port Elizabeth, one of the great hiking trails in South Africa. Even then one needed to book a year ahead to be able to do it. It is in the Tsitsikama National Park and only a limited number of hikers (a maximum of 12 per day) are allowed to go on the trail. It starts at Storms River Mouth and follows the coast until it ends five days later at Nature’s Valley.

You have to carry everything, including all the food, on your back. I was obviously very motivated.

The weather, particularly in the mornings, wasn’t perfect. By afternoon the sun had usually come out.

We slept in wooden huts with nothing but 3 bunkbeds in each. And we had the most wonderful beaches all to ourselves in the afternoon.

The trail is named after the African clawless otter. We actually did see one. We were lying on the beach one late afternoon when we saw a little round head bobbing in the waves. He was weary and before he got close enough for my camera he turned round and disappeared back into the sea.

So I had to make do with a picture from a magazine.

The Ragtag Daily Prompt: Otter

Let’s Cross Horns

· 1 Comment ·

At the southern tip of the Kruger Park is the Berg en Dal Camp and most of the white rhinos can be found in its vicinity. When we were there in the 1980s their numbers were more than three times what they are now, and even that wasn’t a glorious past for the beasts.

This much smaller armoured creature was inside one of the camps and we helped it out of the road.

–

–

–

–

.

.

Past Square #25

[Disclaimer: The photos have been photographed from prints.]

Who’s Watching Whom?

· 1 Comment ·

In the Kruger National Park there is no hiking – the humans sit in a metal cages rolling past the animals. Even if walking was allowed the distances would make it very difficult to get around. The park itself is almost 20.000 km2 in size (that’s without the adjoining private areas the parts in Mozambique and Zimbabwe with which it forms the Great Limpopo Transfrontier Park). That’s about the size of the state of Israel and half the size of Switzerland.

This giraffe was very obliging, ducking its head to fit in the frame.

–

–

–

–

.

.

Past Square #25

[Disclaimer: The photos have been photographed from prints.]

Ndedema Gorge

· 3 Comments ·

Another hike in the Drakensberg was to the Ndedema Gorge. No need to carry a tent because camp is made under the same overhanging rocks where others have sought shelter in the past.

We didn’t leave anything behind unlike some of the people who have spent their nights in this location before us. The rock paintings are said to be several hundred or possibly thousand years old

–

–

–

–

.

.

Past Square #24

Where Vultures Roam

· 4 Comments ·

But in the past it was dragons.

Another one of our preferred places to go hiking in South Africa was the Drakensberg (dragon’s mountains). We hiked up what is known as the amphitheatre, a cliff face of over 5 kilometres in length and more than 1200 metres in height. Standing at the ledge is an amazing experience. While we were looking out over northern KwaZulu-Natal, a lammergeyer (bearded vulture) came up from behind us, flew overhead and then dove into the precipice.

Where else does one have the chance to see such a large bird of pride from above?

–

–

–

–

.

.

Past Square #23

[Disclaimer: The photos have been photographed from prints.]

A Walk on the Wild Side

· 6 Comments ·

One of our most memorable vacations was walking the Otter Trail on the Wild Coast of South Africa, in the Tsitsikamma National Park.

Hiking along the steep coastal ways, wading through river mouths (and on one memorable occasion swimming through one) and up the river course to collect sweet water, watching dolphins and spotting otters, all the while carrying all supplies on our back as there were no other people within at least two days’ walk. We woke every night to look for Halley’s Comet (that dates the vacation, doesn’t it?). Halley’s is definitely in our past and not our future.

The wildlife we saw in abundance were dassies (hyrax). I’m having difficulties in reproducing these old prints of photos but this one rather gained in the process. It does look like a painting, doesn’t it?

–

–

–

–

.

.

Past Square #21

[Disclaimer: The photos have been photographed from prints.]

We Had a Farm in Africa

· 4 Comments ·

NOT.

But we lived in Africa. And for the rest of the month I thought I share squares from this past.

We used to go hiking with an outfit called “Trailblazers” and we travelled many thousands of kilometer in this comfortable looking bus, a vehicle bought from the South African prison services (I guess it was cheap).

–

–

–

–

.

.

Past Square #20

[Disclaimer: The photos have been photographed from prints.]

Found in a Park

· 1 Comment ·

Admittedly I’m cheating a bit here but by name the Kruger National Park in South Africa is a park.

The photos are not good quality, they were taken in the early 1980s. Unfortunately, at the time I didn’t like glossy prints and the matt paper prints looked slightly fuzzy to begin with and don’t photograph too well. However, they record a very fond memory of mine, and the monochrome treatment does their age justice.

We were driving on the roads of the Kruger Park, somewhere between Skukuza and the Lower Sabie Rest Camp, when we saw a large yellow animal standing under the tree in the distance. Only when we got nearer we were realising that it was a lioness.

She stood stock-still on the side of the road. We admired her for quite a while until we had the idea to see what she was looking at. That’s when we realised that on the other side of the road were her cubs.

We were mesmerised. When we looked back at the lioness she had disappeared, obviously circumventing us. We drove off, thinking it would be better to let her get to her cubs undisturbed.

Cee’s Black & White Photo Challenge: Things found on a Picnic Table or a Park

.

x

x

Forward position

· 2 Comments ·

This is Josh Strauss, a South African born rugby forward who became elligible to play for Scotland only a month prior to the Rugby World Cup 2015 in England and Scotland. The photos were taken at the RWC match Scotland vs South Africa in Newcastle.

The Ragtag Daily Prompt: Forward.