The Stromatolites of Hamelin Pool.

I recently took a friend to Visit the Shark Bay area and we took the opportunity to stop in and see the Stromatolites in Hamelin Pool. More detailed information on these amazing wonders of nature and the history of the Shark Bay area can be found at the following links.
http://www.sharkbay.org/stromatolites.aspx
http://www.australiascoralcoast.com

Here is a short video I shot that captures the beauty and tranquility of the Hamelin Pool Stromatolites.
The damage to the Stromatolites caused by early 1900's wool wagons is still visible today as wheel ruts across their fragile surface, damage caused in a time when we knew no better. Thankfully times have changed and the importance of these wonders of nature has been recognized and the area now has the protection of a World Heritage listing.

                                        

Our final days in South Africa, Madagascar here we come!!

Having had a very adventurous trip so far we decided to take a rest day before flying back to Johannesburg, Natalija wanted to do some last minute shopping so we headed to a nearby crafty town called Sabie. Greg was still keen on a bit of adventure so he went tubing on a nearby river with Chris and Garth, we would meet up later in the afternoon.
Sabie had a wonderful array of shops catering for the tourist and at very reasonable prices, so we had no trouble finding plenty of souvenirs to take home. We ate lunch at one of the many fabulous restaurants, where we had a platter of local game meat and Bobotie (a mild African curry) that was absolutely amazing. We then traveled along the Panorama route back to Nelspruit where we met up with Greg, Chris and Garth at the game reserve, here we were introduced to Emma the baby Hippo. Emma spends her day divided between playing with the dogs in her water hole and playing with the dogs on dry land, not a bad deal really.

Greg meets Emma the Hippo.

Emma the Baby Hippo.

Greg, Chris and Garth had had a wonderful day tubing and Garth mentioned that recent floods had cleared a lot of the driftwood and weeds from the riverbank making the ride far more scenic and safer to exit almost anywhere. Greg had a wonderful time and thought he had some great footage on his Go-Pro unfortunately the SD card malfunctioned and it failed to record most of the day.

That evening we all had a BBQ at Chris's house as we would be leaving for Johannesburg in the morning. We ate some monstrous Blue Bull steaks, plenty of fresh local vegetables and fruit, then with our bellies full we sat out on the veranda taking in the night view of Barberton over a couple of beers for the last time. 

In the morning we all met up at the Nelspruit Mug and Bean for brunch, here we said our goodbyes to all of our old friends and the wonderful new friends we had made before driving to the Airport and checking in for our flight to Johannesburg. The following morning Greg and I would be heading off to Madagascar, and Natalija would be heading home to Perth. 

If you wist to follow the Madagascar portion of the trip I will cover it on my other blog 

http://www.west-coast-bluewater-hunter.blogspot.com.au/

Darting and moving Impala.

We had another fantastic opportunity the following day to help dart and relocate some Impala. It all sounded simple enough but it was far from simple, getting a dart into an animal is the easy part. You then have to follow the darted animal and once it is down it has to be moved very carefully and quickly, then once it is safe it can be given an antidote to the sedative and allowed to recover in the transport crate, before being released in it's new location. This is all very time consuming and stressful for both the animal and the people involved and must be done as quickly as possible so as not to over stress the animal. We darted from both a helicopter and ground transport and found that from the ground it was far easier to dart Impala, and the helicopter was much better for locating downed animals.  The most important part of the process is to quickly locate the sedated animal and to then keep it upright, this prevents it's stomach contents entering the lungs as its muscles are relaxed while it is sedated. All the animals recovered and were successfully relocated without injury, no small achievement considering how fragile a sedated Impala is.
The following photographs of the days events tell the story pretty well and we were fortunate to have been invited to take part.

Briefing before darting begins

Preparing the Helicopter.

Darting the first impala.

Searching for the darted animal.

Once located the animals eyes are covered and it is given antibiotics. 

It is then put in a carry sling and prepared to be moved.

The animal is then administered an antidote to the sedative and placed in a transport crate.

An aerial view of the Impala's new home.

Kruger National Park Visit.

It was raining, windy and overcast as Greg and I drove North from Nelspruit, our plan for the day was to enter Kruger National Park at the Numbi Gate and then travel South through the park and exit via the Malelane Gate. It turned out the road to Numbi Gate was closed due flood damage so we entered a little further North at the Phabeni Gate. We then followed our planned route to Skukuza
 before turning South to Malelane. It was along this stretch of road we had our first animal encounters with us seeing, Elephant, Buffalo and Zebra. I was originally a little worried the wind and rain would keep the animals tucked up sheltering in the bush, but I needn't have worried. We stopped at Skukuza and got something to eat and drink, and it was here that Greg had his first encounter with a Blue Tailed Skink.

Elephant doing a very good job of hiding, there were over a dozen of them in the group.

A fast moving Blue Tailed Skink.

After eating a little and stocking up on water then walking around a bit we continued South and encountered even more Elephant, Zebra, Giraffe, Wilderbeast, and Wild dog's. During the drive the rain cleared but the sky remained a little overcast keeping things cool, which was nice.

Zebra and Giraffe in the same location, we got lucky with this sighting.

Wilderbeast browsing by the side of the road.

African Wild Dogs.

By the time we reached Malelane we had seen an amazing variety of animals despite things not looking so good early in the morning.
We drove through an amazing array of landscapes from open plain to rocky hills and river valleys, and were treated to sightings of some of Africa's rarest animals, and some of the more curious such as a giant green Caterpillar and numerous Tortoise's.

We then left the Park and headed back towards Nelspruit stopping along the way to browse some roadside stalls selling carved wooden ornaments and fresh fruit. We ended up buying a few small carvings and a massive amount of fresh fruit for a ridiculously low price, we were all going to eat well for the next few days that was for sure.

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We arrived back in Nelspruit late in the day having had a very rewarding day out in the African bush. I was happy to have been able to share the experience with Greg, it was great to see him enjoying every minute of the day, watching the bush intently looking for the next encounter whatever animal may be just around the next bend.

We sat around the dinner table that night recounting our journey over a couple of beer's and some more of Africa's amazing food before settling in to bed for a well deserved sleep.

Final morning at Kings Camp

We were again woken early and had coffee and Juice prior to meeting Jade and Albert for our morning game drive. We boarded the Land Rover and crossed the river in the early morning gloom and noticed the wind had picked up and a cloud bank had moved in overnight. As we came over a small rise we could see rain in the distance and hoped we would not get wet. We were going to be looking for Rhino this morning and the wind would make it hard, as they would be tucked up in the bush keeping warm.
We drove for a while searching the bush when we heard on the radio that there were a family of Hyenas laying outside their den, so we decided to have a look at them as they were close by.
When we arrived we were treated to a mother Hyena suckling two young and another 2 Hyena laying out in the sun. We stayed for a while and watched as they socialised and then walked into the bush.
As we resumed our search for Rhino Jade informed us that there were a couple of Lions close by and asked if we wanted to see them. We decided we would stick with looking for Rhino as we had a very good Lion encounter the day before.
We continued our search for Rhino and dropped Albert off where they were last seen the day before in the hope he could track them. We circled around a dam and continued along the river bank in the direction Albert said they had gone, after about 10 minutes I thought I saw something through the Mopane trees and we stopped for a quick look but saw nothing but a grey tree stump. We drove on a little further and picked up Albert then turned around to begin the half hour drive back to camp having not seen our Rhino. As we passed the Grey stump Albert indicated he thought he saw something and we stopped, then from behind the stump we saw movement and out of the trees came a Mother Rhino and her Calf.
It turned out I had indeed seen a Rhino on the way past the stump the first time and it had stood still becoming invisible among the trees.

We stayed with them for around 20 minutes before leaving them to their own devices and heading back to camp for breakfast.

After breakfast we returned to our room and packed our gear before walking around the grounds one last time. We said our goodbyes to Albert and Jade and the rest of the staff before checking out and beginning our journey back to Nelspruit.

When we arrived back in Nelspruit Greg was there to greet us and was eager to hear what we had seen and to get out and see some of the wildlife for himself.  With that in mind Greg and I decided to spend the next day in Kruger National Park.

Day 2 at Kings Camp

We were woken at 5:30am on our second day for coffee and juice prior to setting off on our early morning game drive at 6am. We joined our guide and tracker and set off in the Land-rover, we crossed the riverbed behind the camp and almost immediately were greeted by a herd of elephants. There were over 20 in the herd ranging in size from the smallest baby to big bulls, they ignored us as they tore the branches off trees and stripped the leaves, they trumpeted loudly with enjoyment as they snapped large limbs like toothpicks and ate the leaves.

Mother Elephant with baby.

Bull Elephant snapping tree branches to get at the leaves.

We parked up and watched the Elephants fro a good while before they moved on leaving us alone on the road. We drove on and soon found some lions resting in the cool sand of the river bed, there were four of them and one looked like he had been in a bit of a scrap with a large gash on his nose. They ignored our presence and went about cleaning themselves as we photographed and filmed them.

Male Lion ignoring us.

They don't care that we are there they are just chilling out.

We left the lions after a while to allow another group to see them and continued on our way to a junction in the track where we stopped for a cup of coffee and a leg stretch. I took the opportunity to walk with Albert and soon we found Leopard tracks in the sand, then African wild cat tracks, a few bird feathers and a sprayed bush. Albert asked what the road told me, what could I could see and I said it looked like an African wild cat had caught a bird and the Leopard stole the bird and sprayed the bush to claim his turf. He grinned and said I was right then went on to show me where a Rhino had also walked and scent marked a bush. 

Walking with Albert, seeing what happened the night before on the track.

We finished our coffee and tea and headed off once more in search of game, we found a Hippo in a pool all by himself and he rolled over and chomped at the water playfully. We saw a Dukier and plenty of the ever present Impala before heading back to the camp for a huge cooked breakfast. We then rested up and swam in the pool while the local Warthogs roamed around like they owned the place and the monkeys tried to get up to whatever mischief they could.

Warthogs by the water.

We lazed around the pool and ate a leisurely lunch and swam some more before our afternoon game drive began at 4pm. Having seen 4 of the big five on the last two game drives our guide was keen to find us a Rhino and we drove along the river bank to where they had been seen earlier, in the hope they had not moved far in the heat of the day. Pretty soon we came to where they had been only to find they had crossed to the other side of the river and there was no way for us to get to where they were. We did get a glimpse of 3 Rhino through the trees at a distance but it was not the sighting the guide had hoped for. Not disheartened we again headed off on a long drive to a watering hole that held large numbers of Hippo and Crocodile. 

Along the way we were treated to sightings of Kudu, Dukier, Giraffe, Zebra and Waterbuck, not to mention multiple wild birds such as Guinea fowl and Giant Ground Hornbill.

Hippo in the waterhole.

We reached the water hole just in time for sundown drinks and baboon finger biltong, as the sun set and the hippo's laughed, I caught a glimpse of what may have been a crocodile but it was too dark to be sure. After we finished our refreshments we headed off on the half hour drive back to the lodge for dinner. On our return we were escorted to our room to shower and prepare for dinner, as this was our groups last night in camp we would be dining with our guide in a traditional thatched dining area.

The meals were of course excellent and and the drinks refreshing and before long we were all blissfully stuffed. We then said goodbye to our American companions and exchanged details as they were leaving early the next morning and we would have the Land-rover and guide to ourselves. We then called for the night watchman to escort us to our room and retired for the night.

Kings Camp at Timbavati Private Game Reserve.

Early in the morning following a good breakfast we set off for our "day at Kruger National Park" we took the main road north to White River then on through Hazyview and Bushbuckridge then on through Klaserie towards Hodenspruit. Just before Hodenspruit we took the turn off towards Eastgate Airport an through the Klaserie Game reserve control gate where our bookings were checked and we were allowed to travel on to Kings Camp.
We arrived at Kings camp at 1:30pm and were welcomed at the check in by the Game reserve staff and introduced to our guide for the visit Jade and tracker Albert. We were then shown around the camp and to our room, lunch was served in the dining room and we were treated to the most wonderful meal and drinks. We then had a little free time to explore the camp before our first Game drive began at 4pm.

Our room at Kings Camp.

Mosquito netting over the bed.

While exploring the camp we encountered Vervet Monkeys and a family of Warthog, the staff warned us to be sure we closed all the windows and doors to our room when we were out so as not to find out how naughty the monkeys can be.

Warthogs by the pool.

Monkeys in the Bar.

We met Jade and Albert at reception at 4pm for our game drive and were introduced to 2 American couples that had been in the camp a few days, we would be sharing a guide, tracker and vehicle with them for the next 2 days. After going over the basics of safety we set off and Jade the guide dropped off Albert the tracker to find a leopard they had seen in the morning while we continued to try and find other game.
The very first animal we saw for the afternoon was one of Africa's Big 5, a herd of Cape Buffalo hiding in a thicket of Mopane trees.

We drove through the bush for a while watching them before leaving them and getting back on the track. The very next animals to show themselves were a family of Giraffe.

The family of Giraffe.

We then received word that not only had Albert found the Leopard but there was a family of African wild dog near the side of the track ahead. We found the family of Wild Dog and spent a few minutes photographing these extremely rare animals before heading off to find Albert and the Leopard. Unfortunately when we reached the Leopard it was too dark for Photos but we were able to see not one but two leopard siblings sleeping in the bush while the mother was out hunting.
We then moved to a high point overlooking the river for sundown drinks before returning to camp for pre-dinner drinks followed by dinner and then retiring for the night. We were in for an early 5:30am start the following morning and needed the rest after such an exciting day.

Kaapsehoop

The following morning after breakfast we decided on a trip to the nearby town of Kaapsehoop, an old gold mining town that overlooks the De kaap Valley from the south, you can actually see the town from Chris's house on a clear day or at night. We traveled the 35kms of winding roads through pine and blue gum plantations to the town at a leisurely pace, dodging pot-holes and wild horses along the way. Legend has it they are horses left over from the old gold mining day gone wild, but the truth according to Bob is somewhat less romantic and they were simply allowed to run free after their owner passed away. Bob who is 80 yrs old and a wealth of local knowledge says he remembers visiting their owner as a teenager.
Kaapsehoop is now a small artisan town just off the main road and has a wonderful mix of curio shops, bed and breakfast accommodation a pub and the most delightful pancake shop.
We chose a savory biltong pancake and a sweet Amarula and Ice-cream pancake between us "Oh my God" they were amazing, the Amarula and Ice-cream was so good it was beyond description.

We looked in the curio shops and walked around the town, we would have liked to have walked to the cliffs for the view to the North but the trail was closed due to recent heavy rains. We bought some postcards and drinks for the trip home and with a huge thunderstorm building in the distance we drove back to Chris's house. A huge lone male Baboon running across the road with his mane flaring in the wind providing the only distraction to the trip home.

We arrived just in time and within a minute of stepping inside the storm hit, it was amazing lightning was flashing, the power went out and it was as dark as night at 3pm in the afternoon. A tree not 200mts from the house got hit and blown apart,

The view across the De Kaap Valley to Barbertown during the storm Kaapsehoop is to the far right though not visible through the cloud and rain.

We spent the afternoon inside sheltering from the storm and it lasted well into the afternoon providing a spectacular show, unfortunately due to the rain I was unable to get any lightning photographs.
We went to bed to the sound of thunder rumbling in the distance and flashes of lightning in the distance lighting up the room and slept the most wonderful sleep. The next morning I had a surprise in store for my wife, as far as she knew we were going to Kruger national park for the day, little did she know that with Chris and his assistant Colleen's help I had booked us into Kings Camp private game lodge on the Timbavati Game reserve for 2 nights.
Oh was she in for a surprise.

Off to South Africa.

After mentioning to my good friend Chris De Bruno Austin I was planning a dive trip to Madagascar, he insisted I stay with him a few days in Nelspruit South Africa. How could I turn that offer down, he does live on a game farm. He suggested I bring my wife and stay for 10 days with a 3 day visit to a private game reserve in Kruger National Park. I mentioned that another friend Greg Pickering would be joining me and when he said ok bring him along that sealed the deal. So with 6 months of secret planning and scheming behind me, my wife and I set off for Johannesburg.
We arrived early in the morning and had no problems catching our connecting flight to Nelspruit. I collected a hire car in Nelspruit and following Chris's directions made my way to his house. He was supposed to meet us at the airport but had dramas with a rhino and couldn't make it. His instructions were very clear and easy to follow and we found the entrance no problem. His security guy on the gate was expecting us and let us in no problem,  follow the cement drive for 4 km and its the last house overlooking a valley "you cant miss it".
What an understatement the valley was huge the view spectacular and we saw Kudu, Wildebeest and Impala all the way up the drive way, even on the lawn around the house!!!!

The view to the South from Chris's back veranda, Swaziland is in the distance.

Looking South West at Sunset.

Chris had said there would be someone to meet us at the house but she didn't speak English, and just to make ourselves at home, he told us where our rooms were and he would be back as soon as he could. It turned out he was away all day but he sent his father Bob to meet us and make us welcome. We lazed the afternoon away and had a bit of a sleep to get over the travel.
Chris and his son Garth arrived late in the afternoon and we all had dinner together while he explained that they were trying to settle a baby Rhino all day and move another. Chris is heavily involved in a Rhino rescue program that raises Rhinos orphaned by poaching http://www.careforwild.co.za/ and later in the week he introduced us to Petronel the woman behind the program, and what a wonderful inspiration she is.
We retired to bed later that evening feeling totally exhausted and in absolute awe of what we had seen so far and it was only our first day!!

A Fish out of water, my non-diving related travels

Welcome to my new blog "Fish out of water".
I aim to make it just that,  my land based adventures and travels. I decided to run this blog of the non-diving related side of my travels as some people may also be interested in my other travels.  Fish out of water will focus on these travels as I also enjoy traveling to and experiencing other cultures and countries. Where a trip does also include diving I will make mention of it but detail that portion of the trip in.
http://west-coast-bluewater-hunter.blogspot.com.au/