Kruger National Park
South Africa
South Africa
Trip Report: Camping in Kruger (again)
+ a bit of Eswatini
2019
+ a bit of Eswatini
2019
Another Trip Report about Africa from me. I have already written two. One for our first trip to South Africa in 2016. That was our discovery trip. We traveled to see the big events, thinking that this would be our only trip to the country. Just like we have treated other destinations, I prepare a hit list and we travel accordingly: seeing, tasting, experiencing. But once is enough. Been there, done that, move on now . . .
But something about Africa - Kruger specifically - stuck. It was a hell of a lot more fun for us than plain sight viewing because it was so random and unpredictable and interactive. It wasn't just another quaint cobblestone street with restaurants and bars in some European village, town or city that dripped history. Or another tumble-down ruin from an ancient civilization to scramble over. Or another museum brimming with stunning objects and art. While all of these are fabulous destinations and they are a must-see for all at some point in your travels imho, we were done.
Kruger is a totally different experience. The thrill of the kill so to speak. I know that that is a bad phrase to use for animal hunting with a car and a camera but the experience is not that different – except unlike game hunting, the beautiful animal still lives at the end. I know many of you will shake your head and wonder what can be so fun driving about around dusty, bumpy roads in the middle of the bush? But honestly, until you have done it yourself, and gone around that next corner and discovered an elephant herd or a hyena or a pod of hippos, it is really hard to explain. You get a taste of it on a traditional safari, but your hands on the steering wheel makes a huge difference. Something psychologically primal is twigged, I guess. Especially when you realise that this is Africa. The cradle of our species. And for hundreds of thousands of years – millions even - our distant ancestors would have been using those same animal trails through the bush in search of food, while cautiously trying to avoid being something else’s.
So, we had to go back. And we did in 2017 for two full weeks of Kruger with only one night outside for a diversion, driving through the “Panoramic Route”. But as we boarded the plane in Nelspruit (now Mbomela), we both left wanting more.
We went back to cobblestones in 2018 with our cottage and farm tour of Portugal and Extremadura Spain but while that was great, it wasn’t Africa. I needed to hear a hyena calling in the dark again. The smell of dung and dust. A wood braai surrounded by the night bush sounds with a nice glass of Pinotage in hand. The hot African sun in the day and the Southern Cross in the sky at night. Africa.
So now you get a sense of our motivation and we can begin . . .
But something about Africa - Kruger specifically - stuck. It was a hell of a lot more fun for us than plain sight viewing because it was so random and unpredictable and interactive. It wasn't just another quaint cobblestone street with restaurants and bars in some European village, town or city that dripped history. Or another tumble-down ruin from an ancient civilization to scramble over. Or another museum brimming with stunning objects and art. While all of these are fabulous destinations and they are a must-see for all at some point in your travels imho, we were done.
Kruger is a totally different experience. The thrill of the kill so to speak. I know that that is a bad phrase to use for animal hunting with a car and a camera but the experience is not that different – except unlike game hunting, the beautiful animal still lives at the end. I know many of you will shake your head and wonder what can be so fun driving about around dusty, bumpy roads in the middle of the bush? But honestly, until you have done it yourself, and gone around that next corner and discovered an elephant herd or a hyena or a pod of hippos, it is really hard to explain. You get a taste of it on a traditional safari, but your hands on the steering wheel makes a huge difference. Something psychologically primal is twigged, I guess. Especially when you realise that this is Africa. The cradle of our species. And for hundreds of thousands of years – millions even - our distant ancestors would have been using those same animal trails through the bush in search of food, while cautiously trying to avoid being something else’s.
So, we had to go back. And we did in 2017 for two full weeks of Kruger with only one night outside for a diversion, driving through the “Panoramic Route”. But as we boarded the plane in Nelspruit (now Mbomela), we both left wanting more.
We went back to cobblestones in 2018 with our cottage and farm tour of Portugal and Extremadura Spain but while that was great, it wasn’t Africa. I needed to hear a hyena calling in the dark again. The smell of dung and dust. A wood braai surrounded by the night bush sounds with a nice glass of Pinotage in hand. The hot African sun in the day and the Southern Cross in the sky at night. Africa.
So now you get a sense of our motivation and we can begin . . .