After 3 days in Johannesburg, Tom and I left our plush Parktown hotel to go camping in Kruger National Park, the country’s oldest and largest national park and best place to see lions, leopards, rhinos, elephants, and buffalo — aka Africa’s Big 5.
In addition to viewing incredible animals out in the wild, Tom and I were also curious to see how we’d cope with Africa’s “hot season.” This was supposedly a good time to go on safari because bare trees make it easier to spot animals, but high temperatures can also send wildlife running for shade.
Unfortunately for Tom and myself — who just barely survived this year’s heat wave in Seattle — Kruger was even hotter than usual for this time of year. “You know it’s hot when even the Africans are sweating,” our driver and guide, Harryson, joked as temperatures climbed to 38 C/100 Fahrenheit on the afternoon of our second day.
Fortunately, the extreme heat didn’t effect the stunning array of wildlife we saw at Kruger, which is named for the 19th century Dutch settler who ruled this area during Africa’s colonial days. On our first morning in the park, we quickly spotted 3 of the Big 5 (lions, elephants, and buffalo) as well cheetahs, giraffes, hyenas, hippos, zebras, wildebeest, ostrich, and impalas, an ubiquitous deer-like gazelle known as the “Bush McDonalds” because there’s one on every corner!
Many animals were gathered in or around watering holes, lounging under shady trees, or rolling in the mud, which elephants use as sunscreen to protect their skin on hot days. On our second afternoon, we even saw a leopard dozing in the shady branches of a large tree — just like a regular (albeit very large) house cat.
Some animals — particularly the male lions — didn’t have any qualms about napping right near the road, maybe because they know they’re at the top of the food chain. Others were more wary of people, including elephants who stashed their babies safely inside the herd, lionesses with cubs, and curious giraffes content to watch us from a safe distance.
Though Kruger is synonymous with the Big 5, South Africa’s largest park is also home to a sprawling array of smaller animals. This includes warthogs, owls, baboons, birds, mongoose, and honey badgers, whose small size disguises the fact that they’re among Kruger’s most dangerous critters!
After the end of our time in Kruger, Tom, Harryson, and myself — who had begun referring to ourselves as the Big 3 — celebrated our incredible week with a South African barbecue, or braai, back at camp. We’d spent two full days in the park, successfully camped in “the bush,” and even survived an African heat wave. Above all, we’d seen some truly incredible animals, including 4 of the Big 5, which is pretty good odds because rhinos — sadly pushed towards extinction by poaching—now hide deep in the park, making them difficult to spot.
Early the next morning, we drove back to Jo’burg via the Blyde River Canyon — the world’s third largest canyon after the Grand Canyon and Namibia’s Fish River Canyon — where we’ll spend the night before catching a flight tomorrow. Next stop, Cape Town!
By Jen Swanson