Inspired by a trip in 2016 to South Africa.
The driver awaited in the open air Toyota safari cruiser. We packed in our gear, stepped up at the wheelbase, swung our legs over and climbed in. We were ready for an adventure.
We struck out in the early morning and headed to the Hluhluwe Game Reserve, pronounced kind of like Shoos-hoo-louie, but I’m sure I have that wrong! Our driver introduced himself, and laughed as we tried to perfect the clicks in his name. He finally waived his hand at us to stop. “Just call me Joe.” He had kind eyes and a knowing look. I wondered if the thought Americans! crossed in his own mind.
The drive to the reserve was amazing; the African air blew through our hair and it was a pleasant morning. The skies were clear and we were refreshed after a great night’s sleep at Protea Hotel. The road to Hluhluwe was short and the trees lining the road were unlike any I had seen in the states. It felt as if we were in another world.
After our driver checked us in, we set out to see hopefully the Big Five, and maybe a few more. The Big Five, African Elephant, Cape Buffalo, Leopard, Lion, and Rhinoceros, all reside within the game reserve, but there was no guarantee to see any of them.
Shortly after taking a few curves into the park, our driver pulled over and pointed off into the distance. A herd of African elephants were making their way up a mountain off in the distance. We’re not talking a couple elephants…there were at least thirty or more of these beautiful creatures walking in a line up the mountain. It was an amazing site! I wish I had a better zoom lens, but captured what I could of the site.
The driver turned to our group and indicated with urgency we needed to go so we might have an opportunity to see these magnificent animals up close. We settled back in and off we took down the dusty roads in the reserve. Other safari drivers waved and exchanged information with ours as we made our way through the park, indicating where the herd was headed.
On our drive, we happened upon a smaller group of elephants who were just off the road. One showed off his skills to cool down by throwing dirt on his back.
Another snuck through the trees and gave all of us a shock. We didn’t see him until he flared out his amazing ears.
As they lost interest in us, we got back on the road and eventually found the herd. There was a large male in front of us. Our driver shared information about why the males musked and warned us to stay inside the vehicle as we were close. Then, it happened. One of the larger elephants turned around and started making his way towards us. Our driver wasn’t sure if he was just checking us out or was going to turn aggressive. As the elephant picked up speed heading towards us, our driver threw our vehicle in reverse and got us away from him as quickly as possible.
Once we were far enough away, the elephant calmed and returned to the herd. Those tusks were both impressive and scary all at the same time!
With that excitement through, we headed off to find some other amazing animals. Here we encountered our second of the Big Five. We saw a rhinoceros drinking from a pool of water. It was amazing to see this creature in the wild.
Our journey continued on. We made our way to a pleasant open area with a watering hole. We saw a full of a variety of animals, including our third, and final, big five of our safari, the Cape buffalo. Among the buffalo, we also saw giraffes, zebras, and even a warthog…And, no, he wasn’t singing Hakuna Matata! But he sure was cute!
Unfortunately, all of the cats were hiding on our trip this day, though I swear I saw a lion’s tail sticking out from a rock as we turned one of the corners in the park. But we did see a beautiful female nyala hiding in the brush just before we left the park.
Hluhluwe Game Reserve was a wonderful safari. I’m grateful we had an opportunity to journey deep into the heart of South Africa to view her wildlife. On that note, enjoy a picture of a dung beetles fighting over their grand ball of dung!
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