How do I put in words, the wonders of a bush experience in one of the most famous wildlife parks in the world? Ok, try to imagine a national park the size of Israel, with huge tracts of acacia trees marked by open savanna, rushing rivers and the low lying clouds. Now fill it with lions, leopards, elephants, giraffes, buffaloes, black rhinos (Big Five) plus cheetahs, giraffes, hippos, wide range of Antelope species and you’ll have some notion of what it’s like to visit Kruger National Park! Kruger is a magical place where the drama of life and death is played out on a daily basis. It was amazing how in the same day, we spotted a pride of lion feasting on a recent kill and then later in the afternoon, also witnessed a newborn impala struggling to takes its first steps.
The second day in this wonderland, we woke up quite late to a clear and lovely day as we were too lazy to brave the ‘very’ early morning bush walk with the ranger. Trekking out on our own around the campus (we can claim to be experts on at least the Treehouse Campus, no?!) we enjoyed the magic of everything around us come to life as soon as the warm sun drops melted away the icy frost from the chilly night before. Enjoying a good breakfast from the balcony of our treehouse (yes, overlooking the creek) and soaking in the tranquil views of the wilderness, we felt so tuned in with mother nature.
But we slowly woke up from our very short but fulfilling dream, as it was time to hit the road and head out to our next destination. We snaked around the winding roads of the high-veld and plunged almost 1000m into the low-veld area in our mini-van with our group, admiring the lovely country side views. En route, we stopped at the famous Blyde River Canyon, which follows the Drankensberg Escarpment and carves its way down to the lowveld offering many wonderful viewpoints. Our favorite vantage point to take in the views was the “Three Rondavels”– huge cylinders of rock with hut like pointed roofs rising out of the far walls of the canyon.
Finishing a long day journey with an overnight stay in Joberg, we woke up to face the real world with all its modern amenities and artificial pleasures. Our dreamy treehouse was replaced by a large suite on 30th floor of a high end hotel, where we boarded the glass walled elevator instead of the rustic wooden stairs to climb into our four poster bed with plush and sparkling white linen and duvets with no need for a mosquito net hanging over us. Can’t complain too much as it was a very lovely hotel but we will trade it for another night’s stay in the wilderness atop a tree, listening to the cries of hyenas while taking a shower out in the open, with anyone, anyday! Any takers?
