Enroute to Skukuza

We parked the car on the side and walked towards the office to get necessary clearance to enter. The overcast sky, cool weather and expectation to have some great sightings at sunset were responsible for the gait in our walk. If you expected the woman at the counter to echo our enthusiasm, you are grossly mistaken. She was grumpy and her demeanor reminded us that we were in a wildlife camp and not in a theme park. She demanded our reservation receipt and passports. As my friend decided to stay in the office and have a friendly conversation with her; I rushed back to the car to get the documents. 

With no cars in the lot it was clear that we were the last ones to enter the park. I handed over the documents to her and as she was processing our paperwork, I asked her if we would encounter animals on our way. I never realized that such an innocuous question would unleash the animal in her. She snapped at me and said we were already late and needed to cover 60 kms to get to Skukuza. Does it mean we must be prepared to encounter animals on the way? I didn’t know how to interpret her cold silence.

I now knew what kind of conversation my friend must have had with her while I made the trip back to our car. Though her tone and demeanor was far from welcoming, I felt she was reasonable when she gave us the entrypass. Had my friend roughed it up with her, she could have easily denied our entry into Kruger using weather and safety as excuses. Before we left the office she warned us not to stop anywhere and exceed the speed limit of 40km/hr.

The women didn’t care what came between us; we had to get to Skukuza by 6 pm adhering to the speed limit. Paul and I felt like a participant in the Amazing Race series. We had an entry pass and more constraints than instructions. We didn’t have cars ahead of us or behind us to tip toe or tail gate.  I sat at the wheel and Paul responsibly rolled up the windows and ensured the doors were locked.

 

A light drizzle and mild fog engulfed the park as I navigated the vehicle. Suddenly at a distance I noticed a huge moving object. Yes, it was an elephant ahead of us and I quickly reduced the speed. Would it be correct if I said the elephant was jaywalking in the middle of the road? In reality, we had intruded their space to enjoy their beauty and behavior.

While Paul kept reminding me the words of caution of the woman at the office, I reduced the speed respecting the animal and its might. Soaked in the beliefs of Hinduism, I believed the elephant’s appearance at the start of a trip as a blessing for obstacle-free journey. In excitement I referred to herd of elephants as a pride of elephants.

 

 

I was mistaken; it was not a single elephant, but a small herd with a young calf and an Allomother. As you may know the elephants are matriarchal. The females stay together as a herd and help ing other mother in the herd raise their calves. The young females who are not mature to become mothers play the role of “Allomothers” watching the calves and teaching them life skills. Isn’t this similar to the roles of aunts and uncles in a joint family set-up?

Mother elephants are very protective of their calves and can get aggressive if their safe space is trespassed. An oncoming van violated this rule and got too close to them thereby putting their lives at risk.

Coming from India where driving a car can be compared to playing a game on PS2. I grew a bit nervous after spotting animals on the road. I pulled over and waited till they made a decision on their route.

Paul and I had no idea what other animals we were going to encounter enroute to Skukuza. Hardly a few kilometers ahead I slammed the brake after seeing the king of the jungle in the middle of the road. Was it a kill, hit and run or was it just lazing? You can definitely assume that the slamming of brake was from respect more than fear.

We were violating the rule dictated by the women at the gate, but then our path was completely blocked. A male and female lion had left the bushes and taken to the tar road. Cars and safari vehicles surrounded them like paparazzi invading their privacy. Their body language clearly meant it was their space and we had to wait until then decided to vacate the spot. But some vehicles did get too close and intimidated them, but the couple stood their ground.

Later during a late night safari at Kruger, the ranger explained that a male lion and its female would typically honeymoon at various places in the forest before they copulate and start a family. In the video you can see the female taking a snooze and the male guarding her like a crown jewel. This honeymooning is considered a bonding ritual, where they are getting to know each other. Isn’t that very similar to what couples in love and newlyweds do?

The honeymoon couple ignored the taunts and gracefully posed to the paparazzi in the vehicles. We waited for over 15 minutes for the cars and jeeps around the lions to leave and drove by them. I told Paul they must be tired of paparazzi and posing for the photographs.

Spotting wildlife is like hitting a jackpot; you never know what you are going to get. Hardly a few more kilometers ahead we found a herd of zebras gracing in the bush. Zebra are social animals and belong to the horse family, but unfortunately humans have never domesticated them, but yet hunt them for their beautiful skin.

Nature has given them these beautiful stripes to confuse predators by motion dazzle – when they move in herds they appear as flickering stripes, making it more difficult for predators to hunt. Here is a question for you color obsessed world – are zebras white animals with black stripes or black animals with white stripes?

 

When chased, a zebra will zig-zag from side to side, making it more difficult for the predator to attack. When cornered, the zebra will rear up and kick or bite its attacker. They have excellent eyesight and it is believed that they can see in color. Apart from that they also have excellent hearing and can turn their ears in almost any direction. In addition to superb eyesight and hearing, zebras also have acute senses of smell and taste.

Later in the safari the ranger explained that female zebras mature earlier than the males, and a mare may have her first foal by the age of three. Males are not able to breed until the age of five or six. Nature has its reason to delay maturity in males. Don’t you agree?

Mares may give birth to one foal every twelve months, which she nurses up to a year. Like horses, zebras are able to stand, walk and suckle shortly after they are born. A zebra foal is brown and white instead of black and white at birth.

With my co-pilot having his eyes on the watch, we didn’t waste much time admiring Zebras despite their mesmerizing patterns. In the first 45mins of this ride we saw 3 of the Big 5 (elephant, lion, zebra, rhino and leopard) enroute to Skukuza.

The drizzle was constant and made more animals get closer to the road.  Suddenly we noticed two spotted hyenas run to the middle of the road and we slowed down. One of them picked up a can and ran back into the bushes. Hyenas live in packs and are one of the most social carnivores in the animal kingdom. We will see and learn more about them later.

At the end of this drive I was convinced what cows, goats and buffaloes (brake inspector) are to Indian roads, elephants, lions and other wildlife are to South Africa. Don’t you agree?

Paul and I barely made it as the doors of Skukuza camp closed behind us. And, my belief in the Elephant God removing our obstacles came true. That night as I rested in my bed, I replayed the big 3 from the evening. I thanked the lady at Wanderers Marriott who suggested us  to take the Melalane gate to Skukuza. How about the woman who gave a cold stare at Melalane gate and ignored my question on spotting animals on the trip? Let’s have a ranger answer this for you on my next blog.

This may have been a long read for you, but I hope it was worthwhile. This is just a glimpse of what is to come at Skukuza. Before you check back later this week for some great sightings prepare yourself by reading this blog on Jungle Safari 101.