Safari Day

We woke up at 5am this morning to start our safari at Kruger National Park! It was a brisk 36* F, so we basically froze our butts off until the sun fully came up. Who knew that South Africa would get so ridiculously cold? We bundled up together in the back of the land rovers, and were on our way. We got to wear some super attractive, warm ponchos, which saved our lives. The sunrise was absolutely amazing to watch, and we were able to see the animals slowly wake up. We started off the safari with some elephants, impalas, and spring buck. Then our safari started to slow down, until we saw some baboons, hippos, crocodiles, and vultures. It finally got warm enough to take off the ponchos around 11am. The most fun part of our morning safari was watched the impalas try to find a way around the sun bathing lions to get to the water hole. The lions were about 100 yards away from us, relaxing in the sun, and didn't even seem to care about the herds of impala. There were two males & one female, which is unusual, but the guide said one is most likely a son. We watched them until the impala found a safe route, and then we were on our way back to Timbavati for lunch. On our way back, our guide pulled over to show us a huge herd of buffalo! So during our day safari we saw 3 out of the 5, Big Five animals. (The Big Five is composed of lion, elephants, buffalo, leopard, and rhino. They are the most poached animals in Africa.) 

After lunch, we left around 3:30pm to go on our sunset safari! It started off pretty slowly, but then the animals started emerging. We saw a honey badger, and our guide said was an extremely rare sight. Then one of the other groups found two cheetahs resting after their meal, so we were able to go watch them for almost 15 minutes. Their bellies were so big that we thought they were pregnant, but our guide said they must have just eaten not far away. Up next was a male lion, who was lounging, and we were able to drive right next to him. (He was 10 feet away) The best part of our night was seeing a leopard, and he cubs. I got an accidental picture of her right before they disappeared into the woods. We ended our safari by drinking a beer under the clear night sky, and watching a few jackals play nearby.