We entered the park in the central region, and immediately began spotting elephants, zebras, and large and small herds of impala and kudu. Huge termite mounds were scattered throughout the landscape as we made our way to our home for the first night, Letaba Rest Camp, which has a range of accommodations from camp sites to guest cottages. Our safari tent was located next to the camp’s fence, where a spotted hyena paced off and on throughout the night. The Letaba River borders the other side of the camp, which is an attraction for many animals. The fenced-in rest camp is self-sufficient with its own restaurant, store, and gas station. The 22 rest camps in Kruger vary in size and accommodations.

Only official safari vehicles operated by park rangers are allowed to drive in the park at night. We enthusiastically boarded the safari bus that first night, with much anticipation, and were rewarded with many amazing sightings: baboons, storks, crocodiles, and hippopotamuses all enjoying the same river at various spots; giraffes snacking on high tree branches; herds of buffalo, kudu and impala feeding on brush in the bushveld. Sounds in the night of a multitude of animals lulled us to sleep that night, and became commonplace as the trip went on.

Driving ourselves south to our next planned home away from home was an adventure in itself. It seemed like every five minutes we would spot animals foreign to us … large herds of elephants, giraffe gracefully striding across the landscape, a herd of wildebeest meandering through the bush. Then an ostrich scooted by, which really caught us by surprise. The farther south we drove, the more rhinoceroses we would encounter lumbering across the landscape. In most every river we drove by, half-submerged hippopotamuses were cooling themselves.

We were greeted by a troop of baboons in the trees next to our chalet at Rhino Post Lodge. The curious primates are a common sight in many parts of the park. The lodge overlooks a busy watering hole where we saw elephants, kudu, and warthogs take their turns bathing and drinking during the warm, dry southern hemisphere winter.

The Rhino Post Lodge, as well as the other 16 upscale private lodges currently operational in Kruger, are all eco-friendly for minimal impact on the environment and are monitored closely by the park. Rhino Post has wooden walkways between the eight chalets and the lodge’s dining and lounge facilities, with the lounge overlooking the watering hole, providing once-in-a-lifetime sights. This accommodation differs from the Rest Camps, as it is not fenced in. After dark, no one is allowed to walk outside without a ranger escort, as animals are free to roam anywhere around. A resident leopard is frequently sighted near the Rhino Lodge.

In addition to going on safari drives twice daily, we were lucky enough to be able to take part in a “sleepout” for one night while at the lodge. This involved hiking about two hours into the bush, with two armed rangers, to our campsite — wooden decks built several feet above the ground with mosquito net tents and a cookout area. Walking through the bushveld is definitely a different experience than the safari drives. The animals are much more aware of your presence. While walking, we encountered a male rhino about fifteen yards away, which was exhilarating! Kruger National Park doesn’t allow people to hike in the park except for a few specific places, and with an armed ranger. In fact, people are only allowed to get out of their cars in designated places that are naturally safeguarded from animals.

We traveled farther south after three nights at Rhino Post to stay at Lukimbi Safari Lodge, another private concession in Kruger. The overlook from our chalet was superb, as we had a stunning view of an open savannah where elephants and hippos marched through on their way to the water hole.

The Lukimbi rangers had the authority to drive off-road through the bushveld during safari drives, which allowed us to track a cheetah deep into the bush. Our ranger was as excited as we were at the chance to see the cheetah, as they are rarely seen.

“I only drive fast for three things: cheetah, leopard, and wild dogs!” he told us.

Leaving Kruger National Park, we continued to head south, driving by many sugar cane fields in Swaziland and crossing the border back into South Africa in anticipation of our next adventure in the heartland of KwaZulu-Natal, Hluhluwe-iMfolozi Park. The Park gained world recognition in the 1950s for “Operation Rhino,” conservation efforts to save the white rhino from extinction. Rhino are now plentiful in Hluhluwe-iMfolozi.

The view from our bush lodge accommodations in Hluhluwe looked down into the palm-lined Hluhluwe River. The peacefulness and tranquility of the lodge was surreal. Yet, knowing that a large cat or rhino or troop of baboons could enter the camp area at any time gave one a sense of thrill.

As our safari adventure was near its end, and we were driving toward the exit of the park to head for the city of Durban, we were stopped by a herd of elephants who were leisurely crossing the road. It was a storybook ending for a storybook adventure.

Photos by Teri Priebe
Wildlife was plentiful throughout the park. Elephants, zebra, wildebeest and giraffes were plentiful.