Kruger

Some co-workers planned a weekend trip to Kruger National Park, and naturally, I jumped at the opportunity to join them. Kruger is about a 5 hour drive from Johannesburg which made the weekend getaway logistically manageable if one naively thinks the driving time is contained to travel to and from the park (but we'll get to that later). I had high expectations for Kruger after the viral YouTube video Battle at Kruger, and it didn't disappoint.
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Kruger National Park


Geography: The Kruger National Park is in north-east of South Africa and and runs along the border of Mozambique in the east, Zimbabwe in the north, and the southern border is the Crocodile River. The park covers 20,000 square kilometers and is divided in 14 different ecozones, each supporting different wildlife.


History: The park was established in 1898 by the South African President Paul Kruger as a protected area for wildlife and it opened its gate the general public in 1927 for the first time. Currently, the park is run by the South African National Park Organization.


Wildlife Population:

Species	Count
African Buffalo	27,000
African Hunting Dogs	350
Black Rhinoceros	350
White Rhinoceros	7,000 to 12,000
Burchell's Zebras	17,797
Bushbucks	500
Cheetahs	200
Common Eland	300
Giraffes	5,114
Greater Kudus	5,798
Hippopotamus	3,000
Lions	1,500
Leopards	1,000
Spotted Hyenas	2,000
Elephants	11,672
Waterbuck	5,000
Blue Wildebeest	9,612
Impalas	90,000

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Our motley crew of three Argenitines, one Spaniard, and I set off for the famous South African bush. Our plan was to get as close to the park gate on Friday night as possible in order to maximize our time on Saturday...and they meant it.


We woke at 4am Saturday and were at the gate when it opened at 5:30. Within 10 minutes of passing through the gate we made our first sighting: two hyenas heading home after the night's hunt.

Hyena

A few minutes later we saw arguably the rarest mammal in the park: wild dog. A pack of about a dozen were sauntering down the road in the early morning light. Not a bad start...

African Wild Dog

I'd like to claim that our exciting start had something to do with natural safari skills, but our local friends would say we were just lucky. The best time to view is in the early morning or right before dusk when the African sun isn't s so hot. The logical thing would be to take the animals' advice and rest in the middle of the day, but not us. We persevered and drove from 4am till 8pm. Here are some of the day one highlights:

Leopard

Vervet Monkey

Zebra

White Rhino

Impala

Giraffe

Baboon

Hippopotamus

Warthog

Leopard

Many many miles later and lots of Spanish practice we crashed at the Skukuza Rest Camp to re-coup for another early start. Again, we woke at 4am to and headed into the bush, but this time on foot. The walking safari was an amazing way to explore. In the car there is a safe barrier that feels like viewing the animals. The vulnerability, smells, and sounds on foot provided an intimate experience. On our walk we came close to a family of three white rhinos. Once we got close, the wind switched directions and the animal's behavior changed immediately.

Our Group on the walking safari

Arriving back at vehicle after walking safari

Rhino family running away

After breakfast we hit the road again in our matching VW Polos. We spent the majority of the day in the park before the long drive back to Joburg. Day two highlights:

Leopard walking right in front of car

Leopard on edge as we snapped photos next to car

Water Buffalo

Rhino protecting young

Elephant

As I am sure you were all noticing, there is one glaring exception... only four of the infamous Big Five (buffalo, elephant, leopard, lion, and rhino) are represented. No lions on this trip, but just so you don't feel short changed, a lion from the lion rescue in Joburg.