Stalking Big Game in South Africa
Having spent all of last week in Pretoria, South Africa on business, I drove about two hours to Pilanesberg National Park on the weekend in hopes of seeing some big game animals. I had been to an "animal safari" in England with the family many years ago, but I always suspected it wasn't the same thing as seeing animals in their natural habitat. I can't remember precisely what creatures we saw in England, aside from monkeys that were fascinated by our windshield wipers. Whatever animals were involved, you have to wonder whether they were disappointed, having arrived in England, to discover they'd be living out their years in a cold, damp climate. All things considered, I think the typical animal safari has a lot more in common with a zoo than with the wild.
The Pilanesberg experience, on the other hand, lived up to my expectations. Over the course of four to five hours, I drove a vehicle throughout much of the park, which is quite large (more than 570 sq. km. in area). I've known others who spent two complete days touring the park, and they undoubtedly increased their chances of seeing what's known in Africa as the "Big Five" -- the five wild animals that hunters traditionally have coveted the most -- the lion, leopard, elephant, buffalo and rhino. I saw only two of the animals on the list, the rhino and the buffalo, but then hey, I saw giraffes, too, and why aren't they on the list? (On second thought, I guess mounting a giraffe's head on a game room wall wouldn't leave much space in the room for anyone else, so maybe the giraffe's omission isn't unfair after all.) I didn't hold out much hope for seeing a lion, and even less for seeing leopards, since they're nocturnal. As for elephants, I've seen many of these in Thailand, so I didn't mind missing them. Enough with the words. Here are my favorite photos:
My trip to Pilanesberg will always be etched in my mind for another reason: it's the first time in a long time that I went tent camping. I had tried to book a chalet in the park, but all of them had been reserved already, so I paid an extravagant price for two nights in a "safari tent."
It was advertised as being "electrified," which turned out to mean the tent had just one lightbulb hanging from the ceiling and no heat or electrical outlets. It also had blankets but no sleeping bag. It's winter in South Africa right now (southern hemisphere, of course), and while it's not cold in the same way as a Michigan winter is cold, temperatures fell from mid-80s during the day to the low-40s at night. So, here are the key lessons I learned from this camping experience:
1. No matter how frigid it feels in a tent in the morning, that's nothing compared to the bracing cold you encounter when you unzip the flaps and step outside.
2. In the dark of the African bush, you can easily spend 45 minutes weaving your way uncertainly back to your tent that you're shocked to discover in the morning is no more than 100 yards from the common toilets.
3. Despite having gone unobserved by me for more than 20 years, the Milky Way galaxy is still there.
4. When the only light bulb in your tent burns out when you're trying to pack your bag in the pre-dawn dark, the backlit feature on a Blackberry is invaluable.
The Pilanesberg experience, on the other hand, lived up to my expectations. Over the course of four to five hours, I drove a vehicle throughout much of the park, which is quite large (more than 570 sq. km. in area). I've known others who spent two complete days touring the park, and they undoubtedly increased their chances of seeing what's known in Africa as the "Big Five" -- the five wild animals that hunters traditionally have coveted the most -- the lion, leopard, elephant, buffalo and rhino. I saw only two of the animals on the list, the rhino and the buffalo, but then hey, I saw giraffes, too, and why aren't they on the list? (On second thought, I guess mounting a giraffe's head on a game room wall wouldn't leave much space in the room for anyone else, so maybe the giraffe's omission isn't unfair after all.) I didn't hold out much hope for seeing a lion, and even less for seeing leopards, since they're nocturnal. As for elephants, I've seen many of these in Thailand, so I didn't mind missing them. Enough with the words. Here are my favorite photos:
My trip to Pilanesberg will always be etched in my mind for another reason: it's the first time in a long time that I went tent camping. I had tried to book a chalet in the park, but all of them had been reserved already, so I paid an extravagant price for two nights in a "safari tent."
It was advertised as being "electrified," which turned out to mean the tent had just one lightbulb hanging from the ceiling and no heat or electrical outlets. It also had blankets but no sleeping bag. It's winter in South Africa right now (southern hemisphere, of course), and while it's not cold in the same way as a Michigan winter is cold, temperatures fell from mid-80s during the day to the low-40s at night. So, here are the key lessons I learned from this camping experience:1. No matter how frigid it feels in a tent in the morning, that's nothing compared to the bracing cold you encounter when you unzip the flaps and step outside.
2. In the dark of the African bush, you can easily spend 45 minutes weaving your way uncertainly back to your tent that you're shocked to discover in the morning is no more than 100 yards from the common toilets.
3. Despite having gone unobserved by me for more than 20 years, the Milky Way galaxy is still there.
4. When the only light bulb in your tent burns out when you're trying to pack your bag in the pre-dawn dark, the backlit feature on a Blackberry is invaluable.
posted by Paul Steinkraus at 2:53 AM
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