It was nice and warm when we set off on our evening drive. It was to be the Three Amigos last drive together as Frank and Tracey had to head back to Johannesburg and return to work in the morning and wouldn't be taking part in the morning drive.
When talking about a safari in Africa, the animals most mentioned are known as the Big 5. They are lion, leopard, rhino, elephant, and Cape buffalo. At the start of the drive, I had four of the five though the lion was very distant. I did get both types of rhino however. I had gone into the safari without any expectations of what I'd see as I didn't want to be disappointed if we couldn't find one of the animals as they had moved outside our range. That didn't mean that I really really didn't want to tick off the last animal on my list, the leopard, especially since one had been spotted close to the lodge while I was out on one of the drives.
However, the evening drive turned out to be quite successful. Not only did we find the pride of lions out in the open so a lot of good photos could be taken, we also found a leopard. What made it even better is that the leopard was feeding at the time he was found. Because of the distance and the lighting, I had to play with the settings on my camera (which I almost never do) to get shots which I was satisfied with.
With that being said, here's some photos....
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| Baboons |
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| Wildebeest |
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| Eagle |
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| Lion |
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| Three Lionesses |
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| The Pride |
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| White Rhinoceros |
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| South African Bee Eater |
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| Leopard |
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| Leopard |
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| Leopard |
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| Leopard |
It turned out to be a fantastic drive. Watching the leopard feed was amazing. It took us a while to figure out that it was an impala on which he was feasting (don't worry, there were plenty of them in the reserve.... I mean PLENTY). We could have sat there and watched him feed all night.
We returned to camp for dinner and drinks. Unfortunately, this is when I had to say goodbye to Frank and Tracey. I have always wondered why it was so easy for my parents to make new friends while they were on their vacations. It's not typical of me but now I know and I'm very grateful for their friendship. I have been invited to visit with them on their farm should I make it back to South Africa and I plan on holding them to that promise.
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