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That sounds like a fantastic Safari @xelas. What company are you hiring your 4x4 from?

@ElenaHBoth camps were not full at all and for that reason we super enjoyed our game drives (most of the times we had our own private car and guide). All the guides that we met were very nice and highly professional and they did a great job for us.

Southern Ground-Hornbill (Bucorvus leadbeateri)       Hamerkop (Scopus umbretta)           Tropical Boubou (Laniarius major)     Honey Badger (Mellivora capensis)...unfortunately it was very late, very dark and very far!               Blue Waxbill (Uraeginthus angolensis)               To be continued...  

For the remainder of the afternoon we went across the river to do more birding and to enjoy the landscapes Sambar deer by the river A Lesser FIsh Eagle resting by the river Pied Bushchat   Another very enjoyable day showing a good range of environments. It is a beautiful park!   Back for dinner and an early night and ready for another early start tomorrow.      

Soon after leaving the Rest House Grounds, A brief glimpse of a Tiger in very long rass - showing the ear spots. It disappeared. JayP said we will head to a different area of the grassland in the hope it will go that way   On the way we saw a bird we were really keen to see Collared Falconet A beautiful, tiny raptor. It measures about 18cm. As a comparison, the Eurasian Hobby that we get in the UK is about 36cm - and is generally considered small. The House Sparrow measures about 15cm. We saw this species 3 or 4 times in the park - this sighting had the best light. We were delighted to see it.   About ten minutes later, we came to another area of grassland - and as hoped for-     Tiger walking alongside the long grass Stops to spray and disappears into the long grass bright orange,black and white so difficult to see It comes out of the grass and walks away checks behind and then disappears So a really enjoyable first part of the afternoon. We have certainly seen more Tigers than we expected.                        

We returned to the Rest House for breakfast, som exploring of the grounds and then lunch (!) and then we would leave at 14.00.   Around the grounds there were many Macaques Portrait Concentrating on lunch    

We were able to stop at small settlement where rangers lived. JayP knew all the rangers, and they were happy for us to get out of the jeep and wander around in their fenced enclosure (in the rest of the park you are not allowed out of the jeep for obvious reasons)   It was good to stretch our legs a nd look for birds while on foot A pretty Grey-breasted Prinia A Grey-capped Pygmy Woodpecker A bit more driving And more lovely landscapes        

Next day at Dhikal we have 2 drives in the park. Meet at 06.15 for a cup of tea and leave at 06.30. (Return at 10.30 for breakfast)   The morning focussed on birds in different environments Asian Barred Owlet keeping eyes on us! Crested Serpent Eagle Greater Flameback Rufous Woodpecker We were pleased to see more Kalij Pheasants Male Male in the undergrowth Two females      

@Galanathank you for the bird suggestion! @Treepolthank you @Kitsafarithank you - we were very happy with our itinerary - it gave a good range of birds in the different environments @Zubbie15thank you - go for it! @Atravelynnthank you    

thoroughly enjoyed the fantastic photos of the gorgeous birds - all of which are unknown to me. Not sure when we will finally find our way to South America but I can't wait to see those birds in your images in person.

What a difference a sunny day makes! All the faces smiling ear to ear 😀.

Yes, invited to join a self driving 2 weeks camping trip by fellow STer Daniel: Maun - 3rd bridge - Khwai - Savuti - Ihaha - Senyati -  Maun is our itinerary.

Apologies for the length of time this is taking to complete---still have quite a bit left to finish the report !  Next stop after leaving Sarara Camp was a trip back to Nairobi for a short span of hours and then an evening flight to Kigali.  I was plenty good with it because we were able to book the 3P private visit to Sheldricks which was booked solid for the first two night of our trip when we were in Nairobi.  I had really wanted to meet Raha the baby rhino and the other elephant orphans...two elephant orphanages in one trip might seem excessive but any opportunity to get close up to elephants is worthwhile as long as it's ethical and the work to re-wild these elephants in both places is extraordinary and exemplary.  The sad part is that it is needed at all but both Reteti and Sheldricks are busting at the seams with babies either orphaned due to the prolonged drought, poaching activity, human wildlife conflict or simple acts of nature...the lives of the babies are well documented as to how and why they got there and then the stories of successful return to the wild is also well documented.   We stopped off at the Giraffe Center adjacent to the famous (and famously expensive) Giraffe Manor.  Our visit was brief but always fun to feed a giraffe and this case Rothschild giraffes.  An interesting side note is that in 2016 I made a point to try to find Hog Ranch, Peter Beard's encampment in the Karen suburb of Nairobi.  Surprisingly, I was able to find it and wander around for a bit (I had hoped to meet Beard) but found out then that he had not been there in several years since a bad encounter with an elephant that nearly killed him.  Since his death in 2020, I wondered what I would find.  Turns out he donated his property to the giraffe center which was next door and his encampment has been dismantled and the land is returning to as it was.  Admirable, actually.     The next stop was of course Sheldricks.  At the time of our visit, it was 1200USD to visit which spread among our nine travelers wasn't so bad and also a donation to a great organization and cause.  Here are some pics from both visits:       Sheldricks visit:   Edwin, legendary keeper, surrogate and an excellent spokesman for Sheldricks:       And for me, the star of the show, baby Raha, the brave black rhino calf that has battled the odds for survival.  She was abandoned by her mother during the drought perhaps unable to produce milk...Raha was found badly injured likely by hyena attack with her tail taken off and serious injury to her backside....Sheldricks has done yeoman's work to save her life and get her on the road to re-joining the wild in the years ahead.  It'll be a long road but she is exhibiting that famous rhino obstinance and beligerance that shows she's up for the fight to survive and thrive.           We hit a nice restaurant (Tamarind Restaurant, I believe) where we saw this cool chameleon with a horn like a rhino :   Next we headed to the airport for a flight and overnight in Kigali and then onward to see the gorillas of the Impenetrable Forest.    

Those gorilla photos - it touches the core of your heart. i thoroughly enjoyed the videos of both the gorillas the golden monkeys. quite poignant looking at the monkeys eating the potatoes and wondering how long will the farmers tolerate them before they retaliate? looking forward to more. 

Beautiful photos of a fantastic experience