Blue Cape, White Waters & Red Dunes

[Towlersonsafari]

Hello @@michael-ibk when we went to augrabies last September it did seem busier -can recommend the dassie trail-although a bit hairy for us poor excuses for hikers as there were a lot of boulders to clamber over! Also we had to stand guard over our chalet as we unpacked as the vervet monkeys were very keen to help!

We also saw a dassie rat-our very first and only sighting of one! your photo's are rather more impressive than the one's we-rather I managed!!

[Chakra]

Wonderful captures.

Augrabies remains a very underrated spot for overseas travellers, although I do agree with Towlersonsafari that the falls area and the immediate vicinity did not look particularly empty when I was there. But on the drive we didn't see many cars.

[Kitsafari]

@@michael-ibk your first picture of the rocky landscape in Augrabies fall reminded me so much of the rock trolls all rolled up in Frozen.

 

so happy for you to see the klipspringers, they were great shots of the dainty creature. I've only seen one in a distance, but would have loved to see two so close and patient with you!

 

You said a cerberus squirrel but i see two heads! maybe i need to change my spectacles.

sad about the baboon, but I'm surprised that the group accepts him and takes care of him. He must have somehow adjusted to climbing trees with the stumps, which amazes me how animals adapt despite their handicaps!

And I thoroughly enjoyed your larks and birds as well (Sorry @AndMic).

[CaroleE]

@@michael-ibk

 

First post - That leopard! That hyena! Those red red dunes! I almost don't want to carry on as I know it's only going to get worse better.

Penguins - fab. Coast - stunning. Views from the point, table mountain etc - stunning. Kirstenbosh - stunning. And yes the weight gan - stunning

 

A visit to Kgalagadi TP has been in the back of my mind for a while now therefore looking forward to reading more about it..

 

Ok caught up with the rest. Beautiful landscapes - particularly like the gorge and Adam's point. Great sightings - the Verreaux Eagle is stunning. A cheer went up whem I saw the Klipspringers. I saw my first last year and was so happy to finally see them so can imagine how pleased you were to find them. Great shots of them on the red rocks.

Thank you also for the hyrax. They seem to be forgotten about - it was great to see lots of them and lots of photos!

De Hoop and Augrabies definitely look worth a visit. Really liking the idea of being able to get out of the vehicle.

 

Thank you and @AndMic for the trip report so far.

Edited June 25, 2016 by CaroleE

[gagan]

Trip looks great .. and what else .. the hues captivate me a lot.Nice surrounding and the way to capture them.

[michael-ibk]

Thank you, @@Alexander33 , @@SafariChick , @@xelas , @@dlo , @@Zim Girl , @@Towlersonsafari , @@Chakra , @@Kitsafari , @@CaroleE and @@gagan :

 

 

 

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Alexander33: I really need to get back to Africa.

 

Don´t we all?

 

 

 

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SafariChick: Poor baboon, but glad to hear he seems to be accepted and taken care of - that is heartwarming.

dlo: It would be very interesting observing that baboon for a while and seeing how it gets on with things.

Kitsafari: sad about the baboon, but I'm surprised that the group accepts him and takes care of him. He must have somehow adjusted to climbing trees with the stumps, which amazes me how animals adapt despite their handicaps!

 

Just to clarify, we didn´t actually see the others taking care of him. I just assumed they do because I can´t quite see how he would be able to survive on his own. And he was definitely accepted in the troop. I´m not sure he would climb trees - he did not even use his arms for walking, he was doing that just like a human - only on two feet.

 

 

 

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xelas: Is August a good time to explore the area??

 

Not sure, Alex. But I was told that Cape Town gets a lot of wind and rain during South African winters.

 

 

 

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Towlersonsafari: when we went to augrabies last September it did seem busier -can recommend the dassie trail-although a bit hairy for us poor excuses for hikers as there were a lot of boulders to clamber over! Chakra: although I do agree with Towlersonsafari that the falls area and the immediate vicinity did not look particularly empty when I was there

 

I was mainly referring to the areas outside of the camp - no other cars there. But it´s true, the falls were never crowded as well. Obviously there were some people, but we often would have the platforms for ourselves. Obviously the place must be busier in September.

 

 

 

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Kitsafari: You said a cerberus squirrel but i see two heads!

 

Uhm .... uh ... the third head was looking the other way!

 

 

 

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CaroleE: A cheer went up whem I saw the Klipspringers.

 

So did we, Carole - I was really happy to find them. And welcome back, I hope you had a wonderful safari in Kenya!

[michael-ibk]

Cammspannen

 

Kgalagadi? I´m sorry, still not quite there yet - but at least we´re getting to the Kalahari, I´m making progress.

 

After our wine tasting we stocked up on alcohol. This was not included in our package (everything else was), and that was very wise of Dantes. Not being completely sober after trying a lot of reds and whites probably was a factor in what we thought we would need for 8 nights - I think we could have invited a lot of people for parties with the insane amount of Whisky, Amarula, Beer, Cyder and Wine we were buying. (But again, this being South Africa it cost practically nothing compared to our European prices).

 

I´m even more ashamed to admit that we almost managed to drink it all!

 

So, at about noon, we left Upington and were finally heading to dunes and red sands. It´s a bit more than 250 kms to Twee Rivieren, the Southern entrance gate of the Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park. The road is in very good condition, and traffic is low, so this can be done in less than 2 1/2 hours.

 

 

The road is leading through farmland mostly, some salt lakes, lots of cattle and goats to be seen. And my first ever Aardwolf! Which was a sad sighting - because it was in the form of a roadkill. Dantes asked if we wanted to stop to have a look at it, but no, we did not - this was not the way we wanted to remember our first Aardwolf. Unfortunately, we would also see two Bat-Eared Foxes which had become victims to traffic here.

 

Dantes had said right at the start of our trip that he was sure something would not go to plan - it never does in Africa. And he was right. Driving up he was informed by his wife Elise that there´s no petrol at Twee Rivieren. Quite a complication, since obviously we intended to drive around quite a bit in that area, and it´s a long way to Mata Mata where the next petrol station is.

 

San Parks have decided to upgrade their petrol stations, which is of course a good move. Not so good is that that means there´s no petrol available for three months there! (They now have info on that fact on their home page.) What´s worse is that they did not inform clients who already had bookings there. We met many upset customers! Once the upgrade is finished Mata Mata will be next, and I assume then it will be Nossob´s turn.

 

Dantes improvised, we refuelled in Askham (about 75 km away from Twee Rivieren), and he borrowed a few canisters from friends so we could take some petrol with us.

 

 

We went up all the way to Twee Rivieren then, but did not yet enter the park - for one night we had chosen to first stay at Cammspannen Private Reserve.

 

 

The road leading there, a bit bumpy, first leading along the park´s fence, then through farmland, almost all the way West to Namibia!

 

 

A female Red-Crested Korhaan on the way.

 

Cammspannen is a privately owned reserve which Dantes has been managing since 2011. It is situated in the Mier area in a remote part of South Africa, 325 km from Upington. Cammspannen covers 12 800 ha of typical Kalahari duneveld in the Arid Savannah biome of South Africa. Its northern border is 1 km south of the Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park’s southern border and in the west it borders on Namibia.

 

Dantes had told us before that while we would see all the Kalahari regulars like Springbok, Gemsbok et al, they would be very shy and skittish - very few people ever get here, and it´s totally uninhabited. What´s more, for three weeks a year hunting is allowed, so the moment the animals see a car they will run like the wind until they disappear behind the safety of the next dune.

 

But the idea of being far, far away from all and everybody appealed to us, and we were hoping to see some interesting stuff on a night drive, since we would also be able to off-road here.

 

 

Accommodation is basic but perfectly alright. Only a small campsite with tents. But a wonderful place in the middle of the red dunes, and it was comfortable enough. We did have beds, a proper (flush) toilet and a shower.

 

 

 

 

The braii where Elise was working magic - we would enjoy a most delicious, home-made, very meaty perfect dinner under the stars of the Kalahari tonight.

 

 

The shower

 

 

One of the camp´s inhabitants.

 

[michael-ibk]

After we had settled in, Dantes took us on a drive through the reserve.

Spike-Heeled Lark (Obviously the "No More Larks" promise only referred to Augrabies.)

 

Kori Bustard

 

We did see mammals, actually quite a few. Wildebeest, Red Hartebeest, Gemsbok, Springbok, Black-Backed Jackal, Bat-Eared Fox. But like Dantes had warned us before we would always see them like this:

 

But even so we enjoyed the drive a lot. The weather was fantastic, and it felt good to be in such a remote area, with nobody else near or far. And the red dunes here were just beautiful.

 

We just sat here for quite a while, and enjoyed the tranquility.

 

The perfect place to have a beer!

 

[michael-ibk]

 

We returned to camp to enjoy a fabulous dinner.

 

 

 

 

We left for our night drive at about 20:00 and only returned to 23:00 - a long, bumpy drive, and it got uncomfortably cold. I confess we were a bit disappointed afterwards - we had hoped to maybe see some specials (Aardwolf, Aardvark, Pangolin, Caracal), Dantes had told us chances were not too bad, but no luck. He had also said he would practically guarantee Porcupine, but none of them as well. But not to say we saw nothing, we did, quite a lot of it actually. Lots of Springhares, Steenboks, Hares, two Genets, an African Wild Cat, a Cape Fox - most of the time out of photo reach unfortunately. Our Aardvark "find" was most unwelcome - our car fell into a hole, and only with a lot of efforts by everybody did we manage to get it out again.

 

But I really was pleasantly surprised about the number of Bat-Eared Foxes - we saw them a lot this night.

 

 

 

 

And an animal I had not expected to see here - a Duiker.

 

 

 

[michael-ibk]

Next morning, before we would finally get to Kgalagadi, we joined Dantes for another drive through the reserve.

An Ant-Eating Chat saying Hello to this new day.

 

A lot of running animals again:

 

A Northern Black Korhaan - these little fellows tend to scream their lungs out indignantly when somebody gets close.

 

Obviously, with all migration routes blocked, Cammspannen needs artificial water holes to ensure the survival of animals.

 

Cape Turtle Dove quenching its thirst.

 

But even with some water around this is the Kalahari, a tough place - and not all animals are making it here:

 

No lions or other major predators in here, so we were also free to walk which we did quite a bit while Dantes was checking on pumps and would then pick us up on our way to the next waterhole. Which gave us time to look a bit at the small stuff, little critters like this milipede. Apparently very poisonous - Meerkats love them nonetheless, though.

 

Sociable Weavers are among nature´s most impressive architects. While they mostly use trees for their huge communal homes, anything can serve for this purpose:

 

The fence to Namibia:

 

[michael-ibk]

And then Cammspannen had a very nice farewell present for us. The Nr. 1 wishlist animal for this trip for Andreas were Meerkats, and then Dantes spotted some (far off the road).

We drove off the road and tried to get a bit closer. Not very optimistic that they would stay, after all, these were completely wild animals, not habituated, and Dantes had never seen Meerkats here in this area before.

 

But they would stay. Every time we inched a little bit closer, they would disappear into their burrow. But every time their curiosity was stronger than their fear, and so inevitably, they would soon peek out their cute little heads again.

 

And so we managed to get closer ...

 

... closer ...

 

... and closer! Far closer than we had hoped we could get to. In the end not more than 20 m.

 

[xyz99]

This is getting better and better, I really enjoy seeing animals that we did not get to see....yes, need to go back to Africa.

 

The Bat-eared Fox, meerkats are on my list of animals I need to look for next time. And of course, the red dunes

Is August a good time to explore the area??

 

We were there in August/Sept and had a mix of wonderful and horrible weather. The horrible weather was in Cape Town itself, when it rained for 5 days in a row - the 5 days we were there, of course. The white shark boat we had scheduled was canceled due to high winds, the cable car did not run at all during those 5 days (another reason togo back). But the week before we got there was glorious, with sunny days and no winds. We had better luck driving up North from Cape Town; in Paternoster and the West Coast NP sun was shining, flowers blooming, birds chirping...

So I guess it's a matter of luck for the Cape Town area, and a great time for the rest of the country. I would go back again the same time of the year.

[xelas]

Wonderful photos from a wonderful place @@michael-ibk ! Slowly we will all learn from where those extra weight came from.

Luckily for meerkats curiosity does not kill them .

[FlyTraveler]

 

Hi everybody, and welcome to yet another Kgalagadi & Co. report from South Africa! What to expect from this one? Well, what the title says:

 

 

Of course there will be Cats. What would a TR be without Cats?

 

 

 

 

So, ready to get on the road?

 

 

 

Fabulous start, Michael! I am late, as usual, not much time lately... Great shots, I am so jealous about the leopard, couldn't see any in Kgalagadi TP on my trip... Continuing with your TR.

[SafariChick]

Great stuff from Cammspannen (hope I spelled that right - my computer doesn't think so but then it doesn't know much Afrikaans!

Love the bat eared foxes, they are just so adorable! The Northern Black Korhaan shot is amazing - I can hear it screaming from here! Wow at the sociable weavers nest! Awe and awesome about the meerkats - so great they let you get so close - just love their little noses covered in red dirt!

[FlyTraveler]

.

 

 

 

 

We had originally planned to also go to Kirstenbosh Botanical Gardens in the afternoon, but with our pace that would have hardly been possible, not even in a rushed way. And so we decided to just tweak the itinerary a bit and do it next morning, give it the time it deserves. And often, often stopped here to take the beauty of the coast in. This was magnificent, and I could have happily sat there until sunset, just watching, breathing sea air and feeling the sun and a mild breeze on my face.

 

 

 

Well, I guess I could just about bear living in a place like this.

 

 

Amazing seascapes, Michael, really beautiful!!!

[FlyTraveler]

Kirstenbosh is a fantastic place for one of my (and most people´s probably) favourite birds - Sunbirds. Of course May (start of winter) is not the perfect time for them because not as many plants are flowering, but I did find several Greater and Lesser Double-Collared Sunbirds, males and females.

 

 

 

 

 

Fabulous Sunbird shots, Michael!!!

[FlyTraveler]

Such a good performance for us - thank you, dear Eagle!

 

Totally amazing Verreaux Eagle shots, Michael!

[dlo]

Great stuff from Cammspannen (hope I spelled that right - my computer doesn't think so but then it doesn't know much Afrikaans!

 

Love the bat eared foxes, they are just so adorable! The Northern Black Korhaan shot is amazing - I can hear it screaming from here! Wow at the sociable weavers nest! Awe and awesome about the meerkats - so great they let you get so close - just love their little noses covered in red dirt!

 

+1

 

The only downside to this report Michael is I can't show it to the wife because of her strong desire to see meerkats and our list of places to go is way to long already!

[elefromoz]

@@michael-ibk, Cammspannen looks just perfect, the silence, Bat Eared Foxes, Meercats, a full bar.....

[TonyQ]

Wonderful photos of the red landscapes. You did really well to get so close to the meerkats and the reward- Beautiful photos.

[Atravelynn]

Your title and the time of year has me feeling a little patriotic! Post #1 is an excellent intro of what to expect as we "hit the road," and I am sure there will be some shots of that very road, compliments of the secret lurker.

 

"We wanted to spend enough time in KTP, and thought 8 nights was plenty - there I was wrong." That's good advice to allow adequate time in KTP. For some places, you just can't get enough time.

 

You made very good use of your 45 minutes of private time with the penguins.

 

I am surprised you had not seen a hyrax before. I'm sure you were thrilled with this new species.

 

Your beautiful weather producing blue skies and blue water in Cape Town was fortunate, or your title might have had to add some gray to it.

 

Where are the painted faces shots?

Edited June 27, 2016 by Atravelynn

[Kitsafari]

yay! finally meerkats that don't run from you. they are adorable especially with the red soil on their tiny button noses. and so are the bat eared foxes.

 

I didn't know millipedes in the kalahari are poisonous! the reddish milipedes that come crawling out of my garden are not, thank goodness.

[michael-ibk]

Thanks, @@xyz99 , @@xelas , @@FlyTraveler , @@SafariChick , @@dlo , @@elefromoz , @@TonyQ , @@Kitsafari and @@Atravelynn .

 

 

 

Where are the painted faces shots?

 

Classified of course, Lynn. But I will tell you a secret - for just a second my painted face is right here in the report, hidden in plain sight ...don´t tell anybody!

 

 

[michael-ibk]

Finally we get to the main act! The Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park obviously was the main reason for this trip, everything else was built around it. I won´t bore you with lots of details about the park, we´ve had lots of splendid and informative reports here on Safaritalk already. The ultimate resource (with lots of fantastic pictures) is definitely this comprehensive tell-all by @@Panthera Pardus :

http://safaritalk.net/topic/10708-the-kgalagadi-transfrontier-park-ktp/



The general reception area in Twee Rivieren. Here is the entrance gate from the South African side, and one of the three large main rest camps in the park.



The Chalets in camp. (We had a family unit sharing with Dantes, two separate bedrooms, and he would use the camp site facilites.) Like everything at Twee Rivieren, they are alright. Not super. Not the kind of stuff you fall in love with when you go on safari. (Apparently so unremarkable that we didn´t take any pictures inside. ) But they are functional. The whole restcamp is. Spacious, clean, electricity 24 hours, A/C, a shop, petrol station (out of service right now as already mentioned!) a restaurant, a pool, an ATM - everything is here. The restaurant, by the way, is a bit of a mixed bag. I´ve read many times that it would be pretty unacceptable. I agree and disagree. If you are a vegetarian you would probably despair, all sides we had were really terrible, overcooked beyond recognition. But the meat (Eland steak, Ostrich steak and similar stuff) was actually delicious - we´re in Red Meat country here, and the people here really know how to do a steak.

The downside: This is by no means a safari camp, you don´t feel at all that you are "in the bush". No view to speak of. I´m not sure quite how many people can stay here, but it´s a lot. Not only the cottages and chalets are available but many campsites as well.

But on the other hand, its location is very good as it gives you access to both Auob and Nossob, both of the river valleys traversing the park (and where everything is happening.). Nossob and Auob meet here - hence the name ("Two Rivers").

I mentioned at the beginning of this report that 8 nights was actually not that much for the Kgalagadi and a few more night would have been nice. Here is why:



As you can see, long distances are to be covered between camps, it is a huge park and the different sections would each be well worth exploring for a few days.

Here is the map from Sanparks official website:

The Green points are the (all artificial) waterholes, the red numbers give the km between camps. The "Transfrontier" character of the park did not factor into our trip here btw - the Eastern side of the Nossob valley is partly in Botswana, but on the main roads you never leave South Africa.

 

Enough facts now - into the park!