We are back on the road (much to Kirsty’s dismay and pleadings of ‘don’t goooo, I will missss you’ – this from a 24 years old) for the second leg of our long leave travels. We are heading into Lesotho, then down to the Transkei and maybe Eastern Cape … we haven’t booked anywhere, so plans could change. How awesome to have have this freedom.

We left home at 7:30. Our road was pretty much blocked off for a 10 km road race, fought our way through cones and marshals to William Nicol, only to discover I had left my sunglasses behind. So, much to Gray’s delight, we had to fight our way around the block and back out again.  A couple of kilometers later we got caught up in a Harley Davidson (Hardly Dangerous) outing. Don’t people sleep in on a Sunday??

Thankfully we encountered very little traffic on the N3. Stopped off for breakfast at our ‘local’ in Harrismith and for fuel at Nottingham Road. Here we had a spectacular view of the snow capped peaks of the Drakensberg Mountains. We have clear blue skies and sunny warm weather, last week this time it was snowing heavily on the berg.

We turned off the N3 just after Howick and drove through some beautiful country side to Underberg and onto Himeville. The mountains in the distance, the final maroon red shades of the autumn trees and the farm lands reminded me of a mini Switzerland.

We arrived at the Sani Gables B & B at 2. It is really pleasant, nice light rooms, a really comfortable bed and a spacious living area. We are the only ones staying here, so we have the place to ourselves.

As the sun set, so the warm temperatures of the day plummeted into a very chilly evening. There is not a lot to do in Himeville on a Sunday evening, or any evening I would think.  We drove 350m down the road from Himeville Gables to Himeville Arms. The old but quaint local hotel, where we spent a really pleasant evening, drinking Old Brown Sherry and red wine in front of a log fire. 

The BF Goodrich’s are on !!!  We have also had a fridge and freezer unit installed along with a duel battery system to run it and failing this we have a solar power system. The battle over cold beers vs lettuce will hopefully be over as we should have enough space in the new fridge for both. Gray has also had his and hers drawers fitted – his for tools and hers for food. Not sure where my bags and blow dry will be going. While Gray was running around with cars, I did a photography course. It’s good to know my camera can do more than just shoot off auto mode.

We also caught up with friends and family during our home time. It was great to catch up with all our old varsity friends at Cath and Bevan’s wedding celebration.

Lots of Dinners with friends. Special Mother’s Day treats, thanks for the flowers, mani and pedi with Kirst and lunch with the boys afterwards. The only thing that would have made the day perfect would have been to have had Robs here. She is taking a break from wine tasting, 21st parties and jolling in Stellenbosch to study for exams. Good luck ‘Thing’!!!

 We also celebrated Gareth’s birthday, can’t believe he is 27. In between all of this I had to crochet a winter blanket for Kirsty. 

When did I have time for work I wonder, this life… I could get used to. 

Today we returned home for a week. We dodged goats and cows as we retraced our route back to Jozini, over the dam wall, then through Pongola, Piet Retief, Ermelo, down the N17 to Springs and home. I will not be looking at moving to any of these towns – ever. 

Our reasons or priorities for returning home vary somewhat. I can’t wait to see Gareth and Kirst. Gray is returning for a new set of tyres. One would think that a vehicle that could probably scale Mt Everest was good enough, but apparently not. Heaven forbid we leave a tarred road without BF Goodrich tyres. So our perfectly good set of new tyres are being replaced with these long awaited tyres and 18 inch rims that have, at last, arrived from the U.K. Over the next week various other modifications will be made to the car.

We arrived home to a chilly Johannesburg, as a cold spell is descending over most of the country. It poured with rain last night. 

We also have a hectic social calendar planned for next few days, starting with our good friend, George Krafft’s 55th Birthday party tonight.

So this place does have a downside, we were woken up at 5:30 this morning. A quick shower, a mini breakfast at 6:00 and on the game drive vehicle at 6:30. It was a misty morning, which gave the first part of the drive an eerie touch. The bush is so thick in places that unless the game is on the road you can’t see it. 

We stopped at a hide overlooking a waterhole for a coffee break. I have never seen so many nyala in one place. There were at least 40 coming and going throughout our stay. We also saw some nice birds this morning. 

We arrived back to wet facecloths and the main breakfast. All we seem to do is eat. The staff are all super friendly and won’t let us do a thing. I half expected someone to pop up and scrub my back for me in the shower this morning. A rest, more eating and then off on the afternoon game drive.

We had a great afternoon/sundowner drive. We saw two huge tuskers, the biggest I have seen. We also watched this this majestic old bull drinking at a waterhole. He then walked up to the vehicle, stuck his trunk in, had a sniff and wandered off. Great heart stopping experience and such a privilege to be sharing space with this giant.

During sundowners overlooking a breeding herd in a vast marsh area we chatted to the other people on the vehicle. One was Geoff who had brought his daughter and her boyfriend to the bush before they immigrated to England. It turned out he was a Saints old boy (class of ’67). Now living in Natal, he had only returned back once to show his daughter where he went to the school that he remembers so fondly. We told him he had to return this year for his 50 year reunion. It really is a small world.

We had another relaxed evening, red wine around the big camp fire followed by nyala chops for dinner, much to Gray’s delight. Lying in bed I heard rustling outside, I went to investigate and found three nyala moving through the bush. I was in awe, they probably thought – who is this mad woman in her pajamas shining a torch in our eyes.

Panda scored again… Tembe is awesome, another gem to recommend. 

We left Kosi after breakfast and it took us an hour to get to Tembe, including a fuel stop. We arrived in camp with the staff gathered around singing us a welcome song. We were then given cold, damp facecloths to freshen up. Not that we had worked up a sweat in the last hour but it was a lovely touch.

Out tent, yes camping again, … in a rather luxurious big en-suite tent, secluded in the middle of the bush. We even have an open tent at the back for spa treatments. Tried to talk Gray into a couples massage – but that ain’t going to happen. My friend Al Purchase would love the attention to detail, we even have leaves set in the toilet paper. 

We have nyala wondering past our tent and lots of crested guineafowl in the camp. These are funny looking birds, that look like they are wearing Afro wigs.

The park, situated in Maputuland, was established in 1983 on Tembe Tribal Trust land and is 300sq km. The terrain is sand forest and is home to one of the three original elephant populations in SA. The current elephant population is around 260, including some of the biggest tuskers in Southern Africa. The Big 5 and the endangered suni antelope can also be found here. 

After lunch, I chilled around the pool before our afternoon game drive. Our game guide took us on a 3 hour drive around parts of the reserve. We saw lots of ellie but mainly nyala. Like impala are to Kruger Park, so nyala are to this area. The elephants are extremely good natured and clearly used to vehicles, they walk right up to us, as if they are coming to greet us.  After sundowners on the air strip, we drove home in the dark, encountering more elephants. 

After dinner we were entertained by traditional Tsongo dancers under a full moon.

This morning we drove to the Parks Board site at Kosi. From there we took a pontoon trip around the lakes. I love being on water, it’s one of my most favorite things, I don’t care if it’s ploughing through rough seas in a dinghy or paddling gently around  a lake. One of my best holidays was a dhow trip around the Bazaruto archipelago. We spent 4 glorious days sailing, snorkeling and exploring the islands. Even cooking was done on the boat over an open fire.

So in my happy place, we headed off for a 3  hour trip, in perfect conditions, to tour the lakes. We set off from Lake 3, an area surrounded by raffia palms, which are known for the palms having the longest fronds in the world. Lake 3 is the largest of the lakes, we crossed it and eased our way through  the 2.6km channel linking it to Lake 2. 

The channel is really beautiful, the water channel curving its way through reeds and palms. The bird life was great and we saw a good variety of water birds, including a giant kingfisher, that patiently sat on a branch, while we took pictures. This area reminded Gray and I of our mokoro trips through the Okavango Swamps. 

There are lots of the reed fishing catchment areas in Lake 1 & 2 as they are much shallower. This type of fishing in these lakes, is a tradition that has been used for hundreds of years. Vasco da Gama made note of it while exploring the area in the early 1500s. 

We caught mud prawns in the shallow waters and watched the small shoals of fish attack them as we agitated the water.  We then came across a pod of around 10 hippo, some swam after the boat. 

 One would think after this encounter we would stay in the boat, but we found a nice channel in the mangrove swamps and went for a snorkel. I tried out one of the ‘new’ full face masks with a built in snorkel. I’m not sure that I don’t prefer the old school mask and snorkel. We saw some great shoals of angel fish and some parrot fish. 

It really was a pleasant way to spend the morning. Certainly better than being at work, sorry school friends. 

We spent the afternoon reading and then drove down to the Kosi Mouth for sundowners on the beach.  When we arrived at the estuary, it was high tide. Getting to the sea would have meant a really long swim across the channel … with a bottle of gin. We decided to sundown right there, on the waters edge.

 We watched the sun set and the full moon rise, we were the only ones there, it was so tranquil. Eventually we left paradise.

It has been a while since our last shop and what was left of our makings for a salad and a braai were very sad to say the least. We discovered that the lodge does food, if you order it early in the day, this we did. I wasn’t expecting the really nice 3 course meal that arrived, it was delicious. So this turned into a late night, we were in bed at 8:30. The sun sets so early, its dark by 6, so it feels much later.

OMG, the beds here are super comfy. The only thing that woke us was a storm in the middle of the night. Not a hardship, I love the sound of rain. This morning I was spoilt, as I am most mornings, with a cup of coffee in bed. On his second cup Gray kept moaning that his coffee tasted terrible. Half way through he looked into his cup, to discover an ugly, BIG, black, cockroach looking creature in his coffee. My hysterical laughter alerted the camp cat, who then hopped up and snuggled on the bed with me. It felt like home. 

The only downside of this place is trying to find kitchen implements. Although we seem to be the only ones using the kitchen. After whipping up a fairly decent breakfast we headed down to Kosi Mouth.

The sea is rough here, as it is at all places where inland water tributaries or rivers flow into the sea.  We decided to go snorkeling today. Lake 4, is furthest from the sea and is fresh water, Lake 3 is a mix of fresh and salt water and the last 2 are salt water. In Lake 1 there  is a shallow reef. We waded upstream and drifted down with the current.  I love snorkeling and diving on reefs, it’s another world down there, so peaceful.  We saw a great variety of reef fish; including moray eels, puffer and angel fish, a trumpeter fish and a number of deadly lion and stone fish.   

We had left our gear on a log in the middle of one of the islands near the reef and throughout the morning the tide steadily submerged the sand bank, so we were forced to gather up our stuff and cross the channels back to the car. 

The beach was fairly deserted, as this area is only accessible with a 4 x 4.  Some brave people walk down to the beach but it is a long and arduous trek down a steep hill and back. Other than a few holiday makers along the long deserted strip were a few local fishermen.

We returned and chilled around the pool, till the mossies sent Gray back to the tent. Panda is not having a good bug day – hehe.

Another chilled afternoon reading with the cat. Another couple of G & T’s around the braai. I could get used to this life. 

As I have mentioned I love the bush and the sea, how awesome, today I had both. While not having seen any big game, other couples we spoke to had been more lucky; a big ellie had come into the camp the night before and another couple had seen a wild dog kill and a cheetah with her cubs.

After having breakfast at the ‘Rhino Dino’, we took an easy drive out the park and stopped at the Umkhuze Spar. From there we took the road between the Jozini Dam and the Ubombo Mountains, through Jozini and crossed the dam wall. This was a main tarred road in excellent condition. 

We used to travel this road regularly 30 years ago, back in our scuba diving days. We would pack up Grays old Honda with our diving and camping gear and head off after work on a Friday evening for Sodwana. This mountainous road was a dirt track back in the day, treacherous in the rainy season. I can remember sliding down it more than once. We would return along it after our Sunday morning dive, to be back at work  on Monday. The stupidity of youth. 

Jozini used to be a small town, with a police station and a general dealer. Now it is a bustling hive of activity.

Gray had said we would be camping at Kosi, not having packed a tent, I wasn’t sure what to expect.  Certainly not the en-suite luxury safari tent, enclosed in its own garden. Thanks Panda, again you have found us gem accommodation. There is a central kitchen for self catering. The lodge is run by the local people, who therefore have a vested interest in keeping the place running well. 

Utshwayelo Lodge is the further most north eastern place to stay before entering Mozambique. It is at the entrance to the Isimangaliso Wetland Park and Kosi Bay Mouth and Estuary, a World Heritage Site. The name Utshwayelo takes its name from the fish kraal, celebrating the culture and traditions of the Tsonga people.  

This afternoon, we took a drive up to the view point, overlooking the 4 lakes and joining channels of the Kosi estuary before it enters the sea. Clearly visible were the reeded areas that encase the nets used by the local fishermen of the area.

The last time we stayed at Kosi Bay, was in a big Parks board hut that we shared with 10 other people (the extended Morrison and Thorburn Families), Gareth was 6 weeks old. I remember getting up every time he peeped, in case he woke anyone up – again how stupid were we. I have pics of him in his back on the beach and he was too tiny to see over the top of it.

From the view point we drove down a beach sand track, through the dense Natal bush and palms. We parked the car on the edge of the estuary and waded through 3 tributaries and crossed 3 sand banks before I could my dip my toes in the warm Indian Ocean. 

We spent a leisurely hour, swimming and sun bathing before returning to the lodge for a well deserved G & T, watching the setting sun.  Who says life is tough in Africa. 

We braaied in the central pool, dining area. Our dinner guest, was Monty, the jack russell, he reminds me so much of Spud, our old jack russ. The kids would love it here. 

We had a lovely drive to Nsumo Pan. There was a steady breeze and the animals and birds tend to take cover in these conditions. We saw some general game but mainly impala and starlings. I’m still blown away by how good the bush looks. 

Along the way we climbed up a viewing tower and had a spectacular view of the area.

The pan was amazing, blue water surrounded by huge fever trees. There are various hides and picnic sites that take you to the waters edge. We spent 2 hours birding and added numerous water birds to our holiday list. We also saw lots of hippo.

We have seen surprisingly few cars at the parks, I guess it’s because most people are back at work after all the long weekends. 

I had been feeling really well for a few days, besides a nagging cough so I decided to stop my flu meds. Clearly not the best idea. By yesterday afternoon I was man down and had a long sleep. 

We again had the bush babies visit us last night, they are really cute. 

For those who have holidayed with us, you will know Panda starts snoring (loudly) before his head hits the pillow, last night was no exception. I was reading my book, with no hope of sleep, for a while.  I heard a scuttling in the thatch and looked up to see a bat, clearly irate because the light was on, or it could also have been the snoring. Eventually we both fell asleep.  This morning I woke up with bat shit all over my bed. I had been complaining of a bad smell coming from the spare room, where I had stored my bags on the bed. Now the penny dropped, bat pee, not a pleasant odor. The bush can have its down sides.

On our drive out the park, we saw a nice herd of waterbuck and an oribi. I was particularly excited about the oribi, as this was my house in primary school and I haven’t seen many of them. 

It was an easy drive from Ithala to Umkhuze that took around 2 ½ hours.  We passed through Louwsberg, traveled along a gravel road giving access to private game farms. The terrain was grassland with beautiful Acacia trees. We turned onto the N2 at Jozini Dam, with the Ubombo Mountains to our left. We stopped at Umkhuze town for lunch and to give posting blogs another attempt, thankfully with success this time.

We are staying at the main camp, Mantuma. The accommodation is the same as Kruger Park bungalows, clean and comfortable. The last time we stayed at this camp was to celebrate Gray’s 40th. I have a picture of him standing with the kids in my dressing room at home, Ga was 11, Kirst was 9 and Robs was 5.  That was 15 years ago,  where has the time gone??

It was really hot today with temperatures in the low 30s.  We had a lazy afternoon, relaxing in our room, with the air con on. 

Feeling far too lazy, we decided to go for a sundowner drive. The bush here is real bushveld, the grass and trees in great condition, unlike our Limpopo bushveld that is still recovering from  last years drought. We came across a patch of potato bushes, they give off my all time favorite bush smell. 

Sitting around the fire … again, we were ‘chowed by mozzies’, as the term goes, and had to haul out the tabbard spray, or I guess we could drink more G & T’s. The highlight of the evening, however, was a visit from two bush babies during dinner.