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Three reserves in South Africa - December 2016


deano

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Awesome leopard sighting @@deano and great pics of her as well.

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Woodland KF were seen and heard every drive and everywhere in between. I photographed them many times so at least one of those must have come out okay; Glad you liked the leopard sighting and the pics as well. We all enjoyed it very much and were grateful that we were in a Land Rover as we needed a strong vehicle that is good on sand. Thank you @@Hads.

 

Thank you @@Robjwilli - the whole trip was great but these last few days were amazing; Sabi Sands definitely lived up to its reputation.

 

@@Atravelynn - I think a cargo drop (bush birth) is probably the top of our wish list. Dogs and leopards were a big part of this trip and we are not done with them yet...............

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Final morning Leopard Hills Day 11:

 

Another change in the weather and this time grey and overcast as we met for coffee before the drive. Karina was still struggling with her cold and decided to miss out but Thomas joined us so 5 of us today. We had switched seats a lot - our favourite is the back but we wanted others to try it as well - and today Mrs. deano went in the front next to Cameron and Thomas and I shared the back seat (I told him that I like to spoon mid drive and that didn't phase him!). Dave and Moira middle row and an empty row in front of them.

 

The wild dogs were in the area again so we set off in search for them but were soon detoured thanks to some fresh leopard tracks. Sippo investigated on foot but no luck. We did spend some time with buffs again and then a wonderful 15 minutes watching a large bull elephant breaking tree limbs for food.

 

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I wondered of that was to be our last "big" sighting of the trip and I was very happy with it if so. There is something about watching elephants that is so calming. Just then Cameron took a call over the radio and told us that we were in for a real treat. We had no idea and after 10 minutes of driving we found out that it was indeed a treat. Two adult leopards hidden away just off the road could mean only one thing - mating.

 

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You might wonder why I went into detail to explain our seating arrangements this morning; well, suffice it to say that the back seat did not give the best viewing but I don't think any seat got a 100% view although that empty row behind Cameron and Mrs deano was looking very tempting. Sadly, Cameron refused my request to "leopard crawl" across the seats to snag it and Thomas was also denied when he thought he could somehow "Spiderman" down the side of the car! Never mind, we still enjoyed a great sighting and we watched, and heard them, mating several times.

 

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What an incredible last sighting that was with mating leopards as our last "big" sighting to finish off the trip. Brilliant.

 

We left the scene to allow other vehicle a chance to see the leopards and not 2 minutes later Cameron tells us that he has heard on the radio that the wild dogs are in the area. We could not believe our luck and went off to try and find them. Thomas was noticing that the back seat can be a bit bumpy so requested a "comfort break" and I was grateful as not long after that stop we were chasing wild dogs through thick bush again. Thankfully today they were finished with hunting and in a very playful mood and we got to see the dogs having fun.

 

Our first view was a few pack members running about in the bush and open areas.

 

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(It is my last trip entry today so I feel the need for more dog pics)

 

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If the back seat had not been the best one for viewing the leopards then it certainly was for viewing the dogs. They were running about right next to us and using the back of the vehicle to play hide and seek and approached us for a look a few times. So close that you can see a bit of vehicle in the foreground and then Cameron and a dog having a "moment" (I think Cameron was getting his contact details for later...tough to find them in this bush!) - that last one is taken with the rented 70-200 zoomed all the way in (you guessed it....my wide angle was back at Leopard Hills!).

 

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I also managed to take some cool iPhone videos and captured the younger dogs having a scrum right next to me. The sounds they were making was brilliant and is picked up on the clip. Eventually, after all that playing it was time for them to rest for the day and for us to find a spot for a hot drink on this cool morning.

 

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That really was our last "big" sighting and our hot chocolate and Amarula could not have tasted any nicer.

 

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Time for a few more pictures on the drive back to Leopard Hills - always something going on.

 

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A great last drive and then a leisurely breakfast on that deck overlooking Sabi Sands. It was spitting with rain again which means that the bush is hopefully going to recover from the drought, those buffalo can pack on some weight, the baby impalas and wild dogs can continue their fight for survival and with the promise of new baby leopards in about 3 months then no doubt more spectacular leopard sightings at Leopard Hills.

 

Thank you for reading, commenting, liking or whatever and just in case you might have missed it...have I mentioned that I love Africa.

 

Final GoPro/iPhone video installment.

 

 

Until next time

 

kind regards

 

deano.

 

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I would consider the chameleon a "big" sighting. The angle of your shot certainly makes it look big! You saw the other end of the cargo drop--mating leopards. Wow!

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Such a great drive to finish on, doesn't get much better than that!!

Thanks for sharing, really enjoyed the ride!

:)

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@@deano

 

I'm just now catching up, and I am thoroughly enjoying your report. I'm glad to hear that rains have finallly fallen and provided some relief.

 

I love South Africa, but I've not yet made it to Madikwe. I was just going to inquire whether you had seen brown hyena there, when I came across your segment that you had -- and not only once, as it turns out.

 

You seem to have had great good fortune with the wild dogs this time around. And I have to agree, I think that chameleon was a great find, too. I've only seen them at night. Great shots of that!

 

Looking forward to more.

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Thank you so much for sharing your trip report! How incredible! I am planning a return trip and am considering splitting time between Timbavati and Sabi Sands (5 days total in August). Curious on your thoughts on this? Seems like you preferred and had better sightings in Sabi Sands. Would you split time between Timbavati and Sabi Sands or rather do two different locations within Sabi Sands? Your report makes me blissfully excited!

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Great trip and great report and so lucky with all of your leopard sightings. And so glad you found her phone. Thanks for sharing.

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@@deano Thanks again for this report and the excellent images. You had some good experiences with the dogs and the leopards. Good to see some green and I'm looking forward to 5 days in the Timbavati (returning to Kambaku River Sands) in May. Mind you all the reports from Leopard Hills are encouraging me to think about there if I go back to the Sabi Sands someday. Thanks again.

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  • 1 year later...

I know it's been awhile, but had to weigh in that it' was a Great Trip Report with Awesome pics.  Can you tell me what camera you used and longest focal lengths you felt you needed?  I visited the Klaserie reserve in 2017 and only had a f4 200mm lens and am considering bringing a little longer lens for when I'm around the camp and shooting at the river and such.  I'm going to Mala Mala this time and was curious as to your opinion on a longer focal length.

 

Thx!

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