Crocodile Hunting

Yum! Naomi's birthday at Kennedy's, Cape Town.
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Well, it's fair to say that internet access has been just about non-existent since the last update, so there is a lot to squeeze into this entry. It may be short as half of these computer keys don't have the letters written on them which makes it a bit tricky!

We headed up the coast from Cape Town on our Drifters Tour. There were only 5 of us in total, with two Dutch guys, Roel and Sander, and an English girl from Bournemouth called Jo. A good bunch.

Oh look, a wind farm! .................No Naomi, those are palm trees!

Cape of Good Hope
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Day 6 - de Hoop or Not de Hoop.

We spotted a few whales from a distance as we drove up through Hermanus, a small coastal town, We also visited the most southerly point of Africa, Aguilas before heading up towards de Hoop nature reserve (big sand dunes and zebras) which we were due to be visiting and staying within. Unfortunately the booking had been messed up and we arrived to late to even get into the park, so we stayed in a nice farmhouse instead (a bit disappointing though). It was immediately obvious that our guide had not ever done this particular trip and didn't really have a clue about any of the areas that we were travelling through or at times, even where we were supposed to be going. He was also THE slowest sandwich maker in history, which was really frustrating when we were hanging around wating for him to slice tomatoes and falling further and further behind schedule.

James riding a large bird
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Day 7 - Ostrich Riding

Stopped off at an Ostrich farm for an entertaining tour by a guide called Gaston - the Argentinian Bernard Manning. I rode an ostrich after signing my life away. Not that comfortable but surprisingly stable! We then had a trip to the Cango caves (quite impressive but a bit vandalised) before heading deep into the forest near Knysna to stay in some log cabins (complete with swimming pool (not needed) and a pool table and dartboard). After missing the turning we then drove up the slower path (40 minutes in the dark - VERY bumpy).

Elephants at Addo
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Day 8 - Kynsna

Went for a walk in the forest where we saw. um... nothing, apart from some trees of course and a big millipede. Drove into Knsyna for a bit of lunch and a look around the shops before heading out on the Drifters Boat to search for whales and dolphins. We saw... um.. nothing, but it was still quite good fun.

Day 9 - More rain and Fog

Drove to Tsisikamma for a walk along the coast. We made it up to a look out point in the fog, from where we got a great view of ... the fog. Nice walk anyway and good exercise which was a welcome break from sitting in the van. We declined the Bloukrans bungy. I figured I'd been there and done that and it was so foggy that you couldn't really see the bridge. A long drive followed to our nice accommodation near the Addo Elephant Park (Avoca).

May I pass please Sir? Giraffe at Imfolozi
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Day 10 - Elephants. Lots of Elephants

Spent the day driving around the Elephant Park. We saw lots of Koudu (antelope things), warthog, ostrich, tortoises, a caracal, a jackal and a few elephants (from a distance), untl we stumbled across a watering hole where we saw a whole herd, and then another, and another. We then almost drove into one on the road and then sat there whilst herd upon herd crossed the road right in front of us. Amazing! Two males even put on a bit of a scrap for us.

Sunset at St Lucia on the lake
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Day 11 -     Drove to East London where we did a tour of a couple of townships. Unbelievable experience. We saw some kinds from the local dance school put on part of an amazingly powerful performance, visited a school/soup kitchen, sat in the house of a traditional healer (complete with chanting, singing and drum banging - I have a video clip) and then went to a local tavern. We were all quite moved and enlightened by the experience.

Day 12 - Drove to the Wild Coast Drifters Inn despite being told earlier in the week that if it rained any more the road would be unpassable and we would have to stay somewhere else. After 2 days of rain we were slightly concerned. That concern increased as we were sliding along the 40km dirt track through a really remote area, and increased further as the guide lost control and we span sideways into the mud and got completely stuck. 5 hours later we were towed out of the mud, following various attempts made by us (wearing shorts only to avoid having to bin good clothes) and the villagers living in the neighbouring huts to move the van in the pouring rain. The experience was slightly surreal, summed up nicely by a guy trotting past us in the midst of our struggles on horseback carrying an umbrella, and a little kid coming out of his hut wearing a John Cena WWE wrestling T shirt to give himself more power!

Views from Table Mountain, Cape Town
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Day 13 - Swimming and more rain on the Wild Coast

Went for a nice walk along the beach and went for a swim in the rough sea - not too deep we were warned - no shark sitings thankfully. Naomi took the land swimming option - slightly drier and not so cold! Lower risk of getting eaten by a shark possibly came into the equation too. Became cold and windy so a game of Snap came to the rescue as well as a bit of target practice with an air rifle. Had a fire on the beach in the pitch black with the aid of about 10 gallons of petrol.

Meeting friendly locals on the Wild Coast
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Day 14 Durban

Long drive up to the Drifters Inn north of Durban (Umdloti). Stopped off at Margate on the way which was a lot nicer than it sounds. Stayed at a nice place on the beach, although not really swimming weather. Went to a local inn for a farewell drink to say goodbye to the others on our trip.

Day 15 - Chillin'

With the tour over we relaxed for a day. Took a trip to the largest shopping centre in the Southern Hemisphere, complete with Imax, Surf machine (very cool) and climing wall. Spent 20 pounds getting everything washed (things were getting desperate) and catching up on some sleep.

Does my bum look big in this?
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Day 16 - St Lucia

We've hired a car and travelled up to St Lucia, a Wetlands reserve to hopefully see some crocs, hippos, leopard and rhino. We'll keep you posted!

Days 17 - 20 at St Lucia

We both agree that St Lucia is fantastic. It was nice to feel completely safe walking around (despite the warnings of bumping into hippos in the middle of the night). A good bit of trivia here, but hippos kill more people in Africa than any other animal so the cute big grins are a bit deceptive. It still didn't stop Naomi wanting to take a baby one home as a pet, but luckily the 65 litre rucksack was just a bit too small.

We took the car up to Imfolozi National Park for another game drive. We saw loads of animals and after a slow start we ending up having some very close encounters with black and white rhino (Imfolozi has been one of the key parks involved in helping to save the rhino and increase numbers) and giraffes (amongst other things). We also did a night drive with a guide which was good fun but not too good for animal spotting, save for a chameleon or two, red daikka and hundreds of buuuuushbucks - which the guide had great delight in announcing each time as we were squinting into the darkness hoping to see a leopard or hippo. If we see another bushbuck, we will shoot it. No questions asked.

We did see lots of hippo and a few crocs the following day as we did a really nice sunset river cruise. We also headed slightly further north to Cape Vidal which has an absolutely beautiful white sandy beach. Its beauty was matched only by the strength of the wind which ultimately triumphed, but not before a quick paddle in the sea (keeping a close look-out for sharks).

The flight to Sydney (via Johannesberg) was a goodie - no dramas!