Hluhuwe and Impholozi - Monday 3rd.

 Our usual early start with a walk round camp before a 7.00 breakfast. A quick pic of the Ladies Loo sign  before looking down the Umbhombe Forest Trail. We didn't have time to go very far so we went and had a look at the swimming pool and then we checked out some of the accommodation. I had stayed here in a Rondavel as a child and I was trying to see if I remembered anything. 

We checked in at the reception and paid our fees, had breakfast and then drove down to Imfolozi. There was a message on the news app about a Cheetah near the swamp by the gate but no sign when we got there. We spent a little while checking out the area and watching the monkeys, then asked at the Nyalazi Gate. They suggested we go to the Mpfala hide and then round the loop.  

There were various animals around and we saw Buffalo, Zebra, Impala, a very obliginG lark, Giraffe,  Warthog and Monitor Lizard. There were a few butterflies about, some of which I managed to photograph in the hope of identifying them later. 

The hide had the usual warnings and was built beside a waterfall looking down into the plunge pool. The falls were dry but the pool had some water in it. Talking to other visitors, this could be a good place for sightings of all sorts, but we didn't see a great deal. There was a colony of weavers in a tree and a very tame family of Mocking Cliff Chats hopped in and out of the hide, looking for spilt food.  

Headed back for a 3 hour ‘night’ (Sunset) drive at 5.00pm. Flash floods had made the Black River bridge impassable but it was clear by the time we returned.  On the drive back we stopped to look at a group of buffolo wallowing in a pool when I saw a rhino at the back of the group. Some nifty manoevering meant we could all see the rhino. Further along the track was another group of Gnu, a Wharthog and more rhino. It looked like a family group with a young animal, an adult plus three older animals. They decided to wander off and we slowly started driving towards Mpila. Around the bend we could see the group of three young males in the road. We waited for them to move off before driving slowly on but this time they seemed to think we were a threat and decided to charge at the car. Barnie did a quick accelerate and we were racing three rhino down the track, eventually out-running them. Further along we found some Warthogs wallowing in a muddy pool so we spent a little time watching them. We also saw more Zebra, a Spotted Flycatcher and a European Roller. 

We made it back to camp as the bridge was passable but lots of evedence that it had been flooded, with debris all along the edge of the bridge. As we drove back to camp we had Impala and some monkeys and there were Zebra wandering around the camp, looking like they were knocking at the door of one of the cottages. We got ready for the Sunset Drive and started out driving along a road to the east of the camp. The guide pointed out some monkeys on the side of the road, elephant and Rhino on the hillsides, Zebra and Kudu in the grass and a well spotted Bustard walking through the grass. He took us up a steep incline to the top of a hill and then scanned around the area. Lions had been reported but no sign when we got there. We drove on and did a short stretch of road before returning to the place the lions had been reported and there they were, three of them sprawled across the road and in a small pull in. We spent a bit of time admiring the lions and then drove on to Memorial Gate. There was a stop with drinks and as we were looking round the guide identified some odd sounds as Bushbabies. They were too far to find but nice to hear them. 

On the drive back, as it had got dark we were lucky to see a Spotted Eagle Owl and a Verraux's Eagle Owl as well as Thicknees and Nightjars on the road.

We got back and went straight for a meal in the restaurant before going back to house where we decided to have tea on the verandah. Strange noises in the trees to the right proved to be Bushbabies!! Thanks to the guide identifying the noise earlier. Using the thermal imagers, we found them in trees further along the line of cottages so we walked along to where we thought they were and found a small group of them  on the branches of a tree. We had some good views in the torchlight and thermals before they moved away, seeming to go back towards our cottage. We went back to the house and re found them in thermals but not really close. We finished our tea and went to bed.