Day 13: Along the Panorama Route to Kruger NP

10th July 2019

My fears have been confirmed:

my husband is sick with a nasty cold.

Damn. It's obviously really tough for him to be sick on vacation. For me, on the other hand, it means:

I have to drive from now on!

Generally, I have no problem driving in other countries - whether it's the big jeep in Africa or the 10m motorhome in the USA... but:

Driving on the LEFT side is not my thing at all...

While I mostly did it in Australia with the jeep in the Outback (no big traffic and only one road!), driving on the left side in city traffic and busy roads, like here in South Africa, requires more concentration.

Feeling quite tense, I drive the first few meters onto the main road towards the Panorama Route to the Blyde River Canyon, our first stop along the over 200km long route to the Kruger National Park.

After the first 20km, I have gotten used to driving on the left side quite well and can enjoy the surroundings a bit more relaxed. Since I'm driving now, I can't take any more pictures....

The so-called Panorama Route, which promises waterfalls and potholes, as well as many viewpoints and beautiful scenery, takes us up into the mountains, where we stop at the viewpoint 'Three Rondavels' and enjoy the view of the African 'Grand Canyon': the Blyde River Canyon!

(It reminds us of the 'Horseshoe' near Page, Arizona)

Unfortunately, the sun is right in front of us at midday, which makes it difficult to take photos. But you can still see the river loop around the rock quite well

The Three Rondavels

View of the Canyon with loop and Rondavels

We continue through the mountains to our next stop, Bourke's Luck Potholes.

The potholes are very popular, we manage to find a free spot at the end of the parking lot.

At least 2 school classes are here with buses and populate the flat, upper part of the potholes before the water plunges into the gorge, climbing on the rocks, jumping over small streams... and falling into the icy cold water!

We see several children being pulled out of the water cursing by their teachers/guardians and then sitting in the sun with wet long pants trying to dry off.

The sun is burning today, we are sweating quite a bit during the climbing and running to the potholes.

The car thermometer shows +25 degrees, but it feels like it's about 30 degrees.

The potholes in the gorge

You can somewhat recognize the potholes here, even though the sun is not perfect for taking photos.

We spend about an hour at the potholes, then we're hungry and eat sandwiches and fries at a small stand next to the parking lot.

At around 1:30pm, we continue our journey towards God's Window.

The weather is good to us - the sun is shining, the sky is clear, and the view everywhere is fantastic!

Actually, we wanted to visit 1-2 waterfalls along the Panorama Route, but since my husband is not feeling well, we decide to take the direct route to the Kruger NP.

We will spend tonight at the Pretoriuskop Camp. I managed to get 2 bungalows here at short notice.

Since we decided to go on the South Africa trip very late (only in February of this year), most destinations and accommodations were already fully booked.

We reach the Numbi Gate at the Kruger NP around 4pm, we have to provide our personal details, show the camp booking, and then we're allowed to pass.

The Pretoriuskop Camp is quite small compared to the other camps in Kruger.

Here, we don't expect any luxury anymore, like in the previous lodges and houses, but instead a touch of adventure - and this adventure will turn out to be much bigger tonight than expected!

We check into our two bungalows, number 11 and 12, both with double bed / bathroom and an outdoor kitchen. The kids choose bungalow number 11, we take the one next door, number 12.

As soon as we unload, the 'chickens' as we call them, come to visit us. It seems they are looking for food and begging like crazy!

While my husband goes to sleep, I explore the camp with the kids.

There is a biting smell of fire in the air in front of the bungalow, smoke wafts past us.

We look above our bungalows towards the campground and camp fence - it's on fire!

Flames lick directly at the fence, vacationers stand in front of it with cameras and cell phones taking pictures.

Seems to not worry anyone....Hm...

The fire is raging on the other side of the fence... does it know it's supposed to stay there???

Since all the other vacationers are completely unimpressed by the flames, I convince myself that something like this happens here more often and the people in the camp know how to react to it...

So, I explore the camp with the kids. First, we go to the shop next to the playground, which welcomes us with animal skins...

The small shop is very clear. Since we don't want to cook ourselves tonight, we look around for dinner alternatives and find a fast food place in the middle of the camp (yes, you read that right: there is a 'Wimpy' in the camp, a classic fast food place with burgers and fries) just around the corner.

There is also free WiFi, a welcome change.

We sit outside and send greetings home, then we get burgers and fries to take away into the bungalow.

After eating, my son comes rushing into our bungalow all excited:

'Mom - it's on fire!!! Everywhere!!!'

What?! By now, it's pitch dark outside and as soon as I open the bungalow door, I'm looking at an orange-red colored sky of flames!

Oh my God!!!! The camp is on fire!?

The biting smell of fire has now spread throughout the camp. While my husband sleeps through the whole spectacle, I follow the other sensation-hungry vacationers to the camp fence with the kids.

Outside the fence, there is a huge sea of flames.

A vacationer tells me that it's a controlled fire. I don't have to worry, it's totally normal here.

With the view in front of me, it's more difficult to convince my son that none of the flames will reach his bungalow.

We spend almost an hour along the camp fence watching the raging flames outside.

I can't imagine that this sea of flames will just go out 'by itself' tomorrow...