Day 9: From Pilanesberg NP to Kololo Game Reserve

July 6, 2019

Once again, this morning it's time to get up early!

Unfortunately, our 3 days here in the Pilanesberg NP are already over. We are a little nostalgic because we liked it here so much.

But the next safari adventure is waiting for us.

We leave the Bakubung Bush Lodge after breakfast and drive in the Pilansberg NP on the 'main road' Kgabe Drive towards Pilanesberg Center, where we turn onto Tshwene Drive just before and take the small gravel-sand road Korwe Link through the mountains to Bagatla Gate.

At the waterhole we see the usual suspects, the hippos grazing in the morning sun and a black-backed jackal looking for food at the waterhole.

The warthogs are also active.

The large herds of elephants seem to still be on the move, there is no trace of them near the water.

Shortly after we turn onto Korwe Link, which winds steeply uphill, we spot a huge elephant among the trees, not far from the road.

As the giant slowly approaches us, we make a quick getaway....

After the last elephant experience, we prefer to observe the pachyderms from a safe distance.

Unfortunately, that remains our only sighting for the next kilometer.

While the husband deals with the potholes and unevenness of the road, I keep an eye out for animals. But it seems they are all still asleep.

As the road towards the gate improves, the husband brakes suddenly after a curve. Out of nowhere, 2 cheetahs suddenly stand in the middle of the road!

We are so perplexed that we don't have time to grab the camcorder or camera in time. I manage to capture one of the cheetahs just in time (blurry) as it casually crosses the road in front of our car and trots into the bushes! Unbelievable!!!!

You have got to be kidding me!!!

Unfortunately, the thicket and brush next to the road here are so tall that we can no longer see them after they leave the road.

Oh man, we ALWAYS have the cameras ready - but unfortunately not now, when we never expected to see them.

And again it becomes clear: sightings can happen anytime and anywhere.

After about 2 hours, we leave the Pilanesberg NP through the Bagatla Gate / Moruleng around 10:30 a.m. and head towards Limpopo in the mountainous north.

The road takes us past Marakela National Park, where we make a short toilet stop. Unfortunately, we hardly have time and the park is too big to just drive in for only 1-2 hours (and the entrance fee is too expensive), so we continue on our way to Kololo Game Reserve.

So far we have been driving on a paved road, but Google maps leads us off the beautiful paved road onto a gravel road in Marakele NP. At the beginning of the road, we have to pass a gate with a guard. We try to find out if the road is the right one, but the man in uniform seems to not understand English, he just smiles and waves us through with a 'Yes Yes Yes'.

Hmmmmmm.......

Okay, then off we go on the adventure. Sand and gravel roads don't scare us, we conquered quite a few of them in Australia last year (including the famous Mereenie Loop) - besides, we're driving a jeep!

After a few kilometers, the road turns into a rocky gravel road and winds its way up Rankin's Pass in tight curves. Here we are getting closer to the mountains.

As soon as we leave the rocky curves, we find ourselves on the plateau, where the road goes straight through the dry landscape.

At the end of the road, we reach the next mountains.

Impressive!

The last kilometers to Kololo Game Reserve are again very bumpy and rocky.

In the final stretch, we speed along a well-drivable sandy path. We pass several lodges and camps, including the Matingwe Lodge, which I originally wanted to book but was already fully booked.

We reach Kololo Game Reserve at 1 p.m.

In the reserve, there are already numerous antelopes on the way to the houses and reception.

At the reception, we are greeted with juice and cookies and check into our house 'Oom Piet', an old restored farmhouse.

Located in a very idyllic setting, with a great sun terrace and panoramic views of the adjacent Welgevonden Game Reserve, where we book a game drive for this afternoon directly.

One 4-hour game drive is included per night (we are staying for 2 nights). Since the game drives are only in the early morning (from 5:30 a.m.!) and in the afternoon, we're doing one this afternoon and reserving the other for tomorrow afternoon. 5:30 a.m. is definitely too early for us!

Our farmhouse with outdoor kitchen, 2 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, and a living-dining area.

But the highlight is definitely the veranda/terrace, where we satisfy our hunger with sandwiches and snacks that we brought with us.

As soon as we sit outside in the sun (pleasant 18-20 degrees in the sun), we are already visited by two curious nyala antelopes.

Relaxing on the terrace

In the afternoon, we start the game drive. While we were on safari drives in the Pilanesberg NP with quite large safari vehicles, here they are smaller jeeps with a maximum of 9 seats + a front passenger seat.

I sit in the back row with the kids, so we have an overview of everything in front of us, and we have a clear view out of the vehicle from behind us.

Here too, there are thick fleece blankets everywhere (and we will definitely use them today....)

We share the vehicle with a handful of other guests. In total, 2 jeeps from Kololo Lodge drive into the neighboring Welgevonden Park this afternoon. Private vehicles are not allowed to drive through here, the park is exclusively reserved for safari vehicles from the surrounding lodges.

Our driver's name is Phineas, and he explains exactly what we see and where we're going.

Just behind the gate, impalas and waterbucks are waiting for us, then we want to continue to the rhinos, which are supposedly very close by.

Not far from the road, we already see the first rhino. It drops down on the sand with a loud thump and shortly after, it closes its eyes to sleep.

Somehow cute how it turns on its side, stretches out all fours, and grunts as it dozes off.

This rhino seems to be very relaxed... and the horn of the resting rhino is impressively long!

A little further away, some rhinos are grazing right next to the road and are visibly unaffected by our presence.

Unbelievable, we have never been so close to rhinos before

Phineas receives a message via radio that lions have been sighted.

We reach a lookout point where 3 other safari vehicles are already parked. Across the mountain, Phineas, who is holding a huge pair of binoculars, indicates where the lions can be seen. But to be honest, we don't see anything - just grass.

I have to expand my 600mm telephoto lens to maximum zoom in order to recognize the 'king of the lions'.

Then he trots a few clumps of grass further to a lioness and falls asleep.

We continue our drive through the park and encounter a herd of zebras before enjoying the sunset from a hill with snacks and drinks.

The black-backed jackal shouldn't be missing here either

The sunset hill

As soon as the sun disappears behind the mountains, it gets cold.... really cold!

We wrap ourselves in the fleece blankets and try to make ourselves as small as possible to avoid the cold wind while driving.

Good thing we also brought our 2 airplane fleece blankets. We need them - despite thick fleece jackets and several layers of clothing underneath.

On the way back to the lodge, in the light of Phineas' lamp, we see a lion by the side of the road - but it's too dark for photos.

Here on Kololo Lodge, there is also a 'Bush Braii' 1-2 times a week, which conveniently takes place today, so we can participate.

Although dinner is not really outside in the bush, there is a nice outdoor area away from the restaurant building, where tables and chairs are arranged around a campfire.

There is also a generous buffet where even vegetarians like me can eat well.

The whole atmosphere is really nice...

Wrapped in our airplane fleece blankets, we eat dinner until our fingers tremble from the cold.

It's significantly colder up here in the mountains than in the Pilanesberg NP.

After dinner, we (shivering) fall into bed. We take all the extra blankets we can find in the closets. In addition, we keep our fleece jackets on and I give everyone thick woolen socks. (It's just a slightly different summer vacation....)

The farmhouse only has a small heater, which of course cannot heat up the entire cottage.

But with all the blankets and layers of clothing, we manage.

We are pretty exhausted and fall asleep quickly.

That was definitely another eventful day!