Kruger National Park, South Africa
May 2016
Going to South Africa and visiting Kruger National Park was by far the most epic vacation I've ever experienced.
Every day spent in Kruger Park was unique. We were able to watch African wild animals in their natural habitat – zebras rutting, lions mating, lionesses devouring prey, giraffes dancing, elephants playing, baboon family gatherings, and so much more.
Kruger National Park is huge, about 220 miles (350km) from north to south. We entered the park through the Crocodile Bridge and the Malelane southern entrances. Since our lodging was outside the park, we were only able to cover the very southern portion of Kruger, though each day we would explore different roads and different animals.
– Click on any picture to enlarge –
Some pics are fuzzy since they were taken at a distance, often through our car window.
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We stayed in an elevated single-room tent at Jackalberry Ridge in Marloth Safari Park, where animals such as giraffes, kudus, zebras and warthogs could roam free. The park borders the south side of Kruger, separated by the Crocodile River. The little warthog and the baby duiker liked to hang out in our yard!
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The lioness was seriously sleeping with her leg in the air, just like a house cat would do! And I would laugh whenever I saw a cape buffalo with horns that looked like a hair-do, but they are seriously big and scary animals. Wrinkles take on a whole new meaning with mama elephant, and see if you can spot the oxpecker having dinner on the giraffe! Finally, how did the rhino cross the road? Very slowly!!
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The storks have no clue that they may become lunch! I couldn't resist throwing in the vulture picture. And yes, the oxpeckers were feasting on all kinds of large mammals!
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The zebra were just hanging out near our tent, and their stand-up manes were impressive! And you've got to watch out for these sneaky vervet monkeys – one of them grabbed my lunch right out of my hand! The warthogs were big compared to the little guy in our yard, and would just poke their snouts into the mud. The kudus (on right) were large also – their backs were level with the top of my head! Initially it was a little scary when we walked past them, but they completely ignored us.
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Definitely go full screen to watch these videos!
What are these giraffes doing?
Dancing? Fighting? Courting?
Zebras fighting for their ladies!
That hind-leg kick looks painful!
Thanks for visiting!
