Skimming Stones | Sula's Blog | Sula1968 A South African poet, potter and mother
Shingwedzi Camp is a fine reason for me to keep my blog, providing me with records of experiences. Cliff tells me that we stayed there before, roughly 10 years ago. I have zero recollection, nothing looked or felt familiar. Either age is a factor, or I live too much in my head and engage too little with the world around me, there’s a lesson to me here.
The 3 hour drive through the park from the Phalaborwa gate to Shingwedzi camp, was a grand opening for our trip. We saw countless elephants, a heard of buffalo which we were later told numbers around 5000, giraffe, impala, kudu, waterbuck and even a leopard. In the soft light of dusk all city thoughts and tensions melted from us. The silence is absolute and tangible, broken only now and then by a nocturnal creature.
In the morning, the children explored, delighting in the squirrels and starlings at play outside our chalet. The sparkling pool called to them and they answered with glee. We could have sat for hours on the deck overlooking the Shingwedzi river. Elephants drank from the waters where hippo wallowed and yawned. On our second evening we heard the occasional roar of a lion, the following morning Cliff took a drive and saw 3 lions under a tree, over an hour later when he took us to spot them they were still in the same place.
Fear of malaria kept us away from Kruger park for years, children should be 5 before exposure to malaria, Acacia has only just turned 4. Extreme preventative measures were taken. Strangely despite Shingwedzi camp including part of a river we did not hear or see a mosquito. From our experience, visiting at the end of September I would say that if you are going to visit the Kruger National Park, going during winter or the dry months is most advisable. Despite the low risk from about 5pm I covered them in repellant and dressed them in long sleeves and long pants.
We are the opposite in our family. I have a very good long term memory and started my blog to prove that I am right when I am the only one who can remember stuff from long ago 🙂 Short term memory is another story and we won’t even go there and I blame that on permanently living in my head :D.
You were so fortunate to see so many animals. Looks like you had a lovely relaxed time.
Thank you Dianne, lucky you, both long and short term memory are shoddy. Getting from the kitchen to my bedroom I’ll forget the purpose of the mission 🙂 Great to have proof that you are right 🙂
I know that feeling, I spend 90% of my work day trying to remember what I am supposed to be doing and go home stressed and tired and no work done – and I do the whole trip from the kitchen to the bedroom a hundred times a day wondering what I am doing 🙂
🙂
Wow what a fantastic experience and one I would love to do myself one day but like you I am terrified of malaria not to mention the expense for us to get there as a family!
Thank you for telling it so well I’m glad you had such a good time
Thank you Mari, I wish that you could visit SA one day. We certainly got the impression that during winter and the dry months there is very little malaria risk