I had been invited for a two day training course in Balule,
situated within the Kruger National Park. Never having been there before, I saw
this as an opportunity to extend my stay and see the Big Five. Well, that was
only the beginning of my “adventure”…
My flights were booked, car hire sorted, accommodation sourced and route mapped…I was ready! My flight was earlier than expected so I arrived at OR Tambo airport with plenty of time to get my car and meet my training course group at 13h00 in Hoedspruit (+/_ 5hr drive from Johannesburg). Or so, I thought. Ever plan a trip but failed to check something as important as the expiry date on your driver’s licence? It had expired five months prior (are you freakin kidding me?!) Surely I should have received an official letter like they do with a car licence renewal? (Besides, who remembers to check their driver’s licence after five years!!) Anyway, long story short, I was not getting a car.
After a fair amount of freaking out about all the plans I had booked, I was given some options; “you can use a chauffeur, use an Uber or renew your licence”. The most affordable option was obviously renewing my licence so I was driven to the nearest traffic department…eish! Yes, my 13h00 meet up went out the window…I had to go through the entire process of getting new photos (not cool when you not prepared for your ‘photoshoot’ pfft!) and the eye test. I know I’m blind and need specs when driving but you don’t have to tell me that again…can I go already?! I tried patiently waiting my turn when it dawned on me that if I don’t get to the park by 17h00 I won’t be allowed in. Panic struck!!! Immediate action needed to be taken (as one does). I called someone in charge and burst into tears saying how I missed meeting my group; how I’m not from here and how my last chance is to get there by 17h00 as I won’t be allowed in and then won’t have a place to stay…blah, blah, blah and more blah. I made him feel so uncomfortable, I had my eye test done immediately and off I went. Ladies…tears are very useful in these type of situations…don’t waste them on nonsense. First obstacle, sorted. Now it was a rush against time…
I got my little rented vehicle (and I do mean little in the literal sense), and drove ‘voet-innie-hoek’ (foot on the gas) towards Hoedspruit only to discover this little car does not do so well on even the slightest incline…ugh! I am not used to long distance driving, especially not alone, so I expected to get tired, but not after an hour. I pulled over at the next fill station and got myself ‘caffeined-up’ on a giant coffee and a coke. The way I felt after that, I could get there faster on foot but at least I was awake now. The drive was slow, but the worry started when I hit my first set of roadworks; one of three…eish! The GPS estimated that I would arrive at my destination by 16h30 but as I approached each roadwork the GPS arrival time got later and later until that dreaded moment when I would no longer be on time. You know that numb feeling you get when you can’t be angry or sad because it just won’t help? Yeah…that feeling.
I arrived in Hoedspruit exhausted, hungry and with nowhere to stay. My safest option was to find a restaurant for dinner and search for accommodation from there killing two birds with one stone so to speak. Dinner was a cheddar melt steak; unfortunately my cheese slice was bigger than my steak (not cool). I googled accommodation and asked the waitrons and manager if they knew of places close by but all were fully booked, it being weekend after all. Eventually I found a place online; booked it and was there within ten minutes only to be told that they had been fully booked for the past two weeks and that there was no room for me. So now I had booked and paid for a room and still had nowhere to sleep…eish! I returned to the restaurant to search from there again. This time I was approached by a guest house owner who was contacted by the restaurant manager. He had a room available because he’s wife was away (odd comment to make and strange because that particular place was fully booked online…hmmm); but out of options I took him up on the offer and followed him to the guest house. Pitch dark and driving through what seemed like bushes everywhere; I was getting nervous and starting to regret my decision but eventually I saw some light and we arrived at a gorgeous guest house. He’s wife manages the guest house and was away, which is why the place was blocked for online bookings, which also explained he’s earlier comment. (In hindsight, I don’t think he realized how he’s comment sounded in my circumstance). The outdoor shower, soft comfortable bed and very good night’s rest was beckoning. I was exhausted and was passed out within a few minutes; but not for long. One of the other guest’s car alarm kept going off every few hours…seriously people?! Let’s just say it was not a night worth paying that much for considering my lack of sleep.
The first day of my training session started at 05h30 and it was an hour drive to the training camp. I was up and out the guest house by 04h00 to get there on time. I was determined to be on time. Back on the pitch dark road with only the step-by-step directions given; directions which included following a railway track and turning left and a big dead tree; yes you guessed it, I got lost (and this is why I use a GPS…everywhere!). I drove up and down streets for about 45min before coming across a patrolling police van and asked for directions. “Yes mam, we know where that is. Follow us.” Still driving in pitch darkness behind the police onto a gravel road leading into the bushes I was getting nervous with thoughts of being abducted and left for dead under a bush for the animals to find. As the sun started rising I felt better; we stopped at some sign boards and was directed to keep following the small green sign. I arrived at a gate and was officially in the park; the directions said the camp was roughly 30min from the gate and I was still on time. On the dirt road my little Kia hobbled along and all I could think was “please don’t let me lose my deposit, please don’t let me lose my deposit”. A few metres in I saw four elephants having breakfast. OMG! I was so excited and immediately grabbed my camera. With a huge smile on my face I continued to see two rhino alongside the road. (Are you kidding me?!) I was feeling so great right now! Driving along, or should I say hobbling along, I noticed the destruction of the elephants having their breakfast; broken branches everywhere, including in the middle of the road! I decided to chance it and drive over them, but with my luck; yes, I got stuck…Eish!
Nervously I looked around for animals before making a run for
the other side of the car; I was on my stomach frantically tugging at branches
before sprinting back into the driver’s seat, heart pounding in my chest. After
all this excitement I looked at the time and realised I had been driving for over
an hour, so it was safe to say I had missed my morning training session. Unsure
of whether to continue or turn back, and convinced I had missed a turnoff
somewhere because the animals distracted me (see
what I did there…poor animals took the blame), I headed back toward the
gate to start my directions from scratch. After confirming that I had not
missed any turnoffs, I headed back toward the camp, again, heading up and down
some serious ditches; praying that the Kia would make it. I eventually arrived at the training camp around
09h30 and pulled up next to all the big 4x4’s surrounded by tents; just in time
for breakfast (impeccable timing I’d
say). It was clear I was going to be
‘roughing it’ for the weekend but I was up for the challenge, besides, it’s not
every day that I get to have an outdoor shower. The group returned to the camp
a short while later and had already been informed about my adventures thus
far. The rest of the weekend with the
group was pleasant; braai for dinner and storytelling around the bonfire and
exploring the area on foot with our guide and seeing various animals. They left
the following afternoon and I extended my stay to leave the day after. My last
evening there I experienced a beautiful lightning storm which unfortunately
turned into a dust storm. ‘Waking up covered in sand is not
fun!’
I was on the road again at the crack of dawn to find the rest of the big Five. I had seen the elephant and rhino. Just the buffalo, lion and leopard left on the tick off list. My mental checklist was barely done when I saw a lion alongside the road drinking water; ‘Wow, incredible beyond words!’
Through the Orpen gate I went and ticked off the buffalo right at the
entrance; just the leopard left! I know the leopard is the one usually not seen
but I was determined. I was on a mission
to see all of the Big Five and you know what, when you put it out into the
universe, it will come; I not only saw
one leopard, but three!! Now that my tick off list was complete I could
concentrate on the rest of the animals and saw various antelope, vultures on a
feast, hippos on the banks of a watering hole and the amazingly graceful mating
dance of the giraffe.
I was enjoying
every bit of my game drive, completely absorbed in my surroundings when out popped a young male elephant in
front of my mouse-sized car! Oh crap!!
I’ve heard of stories like these and they never seem to end well. I hoped and prayed that the elephant would
ignore me and continue crossing the road, but as it looked at me with those
intent eyes, I knew I was in trouble. It
took a step in my direction, then another; at the third step I nervously put my
gears into reverse. The elephant’s pace
hastened; I panicked and slammed my foot on the gas and reversed as fast as I
could, a raging elephant with ears flapping, trumpeting after me was more than
my poor little heart could handle. It
gave up the chase after a few metres leaving me with shaking legs, heart racing
and a near death experience!
It felt like an eternity before I calmed down and continued
my drive. I had been sightseeing for over ten hours; the light was getting bad
for photographs and that’s when I realized the park gates were closing in an
hour and I had no concept of how far from the gate I was. Once again, it was a
race against time; an anti-climax when you driving at a snail’s pace (oh the frustration!). As sunset fell,
animals were moving about; I wanted to photograph them all, distracting me from
my ‘mission at hand’. I ‘raced’ toward the gate with a nail biting 15min to
spare...Phew! Made it!
I hope you have enjoyed my adventure and will join me on another one soon.
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