This was what I planned for my sixtieth birthday. Enjoying one of my favourite views with a glass of wine while time has stopped and I can be sixty forever with the love of my life on my side. And I am now exactly doing this, with the exception that I am sixty-one.
We leave Pretoriuskop early and head for Skukuza and then on to Tshokwane picnic site. It has been renovated recently and sports a shop and outdoor restaurant serving light meals. One can sit under a big thatch roof or on benches next to the river. Again, be aware of baboons and apes lurking around. On our way further north to Satara rest camp, we come upon a lion and a lioness just left of the road. The Satara region is known for its lions but this will be the only lions we will see during our nine-day visit. After the rains, during the summer, the grass is high and it is very difficult to spot animals once they disappear into it.
We go for a break at Satara and then move on to Olifants rest camp. The camp is perched high on a hill next to the Olifants river and has a stunning view as our pictures will attest to. When our reservations were cancelled due to Covid last year, we had the opportunity to be first to book a new place. We got a bungalow right on the edge of the hill with the best river view. We do not plan to drive around much during the three days we will be here – we will just sit on our behinds (like baboons) and enjoy the view from our bungalow (see the video clip below).
We spend the entire two days just relaxing and enjoying the view. In the background there is the continuous murmur of the Olifants river, with the occasional noises made by elephants, hippos, fish eagles and so on. You can see where a whole elephant herd starts crossing the river and then move, in a line, slowly to the other side to feed. Adults help the young when they slip or have trouble. It takes hours before the herd returns and all the time you can see them feed on the the other side of the river amongst the trees because you can observe the entire area from high above. Many types of bird come to watch us. Others patrol the river and environment below with their sharp eyes for something to catch. The day passes and slowly the horison turns crimson and eventually black. You feel entirely one with nature and your day has gone by without a single worry. After sunset you stare into your camp fire and relive the day.
One afternoon, Anette and I walk up to the restaurant to celebrate my sixtieth birthday with decadent cake. I was surprised to find such delicious cake so far from civilisation. We spend another hour or two the next day driving a short route to the Balule satellite camp and back.
I am leaving the best for last in this story. When we arrived on the first day, I was unpacking some of our things in the kitchen (which is outside on the patio as usual). Some of the stuff had to go into one of the overhead cupboards which was locked to keep the baboons out. I opened the door of the cupboard and found nothing in there except a tea set. As I moved it to the side to make more room, what will I discover? An entire frog family looking at me with frightened eyes! Now Anette cannot stand frogs (to put it mildly!), so I have to think fast before she returns from the car. If she knows there are frogs in our kitchen, that will be the end of our trip as we planned it! I position the tea set in such a way that it hides all the frogs. We will not use the tea set. Hopefully the frogs are more scared than us and will keep to themselves for the next two days. Everything goes as planned until our last morning. I am in the shower and Anette has started packing when suddenly I hear a scream from the kitchen. O dear, she must have discovered our frog family! This is the end of her activities in the kitchen and, after I finish my shower, I do the last packing there. She appreciates it that I did not try to scare away the frogs on the first day and in the process distributing them to all the hiding places in the kitchen! I am sure the frog family shares her sentiments!
