Purr-fect drive 

Richard reminisces about the ‘purrrcet drive’ and the thrill one gets from showing foreign and international guests wild animals in their natural environment.

As we left the lodge on our afternoon safari the new guests brimmed with excitement. The game has been pumping over the last couple of days and even with the bush being very wet and no off-roading possible, the animals have been very obliging and stayed close to the roads. We very quickly found ourselves following a big male leopard as he moved around his territory marking his territory with his popcorn-scented urine! 

He was on a mission and after about a half an hour of following him, the sun slowly starting to dip behind the Drakensberg Mountain Range, he decided it was time to get vocal. As he sat on a termite mound surveying his surroundings he let off his rasping call, which echoed through the bushveld. Once he had finished calling the bush fell silent, as if all the insects, birds and animals were waiting to see if anyone was crazy enough to question his authority. 

We followed him for another 45 minutes before we left him to carry on with his evening duties. After our sundowners we started back towards the lodge and bumped into the Southern Pride missioning through the bush with the Kruger Males in tow. The females and cubs look well fed after finishing the Wildebeest they had pulled down the night before.  More wildlife tales to follow…