My Executive Assistant helped me choose the images that have been included in this post.
He was rather tired, hence him falling asleep before he could supply me with content. The words and any mistakes in this post are therefore mine.
He is somewhat famous on the Internet having run my campaigns SA Blog Awards and he was instrumental in me winning the Best Travel Blog in 2019.
Recently, this image of him made it to the Struik Nature Instagram page as he slept on his pillow on my desk while I reviewed this particular book.
A post mud wallow image of one of the largest buffalo bulls I have ever encountered. This one was part of a breeding herd that was based at a game reserve/spa in KZN.
This is why elderly buffalo bulls are referred to as Dagga Boys…It looks like they are covered in dagga…the Afrikaans word for cement.
They might be old, but they have years of experience and they are not to be trifled with.
An iconic African image. This giraffe was welcoming the dawn at a game reserve near Johannesburg.
Although we have the Big 5, there is a particular demographic of international tourists that are attracted to both Zebra and Giraffe.
You cannot appreciate the size of a giraffe until you get up close…they are enormous and can be somewhat intimidating.
If they do have a weakness, it is that they are inquisitive. Often when I am out on a trail walk and I come across these creatures, I make certain that they have spotted me and then I sit down. And you can almost see the “WTF just happened” look oj their faces. They will often walk towards me to see if they can spot me and relax.
From a trail walk with members of EcoTraining in the most Northern part of Kruger National Park.
2023 sees the 30th Anniversary of this training provider. Here is wishing them another 30. I spent a year supplying content to their website and it was a year of great experiences and adventures.
This particular walk took longer that expected and the last part of the walk was in darkness past a herd of buffaloes. Thanks to all the instructors that I met and who shared their knowledge with me.
Up close an personal…
To quote lyrics from “Oh what a beautiful morning” performed in every production of Oklahoma… ‘The corn is as high as an elephant’s eye, An’ it looks like it’s climbin’ clear up to the sky’.
So there was not an ear of corn to be seen, but you get the connection?
The moon rising over the hill behind which the Zulu army mustered before attacking the British troops on the open plain at the foot of their vantage point.
The incident lasted 12 hours, it started at
11 Victoria Crosses were awarded
The Battle of Isandlwana took place on the 22 January 1879. Lasting between 10-12 hours, was the first major encounter in the Anglo-Zulu War between the British Empire and the Zulu Kingdom. Eleven days after the British invaded Zululand in Southern Africa, a Zulu force of some 20,000 warriors attacked a portion of the British main column consisting of about 1,800 British, colonial and native troops with approximately 350 civilians. The Zulus were equipped mainly with the traditional assegai iron spears and cow-hide shields, but also had a number of muskets and antiquated rifles.
The British and colonial troops were armed with the modern Martini–Henry breechloading rifle and two 7-pounder mountain guns deployed as field guns, as well as a Hale rocket battery. The Zulus had a vast disadvantage in weapons technology, but they greatly outnumbered the British and ultimately overwhelmed them, killing over 1,300 troops, including all those out on the forward firing line. The Zulu army suffered anywhere from 1,000 to 3,000 killed.
Did you know?
A solar eclipse occurred at 14h29 that day, turning the skies black for several minutes. When the sun returned, not one tent was left standing in the camp and the area was now a killing ground.
At a waterhole in Madikwe
Did you know?
Baby elephants have to be taught how to use their trunks. When they are young, they will flail around in the water without actually getting to use it correctly.
By about 6 to 8 months, calves begin learning to use their trunks to eat and drink. By the time they are a year old, they can control their trunks pretty well and, like adult elephants, use their trunks for grasping, eating, drinking, bathing.
Red-billed Queleas at my favourite below ground hide in Madikwe.
I would hate to be a field guide tasked with doing a count of these ADHD birds…
FYI:
A big yawn… it is SUCH hard work being the apex African predator.
That is why lions tend to sleep for between 18-20 hours a day, only venturing off to hunt when they have to.
Face off… two White Rhino bulls challenge each other. This particular species is now being refereed to as the Square-lipped Rhino as it is not really white in colour.
A backlit small Springbok in the early morning light at a property in Muldersdrift near Johannesburg.
The night sky as seen from SpionKop Lodge in KZN, one of my favourite getaway destinations.
For those that were not aware, there is an extension to the Travel & Things Blog in the form of ‘In conversation with‘ a YouTube channel hosted by David Batzofin and filled with a plethora of interesting interviews with a variety of people.
To visit the channel, click on the ‘In conversation with’ image above.
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