Settling in on Safari at Kirkman’s Camp, South Africa

On each game drive here in the Sabi Sand Private Game Reserve, the wildlife seemed to show up almost on cue. Famous for its leopard sightings, it did not disappoint. We ended up seeing seven different leopards, including a tiny three month old cub. We came across lions lazing in giant boulders in the middle of the river, white rhinos grazing peacefully with their young, and gorgeous birds at every turn...even above our dining table! Greg found a leopard tortoise cruising past our rooms at Kirkman's Camp, which we all thought was just the best. And then an actually leopard decided to cruise through our camp as well, making us stop in our tracks on our way back from dinner. It was a good reminder that we are in the middle of the wild.

The sunrises and sunsets cast a million colors across the landscape. The people we met on safari were all eager eyed, and wore smiles that seemed to stretch across the horizon. All the people working at Kirkman's Camp made us feel right at home. We could really feel how much they genuinely wanted us to have the best possible time on safari. The food was top notch... a little too much so, as we all fought to not put on too many pounds. People back home see photos of the amazing animals, but miss the full experience of what an African safari offers. It is something to experience, and we are experiencing it to the fullest.

I've had some of my most intimate leopard encounters ever here at Kirkman's Camp in the Sabi Sand Reserve. And I am just so please to be able to share it with Greg and Sue.

A mother and calf white rhino, just after sunset in the Sabi Sand Private Game Reserve in South Africa.

Scarlet chested sunbird.

Everytime we stopped the vehicle, I could hear the call of this bird, the crested barbet.

I was hoping we would see a mature bateleur eagle. They are one of the most strikingly colored birds of prey here in Africa. We had seen a few immature bateleur eagles, but this was our first good look at one in adult plumage.

We had only seen bright flashes of this purple crested turaco, until today. I was very please to get a photo of this elusive bird, and then especially pleased when I later saw that it had a giant fruit in its beak.

This is another beautiful sunbird species. They loved the flowering tree above where we would have lunch, at Kirkman's Camp.

A pied kingfisher waits for the perfect moment to strike. This was near the Sand River, during one of our wild crossings where we always had to 'hold on!'

Two crested barbets and an African green pigeon, caught in the early morning light.

A tawny eagle takes flight.

A lone vulture in the sunset.

This leopard was unsure if it wanted to come down, or stay up with its mostly eaten impala. In the end it chose to come down and disappear into the bush.

A beautiful sunbird grabbing some nectar while hanging upside down.

Grey-headed parrots also loved our lunch tree. They would make quite the racket up in the branches.

This leopard was quite unsure of our safari vehicle. It had a little impala carcass, with not much meat left, up in a tree.

And you thought skiing down a 25 degree black diamond was hard...try a 90 degree tree trunk!

This leopard put on quite the show of what is actually possible when it comes to cats climbing trees.

This big elephant was very close, and he was up on a rise next to the road, which made him seem even bigger.

This is a Burchelle's zebra. Notice the shadow stripes in the back. This is a little different than the Grants Zebra that we found up in East Africa.

A blue gnu, or blue wildebeest waits for a female to come through his territory.

The old bull cape buffalo are one of the most feared animals in Africa.

This spotted hyena was crunching through the bone on this buffalo leg. We jumped from vutures, to this hyena, to lions at the river. One animal behavior led us to another.

Our tracker and guide team spotted leopard tracks by the river. We followed them for a while, but eventually lost the scent. Eventually we caught up with this leopard right before he laid down for a rest. Pretty good tracking!

When male nyala are competing, they make their mane stand up like this. It does make the antelope look bigger.

Rhinos are just amazing animals. They are like tanks, strolling through the dangerous wilds of Africa without a care. It does make them susceptible to poaching, but just incredible to see!

Our leopard game has been on point here! This makes 7 different leopards here in Sabi Sand.

Looks like this guy was either really bad at winking, or he had a bone to pick with me.

Sometimes it just feels good to lay down for a nap, on a comfy branch. That certainly is the case for this leopard.

Sunrises in Africa are a thing to behold.

We stopped at this hippo pond but were a little distracted by the million ants.

Back on the road, away from the ants, and another great sunset.

We always had to hold on while crossing the rivers. It never really amounted to much....until it did. We, and all of our stuff, went airborn for a good three seconds.

Our guide extraordinaire, Willy, ready to protect us, and teach us, on a walking safari.

A huge find by Greg! Our only leopard tortoise of the safari was found right outside of our rooms at Kirkman's Camp. That is the beauty of Africa, you could always come across something amazing, even in camp!

We came across a few female lions near the Sand River this morning.

And a few more lions near the river at night!

This was a giraffe....that got a little too close to some power lines. They have since raised the power lines.

Sleep leopard.

After driving for a while, and spotting wildlife, its nice to find a place to get out and stretch your legs, while enjoying some bush refreshments.

As always, keep posting and keep traveling. What a fun community to share with!

• Dai Mar