Close encounters with three white rhino in Kruger National Park make us fear for the R4000 excess on the car. After viewing all the cuddly wildlife you can pick up fresh game meat from the camp site and toss your favourite antelope onto the braai.
October 2002

We used Nelspruit as a convenient stopping off point for Kruger National Park to stock up on provisions for our self drive safari. Nearly every South African we met raved about Kruger and I have to say I was fairly sceptical, but it is truly a jewel among game parks.

Established in 1898, it covers a staggering two million hectares (roughly the size of Wales). Forget the hideously expensive parks in Kenya and Tanzania, for a paltry R80 we gained admission to the park. This is a one off fee that allows you to see the 'big five' in your own time enjoying the superb modern facilities. For R84, we camped in Sukuza, the largest site with spotless ablution blocks, burning hot showers, hot plates, food shop, boiling water on tap in the kitchen blocks, restaurant, laundry, cafeteria and educational wildlife films shown at set times (not to mention the air strip and golf course). You would never have guessed that we were in the middle of a national park surrounded by wild animals. We also bought the excellent park guide map for R24.

A map is displayed outside reception with coloured pins to show where game has been spotted on a day-to-day basis. This is extremely helpful, giving you pointers on where to drive.

White rhino in Kruger National Park

Heading towards Sabie, unmolested by tour groups, we observed marabou stork, vervet monkeys, baboons, elephants far too close for comfort, giraffe, warthog and submerged hippos. The icing on the cake was sighting three white rhino grazing. We were completely on our own with them for half an hour. Occasionally the male would appraise us as he came closer and closer. Tom had his foot hovering over the accelerator so we could make a quick getaway. Rhinos are truly massive animals at close quarters and a skirmish between the male and female did nothing for my nerves. I kept thinking about the R4000 excess on the car and how easily a rhino horn could rip through the metal car door.

Back at the camp site, a whole range of fresh game meat was available. After viewing all the cuddly wildlife, you could then toss onto the braai (South African for barbecue) kudu, springbok, ostrich and impala.

Tom was living out his own boy's own adventure by cooking on the gas fired stove outside the tent and dazzling me with the camping light. "These are so well engineered," he gushed as he marvelled at the latest click on gas canister technology. No chance of leaks and the electric lighter meant there was no need for matches.

Up at 5:00am for a leisurely game drive to Satara camp. It was my turn to drive and we spotted buffalo, wildebeest, giraffe, honey badger, three lioness and leopard. We could definitely tick off the 'big five'.

Our picnic breakfast at Tshokwane was a magnet for an assortment of colourful bird: cape glossy starling, crested francolin, yellow billed hornbill, laughing dove, and black headed oriola. We were so busy taking photos that we almost forgot to eat our breakfast.

If you're expecting a true wilderness experience in Kruger then you'll be sorely disappointed. I thoroughly enjoyed all the wildlife viewing and the facilities. Other travellers that had negative experiences in Kruger had all done an organised tour, so my advice is hire a car and do it yourself.

We were gamed out by the time we reached Satara so we opted for the scenery of Blyde River Canyon. The Abel Erasmus Pass was a stunning escarpment - the rock formations resemble a textured quilt across the skyline. We whizzed through the Three Rondavels, Bourkes Luck Potholes, the Pinnacle and God's Window. Be warned, Hazyview didn't come by its name on a whim; all the views were obscured by haze caused by moist air rising in the canyon. The potholes were probably the most impressive of all the landmarks - cyclindrical rock formations jutting out of the river bed, formed over millions of years by swirling currents.

If you're fond of staying at eccentric places then the Green Castle Backpackers at Graskop should be top of your list. I felt as if I'd entered a situation similar to that of Burt Reynolds in Deliverance when he first encounters the 'hillbillies'. It is run by an Afrikaans couple that keep two over excited dachshunds and manage a hotch potch of shacks and buildings in various shades of green and in various states of disrepair. There was only one shower that worked in the whole backpackers although I was told not to be alarmed when I turned on the hot tap as the lights in the house would dim. The ground was uneven, not ideal for camping, but Tom located a vaguely suitable site. I dared to take a shower that entailed a trip to the main house and a walk through the incredibly messy dorms.

One of the wooden shacks was presented to us so we could use the toilet during the night without having to tramp up to the main house. We were told that the shack was a work in progress but would be allocated to someone if they needed a room for the night. I secretly hoped that no one would be that desperate - I'd offer them room in our tent before it would come to that. The window was covered in newspaper to disguise the broken panes, the mattresses were disgusting covered in rips and stains and the aluminium sink drained water from the pipe that wound round to the toilet floor. To add the finishing touch, the ceiling and walls were covered in space age foil just to ensure that the occupant would feel nice and cosy. I couldn't wait to escape the clutches of Green Castle and drank two glasses of wine to console myself that we were only staying one night.

Considering that South Africa is a first world country, the gulf between the haves and have-nots is huge. We have driven past many black settlements situated in inhospitable locations that are merely mud huts, wood shacks or crumbling shells of brick. Corrugated iron roofs are held down by balancing rocks on the surface, broken windows are never repaired and the toilet is a mud structure in the garden. How can this happen in a country that has American-style plush shopping malls, modern petrol stations, neat cosmopolitan towns line with immaculate houses and empty, well maintained tarmac roads? These all the give the illusion of normality, disguising the great divide. (Before anyone sends me any more emails, yes, I know there is poverty in the U.K. but we have the NHS to look after anyone that contracts HIV and most people aren't likely to starve back home). I'll get off my high horse now and worry about leaving Graskop alive.

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