Enjoy the wildlife mix from my Inyati Lodge safaris trips at Sabi Sands.
On my last day at the Inyati Lodge I had the great luck to see Wild Dogs on a hunt or at the end. These creatures require huge hunting territories as they have to share it with other competing predators. They are endangered according to IUCN classification (3000 individuals left)…
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lm4IFWZLRVY
Here is the full Flickr set
But back home I reviewed my copy of Planet Earth from BBC (you will see an incredible wild dog hunt from above) and I somehow got a bummer – the BBC pics where so much more intense. So I reviewed the ‘making of’ DVD’ and realized I am light years away from what I try to capture. Team (working for 10 years on Wild Dog hunting pics) vs. Kurt, GoPro vs. military eyeball (heligimbal) – I quit… 
The Inyati Lodge was my next stop. Actually this was my first real game lodge and an incredible experience of wildlife and luxury. I will come back to this with an dedicated post but first I want to share my lion pictures from Inyati.
Inyati in Sabi Sands is currently in the center of the Selati Males territory. Four young male lions at the peak of power. They recently were able to take over the territory of an older coalition, the Mapogos.
I am deeply impressed by those magnificent cats. They radiate natural authority in a way I have not experienced elsewhere. But even though they are at the end of the food chain and they know about their power it is not an easy life.
A coalition usually takes over a territory and can feed on it in the next six years. Then younger ones will push them into retirement. For lions this means they have to start stealing kills from others and compete with other scavengers. A bitter end of life for a king…
A king has its reign and than he dies – it is inevitable…
This drowns me in a depressive philosophical mood thinking about life…
…for what all this hassle?!
The natural order does not allow any living being a comfortable existence. I’m chewing right now on my biltong stock and drinking an Amarula Creme and I realize I am incredibly lucky. Being a Human, living in this age and living in Europe. I fear this is a very rare glitch that will fade away…
Phuuu… this sounds really depressing. Let’s take a positive view on it: travel the world and absorb the wonders as long as it is possible 🙂
This is one of the main sports of my photos
Panorama of the spot
A real boys team
They know they are kings
I love cats…
Have I mentioned I love cats?
…hunting buffaloes is risky…
This lioness was totally fed up by a fresh Kudu kill just 2 meters away (wait for the pictures in upcoming posts) – perhaps one of the few moments of relaxation…
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An here is the link to the Flickr album
You can see all pics also on Flickr – click here!
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You pass Shawn’s Gate in the south of the Sabi Sands Private Game Reserve and you delve into your past and very origin. It is awakening something that deeply buried in our DNA – at least for me it feels like this. This is how Earth is supposed to be. It is beautiful, breathtaking and deadly. The architectural purity of the equilibrium designed by nature is beyond any beauty we could create.
That is of course not something you will realize when passing Shawn’s Gate. It will take some time there but with open eyes and all other senses you will see and feel it.
My first stay is at Umkumbe Lodge. It is the most simple and basic, but actually my most favorite. As you can see on the map it is right between Mala Mala and Sabi Sabi to of the probably most expensive locations in South Africa. Oh and yes, there are no heated toilet seats, but: It’s cool and you will get this wonderful ‘Hatari’ feeling. Jason and Oliver are also doing a great job as rangers there!
See all pictures from around the lodge on Flickr – click here!
Life and daily routine on Safari
Next post: Wildlife @ Umkumbe
Before I am going to arrive I first have to rant a little bit. I promise this will not happen afterwards.
<Rant>
Lufthansa sucks! A secure and timely departure is just not enough, especially when you burn years of accumulated miles. It was an 11 hours flight on the fabulous new A380. With its decks it definitely has something of the good old Titanic days. However, Lufthansa decided to bring the lower deck flavor to the upper deck. The food is what you get on any non-Lufthansa international economy flight. I could live with that, but! You get an awkward mix between a recliner seat and a not flat angled lie-flat seat. Note to myself: check seat guru next time. It is this smack in the face with the message: We at Lufthansa do not want you filthy scum of passengers who mostly just upgraded to be able to sleep on an overnight flight…
</Rant>
Kruger Mpumalanga International Airport (KMIA)
Ah… 🙂 I feel the warmth of the sun and foreign new territories. I am a travel junky after all.
Fist lucky strike: I can already switch off my brain and follow the transfer service to the lodge and just look around while driving. After realizing the steering wheel is on the wrong side I decided to switch on the brain for again. No game so far but we are still not in the game reserve.
Tanamera Lodge
Jenice & Russel have created a paradise spot on earth. I can only recommend to get lost at Tanamera Lodge. My plan for this place: Take a helicopter to get an overview and do a little bit of just nothing before I dive into serious game.
The Lodge
See all the rest on the Tanamera Lodge Flickr album.
Helicopter
Blyde River Canyon
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v-k6khn0oYo
Do not miss the clip on Youtube and see all the photos on the Helicopter flight over Mpumalanga Lowvled Flickr album.
Nothing
Besides cutting the takes from the helicopter flight reading “Richard Despard Estes: The Behavioral Guide to African Mammals” is a very good idea. Seriously it is the perfect preparation for the upcoming game madness and everybody interested in more than just point&shot photos will benefit from it. Actually it is on my shelf since Namibia 2007.
Running down the hill is a very bad idea! The bridge to Tinamoon Lodge is a great spot, but you have to run up after all…
At Tanamera I was also very lucky to meet some cool folks (Greetings to Berlin and you will get your fine new airport – sometime! 😉
Probably one of my most lucky visuals. Diceros bicornis or the Black Rhino is considered critically endangered by IUCN. This one was a female and I was about 30m away from her. It was impossible to get closer and Frank my Ranger was very happy about that (they are naturally aggressive). You see the triangle shaped mouth that helps them to browse trees compared to the grass eating White Rhinos.
Unfortunately the dead animal (or its horns) is more valuable than gold, diamonds or cocaine (by weight).
This picture comes with no geo tags as I was told that poachers are meanwhile regularly scanning the web for the latest visuals to hunt them based on the geo tags of iPhones. Fortunately helicopters over national parks are themselves hunted by the local armies. However, it is hard to condemn the poachers as one kill brings them about half a million of dollars.
We have to condemn the market that is creating this demand. Traditional Chinese ‘Medicine’ – reminds me badly of the ‘scientific’ whale hunting…
Ja es gibt ihn wirklich! …und ich kann immer noch nicht glauben, dass ich nicht vom Tisch Richtung Pass gesprintet bin, als Josef mit diesem dämlichen Grinsen zurückkam.
Da ich kein Poet bin, werde ich nicht vergeblich versuchen die geschmackliche Ekstase zu beschreiben, die wir erfahren durften. Es ist kein Extrem dabei. Keine extremen Gegensätze, keine extremen Verfahren oder Geräte sondern einfach nur filigran ausbalancierte Liebkosungen der olfaktorischen, gustatorischen und haptischen Sinne.
Ich bin immer noch in heiliger Foodie-Trance, also genug der Worte und zu den Bildern (den einzelnen Gängen des ‘Menu Grande Tradition Classique)’:
Amuse-Gueule
Escalope de foie gras de canard poelee au verjus
Soupe aux truffes noires V.G.E.
Filets de sole aux nouilles fernand point
Granite des vignerons du beaujolais
Volaille de bresse truffee en vessie
Selection de formages frais et affines <Mere Richard>
Delices et gourmandises
…more pics on my Flickr account: http://www.flickr.com/photos/kydroon/
Schade das solches Material untergeht im Hai-Hype! Ist trotzdem beeindruckend sich im Esspfad einer Schildkröte zu legen und zu beobachten wie sie einen quasi überfährt.
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wf6z7Nj8qQg
Same day as before, just before breakfast. Incredible experience. At the very north east of the reef you drop into blue water and just wait and they come to watch.
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sLnwt-tyngE
Kydroon 