The Week in Pictures : Landscapes and Lazy Days

We’re a day late with our Week in Pictures blog post, but we thought we’d keep you in suspense. We trust our latest gallery of wildlife images fresh from the bushveld will make up for the arduous wait. It’s abundantly clear that the bushveld is experiencing a marked change in weather patterns affecting the landscape, which always makes for textured scenes and vivid colours. Summer is the rainy season in the Kruger, and downpours are interrupted with blistering hot days. The Lowveld is still dry, but evidence of summer is slowly breaking through! It’s not long before we’ll see stormy skies hovering above and deep greens carpeting the lands.

Guests from Ezulwini Game Lodges enjoyed incredible big sightings during the course of the week. Angele said that there are definite signs of new life in the bushveld. She says, “trees are budding and flowering, frogs calling, and insects emerging.”

Oxpeckers on Hide Ezulwini Sunset Balule Zebra Ezulwini Balule

Game viewing at camps has been quite successful. Umkumbe Safari Lodge seem to enjoy consistent sightings of a young male leopard called Nweti, who is avidly trying to stake claim on unchartered territory. The highlight was watching Nweti with a kill right outside of camp, and observing a cheeky hyena steal the kill. Coupled with the leopard sighting, guests enjoyed rare sightings of wild dog. To top it off, a hyena was attempting to battle it out with a wild dog. Hyenas don’t mind a bit of confrontation if it means a food reward at the end of battle.

Buffalo and Wild Dog at Umkumbe Umkumbe's Nweti Male Leopard White-faced Scops Owl

Africa on Foot and nThambo Tree Camp have also had their fair share of wild dog sightings, and have been lucky enough to watch the mottled pups clamber around allen trees. The guides from both camps managed to track and find the Westin Pride of lions. A mega-pride of lions that occasionally makes an appearance in the far reaches of the nThambo and Africa on Foot traverse.

Buffalo at Africa on Foot Hyena Africa on Foot Kudu Cow Africa on Foot nThambo Tree Camp Wild Dogs Sunset at nThambo Tree Camp Lions at nThambo Tree Camp

Walkers Bush Villa invited a handpicked selection of guests to the villa for their launch party. The event was a roaring success, and the soft room refurb looks just perfect. While guests were enjoying drinks around the pool, a small herd of nyala visited the lawns of the villa.

Walkers Bush Villa Sunset Walkers Bush Villa Launch Sunset at Walkers Bush Villa

Chacma Bush Camp

The elephants continue to frequent the waterhole in front of camp, and week after week we continue to enjoy their presence. Guides have spotted a wealth of other plains game in the Maseke.

Chacma Elephants in Maseke Duiker at Chacma Dung Beetle at Chacma