Week in Pics : Hello Darkness My Old Friend

Simon and Garfunkel produced the magical hit, The Sound of Silence, back in the vintage era of 1964. The dramatic hit shot to fame and has since been covered by many up and coming artists. It’s a somber tune, one that reflects the mood of today’s Week in Pictures. One of the famous and legendary leopards of the Sabi Sand, The Bicycle Crossing Male, passed away due to natural circumstances (we speculate he intruded onto another cat’s turf). It’s never a good thing when a rare predator meets his untimely death. We now take the time to dedicate this “Week in Pictures” to this majestic rosette patterned cat. He was powerful and stoic, just like the song. Here are the best of our moody images, a way for us to mourn the loss of dear old Bike and tribute to his existence in the Sabi Sand.

Botswana Camps

Tuskers Bush Camp enjoyed a rewarding sighting of the elephant herds lumbering towards the waterhole in front of the boma area at camp. Guests spent ages observing the jumbos thriving in their natural habitat.

Africa on Foot and nThambo Tree Camp

The highlight of the week has been the tree climbing lion, witnessed by guests at nThambo Tree Camp !

Just when we thought our lion sightings couldn’t get any better, we stumble across a tree climbing lion! Unusual? Very much so! There are tree-climbing lions in the Serengeti, but it’s not a common sight here in the Kruger. Thing is, when you’re being chased sometimes you run out of options, adrenalin kicks in and you utilise your natural props to get out of harm’s way.

That wasn’t the only big cat sighting enjoyed by the Klaserie sister camps. Over the past couple of days a large male leopard has been seen in the vicinity of the local waterhole, close to a skittish female. Then, the Ross Pride Breakaway lionesses were seen on a kill and their “friends” – the Sumatra males were also seen, but living a separate life.

Coupled with the above sightings, the rare and endangered wild dogs were also spotted, but disappeared before we could get any photos.

Sunset at Africa on Foot

Buffalo in Mud Zebra Black and WhiteStars Africa on Foot

nThambo Elephant

Tree Climbing at nThambo Tree Camp

 

Umkumbe Safari Lodge

The highlight of the week has been the leopard sightings. Little Bush’s cub was observed enjoying a meaty feast of impala, Max was nursing his recent war wounds from an unknown battle and the Tsalala male lions were seen strolling around Umkumbe territory. The downfall of the week was Bicycle Crossing Male meeting an unfortunate death. Bike had fresh wounds and deep cuts on his back, and his back was clearly broken. Rangers speculate that a territorial pride of lions launched an attack on this other feline intruder, ultimately being held responsible for his downfall. R.I.P Bike the legend!

Giraffe in Moody Light Umkumbe

Bicycle Crossing Leopard

Umkumbe Bicycle Crossing

Ezulwini Game Lodges 

Ezulwini – the pride of the Balule ! Recently, the lodges have had a fair amount of lion sightings of sub-adult male lions. The highlight being an up close sighting with one of the burgeoning young males of the area. The contrasting scenery, drama and colour of life on safari in the Balule continues to astound us. We’ve shared our moody and dramatic images from rangers Giles and Christian – perfectly fitting given that this post is an ode to “Bike”.

Impala on the Horizon Zebra and Young

Ivory Wilderness Riversong Camp

Last week the African wild dogs owned the bushveld runway by showing off their latest addition to their collection – their brand new mottled colour pups. This week, a similar thread weaves its way through the bushveld, creating a tapestry of unique sightings for guests. The Dundee Pride of lions emerged from the thickets and revealed a litter of fine looking young cubs.

Young Cub from Dundee Southern-white Faced Scops Owl