May 6th - Last drive... back to Johannesburg

 May 6th - Last drive... back to Johannesburg

Judas.. the best tracker in the world!!

And off we go

We started out extra early as Don really tried to make our last drive memorable. In radio contact with others we searched in vain for cats for about an hour and a half. Then the radio really came to life and we were off at racing pace to another area. We cannot quite describe the thrill of racing through the African bush at breakneck speed, bouncing around and hanging on for dear life.. better than a roller coaster!!!!  In contact with  others we finally found another land rover on the edge of a thicket. They waved us in and there inside was a young male leopard devouring an Impala. So Don says "it'll be here a while lets go" whaaaat!!! Apparently he had heard rumours that there was a Cheetah in the area. Just 5 minutes away, and to the awe of all of us including our tracker and ranger, we were treated to a very special find.... a wonderful sighting of a Cheetah, set up on a 5 foot high mound surveying the area around and watched by us and another land rover. We were in awe for about 90 seconds and then it just decided to move on, stealthily through the brush and it was gone. What superb timing. Only a minute either side and we would have missed it.

We returned to our leopard who continued to enjoy his feast and stayed there for some 20 minutes, totally enthralled. It didn't seem at all gory even though it was a fairly graphic sight. Don believed that the cheetah downed the Impala, but it was stolen by the Leopard, such is the hierarchy of nature in the bush. 

After we left the Leopard to his meal, we saw Giraffe, elephant, zebra, Wildebeest, Impala, Warthogs, a beautiful lilac breasted Roller (bird), and a huge water buck before arriving back at camp. We said goodbye to Judas and went to pack before final goodbyes and a beer on the deck, where we saw some guinea fowl and a Cape buffalo, grazing by the deck.  Our driver arrived to take us back to Nelspruit airport for our uneventful flight back to Jo'burg. We chatted with him about today's big national election... he was definitely an ANC supporter for life! Back at Africa Sky we had dinner, packed, sat by the Boma and had a reasonably early night.
 

Final elephant sighting!!

Water-buck... HUGE horns

Wildebeest grazing with Zebra-lesson for humans!!

Wildebeest and Impala also sharing the land

Looking happy but sad to say goodbye

Packed and ready to go!

Relaxing on the main deck before leaving

Bye Will.. it's been a blast!!

Guinea Fowl below the main deck

View from the deck

Cape buffalo from the deck

Local market on way to Nelspruit

Wished I had bought on of these now!!

Our chariot awaits again!!

Cruise here we come