April was a busy month. It kicked off with my sister and brother-in-law visiting and sleeping over on the 1st. We have not seen them for a very long time, but we speak to each other weekly. It was good to hug and catch up, but I was rather saddened by the deterioration of Cynthia’s health. It is one thing to ‘know’ about it, and quite another to actually see it…
Roger spent the afternoon of the 1st and the morning of the 2nd in the simulator for his license renewal. It is an expensive but unavoidable annual occurrence. He normally finds someone to share the session with him, thus sharing costs as well.
My friend Wendy arranged for a weekend at the Mankwe Wildlife Reserve to boost income for Rhino Conservation, so that is where we went for the weekend 8th to 10th April. Roger was keen to go because he will be involved in a new initiative where the Bateleurs will be monitoring and patrolling the reserves in that region. He also wanted to meet the reserve owner and staff.
Bottom: Motlobo Dam at the Waterbuck Research Camp
The weather did not play along; it rained for the entire weekend. Travelling to Mankwe, which is situated approximately 5 km east of the Pilanesberg National Park, it even hailed! But, with a good supply of braai meat, wine and friends, a good time was had by all.
Bottom: Tented accommodation
Roger and I went for a game drive on Saturday morning when we saw a helicopter quartering overhead. Before we could speculate too much we were stopped by game rangers, asking us to turn back. They had spotted an injured rhino with a calf and suspected that she was shot. They needed to clear the area in order to locate and dart her. Back at camp we were all feeling rather emotional about it. Thoughts of an incursion and the cruelty of poaching were just overwhelming.
The helicopter had landed by the time we got back to the main camp, so Roger went to chat and offer his help. A vehicle with the vet and team had also arrived and there was a flurry of activity. Roger ended up driving the support vehicle to the site of the darting and being an observer. What an unexpected, unique experience!
Both animals were darted from the helicopter and to everyone’s relief the wound was from a previous injury and not from a recent gun shot. The well-known doctor Douw Grobler who was in attendance cleaned and treated the wound. Then the pair had to be woken up. When they are darted they inevitably end up collapsing a short distance away from each other, but to avoid them bolting in different directions and losing each other they had to be together when they woke up. So, the semi-anaesthetised calf was steered towards the mother by a team of helpers and the help of a cattle prodder. Once he was close enough mother and calf were both given the anti-dote to the anaesthetic. They trotted off a few minutes later, slightly groggy but together and unharmed.
Much to Roger’s dismay the Bakkie’s battery was flat when we were ready to leave on Sunday morning. What a challenge to find jumper leads with thick enough cables to start a 3-litre diesel engine! Anyway, he managed, and we left the reserve at midday, careful not to stall or switch the engine off.
We stopped at André and Alesia to collect some braai wors and dried wors that he wanted to give us from his last hunt. After our short visit the bakkie once again would not start. What a frustration! André’s bakkie could not manage the jump start so he eventually removed the battery from Eugene’s boat and connected it to our bakkie. That worked. Once the engine was running they had to remove the boat’s battery and reconnect ours. We did not stop again until we were in our parking bay at home. Roger replaced the battery the next day.
The weather did not lift all week.
Now we have to start the rest of the development!
We drove to Silver Creek Gorge on Good Friday. After settling in we flew to Mankwe in order to check the terrain from the air. En route we flew over the Roodekoppies Dam, trying to spot Francois and Adri who were fishing there. Being a long weekend there were many boats out and we did not know the name of Francois’ new boat. They saw us but we could not positively identify them. I guessed which one was theirs by the antics of a man jumping up and down and waving, which they later confirmed.
Anthea had organised an English High Tea event for Saturday. All we had to do was for the ladies to wear a sunhat, the men to wear a collared shirt, and each couple to bring a plate of eats. Attendance was good, despite the cold and rain. It was a fun event with delicious eats, beautifully presented as only Anthea can, and lively conversation.
We were scheduled for a hike near Hartebeespoort Dam on Sunday but that was cancelled due to the rain that still showed no signs of letting up. So, we went to Francois and Adri instead, where we had his 5-star Vindaloo Curry. Their boat called Flodderkous (meaning Afrikaans: slordige vrou, English: dowdy or untidy woman) was parked outside so next time we will know what to look for!
It was good to get home, have a warm shower and a dry, comfortable bed! We spent Monday at home.
We went to Silver Creek again the weekend after Easter weekend because we would be hiking in the area on the Sunday. When we arrived, the place seemed deserted with not a person or airplane in sight. That puzzled us, until we learned that most of the residents were sick with suspected Covid. It seems that someone at the High Tea event the previous week had the disease. Eish…
This time the weather for our hike could not have been better. It was overcast for most of the day with no rain. The hike was up Castle Gorge, a route we have always wanted to do. It was especially spectacular after the rain and certainly lived up to our expectations.
We will be going to Cape Town on the 30th for Kevin and Lucy’s ‘second’ wedding celebration. I will write about that in my next post.
South Africa’s State of Disaster has officially ended but certain restrictions remain. The Government is maneuvering to retain control so let’s watch this space…