The vast African continent has always held a strange yet powerful allure for me. I was a voracious reader as a child and at one time vicariously traveled through the jungles of Congo, swinging from treetop to treetop and wrestling with gorillas through my favorite superhero – Tarzan. Edgar Rice Burroughs’ vivid and compelling writing held me spellbound for many an hour in my youth.
So, when the opportunity to visit South Africa presented itself in 2009, it was a dream come true. I went on a two-day safari to the Kruger National Park and thoroughly enjoyed seeing and photographing animals in the wild. I had to wait another 16 years before I got the opportunity to go on a safari again – this time to Pilanesburg National Park – earlier this year. While Pilanesburg is not as large or as heavily populated with wildlife as the Kruger, it offers the convenience of proximity and the potential of seeing the Big 5 – Elephants, Lions, Leopards, Rhinos, Buffalo. While the park rangers who drive you around make every effort to track and allow you to view large game, it is not a slam dunk, as many of these animals are very elusive and shy. They live deep in the bush and are content to stay far from human habitats.
Here is a selection of my pictures taken at Pilanesburg.
The African white Rhino – the horn is sawn off to protect it from poachers.
A leopard stalks prey, in the distance
A young male elephant grazes listlessly in the heat of midday
A curious baby rhino
A cheetah rests in the shade … always alert.
Nature’s original QR code – a trio of zebra
A herd of impala nervously crosses the road at dawn
A pair of hippos stay cool in the wading pool
Guess who has the right of way?
A family of kudu
A giraffe majestically saunters into the distance
Southern Yellow Billed Hornbill
Guinea fowl foraging for food by the roadside
A Reed Cormorant rests by a lake
An African Fish Eagle alights on a low branch
Notes for photography enthusiasts:
I used a Nikon Z8 in combination with a Nikon Z 100-400 f / 4.5 – 5.6 VR S lens. I added a 1.4 TC for one session.
The picture of the giraffe was taken on a Samsung S23 Ultra
