20 January
AM
This morning we woke up to an overcast sky. As a result, it was a most welcome cool and breezy start to our day. We headed to Nkorho, where two of the Skuthane lionesses were lying up by the pan. The oldest one, we call Magogo, and her younger companion were looking a bit thin and ragged. Both were also limping really badly. It would be in their best interest to try and find the rest of the pride, so they might have more success catching a meal. Eventually, we left the girls as they drifted off into a deep slumber. We then headed north to join an ellie sighting at Bushbuck dam. Five bulls were enjoying a playful morning swim in the dam. We sat watching them for ages as they splashed about, trying to dunk each other under the murky water.

PM
This evening, we relocated the two Skuthane lionesses. They were still where we left them at Nkorho. It didn't look as though they were going to become too active. They were probably trying to conserve as much precious energy as possible, by lying at the pan, waiting for game to come and drink. Then, if the opportunity arose, they would probably try and make a kill. On the other end of the open area, the family group of wildebeest were grazing on the fresh, green grass. Every now and then, they would look in the direction of the lions, and give a loud snort to let them know that they had seen them. After dark, we went and sat with the two jackal pups up on Buffelshoek Airstrip. They were playfully foraging about in the long grass.

21 January
AM
This morning, we were heading towards the east, driving straight towards the rising sun. We stopped for a moment, to watch an ellie bull, tromping along, over Gowrie Main, towards the south. Once he was out of sight, we continued on our way, to join a sighting of a male cheetah at Cheetah Plains. He was a little nervous, and headed for some thick bush. Eventually, he settled down for a rest in a terminalia thicket. We decided to leave him in peace and headed towards Kaalkol. Here, we bumped into the two Skuthane lionesses who have been hanging around. They were fast asleep in the long, green grass.

PM
This afternoon, most of the activity was happening, once again, near Nkorho. The old, female leopard, White Cloth, was lying up in the shade of a guarri tree at Three in a Row Pan. She was very full, and must have just finished feeding on a kill. This would also explain her laziness. Further up the road, towards Buffalo Pan, a lone male lion was marching along, marking his territory. It's also possible that he smelled the two lionesses that were about this morning, and was looking for them. The male cheetah from this morning, was lying up on the open area in front of Nkorho. After a while, he wondered over to the pan, for a drink, but then settled back down to watch the resident herd of impala in the distance.

22 January
AM
We headed north, this morning, into Manyeleti. There were plenty of ellie bulls about, as usual, which gave us lots to look at as they walked about feeding. We then went to check Dixie Dam, where a few hippo were bobbing about in the water. We sat for a while watching a black crake (A type of waterbird.) eating the eggs out of a foam nest frog's nest. It had quite the feast, before hopping down to wade at the water's edge. Next, we headed off south again, where we bumped into Safari Female, the leopard, on Philemon's Cutline. She was definitely on the prowl, and melted into the thick bush east of the road.

PM
We relocated, Safari Female, this afternoon, close to where we lost her this morning. She was in the block, east of Philemons' Cutline. She had managed to kill an impala lamb, and had already feasted on most of it. She was now resting, beneath a bush, grooming herself. The rest of the drive was fairly quiet, so we went and sat with a pod of hippo at Buffelshoek dam, watching the sun go down and enjoying a few drinks. When it eventually became dark, we still sat, listening as the sounds of the bush changed as the nocturnal creatures awoke and the diurnal ones settled in for the night.

The Ranger's diary is updated weekly

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