Giraffe Silhouettes

Kwantu Private Game Reserve is an unique reserve in that it is owned by a Muslim family and they are sticking strictly to their Islamic traditions by not allowing alcohol on the reserve. Their food is also very Eastern in flavour. I've had the opportunity to visit the reserve a couple of times while I was a tour guide and this giraffe pic was taken one late afternoon at about sunset.

Lion in the late afternoon

An adult male and two juveniles lying in the late afternoon sun in the Schotia Private Game Reserve. This is the same game reserve where I took the sunset photo of a couple of days ago.

Family gathering

Port Elizabeth is situated in the Eastern Cape province of South Africa. The area to the north and the east of Port Elizabeth is prime big game country with numerous private game reserves on offer in a malaria free environment. Most of the game reserves have some or all of the Big 5 and offer accommodation ranging from rustic to luxury 5 star. The biggest attraction in the area is the Addo Elephant National Park, less than an hour outside Port Elizabeth. Tagged as the first Big 7 game reserve in the world, it can boast the Big 5 (elephant, buffalo, rhino, lion and leopard) as well as Southern Right Whales and Great White Sharks within its concervation area. It has a population of over 450 elephants and is probably the best place in the world to see wild African elephants up close and in big herds. When I used to be a tourist guide I went to Addo so many times,that I can't count it, but I never got tired of it. This is one of my favourite pics that I have taken in Addo. More Addo pics as well as pics from the game reserves will follow in the furure.

African Sunset

Schotia Private Game Reserve is situated about 55km north-east of Port Elizabeth. It may not be the most luxurious of the game reserves around, but it is my favourite day visit game reserve. The game viewing is fantastic, the rangers knowledgable and the food super. They have a great variety of game ranging from lion and rhino to a great number of antelope species. All the food is made on the coals in their open air boma. Their day program starts in the afternoon and ends at about 20:30 in the evening. One of the highlights of the game drive to me is seeing the sunset. I love photographing sunsets, so more will follow in future.

At a snail's pace

I climbed into the garden for a change and cleaned out the weeds in my rock garden. This little snail was quite willing for me to get all close and personal and click away for some photos. Just having a little compact Kodak EasyShare meant that I had to take these pics from about 20cm away. Good thing for me they don't spit, sting or bite.

King Protea

Sticking to the Protea theme of yesterday, I decided post a pic of South Africa's national flower. This the the King Protea and is one of the most awesome flowers you'll ever see. This one I also photographed in the Van Stadens Wildflower Reserve west of Port Elizabeth

Pin Cushion Proteas

The pin cushion protea is on of the 8500 species of plants that you find in the Fynbos biome. This plant kingdom is also called the Cape Floral Kingdom and was proclaimed an UNESCO natural World Heritage Site a couple of years ago. Six nature reserves were selected to represent the status. Five of those are in the Western Cape and one in the Eastern Cape. The Eastern Cape one is the Baviaanskloof Wilderness Area about 100 odd km west of Port Elizabeth. This photo was taken in the Van Stadens Wildflower Reserve, also just west of the city.