Lower Sabie Day 1 
Up and at 'em bright and early and enjoyed a quick brekkie on our deck overlooking the river.
Some hippos were out basking
And this bird was in the tree next to our tent. A village weaver perhaps?
First we decided to go see whether there was any action at the waterholes along the S130
On the way we saw this handsome waterbuck
And lots of tortoises were out and about. A large leopard tortoise sped off into the grass
This one looked different to the other tortoises I'd seen
So I did some research and I think it is a Bell's hinged tortoise. A new reptile tick for me
Next up we saw our first giant land snail
Unfortunately the S130 waterholes were quiet, except for this gorgeous woodland kingfisher
Even though the pic is far off I just love the splash of colour that the kingfisher adds to the surrounds
And a wildebeest posed nicely
A bit further along the S130 a car coming the other way flagged us down. He told us that he had just been chased for a kilometre by a huge rogue ellie and that we should be very careful!!
As we continued I felt more and more nervous about meeting this rogue
The trees were right up against the road so we would have no warning if he rushed out.
Suddenly we came around a bend and there he was hiding in the trees!
We drove past very cautiously, wondering what he would do. He swayed and flapped his ears but I think he was probably too tuckered out after running a kilometre to bother chasing us. Phew!
At the end of the S130 we turned back on to the H4-2 and headed to Croc Bridge for a pit stop.
And who should we meet there but Bob and Sharon!!!
They told us they had seen 2 black mambas - one that reared up in front of them, plus a leopard and a black rhino that morning!!!
WOW!!!! I couldn't help wishing we had some of their luck…
After sharing toasted cheese sandwiches, coffee and conversation with Bob and Sharon, we waved goodbye and headed for the S28 - a famous cat hot spot I told Dad
We had to stop for a few road blocks
And this gorgeous carmine bee-eater playing with his food
A bit further on we saw a car ahead, with an arm out the window wildly pointing into the grass at the side of the road. As we drove up we just saw a lion flop down under a bush about 10m from the road. A young male, with his mane just starting to grow
We sat there for about half an hour hoping he would get up. But it was midday and really hot, so I'm sure he was very comfy lying in the long grass under the bush
After a 4 day cat drought though, boy were we excited just to have
glimpsed a lion
We left the invisible lion to sleep and headed back to camp for some lunch
From our deck we saw a fish eagle and some saddle billed storks
Ahhhh, life was just perfect
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