Wildlife

It can be really challenging to find innovative ways to photograph a subject, to capture images that makes us think a little harder about the subject or teach us something new. After spending a few days on Malgas Island in the West Coast National Park, photographing the Cape Gannet colony, i was getting frustrated with trying to find this"innovation".

The 30th December would be our last morning in the park and we headed off at 05h20, determined to have a fantastic last drive out on the Mata-Mata road. Well… we were so rewarded!

With 10 minutes to spare before we would be allowed out of the gate we drove up to the top of the camp to watch the sunrise, and what a sunrise it was!

On the morning of the 26th we packed up camp at Mata-Mata and headed towards Nossob. A couple of kilometers outside the Mata-Mata camp we came across one of the most exciting sightings of our trip.

The next two days were spent at Tweerivieren camp exploring in the early mornings and late afternoons. In summer one really needs to be at the gate and ready to go at 05h30. By 08h00 it is already getting very hot and the animals become more elusive by the minute, although we remained out until 11h30-12 most days.

The closer we got to the Kgalagadi Transfrontier National Park, the warmer it was getting and by the time we reached Tweerivieren, the temperature was heading towards 38-40degs! 

Labouring in the heat, we slowly set up camp, in between ice cold beers, and waited out the afternoon.  The three camps in the Park all have swimming pools, what a lifesaver. It became routine to take a prolonged dip before setting off on our afternoon game drives.

The end of 2011 saw us pack up and head for the bush, after a hectic year filled with hard work, travels and the occasional downer. We decided that a soul-cleansing trip to both the Namaqua National Park and the Kgalagadi Trans-frontier National Park’s were in order. Booked last minute for both!

The stallion snorted his warning and positioned himself in front of his herd.  He was fully alert and stood his ground while his herd retreated.  Once they had travelled a short distance away, the three females also turned and stood motionless, watching with curiosity and shielding their foals with their bodies.  We were ready for them and immediately started shooting.  We were aiming for every individual in the herd.  But we did not want trophies.  We wanted stripes; photographic shots of every animal to add to a database for the population.

Fowlsheugh is a small coastal nature reserve, adjacent to the hamlet of Crawton in Kincardineshare, northeast Scotland. Departing south from Aberdeen along the A90, we stopped at the small town of Stonehaven. It was from here that we planned to make our way to the bird colony at Fowlsheugh after a hearty late lunch and a pint of ale.
Taking the A90 south out of Stonehaven, exit east on the A95 towards Crawton along the narrow, windy road until you reach a small parking area and the access point for Fowelsheugh.