Today is a special day in the bush…Outstanding lion sightings on yesterday’s drive…

Casually wandering down the steep rocks, this male sees his buddy at a distance.

“Sighting of the Day in the Bush”

A little blurry, but nonetheless a happy lion with his tail in the air as he makes his way down the rocks near the river’s edge.

The temperature had dropped from a high of 39C (102F) to a cool 14C (57F) in less than 24 hours. We’ve gone from wearing as little clothing as possible to bundling up in sweaters and sweatshirts. I must admit, it feels darn good.

“Ah, here he is. Maybe I’ll join him for a leisurely nap!”
But, the best of it all is the fact that it’s been raining for the past several hours which started after one of the loudest cracks of thunder we’ve ever heard around 5:00 am.  
He’s checking out the perimeter before he gets too comfortable.
This rain is desperately needed here in the bush with vegetation dangerously dry, a prime situation for a lethal flash fire in this densely brush-covered area. The rain, if it continues off and on over the next months, could certainly alleviate the risk of such a frightening prospect.
Everything looks good. Naptime.
We’re indoors today with high winds whipping the wind around and the cool temperature making sitting outdoors uncomfortable. During the rain, it’s unlikely we’ll see any visitors but we keep checking to ensure we don’t fail to feed any passing hungry animals.
His eyes are almost completely closed but not quite.  Instinctively he stays cognizant of his surrounding.
The rain will “green” the vegetation if it continues long enough. This will add much-needed relief for the wildlife, most of which are herbivores, and will thrive with the new season of sprouting leaves, bushes, and trees. Hopefully, it will continue for a few days.
“She is rather attractive.  Besides, she “made” dinner for me.  Perhaps I should show her some appreciation.”

Of course, with our friends coming next week we’re hoping for good weather for all of us, the humans and animals alike. It’s unlikely we’ll go to Kruger when it’s raining since the animals tend to go undercover during downpours. We tried that a few weeks ago without much luck.

Dreaming of his next kill or…that pretty female over there?

As for today’s many lion photos…OMG! It was outstanding. Our expectations, as always were low in seeing much wandering in Marloth Park since the holidaymakers are still here through the upcoming weekend. To our surprise, we did see a few animals wandering about which we’ll share over the next few days.

“Nah, the nap sounds better right now.”

But, seeing several lions across the Crocodile River, out in the open, was the highlight of the day. We made our usual drive which takes about two hours from Olifant Drive to Kudu Road winding our way down to the river.  

Tom captured this female lounging not too far from the males.  She’d done the kill and the males took it from her, a common occurrence.

We always wind through Volstruis Road (which means ostrich in Afrikaans) in search of ostriches and their chicks. Oddly enough, as mentioned in the past, most ostriches seem to stay near their namesake road. We’re seldom disappointed and yesterday was no exception. Again, we’ll share those photos over the next few days.

It was cool and cloudy yesterday so the pride didn’t seem to mind relaxing in the open.

But the lions, a straight shot across the river upstream from Two Trees, we saw a small gathering of humans with cameras and binoculars in hand. It didn’t take long for us to spot the lions across the river. Again, it’s a very long distance from the Marloth Park fence to the opposite side of the Crocodile River so as always we do our best to get good photos.  

Two other males resting after a feast.

The wind was blowing heavily and without a tripod, I had difficulty holding the camera steady. Instead, as I often do, I braced the camera on the thin wire on the fence between the barbs, located a foot from the electrified fence which is far enough away to avoid any likelihood of touching it.

We both struggled to get good shots but once we uploaded them today, we were pleased we’d been able to get a few good shots under the difficult circumstances. No doubt if we had a bigger and better lens we’d be able to do more.  For now, we live with what we have.

Another lounging “leeu” (lion in Afrikaans) on a cool day.

For today, with the rain, we don’t expect to go out. Like the lions in the photos, we’ll lounge, maybe watch a show and make a nice dinner for tonight. Our plan is to be out on the veranda as usual by 1700 hours (5:00 pm) since we can use the outdoor portable heater if it’s cold. We’ll see how it rolls out.

Like many of you, not every day is adventuresome and exciting. Some days are quiet and low key. Yesterday, we saw lions and today we’ll watch another episode of Master Chef. It’s the nature of our lives and we love it this way!

May you have the kind of day that brings you contentment!

Photo from one year ago today, October 4, 2017:

A new visitor to the tree by the veranda. It’s a Rufous-naped Wren, a common bird species in Costa Rica. For more photos, please click here.

Comments and responses Today is a special day in the bush…Outstanding lion sightings on yesterday’s drive…

  1. Jessica Reply

    Kari, we're happy you enjoyed them! Hope you had a great birthday. Lots of love always,
    Jess & Tom

  2. Jessica Reply

    South Korean Culture, we're thrilled you've enjoyed our lion photos. Its not easy getting these distance photos but with such positive response such as yours, we remain highly motivated to attempt to get good shots. Thanks for reading our posts!
    Warmest regards,
    Jess & Tom

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