Newbie from South Africa

[bgordon]

Hi All,

OK, so that worked.

Madjack, this one's for you (and Aunt M, of course!). The bubble oil should be fine soon!

I took these pictures on 18 Feb 2007 when we went camping at the Pilanesberg game reserve, which is about 160km (100 miles) from Johannesburg. This is a gem of a game reserve, with all of the big 5 to be seen. (Spotting them might be difficult though, but you have a much better chance of seeing game than in SA's big park, the Kruger National Park.) (At the Kruger park game can just 'disappear' because the park is roughly the size of Germany.)



You can see this one is a male, can't you!



Zebra are generally shy animals, so seeing them so close to the road is a bonus.



Rhino's:



This elephant caused quite a stir! He didn't want to leave the road, and we just had to wait. We waited and waited, and then it became dark, (and then you're not supposed to be in the parks), and a ranger had to escort an entire convoy of cars out of the park!



All these photos were taken on the same day. We saw everything we wanted to, except leopards. (They are INCREDIBLY difficult to spot, and usually hang out in the mountains).

Well, that's it for now. Keep well till later.

.

[bgordon]

But we have had a look at a few Zuid Afrikan fold-out trailers - some interesting designs there.

Andrew

Anything in particular that you liked? 'Interesting' is such a 'nice, neutral' word.

.

[asianflava]

Those are great pics! Keep em' coming. If you haven't already heard, we like pics. Yours are especially interesting because we can only get shots like at zoos and animal attractions.

[PaulC]

Hi Barrie, Welcome from a different SA Adelaide in South Australia, that is. Enjoy your time with a great bunch of lunatics

Cheers
Paul

[Miriam C.]

Wow, thanks Barrie! That's the way to do the pictures right!

[peggyearlchris]

Welcome Barrie, I sure enjoyed the pictures. Keep them coming. Peg

[bgordon]

Hi all,

Asianflava: I'm glad you like the pics.

PaulC: Thanks! I understand there are so many South Africans in Adelaide that you locals can almost speak Afrikaans as a second language!

Miriam and Peggy: glad you likes the pics!

.

[madjack]

...fantastic Barrie...that's what I'm talkin' about...thanks ..................................

[bgordon]

Madjack,

Glad you liked it! Will post some more pics in the next day or so.

Keep well!

[angib]

In the back you can see my current caravan (that's what we call them here in SA.)

Nothing wrong with the word 'caravan' - used by some of the finest countries, that word is......

But, Barrie, go easy on the photos of your caravan - you can do permanent damage to some of the guys here by showing them pictures not only of trailers with their door on the left, but then you'll probably show a photo with vehicles driving on that side of the road too. Like Scotty said, "they canna take it, Cap'n"......

It's interesting (damn, there's that word again) that you have pop-up tops on caravans like the Aussies do, whereas we Brits don't. It's interesting as we have very highly taxed fuel, so a lower profile would help a lot, but you and the Aussies don't. Maybe it's because like the Aussies, you normally camp in hot, dry weather where we don't?

Andrew

[pauld3]

Welcome!!!

Lynn

[bgordon]

In the back you can see my current caravan (that's what we call them here in SA.)

Nothing wrong with the word 'caravan' - used by some of the finest countries, that word is......

But, Barrie, go easy on the photos of your caravan - you can do permanent damage to some of the guys here by showing them pictures not only of trailers with their door on the left, but then you'll probably show a photo with vehicles driving on that side of the road too. Like Scotty said, "they canna take it, Cap'n"......

It's interesting (damn, there's that word again) that you have pop-up tops on caravans like the Aussies do, whereas we Brits don't. It's interesting as we have very highly taxed fuel, so a lower profile would help a lot, but you and the Aussies don't. Maybe it's because like the Aussies, you normally camp in hot, dry weather where we don't?

Andrew

Andrew,

Yup, point taken. But hey, now you give me an idea to pull out the old lady (the caravan that is), and take a pic of the tow rig for the Americans (don't want to use the word 'merkans. Forgot which one is the cosher one! (As you explained)). Anyhow, such a rig will probably drive them crazy.

I must say, I don't know about the fuel tax there, but they sure do tax us heavily on the fuel. So, I don't think that is the reason for the pop-top. I think you're most likely right about the weather. We do camp in much warmer weather than you. Generally the cold is not a problem, but rather the heat. When camping we almost always have the pop-top windows (zips in canvas) open - even in the evenings. The caravans usually become hot, and as mentioned, that is usually the big problem.

Keep well.

[Classic Finn]

Welcome Indeed to the wonderful and addcting hobby of Teardrops & Tiny Travel Trailers..

Sure glad to have you Onboard

Very Nice photos youve taken and to us here in Finland that is exotic..Those photos remind me of a Wildlife Movie or National Geographic.

Thought maybe the Lil elephant was your Tow Vehicle....However could I be mistaken?

My sons sure enjoyed your photos..keepem coming

Once Again Welcome

Best regards from the Land of The Midnight Sun - Country of Finland


Classic Finn and Family

[flyingfinn]

Welcome aboard, Springbuck! Im a newbie here myself, but these people sure seem like a welcoming bunch!

[bgordon]

Hi all,

Glad you enjoyed the photos. Didn't know Africa was so exotic!

Here I am with my family at a waterfall, about 2km from our house at the botanical garden.



The next photo is of me with my two children, aged 5 and 3. Mom is taking the photo. We are at the Vaal river, one of the larger rivers in South Africa.


Here we are back in Pilanesberg National Park. (The same trip as an earlier post (above)). I took the photo in a hurry, because when an elephant starts flapping their ears, they are saying, buzz off! And when an elephant 'talks', you listen!



Remember I said in the earlier post that the elephant in the road did not want us to pass. Well, when we got back to camp (which is just outside the park gate), it was dark. This little warthog waited for us in the camping parking area.



Well, that is about all the good shots from that trip to Pilanesberg. Hope you enjoyed it! As always, feel free to comment.

Keep well,