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25-26 Apr 2019: Searching for the Great Heart
Ticking birds off the list is, essentially, a diminishing return Don Packett A few days of very lean birding commenced after the Kunene...
Apr 26, 20192 min read
23-25 Apr 2019: Kunene River Lodge
I blame the Cape Turtle Dove calling above my camper. It started out this morning with its usual “work harder; work harder”, and I really...
Apr 25, 20192 min read
21-22 Apr 2019: Searching for the Cave Chat
Tim Osborne showed me an easy route to the Angola Cave Chat site on a 1: 50 000 map of Kaokoland, but then reality and maps differ...
Apr 22, 20192 min read
19-20 Apr 2019: Another One Bites the Dust
Tim and Laurel Osborne made me feel very welcome at the Tandala Ridge Lodge and Campsite, in the Kamanjab district. On my way up the...
Apr 20, 20191 min read
18 Apr 2019: The Old Man would have Smiled
Our greatest weakness lies in giving up. The most certain way to succeed is always to try just one more time Thomas A. Edison So it was...
Apr 18, 20192 min read
16-18 Apr 2019: Running Down the Rockrunner
Mark Boorman had given me a fail-safe place to find the Herero Chat near Karibib, so off I went and failed majestically in my quest. All...
Apr 18, 20191 min read
14-16 Apr 2019: Brandberg
Brandberg, Namibia’s highest mountain at 2573m, dominates the desolate plains of the Namib. Having dipped on the Benguela Long-billed...
Apr 16, 20191 min read
13 Apr 2019: Stuck in a Rut
I have always loved the desert. One sits down on a desert sand dune, sees nothing, hears nothing. Yet through the silence something...
Apr 13, 20192 min read
12 Apr 2019: Voyeurism at its best - Birding with a Leg-man
I have high regard for a man who appreciates a fine leg. A well-shaped leg, with or without rings being worn, remains a thing of beauty....
Apr 12, 20191 min read
10-11 Apr 2019: Ameib Ranch, Erongo Mountains
The birding was good and the scenery even better. Situated in the Erongo mountains near Usakos, Ameib’s granite outcrops create...
Apr 11, 20192 min read
9 Apr 2019: Daan Viljoen Game Reserve, Windhoek
I was completely knackered after the previous day’s 1200 km drive, and had a bit of a sleep-in. The loud, harsh calls of numerous...
Apr 9, 20191 min read
8 Apr 2019: Trans Kalahari Highway
The Trans Kalahari Highway in Botswana, built entirely on sand, is a massive feat of civil engineering. The Kalahari Desert is the...
Apr 8, 20191 min read
7 Apr 2019: On the Road Again
Packing, like rush-hour traffic, always takes much longer than anticipated. Some excess baggage, not used in the last three months of...
Apr 7, 20191 min read
22-23 Mar 2019: Yellow-throated Sandgrouse
The Yellow-throated Sandgrouse, the largest sandgrouse in Southern Africa, is a near threatened, black clay specialist ranging from...
Mar 23, 20192 min read
20-21 Mar 2019: Back Home
Arrival in Pretoria was at about one ‘o clock in the morning and it was sheer bliss to fall into my bed, greeting all the bumps and...
Mar 21, 20191 min read
19 Mar 2019: Pink Eyelids and Mocking Owlets
Beth Hackland told me about finding the Verreaux’s Eagle-Owl near Mata-Mata, and I decided to first target this owl before leaving the...
Mar 19, 20191 min read
18 Mar 2019: Slightly Cuckoo
Birders have a natural affinity to one another. Somewhere on the road to Mata-Mata these two ladies were staring intently through their...
Mar 18, 20191 min read
17 Mar 2019: Kgalagadi National Transfrontier Park
Waiting for sunrise and the park gate to open, I was filled with memories of previous visits to the park with family and friends. My...
Mar 17, 20191 min read
15-16 Mar 2019: Upington to Kgalagadi
The next two nights were spent at Sakkie Se Ark campsite, next to the Orange River in Upington, as my Ford Ranger had to go in for a...
Mar 16, 20191 min read
14 Mar 2019: Port Nolloth
The corrugation on the Northern Cape dirt roads was taking its toll on Daai Dêng. In Bushmanland I had to replace the nuts and bolts...
Mar 14, 20191 min read
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