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Day 1:
Johannesburg
- Haenertsburg (D)
Departing Johannesburg or
Pretoria at 7.00 - 7.30am, you travel
North to the small town of
Haenertsburg, situated in the mountain forests and grasslands of
the Northern Drakensberg Mountains.
You
will enjoy an afternoon bird watching in the wood bush forest
where you will search for amongst others:
Black-fronted
Bush Shrike, White-starred Robin, Green Twinspot and if we
are lucky Buff-spotted Flufftail during the summer
months. The surrounding grasslands are home to breeding
Blue
Swallows, a highly endangered species.
You enjoy dinner at one of
the local restaurants with the plans for the next day being
discussed.
Day 2:
Haenertsburg - Kruger Park -
Punda Maria Camp (B
D)
Departing Haenertsburg we
continue driving North for a few more hours to the Northern
section of the Kruger National Park. Before entering the park at
Punda Maria Gate you will have
the opportunity to do
some shopping, to stock up the cooler
box with some drinks, film, snacks, insect repellent.
You
will spend the next two
days exploring the Northern limits of the Kruger Park with the
view of seeing some of the bird 'specials' only found in this part of the
park.
On a good day around the
Punda Maria region you could record several of the
following specials: White-breasted
Cuckoo Shrike, Crowned Hornbill,
Chestnut-bellied
(Greyhooded)
Kingfisher, Crested Guineafowl, Gorgeous Bush Shrike,
Gray-headed Parrot, African and
European Golden Oriole (both
summer), Eastern
Nicator, Stierling's Wren Warbler
and
Dickinson's Kestrel.
Arriving at
Punda Maria camp,
you check in, visit the camps shop to
stock up with drinks, move into your chalet
and freshen up ready for dinner.
A traditional
South African meal is prepared giving you a
taste of our countries delicious, barbeque cuisine.
Day 3:
Kruger Park -
Punda Maria Camp (B
D)
On the third day we will
have an early morning departure making our way north to the Pafuri
region for the day. This area has some beautiful river line forest and we
will stop for breakfast at a famous picnic site.
One can simply spend several hours in
this
picnic site
seeing: Trumpeter
Hornbill,
Purple-crested Turacos,
Black-throated
Wattle-eye, Tropical Boubou, Meve's Starling, Narina Trogon, Gorgeous, Grey-headed
and Orange-breasted
Bush Shrike and several
different species of
Robin,
Sunbird and
Firefinch. Other rarities
recorded at the picnic site include
Lemon
Dove, Brown Scrub-Robin and Wood
Owl.
To conclude this very productive day we return back to camp in time for an open vehicle sunset drive. A SANParks ranger in an open sided truck conducts the drive, which lasts for approx three hours.
On your return from your sunset drive your dinner would have been prepared, cooked and ready to be served outside under the stars, with talk of the days events.
Day 4: Kruger Park -
Letaba Camp (B D)
Making our way south down through the Kruger Park we drive via
Shingwedzi camp where you will have several more birds to add to
our list: Bennett’s Woodpecker,
Red-capped Robin-Chat, Grey Penduline Tit,
Dusky and
Village Indigobirds, Green-capped Eremomela,
Yellow-billed Oxpecker, Saddle-billed Stork and if we are
lucky we may get a glimpse of the Collared Palm
Thrush.
Continuing south we head through Mopane woodland and open
savannah. When given the time these areas may yield:
Pallid
Harrier, Lesser Moorhen, Secretary Bird as well as
Double-banded Sand grouse.
Arriving at
'Letaba' camp just before the entrance
gates close for the evening,
you check in, visit the camps shop to
stock up with drinks, move into your chalet
and freshen up ready for dinner.
Letaba is
particularly good for viewing
and hearing Owls: Pearl-spotted,
Barred,
Scops
and
Giant Eagle Owl.
You
enjoy dinner out in the open listening to the African night
sounds whilst we
discuss the next day's exciting events,
relaxed and enjoying a little beverage.
Day 5: Kruger Park - Satara Camp (B D)
The day starts early with a wake up call at 5.30pm.
At 6.00pm the camp gates open. We leave
Letaba and head towards 'Satara' camp.
Satara is your
camp for your last night. Apart from the
birdlife it's also well known for its Lion population and for
being one of the better areas in the park to see Cheetah.
The landscape in this
area is quite open with large Marula trees scattered across the
open savannah. We will be keeping our eyes open for: Martial
Eagle, Lappet-faced Vultures, Acacia Pied Barbet and
Brown-crowned Tchagra. The open plains to the
north of camp are perhaps the best place in the park to record
Montagu's
and Pallid Harrier.
You arrive at camp for
approx 2.00pm for
lunch with a siesta after or to stock up with
drinks for a quick afternoon game drive.
We see so many different animals
- Elephant, Buffalo, Zebra, Giraffe, Wildebeest, Impala,
Kudu and Waterbuck; just to name a few common species.
After enjoying a very different day you return back to camp before the gates close, knowing your last full day was indeed maximised.
Day 6: Kruger Park - Johannesburg (B)
Leaving the Kruger National Park in the
early morning we make our way back to Johannesburg via the J.G.
Strydom Tunnel, where we will hope to see one of only a few
breeding pairs of Taita Flacons
within southern Africa. Scanning the skies we may also be lucky
enough to see both Cape Vultures
and Verreaux’s Eagles soaring
above.
From here our next stop will be the
spectacular Blyde River Canyon – 3rd largest in the
world. Keep your eyes open for Jackal
Buzzard, Cape Bunting and Mocking
Cliff-Chat.
Returning to the main road our next
diversion will be through the Verloren Vlei Valley. This is a
protected area and being at an altitude of 2000m is home to a
few very select species. Here we will hope to find
Cape Rock Thrush, Yellow-breasted Pipit,
Southern Bald Ibis, Gurney’s Sugarbird
and if we are lucky some Wattled
Cranes.
Our lunch stop will be in the town of
Dullstroom and then we push on to Johannesburg, but make one
last stop at a roadside pan where we will hope to find
Cape Shoveler, Lesser and
Greater Flamingo’s and provided it
is the summer a host of other waders too.
We will arrive back in Jo'burg at approx 6.00pm
with drop off at Jo'burg Int Airport or at any hotel.
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Note
Interested in this 6 day itinerary,
email
us right now - we'll check availability and reply within 48 hours.
(B L D) refers to the meals included - Breakfast,
Lunch and Dinner.
Our Birding Tours
generally run at a slower pace than our wildlife safaris. Time
is often spent at the camps as there are
birds in abundance. You
do also spend time at waterholes as they make
for excellent birding.
Itinerary may vary slightly due to
accommodation availability, gate opening times, weather
etc....
Bird Watching South Africa | Bird Watching Kruger Park
Bird 6 Day
Birding Tour | 6 Day Bird Watching Holiday | Birdwatching 6 Day Safari
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